(Disclaimer: This transcript is auto-generated and may contain mistakes.)

🎵Music🎵 🎵Music🎵 🎵Music🎵 🎵Music🎵 🎵Music🎵 🎵Music🎵 🎵Music🎵 🎵Music🎵 🎵Music🎵 🎵Music🎵 🎵Music🎵 🎵Music🎵 🎵Music🎵 🎵Music🎵 🎵Music🎵 🎵Music🎵 🎵Music🎵 🎵Music🎵 🎵Music🎵 🎵Music🎵 🎵Music🎵 🎵Music🎵 🎵Music🎵 🎵Music🎵 🎵Music🎵 🎵Music🎵 🎵Music🎵 🎵Music🎵 🎵Music🎵 🎵Music🎵 🎵Music🎵 🎵Music🎵 🎵Music🎵 🎵Music🎵 🎵Music🎵 🎵Music🎵 🎵Music🎵 🎵Music🎵 🎵Music🎵 🎵Music🎵 🎵Music🎵 🎵Music🎵 All right. Good morning, everybody. Welcome to Verity Baptist Church, and take out your bulletin. We'll go through some announcements real quickly. Our verse of the week is probably more time on the second sermon here today, and I do have some stuff I want to talk about after the second sermon. So I'm going to try to make the first sermon a lot shorter. Yesterday we got done about 15 minutes early. So basically a 10-minute break in between the first and second service. So if we start the second service early, you know, that would be great if we were able to start by 11 or 1105. But our service times are listed there. Wednesday evening Bible study at 7 p.m. Officials so many times are listed there. Saturday soul winning can be announced every week. We have soul winning around 1.45 here today. Our salvations and baptisms are there in our bulletin. You notice both in Manila and Pampanga we have records, you know, broke our records from last year. So praise God for that. On the next page we have our Bible memorization challenge, same as normal. Upcoming activities. So today is our monthly prayer meeting. So after soul winning time, if you're able to come back to the building, I will divide up as men and women and have our monthly prayer meeting. So we're coming up to our first service in the building. So our first Sunday at the building is going to be next week. And this Wednesday service, though, we are going to be meeting at the new building. Of course, I want to make sure everybody knows how to get to the new location. Honestly, if you've never been there, there's a lot of, it's like right up, it's a bit confusing. It takes a little bit of time. In the group chat, we're going to send the directions and everything so you can know. If you're not part of the group chat, let me know. We can add you to the group chat if you have any questions. We're planning on this Wednesday. And then this coming Sunday we're going to be at the new building. So praise God for that. And when it comes to buildings and houses and stuff, I'm not a sentimental person with stuff like this. So for me it's like a last service, new place, no big deal. But if I see a lot of you crying today, it's like I'll understand, okay? Some people are sentimental. We've been here for what? Over five years. I mean, praise God there's been a great location for us. Obviously, you can tell we need more space. So that's a great problem to have. But anyways, also coming up, we have this event on Bonifacio Day, the Sewing Event. And right here I have a sign-up sheet. So let me just quickly explain this to you. We're planning a Sewing Event on that Saturday and then on the Sunday a preaching service event, okay? And so I know we still have time and I know people don't like to sign up until like five minutes before. It's like, oh, by the way, I'm coming, right? So we're asking you to the best of your ability to kind of try to make your decision and figure out what you're going to do. So I just kind of put this for myself just so you kind of understand. So I have my name here and of course I represent my family. You know, if you're a guy here, you don't have to have your wife also put her name. Just you can represent your family. It makes it easier. And so two adults coming, my wife and I. Three children coming. You say, what is a child? I don't know. Twelve years and under is a child. You know, above that's an adult. You know, whatever. And then so the Saturday event, my family is going to be coming. The Sunday event, though, my family is going to be back here. And so I'm perfectly happy, though, if a lot of people are staying there for the preaching service. And of course the number one goal for our church is to help get new churches started, whether we start them or we can help other people or other churches get things started, like-minded churches. And so what we're planning to do is just make an announcement. It's sort of like a Verity, steadfast, you know, combination thing. Brother Duncan is going to be heading it up. And hopefully there's online listeners in that area that are looking for a good church that they might see this event and then maybe they can't come out on Sunday because they already have a church they're kind of connected to, but they come out on Saturday and then we can kind of get an idea. And you know, we don't know what's going to take place. It's going to be a fun and great event no matter what, even if we don't have other people join us. So if you're able to come, we'd love to have you out for this event. I think it's very important to get churches started. Obviously that is a very important thing. And this is kind of like a great start to kind of see what the Lord can do there. And so after I go through the announcements, I'll put that over there. And I'm not saying you have to sign up today. You know, I'm just we're going to have it there, you know, if you've got a chance to think about it. But it's a Saturday and Sunday event. And so if you're able to stick around, that would be great. Obviously we'll have more details as we get closer to that event. But anyways, we are in the Book of Matthew. That will be the first sermon here today. And our birthdays and anniversaries for October are listed there in the bulletin. And then on the back we have the basic rules of conduct and organization for our church. And you should have an insert in your bulletin for the sermons here today. I did mention the second sermon I'm going to be preaching about my dad. And I