Mark 5
COMMENTARY:
: 7 And cried with a loud voice, and said, What have I to do with YOU, Jesus YOU son of the most high God? I adjure YOU by God, that YOU torment me not. (928 “torment” [basanizo] means to subject to unbearable pain, torture, vex, to be harassed, distressed, experience anguish, suffer, or testing.)
DEVOTION: One of the amazing things about each of the confrontations Jesus has with fallen angels is that they identify HIM for WHO HE is. They know HIM. They know HIS power. Here we have them worshiping HIM.
Remember every knee will bow before Jesus at the final judgment. Even the fallen angels will be judged that are running free today. They are still possessing people around the world. They are still trying to cause chaos. They are working with the devil to hinder the work of God. It seems that they think they can win. Satan has not given up his hope to defeat God.
Why would he want to defeat God? These fallen angels explain why. They don’t want to be tortured. They don’t want to be judged for their rebellion. They know it is coming but they don’t want to face it before they have to. They want their freedom.
Here they beg Jesus to send them into swine. HE does and the swine die. So they have to find someone or something else to possess.
Not all people who are sick or act crazy are possessed of evil angels but some are and they are working to hinder the work of Christ in our churches and families. We have to continually ask the LORD for strength to fight Satan with the whole armor of God.
CHALLENGE: We can have victory over all the forces of evil through the strength that God gives us.
: 19 Howbeit Jesus suffered him not, but said to him, Go home to your friends, and tell them how great things the Lord hath done for you, and hath had compassion on you. (3624 “home” [oikos] means family, lineage, property, any dwelling place, household, unit, descendants or building.)
DEVOTION: Here we have the account of a man who was possessed with fallen angels called demons or devils. Remember there is only one angel that is called the devil. Those who fell with him are also sometimes called after his name because they followed him.
The LORD healed this man by casting out the demons. The man changed immediately into what we would call normal. He was sitting at the feet of Jesus learning from HIM. He was clothed as before this he didn’t keep his clothes on. And finally, he was in his right mind.
The opposite is true of those who are not followers of the LORD. We find them running around trying to find answers themselves instead of going to the LORD. We find them having a small amount of clothes on their body. We also find them not in their right mind because they are blinded by their father the devil.
The residents of the community were afraid when they saw such a change in the man. They didn’t know what to do. He was different.
Well, he wanted to become of the disciples of Jesus. He wanted to go with Jesus and the other disciples. It would seem that it would have been good for him to sit at the feet of Jesus longer to learn more from HIM.
Once he had asked Jesus to come with HIM HIS answer was NO!! Why would Jesus turn down a follower? The reason was that Jesus knew that he could be a witness to his family of the greatness of what God had done for him. He had family members and friends that Jesus wanted him to reach with the good news of salvation. He wanted the family and friends to know that God is a compassionate God.
There are times when the LORD wants us to reach of family and friends rather than go overseas to witness to others. Family and friends are the hardest to reach with the gospel by another family member. It can be done or Jesus wouldn’t have left the man behind.
The man reached the ten cities around his community and everyone was amazed at his testimony. The LORD was right to leave him behind.
CHALLENGE: If you are staying home then witness to your family and friends as often as you can. Be sensible. Just tell them what God has done for you. Show the compassion of the LORD to them.
: 34 And HE said to her, Daughter your faith has made you whole; go in peace, and be whole of your plague. (5199 “whole” [hugies] means sound, restore to health, free from infirmity or disease, healthy, deliverance, or well.)
DEVOTION: Jesus has the gift of healing. HE can heal anyone at any time. Throughout the gospels we watch HIM heal people. HE uses different methods but the end result is always the same.
This woman thought that if she just touched HIS clothes she would be healed. She got close to him and touched HIM. The LORD responded to the touch with a question. HE asked who touched HIM. HE knew who touched HIM but HE wanted the woman to come forward and admit it. The disciples were confused because the crowd was so big that they thought many people were touching HIM.
The difference was that HE felt power come out of HIM. HE knew the difference and HE wanted the disciples to know the difference too.
One other thing HE wanted to happen was that she admit her need and realize that she was healed. HE told her that her faith had made her well.
Does this happen all the time to people who have faith? The answer is NO!! Some are called to suffer for the sake of the LORD. This woman was not called to suffer with her illness any longer. She was going to be a witness of what faith can do to those the LORD chooses to heal.
Remember that Paul asked for his thorn in the flesh to be taken away but the LORD said that HIS grace was sufficient in weakness. Sometime we need to remember that our pain draws us closer to the LORD. HE wants us to be dependent on HIM at all times for all things.
We can pray for healing but we also need to accept a no or wait a while answer from HIM. James states that the ‘effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.”
CHALLENGE: We can rest on that promise.
: 40 And they laughed him to scorn. But when he had put them all out, he taketh the father and the mother of the damsel, and them that were with him, and entereth in where the damsel was lying. (2606 “laughed” [katagelao] means to deride, mock, or make fun of.)
DEVOTION: Can you imagine what it was like to be one of Jesus’ disciples for three years? What would you think of the reactions from people that you met each day of HIS ministry? Do you think people were just as fickle as they are today?
Here we have Jesus coming to an area and a demon possessed man meets him. This man has a legion of demons in him. They know who Jesus is. They call HIM by name. They ask HIS permission to go into the swine. Remember Jews are not supposed to eat pork. They should not be raising pigs. Here come the owners of the pigs that just went for a swim and drowned and they want Jesus to leave their area.
HE leaves.
Next a leader of the synagogue comes to Jesus to heal his daughter. Jesus goes with him and woman knows that Jesus can heal sickness and she is sick. She touches Jesus. Jesus questioned who touched HIM. The disciples don’t think Jesus knows what HE is doing and question HIM.
The woman comes forward and Jesus tells her that her faith has cured her. As HE is talking with her, some people come to the leader of the synagogue and tell him his daughter is dead.
Jesus tells him not to worry and takes HIS three key disciples with HIM to the house. When he arrives, what happens? HE tells the people that they don’t need to cry, the daughter is just sleeping.
They make fun of HIM. Remember the demons respected HIM, the woman knew HE could heal her and the leader of the synagogue came to HIM for healing. What are these people doing in the house? Mocking out Jesus.
What is HIS reaction? Did HE get mad? Did HE leave? Did HE never speak to the people again? NO!! HE continued with HIS business at hand. HE took his top three disciples with him to show them how it is done. HE put everyone out of the house but the parents and three disciples and the young girl.
Then brought her back to life. She was given something to eat. Everyone in the room was astonished. Jesus told them not to tell anyone what had happened.
Do we have people today that will make fun of us because we are doing the LORD’S work? What do we do when people make fun of us? What did Jesus do? Remember we are to be like him in every way.
CHALLENGE: When people laugh at what you are doing for the LORD, smile!
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