1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:12,080 The Lord wants us to know the majesty and the supremacy of the power of Jesus Christ. 2 00:00:12,080 --> 00:00:19,920 His power as the servant of the Lord extends over every realm, material and immaterial. 3 00:00:19,920 --> 00:00:25,060 There's absolutely no limit to the authority that belongs to Jesus. 4 00:00:25,060 --> 00:00:26,880 He is supreme over disease. 5 00:00:26,880 --> 00:00:28,200 He is supreme over death. 6 00:00:28,200 --> 00:00:31,360 He is supreme over nature. 7 00:00:31,360 --> 00:00:36,800 And now once again in today's text, Mark's narrative shows that Jesus has authority over 8 00:00:36,800 --> 00:00:41,320 the realm of evil spirits. 9 00:00:41,320 --> 00:00:49,160 The text we have before us records an encounter the likes of which most of us have never had. 10 00:00:49,160 --> 00:00:51,520 It is dramatic. 11 00:00:51,520 --> 00:00:57,360 It is a confrontation between Jesus and evil. 12 00:00:57,360 --> 00:01:04,760 It is a confrontation between the realm of light and the realm of shadowy, dark forces. 13 00:01:04,760 --> 00:01:10,840 And the result of the confrontation is a powerfully changed life. 14 00:01:10,840 --> 00:01:17,600 The event seems to be the reason that Jesus crossed the Sea of Galilee. 15 00:01:17,600 --> 00:01:24,960 And perhaps, perhaps even most likely, it was this encounter that was behind the storm 16 00:01:24,960 --> 00:01:27,840 on the sea that we studied last time. 17 00:01:27,840 --> 00:01:36,320 For that storm was a devilish attempt to elude what transpires in our text. 18 00:01:36,320 --> 00:01:40,980 On the screen before you is a map of the area of Galilee. 19 00:01:40,980 --> 00:01:47,000 The region of the Gerasenes that we will read about is on the east side of the Sea of Galilee, 20 00:01:47,000 --> 00:01:48,960 where the arrow is pointing. 21 00:01:48,960 --> 00:01:53,560 The arrow roughly gives you the journey that Jesus and his disciples would have been on 22 00:01:53,560 --> 00:01:55,480 in the boat. 23 00:01:55,480 --> 00:02:02,240 The area of the Gerasenes was a holding or perhaps a farming community that seems to 24 00:02:02,240 --> 00:02:11,440 have been associated with the city of Gerasa or Jerash, where some of us visited last spring. 25 00:02:11,440 --> 00:02:17,080 It was an area that was part of what was known as the Decapolis. 26 00:02:17,080 --> 00:02:21,920 This is a large area, mostly to the east of the Jordan River and the Sea of Galilee, that 27 00:02:21,920 --> 00:02:26,520 was Gentile for the most part. 28 00:02:26,520 --> 00:02:30,560 A number of cities comprised the area of the Decapolis. 29 00:02:30,560 --> 00:02:39,160 In fact, as the name implies, there was the city of Sinthopolis, also known as Bet-Shon. 30 00:02:39,160 --> 00:02:43,440 There was the city of Philadelphia, as it was known in that day, but today it is known 31 00:02:43,440 --> 00:02:45,880 as Amman, Jordan. 32 00:02:45,880 --> 00:02:50,920 There was the city of Damascus, still today known as Damascus, Syria. 33 00:02:50,920 --> 00:02:55,320 All of these are ancient cities. 34 00:02:55,320 --> 00:03:00,840 The next picture on the slide is that of the Golan Heights to the far east there of the 35 00:03:00,840 --> 00:03:02,400 Sea of Galilee. 36 00:03:02,400 --> 00:03:07,160 A little faint in the slide, I'm afraid, but they are there. 37 00:03:07,160 --> 00:03:12,280 It is that area that you see before you that is mentioned in our text as the area of the 38 00:03:12,280 --> 00:03:13,280 Gerasenes. 39 00:03:13,280 --> 00:03:20,200 You notice the sharp cliffs that characterize that shore of the Sea of Galilee. 40 00:03:20,200 --> 00:03:21,600 Now let's look at the Word of God. 41 00:03:21,600 --> 00:03:26,400 It is on page 994. 42 00:03:26,400 --> 00:03:31,160 If you want to use a pew Bible, if you don't have a Bible this morning with you, of course 43 00:03:31,160 --> 00:03:36,200 if you're a part of our church, we hope you always bring your Bibles to the service. 44 00:03:36,200 --> 00:03:39,360 Mark chapter 5, I'll begin reading in verse 1. 45 00:03:39,360 --> 00:03:46,320 They, Jesus and his disciples, went across the lake to the region of the Gerasenes. 46 00:03:46,320 --> 00:03:51,720 When Jesus got out of the boat, a man with an evil spirit came from the tombs to meet 47 00:03:51,720 --> 00:03:53,000 him. 48 00:03:53,000 --> 00:03:59,600 This man lived in the tombs and no one could bind him anymore, not even with a chain, for 49 00:03:59,600 --> 00:04:05,020 he had often been chained hand and foot, but he tore the chains apart and broke the irons 50 00:04:05,020 --> 00:04:06,840 on his feet. 51 00:04:06,840 --> 00:04:09,880 No one was strong enough to subdue him. 52 00:04:09,880 --> 00:04:15,680 Night and day among the tombs and in the hills he would cry out and cut himself with stones. 53 00:04:15,680 --> 00:04:21,640 When he saw Jesus from a distance, he ran and fell at his knees in front of him. 54 00:04:21,640 --> 00:04:26,440 He shouted at the top of his voice, what do you want with me, Jesus, son of the most high 55 00:04:26,440 --> 00:04:27,440 God? 56 00:04:27,440 --> 00:04:30,840 Swear to God that you won't torment me. 57 00:04:30,840 --> 00:04:36,680 For Jesus had said to him, come out of this man, you evil spirit. 