Amos 5 : 14-15, 21-24 / Matthew 8 : 28-34 (2020)
How we respond to people depends very much on how much we know them or how much we understand them.
Whenever we come across an angry person or a hostile person, we would surely want to avoid having any contact with them.
In other words, anger and hostility are frightening behaviour and we will avoid people with such behaviour as if they have a contagious disease.
But if we know these people personally, then we may have a different response and a different point of view.
The two demoniacs in the gospel were not born demoniacs.
For whatever reason, evil entered into them and made them demoniacs.
Even the gospel described them as "creatures so fierce" that it seemed that they had lost their humanity.
But that was what Jesus saw - their humanity. He understood what they were essentially.
Jesus healed them and restored their humanity. He restored their pride and dignity.
Jesus came to save our humanity and to restore our pride and dignity.
He came to free us from the bondage of sin and evil, a bondage that is expressed in anger, hostility and selfishness.
He saw through our crust of sin and touched our humanity and restored our dignity with His love.
What Jesus has done for us, let us in turn do the same for others.