26 They sailed to the region of the Gerasenes, which is across the lake from Galilee.
27 When Jesus stepped ashore, he was met by a demon-possessed man from the town. For a long time this man had not worn clothes or lived in a house, but had lived in the tombs.
28 When he saw Jesus, he cried out and fell at his feet, shouting at the top of his voice, "What do you want with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg you, don't torture me!"
29 For Jesus had commanded the evil spirit to come out of the man. Many times it had seized him, and though he was chained hand and foot and kept under guard, he had broken his chains and had been driven by the demon into solitary places.
30 Jesus asked him, "What is your name?" "Legion," he replied, because many demons had gone into him.
31 And they begged him repeatedly not to order them to go into the Abyss.
32 A large herd of pigs was feeding there on the hillside. The demons begged Jesus to let them go into them, and he gave them permission.
33 When the demons came out of the man, they went into the pigs, and the herd rushed down the steep bank into the lake and was drowned.
34 When those tending the pigs saw what had happened, they ran off and reported this in the town and countryside,
35 and the people went out to see what had happened. When they came to Jesus, they found the man from whom the demons had gone out, sitting at Jesus' feet, dressed and in his right mind; and they were afraid.
36 Those who had seen it told the people how the demon-possessed man had been cured.
Many an Arminian will claim over and over that God doesn’t “force” anyone to be saved, that God will not force anyone to do anything they don’t want to do. Notwithstanding the many passages about which I’ve written that say just the opposite (Proverbs 16:9; 19:21; 20:24; 21:1, Ephesians 1:11) right in the verses above we see a man who does NOT want to be “cured” of his problems but Jesus cured him anyway. Did the demoniac of the Gerasenes have a choice? No. Neither the demons, nor the man had a choice in the matter. Since he was under the control of demons (like every lost man - Romans 6:17-18), the man simply said what the demons wanted him to say.
The Arminian may argue that it was not the man but the demons in the man that did not want to be driven out, that the man would really want to be freed. Well, that can be said of every lost man! It is my contention that Paul tells us that every lost man is demon-possessed (Ephesians 2:2) which is why:
Who in their “right mind” would not want to be saved? Who would not want to go to Heaven? Everyone would want to, is that not correct? But yet many people every day reject the Gospel, reject Christ, and reject God. Many believers think that it makes no sense. “Why would people reject the good news of salvation?”
Well, I understand why it doesn’t make sense. Most believers who think this way do not understand, or reject the fact, that every lost man is demon possessed. This is why God steps in and saves a man by quickening his dead spirit thus driving the demon(s) out of him. That man now trusts in God, accepts truths from the Holy Spirit, and believes that Jesus Christ is who He said He is. In his former state, the sinful nature with which all men are conceived, it was impossible for him to understand anything from God (1 Corinthians 2:14).
The point of this Bible Truth is that God is sovereign and He does what He wants, when He wants, how He wants, and to whom He wants. If a man is chosen in Christ before the foundation of the world (Ephesians 1:4), that man can do anything he wants, even murder, and God will still step in and save him (i.e. King David, the apostle Paul - both of whom were complicit in murder). If a man is NOT chosen in Christ before the foundation of the world he can do many religiously and spiritually good actions, and it won’t make one bit of difference toward his salvation (Matthew 7:22-23) because they are “works” of the flesh (Ephesians 2:8-9), and Jesus said the flesh counts for nothing (John 6:63). A man can even call on Jesus, and it still won’t help him into Heaven (Matthew 7:21).
We become children of God NOT by human decision (John 1:13). It’s God’s decision and He made it before the foundation of the world. (Ephesians 1:4)
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