Bunny Killer ...

It always makes me wonder, why bizarre traditions are able to last so long.  Sometimes for decades, sometimes for centuries.  Take the idea of the Easter Bunny.  It survives even today, though it dates considerably far back into the age of paganism, when fertility rights were considered quite important.  The mere symbolism of bunnies and eggs do a pretty good job representing fertility, albeit a poor one in establishing who is responsible for that fertility.  I blame power outages, stay at home orders, and/or Marvin Gate music myself 😊.  But this year, we may have finally encountered a terror so great, it could kill the bunny entirely – enter corona virus covid-19.  The news is full of it, rightly so.  And while the power remains on, and stay at home orders are still in effect, (somewhere I begin to hear Marvin Gaye’s “let’s get it on” in my head) – physical distancing may finally put the damper on traditional Easter bunny celebrations, for that matter on fertility in general if this holds out.  It occurs to me then, while the pundits argue about whether churches should meet together on Easter Sunday or not – no one seems concerned at all about the post-church Bunny/Egg celebrations at all.  Could that mean Covid-19 finally killed the bunny?  Or will Hallmark Cards and the myriad of Chocolate companies simply bide their time, and resurrect the nonsensical tradition next Easter when ideally things will be back to normal.  My vote; I’m with the dog on this one, let’s kill this bunny once and for all.  I would love to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus just once without Marvin Gaye rattling around in my head at all.

Of course, humor aside, paganism is actually not something to be trifled with.  Today in our modern world we equate old religions of pagan likeness as mere superstitions.  We enlightened beings have come to know a more real God in the form of Jesus Christ (much to His credit).  But superstition is not quite the right word to associate with pagan religions.  If you examine any one of them closely you will find common themes.  They begin with sex.  Pick any pagan religion you like, and somewhere in it, one of its major tenets will be sex, usually wild free sex, where monogamy is considered obsolete.  Violence too is never too far away.  War, or killing, or sacrifice, are usually found somewhere in the pagan vernacular.  The pagan stories will often mimic the Bible in terms of origin (virgin births, triads of power, and obedience as the method of gaining favor of the respective deities).  The lure may be the sex, but the eventual obedience to the rules is considered an absolute – when you disobey, you get punished.  Casual Christians look at this kind of thing and begin to see many parallels to Biblical themes, if not stories found in the Old Testament.  But our God is the only God who has volunteered to take on our punishment for disobedience, to forgive us before we ask, and to re-create us back into His image, if we but let Him do so.  There is a huge difference to the Christian who actually knows Jesus.

And when you think about paganism, and its lure of free sex (what do you think the bunnies and eggs are supposed to trigger in your imagination anyway), you begin to see the power that lies behind those ancient religions that had nothing to do with our Bible.  The entity all too happy to see humanity degenerate into a lust for power, control, and gratification is none other than Satan himself.  He has an entire demon army (former angels who fell when they chose his side over God’s) – who are ready to display superhuman power to us mortals if they can trick us into believing “they” are god and our real God is not important at all.  This is where the word superstition tends to fall apart.  Unfortunately for us all, demons are real, as real as you are.  So when a superior being interacts with you, it is not just a belief grounded in tradition that never bears fruit; it is a real world interaction with a world beyond your sight – and bent on your destruction.  Since the demons, and Satan, share common purpose, it is not too hard to imagine them as being part of a kingdom as well.  A totally evil kingdom, that is perhaps exactly the opposite of Jesus.  In fact the kingdom of evil that would not only kill you just to hurt God, they would kill Jesus hoping to break the heart of God.  And so they did.  And you thought covid-19 was something to worry about.  If Satan could, he would manufacture one of those corona virus’ every day, until all of humanity was wiped out.  It is only the restraining hand of our God that keeps us alive even one more breath longer.  We have real enemies.  Bigger than the virus we cannot see.  Equally invisible, and decidedly more dangerous.  And they share common purpose.  That is, to hurt God, by hurting you.

Whereas the bunny I dislike in the Easter context, is nothing more than masked symbolism.  The demons that stalk you and I are unseen, but are not content to be stagnant in some corner to just watch the seconds pass by.  They are ever around us, looking to throw temptation our way.  And more often than not, watching us succumb to temptation so often, we don’t even need the external prompts anymore.  Our slavery to sin, is real slavery.  It is why we need for the God of Israel to break our chains, set us free, and lead us away from this world of sin, into the Paradise He is making for us.  Even if we try to delay that final destination to have the time to bring others with us along the way.  Today the news reminds us we battle the virus.  But this week and its holidays should also remind us we battle unseen forces bent on our ill.  Yet another reason why our resurrected Savior is so needed in our lives.  To live in this world, and disregard Jesus, is to open pandora’s box into the evil that wants in your life.  Perhaps as much as to want to possess you entirely.  That phenomenon is not new, nor has it ever gone away.  Luke reminds us of all this in his gospel letter to his friend, regarding what we believe and why.

