Carey's Bible Study Notes
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jesus confronts the demonic
life of christ: mark 4.35 - 5.20
galilean ministry: jesus confronts the demonic in nature and in people
introduction
Up to this point in the Gospel, Mark has traced the beginnings of the ministry of Jesus with its emphasis on the kingdom of God, the spread of the kingdom, the opposition to the kingdom, and the parables of the kingdom. During this part of His ministry Jesus has called Himself the divine "Son of Man" (2:10) and the one who determines whether or not a person enters into the kingdom of God (4:3-8). A person who makes such claims needs to have credentials in order to support them. This passage concerning the miracles supports Jesus� claim to be just that person.
The miracles also serve another purpose in the ministry of Jesus. Whereas His miracles do demonstrate that Jesus is the Messiah, God�s Son, they also illustrate the nature of the kingdom of God. At the end of the NT John describes the kingdom of God:
And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, "Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He shall dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself shall be among them; and He shall wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there shall no longer be any death; there shall no longer be any mourning or crying or pain; the first things have passed away" (Rev. 21:3-4).
No more hurt, no more pain, and no more death characterize the kingdom of God. Although when Jesus came the first time He did not completely do away with death and pain, He nevertheless began to loosen their power over mankind. The final overthrow of these enemies awaits the second coming of Jesus. In the 2 episodes in this passage we see Jesus the King overthrowing the ultimate enemy of His people�the demonic. In these episodes Jesus gives us a preview of what to expect completely when He returns the second time.
Note that I called this a preview of what is to come. Just think for a moment what a preview is. The makers of the film put together clips from the film 1st in order to give you an idea of what the movie is about and 2nd to whet your appetite so that you will want to watch the whole film. Now the preview is not the entire film. Although the film may last 120 mins., the preview lasts up to 2 mins.; however, the preview is made up of real clips from the movie. Except for some rare occasions, the clips really are from the movie. Have you seen the entire movie when you watch the preview? No, but you are getting a real glimpse of that movie. Moreover, a preview whets your appetite to see the movie. How many of us who saw the new Star Wars preview could barely wait for the movie to come out in May, 1999?
The same is true here with the miracles of the kingdom. What we have here is a preview of what we will experience when Jesus returns. Jesus will thoroughly calm nature; He will rid His followers of all demonic influence; He will heal us from all sickness; death will completely flee from His presence when He returns. Just like a preview is only 1/60th of the movie, so the preview of the kingdom in the Gospel is only a small taste of what we will experience when Christ returns in the future. It�s a real glimpse�a real taste�but nevertheless still only a glimpse and only a taste. Moreover, seeing these miracles whet our appetite for the full establishment of the Kingdom of God. Jesus overcoming death in the episode of Jairus� daughter makes us yearn for the day when Jesus returns and completely destroys death.
Finally, note that in the 2 miracle stories, the people have reached their extremities. They are totally helpless in the situations confronting them�the experienced sailors have lost control of the boat and the man demon-possessed is totally at the mercy of the demons. Many times it is only when a person has reached his/her limit, that is, it is only when a person realizes he can do no more, that Christ enters and performs His miracle. We so foolishly take credit for the good things in our lives. Many of us really feel that we can get along quite well without God in our lives. God allows moments like these to come into our lives so that He can prove Himself strong on our behalf. When we realize that God alone delivered us from these kinds of situations, do we look back upon life and acknowledge that basically He had been caring for us all along.
subduing nature (4.35-41)
After Jesus had spoken the parables to His followers, He embarked into a boat with His disciples and had them transport Him to the eastern shore of the Sea of Galilee. (Mark mentions that other boats accompanied Jesus and the disciples in their journey. This mention is evidence of an eye-witness account since the presence of the boats is totally superfluous for the story itself; the only reason Mark mentions them is that they were there). During the course of the journey a fierce storm burst upon the scene. The word for "storm" in Matthew is seimos from which we get the word "seismic," relating to an earthquake. This is not an ordinary storm for which the Sea of Galilee is famous. It is a violent upheaval. Other terms in this episode indicate that the storm has been caused by demonic forces. Once more Jesus is under attack by Satan. The wind was so strong that it was whipping the waves into the boat, almost swamping the boats. How bad was it? It was so bad that even experienced fishermen were in fear of losing their lives. From a human perspective they are about to capsize and drown in the sea.