ask you to give me a bit of grace because I almost didn't cry yesterday until the end of the sermon. And I'm telling a lot of stories that I remember and I got a little bit teary-eyed. So just give me a little bit of grace if I have to gather my thoughts during the sermon because obviously it's a bit emotional for me. But anyways, I believe that is it for announcements while Brother Marlon leads us in another song. All right, for our second song, let's turn to hymn number 358. Hymn number 358. Let's sing the song, "'Tis the blessed hour of prayer." "'Tis the blessed hour of prayer When our hearts slowly bend And we gather to Jesus our Savior and friend If we come to Him in faith, His protection to share What a bond for the weary! Oh, how sweet to be there Blessed hour of prayer, blessed hour of prayer What a bond for the weary! Oh, how sweet to be there "'Tis the blessed hour of prayer When the Savior goes near With a tender compassion His cheer What a bond to hear When He tells us, may we cast At His victory What a bond for the weary! Oh, how sweet to be there Blessed hour of prayer, blessed hour of prayer What a bond for the weary! Oh, how sweet to be there "'Tis the blessed hour of prayer When the tempted and dry To the Savior who loves them Their songs proclaim With a sympathizing heart He removes every tear What a bond for the weary! Oh, how sweet to be there Blessed hour of prayer, blessed hour of prayer What a bond for the weary! Oh, how sweet to be there At the blessed hour of prayer Trusting Him we believe That the blessings worth needing Will surely receive In the fullness of this trust We shall lose every care What a bond for the weary! Oh, how sweet to be there Blessed hour of prayer, blessed hour of prayer What a bond for the weary! Oh, how sweet to be there This time let's take our Titan offering Oh, how sweet to be there Blessed hour of prayer, blessed hour of prayer What a bond for the weary! Oh, how sweet to be there Blessed hour of prayer, blessed hour of prayer Oh, how sweet to be there Blessed hour of prayer, blessed hour of prayer Blessed hour of prayer, blessed hour of prayer Blessed hour of prayer, blessed hour of prayer For our script reading, please open your Bible to Matthew 8 Matthew 8 we will read beginning from verse number 28 to verse number 34 Matthew 8, this amen, if you do Matthew 8 beginning from verse number 28 the Bible reads And when He was come to the other side, into the country of the Yergesenes, there met Him to possess the devils coming out of the tombs, exceeding fierce, so that no man might pass by that way. And behold, they cried out, saying, What have we to do with thee, Jesus, the Son of God? At our computer determined asked for the time, and there was a good way off from them, and heard of many swine feeding. So the devils besought Him, saying, If thou cast us out, suffer us to go away into the herd of swine, and said unto them, Go. And when they were come out, they went into the herd of swine, and behold, the whole herd of swine ran violently down a steep place into the sea, and perished in the waters. And they not kept them bled, and went their ways into the city, and taught everything, and what was before them, to the possess of the devils. And behold, the whole city came out to meet Jesus, and when they saw Him, they besought Him that He would depart out of their course. Let's pray. All right, we're here in Matthew chapter 8. We're continuing going verse by verse through the book of Matthew. As I mentioned during the announcements, I'm going to try to make this sermon a bit shorter to spend more time on the second service and the announcements afterwards. But anyways, we're here in Matthew chapter 8, and let's just start at verse number 28. The Bible reads, And when He was come to the other side into the country of the Gergesenes, there met Him two possessed with devils coming out of the tombs, exceeding fear, so that no man might pass by that way. Now, this is not the only place that the Bible speaks about this story. We're going to be in Matthew 8 quite a bit during the sermon, so you can put a bullet in there, put your finger, put a pen, or whatever, and you can jump forward to Mark chapter 5. So the next book over in the Bible, Mark chapter 5, and we saw in Matthew chapter 8 it mentions two possessed with devils. Okay, two people possessed with devils. Mark chapter 5, verse 1. Mark 5, verse 1. Mark 5, verse 1, And they came over unto the other side of the sea, into the country of the Gadarenes. And when He was come out of the ship, immediately there met Him out of the tombs, a man with an unclean spirit, who had his dwelling among the tombs, and no man could bind him, no, not with chains. So here in Mark chapter 5, it mentions a man. A man. Now, when the Bible's saying a man, that doesn't mean that there's not another person there also. That doesn't mean that there's not another man with him. It's just highlighting in Mark 5 the one specific person, because people try to say, well, this is a contradiction. This is an error. Was it one person? Was it two people? You know, which is it? Well, it's like the Bible's highlighting two people in Matthew 8, and, of course, the story that we know is more famous is the man that's, you know, possessed with all these devils. Go to Luke chapter 8. Luke 8. Luke chapter 8. And look, I can certainly understand when you're first reading the Bible, you haven't heard this story, you could read it and say, wait a minute, which is it? But, you know, realize that obviously there's no contradictions in the Bible, and, you know, sometimes you just need to keep reading and keep learning, and all the so-called errors that the world doesn't understand, you start seeing, oh, okay, I get it. This makes sense. There's no error here. There's no contradiction. Luke 8, verse 26. So, once again, it focuses on a certain man, okay? Go back to Matthew 8. Matthew chapter 