The Gerasene Demoniac

The Gerasene Demoniac

Mark 5:1–20 NASB95

They came to the other side of the sea, into the country of the Gerasenes. When He got out of the boat, immediately a man from the tombs with an unclean spirit met Him, and he had his dwelling among the tombs. And no one was able to bind him anymore, even with a chain; because he had often been bound with shackles and chains, and the chains had been torn apart by him and the shackles broken in pieces, and no one was strong enough to subdue him. Constantly, night and day, he was screaming among the tombs and in the mountains, and gashing himself with stones. Seeing Jesus from a distance, he ran up and bowed down before Him; and shouting with a loud voice, he said, “What business do we have with each other, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I implore You by God, do not torment me!” For He had been saying to him, “Come out of the man, you unclean spirit!” And He was asking him, “What is your name?” And he said to Him, “My name is Legion; for we are many.” And he began to implore Him earnestly not to send them out of the country. Now there was a large herd of swine feeding nearby on the mountain. The demons implored Him, saying, “Send us into the swine so that we may enter them.” Jesus gave them permission. And coming out, the unclean spirits entered the swine; and the herd rushed down the steep bank into the sea, about two thousand of them; and they were drowned in the sea. Their herdsmen ran away and reported it in the city and in the country. And the people came to see what it was that had happened. They came to Jesus and observed the man who had been demon-possessed sitting down, clothed and in his right mind, the very man who had had the “legion”; and they became frightened. Those who had seen it described to them how it had happened to the demon-possessed man, and all about the swine. And they began to implore Him to leave their region. As He was getting into the boat, the man who had been demon-possessed was imploring Him that he might accompany Him. And He did not let him, but He said to him, “Go home to your people and report to them what great things the Lord has done for you, and how He had mercy on you.” And he went away and began to proclaim in Decapolis what great things Jesus had done for him; and everyone was amazed.

I. Introduction

a. Last week we discussed our responsibilities to the Kingdom of God, the sharing of the gospel and how we are to put much study into learning the Word of God. The more we do the more God will give, but if you don’t what you do have will be taken away.

b. We learned how the Kingdom of God grows and who the King of that Kingdom is.

c. Finally we looked at our need of the King of that Kingdom and our total reliance upon Him.

d. This week we see that Jesus had just calmed the storm and they come to a place called Gerasenes. In Matthew it calls it the land of the Gadarenes. Actually these two places are in an area that was called Decapolis the district of Ten Cities. They are both near each others and can be referred to as the same. If you notice did say they came to the specific cities, one being Gergesa or the other was Gadara. It states it came to the land of the Gerasenes or the land of the Gadarenes.

II. The demoniac

a. In Matthew it states that Jesus was met by two men that were demoniac’s, where in Mark and Luke it talks about just one of the men. In this situation it is talking about the one that was most fierce, but both men were delivered. But in Mark and Luke it deals with the one that was most fierce and more under the control of demons.

b. Let’s describe the situation that the men were in

i. They lived in the tombs. In Israel tombs were actually in caves, so they dwelt in a cave where they would lay the dead. In the Law and in the Jewish traditions is was a very unclean thing to touch the dead and even more to live amongst them.

ii. Due to the possession the demons made the man extraordinarily powerful that even when they tried to bind him up, the chains were broken.

iii. Very tormented, he would shriek day and night, gashing and cutting himself with stones. (we need to take notice of this that allot of people do this thing called, “cutting”).

III. The reaction of the demon to Jesus

a. ran up and bowed to Jesus

i. James 2:19, “You believe that God is one. You do well; the demons also believe, and shudder.”

ii. Instead of running away from Jesus, it was forced it had to come and bow. In Romans 14:11 “For it is written, “AS I LIVE, SAYS THE LORD, EVERY KNEE SHALL BOW TO ME, AND EVERY TONGUE SHALL GIVE PRAISE TO GOD.”

iii. Which is a quote from Isaiah 45:23, ““I have sworn by Myself, The word has gone forth from My mouth in righteousness And will not turn back, That to Me every knee will bow, every tongue will swear allegiance.”

b. acknowledged who Jesus was, What business do we have with each other, Jesus, Son of the Most High God.

i. Acts 19:14-15, “Seven sons of one Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, were doing this. And the evil spirit answered and said to them, “I recognize Jesus, and I know about Paul, but who are you?”

c. implored Jesus not to torment them.

i. The demons knew what their final destination is.

ii. Jude 1:6, “And angels who did not keep their own domain, but abandoned their proper abode, He has kept in eternal bonds under darkness for the judgment of the great day,”

iii. 2 Peter 2:4, “For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but cast them into hell and committed them to pits of darkness, reserved for judgment;”

d. They asked Jesus to send them into the swine. The name of this demon’s was called legion, which in the Roman army legion was a count of about 6000.

IV. Judgement for keeping swine in the land of Israel

a. Leviticus 11:7, “and the pig, for though it divides the hoof, thus making a split hoof, it does not chew cud, it is unclean to you.”

b. Deuteronomy 14:8, ““The pig, because it divides the hoof but does not chew the cud, it is unclean for you. You shall not eat any of their flesh nor touch their carcasses.”

c. Isaiah 65:3-4, “A people who continually provoke Me to My face, Offering sacrifices in gardens and burning incense on bricks; Who sit among graves and spend the night in secret places; Who eat swine’s flesh, And the broth of unclean meat is in their pots.”

d. It is completely unlawful, against the law, not man’s tradition to own, touch or eat swine in Israel. Therefore when Jesus allowed the demons to go into the swine, it was a judgement towards the individuals that was actually breaking the law of God. Remember what Jesus did every time He went into the temple and found them exchanging money in it? When it came to the actual Law of God and the breaking of it, Jesus was pretty decisive.

e. What these men were doing was keeping the swine to sell to the Romans who ate pigs. Then why is it not wrong for a gentile to eat pigs and the Jew’s it was wrong. Remember what Romans 6:14 says, “For sin shall not be master over you, for you are not under law but under grace.”

V. Reaction of those that kept the pigs

a. They went and told others in the city.

b. They came out and saw the demoniac in his right mind and clothed.

c. They became fearful

i. Because they lost their livelihood.

ii. They saw the man who was demon possessed in his right mind and clothed.

iii. So did they submit to Jesus? No, they asked him to leave.

d. Also the man that was healed, he desperately wanted to go with Jesus, but Jesus sent him into Decapolis, the district of ten cities to proclaim the gospel.

V. Summary

a. A person who that belongs to Jesus Christ and is saved and indwelled with the Holy Spirit cannot be demon possessed. The action of the demon when he saw Jesus and their reaction to Him.

b. We also see that it is the Power of God in Jesus Christ that sets people free from demon possession. We do right to consider the source of such deliverance than thinking with our own selves we can deliver people.

c. Demons know who Jesus is, but humankind tend to refuse even to acknowledge who Jesus Christ is and definitely will not bow down to Him.

d. We have been delivered ourselves by Jesus Christ and therefore we need to be those who go into our district of ten cities, where we live, and share what great things Jesus has done and share the gospel.