I preached this sermon while a student in the presbytery’s Ruling Elder Preaching Initiative, delivered at Dillsboro Presbyterian Church, in Dillsboro, Indiana.
The lectionary was Luke 8:26-39 – Jesus Restores a Demon-Possessed Man.
What’s your story?
We tell stories to connect, to persuade, to inspire. Story is how we remember, how we hope, how we endure. We tell stories because we’re human.
And Jesus—the greatest storyteller of all time—knew that. His parables are simple on the surface but rich with layers of meaning. That’s why we remember the Prodigal Son, the Lost Sheep, the Mustard Seed, the Good Samaritan.
Stories stick. People forget sermons. They remember stories.
When you tell how Jesus changed your life, your story becomes proof that the Gospel works. That’s evangelism.
The demoniac in our scripture today had a story to tell too—and Jesus told him to go share it.
I try to make my faith story flexible. Something I can share in 30 minutes with a neighbor, or in 30 seconds with a cashier. A story that shows God’s love in any setting.
My wife and I have a dog, Clara, a beautiful Belgian Malinois mix. Clara and I are a certified pet therapy team. For over three years, we’ve visited patients at the Drake Rehabilitation Hospital in Cincinnati—especially on the fourth floor, where the long-term patients live.
One of them was Diane. She was nonverbal and immobile, her eyes the only part of her body that moved. She lay there, staring at the ceiling all day—eyes leaking with despair.
For three years, I tried to get her to look at Clara. But nothing—not even a glance.
Then, a few months ago, I tried something different. I placed a chair next to her bed, right by her head. Clara jumped up, looked at Diane—and Diane looked back. For ten whole seconds, they locked eyes.
The despair on her face melted away.// She looked… curious. Delighted. At peace. I was elated with the breakthrough when we left, eager for our next visit.
We returned a week later. What could we get Diane to react to today? The staff, kind and gentle, took me aside and said, “David, Diane passed away last weekend.” The visits that evening were tough.
But before she died, she connected with Clara. And the moment she did, I believe she felt the dignity and worth that only God’s love can bring.
I share this story so you can feel the power of God’s love in any setting, like how a dog’s silent gaze can reflect God’s love and grace.
(WE)
What story can you share?// Since your first awareness of God’s presence, you’ve had a story worth telling. One God wants to use.
But maybe you’re thinking, “David, I’m not comfortable evangelizing.” I get it.
In Acts 1:8, Luke writes “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
We’re not all street preachers. Presbyterians even get called the “Frozen Chosen”—sometimes with good reason! But evangelism doesn’t have to be loud. It’s about helping people meet the living Christ.
Bruce Finn writes: “Evangelism is simply a follower of Jesus telling their story in such a way that they’re telling Jesus’ story too.”
I was helping my neighbor Pete build a gate and I bounced a seemingly innocuous aspect of another message off of him. I told him the well-known narrative of how one of the robbers crucified with Jesus repented and received salvation an hour before he died. “But Dave,” Pete said, “That is found only in Luke.” I was delighted in his knowledge and feedback. I had no idea he was that well versed in the Gospel. The Holy Spirit was working in us.
So what’s your story? What does God want to say through it? [Pause]
Let’s look at Luke’s case study.
(GOD)
The story of the demon-possessed man—often called the demoniac—starts with a surprising journey found just prior in the Gospel.
In Luke 8:22, Jesus says, “Let’s go over to the other side of the lake.” Sounds casual, right? But it’s not.
Context changes everything. On the west side of the Sea of Galilee were Jewish towns. But across the lake, to the east, lay the Decapolis—Gentile territory. It was considered unclean, Jews wouldn’t be caught dead there. So when Jesus said, “Let’s cross over,” He was saying, “Let’s go confront the other side.” He knew what was waiting for Him.
The disciples—fishermen, not sailors—were terrified by the storm that followed, afraid they would drown. The disciples woke Jesus, who got up and rebuked the wind and the raging waters. The storm subsided, and all was calm. The disciples asked one another, “Who is this?”—still trying to understand who He really is.
When they reach the shore, Jesus steps out of the boat. The disciples? Not mentioned. Maybe they stayed in the boat. Maybe they didn’t want to set foot on Gentile land. Either way, the point is clear: you have to get out of the boat if you want to join the fight.
