Monthly Archives: June 2020

THE GOSPEL OF MARK – MY NAME IS LEGION

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MY NAME IS LEGION

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!”

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. Mark 5:6-10

The conversation Jesus had with the demon-possessed man was a strange mixture of sane interaction with a man created in God’s image and capable of responding to God, and the crazed outbursts of terrified demons who knew who He was and feared the fate that awaited them. Although this man had endured terrible torment from the demons – it was a miracle that he was still alive – there was a sense in which they actually benefited him in the end. Because of their disclosure, there was no doubt in the man’s mind who Jesus was.

The demons kept butting in to keep the man from conversing with Jesus until they were silenced and dismissed from him and he was able to respond to Jesus without interference. Why did he plead with Jesus not to banish the demons from the country? Was this their last stand before they were driven out? Why did Jesus capitulate and send them into the pigs? Was it because He had not yet accomplished His final victory over them so that He could banish them to hell?

Judgment day still lies in the future and the demonic powers still serve their purpose in the world until Jesus returns.

This man’s deliverance was a process, part of which was to acknowledge his condition, symbolised by his name. It seems that his confession, “I am a rioting mob!” brought about his final release. The demons fled into the pigs who reacted violently by hurling themselves over the cliff into the lake.

This is an incident we need to keep uppermost in our minds. This happening proves Jesus’ authority and power over the demonic realm without a doubt. There is no power struggle here, no equal contest between God and Satan, between good and evil. There is no question here as to who is in charge. Jesus is Lord, always was and always will be. Even in His human life, He stood and because He is in us and we are in Him, we can also stand.

THE GOSPEL OF MARK – SEARCH AND DESTROY

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CHAPTER 5

SEARCH AND DESTROY

​1 They went across the lake to the region of the Gerasenes. 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. Mark 5:1-5

This story convinces me again the Jesus was far more concerned about the condition people were in than how they got into it. This man certainly didn’t become like he was overnight. If I read it in a disinterested way, it reads like another fictional horror story but, if I really think about it, I wonder what sort of life he lived to have become so deranged with demons.

We can compare him with so many of the animal rescue programmes we see on TV. Months of neglect and starvation bring them to a state of parasite infestation and emaciation. This man was spiritually emaciated and infested with demons because they had gradually taken him over through years of ungodly living, receiving and believing their lies until they could move into the strongholds they had created in his mind.

Satan cannot lead any sane-thinking person to a point of believing that he is lord by convincing him through a demonstration of his character. A sane-thinking person would turn from him in disgust if he were to reveal his true self. It has to be by deception and ensnarement. He lures people through the pleasures of sin without revealing the consequences. When the consequences begin to bite, guilt and shame drive the person deeper into sin and farther from God’s mercy. He becomes so ensnared by his behaviour and his beliefs that the next step is easy. Move in and control from the internal command post!

From that position, the next step is to destroy. Self-inflicted punishment, torment and violence isolate the person from family and friends and inflict physical damage that will eventually destroy that life. This is what the Father revealed to Jesus and this is what Jesus was en route to do – to repossess the tormented man’s mind and refocus his beliefs so that Jesus could take over the command centre of his life. He had the authority to do it and that was His immediate mission.

THE GOSPEL OF MARK – WHO IS THIS?

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WHO IS THIS?

35 That day when evening came, he said to his disciples, “Let us go over to the other side.” 36 Leaving the crowd behind, they took him along, just as he was, in the boat. There were also other boats with him. 37 A furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped. 38 Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion. The disciples woke him and said to him, “Teacher, don’t you care if we drown?”

39 He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Quiet! Be still!” Then the wind died down and it was completely calm.

40 He said to his disciples, “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?”
41 They were terrified and asked each other, “Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!” Mark 4:35-

This could be a tense situation. A violent storm on the lake; the twelve disciples battling to keep their little craft afloat while their Rabbi, who was supposed to care about them, was asleep in the stern, oblivious of their danger and His! It was perfectly natural for them to be annoyed. Had Jesus been an ordinary rabbi, they would have been justified in their accusation of Him. Didn’t He care that they were at the point of sinking? They did not yet have enough evidence, or realise fully who He was.

This isn’t just another story about the miracles Jesus did. This is one of those defining moments when light begins to dawn on the mind. Jesus’ counter accusation, “Why are you such cowards? Don’t you have any faith?” puts the incident in perspective. Who was responsible for the storm? Did God whip it up or was it the result of some demonic “water spirit” plot to drown them? Could it have been a natural phenomenon that God used to drive home two lessons: for Jesus a lesson in trust and for the disciples the exposure of unbelief?

Accusation and counter accusation! What was the difference in their perspectives? The disciples were embroiled in their present circumstances. For them, there was no thought of the bigger picture. By contrast, Jesus always took the long look and related everything to the Father’s love and the Father’s purpose. Going to the other side was part of the Father’s purpose and so “going down” was not part of the equation.