8. But here in Matthew 8, we see two people possessed with devils, and what I want to talk about is really just, this sermon is the men from the Gergesenes, but really what I want to talk about is devil possession and the things that we can learn from this story and the other gospels that talk about this exact story. Matthew 8, verse 28. The Bible says, Point number one is spirituality. Spirituality. You know what you often see with people that are possessed by devils? They are attracted to spiritual things. I mean, these two devils, they meet Jesus. It's not that they're trying to avoid him. They meet Jesus. And you know what you see in this world? That oftentimes people that are possessed by devils are very tied up into religion. And let me just give you a few secular examples of what I'm talking about. Now, before I say what I'm about to, I want you to realize I do not believe every mental disorder is due to devil possession. I don't believe that every physical disorder is due to devil possession, but I also believe that sometimes it is as a result of people being possessed by devils. And I want to read you from Wikipedia about schizophrenia. It says here, Such as the belief that they are possessed by demons. So that's a common thing for people that are schizophrenic. I think I'm possessed by demons. It's like, well, I might agree with you. Or that a god is talking to them. That they themselves are divine beings, or that they are prophets. And what you see is many people that are possessed by devils, they have this attraction to the spiritual world even though it's obviously the wrong religion and they're unsafe. You can think of plenty of things. Think of like an Albulario. Think of a witch doctor, right? Let me give you some other examples about this. There is a director by the name of Roman Polanski. I don't know if he's alive or dead at this point. But in 1968, he wrote and directed the movie Rosemary's Baby. Now, I've never seen this movie. I've heard some people talk about it. Think of something where the woman's possessed and somehow the baby is a devil or something like that, something very demonic, something weird, something that nobody should watch, regardless of if you're a Christian. It's just weird, demonic, weird stuff. And he wrote this in 1968. Well, in 1969, on August 9, 1969, while Polanski, Roman Polanski, was working in London, this is the person that wrote this demonic movie, he's working in London. His pregnant wife, Sharon Tate, and four other people were murdered at the Polanski's residence in Los Angeles by cult leader Charles Manson's followers. Now, not everybody in the Philippines knows who Charles Manson is. If you're from the U.S., you know who Charles Manson is, right? This guy said he was Jesus Christ, and this guy got a group of people. And as far as I know, he did not physically murder anybody, but he convinced his followers to kill people. And it's a big coincidence that this writer-director writes the most satanic movie, and one year later this guy who says he's Jesus Christ targets the house of this person. And it was a huge event in the U.S. because this is a famous actress, this is a famous director, and it's big news, even worldwide, from this person, Charles Manson. By the way, a lot of people don't know this, but Charles Manson, before he decided he was Jesus Christ, was arrested for forcibly raping a young boy at knifepoint. But since he was not 18 years old, we'll just give you a little slap on the wrist, and you just spend a few months in this correctional facility for youth that are not yet 18, and then later on he becomes this cult leader serial killer, Charles Manson. This is what Charles Manson believed. Manson claimed that he was Jesus. And, you know, by the way, if someone says that they're Jesus or something similar, they're a bad person, okay? No further comments. Manson claimed that he was Jesus, but, you know, it's great when people like this get arrested. Anyways, Manson claimed that he was Jesus and believed the string of murderers would help hasten an apocalyptic race war. His cult of about 100 followers was deeply engaged in drug use. I mean, drugs and you're Jesus Christ, okay? And included many naïve young girls lured in to help carry out his mission. His followers committed nine slayings at four locations in the summer of 1969. By the way, you could go to YouTube. I think Charles Manson died a year or two ago, but you could go to YouTube and Charles Manson, you can see him speaking in tongues. And I'm telling you, it doesn't seem like he's faking it. It's some satanic, demonic thing that he's doing. And this is the guy who says he's Jesus Christ and he's responsible for all these murders, yet he's linked to the spiritual. When he's speaking in tongues, and look, you can agree with me or disagree of back masking, is that what they call it, with music and words that are said, but if you reverse him speaking in tongues and slow it down, this is what it sounds like. And I have listened to it, it's what it sounds like. See them rape, hail Satan and Beelzebub 2, now we sit by them, bleed for you. And personally, I don't think that's a coincidence, maybe you do, but regardless, what you see is people that are possessed are often attracted to spiritual things. I'm not saying that they're godly, but yet they're attracted to spiritual things. By the way, don't be surprised if we as a good church would have people that are attracted to spiritual things and then join up that are really just bizarre or possessed or whatever. Albularios, voodoo practitioners, witch doctors, a spiritista. I mean, these people, I've been sowing before and running to a spiritista and it's like, alright, well have a nice day because I get a little bit afraid. Turn your Bible to Matthew 8, Matthew 8, Matthew 8, verse 28. So point number 1, we see spirituality and other examples are in the Old Testament