Of Pigs, People, and Demons - Mark 5:1-20
Of Pigs, People, and Demons - Mark 5:1-20
By Pastor Lee Hemen
December 6, 2009 AM
When we are presented with facts and figures we retain only about 5% of what we are taught. However, when we are given illustrations or parables, like Jesus used, we retain about half of them. If we become emotionally connected to the illustration used, we retain even more of the information given to us. This is why we remember stories like the one we are going to read today. The healing of a man that is totally out of control because of the demons in his life, frightens us, intrigues us, and helps us to indentify with him because we all fight some demonic influences in our lives. Seeing him completely healed gives us hope and a certainty in life.
Last week we learned about how Jesus calms the storms of life. In this section we will look at today we will discover that after Jesus calms the storm-blown waves that frightened his disciples, he is faced with the personal storm of an individual whose daily routine was directed by the demons of his life. We find that the folks around this pathetic individual are more concerned with their economy than with an individual’s personal hell, and we find the striking facts of demonic activity that is very real. It is a tale of pigs, people, and demons. Let’s find out more as we investigate this section of Scripture.
READ: Mark 5:1-20
The characters in a tale are important because they tell the story. Like the guilt-ridden Scrooge in Dickens' A Christmas Carol and his personal redemption. This retelling by Mark is no different because in it we discover several important players. Therefore:
I. Let’s look at the people involved…
1. There is no greater power than that of God himself in Jesus Christ! We find Jesus with his disciples getting out of their little storm-tossed boat after crossing the Sea of Galilee. Of course, Jesus is always in control of the situation wherever he is no matter what the circumstances. Immediately he is confronted when he gets “out of the boat." Mark relates that "a man with an evil spirit came from the tombs to meet him.” There is no time for rest or respite from the previous storm. Jesus is thrown right back into ministry. Mark relates, “This man lived in the tombs, and no one could bind him any more, not even with a chain.” We learn that “he had often been chained hand and foot, but he tore the chains apart and broke the irons on his feet. No one was strong enough to subdue him. Night and day among the tombs and in the hills he would cry out and cut himself with stones.” (Mark 5:3-5) Something was drastically wrong with this storm-tossed person! Curiously, when he sees Jesus he falls at Jesus’ feet and shouts: “What do you want with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? Swear to God that you won't torture me!” We discover he is possessed. Jesus asked him, "What is your name?" "My name is Legion," he replied, "for we are many." Evil, wrapped in a warped human being, is confronted by God in human flesh. Where a Legion once had partial control, they have already lost as soon as Jesus stepped on shore. However, not everyone ends up happy about the ultimate outcome of the demon-possessed person. The villagers whose livelihood is drowned are not glad about their pigs. We find that “When they came to Jesus, they saw the man who had been possessed by the legion of demons, sitting there, dressed and in his right mind; and they were afraid. Those who had seen it told the people what had happened to the demon-possessed man—and told about the pigs as well.” What is their response? Well, “the people began to plead with Jesus to leave their region.” (Mark 5:15-17) Yet the man who had been held prisoner for so long “went away and began to tell in the Decapolis how much Jesus had done for him. And all the people were amazed.” There is no greater power than that of God himself in Jesus Christ!
EXAMPLE: Who knows why the man became demon possessed. Perhaps he needed attention and looked for personal relationships in the wrong places. Perhaps he had suffered as a child, longed for acceptance, and tried to get it in the wrong way. Maybe he was poor and sought to feed his family or himself through ill-gotten means. He could have wanted to have some fun and began to hang around the wrong people, whom he thought were his friends, but turned out to be abusive and users. Looking for inner peace, he could have been caught in occultic paganism. Whatever it was, we find people opening the doors to demonic influence in their lives today in the very same ways. Escape is found only through the authority of Jesus Christ in a person’s life. There is no greater power than that of God himself in Jesus Christ.
In our day of PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals), and political correctness, we are amazed that this story is filled with some poor swine that get kind of the short shrift. However, they as well as those minions of darkness that are cast into them play an important role as well. Therefore:
II. Let’s look at the pigs and the demons involved…
1. The porcine of Satan meet a premature providence! We can feel for the pigs that really had no control over the circumstances of the possessed man nor of their ultimate fate. However, we have to remember that in Hebraic thinking, pigs were unclean and whatever happened to these hapless hogs was their own fault. I believe the demons requested the most vile and unclean thing they could readily think of to use as the means of their destruction. That's the way demonic influence works. It degrades those it tries to control. Sadly, too many in our day and age either do not believe there is demonic influence or they give too much credence and authority to Satan himself. Never forget, he is a created being. Interestingly, we discover something about demonic-control over an individual from this account. First, we find that it is limited. Notice the man still had enough personal resistance to go and beg at the feet of Jesus. He was not a complete automaton to the demons that influenced his life. In fact, Scripture makes it plain that Satan himself has to ask permission of God or have the tacit permission of the person involved. Satan had to ask permission from God to act in the lives of both Job and Peter (Job 6:1-11; Luke 22:3). The unsaved have to willingly yield to him and allow him to influence their lives as well like in Ananias and Sapphria or Peter's denial. (Mark 8:33 & Acts 5:3) Satan can gain permission to act in people's lives when they willing decide to disobey God and do evil. However, the believer has the Holy Spirit and “where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.” (2 Corinthians 3:17) This is why Peter reminds us to “Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings.” (1 Peter 5:8-9) Secondly, we realize that Satan is not in charge, Jesus is. Jesus would declare, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven,” (Luke 10:18) in reference to his authority over him. Satan is not the king or ruler of hell, hell is reserved for his eternal punishment! (Revelations 12:9-10 & 20:10) Jesus was and is in complete control. We find that “The demons begged Jesus, ‘Send us among the pigs; allow us to go into them.’” Jesus, in his authority, gives “them permission, and the evil spirits came out and went into the pigs.” Finally, Satan has no hold on a believer. We find the once enslaved man now begging "to go with” Jesus. The “man who had been possessed by the legion of demons” was now “dressed and in his right mind.” He is changed and becomes a tremendous testimony for the Lord and relates just “how much Jesus had done for him.” Satan, nor any of his demons, has any influence in the life of a believer.