58 00:04:36,680 --> 00:04:39,720 Then Jesus asked him, what is your name? 59 00:04:39,720 --> 00:04:44,200 My name is Legion, he replied, for we are many. 60 00:04:44,200 --> 00:04:48,480 He begged Jesus again and again not to send them out of the area. 61 00:04:48,480 --> 00:04:53,160 A large herd of pigs was feeding on the nearby hillside. 62 00:04:53,160 --> 00:04:58,880 The demons begged Jesus, send us among the pigs, allow us to go into them. 63 00:04:58,880 --> 00:05:05,300 He gave them permission and the evil spirits came out and went into the pigs. 64 00:05:05,300 --> 00:05:13,140 The herd, about 2,000 in number, rushed down the steep bank into the lake and were drowned. 65 00:05:13,140 --> 00:05:17,600 Most tending the pigs ran off and reported this in the town and countryside. 66 00:05:17,600 --> 00:05:20,320 The people went out to see what had happened. 67 00:05:20,320 --> 00:05:21,320 They came to Jesus. 68 00:05:21,320 --> 00:05:26,760 They saw the man who had been possessed by the legion of demons sitting there, dressed 69 00:05:26,760 --> 00:05:28,920 and in his right mind. 70 00:05:28,920 --> 00:05:30,920 They were afraid. 71 00:05:30,920 --> 00:05:35,760 Those who had seen it told the people what had happened to the demon-possessed man and 72 00:05:35,760 --> 00:05:38,080 told about the pigs as well. 73 00:05:38,080 --> 00:05:43,440 The people began to plead with Jesus to leave their region. 74 00:05:43,440 --> 00:05:47,760 As Jesus was getting into the boat, the man who had been demon-possessed begged to go 75 00:05:47,760 --> 00:05:49,160 with him. 76 00:05:49,160 --> 00:05:54,780 Jesus did not let him, but said, go home to your family and tell them how much the Lord 77 00:05:54,780 --> 00:05:59,280 has done for you and how he has had mercy on you. 78 00:05:59,280 --> 00:06:05,140 So the man went away and began to tell in the Decapolis how much Jesus had done for 79 00:06:05,140 --> 00:06:11,040 him and all the people were amazed. 80 00:06:11,040 --> 00:06:17,600 This power encounter between Jesus and the devil underscores the authority of Christ 81 00:06:17,600 --> 00:06:22,000 to deal with the evil one then and now. 82 00:06:22,000 --> 00:06:27,220 I want us to think about the encounter itself. 83 00:06:27,220 --> 00:06:32,440 So let's see how Mark sets it up for us in verses 1 through 5. 84 00:06:32,440 --> 00:06:37,680 As I've already noted, it immediately follows in Mark's account and the other gospels, 85 00:06:37,680 --> 00:06:41,520 the stilling of the storm on the Sea of Galilee. 86 00:06:41,520 --> 00:06:46,960 By the time Jesus and his disciples arrived at the eastern shore after the stilling of 87 00:06:46,960 --> 00:06:51,240 the storm, it was most likely completely dark. 88 00:06:51,240 --> 00:06:54,460 It was nighttime. 89 00:06:54,460 --> 00:06:58,580 This pitiful demonized man is introduced to us. 90 00:06:58,580 --> 00:07:03,920 By the way, Matthew inserts the note that there were actually two men. 91 00:07:03,920 --> 00:07:10,560 Mark and Luke tell us about the one who apparently did all of the talking. 92 00:07:10,560 --> 00:07:17,480 Mark tells us that this man was chained hand and foot frequently by the village population. 93 00:07:17,480 --> 00:07:20,000 Now why did they do this? 94 00:07:20,000 --> 00:07:27,320 Well the answer is that he was viewed as a danger to himself, but also to them. 95 00:07:27,320 --> 00:07:38,320 He was a scary man, but even the chains that they put on him, the irons on his feet, were 96 00:07:38,320 --> 00:07:39,800 unable to hold him. 97 00:07:39,800 --> 00:07:47,240 He was able to break these metal chains and irons on his feet. 98 00:07:47,240 --> 00:07:52,660 Society you see had no answer for a man like this. 99 00:07:52,660 --> 00:07:57,280 In those days they could not even control him. 100 00:07:57,280 --> 00:08:01,920 He manifested supernatural strength by escaping these bonds. 101 00:08:01,920 --> 00:08:04,160 No one could subdue him. 102 00:08:04,160 --> 00:08:08,780 What we see here is far more than a manic psychosis. 103 00:08:08,780 --> 00:08:12,880 What we see here is something that is paranormal. 104 00:08:12,880 --> 00:08:15,060 It is bizarre. 105 00:08:15,060 --> 00:08:18,380 It is demonic. 106 00:08:18,380 --> 00:08:22,800 He lived, Mark tells us, in an isolated existence. 107 00:08:22,800 --> 00:08:29,680 Alone, there in the hills with this other man, among the tombs. 108 00:08:29,680 --> 00:08:34,460 Tombs were very common in those hillsides that you saw because of the limestone that 109 00:08:34,460 --> 00:08:36,760 characterizes them. 110 00:08:36,760 --> 00:08:42,580 But people in general who were poor and homeless would go to the tombs and would live there. 111 00:08:42,580 --> 00:08:46,000 This man was undoubtedly driven away from the village. 112 00:08:46,000 --> 00:08:51,080 He was the area monster that was the stuff of legends. 113 00:08:51,080 --> 00:08:54,280 He lived out there in the tombs. 114 00:08:54,280 --> 00:08:55,720 We notice that he was self-destructive. 115 00:08:55,720 --> 00:09:02,920 Satan hates God. 116 00:09:02,920 --> 00:09:10,760 Thus he hates whatever is in the image of God, which includes every human being. 117 00:09:10,760 --> 00:09:18,560 He seeks to subvert and pervert, to spoil and to break down and to destroy the image 118 00:09:18,560 --> 00:09:23,840 of God in human beings. 