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. Mark 5: 15, NIV.
Gracious God, help us to discern the things of the Spirit, for Christ’s sake. Amen.
Our story today is about a demon-possessed man who lived “in the tombs” (Mark 5: 2, 3). In our day we would call him a “living-dead.” This man had no life. The Bible reveals that no one could bind him, “not even with a chain.” He would tear the chains, and break the iron on his feet. He would cut himself with stones, and day and night he could be heard crying “among the tombs and in the the hills.” This was not a pretty picture. It was sad and depressing – until Jesus came!
There is an interesting dichotomy at work here. The man runs to Jesus when he sees Him. But the demons in him are afraid of Jesus. They would rather have nothing to do with the Savior; but the man seeks to be saved! The man kneels before the Savior, but the demons cry out, “What do you want with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God?” They seek to disguise themselves as a man, until Jesus pries the truth out of them by asking the man his name! Unable to conceal their identity any longer, they confessed: “My name is Legion…for we are many.” You see my friends, Jesus will get to the bottom of our problems. He leaves no work incomplete.
The devil knows that if he can destroy the image of God in us he has won more than half of the battle. The most effective way of doing this is by tampering with our minds. The good news is that he can only gain entrance to our minds with our permission. The bad news is that we are not very diligent in guarding the avenues of our souls; we permit him to enter our minds by way of the things we read, and watch, listen to, and talk, about.
But there is hope! In Jesus there is always hope! If we are willing, Christ is able. You have heard me say this perhaps more than a half of a dozen times, and you will hear me say it again: “God will not give us more than we are able to bear.” He is not only able to succor us; He is also willing! But we must want the change. Not even this we can do without Him (Philippians 2: 13)! But when He puts the desire in us, and we respond to it, He can then finish the job!
The man came running to Jesus, and knelt before Him. When we are in trouble, it makes all the sense in the world to run to Jesus! Rest assured that when we do; our lives will be the better for it! Scripture reads: “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!” When God restores, He does it from the inside out. He starts by renewing our minds (Romans 12: 2). Only then, can we prove what is the “…perfect will of God” for our lives.
And what is on the inside, will be revealed on the outside. When the change takes place we will want to tell the world about it. Like the demoniac, following Jesus’ command, we will “Go home to [our families] and tell them how much the Lord has done for [us], and how he has had mercy on [us]” (Mark 5: 19).