Stories of the Rabbi 7

Mark 4:35 – 5:20: Faith calming storms and demons

In the last passage, Mark gave us some parables Jesus told about faith. For this week, we are going to see faith in action. Faith is no longer trusting a set of rules, religious organizations, or specific leaders. Faith is putting trust in Jesus and who He is.

· A nasty storm 4:35-41

o Vs. 35 – Jesus and the 12 Sail to the South Eastern side of the Sea of Galilee.

§ Capernaum has been His home base for most of His ministry.

§ It is the Jewish side of the Lake.

§ The Gentiles had a region known as the Decapolis (10 Cities) located on the South-Eastern side of the lake.

§ These were Roman and Greek folks with a Roman and Greek culture – filled with their gods and dietary preferences.

§ It would have been pretty scandalous for Jesus to suggest that they make the 7-11 mile trip to this region as they were all devout Jews – they risked being unclean from their visit.

o Vs. 36 – Other boats went with them

§ There was a company of people coming with Jesus.

o Vs. 37 – the furious storm

§ Storms from the Golan whipping down onto the Lake are not unusual and can quickly develop.

§ These storms would have been familiar to those of the 12 who lived in the region, especially the fishermen.

o Vs. 38 – Jesus was asleep on a cushion

§ Having exhausted Himself from ministry, He was sound asleep

§ The mention of the cushion is intentional and displays the evidence that this was written or dictated by someone who was there. This verse is considered one of the evidences that Peter recounted these stories to Mark

§ Jesus had to be awoken by the disciples, who were afraid that the storm would capsize the boat

o Vss. 39 – 40 - Jesus wakes up and rebukes

§ Jesus displays His authority over nature by telling the storm to quiet down.

§ As Jesus has authority over the Sabbath, disease, and the Law, He is now demonstrating His authority over nature.

§ Notice the language that he "rebukes" ἐπιτιμάω epitimaō – see Mark 1:25.

§ Amid chaos and violence, Jesus brought calm, safety, peace

o Vss. 41 - The 12 were afraid – why?

§ Storms were scary but familiar and, in a way, expected.

§ None of them expected Jesus to do what he did.

§ As good Jewish fellows, they would have known that only God could control the weather (see 2 Sa 22:16; Pss. 18:15; 104:7; 106:9).

o Application – when the storms in life come, we can get so caught up in our turmoil and problems that we forget that Jesus is right there with us. When we go to Him, we must know He will use His power to bring peace. Sometimes, we are so deep in our storms that the power of Jesus seems scary- sometimes, we get so used to our problems that we would rather hang on to them as they are familiar - but it is only through the word of Jesus that we can find our peace and healing.

· Healing of a Gentile Demoniac.

o Vs. 1 - Region of the Gerasenes – probably refers to the city of Kersa (Koursi), a couple of miles from the northeastern edge of the Sea. Again, this is Gentile land.

o Vs. 2 – a man with an unclean spirit (spirit of death – demon) came out of the tombs to greet Him

§ Palestinians at that time kept their dead in caves, and this is where the man was probably hanging out.

§ Impure - ἀκάθαρτος akathartos – filthy, unclean, evil.

o Vss. 3-5 – how crazy was this guy? REALLY crazy!

§ Lived among the dead.

§ Had supernatural strength.

§ Did self-harm – cutting himself.

§ Screamed, cried out - κράζω krazō – where we get the word crazy.

§ The demon had driven this poor fellow so mad that he had completely lost himself.

o Vss. 6-7 The demons give it their best shot.

§ They try to dissociate themselves from Jesus: "What do you want with me?" or "Why don't you mind your own business?"

v The man was demonized – possessed by a demon.

v Christians can be demonized and harassed by demons but cannot be possessed.

v People who are demonized because something has happened to them or they have done something that has invited the demonic into their lives:

Ø Fear

i. Worry

ii. Anxiety

iii. Unbelief

iv. Need to control others

v. Isolation

vi. Substance abuse

Ø Hate

i. Bitterness

ii. Envy

iii. Gossip

iv. Slander

v. Anger

vi. Self-hate

vii. Jealousy

viii. Unforgiveness

Ø Sexual Sin – both committed by us and committed by us

i. Molestation and rape can open a door for the enemy to wreck the lives of the victims

Ø Occult/ Witchcraft

i. Astrology

ii. Fortune-telling

iii. Tarot cards

iv. Seances

v. Ouija Boards

vi. Any "New Age" kind of practice.

§ Claims to supernaturally know who Jesus is: "Jesus, Son of the Most High God."

§ Tries to defend themselves using the same language an exorcist would use: "In God's name."

§ Resorts to begging: "Don't torture me!"

o Vss. 8-9 Jesus owns the demons.

§ Jesus demands the name of the demons, and they give it up right away

§ To know and use someone's name in that culture was to have power over them

§ The demons tried to get power over Jesus by using His name and title, but it did not work

§ They went back to begging Jesus to be kind

o Vss. 11 – 13 PIGS!!!

§ Jesus casts the demons into the pigs, and they immediately run into the sea.

§ Pigs on this side of Galilee were common and were raised for the Romans around Israel – the Jews detested this.

§ Notice Jesus cast out the demons from the man and permitted them to go into the pigs.

§ Jesus is now showing His authority over the demonic – the spiritual realm.

§ This activity was not an exorcism but a deliverance.

v Exorcisms are religious rituals using liturgy and religious articles (crucifix, holy water, incense) in an attempt to remove demons. It's not always permanent.

v Deliverances are using the authority of Jesus to remove the demonic and bring the person to a saving faith in Jesus.

o Vss. 14 – 17 – the fear of the Gentiles

§ Upon seeing their heard commit suicide, the headers run away.

§ Later they come back and see the man, formally possessed, back to himself, in his right mind, calm and peaceful.

§ They were even more afraid. Why?

v The gods of the pagans were worshiped for what they did for the individual worshiper – worship one god for a good crop, worship another god to have a nice herd of pigs.

v The gods showed the worshipers their favor or displeasure based on the sacrifices they offered. Pleasing sacrifice, good things happen. Wrong sacrifice, bad things happen.

v One never really knows their standing with the gods; one just sort of hoped they would show favor.

v Here is a man (Jesus) who instantly ruined an entire heard of pigs

v He must either be a god or an agent of a god – so they feared that something worse was coming

v The fact that Jesus also had authority over evil spirits also played into their fear

o Vss. 18-20 The first missionary to the Gentiles.

§ The healed man wants to follow Jesus.

§ Instead, Jesus sent him back to his towns to spread the word.

§ Compare this to John 4:28-29; 39-42

§ Jesus commissions these two Gentiles to start talking about Him, but with the Jews, He tells them to be quiet. Why?

v Jesus must go through His passion and resurrection before revealing who He was to the Jews.

v The Gentiles only had a partial view into who He was through this instance and John 4.

v There needed to be some "tilling of the soil" for the Gentiles before the true Gospel would be delivered – the Gentiles had no reference for a Messiah in their culture, and these two people – a Samaritan and a Gentile former demoniac were the first to start this movement.

o Application:

§ Jesus is again showing His authority over another realm – the supernatural. Demons are real, and they have power. Only through the name of Jesus can we be freed from the evil that plagues us.

§ Another application relates to Mark 4 and the sower of the seeds. In this passage, we see one who is sowing seeds after his demonic healing. His mission is not necessarily bringing people to faith but sowing the Gospel's initial seeds. We need not be concerned with the effects of our spreading the Gospel –God's business. Our job is to go forth and speak and live the Gospel so that people can recognize Jesus and be drawn to Him