with Pharaoh. The wise men are sorcerers, they're literally sorcerers. And a lot of religious leaders are just like that today. Point number 1 is spirituality. Point 2, we see sorcery and suicide, sorcery and suicide. And notice what it says in verse 28. And when he was come to the other side into the country of the Gergesenes, there met him two possessed with devils coming out of the tombs, exceeding fears, so that no man might pass by that way. So these two people that come to him, they just kind of hang out in graveyards. Let's just hang out around a bunch of dead bodies. Now look, obviously when somebody dies, they go to heaven or hell. I don't believe that their ghost is trapped in this world or some weird belief, but I'm also not going to hang out at a graveyard. There's something kind of creepy about that. It's kind of weird where you're just hanging out by dead bodies. I mean, the Bible says, all that hate me love death, right? It's weird, it's creepy, and yet that's what you see. They're hanging out in the tombs, right? They have this attraction to death. Here's another example of this. In voodoo, perhaps their most famous loa, which is kind of like their god slash angel. They have a lot of different loa. I think there's eight really famous, is the baron. Baron Samedi or whatever, if I'm pronouncing that correct. And sometimes they depict him in movies. I think I read before he was in one of the comic book movies. One of the villains was the baron that he came and everything like that. And basically what they believe in voodoo, the goal in voodoo is you want to get possessed by loa. And so basically there's different attributes that will tell you which loa possessed you. And this is what the baron is like in voodoo. It says here from this article, he spends most of his time in the invisible realm of voodoo spirits. He is notorious for his outrageous behavior, swearing continuously and making filthy jokes to the other spirits. It doesn't mention this in this article, but he's also famous for eating glass. So basically you see somebody in Haiti that's eating glass, he's possessed by the baron. Okay? Yeah, it's weird. I'm glad I don't live in Haiti. Right? He is married to another powerful spirit known as Mamun Brigit, but often chases after mortal women. He loves smoking and drinking and is rarely seen without a cigar in his mouth or a glass of rum in his bony fingers. Baron Samedi can usually be found at the crossroads between the worlds of death and the living. When someone dies, he digs their grave and greets their soul after they have been buried, leading them to the underworld. Now look, I am not suggesting that you go online and read stories about the baron, but people have stories in Haiti where they're just walking by the road and they happen to be near a graveyard and somebody just starts walking out of the graveyard with a cigar and they might be chewing glass and they're notorious for wanting to fornicate with like every woman they see and sometimes forcibly. And it's like, once again, I'm glad I don't live in Haiti. Okay? But there's this obsession with death. It's like he's always hanging out in the graveyards. And it's not just how they depict him. In Haiti, those are the stories people have. It's like I was just walking by the way and this man comes out of the graveyard. It's like, whoa, and then they just run and get out of there. Right? There is this obsession with death, with suicide, with sorcery, these things. Go to Matthew 17. Matthew 17. Matthew 17, verse 14. And let me say this. I'm not going to say that every single person that's obsessed with like goth and the occult or whatever is possessed, but I do believe that that can certainly lead to getting possessed. It's like when you've got this weird obsession with all these dark things, I do believe that can attract the devils to you. And what I would recommend, I mean, especially if you have young kids, you don't want them to get possessed, obviously. I would say steer clear of that. Right? I mean, make sure you have nothing to do with the demonic realm whatsoever. The Bible says in Matthew 17, verse 14, And when they were come to the multitude, there came to him a certain man, kneeling down to him, and saying, Lord, have mercy on my son, for he is lunatic and sorvexed. For oft times he falleth into the fire and oft into the water. Now, when it's saying he falleth into the fire and falleth into the water, it's not saying he tripped and accidentally got hurt. It's saying he's trying to kill himself. Jumping in the fire and jumping in the water meaning just trying to drown or kill yourself. Right? And what we're seeing is that this possessed person has this obsession with suicide, trying to kill themselves. Right? And you're going to see that in the Bible, but you also see that in real life. When people are possessed by devils, they have this attraction to these dark things, loving death and suicide. You don't have to turn there for the sake of time just because I want more time for the second sermon. But if you remember Elijah versus the false prophets of Baal, and what are they doing? They're cutting themselves and drawing blood. That's weird. That's scary. It's like, what are you doing? When you read that, it's not just like a small cut. It's like knives and lances really cutting themselves. It's like, man, I can't get God to listen to me. Let me just harm my body. It's like, that's creepy. Right? Or, of course, people... Look, I'm not saying this is always the case, but of course there are people that when they try to commit suicide, they might try to cut themselves. And sometimes it might just mean they're possessed by devils. Now, I'm not saying that's always the case. I mean, depression is a real thing. And people try to kill themselves that are not possessed. But I do believe that devil possession can lead to people committing suicide. We see it in