Wednesday, September 18, 2024
They went across the lake to the region of the Gerasenes. When Jesus got out of the boat, a man with an impure spirit came from the tombs to meet him. This man lived in the tombs, and no one could bind him anymore, not even with a chain. For 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 5:1-5
A Radically Transformed Life
This is the story of a man that was possessed by demons – many demons. When Jesus asked the demon its name, it replied “My name is Legion, for we are many.” A Roman legion usually consisted of 6,000 men. We don’t know for sure that there were 6,000 demons, but there were many. No one could help him and every time they chained him he broke the chains with supernatural strength. He lived among the tombs and surrounding hills, day and night screaming in agony and cutting himself with stones. It must have been the most horrible sound.
After preaching to a crowd one day, Jesus told the disciples He wanted to go over to the other side of the Sea of Galilee to the region of the Gerasenses – where the demon possessed man lived. As they came to the shore, he ran to meet them, falling down and begging Jesus not to torment him (demon). The demon recognized Jesus as the Son of God and knew that He had the power to destroy even a legion of demons. Jesus sent the demons into a herd of about 2000 pigs that then ran off the cliff into the sea and drowned. The man was finally healed and redeemed by Jesus. The men who were tending the pigs and witnessed what happened ran to the town to tell everyone. People came and saw the man acting normal, dressed, and sitting with Jesus. They were afraid and wanted Jesus to leave their region.
As Jesus and the disciples are getting into the boat to leave, the man who had been transformed wanted to go with Jesus. But Jesus told him to go to his family and friends and tell them what He had done for him. So he went and proclaimed his testimony of the Gospel of how much Jesus had done for him And all the people were amazed. v20
As Jesus was getting into the boat, the man who had been demon-possessed begged to go with him. Jesus did not let him, but said, “Go home to your own people and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and how he has had mercy on you.” So the man went away and began to tell in the Decapolis how much Jesus had done for him. And all the people were amazed. Mark 5:18-20
Can you imagine? I would want to get as far away as possible from there. There might be fear of staying and how hard would it be to deal with all those emotions being stirred every day from living in the same place you had experienced so much evil? But Jesus didn’t let him go because he had an important job for him to do. He needed him to take the light into the darkness. He needed him to stay in the darkness to give them the light that he now had.
The man was transformed radically. Everyone could see without a doubt the miracle of this transformation right before their eyes. So his witness was no doubt great, and they probably listened to everything he said about a man named Jesus who changed his life. And all the people were amazed. Although our story may not be so radical – or maybe it is – we still have a transformation story and our lives are different. We are being spiritually formed day by day, step by step. We are walking where the Holy Spirit walks and learning to live and love like Jesus every day. This is the light – God glorified through our lives and our transformation – that we need to take to the world. Just like Jesus told that man to stay and tell his friends and family, sometimes He tells us to do the same.
What is God asking you to do today that maybe you do not want to do? Is He asking you to take the light into the darkness? Is He asking you to take the light into the darkness of your family? Your neighborhood? Your job? The good thing is that He never leaves us alone. Wherever and to whomever He asks us to take the light to, He always goes with us. Let me be clear, He never wants us to stay in an abusive situation. That is not what this is about. But sometimes He does ask us to do things we don’t want to do, to stay when we want to go, and to go where we don’t want to go. It is our job to be willing and obedient and follow His lead anywhere He wants us to go no matter how bad we want to get in the boat and go far away from where we are.
