Jesus travels to a Gentile community and delivers a Gentile man from a powerful group of demonic entities.

Powerful stuff. Here is the video link:

Mark 5:1-20… They call me Legion

The audio links to Spotify and iTunes are to the right.

 

Mark 5

They Call me “Legion”

 1 They went across the lake to the region of the Gerasenes.[a] 

Jesus enters the Decapolis, a political association of ten independent Greek city-states, anticipating the future Gentile mission of the church. The Gentile character of the population is apparent since the Jews did not raise pigs, which were unclean under Mosaic law.

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2 When Jesus got out of the boat, a man with an impure spirit came from the tombs to meet him. 3 This man lived in the tombs, and no one could bind him anymore, not even with a chain. 4 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. 5 Night and day among the tombs and in the hills he would cry out and cut himself with stones.

Violence and unusual physical strength leading to slow self-destruction (v. 5; 9:22) often seem to characterize the demon-possessed

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6 When he saw Jesus from a distance, he ran and fell on his knees in front of him. 7 He shouted at the top of his voice, “What do you want with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? In God’s name don’t torture me!” 8 For Jesus had said to him, “Come out of this man, you impure spirit!”

In God’s name. Or “I adjure you with respect to God”; adjuring in the name of a more powerful being was normally used by exorcists to control demons. The impure spirit attempts to control Jesus. But the futility of that attempt is already evident in the spirit’s submissive posture and in the majesty of Jesus’ title.

NIV Biblical Theology Study Bible  Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.

9 Then Jesus asked him, “What is your name?”

“My name is Legion,” he replied, “for we are many.” 10 And he begged Jesus again and again not to send them out of the area.

I don’t know why they begged to NOT be sent out of that area. Maybe they were afraid Jesus was there to condemn them to eternal fire, but I am not sure.  Why would they want to stay in that area? Are demons regionally based? Interesting question. In Ephesians 6, Paul hints at something like this when he describes our demonic enemies as 

“6:12 … the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.”

Perhaps there are divisions of power and authority… assigned to regions of the earth and the heavens? Perhaps Legion was assigned to that part of the world?

Naming someone was believed to be a way of gaining power over them. The demons had already identified Jesus (v. 7; cf. 1:24, 34), but by this question Jesus reveals His superior power.

Legion. Jesus forces the demon to unmask himself. He is not one but many. A Roman legion was six thousand men.

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We believers must have a balanced perspective when it comes to demonic forces. First of all, we are foolish if we say they do not exist. They do. Secondly, we must recognize that Satan employs two tactics concerning his demonic subjects (at least two that I can ascertain). One tactic is to convince us that there is nothing to this demonology thing. It’s all superstitious hogwash, illustrated by cartoonish figures in red horned spandex with pitchforks. The other tactic is to get us overly involved and fearing the demons to the point where there is a demon behind every bush, and perhaps get to the point where we are so afraid that we are frozen in our tracks. The truth is – there ARE demonic forces around us. But they are NOT all-powerful. They have power, yes. They can be frightening… definitely yes. But they can NOT overcome the Name of Jesus, Who is our shield and our fortress. I don’t go looking for demons. But when I have encountered them – and those times were personally terrifying – I have as my defense the Name of the One Who surrounds me like a shield.

I have encountered demonized individuals two times in my life. I have experienced demonic attacks in my dreams on at least three occasions. In each of these occurrences, I experienced dread and terror. In each of these occurrences I called on the Name of Jesus and experienced His divine protection, resulting in the immediate departure of those evil spiritual entities. To the believer, the Name of Jesus is powerful beyond measure.

Having said all that, I realize also that the demonic hordes achieved a temporary victory over Jesus when He was crucified. What they did not realize was that their “victory” was, in fact, Jesus’ victory and the very thing they considered a “win” became the ultimate victory for God, sealing Satan and all his demonic army’s doom.

I know there will come a day when death will knock on my door and I will close my eyes here on earth for the last time. At that moment, it will appear that Satan and his minions will have won another battle against God’s army, of which I am a part. However, closing my eyes here means I am opening my eyes there in the Presence of the One Whom I have only read about. I will be more powerful in that moment than the enemy of my soul can possibly imagine. At that time demonic forces such as Legion (mentioned in this chapter) will no longer hold fear of them as a weapon.

Our best defense against spiritual wickedness is to focus our attention on Jesus, striving to live as He lived, striving to speak as He spoke. Be aware of demonic beings, but don’t give them undue attention. Focus on Jesus.

There is an excellent article by a Robert Johnston titled “Demon Possession and Exorcism in the New Testament” which gives a balanced view of demon possession, exorcism, and their importance on the New Testament narrative. It’s not a long read, but it is a worthwhile one. Here is the URL:

Demon Possession and Exorcisms in the NT by Robert M. Johnston (2015)

11 A large herd of pigs was feeding on the nearby hillside. 12 The demons begged Jesus, “Send us among the pigs; allow us to go into them.” 13 He gave them permission, and the impure spirits came out and went into the pigs. The herd, about two thousand in number, rushed down the steep bank into the lake and were drowned.

14 Those tending the pigs ran off and reported this in the town and countryside, and the people went out to see what had happened. 15 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. 16 Those who had seen it told the people what had happened to the demon-possessed man—and told about the pigs as well. 17 Then the people began to plead with Jesus to leave their region.

The Gerasenes’ dread of Jesus’ great power and perhaps their fear of further financial loss lead them to plead with Jesus—not for help or that they might remain with him but that he might leave. Astonishingly, the same Jesus who has the authority to expel a demonic legion from the region allows the fearful villagers to expel him.

NIV Biblical Theology Study Bible  Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.

Resist God enough, and He will give you your wish and withdraw. Know this – once He withdraws, He will not return. He will grant you your wish to be separated from Him. The story of Moses and Pharaoh demonstrates this point. In the beginning of the duel between Moses and Pharaoh’s magicians, each time Moses’ manifestation of God’s power defeated the magician’s responses, it is said that “Pharaoh hardened his heart”, denying Israel’s freedom. But approximately half way through the contest of wills and power, the phrasing changes… we begin to read that “God hardened Pharaohs heart.” Pharaoh had demonstrated his will to NOT bend his knee to the God of Israel. In hardening Pharaoh’s heart, God was granting Pharaoh’s wish.

18 As Jesus was getting into the boat, the man who had been demon-possessed begged to go with him. 19 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.” 

Surprisingly, Jesus did not invite this man to join his band of close disciples. He sent the man back to his Greek world, with no training and no Torah instructions, only an experience of mercy. Apparently this was enough.

NIV First-Century Study Bible Copyright © 2014 by Zondervan.

20 So the man went away and began to tell in the Decapolis[b] how much Jesus had done for him. And all the people were amazed.

This man becomes the first Gentile missionary. Jesus usually demands silence (1:34 note), but in this instance He allows the preparation for the future mission of the church to begin.

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Blessings!

Paige