He picks up the story of an encounter with evil in the 11^th chapter, picking up in verse 14 saying … “And he was casting out a devil, and it was dumb. And it came to pass, when the devil was gone out, the dumb spake; and the people wondered. [verse 15] But some of them said, He casteth out devils through Beelzebub the chief of the devils. [verse 16] And others, tempting him, sought of him a sign from heaven.”  The state of this poor victim of demonic possession was dire.  He was unable to speak.  He was unable to cry out, or praise, or just converse.  Not because he could not, or was physically unable, or not smart enough.  He was all of those things.  But he was unable to overpower the demonic force that lived literally within him, crowding his mind, and keeping still his tongue.  This was a man or woman in great need.  Have you ever asked yourself why he was in that need?  What led that victim to become that victim?  The Bible does not give us the history, only the final state this victim was in.  But is it possible, it began with a flirtation with some form of paganism?  Perhaps it began with that lure of wild, free, sex.  And engagement became habit, and habit became addiction, and addiction was willing to do “anything” to get its fix.  All of this can happen quietly, with very few people knowing, perhaps even caring.  But the damage is real.  And the damage is not designed to happen only once, it is meant to become a vehicle of your total destruction.  He needed Jesus.  To save him from this fate, but also to protect him from its recurrence.  Is it any different with us?  Do we leave ourselves open to the same close encounters with forces unseen because our engagements become habits, that turn into addictions before we even know it.  Can we possibly look at this victim, and instead of seeing others, perhaps see ourselves (if not for grace).

Have you ever asked yourself – who is Beelzebub?  That is quite a name.  It does not sound like “the devil” or “Satan” at all.  In fact, the implication is that the demon Beelzebub is a general in the army of Satan who has the power to command all the other demons where it comes to possession or not.  How did those people in the days of Jesus know any of that?  This demon and his name only appears in the Bible in the context of this story.  It’s not like the Bible takes the time to lay out the kingdom of Satan, particularly by name, and explain who has the power to do what.  No road map like that exists – at least none in the Word of God we refer to as the Bible.  So how did all those believing Jews know any of it?  Is it possible that previous demon possession had led them to this information, as they encountered the world of demons way more often than we do.  Keep in mind paganism was not a declining religion in the days of Jesus, it was rather the MUCH bigger religion of those days.  Judaism was WAY smaller, and Christianity WAY smaller than that.  Paganism was the zenith of religions.  From the Egyptian variety, to the Assyrian, to the Bablyonian, to the Persian, to the Greek, and now to the Roman versions.  Each with common themes, each with common lures, each with the same power behind them.  The entire world of those days was not lost in mere superstitions, they were engaged more closely with Satan than perhaps any of them knew.  Are we any different?

Luke continues in verse 17 saying … “But he, knowing their thoughts, said unto them, Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation; and a house divided against a house falleth. [verse 18] If Satan also be divided against himself, how shall his kingdom stand? because ye say that I cast out devils through Beelzebub. [verse 19] And if I by Beelzebub cast out devils, by whom do your sons cast them out? therefore shall they be your judges.”  Jesus clearly points out that Satan’s kingdom is united in common purpose, therefore, not at war with itself.  Satan had ZERO interest in seeing this victim freed from his prison.  Just like Pharaoh had zero interest in setting the captive nation free.  It took Jesus to set Israel free, just like it takes Jesus to free this poor victim, just like it takes Jesus to free you from your sins, let alone from the demons that surround you daily.  It is not just a virus we cannot see that we are at war with.  There are forces much darker than that, and it is Jesus alone that can keep us safe from any of them.

But in our day, we casually embrace things like tarot cards, palm readings, Ouija boards, etc.  Tools that lie close to a kingdom we should want nothing to do with.  We act like Saul seeking the lost, when we embrace the ideas of a séance – but what we conjure is no different that what Saul got – a demon masquerading as the loved one, but having only destruction in mind for the seeker.  What we consume through our eyes and our entertainment can be just as destructive.  Whether gore in horror films that exalt the power of darkness; or unabashed pornography we think no one knows we watch – there is always someone watching.  No, not Jesus, He watches us in pain, longing to take these painful things out of our lives, so we could really live.  No, I mean the dark forces that surround us, also take note of we crowd into our minds, looking to desensitize us in order to feed us more and more and more.  What passes for a horror movie just 2 decades ago is always tame by today’s standards.  Pornography continues to degenerate into fetish’s where violence, rape, and incest become central themes.  Ever ask yourself why?  Because the kingdom of Satan is never content to sit still and watch the seconds tick by.  They are engaged each second in trying to enter any door you leave open to them.  Just like that victim of old, we need Jesus.  The bunny we can live without.