As the disciples frantically try to save the boat, they notice Jesus in the stern sleeping with His head on a cushion. Notice how Mark contrasts the disciples� response with Jesus� response to the situation. Both were confronted with the same situation but both responded so differently. Both are in the boat; both are being threatened by a raging sea. Yet whereas the disciples are afraid for their lives, Jesus, on the other hand, is sound asleep in the boat. His response is that of a quiet and unshakable confidence that God will protect Him at all times as long as He is in the Father�s will. It is the greatest example for Christians as to how they should respond when confronted by crises�complete rest and confidence in the Father�s care. Moreover, they should have felt safe and secure because they were with Jesus.
The disciples panic and arouse Jesus from His sleep. Next, they rebuke Him for His seeming lack of concern for them: "Teacher, do You not care that we are perishing?" "To all intents and purposes, Jesus, it appears that You just don�t give a rip about what is happening to us!" The disciples had forgotten that as long as they were close to Jesus they were completely safe. As long as they were near Him, they had nothing to fear. It�s not that they didn�t need to fear anything; it�s that they should not have feared anything. Oswald Chambers writes that in light of who Christ is, our fears are "wicked." If we really mean it when we say that Christ loves us, if we really mean it when we say Christ is all-powerful, and if we really mean it when we say Christ takes care of us, then our fears are wicked because they insult the Christ we claim to know and believe in. Ultimately nothing, absolutely nothing bad is going to happen to Jesus or to those who are close to Him; all we have to do is make sure we�re close to Him. Bad things may come; yet the result is always the same for the followers of Jesus. They ultimately always end up safe on the other shore.
Jesus rebukes them for their unbelief. He rises and rebukes the storm (with the same terms He used to rebuke demons in Mark 1:25). The storm immediately subsides. The disciples are struck with awe and ask, "Who is this who controls even the wind and sea?" The answer is quite simple: the King of the kingdom of God�a kingdom which one day will be characterized by a nature completely subdued and under the lordship of Jesus. No more tornadoes (wind), hurricanes (sea and wind), or earthquakes (the land) but an earth completely at peace just like God�s children will be completely at peace with themselves and with one another.
subduing the demonic (5.1-20)
Jesus and His disciples arrive on the eastern shore of the Sea of Galilee into the region called the Decapolis. The area was largely Gentile in population. When Jesus and His disciples disembark, they are confronted by a man possessed by demons. At this point Mark launches into a lengthy description of the man and the situation he was in. Mark first states that the man lived outside the city in caves which served as tombs for the city inhabitants. He probably lived there for 2 reasons: (1) the inhabitants of the city had driven him out of the city and this was the only place he could find to live, and (2) the demons normally drove those demon-possessed to live in the area of tombs.
Next Mark describes the cures the towns-people had attempted to work upon the demoniac. They had attempted to break the evil spirit within him by binding him with chains and shackles. The demonic in him, however, empowered him to such an extent that he was able to break away from both the chains and shackles. The demoniac�s situation was so pitiful that he attempted to destroy himself by slashing away at his body with sharp stones. All day and all night the demoniac cried out in pain because of his situation.
Why such a lengthy description of the man and his situation? First in order to show Satan�s real goal for each and every human being. If anyone is in doubt as to Satan�s true intention towards God�s creation, all that person needs to do is look at the demoniac. Second, Mark goes into great detail in order to show what a dramatic impact Jesus� miracle had upon the man. Only by seeing how pitiful the demoniac was before Jesus healed him can we really appreciate the degree to which Jesus brought salvation to this man.