119 00:09:23,840 --> 00:09:26,320 Are people like this around today? 120 00:09:26,320 --> 00:09:29,240 Yes, they are. 121 00:09:29,240 --> 00:09:30,540 They are. 122 00:09:30,540 --> 00:09:35,960 Some of them are medicated and they live in society. 123 00:09:35,960 --> 00:09:42,720 But there are some of them who are so violent, as violent as this person, who are institutionalized. 124 00:09:42,720 --> 00:09:49,120 I had an occasion to visit in the Federal Medical Center in Rochester, Minnesota several 125 00:09:49,120 --> 00:09:51,280 times during my ministry there. 126 00:09:51,280 --> 00:09:56,880 Please note this was a federal prison and I only visited. 127 00:09:56,880 --> 00:10:03,040 But I'll tell you when those doors clang behind you, you feel incarcerated. 128 00:10:03,040 --> 00:10:07,480 I was there to visit a man who had come to Christ. 129 00:10:07,480 --> 00:10:09,560 Met some interesting people there. 130 00:10:09,560 --> 00:10:14,120 Lyndon LaRouche, if you've ever heard that name, who once ran for President of the United 131 00:10:14,120 --> 00:10:15,120 States. 132 00:10:15,120 --> 00:10:21,600 A man named Jimmy Baker, who was there. 133 00:10:21,600 --> 00:10:29,080 Man who was the head of the Chicago Crime Syndicate, he was there. 134 00:10:29,080 --> 00:10:39,320 I did not meet the persons though who were locked in confined cells, isolated cells. 135 00:10:39,320 --> 00:10:42,680 People who in that medical center were drugged. 136 00:10:42,680 --> 00:10:44,480 That's how they were chained. 137 00:10:44,480 --> 00:10:51,160 They are drugged 24 hours a day because they are so criminally violent. 138 00:10:51,160 --> 00:10:55,440 Society does not know what to do with people like this. 139 00:10:55,440 --> 00:10:59,560 That's what the United States does with many of them. 140 00:10:59,560 --> 00:11:03,080 Because they commit crimes, they're put into prisons. 141 00:11:03,080 --> 00:11:14,080 But because they are so dangerous, so superhuman in strength, and so violently evil, the only 142 00:11:14,080 --> 00:11:20,880 thing that society knows to do with them is to drug them up. 143 00:11:20,880 --> 00:11:28,320 Do demonized people always behave in such eerie blood-curdling ways? 144 00:11:28,320 --> 00:11:31,400 The answer to that of course is no. 145 00:11:31,400 --> 00:11:35,680 In fact, only a few of them do. 146 00:11:35,680 --> 00:11:37,600 Demonic spirits are very deceptive. 147 00:11:37,600 --> 00:11:41,220 That is their very nature to deceive. 148 00:11:41,220 --> 00:11:46,920 Even Satan himself can appear as an angel of light. 149 00:11:46,920 --> 00:11:53,160 There are some demonized people who are in high places of authority. 150 00:11:53,160 --> 00:11:59,680 Indeed, one is someday going to be the ruler of the world. 151 00:11:59,680 --> 00:12:09,040 But the true nature of demons inevitably and always comes through in perhaps subtle ways. 152 00:12:09,040 --> 00:12:17,360 It is always evil even if there is somehow a beautiful side to that evil. 153 00:12:17,360 --> 00:12:22,760 It's always crippling to the individual and to those around him. 154 00:12:22,760 --> 00:12:30,040 It's always devastating to them as people, as human beings. 155 00:12:30,040 --> 00:12:33,480 I called this man a pitiful man, and he was. 156 00:12:33,480 --> 00:12:36,040 I don't know how the demons got there. 157 00:12:36,040 --> 00:12:37,320 The Gospels don't tell us. 158 00:12:37,320 --> 00:12:39,560 Could be any number of ways. 159 00:12:39,560 --> 00:12:45,360 Perhaps there was sin in his life that he allowed to fester, and he invited by that 160 00:12:45,360 --> 00:12:47,680 demons to come into him. 161 00:12:47,680 --> 00:12:53,040 We don't know, but he is a pitiful man. 162 00:12:53,040 --> 00:12:56,080 Now Mark narrates the encounter for us in the next few verses. 163 00:12:56,080 --> 00:12:59,160 The first move is made by the demonized man himself. 164 00:12:59,160 --> 00:13:01,480 He sees Jesus. 165 00:13:01,480 --> 00:13:08,160 Now if my theory is correct that it was night, probably there were torches that were used 166 00:13:08,160 --> 00:13:13,800 to light the way as Jesus and his disciples got to shore. 167 00:13:13,800 --> 00:13:18,680 And these torches caught the interest of this man living up in the hills there in the caves. 168 00:13:18,680 --> 00:13:22,960 And he came running to Jesus from a distance, Mark says. 169 00:13:22,960 --> 00:13:28,000 And of course the storm itself would have instigated some interest in who was out there 170 00:13:28,000 --> 00:13:29,000 on the lake. 171 00:13:29,000 --> 00:13:31,160 Perhaps he was looking. 172 00:13:31,160 --> 00:13:38,020 He runs to Jesus where Jesus is, which is still presumably near the shore. 173 00:13:38,020 --> 00:13:45,500 He falls on his knees in front of Jesus, not to worship him, but because he must. 174 00:13:45,500 --> 00:13:52,360 He is forced to respect one who is far superior to himself. 175 00:13:52,360 --> 00:13:53,880 And he speaks to Jesus. 176 00:13:53,880 --> 00:14:01,600 Notice at the top of his voice, not in a humble or respectful way at all, but shouting at 177 00:14:01,600 --> 00:14:06,480 Jesus, kneeling before him, he confronts Jesus. 178 00:14:06,480 --> 00:14:10,160 What do you want with me? 179 00:14:10,160 --> 00:14:15,480 That phrase means, what do we have in common? 