Luke continues in verse 20 saying … “But if I with the finger of God cast out devils, no doubt the kingdom of God is come upon you. [verse 21] When a strong man armed keepeth his palace, his goods are in peace: [verse 22] But when a stronger than he shall come upon him, and overcome him, he taketh from him all his armour wherein he trusted, and divideth his spoils. [verse 23] He that is not with me is against me: and he that gathereth not with me scattereth.”  It is not the power of Satan that is interested in freeing us from any pain we bring upon ourselves.  That power is interested only in making us even more miserable than we are today.  Leading us along a path that ends in death and plenty of misery before it.  It is rather the power of God, and His Kingdom, that is ever bent on seeing us truly live, and live forever, without the dangers of our unseen world, and without the pain we cause ourselves and those we love.  You will note Jesus specifically makes the analogy that we should not trust to our own strength, or for that matter to our own weapons as well.  It is only the power of God that can free us and keep us protected.

But there is a sad epilogue to our condition.  Luke concludes this segment picking back up in verse 24 saying … “When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man, he walketh through dry places, seeking rest; and finding none, he saith, I will return unto my house whence I came out. [verse 25] And when he cometh, he findeth it swept and garnished. [verse 26] Then goeth he, and taketh to him seven other spirits more wicked than himself; and they enter in, and dwell there: and the last state of that man is worse than the first.”  This is sometimes the fate we too embrace.  We turn to Jesus and are made free.  But over time, we begin to look backwards like Lot’s wife, seeking what we once knew before our freedom.  At first it is casual, innocent, nothing dangerous.  Like say an Easter bunny and some chocolate eggs.  But over time the fertility symbols we begin to seek out look more like playboy bunnies than the furry one at Easter.  No matter how innocent it seems to start, the path of evil always leads in only one direction; downwards.  It may seem slight at first.  But the incline drops off like a cliff once the bait you like has been hooked.  It may not present like sex, but it will present like something from the realms of paganism.  Perhaps it is wealth you seek, or power, or control.  Package any of it up, you still find pagan roots, and the same entity behind all of it.

I say we kill the traditional bunny; and keep our minds and hearts on Jesus and Jesus alone.  Let everything else take care of itself.  I want no part in the dark kingdom, even if only on the edges of it.

 

Ending Satanic Infestation ...

There was a reason why Jesus had chosen to cross the Sea of Galilee with his disciples and the small band of follower’s intent on watching what happened next.  It was not a random act.  It was by intent.  For on the other side of the Sea of Galilee in the country of the Gadarenes was a man who desperately needed help only Jesus could provide.  This poor man was burdened with a Satanic infestation.  As we sit in our homes today, in the comfort of modern conveniences and advanced technologies, we do not dream of living in a condition where our decisions and actions are possessed by powers beyond our control.  There are very few actual demonstrations of supernatural power reflected through mankind today, and this too is by intent.  Atheists are constantly demanding “proof” of God, if Satan were to be too open in the demonstration of his own power, offering “proof” of God’s enemy might inadvertently prove the existence of God Himself.  So modern Christians believe they live beyond the reach of the supernatural, and cannot identify with someone whose decisions and actions are governed by a power beyond their own control.  The idea, that “the devil made me do it”, is now only a joke we recite about criminal defendants we believe have no real reason for their crimes and should suffer the maximum penalties allowed by law.  But are we yet again self-deceived?

To understand how real an infestation can be, one need only look at the nature of addiction itself.  An observer who is not burdened by addiction, looks at the actions and behavior of a drug addict, and simply cannot make logical sense of them.  It is clear that drugs have a horrible effect on our lives.  They destroy our health, evaporate our money, demean our relationships, and will ultimately kill us.  Apart from a momentary chemically induced “high”, they have no redeeming value.  And in point of fact, the “high” itself is based on the destruction of brain cells which do not regenerate.  Nothing about doing drugs offers the addict anything more than a rapid progression to the grave.  Yet the addict will pursue his next fix, with a dedication of singular intent.  Why?  This is not a logical course of action.  This is NOT in the self-interest of the addict.  This is the most self-destructive action the addict could possibly take, and yet he does it anyway in full knowledge of these facts.  An addict is not actually trying to commit suicide, but for all practical purposes, seems to be “unable” to refuse this course.  In point of fact, brain chemistry is altered over time, making doing this action easier than not doing it.

Once a person becomes an addict, they are going to need external help, to find a way out.  For the non-addicted person, this is hard to understand.  But before we look away from the plight of a drug addict, I would ask the non-addicted audience “why” do they still commit the sins they find pleasure in?  Sin, in every form, has the nature of addiction, in that while we know it is harmful to us, and destroys everything it touches, we still consciously choose to embrace it.  Sin is also degenerative in nature, meaning the more we embrace what looks at first like little sins, the more we find ourselves rationalizing bigger and bigger sins, until at some point we refuse to see sin as sin at all.  Could it be that we suffer from our own modern versions of Satanic infestations more than we would like to admit?  Could it be that our ability to “control” our desires and our actions was never in our control; that we are in fact out of control, as we have quietly ceded it to our enemy of souls?  Is it possible that ALL human behavior is enslaved to a supernatural influence, whether to Jesus in a journey of redemption and restoration, or to Satan in an illusion that tells us we remain in control when we do not?

