And they came to Jesus and saw the demon-possessed man, the one who had had the legion, sitting there, clothed and in his right mind, and they were afraid. And those who had seen it described to them what had happened to the demon-possessed man and to the pigs. And they began to beg Jesus to depart from their region. As he was getting into the boat, the man who had been possessed with demons begged him that he might be with him. And he did not permit him but said to him, “Go home to your friends and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and how he has had mercy on you.” And he went away and began to proclaim in the Decapolis how much Jesus had done for him, and everyone marveled. – Mark 5:18-20 ESV
Warrior;
What a great section of scripture. The book of Mark is an interesting book. Many posit that it could just as easily be called the gospel of Peter. John Mark was mentored by Peter and accompanied him on many journeys. Many believe much of the information documented was based on his interaction with Peter and their relationship as they walked together with Jesus. J Vernon McGee calls it the Gospel of Action, he says that more miracles are mentioned in this gospel than the others. In this 5th chapter of Mark, we have 3 of Jesus’ Great miracles. The first half of the chapter has to deal with Jesus casting out the demons from the Man of Gadara, then Jesus contacts the woman with blood in v 21-34. And during this time, he is also working to heal the daughter of one of the rulers of the synagogue, Jairus. It is one of the most powerful chapters in the Bible and there is much to learn. This man of Gadara was possessed, he was tormented, and he was agitated. It sounds very similar to what we see on a regular basis in our world today. The biggest question is, are demons real? The Reality is if you believe in the Bible as the Word of God, then you must believe in the reality of demons. For those who accept the authority of scripture, there must be an acceptance of the reality of demons. It is written! They are fallen angels. Demons are elohim who choose their will over God’s will. The Hebrew term is Shadim.
Leader, there are 2 worlds. There is the temporal world, that which we can SEE, HEAR, FEEL, SMELL and TASTE. There is also the UNSEEN REALM, the Spirit World. In 2 Kings 6, Elisha, the man of God, was stirring up trouble by saving his people from the evils of the world. The Assyrians were wanting to attack Israel, however, every time the army went to the place that they believed the Israeli army was, the army was no longer there. The King of Syria was livid and thought to himself, “there must be a spy among us”. Let’s pick up the story in v 11-14: And the mind of the king of Syria was greatly troubled because of this thing, and he called his servants and said to them, “Will you not show me who of us is for the king of Israel?” And one of his servants said, “None, my lord, O king; but Elisha, the prophet who is in Israel, tells the king of Israel the words that you speak in your bedroom.” And he said, “Go and see where he is, that I may send and seize him.” It was told to him, “Behold, he is in Dothan.” So he sent there horses and chariots and a great army, and they came by night and surrounded the city. Now the most powerful army in the world is after Elisha. How will he survive? God! Hear the Word of the Lord; When the servant of the man of God rose early in the morning and went out, behold, an army with horses and chariots was all around the city. And the servant said, “Alas, my master! What shall we do?” He said, “Do not be afraid, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them.” Then Elisha prayed and said, “O LORD, please open his eyes that he may see.” So the LORD opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw, and behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha. (Ibid v15-17) God is called the Lord of the Heavenly Hosts, Yahweh Sabaoth. He is also called El Elyon, Lord Most High. There is a hierarchy in the Spiritual world, and Elohim, the God of the universe, sits above other elohim, angelic beings. Some of those beings do the will of God the Father. Some of those elohim do their own will.
Conduit, in our miracle today we learned a couple of things about demons. Demons are real, Demons were evident during the ministry of Jesus- but are not confined to that period. Demons seek to indwell mankind, they want to UNDO man and his relationship with Yahweh, El Elyon. Demons would rather go into pigs than the abyss. There are many demons, 1\3 of the elohim went with Satan when He rebelled against Yahweh. However, the most important thing to remember about demons is: Jesus has power over demons. NO believer should be afraid of demons or do anything superstitious. They must respond to the name of Jesus. Just call on the name of JESUS, and they must depart! Don’t fear the devil or demons, for we have a God who is far more powerful. As Elisha said, ‘There are far more for us than against us!’ Also remember what John the Apostle said, “Greater is He who is in us, than he that is in the world”. The People of Gadara chose PIGS over Jesus. We can be aghast at these Gadarenes…BUT what about us? What are we choosing over Jesus? Listen to the words written by poet,John Oxenham, about this dilemma we all face: “Rabbi, begone! Thy powers Bring loss to us and ours. Our ways are not as Thine. Thou lovest men, we–swine. Oh, get you hence, Omnipotence, And take this fool of Thine! His soul? What care we for his soul? What good to us that Thou hast made him whole. Since we have lost our swine? And Christ went sadly. He had wrought for them a sign of Love, and Hope, and Tenderness divine– They wanted swine. Christ stands without your door and gently knocks, But if your gold, or swine, the entrance blocks. He forces no man’s hold–he will depart and leave you to the treasures of your heart. No cumbered chamber will the Master share, But one swept bare. By cleansing fires, then plenished fresh and fair. With meekness, humility, and prayer. There will He come, yet, coming, even there– He stands and waits, and will no entrance win. Until the latch be lifted from within.” The TIME IS NOW to RE-CHOOSE. Today people are choosing many desires, perversions, and comforts versus having Jesus. What will you choose? There are only 2 teams. Keep It Simple Soldier. You are either on God’s team, or the other team. Choose well, eternity is riding on it!
