Episode Transcript  

One

Totally Out of Control

You are familiar with that dramatic moment in the life of Jesus when He drove the demons out of a man, they entered a herd of pigs, and the pigs rushed down into the sea and drowned. This poor man was possessed by a legion of demons, about 5,000 of them. His life was totally out of control. He lived among the tombs, crying out day and night. No one could restrain him anymore, not even with chains.

He knew his life was out of control. He could not manage it. He could not fix himself. He could not set himself free. Then he saw Jesus. He ran to Him. He fell down before Him. He surrendered himself to Jesus as God. And Jesus set him free. Jesus sent the demons went into the herd of pigs, who rushed down the steep bank into the sea and drowned.

When everyone came out to see what had happened, they found the man who had been completely out of control, the man no one could live with. And now, there he was, sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed, in his right mind, and totally at peace.

Totally out of control. He ran to Jesus. He surrendered. Jesus set him free. And now he was sitting peacefully at His feet. That is what happens when we stop trying to control everything ourselves and surrender ourselves completely to Jesus.

Two

Personal Transformation

The man who was totally out of control was transformed by his encounter with Jesus, and it happened in an instant. We see other dramatic transformations like this. Think of St. Paul. One moment he is traveling to Damascus to arrest Christians. Then he encounters Jesus, and everything changes. But that is not the ordinary way God transforms us. Usually, Jesus transforms us over time, a lifetime. And the essential, non-negotiable means of our personal transformation are the frequent reception of the sacraments combined with daily meditation and a resolution.

In the Eucharist, Jesus increases his life in us. In Reconciliation, He forgives, heals, and restores us. By daily meditation and a resolution our thinking, our feelings, and our behavior change for good. The combination of sacraments and deepening prayer result in holiness. And it is holiness that converts others. Only if you are transformed by Christ will we be able to help our loved ones because the most convincing witness is not a philosophical or theological argument but a transformed life.

Three

Lay Person

Before Jesus departed the man who had been set free from the demons begged Jesus that he might become one of the Apostles, but Jesus refused him. Instead, Jesus told him to “go to your own people and tell them how the Lord had mercy on you.” The Apostles were called to the ordained ministry, they became Bishops and priests. Jesus told this man you’re calling is not to be ordained. You are to be a lay person. But you still have a mission and that mission is to go to your own people, to your family and friends.

In the original Greek text of the Scripture Jesus said to the man “pros tuos sous,” go to your own. Go back to your family. Go back to your friends. Go back to the people God has already placed in your life. Go back with a transformed life and help them grow closer to God. That is also the mission of the laity. And this is why at the end of Mass, the priest dismisses us saying “go”, go back to your family and friends. The priest tells you to go while he stays at the parish because his mission is there and your mission is to your own family and friends.

Go back with a transformed life and help them grow closer to God. Like the former demoniac, Jesus sends you to your own people to be an Apostle of Friendship.

Four

Not an Easy Audience

When the herdsmen saw the miracle Jesus performed they fled out of fear. And when the townspeople saw it, they begged Jesus to leave. Wow! They don’t want anything to do with Jesus. And now Jesus has commissioned the former demoniac to go on mission to these same people. This is not going to be easy!

He will have to do a few things. He could probably use some practice in the art of friendship and good conversation because he’s been living out in the tombs all by himself. He needs some practice in taking initiative, hospitality, taking interest in others, asking good questions, listening, caring for them and when the time is right, inviting them to their own encounter with Jesus. Then he will need practice in how to accompany those people one on one as they grow in deeper prayer and holiness and in their own mission of friendship.

And once he has practiced and gained those skills, Then he can build a genuine friendship with his family friends and persevere patiently in those friendships until they are ready to let Jesus into their lives.

Five

The Fruit of His Labor

The next time Jesus comes to the Decapolis, everything has changed. Remember, the first time Jesus came there in Mark 5, the people were afraid and begged Him to leave. In Mark 7:31–37, Jesus returns to the Decapolis, and this time people come looking for Him. They bring Him a man who cannot hear or speak and beg Jesus to heal him. And afterward, they themselves begin proclaiming what Jesus has done. Then great crowds gather around Jesus for several days to hear Him teach, and He feeds the four thousand.

Jesus had crossed the lake seemingly for one tormented man. The people rejected Him and asked Him to leave. Instead of forcing Himself on them, Jesus left behind one transformed layman as His witness. That man went to his own people, built friendships with them and prepared them to receive Jesus. And when Jesus returned, He encountered a radically different reception.

Eventually, the Decapolis became a major Christian region. Hippos, Gadara, Pella, Gerasa, and other cities became important Christian centers filled with Catholic churches and led by bishops. Jesus transformed one man and sent him back to his own people. Never underestimate what God can do with you! But you must do your part.

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