For those who believe themselves to be fully in control of their own desires, decisions, and actions, I would pose the question … why have you not embraced perfection yet, when you clearly know what benefits it offers.  The lack of perfection in your life, is a reflection that how you are trying to achieve it is fundamentally flawed.  While you may be able to abstain and refrain from acting on your darker impulses, the desires for those darker ideas remains in place.  Only external help can break the chains of slavery that exist within our minds and hearts.  Only Jesus Christ can make us free from the bondage of souls we have ceded to the enemy of God over time.  Our apathy, and our greed, lead us into submission to Satanic influences, and only God can even offer us the clarity to make a different choice.  It is not our strength to combat these evil influences that is required of us, it is instead only our willingness to submit to a different power, to the power of the love of Jesus Christ that will make us whole.

Our societal advancements have lulled us into spiritual lethargy.  We no longer concern ourselves about behavior that might be governed by powers beyond our control.  We no longer believe it is possible to suffer from a Satanic infestation, particularly without our knowledge and consent.  Yet we remain dumbfounded as to why we do what we do.  And there are fleeting moments when we seem to be watching ourselves commit actions and deeds we know to be wrong, don’t even want to do, yet do anyway, as if watching a movie of ourselves committing these heinous destructive deeds.  There are no logical explanations for these events.  There are no psychological reasons that are anything other than self-destructive for the courses we pursue, yet we blaze down these paths of destruction attempting to accelerate our speed within them.  Perhaps, our false sense of security, and disbelief about the power of our enemy, has led us to this point.  Perhaps we, like the man Jesus was en-route to assist, need to be made free from the influences beyond our control.

Peter resumes the story of this man’s redemption in the beginning of John Marks gospel in chapter five and verse 1 saying … “And they came over unto the other side of the sea, into the country of the Gadarenes. [verse 2] And when he was come out of the ship, immediately there met him out of the tombs a man with an unclean spirit,”  It is perhaps no small amount of symbolism that a man burdened with a Satanic infestation chooses to live among the tombs of the dead.  For as we are slave to our sins, and our desire to sin, we too have found ourselves in a life more filled with the dead than with the living.  Our ability to love is stunted, our ability to do good for others dissipates until it no longer exists.  We become consumed with a level of selfishness that has no ability to be satiated.  Our hunger to please self grows like the mindless zombies of movie lore, until we stumble from one act of self-pleasure to the next one, not knowing or caring what will happen next.

The condition of this poor man, was known not only to God, but to those who lived in the area.  He had become a dangerous threat.  Peter continues to recount his condition before meeting Christ beginning in verse 3 saying … “Who had his dwelling among the tombs; and no man could bind him, no, not with chains: [verse 4] Because that he had been often bound with fetters and chains, and the chains had been plucked asunder by him, and the fetters broken in pieces: neither could any man tame him. [verse 5] And always, night and day, he was in the mountains, and in the tombs, crying, and cutting himself with stones.”  This is the level of depravity to which all sins leads, a level of self-destructive behavior that no sane person can understand.  The local residents were intent on squelching this threat.  Anyone willing to hurt themselves by cutting their own flesh with stones, obviously would have no problem hurting a passerby.  Anyone who ventured near the mountains or the tombs was sure to encounter this man, and could possibly be killed in the process.

So from time to time, the local residents would band together and attack this man in great numbers intent on putting him in iron chains and bracelets to bind him hand and foot.  This would easily subdue a normal person, it was how the Romans did it.  But not so for this guy.  Because of what resided within him, a supernatural power allowed him to break chains as if they were made of straw.  The iron bracelets seemed to shatter like glass on the stones around him.  What was fully capable of binding a normal person, was for him only a minor aggravation.  This man did not sleep like the rest of us.  What he ate and drank were unimportant to him.  He existed in the mountains and near the tombs of the dead perpetually looking for an opportunity to terrorize others.  Human abilities to contend with this situation had been exhausted.  No person could bind him, or tame him.  The best that could be done was to avoid him.  You can imagine that both Jewish Rabbi’s and Roman Authorities, had been employed at one point or another to fix this man, but neither were up to the level of this challenge, and both sought to simply avoid further confrontation.

But what man finds impossible, Jesus does not.  Satan tried to kill Christ before He could free this man in the storm that had come upon the lake during the journey.  Satan did not want to lose the value of this man in this region spreading fear.  The demons however, also knew what was coming, they too had fears as hard as that is to imagine for us as John Mark chronicles beginning in verse 6 writing … “But when he saw Jesus afar off, he ran and worshipped him, [verse 7] And cried with a loud voice, and said, What have I to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of the most high God? I adjure thee by God, that thou torment me not.”  What was left of the man inside this hollow shell sought out Christ to worship Him and fall at His feet.  Even in this act, the man could not control his own speech.  And instead of the words to cry for help that he longed to utter, came only the voice of demons entrenched in the body of this man. 

These demons spoke in front the disciples and of the crowd of followers who were there as well from the little boats that followed Jesus across the Sea.  They once again immediately identified Jesus as the “Son of the Most High God”.  This public declaration was not meant to flatter or uplift Jesus, it was designed to cause controversy and a crisis of faith in His followers who were not ready to accept this reality of truth as to the identity of Christ.  Each time before Christ had commanded the demons to keep silent, but this time perhaps the crowd was small enough, and perhaps dedicated enough, to accept that He may indeed be the Son of God.  So this time silence was not commanded of them.