180 00:14:15,480 --> 00:14:23,000 You see, this man, or rather the demons in him speaking out of his voice, they knew that 181 00:14:23,000 --> 00:14:30,540 Jesus posed a threat to their existence, to their control in this man, to the ground that 182 00:14:30,540 --> 00:14:34,840 they claimed in his personality. 183 00:14:34,840 --> 00:14:38,280 He then correctly identifies Jesus, of course. 184 00:14:38,280 --> 00:14:43,780 Jesus, he says, son of the most high God. 185 00:14:43,780 --> 00:14:47,260 They knew exactly who this one was. 186 00:14:47,260 --> 00:14:51,260 Chapter 1 verse 24, you remember the demons said, you're the holy one of God. 187 00:14:51,260 --> 00:14:52,260 They know. 188 00:14:52,260 --> 00:14:57,400 Listen, friends, demons know more than some professing Christians. 189 00:14:57,400 --> 00:15:00,080 Yes, demons have a faith. 190 00:15:00,080 --> 00:15:05,420 It's not a saving faith, but the demons believe that there is one God, for example, James 191 00:15:05,420 --> 00:15:07,100 tells us. 192 00:15:07,100 --> 00:15:09,420 Demons are not capable of repenting. 193 00:15:09,420 --> 00:15:11,040 They're not capable of being saved. 194 00:15:11,040 --> 00:15:12,940 Christ didn't die for them. 195 00:15:12,940 --> 00:15:16,860 They are damned. 196 00:15:16,860 --> 00:15:18,460 But demons believe certain things. 197 00:15:18,460 --> 00:15:24,180 Here we see that this man, or this demon, rather, believed that Jesus was God. 198 00:15:24,180 --> 00:15:26,060 He had no question about that. 199 00:15:26,060 --> 00:15:27,960 There are people today who question that. 200 00:15:27,960 --> 00:15:31,580 They know less than demons. 201 00:15:31,580 --> 00:15:35,320 They believe that Jesus had authority over them. 202 00:15:35,320 --> 00:15:40,700 They believe that their judgment is coming because of another gospel, and even here it 203 00:15:40,700 --> 00:15:45,260 intimates the fact that they know that someday they're going to be tormented because of their 204 00:15:45,260 --> 00:15:48,340 rebellion against God. 205 00:15:48,340 --> 00:15:54,660 And so we see here that this demon knows more than some church members. 206 00:15:54,660 --> 00:15:57,540 And he fears Jesus' authority. 207 00:15:57,540 --> 00:16:00,340 He begs Jesus not to torture him. 208 00:16:00,340 --> 00:16:02,920 Isn't that interesting? 209 00:16:02,920 --> 00:16:09,660 He torments the man, but he doesn't want to be tormented. 210 00:16:09,660 --> 00:16:15,940 He is perhaps, again, I say, referring to the future judgment when Jesus will indeed 211 00:16:15,940 --> 00:16:20,900 bring these fallen angels to their just end. 212 00:16:20,900 --> 00:16:23,620 Well, the next move is that of Jesus. 213 00:16:23,620 --> 00:16:31,140 Jesus had already apparently seen the man coming toward him and had begun ordering the 214 00:16:31,140 --> 00:16:33,420 demon out of the man. 215 00:16:33,420 --> 00:16:36,620 This is not spoken as much as we know. 216 00:16:36,620 --> 00:16:40,620 And the demon within him knows that he must go. 217 00:16:40,620 --> 00:16:48,180 He must obey the command of Jesus, and that's why he is so agitated. 218 00:16:48,180 --> 00:16:51,260 And so Jesus, you see the demon knew him. 219 00:16:51,260 --> 00:16:54,220 And Jesus now asks for his identity. 220 00:16:54,220 --> 00:16:59,180 He says, what's your name? 221 00:16:59,180 --> 00:17:07,140 And the demon replies, my name is Legion, for we are many. 222 00:17:07,140 --> 00:17:11,360 You see, he was speaking for the group. 223 00:17:11,360 --> 00:17:16,780 That is what occasionally happens when there are multiple demons. 224 00:17:16,780 --> 00:17:22,500 One of them is forced to the front, as it were, to be the spokesman. 225 00:17:22,500 --> 00:17:26,620 And usually it's not the top dog. 226 00:17:26,620 --> 00:17:28,940 Whether this Legion was or wasn't, I don't know. 227 00:17:28,940 --> 00:17:31,580 Perhaps he was. 228 00:17:31,580 --> 00:17:34,260 But one of them comes forward to speak for the rest of them. 229 00:17:34,260 --> 00:17:35,740 He says, we are Legion. 230 00:17:35,740 --> 00:17:38,300 My name is Legion. 231 00:17:38,300 --> 00:17:46,180 And the word Legion, of course, relates to the Roman army and the fact that there were 232 00:17:46,180 --> 00:17:53,660 6,000 soldiers in a Legion suggests, at least, that there may have been thousands of demons 233 00:17:53,660 --> 00:17:56,540 in this man. 234 00:17:56,540 --> 00:18:02,380 The demon begs repeatedly not to be ordered out of the region. 235 00:18:02,380 --> 00:18:04,320 Luke adds the note. 236 00:18:04,320 --> 00:18:10,500 They said, we don't want to be cast into the abyss. 237 00:18:10,500 --> 00:18:13,680 That is the place of their eventual confinement. 238 00:18:13,680 --> 00:18:16,700 They don't want to go there yet. 239 00:18:16,700 --> 00:18:20,940 And so the demons beg Jesus to allow them to go into the swine. 240 00:18:20,940 --> 00:18:29,060 They do not want to be dispossessed of some physical or material or tangible instrument 241 00:18:29,060 --> 00:18:30,940 that they might use. 242 00:18:30,940 --> 00:18:35,940 So Jesus grants the request and delivers the man entirely. 243 00:18:35,940 --> 00:18:40,740 That brings us to the third part of this text, and that is the culmination of it, culminating 244 00:18:40,740 --> 00:18:45,700 it beginning in verse 13, the middle of the verse. 