Although the demoniac is at some distance from Jesus, he nevertheless recognizes Jesus, rushes towards Him, and bows before Him: "Jesus, Son of the Most High God!" (What is ironic about this is that the demons immediately recognized who Jesus was whereas God�s own people the Jews did not. For 1700 years God had prepared His people for the coming of Jesus, and yet when He arrived, they either did not recognize Him or refused to recognize Him. On the other hand, even from a distance the demons knew Jesus� true identity.) Afraid that Jesus is going to send him into the abyss before his appointed time at the end of the world, he begs Jesus not to torment him. Actually he uses an oath in order to try to keep Jesus from tormenting him: "I adjure You by God." It�s the same type of set-up in which the courts try to place witnesses under oath to force them to do what they want them to do. Moreover, he uses an oath in God�s name to try to prevent it. He is calling on God�s help to keep Jesus from driving him away from the man. (How ironic and desperate the demon is that he would actually call upon God to help him remain in a man so that he could continue to destroy that man.) All the time the demoniac is exorcising Jesus, Jesus is exorcising him by commanding the demon to come out of him.
Jesus then asks the demon about his identity. The demon declares that his name is Legion because a multitude of demons are possessing the man. Seeing a herd of swine on the hillside, the demons entreat Jesus to allow them to leave the man and possess the herd. When Jesus grants permission, the demons possess the herd. The demons have a maddening effect upon the herd to the extent that they rush over the hillside and plunge to their deaths in the sea below. The death of the herd reveals what the demons had ultimately in store for the man formerly demon-possessed.
This action has tended to offend those with modern sensibilities, those which tend to be extreme animal activists. The fact that this act offends many people betrays where we are spiritually in the modern era. The Bible dictates that we are to show mercy and kindness to animals. Even on the Sabbath a person is supposed to assist an ox which has fallen into a ditch. Mistreatment of animals is condemned by Scripture; however, there is a hierarchy within creation. God has placed man over the rest of the creation. Only God is superior to man. When we exalt animals at the expense of a person (note that I said at the expense of a person), we have corrupted the created order. Our problem then is not with man but with the God who created this order. Man is more valuable that the rest of all creation. If it takes the death of a herd of swine to save a man from demonic powers, then that death is well worth it.
The swine herders shared our modern sensibilities. They run back to the village and inform the villagers about what has happened. The villagers return to the scene of the event and see the man once demon-possessed now sitting calmly at the feet of Jesus. The man is completely at peace with himself and with the world; this is a wonderful picture of the salvation Jesus brings to His people. Just like Jesus brought peace to the raging sea, so He brings peace to those He touches. Rather than responding with joy at the man�s good fortune, the people urge Jesus to leave their country. Mark says that they urged Him out of fear.
Did they fear Jesus because He was going to hurt them? Most likely not. Their kind of fear still operates today. It�s the fear of Jesus changing their lives. Most people may not be happy, but they have reconciled themselves to their situation and they don�t want anything or anyone to change that situation. You see people with bad backs sleeping on the worst kind of mattresses. Do you think they�ll change the mattress? No. They would rather keep that mattress which they are fully acquainted with rather than change and experience something new which will probably even be better. It�s the fear of the unknown�not fear of a bad unknown, just fear of the unknown. Too many of us have spent our lives putting our apples neatly into our apple cart, and we don�t want Jesus or anybody else messing with that apple cart. The life we experience may not be great, but it is something we feel comfortable with and we don�t want it changed.
Jesus honors their request. He knew that He was going to be wasting His time among these people if He stayed and tried to minister to them. The man turns to Jesus and asks Jesus if he can accompany Him. Not only does the healing of the demoniac picture to the greatest degree salvation, his response epitomizes the very essence of discipleship. Many Christians claim that discipleship is memorizing verses, attending seminars on evangelism or prayer, or attending some Christian function. The truth is that discipleship is nothing more and nothing less than being with Jesus. Being with Jesus will result in Bible study, worship, and prayer; however, you can do these things and still not be with Jesus. The focus needs to be on our relationship with Him. Jesus rejects the man�s request because although Jesus cannot physically minister to the people in the Decapolis any longer, He can minister to them through the witness of the man who had once been demon-possessed. Once more this man gives us a preview of the Christian life. Although Jesus does not personally physically minister to a lost world any more, He does reach out to that world through the ministry of us, His people.