Matthew. And there's plenty of stories that you have heard before. I mean, I remember in California, there's this famous hotel. And I don't know how many stories it was, but there was this woman who committed suicide at the hotel because one day, all of a sudden, all the water was just disgusting. And they didn't know what took place. And this woman had climbed up to the very top. And, you know, she had jumped in and she had killed herself. And then everything was polluted. But they went back the week prior to this woman when she's staying at the hotel. And you see that she's entering into an elevator. And all of a sudden, she's just like... And she's like talking to someone. No one's there. And all of a sudden, she just runs. And it's like, look, I can't say for sure. But certainly, yeah, being possessed by devils is a possibility with that person, especially when they commit suicide shortly after that. Right? And you do see with people possessed with devils, they have this weird attraction or fixation on death. Turn to Mark 5. Mark 5. Mark Chapter 5. I don't know. Maybe it's just me. I mean, but for me, you know, sharp objects, you know, knives, I just... It's like gross even thinking about that. Like in horror movies, they always use, you know, kind of a gross object because... And it's just like when people are obsessed with that, it's like, what's wrong with you? Right? I mean, and oftentimes it can be being possessed by devils. All they that hate me love death, the Bible says. Mark 5, verse 5. And when I'm saying all they that hate me, I'm not saying if you hate me. I'm saying people that hate God love death. Mark 5, verse 5. And always night and day when he was in the mountains... So this is the parallel story. And in the tombs, crying and cutting himself with stones. So he's hanging out in the tombs, and when it's saying crying, it's like cry aloud, yelling. He's in the tombs screaming and just like cutting himself. That's weird. I mean, if you see somebody in a graveyard that's screaming and cutting themselves, yeah, I think they're probably possessed by devils. That's what we see in this story here where there's this obsession with, you know, just these dark things and death. So point number one, we see spirituality. Point two, we see sorcery and suicide. Point three, we see separation. Point three, we see separation. Notice what it says in Mark 5, verse 5. And always night and day, he was in the mountains. Look, there's not a lot of people that hang out in the mountains by themselves. I love going hiking, but, you know, I don't just hang out in a mountain in the middle of night. Right? And just hang out there by myself in a mountain. What you're seeing is he's separated from people. He's away from people. And when people are possessed by devils, they often want to be away from everybody. Right? I'll give you some examples that I've noticed in my life. In Pampanga, this area's been shut down for a while, but Nepo Park is a common area that we go soul-winning. And you know what you often find in some of these parks is there's a lot of homeless people in these parks. Right? And, you know, what I would notice, because there's this one woman in particular, and I was preaching this yesterday and everyone kind of starts laughing because all of us have given her the gospel. She must have heard it like 20 times. Everybody at church has given her the gospel because she's always at Nepo Park, and she's heard it over and over again, and she's just away from people. But you know what I noticed being at Nepo Park, which was interesting? When we did soul-winning marathons there, whenever you got even close to people that are likely possessed by devils, they would often just get up and move to the other side of the park. And I would see this woman do that like 10 times over the course of two hours. She would just get up and go to the other side of the park. It's like she wants to be away from people. I mean, it was kind of creepy. When I worked in Cumberland, Maryland, where I grew up in the U.S., it's a four-season area. And, you know, I worked in Cumberland, Maryland when I was in my 20s. And in Cumberland, Maryland, there was this woman that was known in the area as a homeless woman. And her family was very rich, and this woman just chose to live on the streets. And her family, she would come home to dinner to her family sometimes, but she'd always just be on the streets away from people. And whenever somebody would be walking, by the way, because this woman's right near my office downtown, 50 feet away, and this woman was, you know, I don't know if you know the word skittish. It's like she's afraid to be around people. You get kind of close, and she just starts going. It's like she doesn't want to be near anybody, and she's just hanging out by herself. And I saw this woman all the time, and she was always just very creepy. I remember then one time I went out for a jog. I'm going running, and I remember I was going for a run, and I saw this woman, and she was on the back porch of her family's house. And, you know, I was only like, as I'm jogging by, I'm like, just for me to brother Kyle away, like not very far at all. And all of a sudden, I'm telling you, it was like out of a horror movie. She turns her head, and she's like, hello. And I just started sprinting out of there. I was like, God, I'm sorry for watching horror movies when I was young. It's like, I've got to get out of here. It was very scary. It was very creepy. And so they often want to be separated, and those are personal stories, but you see that in the Bible. Now, I'm not saying that every homeless person is possessed by devils, but I am certainly saying that a large percentage of homeless people are possessed by devils. Even more so, I would say, in the U.S. than here. But even here, you can certainly see that there's a lot of people that are, if they're not possessed, they