The second part of what the demons spoke revealed their own versions of fear.  They ask that in the name of God, for Jesus not to torment them.  The torment they refer to here is not what you and I would immediately think of … some sort of interdimensional version of hell where a lake of fire tortures but does not consume its victims.  By that kind of traditional logic and thinking, the devil is supposed to be “in charge” of that place, and demons are merely his helpers tormenting the souls of evil men.  Hardly a place demons would wish to avoid.  If it were real, they would love to be there watching and helping men to suffer.  But that was not what the demons feared or did not want to be exposed to.  Instead it was something completely opposite.  The memory of the perfect harmony and fulfillment of love and life in heaven was what they did not want to have to endure again, in the degenerated state in which they found themselves.  To be exposed to the pure and intense and infinite love of God, and know by contrast how horrible it is to be separated from that love is what the demons wished to avoid.  It was too great a punishment for them to endure to be forced to remember how good was the life and existence they left, when they sided with Lucifer, and made war in heaven itself.

Now, in the degenerated state they were in, they were living inside a man, dwelling among the tombs of the dead.  Their entire demonic existed consisted in torturing and causing fear in men.  There was no love among them, or for them.  All love had gone away.  They had driven it out of themselves because of the degenerative nature of sin and self-love.  They were now only shadows of their former angelic state.  They were creatures far diminished from what once was.  They still had power, but had lost all love.  Then came Jesus Christ into their presence, and they were forced to confront the perfect love they had abandoned.  It was too much for them.  They did not wish to be reminded that redemption was possible.  They did not wish to see and feel the lure of love on their decrepit existence.  Better to be left alone, better to be sent away, they must hide themselves from the source of infinite love.  They must flee from the light in front of them.  Better to seek the abyss of darkness than stand in the light of love that emanates from the Son of the Living God.  So they beg for mercy to leave them to their suffering without the memory of how good, good can really be.

Peter continues to tell the story to John Mark in this gospel in verse 8 saying … “For he said unto him, Come out of the man, thou unclean spirit. [verse 9] And he asked him, What is thy name? And he answered, saying, My name is Legion: for we are many. [verse 10] And he besought him much that he would not send them away out of the country.”  The conversation between Christ and the demons continues as Christ does what He came specifically to do.  They are first commanded to leave the man.  There is no argument here about whether they will be able to stay in him or not, the commands of God cannot be argued with.  They will leave.  Jesus asks them their name.  The name is revealing as well.  For it is not just a single demon living in this man, but “many”.  A legion in the Roman vernacular referred to a thousand men.  Lest we think this Satanic infestation is limited to only one, it is not.  Lest we think we may only contend with a single demon in our struggle, we may face considerably more than that.  But it is in Jesus we find, that a single command has the desired effect to make us free from our slavery to self and to the enemy of souls.

The demons could not stand to be in the presence of Christ and His love, but they did not want to leave the country yet either.  They wanted to remain to torture men who refused the freedom Christ offered when He left this region.  So they begged to stay nearby.  A solution seemed to present itself to them as John Mark continues in verse 11 saying … “Now there was there nigh unto the mountains a great herd of swine feeding. [verse 12] And all the devils besought him, saying, Send us into the swine, that we may enter into them. [verse 13] And forthwith Jesus gave them leave. And the unclean spirits went out, and entered into the swine: and the herd ran violently down a steep place into the sea, (they were about two thousand;) and were choked in the sea.”  Pigs do not have the same capacity for self-preservation as men do.  When Christ granted the demons request, the demons entered the pigs.  This proves that Satanic infestations are not just limited to mankind, but can impact creatures and animals in nature as well.  But the pigs fear and rage resulted in a quick stampede off a cliff into the sea.  The number of the pigs is also mentioned here as it turned out there were about two-thousand pigs (a great deal bigger than just one legion, but instead nearly two).

It is easy to focus on the demons in this story … how many there were, the conversation they had with Christ, the fears they revealed, and the end of their reign in the herd of dead pigs drowned in the sea.  But this is not a story about demons and their fate or pain.  It is a story about the redemption of a man beyond all human hope.  It is the story of a man who was infested by Satan with 2,000 demons and yet with a simple command of Christ was made free from this lifelong bondage.  While demons are entering pigs and stampeding to their doom, the man is completely restored to his own right mind.  He is offered clothing, perhaps borrowing from the disciples and other followers there with Christ.  He is calm.  He is aware of what has happened.  His gratitude is beyond measure.  He has a life for the first time in his memory.  And there will be witnesses to these events.