EXAMPLE: Satan is totally deceptive and we now live in the age that relishes deception. Redefining marriage, relationships, sex, or even our Christian witness to the world. Satan camouflages himself in some of the freedoms we enjoy. The freedoms to say, live, and do almost anything we deem “legal.” While some things may be seen by society as legal that does not necessarily make them moral or ethical. Satan lives in the homosexual movement, the music and movie industry, and in a woman’s right to choose. He is also alive and well in the idea of political correctness, some environmentalism, and the emergent church movement. His heresy knows no boundary. He whispers to the believer that it is okay for this relationship, to mark or mutilate your flesh, or to say or do anything -- as long as it is in the name of Jesus -- it is "moral." Yet, all these things are not his kingdom, because he has none. His power only exists as mankind allows him to influence their lives. Jesus has totally dethroned him. He only has influence in the life of a believer, as we would allow him to oppress us with his ungodliness, or when we acquiesce to his worldview. We can be free when we “resist him, standing firm in the faith.”
Conclusion:
Today we looked at the people, the pigs, and the demons involved in this story of the demoniac.
---
Pastor Lee Hemen has been the outspoken pastor of the same church for 25 years in Vancouver, WA. He writes regularly on spirituality and conservative causes and maintains several web blogs. This article is copyrighted © 2009 by Lee Hemen and is the sole property of Lee Hemen, and may not be used unless you quote the entire article and have my permission. You now have my permission...
By Pastor Lee Hemen
December 6, 2009 AM
When we are presented with facts and figures we retain only about 5% of what we are taught. However, when we are given illustrations or parables, like Jesus used, we retain about half of them. If we become emotionally connected to the illustration used, we retain even more of the information given to us. This is why we remember stories like the one we are going to read today. The healing of a man that is totally out of control because of the demons in his life, frightens us, intrigues us, and helps us to indentify with him because we all fight some demonic influences in our lives. Seeing him completely healed gives us hope and a certainty in life.
Last week we learned about how Jesus calms the storms of life. In this section we will look at today we will discover that after Jesus calms the storm-blown waves that frightened his disciples, he is faced with the personal storm of an individual whose daily routine was directed by the demons of his life. We find that the folks around this pathetic individual are more concerned with their economy than with an individual’s personal hell, and we find the striking facts of demonic activity that is very real. It is a tale of pigs, people, and demons. Let’s find out more as we investigate this section of Scripture.
READ: Mark 5:1-20
The characters in a tale are important because they tell the story. Like the guilt-ridden Scrooge in Dickens' A Christmas Carol and his personal redemption. This retelling by Mark is no different because in it we discover several important players. Therefore:
I. Let’s look at the people involved…
1. There is no greater power than that of God himself in Jesus Christ! We find Jesus with his disciples getting out of their little storm-tossed boat after crossing the Sea of Galilee. Of course, Jesus is always in control of the situation wherever he is no matter what the circumstances. Immediately he is confronted when he gets “out of the boat." Mark relates that "a man with an evil spirit came from the tombs to meet him.” There is no time for rest or respite from the previous storm. Jesus is thrown right back into ministry. Mark relates, “This man lived in the tombs, and no one could bind him any more, not even with a chain.” We learn that “he had often been chained hand and foot, but he tore the chains apart and broke the irons on his feet. No one was strong enough to subdue him. Night and day among the tombs and in the hills he would cry out and cut himself with stones.” (Mark 5:3-5) Something was drastically wrong with this storm-tossed person! Curiously, when he sees Jesus he falls at Jesus’ feet and shouts: “What do you want with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? Swear to God that you won't torture me!” We discover he is possessed. Jesus asked him, "What is your name?" "My name is Legion," he replied, "for we are many." Evil, wrapped in a warped human being, is confronted by God in human flesh. Where a Legion once had partial control, they have already lost as soon as Jesus stepped on shore. However, not everyone ends up happy about the ultimate outcome of the demon-possessed person. The villagers whose livelihood is drowned are not glad about their pigs. We find that “When they came to Jesus, they saw the man who had been possessed by the legion of demons, sitting there, dressed and in his right mind; and they were afraid. Those who had seen it told the people what had happened to the demon-possessed man—and told about the pigs as well.” What is their response? Well, “the people began to plead with Jesus to leave their region.” (Mark 5:15-17) Yet the man who had been held prisoner for so long “went away and began to tell in the Decapolis how much Jesus had done for him. And all the people were amazed.” There is no greater power than that of God himself in Jesus Christ!
