He said to them, “Go!” So they came out and went into the pigs, and the whole herd rushed down the steep bank into the lake and died in the water. Those tending the pigs ran off, went into the town and reported all this, including what had happened to the demon-possessed men. Then the whole town went out to meet Jesus. And when they saw him, they pleaded with him to leave their region.

--Parallel verses:
‭‭Romans‬ ‭1‬:‭28‬-‭31‬
Furthermore, just as they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, so God gave them over to a depraved mind, so that they do what ought not to be done. They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips, slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents; they have no understanding, no fidelity, no love, no mercy.

Jesus came to rescue and save us from our sins. And he came to this village, and seeing these men, he wanted to rescue them from the demons that had, in part, taken control of their actions. He did just what he wanted to do. He cared for these men. He had compassion on them. And he longed for them to come back into a relationship with God.

We see another side of life in the townspeople. They didn’t really care about these men, they just cared about their income. They couldn’t see past themselves to understand who Jesus was. They were too caught up in their pride and controlling their lives. So when Jesus cast the spirits into the pigs, they reacted as their evil hearts naturally do.

Here we have the God of the universe working through his son Jesus to do an amazing miracle that no one else could do. And yet, instead of celebrating this, the townspeople resented him even being there; they were angry at the loss of their “precious pigs”. They could not control their own destiny anymore. And they didn’t want to rely on anyone else. They also didn’t want to change their motives and mindset to be good.

If Jesus had been invited to stay, he clearly could have helped them recover from the financial loss of the drowned pigs. He could have brought incredible riches and wealth to these townspeople, more than they could even dream of, but they had no faith.

While they did not commit an evil act, they did act with evil intentions and from hearts full of evil. And this is what Paul talks about in Romans 1. They were full of greed. They were deceitful in their motives and they had a depraved mind. There was not an ounce of compassion in their hearts for these formerly possessed men who had so greatly suffered. And so consequently, there was no joy and rejoicing when these men were freed from their demons.

What outcomes have I planned for my life? If Jesus walked into my life today, and did the miraculous, yet it cost me something, how would I respond?

Lord, you are sovereign. Your ways are way better than my ways. Teach me to trust that you have a plan. Teach me to rejoice when you heal and restore, even if there is a short-term cost to me.