Jesus is immediately met by a man possessed. He’s filthy, naked, living in tombs, surrounded by pigs—everything about him is unclean. For a Jew to even say the name of the region he is living in, Decapolis, made the speaker ritually unclean for seven days. It’s much like Dori saying, “That team up north,” instead of “Michigan.”
Jesus had never been to this region before, yet the demons inside the demoniac recognize Jesus and call Him “Son of the Most High God.” Isn’t it ironic? The demons know who Jesus is, while the disciples are still asking, “Who is this?”
The demons, named Legion, leave the man, enter a herd of pigs and they die in the lake. [We’re at the scene now of the cool artwork on your bulletin today. That was brilliant!] You would think everything is fine at this point. You would think everybody is happy for the now-former demoniac. I’m happy for the man! Aren’t you? //
The townsfolk came and witnessed three things right away:
1. The man formerly possessed by demons was clean, clothed, and cured.
2. The demons were gone.
3. 2000 pigs were dead, floating in the lake.
Take a wild guess what the locals were most concerned about. They’re more concerned with pigs than people. Everything was fine for them until Jesus came and healed this man. Out of sight, out of mind.
Evidently, when you are somewhat responsible for a large herd of pigs dying, affecting the local economy and ecology that much, well, the locals will welcome you like this brood of cicadas. They demand He leave, and he does.
The man begs to go with Jesus. But Jesus says no. Instead, He gives him a shortened Great Commission: “Return home and tell how much God has done for you.” And he did.
Mark’s gospel added the sentence to this story, “And all the people were amazed.”[Repeat] At his story.
What happened afterward? The scriptures don’t tell us. This is where the second greatest storyteller – Paul Harvey – would say, “And now, the rest of the story.”’
Jesus is recorded traveling to Decapolis only two times, the first being this story. The other time He was in Decapolis is found only in Matthew and Mark, where Jesus feeds 4000 men and their families.
The first time Jesus came, he was greeted by one demon-possessed man. How did it come that Jesus was greeted by 4000 men and their families on his second visit? I point back to the man who had been possessed. In current slang, we would say, “He had one job to do,” and he did it well. Jesus told him to “Return home and tell how much God has done for you.” “And the people were amazed.” He helped break down barriers between the east and west. He helped pave the way for the Apostle Paul, who wrote in Romans 10:12, “There is no difference between Jew and Gentile [between East and West] – the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on Him.”
That’s the power of story. He was just a Gentile, from a Gentile city, in a Gentile setting. This man had no training, no seminary, no community—only a story of what God had done for him. And that was enough. When Jesus returned to Decapolis later, 4,000 men and their familiescame out to meet Him.
From one healed man… to thousands hearing the good news. Paul Harvey would say, “And now you know – the rest of the story.”
(YOU)
Evangelism doesn’t require a degree. It requires a story. And you have one.
Remember my dog Clara? After our experience with Diane, we tried the same thing with Will. He’d also been on the fourth floor for years. Non-verbal, immobile, he used to respond to any voice with a big smile. But for the past eight months, he had been smiling less and less.
I never saw signs that family had visited him. Perhaps Clara and I were the only outside faces he saw. I was worried about the trajectory he was on.
I tried the same thing I did with Diane. Chair beside the bed. Clara jumped up. I called, “Will” a few times to get him to track my voice with his eyes, I ducked behind Clara… and then his eyes met hers.
It took a couple seconds, then—he smiled. Big. For the first time in months. The recreational therapist with us was smiling just as big.
Then the biggest surprise, Will tried to talk. Well, he grunted. Three times, with excitement. The therapist cried with joy. That made me tear up. With Clara, Will got to feel dignity and worth from God’s love. That’s connection. That’s God’s love, breaking through. That’s story.
(WE)
So I’ll ask again: What’s your story? [Pause]
You have a compelling story that can speak to someone’s heart—in 30 minutes or 30 seconds. In a deep conversation or a passing moment.
So take time to listen. Ask God: What’s my story? What do you want to say through it?
It won’t be shaped by Paul Harvey.
It will be shaped by the Holy Spirit.
And it will be yours.
In Jesus’ Name.