John Mark continues the story in verse 14 saying … “And they that fed the swine fled, and told it in the city, and in the country. And they went out to see what it was that was done. [verse 15] And they come to Jesus, and see him that was possessed with the devil, and had the legion, sitting, and clothed, and in his right mind: and they were afraid. [verse 16] And they that saw it told them how it befell to him that was possessed with the devil, and also concerning the swine.”  The pig herders were watching all these events, and when they occurred they ran into town to spread the news.  Local residents could scarcely believe their ears, and went to investigate for themselves.  But upon arriving at the scene, they find the man perfectly restored, not a demon left in him.  The pile of dead pigs 2000 strong reveal the extent of the damage that had been in him.  Everything the pig herders had reported was true.  And the fear of these events continued to plague them.  Rather than embrace Christ now, they were not ready to do so.  So John Mark records their response in verse 17 saying … “And they began to pray him to depart out of their coasts.” 

The locals no more understood how the demons left this man, than they did who commanded them to do so.  They feared that Jesus having this much power, might be something worse than what they had already seen.  The residents did not hear who Jesus was as declared by the demons.  All they had heard about Jesus was from the religious establishment and none of that was very good.  Of course, none of this impacted the newly freed man in any way.  He was ready to be a disciple of Christ and was determined to follow the orders of Jesus to the end of the earth.  There was no doubt in his mind.  He jumped into the boat to leave when Christ left.  But Jesus had a greater mission for this new disciple.  John Mark continues in verse 18 saying … “And when he was come into the ship, he that had been possessed with the devil prayed him that he might be with him. [verse 19] Howbeit Jesus suffered him not, but saith unto him, Go home to thy friends, and tell them how great things the Lord hath done for thee, and hath had compassion on thee. [verse 20] And he departed, and began to publish in Decapolis how great things Jesus had done for him: and all men did marvel.”

The personal testimony of this man worked.  ALL men did marvel throughout the entire region from the edge of the sea to the city of Decapolis.  This newly minted missionary was not subject to having demons re-enter him and take over once more.  The command of Christ to free him would last the entire length of his life.  It is thus with us.  When we submit to the power and authority of Jesus Christ to remake us, He can remove our sins, and our desire to sin, so that they do not return to us again.  This is the power the Lord has to alone break the cycle of addiction.  For it is not just our actions Jesus can alter, He can alter the underlying desires that fuel them.  It is the desire to sin that must be ended within us, if we are to know peace.  We are as powerless as this poor man, to change our desires.  But our Lord is completely capable.  The only caveat, is that Jesus will not force His will upon us.  We must ask for it.  We must allow it.  We must “let” Him give us the change and re-creation we so desperately need.

However, when once you have tasted the freedom the Lord offers from a sin or slavery you were once bound to, your personal testimony will begin to have great effect.  We will not become instantly perfect in this process.  We will not be instantly without “any” sin in this life.  In point of fact, starting this journey tends to reveal to us that the count of our demons was way beyond the one or two we were aware of.  And during the journey we should never look at each other as standards of the faith, but only to Jesus.  There will be those of us who fail, who slide back, and re-commit sins we thought ourselves rid of.  While these painful events may cause delays in our journey, the source of our freedom remains ever capable to restore us once again.  It is not our past that will dictate our future, it is our willingness to allow Christ to re-create our future, and thus alter our present that will dictate it. 

Our modern technology is no protection against the powers of darkness.  The same legion of demons that were once cast out along the Sea of Galilee have only degenerated further over the last 2 thousand years.  The same Satan who tried to kill Christ before He could free this man, is still actively looking to kill the followers of Jesus wherever he can.  The powers arrayed against us are still as intent and potent as they ever were.  And should we find ourselves deluded into the idea that they are no longer a threat, we are all the more likely to be suffering under their influence.  But the power of the love of Christ is no less today than it was then either.  His ability to utter a single command and drive the demons from our lives is no less potent today than it was on that beach so long ago.  We need only look to Jesus, and like the demoniac, fall and try to worship Him.  Jesus can and will save us.  Even if our speech is not our own, the intent of our hearts is known by our God.  He can, and He will restore us.  It is His greatest desire, and our sure-fire way to see a Satanic infestation finally come to an end within us …

 

Author of Sabbath Rest ...

The letter of the Ten Commandment law tells us to “remember” and to keep the Sabbath Holy.  We are forbidden to work, or to have others work for us.  Over the years between the time of Moses and the time of Christ, much study and debate had gone in to the interpretation of those scriptures.  In the intervening period, Israel had suffered more than once for discarding God’s laws and pursuing the practices of their neighbors.  So the religious leadership in the day of Christ inheriting the wealth of study from prior generations and building upon it with their own collective wisdom, had developed a strict series of rules around Sabbath observance, that essentially turned the joy of spending time with God, into a drudgery that made life difficult during this day. 

Of course, the people of Israel had never been invaded because “how” they were keeping Sabbath was not up to the “high standards” God had set.  No, the people of Israel were invaded when they had so forsaken God because of indulging the free sexual expression of neighboring tribes that sex with temple prostitutes, and orgies in the woods, had led to the inevitable unwanted offspring with foreign women.  The female offspring were destined to become a new generation of idolatrous temple prostitutes themselves, while the male offspring became living sacrifices on the altars of Moloch and Baal.  When Israel had degenerated to the point of killing its own children without conscience, it was time to be invaded once again.  But rather than build strict guidelines to govern their sexuality and confine it to the intimacy of marriage between one man and one wife, the Pharisees spent their time crafting rules about Sabbath observance.  Divorce in fact was easy, Sabbath however was difficult.

