Luke 8:40-48 - "When Jesus Returned"

40 So it was, when Jesus returned, that the multitude welcomed Him, for they were all waiting for Him.   Merry Christmas! It is hard to believe that another year has passed, and Christmas is upon us again! And if we are not careful, we can miss it and the real meaning of it! We can get so caught up in the busyness of it, the decorations, the lights, the gifts, the travel, the family get togethers, the food, the programs, the pageantry, and all the activities that we miss the real meaning of it!   I think that is why I love the Gospel of Luke so much, because it reminds us over and over again what Christmas is all about! It is about Jesus Christ! It is all about Christ, Who He is and what He came to do! We should never forget that night, that Holy Night two thousand years ago, when a baby was born in Bethlehem and laid in a manager and the angel appears to the shepherds in Luke 2:8-14.   “Now there were in the same country shepherds living out in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. And behold, an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were greatly afraid. Then the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be the sign to you: You will find a Babe wrapped in swaddling cloths, lying in a manger." And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying: "Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace, goodwill toward men!"   Now, when we come to Luke 8, Jesus has been manifesting Himself to the people in the region of Galilee over the past year and a half. He is healing the sick, giving sight to the blind, feeding the hungry, raising the dead, casting out demons and preaching the Gospel of the Kingdom to the multitudes. But there is one man on the other side of the Sea of Galilee, twelve miles away at Gadara, that needs deliverance from a demon possessed life. And Jesus took the time to go there and heal and bring salvation to this one man!   Oh today, it is our prayer that during this Christmas season, people everywhere in this sin cursed world would hear the wonderful story of Jesus and His saving power and find salvation. Interestingly, the crowd at Gadara who saw and experienced this great miracle rejected Jesus and ask Him to leave, which He did. But when Jesus returns to Capernaum in Luke 8:40, the multitude there welcomed Him, “for they were all waiting for Him”.   Wow! There is so much in these next verses that we must spend a few days looking into them. But today I want to notice something in verse 40. “When Jesus returned”! We have no problem believing that Jesus came the first time two-thousand years ago because the facts of history prove and give evidence to this reality. We even date our calendars from the date of His first coming!  But do you really believe that Jesus is coming again? Jesus Himself said in John 14:3, “If I go away and prepare a place for you, I will come again that where I am there you may be also”.   Before Jesus left to go to the other side, He must have told the multitude He would be coming back! It says, “That the multitude welcomed Him, for they were all waiting for Him”. Today, during this Christmas season as we celebrate Jesus first coming, we should also take the time to remember His promise to return for us the second time!  It could be today!!!   Are you “waiting for Him” today?   God bless!