are out of their minds. They are loony tombs, right? Go to Matthew chapter 8. Matthew 8. Matthew chapter 8. And look, I would say, I'm not going to go into really more stories about this, but I would say that probably all of us have seen, like, weird things before in our lives that could probably, in hindsight, because maybe you weren't saved when you saw these weird things or whatever, you could attribute to devil possession, right? And I know so many stories. For the sake of time, I'm not going to go into all these stories, but there's a lot of weird stuff in this world. Sometimes it's just people are possessed by devils. Point number one is spirituality. Point number two is sorcery and suicide. Point three is separation. Point four is strength. Point four is strength. What you're going to find is people that are possessed by devils are often unusually strong. It says here in Matthew 8, verse 28, And when he's come to the other side into the country of the Gergesenes, there met him two possessed with devils, coming out of the tombs, exceeding fierce, very strong, so that no man might pass by that way. So basically, you can't pass by that way. It's like, you want to go, but you've got these possessed people that are very strong, and it's like, have a nice day, right? You turn back the other direction. Go to Mark, chapter 5. I mean, who needs Hollywood? I mean, the Bible's entertaining, isn't it, when you stop and read these stories? It's very interesting. Mark, chapter 5. Mark, chapter 5, verse 3. It said, Mark 5, verse 3, Who had his dwelling among the tombs, and no man could bind him, no, not with chains. Now look, if you bind or tie somebody up with ropes, a normal person's not going to get out of that, right? But how about with chains? That's to another level, isn't it? I mean, being bound up with chains, and nobody can bind him or stop him. And it says, because that he had often been bound with fetters and chains. There's a lot of people. It's like, let's chain him up, chain him up, chain him up, and it says, and the chains have been plucked asunder by him, and the fetters broke in pieces. Neither could any man tame him. It's like he's an animal. You can't tame him, right? He's like a rabid dog. He's acting crazy, and nobody can stop him. He's unusually strong. He's unusually fierce. And what the Bible's showing you is that when people are possessed by devils, they will often have an unusual amount of strength. In the U.S., when people got put into a psych ward, or when people were crazy, they would often put a straight jacket on them, right? And a straight jacket is meant to basically constrict their movements so they can't get out of it, and the reason why they did that is because they realized a lot of people they threw into a psych ward were insanely strong, and they're like, we've got to make sure that we bind them up because they were often bound up, and then it's just like breaking the straight jacket. Here's what it says about a straight jacket. A straight jacket is a garment shaped like a jacket with long sleeves that surpass the tips of the wearer's fingers. Its most typical use is restraining people who may cause harm to themselves or others. Once the wearer slides their arms into the sleeves, the person restraining the wearer crosses the sleeves against the chest and ties the ends of the sleeve to the back of the jacket, ensuring the arms are close to the chest with as little movement as possible. And there's kind of, I think, two main ideas. Number one, they have this unusual strength. Number two, if they're not bound up, they might break glass and kill themselves. And, you know, they bind them up so they cannot kill themselves and they cannot just cause harm to whomever who's just trying to leave them food or whatever, right? You know what I mean? Because people that are crazy often have this insane amount of strength. I want to give you a secular example of this, and, you know, I'm not trying to tell you you should watch the UFC. I don't watch the UFC now, but I want to give you an example because I used to watch UFC fighting, and there was a fighter by the name of Anthony Smith. And you might not know his name. He was a light heavyweight fighter. At light heavyweight, you fight at 205 or under. Usually you cut like 15 or 20 pounds of water weight, so he probably walked around at like 240. So pretty big guy, right? Pretty muscular. He's a pro fighter. And, you know, he's a very good fighter, okay? And I'll give you a couple examples to show you he's a good fighter because I'm going to give you five fights leading up to his fight with a possessed person, okay? This man fought Rashad Evans on June 9, 2018. If you know nothing about the UFC, you don't know who this is, but if you followed it, this is the former light heavyweight champion of the world. Rashad Evans, one of the greatest fighters at his weight class ever. He knocked out Rashad Evans in 53 seconds. Sounds like he's pretty good. Then he fought Mauricio Shogunhua on July 22, 2018. He knocked him out in a minute and 29 seconds. Shogunhua is considered one of the top fighters ever. And if you don't know anything about the UFC, you're like, okay, I get that. But there are some guys that have watched UFC, and they probably know those names. The next guy, I don't know who this is, but he fought Volkan Ozdemir on October 27, 2018. And he choked him out in the third round. After that, he fought for the light heavyweight title. He fought John Bones Jones. And John Jones is a pretty famous name. A lot of people probably know that name. He did not win the fight, but it went to decision after five rounds. So this is a great fighter, isn't he? After this fight, he fought Alexander Gustafson, also a pretty famous fighter. And he choked him out in the fourth round. So this was a very, very good fighter, about 240 pounds. But then he had the fight of his life, okay? He