Change can be terrifying. The Pharisees faced this -- they saw Jesus' ministry as a threat to their power, and so they opposed Jesus out of fear of change. In this story, the villagers came to see Jesus and saw a madman who was calm and a herd of pigs that was drowned in the sea. Everything they knew was turned upside-down, and out of fear, they urged Jesus away from them.
Jesus demands that we, too, change. He demands that we turn from our selfish ways and learn to think of God first, and others second. It's a hard change, and it can be inherently scary for us. If we think of ourselves last, who will look out for us? What might happen to us? Will we have enough?
It's a tremendous act of trust, to believe that God holds us so tightly in the palm of his hand that we need not look out for ourselves. We are safe in God's hands, and this frees us from worrying about ourselves, frees us to look towards others first.
It requires us to change, but in changing, we discover there is abundant grace.
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