Two Thousand Pigs

She looked at me in disbelief. “The cost is too much!”

Aunt Jan has been attending our small group Bible study for several months. Every week she is excited to discuss the story about Jesus, and she is usually very impressed with Jesus and what He does for people. Aunt Jan has had many questions about prayer, and she prays to God about her troubles.

Recently we discussed the story of Jesus delivering the man from a legion of demons and allowing the demons to possess a herd of 2,000 pigs (Mark 5:1-20). I was surprised when Aunt Jan’s first reaction to the story was very strong. She said, “It’s too much!” I was confused. “What’s too much?”

Aunt Jan replied, “Two thousand pigs! For one man!” She explained, “I’m Buddhist, and in Buddhism, one life is equal to one life. One pig or one human or one mosquito, it is one life for one life. But 2,000 pigs for one man? The cost is too much!” I reminded her of the creation story we had discussed a few weeks before, and how God has put great value on human life. Aunt Jan was still incredulous. Though she liked Jesus’ kindness to release the man from demons, she couldn’t accept that the cost was worth it.

Now 70 years old, Aunt Jan grew up in a rural area with a Buddhist worldview that shapes how she encounters Christian truth. Please join us in prayer for Aunt Jan and Buddhists like her who face great hurdles in understanding and accepting the values and truths of God and His good news!

- from a cross-cultural worker in Thailand