245 00:18:45,700 --> 00:18:50,780 The demonized pigs, you see the demons have left the man now. 246 00:18:50,780 --> 00:18:53,460 They have entered into the pigs. 247 00:18:53,460 --> 00:18:54,960 2,000 of them. 248 00:18:54,960 --> 00:18:56,740 This is no small herd of pigs. 249 00:18:56,740 --> 00:19:01,820 I mean, this is an Iowa kind of pig farm, right? 250 00:19:01,820 --> 00:19:04,420 2,000 pigs. 251 00:19:04,420 --> 00:19:06,860 And well, I'm not going to go there. 252 00:19:06,860 --> 00:19:12,380 A lot of pigs, and there's a lot of detail with that many pigs being together, believe 253 00:19:12,380 --> 00:19:13,380 me. 254 00:19:13,380 --> 00:19:20,300 And these pigs rushed down the nearby steep slope and out into the sea, and it destroyed 255 00:19:20,300 --> 00:19:21,300 the whole herd. 256 00:19:21,300 --> 00:19:23,660 Now what a commotion. 257 00:19:23,660 --> 00:19:26,020 What a sound that must have been. 258 00:19:26,020 --> 00:19:31,580 The squealing of these terrified pigs. 259 00:19:31,580 --> 00:19:37,780 Their snorting and the sound of their hooves and the splash into the water. 260 00:19:37,780 --> 00:19:40,700 It must have been an amazing sound. 261 00:19:40,700 --> 00:19:44,780 The question comes, why did Jesus allow this? 262 00:19:44,780 --> 00:19:50,700 Well perhaps it was to give some tangible proof that in fact the man had been delivered 263 00:19:50,700 --> 00:19:54,300 of actual demonic presence. 264 00:19:54,300 --> 00:19:59,480 It also may have been to illustrate to him and to everybody the destructive nature of 265 00:19:59,480 --> 00:20:03,700 these demons. 266 00:20:03,700 --> 00:20:07,160 Demons have disdain for human beings. 267 00:20:07,160 --> 00:20:12,500 They hate human beings, even though they deceive human beings into thinking that they're their 268 00:20:12,500 --> 00:20:22,440 friends or that somehow they have powers that they can use, that demons will give to them. 269 00:20:22,440 --> 00:20:24,740 But they hate human beings. 270 00:20:24,740 --> 00:20:30,260 Warren Wiersbe says, to Satan a pig is as good as a man. 271 00:20:30,260 --> 00:20:35,540 In fact Satan will make a man into a pig. 272 00:20:35,540 --> 00:20:37,540 Interesting thought, and we see it here. 273 00:20:37,540 --> 00:20:44,180 Now the pig farmers who were perhaps up to this point oblivious of the whole thing saw 274 00:20:44,180 --> 00:20:52,260 what had happened now, and they ran fearfully to tell the news of the herd's demise. 275 00:20:52,260 --> 00:20:55,700 The death of 2,000 pigs today would be a huge loss. 276 00:20:55,700 --> 00:20:59,200 It was even more so then, I mean a financial loss. 277 00:20:59,200 --> 00:21:04,660 It was an economic blow to that community. 278 00:21:04,660 --> 00:21:06,980 So the population came to investigate. 279 00:21:06,980 --> 00:21:11,660 We're probably now into morning hours we would think. 280 00:21:11,660 --> 00:21:18,040 They found this well known monster man who was with Jesus. 281 00:21:18,040 --> 00:21:20,360 Notice he was at peace. 282 00:21:20,360 --> 00:21:21,580 He was sitting there. 283 00:21:21,580 --> 00:21:25,420 He was not restlessly roaming about. 284 00:21:25,420 --> 00:21:26,420 He was clothed. 285 00:21:26,420 --> 00:21:29,520 He was no longer naked. 286 00:21:29,520 --> 00:21:32,340 He was in his right mind. 287 00:21:32,340 --> 00:21:33,340 What had happened? 288 00:21:33,340 --> 00:21:39,020 Well this man became a new creature in Jesus Christ. 289 00:21:39,020 --> 00:21:45,060 And it seems that seeing this man that way really frightened them. 290 00:21:45,060 --> 00:21:50,460 There was a power at work here which they could not comprehend. 291 00:21:50,460 --> 00:21:55,160 They had heard the report of what had happened and they confirmed the economic loss to their 292 00:21:55,160 --> 00:22:00,900 community and because of all of these things and their fear they begged Jesus get out of 293 00:22:00,900 --> 00:22:01,900 here. 294 00:22:01,900 --> 00:22:02,900 Just leave. 295 00:22:02,900 --> 00:22:03,900 Leave. 296 00:22:03,900 --> 00:22:15,180 Do you know that there are some people still today who prefer prosperity and stability 297 00:22:15,180 --> 00:22:23,820 so called in their lives along with the devil's harassment and his destruction. 298 00:22:23,820 --> 00:22:29,420 They prefer that rather than even material loss and spiritual freedom that Jesus Christ 299 00:22:29,420 --> 00:22:32,020 can give. 300 00:22:32,020 --> 00:22:37,020 They have in essence sold their souls to the devil. 301 00:22:37,020 --> 00:22:41,040 And Jesus does not stay where he is not wanted. 302 00:22:41,040 --> 00:22:46,240 When they say leave Jesus goes. 303 00:22:46,240 --> 00:22:52,500 But he commands the man who wanted to stay with Jesus and who can blame him for that 304 00:22:52,500 --> 00:22:54,180 right? 305 00:22:54,180 --> 00:22:59,080 He commands the man who had been delivered go home and tell your family how much the 306 00:22:59,080 --> 00:23:05,520 Lord has done for you and how he has had mercy on you. 307 00:23:05,520 --> 00:23:11,060 You see Jesus doesn't stop the man from talking over here on this side of the sea. 308 00:23:11,060 --> 00:23:14,540 This is Gentile territory. 