tells this story, and this is a very embarrassing story to tell if you're a pro fighter. But a guy broke into his house, and he said he weighed about 170 pounds. So you're 240 pounds, a trained fighter, and you're fighting someone weighing 170 pounds. And he said, no normal human is able to fight like that. I'm by no means the baddest dude on the planet, but he's a regular Joe, and I had a hard time dealing with him. And he took everything that I gave him, every punch, every knee, every elbow. He took every single one of them and kept fighting me. It sounds like he's fighting a zombie, kind of like this guy is like, and he's hitting him. Guy's like, ugh, ugh. This is an embarrassing story because every fighter made fun of this guy after this because it's like, you're a pro fighter, and this 170-pound person broke in, and you can't beat him up. And it's said that at one time his mother-in-law brought him a kitchen knife. And he said, I'm not lying when I said it was one of the toughest fights I've had in my life. I went into that fight ready to die. Nobody smart breaks into a house in the middle of the night unarmed. So this guy broke into his house. He's not trying to steal anything. He just breaks into a pro fighter's house and he like wants to fight. Right? I mean, this is weird. And he said, I didn't know it was possible to be that terrified. Now, when you read that story, you say, is he just exaggerating? I don't think he is. I think, I mean, because if you read more about that story, it sounds like a possessed guy broke into his house and he fought for his life against this guy that's a very small guy. You say, why is that? Because possessed people have unusual strength. Turn your Bible to Luke 8. And what I would say is, the more people, more demons or devils you're possessed by, the stronger or tougher you are. Now, you can agree with me or disagree, but I personally believe that Kenneth Copeland is one of the strongest men in the world. I wouldn't want to fight Benny Hinn. I mean, I know he's a little guy. He's an old guy. But I wouldn't be confident I'd beat Benny Hinn in a fight. I'm not going to fight some albulario that's on the top of the mountain that's 90 years old. Not me. You can go for it. But I'm like, man, if they're possessed with as many devils as they think they are, I'm not sure I'm going to survive. Right? I'm not going to just have a kitchen knife. I'll have a samurai sword or something to try to protect myself. Right? Point number one, we see spirituality. Point two, we see sorcery. Point three, we see separation. Point four, we see strength. And point five, we see sin. Point five, we see sin. People that are possessed by devils are very sinful people. It says here in Luke 8, verse 27, And when he went forth to land, there met him out of the city a certain man which had devils long time, and wear no clothes, neither a boat in any house but in the tombs. So, remember that nobody can pass by the way. So, as they're going by, these naked, unusually strong men all of a sudden just show up and then it's like nobody can pass by. Now, I would just run in the other direction. Right? I mean, this is a creepy story. But they're wearing no clothes. Well, isn't it perverted to wear no clothes? Isn't it very sinful to wear no clothes? I mean, what I read about the Baron always smoking a cigar and drinking and swearing and wanting to fornicate with every woman. It's like they don't exactly live a very godly life. And I'll tell you what, people that are possessed by devils, they do not live a very godly life. Now, part of it might just be they're possessed by devils and they need to get saved because otherwise, you know, the problem's probably never going to end. But they do not live a very godly life. Let's go to Matthew 8. Matthew chapter 8. We'll look at two more places. Matthew 8. Matthew 8. Matthew 8 verse 29. Matthew 8 verse 29. And the Bible says, And behold, they cried out, saying, What have we to do with thee, Jesus, thou son of God? Art thou come hither to torment us before the time? And there was a good way off from them, and heard of many swine feedings. And the devil's beside him, saying, If thou castest out, suffer us to go away into the herd of swine. Man, these verses bring back good memories. Me and brother James were talking about when Pastor Shelley was here and I preached a sermon on the sow. And it's like, it's interesting that they go into pigs, right? And I personally believe that when devils go into animals, pigs and dogs are probably near the top of the list. Unclean animals, the ones that represent the homos, the male and the female, I mean, that's what you see. And it says they just enter into a herd of swine. And then it says here in verse 32, And he said unto them, Go, and when they were come out, they went into the herd of swine. Behold, a whole herd of swine ran violently down a steep place into the sea, and perished in the waters. Now, this is a weird story, right? I mean, imagine if you're here and there's these two naked guys, and then all of a sudden you just see these pigs act crazy out of nowhere and just, right into the sea. And I don't believe the devils died. I think they just went out of the pigs and went into dogs or something. I don't know. I mean, it's an interesting story. And let me just tell you something that is my opinion. And what I'm going to say, you might agree with. You might disagree. Maybe you've never thought of it. But think about certain diseases such as rabies, okay? I remember growing up, I loved dogs, so I read a lot of books on dogs. I watched, you know, a lot of dog movies. And, you know, sometimes a dog will just go crazy, right? And you've got to just put that dog down. Because if somebody gets bit by rabies, have you ever seen videos on YouTube of somebody that has rabies? It's scary. It's like they've got an aversion to water. Like, they cannot drink water. I