Mark 5:1-17 – ‘Dressed And In His Right Mind’
Jesus has come through and calmed a storm on the Sea of Galilee, now He is going to deal with a spiritual storm. As Jesus and the disciples come to the land of the Gerasenes, they are met by a man possessed by demons. This is a picture of the terrible cruelty and power of Satan. This man, possessed by Satan’s demons, has often been chained but has broken his chains and fights off all who have tried to stop him. Forced to live alone among the graves, the demons make him cry out and hurt himself with stones. To all who know of him, it must seem a terrible and hopeless situation.
When Jesus arrives, the demons admit who He is and recognise that He has power over them. The demons’ name is Legion, and a Roman legion usually has 6-12,000 soldiers in it, so this name reveals Satan’s terrible power in this man. Jesus, who has the power to deliver from anything, makes the demons leave the man and gives them permission to go into a herd of pigs.
You can imagine the open-mouthed astonishment of the pig-keepers as they see the most violent man in their community healed at the same time as their herd races to their death in the sea. They immediately go and tell others, but instead of rejoicing over the healing of this man, they are upset over losing their pigs and afraid of Jesus. They ask Him to leave, and sadly, He does.
Questions
- What was wrong with the man who came to meet Jesus?
- What was the name of the demons?
- What happened to the pigs?
Prayer Points
- Give thanks that Jesus has the ultimate power over Satan.
- Use prayer points from your congregation.
- Pray for family matters.