EXAMPLE: Who knows why the man became demon possessed. Perhaps he needed attention and looked for personal relationships in the wrong places. Perhaps he had suffered as a child, longed for acceptance, and tried to get it in the wrong way. Maybe he was poor and sought to feed his family or himself through ill-gotten means. He could have wanted to have some fun and began to hang around the wrong people, whom he thought were his friends, but turned out to be abusive and users. Looking for inner peace, he could have been caught in occultic paganism. Whatever it was, we find people opening the doors to demonic influence in their lives today in the very same ways. Escape is found only through the authority of Jesus Christ in a person’s life. There is no greater power than that of God himself in Jesus Christ.
In our day of PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals), and political correctness, we are amazed that this story is filled with some poor swine that get kind of the short shrift. However, they as well as those minions of darkness that are cast into them play an important role as well. Therefore:
II. Let’s look at the pigs and the demons involved…
1. The porcine of Satan meet a premature providence! We can feel for the pigs that really had no control over the circumstances of the possessed man nor of their ultimate fate. However, we have to remember that in Hebraic thinking, pigs were unclean and whatever happened to these hapless hogs was their own fault. I believe the demons requested the most vile and unclean thing they could readily think of to use as the means of their destruction. That's the way demonic influence works. It degrades those it tries to control. Sadly, too many in our day and age either do not believe there is demonic influence or they give too much credence and authority to Satan himself. Never forget, he is a created being. Interestingly, we discover something about demonic-control over an individual from this account. First, we find that it is limited. Notice the man still had enough personal resistance to go and beg at the feet of Jesus. He was not a complete automaton to the demons that influenced his life. In fact, Scripture makes it plain that Satan himself has to ask permission of God or have the tacit permission of the person involved. Satan had to ask permission from God to act in the lives of both Job and Peter (Job 6:1-11; Luke 22:3). The unsaved have to willingly yield to him and allow him to influence their lives as well like in Ananias and Sapphria or Peter's denial. (Mark 8:33 & Acts 5:3) Satan can gain permission to act in people's lives when they willing decide to disobey God and do evil. However, the believer has the Holy Spirit and “where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.” (2 Corinthians 3:17) This is why Peter reminds us to “Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings.” (1 Peter 5:8-9) Secondly, we realize that Satan is not in charge, Jesus is. Jesus would declare, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven,” (Luke 10:18) in reference to his authority over him. Satan is not the king or ruler of hell, hell is reserved for his eternal punishment! (Revelations 12:9-10 & 20:10) Jesus was and is in complete control. We find that “The demons begged Jesus, ‘Send us among the pigs; allow us to go into them.’” Jesus, in his authority, gives “them permission, and the evil spirits came out and went into the pigs.” Finally, Satan has no hold on a believer. We find the once enslaved man now begging "to go with” Jesus. The “man who had been possessed by the legion of demons” was now “dressed and in his right mind.” He is changed and becomes a tremendous testimony for the Lord and relates just “how much Jesus had done for him.” Satan, nor any of his demons, has any influence in the life of a believer.
EXAMPLE: Satan is totally deceptive and we now live in the age that relishes deception. Redefining marriage, relationships, sex, or even our Christian witness to the world. Satan camouflages himself in some of the freedoms we enjoy. The freedoms to say, live, and do almost anything we deem “legal.” While some things may be seen by society as legal that does not necessarily make them moral or ethical. Satan lives in the homosexual movement, the music and movie industry, and in a woman’s right to choose. He is also alive and well in the idea of political correctness, some environmentalism, and the emergent church movement. His heresy knows no boundary. He whispers to the believer that it is okay for this relationship, to mark or mutilate your flesh, or to say or do anything -- as long as it is in the name of Jesus -- it is "moral." Yet, all these things are not his kingdom, because he has none. His power only exists as mankind allows him to influence their lives. Jesus has totally dethroned him. He only has influence in the life of a believer, as we would allow him to oppress us with his ungodliness, or when we acquiesce to his worldview. We can be free when we “resist him, standing firm in the faith.”
Conclusion:
Today we looked at the people, the pigs, and the demons involved in this story of the demoniac.
---
Pastor Lee Hemen has been the outspoken pastor of the same church for 25 years in Vancouver, WA. He writes regularly on spirituality and conservative causes and maintains several web blogs. This article is copyrighted © 2009 by Lee Hemen and is the sole property of Lee Hemen, and may not be used unless you quote the entire article and have my permission. You now have my permission...
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