mean, it's really weird. It's really creepy. And you try to give them water, and it's like, I'm not making fun of them. This is literally what you see. I mean, it's like something out of a movie. They look like they're possessed. What I believe is that when a dog gets rabies, it probably means they're possessed by a lot of devils. And when they bite someone, they transfer those devils into that person. Now, I could be wrong. Maybe you agree. Maybe you disagree. Maybe you've never thought about it. You say, well, you're not a medical expert. Well, my wife was a nurse, and she agrees with me. So, there you go. Blame her if you don't agree. Right? And I could be wrong. And you say, well, pastor, what would you do if you got bit by a dog that was acting crazy? I'm not really sure what I'd do, to be honest. I'm not sure. Obviously, prayer is part of that. I'm not sure. When I was a kid, I did get bit here by a dog right under my eye. I really don't remember. I remember vaguely the story. I don't think it was crazy. I don't think it was our friend's dog, but it bit me, and I got stitches. I don't remember if I got shots or not. I'll ask my mom tomorrow morning when I talk to her. But, you know, I think that, and look, I'm not telling you. If you get rabies, if you get bit by a dog, do whatever you think is right. I'm not an expert at it whatsoever. So, don't just take my word. I'm just giving you my opinion, and I could be wrong. And I might change my opinion ten years from now. I'm not an expert at rabies or anything like that. And maybe you know more about it than me. But that's what my personal opinion about it is. And I think people get rabies, and if you're possessed by so many devils, it's like your body can't take it, and then you will usually pass away. That's my opinion. I could be wrong. But anyways, verse 33. And they that kept them fled, and went their ways into the city, and told everything in what was befallen to the possessed of the devils. And behold, the whole city came out to meet Jesus, and when they saw him, they besought him that he would depart out of their coast. So, Jesus is blamed for this, and they're like, just get out of here. We can't take this. Pigs are killing themselves. This man's wearing clothes, which is kind of scary. We've never seen that before. They're like, just get out of here. Okay? Go to Luke 8, and we'll close up the sermon. Luke chapter 8. Luke chapter 8. And obviously, you know, you ought to be cautious with any animal that's large enough to really cause damage. But dogs especially can, probably everyone's seen videos where they just act crazy out of nowhere. And you're like, what is going on? Right? And sometimes you're walking by, and I'll be honest, I didn't, you know, when I was a kid, when I got bit, I was very afraid of dogs. That's why my parents bought a dog. And then I loved dogs, and wasn't afraid. Now that I'm getting older, and I have young kids, you know, I just get a little bit worried, because every once in a while, you know, dogs start to give out. You just don't know if they're going to attack. Right? And so obviously I believe safety's of the Lord, but we do have to be cautious. Luke 8, verse 34. Now the man out of whom the devils were departed, besought him that he might be with him. But Jesus sent him away, saying, Return to thine own house, and show how great things God hath done unto thee. And he went his way, and published throughout the whole city how great things Jesus had done unto him. So this person that was possessed, God says, Jesus says, just stay behind and preach the gospel to the people that are around. They're going to know that you changed in your story, how you were crazy. And obviously it does not mention him hearing the gospel, but I think common sense would say that Jesus gave him the gospel and he got saved. Wouldn't you say that? I believe that he, because here's the thing, if this person gets cured of the devils, but doesn't end up getting saved, he's probably going to get possessed again. Right? I mean, so the thing is, the world has a lot of different things that can temporarily cure stuff sometimes, but really this is a spiritual problem, and the only permanent cure is getting saved. Because if you get saved, you're not going to get possessed by devils. And if you get saved, you will be protected. Now, that doesn't mean that we should just play around with the demonic world, because, I don't know, we don't see this stuff, and it's scary. I think we ought to steer clear of this sort of stuff. Right? But, of course you're not going to be possessed by a devil after you get saved. Let's close in with a prayer. Dear Heavenly Father, thank you for allowing us to be here today, and I ask you to help us to apply this term to our lives, help us to understand this topic, God, and we just pray all these things in Jesus' name. Amen. Amen. To guidance me from sin, and show me the heavenly way. Thy word have I hid in my heart, that I might not sin against Thee. That I might not sin, that I might not sin. Thy word have I hid in my heart forever, O Lord. Establishing peaks on high, Thy faithfulness unto O men, Abide in forever night. Thy word have I hid in my heart, that I might not sin against Thee. That I might not sin, that I might not sin. Thy word have I hid in my heart. At morning, at noon, and at night, I ever will give Thee praise. For Thou art my portion, O Lord, and shall be through all my days. Thy word have I hid in my heart, that I might not sin against Thee. That I might not sin, that I might not sin. Thy word have I hid in my heart. To keep whom Thy word hath foretold, the sinner and morning star. To keep whom Thy word hath foretold, the sinner and morning star. Thy word have I hid in my heart, that I might not sin against Thee. That I might not sin, that I might not sin. Thy word have I hid in my heart. That I might not sin, that I might not sin.