Thursday, June 16, 2022

Mark 5:1-10


1 Jesus and his followers went to the other side of the lake to the area of the Gerasene people. 2 When Jesus got out of the boat, instantly a man with an evil spirit came to him from the burial caves. 3 This man lived in the caves, and no one could tie him up, not even with a chain. 4 Many times people had used chains to tie the man’s hands and feet, but he always broke them off. No one was strong enough to control him. 5 Day and night he would wander around the burial caves and on the hills, screaming and cutting himself with stones. 6 While Jesus was still far away, the man saw him, ran to him, and fell down before him. 7 The man shouted in a loud voice, “What do you want with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I command you in God’s name not to torture me!” 8 He said this because Jesus was saying to him, “You evil spirit, come out of the man.” 9 Then Jesus asked him, “What is your name?” He answered, “My name is Legion, because we are many spirits.” 10 He begged Jesus again and again not to send them out of that area. ~ Mark 5:1-10

Laws control the lesser man... Right conduct controls the greater one.
Read more at: https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/mark_twain_118453?src=t_control
Today, we transition into Mark 5 where the Lord Jesus and His disciples had arrived on the other side of the Sea of Galilee, the area of the Gerasene people. Among the Gerasenes, faith in the God of the Bible was lacking. And, if a believer in the God of the Bible visited there, his faith had better be strong due to the strong influence of the demonic world. The demonic activity there was high because there was a low impact of the truth. The people there had long rejected the truth, and so, lies abounded as if they were the truth. 

In v.1 of today's text we read, "Jesus and his followers went to the other side of the lake to the area of the Gerasene people."

The Lord Jesus took His disciples to the land of the Gerasenes to create a context wherein the disciples' faith would grow even more. As on that day, the Lord tests our faith, in order that we might grow in our trust of Him. And, if our faith is strong enough we will see that He can handle whatever problem comes our way. But even if our faith is weak, He still does not allow our faith in Him to collapse. In such a context, He holds us up and sees us through. And, through the process, He lays the foundation for stronger faith as we witness His might and His power. 

In v.2-5 of today's text we read, "2 When Jesus got out of the boat, instantly a man with an evil spirit came to him from the burial caves. 3 This man lived in the caves, and no one could tie him up, not even with a chain. 4 Many times people had used chains to tie the man’s hands and feet, but he always broke them off. No one was strong enough to control him. 5 Day and night he would wander around the burial caves and on the hills, screaming and cutting himself with stones."

This man who lived in a graveyard was controlled by demons. He was a man who was more comfortable with the dead than he was with the living. We wonder what preceded this man's life, causing him to be demon possessed. Demons do not just enter someone without their consent. There had to be certain precedents before the demons entered him. Perhaps this man had dabbled in the occult or something of the sort. We are not sure what preceded this man's condition, but, we do know, he opened the door to the demonic in some way. This is why we must be careful about those things that we avail ourselves to. Not that believers can be possessed, but, we can open ourselves to demonic oppression.

All attempts by the townspeople to control this demon possessed man were to no avail. This is what we do to people we do not understand and cannot control, we send them away. For some time this man was isolated away from the people, and alone. This man approached the Lord Jesus who had just arrived in the boat with His disciples, after the storm. The possessed man was like the storm. Both the storm and the man, were uncontrollable. That was until the Lord Jesus came upon the scene.

Before he was possessed by demons, this man had a home and friends. We know this, because the Lord Jesus, at the end of the story, sent him back to both. But he lived isolated away from humanity in a cemetery of open tombs cut out of the side of a hill. These tombs contained bodies which were laid out to decompose. The condition of this man's existence was deplorable. 

Mark says that he had been previously bound. Over and over again the community had tried to restrain this once sane man. The people repeatedly tried to control him because he was out of control and he was a serious threat to their community. With the increasing difficulty that this man posed, the more they tried to control him. However, at some point, he tore off the chains and the shackles that bound him and he ran away seemingly free, but he was so very far from freedom.

Like many, this poor man probably thought God could never love him, but we could never be too far gone for God. One of the greatest things about Him is that He goes out of His way to save the unwanted. No one is outside of His reach. However, God has never been known to force Himself on anyone. He awaits the cries of those who long for true freedom, His freedom. All of the people had given up all hope for this man, and we can understand why, when we look at his desperate condition. The disciples believed the Lord Jesus was just traveling across the lake to get to a place where He could get some rest from the clamoring crowds, but, it is obvious that He came to save this unloved and unwanted man. 

In v.6-8 of today's text we read, "6 While Jesus was still far away, the man saw him, ran to him, and fell down before him. 7 The man shouted in a loud voice, 'What do you want with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I command you in God’s name not to torture me!' 8 He said this because Jesus was saying to him, 'You evil spirit, come out of the man.'"

These three verses prove that demons have faith. In fact, their faith is orthodox faith. And, their theology of God is spot on.  This is why they promote false teaching, because they know the truth and they do not want any human to know the truth. When this man saw the Lord Jesus, immediately he knew who He was. He came running to Him and cried out, "Son of the Most High God," which is the highest name a nonbeliever can know or use to refer to God. It is used all through the Old Testament by members of the Gentile nations. Interestingly, in the first part of this gospel account, until we get to the middle of it, demons were the only beings who recognized the Lord Jesus as "the Son of the Most High God." The first time a human made that statement is at the end of the book. It was the Centurion soldier at the foot of the cross who said it.

In v.9-10 of today's text we read, "9 Then Jesus asked him, “What is your name?” He answered, “My name is Legion, because we are many spirits.” 10 He begged Jesus again and again not to send them out of that area."

This man's name was Legion, which in military terms, meant up to 6,000. This man had up to 6000 demons in him. No wonder he was so strong. When the man spoke to the Lord Jesus, he used a Hebrew idiom of conflict, meaning, "What to me and to you?" Then, after the demon identified the Lord Jesus as God, the demon begged the Lord not to torture him.

This man was defined by shame, brokenness and hell itself. His way of handling his inner turmoil was to cut himself. The demons in him were the complete opposite of the Holy Spirit who is patient, gentle and loving. The spirits in this man were of Hell. They belong to Satan. But, the Lord Jesus loved him enough to endure a violent storm and the uncontrollable faith of the disciples to get to him. This is the heart of our Savior who left heaven to come to this earth so that the willing could know the life of God in the souls of men.