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“In the synagogue there was a man with an unclean spirit, and he cried out in a loud voice, ‘What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth?'” (Luke 4:34)
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Good and evil don’t mix.
So why is there a demon the synagogue?
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Surely this demon isn’t there to listen to Jesus.
If anything, it protests Christ’s presence, saying, “What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us?”
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Perhaps Luke includes this story in his Gospel to teach us a lesson on evil.
If we shaped our view of evil by watching Hollywood horror films, then we could conclude that evil only lurks in the darkness – in the sewer, in the woods, in a graveyard, in a prison.
But this demon is in a synagogue, a holy place!
If demons can appear in the house of God, then they can appear anywhere at any time – even in our own lives.
How often does evil appear in the form of anxiety, depression, addiction, cancer, and even natural disasters?
Think of Hurricane Dorian – no one’s calling that storm a blessing.
Sadly, evil surfaces everywhere – most often without our willing it. It’s part of living in a fallen world.
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But here’s the important point for us. Instead of asking, “Why is there evil in the world?” We should ask ourselves, “How do I confront it?”
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Turn to Jesus.
The same God who cast that demon out in the synagogue can cure our cancer, relieve our depression, and heal our addictions.
Though there’s no guarantee, if we never ask, we’ll never know.
Remember, all healing begins with the belief in Christ’s power to save.