309 00:23:14,540 --> 00:23:20,020 So he's not afraid of too much Messianic fever getting out of hand too soon among the 310 00:23:20,020 --> 00:23:21,020 Jews. 311 00:23:21,020 --> 00:23:27,020 He's in Gentile territory and he wants them to hear what the God of Israel has done for 312 00:23:27,020 --> 00:23:31,920 this man who was most probably Gentile. 313 00:23:31,920 --> 00:23:39,620 And so he becomes the first evangelist, the first apostle if you will, the first missionary. 314 00:23:39,620 --> 00:23:44,180 And he goes to the Gentile cities of the Decapolis including some of the areas where some of 315 00:23:44,180 --> 00:23:46,140 us walked last spring. 316 00:23:46,140 --> 00:23:49,540 And there he tells them how much Jesus has done for him. 317 00:23:49,540 --> 00:23:53,620 And my friend that's all witnessing really is. 318 00:23:53,620 --> 00:23:55,500 It's not being a professional theologian. 319 00:23:55,500 --> 00:24:00,100 It's not trying to answer every conceivable question somebody might come up with. 320 00:24:00,100 --> 00:24:03,380 Nobody can do that. 321 00:24:03,380 --> 00:24:09,500 Being a witness for Jesus is simply telling somebody else what he's done for you. 322 00:24:09,500 --> 00:24:11,960 And let the Lord take it from there. 323 00:24:11,960 --> 00:24:17,740 That is the most effective witness you can possibly have is simply to share this is what 324 00:24:17,740 --> 00:24:20,820 Christ has done in my life. 325 00:24:20,820 --> 00:24:27,120 Nobody's going to argue with you about that and it will intrigue them. 326 00:24:27,120 --> 00:24:32,980 People were amazed at his testimony and perhaps there were people saved as a result of it. 327 00:24:32,980 --> 00:24:39,380 Well that's the story of the encounter between Jesus and this demon possessed man. 328 00:24:39,380 --> 00:24:44,420 But I want us to close this morning by thinking about the question, how do you deal with your 329 00:24:44,420 --> 00:24:50,540 own encounter with the devil? 330 00:24:50,540 --> 00:24:52,180 And you do have those encounters. 331 00:24:52,180 --> 00:24:55,220 You realize that don't you? 332 00:24:55,220 --> 00:25:01,420 Now of course most of them are far less dramatic than what we have seen in this text. 333 00:25:01,420 --> 00:25:08,220 But in some ways the encounters that we have are even more dangerous to the soul because 334 00:25:08,220 --> 00:25:13,080 we don't recognize them. 335 00:25:13,080 --> 00:25:14,980 You see the devil is very crafty. 336 00:25:14,980 --> 00:25:17,340 He is subtle. 337 00:25:17,340 --> 00:25:25,020 He has had thousands of years to perfect his schemes. 338 00:25:25,020 --> 00:25:34,820 He has developed ways to influence you, to entice you, to deceive you, to gain ground 339 00:25:34,820 --> 00:25:38,500 in your life which you will hardly notice. 340 00:25:38,500 --> 00:25:44,860 And you will not unless you are spiritually discerning. 341 00:25:44,860 --> 00:25:48,740 Demons today are as present as they were 2,000 years ago. 342 00:25:48,740 --> 00:25:54,260 They are as present in our nation as they are in the mission fields of the world. 343 00:25:54,260 --> 00:26:04,900 They are especially dangerous to you when you are vulnerable to them. 344 00:26:04,900 --> 00:26:09,340 And especially when you are in denial about them. 345 00:26:09,340 --> 00:26:12,940 How foolish. 346 00:26:12,940 --> 00:26:17,140 Peter tells us be self-controlled and alert. 347 00:26:17,140 --> 00:26:23,940 Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. 348 00:26:23,940 --> 00:26:28,340 Against him standing firm in the faith. 349 00:26:28,340 --> 00:26:33,820 Paul says in Ephesians 6, our struggle is not against flesh and blood but against the 350 00:26:33,820 --> 00:26:41,460 rulers, the authorities, the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces 351 00:26:41,460 --> 00:26:47,080 of evil in the heavenly realms. 352 00:26:47,080 --> 00:26:48,860 In the spiritual realms. 353 00:26:48,860 --> 00:26:56,220 My friend, the only way to combat the devil in your encounters with him successfully is 354 00:26:56,220 --> 00:27:00,500 through the authority of Jesus Christ. 355 00:27:00,500 --> 00:27:06,300 You see it's not what you know but it's who you know that counts. 356 00:27:06,300 --> 00:27:07,780 How do you deal with the devil? 357 00:27:07,780 --> 00:27:12,000 I'm going to give you three actions that are vital. 358 00:27:12,000 --> 00:27:21,440 Number one, know whose you are and who you are in Jesus Christ. 359 00:27:21,440 --> 00:27:29,620 If you do not know that, you are as vulnerable as can possibly be. 360 00:27:29,620 --> 00:27:32,180 Know whose you are and who you are. 361 00:27:32,180 --> 00:27:36,760 Now if you're not a follower of Jesus Christ, if you're not a Christian yet, I have no 362 00:27:36,760 --> 00:27:42,500 words for you because there is nothing that you can do to protect yourself against the 363 00:27:42,500 --> 00:27:43,500 devil. 364 00:27:43,500 --> 00:27:49,300 You are already walking according to the way of this world, the way that he designs. 365 00:27:49,300 --> 00:27:52,080 You're already in bondage to him. 366 00:27:52,080 --> 00:27:56,760 The only thing I can say to you is to come to Jesus Christ and find in him forgiveness 367 00:27:56,760 --> 00:28:02,220 for your sins and deliverance from the powers of darkness. 