It is in this time of tradition and rules regarding “how” Sabbath must be observed that the Messiah begins His ministry for our redemption.  Imagine how dismayed our God must have been, to see us systemically turn His day, which only He could have “made” Holy, into something that resembled more of a prison sentence, than a day of greatest intimacy with Himself.  Imagine how hard it must have been for Christ, who set aside His own work, in order to spend special time with us, to find that we had made the practice of spending time with Him so onerous, no one remained interested in doing it.  Sabbath observance then, like now, degenerated into two lines of thinking.  There were the ultra conservatives, who attempted to keep every tradition and rule set down by the church, in a doomed attempt at keeping something holy, which could never be defined by their miserable attempts at self-denial.  And there were those who simply threw in the towel, and decided no precautions were required, anything goes, because God made me who I am.  How the Author of Sabbath would restore the beauty of Sabbath was about to be revealed.

Peter recalls to John Mark in his gospel chapter one and verse 21 saying … “And they went into Capernaum; and straightway on the sabbath day he entered into the synagogue, and taught.”  To begin, the traditional thinking about traveling on the Sabbath was discarded.  The Pharisees had set a limit of 1000 steps for the entire day, lest walking further might be interpreted as work.  Here, Jesus and His disciples travel to Capernaum with no thought about getting around, or limiting how far they would go on the day of Sabbath Rest.  They were not walking idly.  They were on a mission of redemption.  They were not paid couriers, or paid evangelists.  They were volunteer missionaries.  Instead of the apprehension that comes from strict observance of the “rules”, there was a sense of joy that comes from the privilege of joining with others to worship God on His day.

When they arrive at Capernaum on Sabbath, their first thought is NOT to check into a hotel.  They do not look for a restaurant to feed themselves.  Instead they head directly to the synagogue in order to worship.  Christ does NOT discard the practice of Sabbath observance, instead He intends to restore it to what it was intended to be.  He does not advocate we ignore Sabbath, but instead that we learn how to enjoy it with Himself and with like believers.  Notice too, He was uninvited.  He did not wait for a written invitation to come and speak, or for pay for doing so.  He goes because He wants to go.  He brings His disciples so they too can enjoy what is about to happen.  And He is NOT interested in being a silent wall flower that is there “feed Himself” with spiritual blessings.  He immediately begins to teach.

Mark continues in verse 22 … “And they were astonished at his doctrine: for he taught them as one that had authority, and not as the scribes.”  Christ did not discard the Laws He Himself had given to Moses, instead He honored them.  But this was not to be a debate about what it means to keep Sabbath Holy, this was a living example of what it means to truly worship God.  Through the lens of Jesus Christ, the scriptures came to life.  From the God who loves others above Himself, the written words on the page were interpreted for probably the first time, as they were intended to be understood.  His authority over the Word came from being present when it was written.  Jesus knew the stories first hand, because He was there when they occurred.  His mission of redemption became the central theme He reveals to the people present on this Sabbath day, and those listeners are blown away by His doctrines.  Christ taught with passion about the reconciliation of the people to their God.  This was not to be a simple history lesson, but a living, breathing, relationship that could impact the lives of those in attendance with the God of the Universe who loved them this much.

The people in attendance in church that day forgot all about lunch.  Ending the sermon right at 12 noon, so they could run home and fill their empty stomachs, had lost all traces of thought.  They wanted more of the word of God, they were living the admonition of Christ that men live not by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.  They longed for more.  They were intent to hear anything He would say.  Mysteries regarding the infinite love of God were being revealed through scripture in a way like they had never heard.  It was impacting every listener.  The Holy Spirit was being poured out in Capernaum and believers were having their eyes and ears opened by the voice of God in a way they had never dreamed possible.  Oh to have been in that crowd on that day.  Oh to have heard Jesus Christ preaching on Sabbath, the only right interpretation of scriptures we would ever hear.  These people were learning from the mouth of Jesus Christ Himself, an honor we must wait for.

Mark continues in verse 23 … “And there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit; and he cried out, [verse 24] Saying, Let us alone; what have we to do with thee, thou Jesus of Nazareth? art thou come to destroy us? I know thee who thou art, the Holy One of God.”  First, it is important to note, that in that crowd on this Sabbath day, was a man with an unclean spirit.  A man possessed of demons.  So why was he at church?  The devil has no interest in helping men find God.  But perhaps before Jesus entered this synagogue the devil had no fear that what was being taught there had “anything” to do with Truth.  This man was not raving mad, adorned in chains, and frothing at the mouth.  He likely was dressed nicely and known to his neighbors.  But he was no less possessed.  He was in church when he was supposed to be in church, on the right day, at the right time.  But he was no less possessed.  He may have helped take up the offering, or say a prayer, or sing a song – but he was no less possessed.

