What if Jesus came to your church?

And behold, all the city came out to meet Jesus: and when they saw him, they besought him that he would depart from their borders.
God; ASV (2011-07-15). Holy Bible, American Standard Version (ASV) (Kindle Locations 29044-29045). Latus ePublishing. Kindle Edition.


     In the context of this verse, Jesus had just cast the demons out of two posessed men. The people feared these men, and had kept them in chains. Now these men were in their right minds. When the domons left the men, Jesus permited them to enter a herd of pigs, which then rushed into the sea.
     This caused a great deal of distress among the local inhabitants. Instead of rejoicing with the two men who had just been delivered, the people instead were very uncomfortable with what just occured. Perhaps they were upset about the pigs. Maybe they were uncomfortable about the deliverance of the demon posessed men. At any rate, the were uncomfortable with Jesus, and asked Him to leave.
     Sadly, we too can become complacent in our Christian experience. We like how church is done, we like how our lives are lived, we think everything is fine, and we want it to stay that way. We want things to go smooth, no excitement, no conviction, no upsetting visitors on Sunday,etc.
     What would happen if Jesus showed up during prayer time, and people were instantly, and miraculously healed of all manner of diseases? Would it make us nervous? Would we be uncomfortable? what would happen if people were suddenly filled with conviction, conviction so deep that some fell from their seats onto the floor where they lay weeping and crying out to God?  What would happen if some went forward and made public confession of sin? We never see this happen, but if you read about the great revivals of the past, it was a frequent occurence. My Father in law told of a pastor who announced to his congregation one Sunday, that he had been saved that weekend. His church promptly dismissed him! They were more comfortable with an unsaved pastor!
     The fact is, that when Jesus comes to church, things happen, changes occur, we are taken out of our comfort zones. The things that Jesus taught, the things that Jesus did,  are taught, and done. People are convicted of sin, people are healed of disease, people are set free from demons, people are set free from sin.
     Pigs are presented as unclean in the Bible. We may have unclean things in our lives that we hang onto, things that we do not want to see go. If Jesus were present, we know that like the pigs rushing into the sea, these things would have to go as well. It may be unbelief, sin, or worthless tradition, but it would have to go.
     Jesus came to give us abundant life. He came to destroy the work of the devil. He came to set the captives free. Let Him have His way with you.