368 00:28:02,220 --> 00:28:07,720 If you are a child of God, know, number one, know whose you are and who you are. 369 00:28:07,720 --> 00:28:15,380 First John 4 says, you are from God, which is an abbreviated way of saying you are born 370 00:28:15,380 --> 00:28:18,440 of God, little children. 371 00:28:18,440 --> 00:28:20,240 Who are you? 372 00:28:20,240 --> 00:28:22,580 You are a child of God. 373 00:28:22,580 --> 00:28:24,580 That's who you are. 374 00:28:24,580 --> 00:28:26,320 You are no longer a child of Satan. 375 00:28:26,320 --> 00:28:27,580 You are a child of God. 376 00:28:27,580 --> 00:28:34,680 You have been born again into God's family out of the realm of darkness. 377 00:28:34,680 --> 00:28:37,040 John goes on to say you have overcome them. 378 00:28:37,040 --> 00:28:38,040 Who? 379 00:28:38,040 --> 00:28:41,280 The false spirits that are out in the world. 380 00:28:41,280 --> 00:28:45,540 Then he says because greater is he who is what? 381 00:28:45,540 --> 00:28:48,120 In you than he who is in the world. 382 00:28:48,120 --> 00:28:49,120 Who's that? 383 00:28:49,120 --> 00:28:50,120 The devil? 384 00:28:50,120 --> 00:28:51,680 The devil. 385 00:28:51,680 --> 00:28:59,240 Greater is he who is in you, little children of God, know whose you are and who you are, 386 00:28:59,240 --> 00:29:00,240 number one. 387 00:29:00,240 --> 00:29:05,240 Number two, submit to God and resist the devil. 388 00:29:05,240 --> 00:29:12,920 James 4 verses 4 through 8 warns us about being adulterers and adulteresses with the 389 00:29:12,920 --> 00:29:16,460 world. 390 00:29:16,460 --> 00:29:19,440 It says don't become friends with the world. 391 00:29:19,440 --> 00:29:28,160 Now it's not talking about lost people, it's talking about the system out there, the culture. 392 00:29:28,160 --> 00:29:34,060 Beware of spiritual adultery because that opens you up then to demonic influence when 393 00:29:34,060 --> 00:29:39,100 you make friends with the culture, with the world. 394 00:29:39,100 --> 00:29:42,460 He goes on to say submit yourselves to God. 395 00:29:42,460 --> 00:29:44,320 That's the first step. 396 00:29:44,320 --> 00:29:45,720 Take the choice. 397 00:29:45,720 --> 00:29:47,040 I submit myself. 398 00:29:47,040 --> 00:29:53,240 I subject my mind, my emotions, my body, all of me to God. 399 00:29:53,240 --> 00:29:57,760 I present myself to God as a living sacrifice is another way to say it. 400 00:29:57,760 --> 00:30:00,340 And then he says resist the devil. 401 00:30:00,340 --> 00:30:06,640 Stand up against him and he will flee from you. 402 00:30:06,640 --> 00:30:07,920 He will flee from you. 403 00:30:07,920 --> 00:30:09,400 That's the promise. 404 00:30:09,400 --> 00:30:15,000 Not the devil will be concerned and may think about leaving. 405 00:30:15,000 --> 00:30:16,000 No. 406 00:30:16,000 --> 00:30:18,120 It says he will flee from you. 407 00:30:18,120 --> 00:30:24,080 He may argue, but he will flee if you stand firm and resist him. 408 00:30:24,080 --> 00:30:30,440 Having submitted yourself to God, never in your own strength, never in your own strength, 409 00:30:30,440 --> 00:30:32,840 but submitting yourself to God, resist the devil. 410 00:30:32,840 --> 00:30:37,960 And then number three, use the armor that God has given you. 411 00:30:37,960 --> 00:30:43,840 Ephesians chapter 6, put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against 412 00:30:43,840 --> 00:30:46,240 the devil's schemes. 413 00:30:46,240 --> 00:30:48,000 What are the schemes of the devil? 414 00:30:48,000 --> 00:30:50,800 What does he mean? 415 00:30:50,800 --> 00:31:00,440 Well, his schemes include lying to you in your thoughts, getting you to accept lies 416 00:31:00,440 --> 00:31:09,200 about yourself, getting you to wear masks to cover up your sin rather than being open 417 00:31:09,200 --> 00:31:12,500 and confessing it. 418 00:31:12,500 --> 00:31:19,240 Getting you to lie to other people and to, in essence, become a deceiver. 419 00:31:19,240 --> 00:31:21,440 That's one of his schemes. 420 00:31:21,440 --> 00:31:29,740 For that, you and I have what Paul calls the belt of truth to protect us. 421 00:31:29,740 --> 00:31:34,760 Another scheme of the devil is reminding you of your past sins. 422 00:31:34,760 --> 00:31:41,160 Stirring up guilt and memories of what you've done in the past. 423 00:31:41,160 --> 00:31:48,240 What God has already forgiven you for and causing you to feel unworthy and pressed down 424 00:31:48,240 --> 00:31:50,940 and loaded with guilt. 425 00:31:50,940 --> 00:31:55,280 For that, God has given us the breastplate of righteousness in Jesus Christ. 426 00:31:55,280 --> 00:32:00,880 Oh yes, there's a lot in our past, every one of us. 427 00:32:00,880 --> 00:32:05,520 There's no one here who can brag about his righteousness, but we can put on the righteousness 428 00:32:05,520 --> 00:32:09,440 of Jesus Christ when we come to him. 429 00:32:09,440 --> 00:32:15,400 And because we know who we are, we have that breastplate of righteousness on when he tries 430 00:32:15,400 --> 00:32:22,440 to make us feel guilty about things God's already forgiven and set aside. 431 00:32:22,440 --> 00:32:28,200 His schemes include creating anxiety and worry in your life, causing you to be frustrated 432 00:32:28,200 --> 00:32:37,000 with your situation, unhappy, dissatisfied, creating uncertainty and turmoil about God's 433 00:32:37,000 --> 00:32:42,200 care for you, perhaps even causing you to doubt your salvation. 