This is what it meant to be ECHAD with God. Jesus spent so much time with the Father that He knew exactly where He was going, and He knew where He was taking His disciples – towards leadership in a world-wide mission. There was no possibility that a storm on the lake would take them all out. There was too much at stake. These disciples still had a lot to learn.

THE GOSPEL OF MARK – PERFECT GOD…PERFECT MAN

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PERFECT GOD…PERFECT MAN

35 That day when evening came, he said to his disciples, “Let us go over to the other side.” 36 Leaving the crowd behind, they took him along, just as he was, in the boat. There were also other boats with him. 37 A furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped. 38 Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion. The disciples woke him and said to him, “Teacher, don’t you care if we drown?”

39 He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Quiet! Be still!” Then the wind died down and it was completely calm.

40 He said to his disciples, “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?”
41 They were terrified and asked each other, “Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!” Mark 4:35-41

What a lovely story, Jesus’ fragile humanity and His sonship in perfect unity! In contrast to the disciples who had not yet come to understand or practise their sonship in God, Jesus’ attitude presented the perfect balance between an ordinary human being at the mercy of circumstances, and the Son of God whose confidence in the Father’s love and His purpose for Him, which nothing could derail because what God wants will always prevail, provided such security that He could sleep in a howling gale.

This shows the difference between us humans who are suspicious of God, and Jesus, who knew the Father and could therefore trust Him all the time, no matter what happened. Jesus called it “my rest, my peace, my joy.” This really speaks to our hearts because this is where God wants to take every child of His. This is what sonship is all about. Part of Jesus’ mission was to show us how to be sons. He took His disciples through some gruelling training so that they could see, feel and experience what sonship was all about.

On this occasion, they were more amazed by the miracle of the wind than they were about the attitude of Jesus. Why did Jesus calm the storm? Was it because it had, and had not served its purpose? It did serve its purpose by showing the disciples what trust is all about and by exposing their failure to trust God, but it didn’t serve its purpose because they fell into a panic instead of being at peace as Jesus was.

Is that why God allows stuff to happen to us that isn’t the kingdom of God? If we interpret it as “the attack of Satan”, we have completely missed the point. If Satan causes the problem, God allows it. Jesus made that clear when He warned Peter of his coming denial. Jesus didn’t forestall the attack. He focused on Peter’s faith. Adverse circumstances are an essential part of building our faith muscles. God wants to root out all suspicion of Him by allowing or setting up circumstances to expose the remnants of our mistrust.

Don’t blame the devil when stuff happens. He is only a tool in God’s hands to fashion you into someone who resembles Jesus, our elder brother. Trust God to work all things for your good because His intention is to conform you to the image of His Son that He might be the firstborn among many brothers (Rom. 8:28-29).

THE GOSPEL OF MARK – SMALLEST SEED…LARGEST PLANT

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SMALLEST SEED…LARGEST PLANT

30 Again he said, “What shall we say the kingdom of God is like, or what parable shall we use to describe it? 31 It is like a mustard seed, which is the smallest of all seeds on earth. 32 Yet when planted, it grows and becomes the largest of all garden plants, with such big branches that the birds can perch in its shade.”

33 With many similar parables Jesus spoke the word to them, as much as they could understand. 34 He did not say anything to them without using a parable. But when he was alone with his own disciples, he explained everything. Mark 4:30-34

In these stories about the growth of God’s kingdom there is an aspect that can easily be missed. It is a very slow process. God is patient with His children as they mature in faith, love and truth. Growth in grace and the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ must be thorough to be enduring. Slow growth produces strength. The root system must be well established to sustain the height and weight of the tree.

What is the root system? Belief and knowledge: belief is the confidence we have in the trustworthiness of the One about whom we are learning. It is much more than the knowledge and understanding of systematised truth. It involves leaning our weight on Him on the strength of who He has revealed Himself to be. Knowledge is built on belief and relates to experiential knowledge rather than intellectual knowledge. We can only know God as we prove His trustworthiness by acting on what He has said.

And so, this process of growth happens day by day, year by year, and circumstance by circumstance as we choose to trust God in every situation, throwing our full weight on what we have learned, believed and come to know.

Jesus spent much time with His disciples, patiently explaining God’s ways and the ways of the kingdom with stories, illustrations and applications. He was faithfully sowing the seeds of His Word into their hearts right in line with the stories He told, knowing that He was also depositing seeds of truth in their hearts which would take root and grow at the appropriate time.

What confidence this gives us to know that our labour is never in vain in the Lord. No matter where we scatter seed, there will be a harvest even though the growth appears to be slow and imperceptible. We can have confidence in the growth of the kingdom in our own hearts also. As long as we keep playing our part in patience and perseverance, God is at work in us, maturing our character for the day of harvest.