434 00:32:42,200 --> 00:32:45,600 What has God given us for this scheme of the devil? 435 00:32:45,600 --> 00:32:46,600 Shoes. 436 00:32:46,600 --> 00:32:49,280 The preparation of the gospel of peace. 437 00:32:49,280 --> 00:32:54,120 The good news that I am at peace with God and God is at peace with me. 438 00:32:54,120 --> 00:33:00,960 And because there is peace, God is for me, not against me, in everything. 439 00:33:00,960 --> 00:33:07,200 One of the schemes of the devil is to cause you to doubt the promises of God. 440 00:33:07,200 --> 00:33:08,720 He began with that in the garden, didn't he? 441 00:33:08,720 --> 00:33:13,520 He has God said, what has God given us for this? 442 00:33:13,520 --> 00:33:16,620 It is the shield of faith. 443 00:33:16,620 --> 00:33:19,680 This is the promise of God and I stand upon it. 444 00:33:19,680 --> 00:33:25,600 I believe God, devil, not you. 445 00:33:25,600 --> 00:33:31,280 The devil generates thoughts of hopelessness and depression. 446 00:33:31,280 --> 00:33:34,800 He causes you to want to give up. 447 00:33:34,800 --> 00:33:40,360 He causes you to want to quit it all and just throw in the towel on your marriage or upon 448 00:33:40,360 --> 00:33:44,040 that hard thing in your life, whatever it is. 449 00:33:44,040 --> 00:33:48,160 What has God given us against these kinds of thoughts? 450 00:33:48,160 --> 00:33:51,480 He's given us the helmet of salvation. 451 00:33:51,480 --> 00:33:53,760 God is my savior. 452 00:33:53,760 --> 00:33:57,160 I need not be pressed down and discouraged. 453 00:33:57,160 --> 00:33:59,840 I need not be frustrated and give up. 454 00:33:59,840 --> 00:34:01,040 I need not be hopeless. 455 00:34:01,040 --> 00:34:04,360 I'm saved. 456 00:34:04,360 --> 00:34:07,080 The helmet of salvation. 457 00:34:07,080 --> 00:34:12,120 The devil raises up ideas and philosophies that are against God. 458 00:34:12,120 --> 00:34:17,560 Thought patterns and ideas that your friends tell you that the world sells to you. 459 00:34:17,560 --> 00:34:18,680 Patterns that deny God. 460 00:34:18,680 --> 00:34:19,680 What has God given us? 461 00:34:19,680 --> 00:34:21,680 The sword of the spirit. 462 00:34:21,680 --> 00:34:27,520 The word of God, the spoken word of God that cuts away those lies and false ideas. 463 00:34:27,520 --> 00:34:34,880 Oh, the world says this, but God's word says this and we cut it away. 464 00:34:34,880 --> 00:34:37,480 Arm yourself with the armor of God. 465 00:34:37,480 --> 00:34:43,280 I want to tell you, if you will do those three things, if you will be on the alert, you will 466 00:34:43,280 --> 00:34:49,320 never fall prey to the kind of thing we've looked at in this chapter. 467 00:34:49,320 --> 00:34:55,720 You will stand against the evil one and having done all in the day of evil, you will stand. 468 00:34:55,720 --> 00:35:03,200 You need not be afraid of the devil, but you do need to beware of him and his shrewdness 469 00:35:03,200 --> 00:35:11,520 and his schemes because he hates you and he resents you and he will do everything in his 470 00:35:11,520 --> 00:35:16,720 crafty scheming power to destroy you. 471 00:35:16,720 --> 00:35:21,920 If you let him, he will. 472 00:35:21,920 --> 00:35:25,040 Your spiritual journey is out of darkness into light. 473 00:35:25,040 --> 00:35:29,760 It is away from the bondage of the evil one into the freedom of the Son of God. 474 00:35:29,760 --> 00:35:35,800 In Jesus Christ, you are resourced with everything you need to powerfully represent him in your 475 00:35:35,800 --> 00:35:41,240 world and just like this man who had been delivered from such terrible bondage to the 476 00:35:41,240 --> 00:35:46,440 legion, God can use you wherever he's assigned you in your decapolis. 477 00:35:46,440 --> 00:35:50,880 And you can go out and tell people how much the Lord has done for you. 478 00:35:50,880 --> 00:35:53,160 And when you do that, God will bless you. 479 00:35:53,160 --> 00:35:56,480 He will use you to trample upon the enemy. 480 00:35:56,480 --> 00:36:05,000 And that word from you will fell him. 481 00:36:05,000 --> 00:36:12,400 The prince of darkness, Graham, we tremble not for him because in Jesus Christ we have 482 00:36:12,400 --> 00:36:13,880 the victory. 483 00:36:13,880 --> 00:36:16,400 Let's pray together. 484 00:36:16,400 --> 00:36:24,400 Father, may there not be one of us who would be so foolish as to be vulnerable to such 485 00:36:24,400 --> 00:36:29,600 an evil, crafty enemy. 486 00:36:29,600 --> 00:36:33,360 And wherein we may have already done that, we ask your forgiveness. 487 00:36:33,360 --> 00:36:43,160 We desire today to be alert and armed and strong and to stand. 488 00:36:43,160 --> 00:36:46,600 Fill us with the Holy Spirit. 489 00:36:46,600 --> 00:36:50,960 Fill us with great compassion for those who are still lost. 490 00:36:50,960 --> 00:36:57,360 And like this man who went obediently back to his family and back to his cities, may 491 00:36:57,360 --> 00:37:04,960 we go back out into our world where you have called us to live and there tell about the 492 00:37:04,960 --> 00:37:12,000 mercies of the Lord and how much you can do for anyone who will trust in you. 493 00:37:12,000 --> 00:37:15,000 And I pray this in Christ's name. 494 00:37:15,000 --> 00:37:43,000 Amen.