How sad that in our fellowship can walk one who appears to be a like-minded believer, yet is possessed of demons who influence his life.  How sadder still, that this person could be us.  We have no idea it is the case, because we believe “we” are in charge of our lives.  Yet we are bound in sin, enslaved to loving and pleasing ourselves, with no hope of actually glimpsing self-control, let alone living in it.  It is so easy to look at others, ferret out their sins, point the accusing finger, and then believe ourselves to be holier by comparison.  But it is a false comparison, for in so doing, we reveal our lack of love, and motives of envy and pride.  We do not even realize we are consumed by those vices whose author was Lucifer of old.  We do not even realize it is we who may well be controlled by a darker spirit who keeps us from loving and focused only on judging and condemnation.  Until out of our own mouths, comes the voice of a demon we had no idea was in us in the first place.

The demon knows the end of the story.  The demon knows he has lost the war with God, and will one day face his destruction.  Notice too, the demon makes no reference to hell.  He is not existing in some other-dimensional place where fire torments him day and night.  His question is more accurate, and pointed, being … is it time for us to be destroyed?  The “hell” that exists for fallen angels and for mankind is the same.  It is living life apart from the source of ALL love.  It is knowing that the perfect bliss of loving others does exist, but that we have chosen not to be a part of it, and remain enslaved to loving only self.  That is hell.  That is real.  That exists right now, right here, and requires no flames to inflict a torture all of its own, a torture of our own making. 

The demon is moved to cry out, because he hears the words of Love coming from the mouth of Christ.  His first cry is … “Let us alone”.  The luring words of love and redemption Christ is offering fallen mankind are too much for the demon to withstand.  The torture of knowing God’s love but powerless to embrace it again brings the demon to the breaking point.  He cries out again … “what have we to do with thee thou Jesus of Nazareth”.  The demon did not go looking to confront Christ, he was happy just making the life of this man miserable.  The demon complains that since he was not looking for a confrontation he should just be left alone.  But his selfishness blinds him to the misery he causes his host, the poor blind man, who probably did not even know he was being possessed.  So the demon decides to do what he knows will be the most destructive thing he can do to stop the ministry of Christ … he decides to identify for all the listeners that “this man” is the literal Son of God.  To “out Christ” as divinity this early is sure to stir up controversy and cause those who might listen to shut Him off, due to preconceived ideas.

Mark continues in verse 25 saying … “And Jesus rebuked him, saying, Hold thy peace, and come out of him. [verse 26] And when the unclean spirit had torn him, and cried with a loud voice, he came out of him.”  Jesus forbids the demon to say anything more, whatever damage he has caused will not be tolerated to continue.  And the demon is compelled to obey.  If Christ had been a mere mortal, created a little lower than the angels, and having no divinity within Him, the demon could have easily resisted.  Angels do not take commands from men.  They are stronger than us, wiser, and have lived for eons past our few little years.  But the demon was not talking with just a “Rabbi”, or a “prophet”, he was conversing with the Son of God.  He tore his victim, and cried out with a loud voice, but he said nothing more, and he left his host.  In a twist of irony, on the Sabbath day, in the house of God, it is a demon who once again affirms the identity of Jesus Christ.

Peter recalls the response to John Mark as he writes in verse 27 saying … “And they were all amazed, insomuch that they questioned among themselves, saying, What thing is this? what new doctrine is this? for with authority commandeth he even the unclean spirits, and they do obey him. [verse 28] And immediately his fame spread abroad throughout all the region round about Galilee.”  Those in that temple immediately assumed it was the doctrines of Christ that enabled Him to command demons to obey.  But then the realization it was also with authority that he commanded them and they did obey.  Notice too, the demon was more than one, the words “us” and “they” are used in conjunction with this event.  The fame of these events, the words of the demon, and the freedom from the bondage of possession would spread far and wide across all of Galilee.

The scene then transitions Mark writes in verse 29 … “And forthwith, when they were come out of the synagogue, they entered into the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John.”  After this miracle, church service is over.  So Jesus goes to Peter’s house with His disciples, presumably for a lovely Sabbath afternoon lunch.  Mark continues in verse 30 … “But Simon's wife's mother lay sick of a fever, and anon they tell him of her. [verse 31] And he came and took her by the hand, and lifted her up; and immediately the fever left her, and she ministered unto them.”  Peter’s mother in law was sick that day, stricken by a severe fever that had left her bed ridden.  Jesus takes her by the hand, lifts her up, and the fever leaves her.  Jesus does not do this, because they are short help in the kitchen.  Instead He does this because He cannot pass by even one person in need.  Peter records it, because it is yet another healing performed by Christ on the Sabbath day.  Acts of love and redemption were the way the Sabbath was meant to be enjoyed, this is what the Author of the Sabbath had in mind.

Notice too, Jesus and his disciples do not go to a restaurant to find their food and sustenance.  They go instead where they are invited, and they receive the food that was offered to them.  The ministry of serving food to Jesus and his companions is accepted without a rebuke, or admonition to be careful “how” the meal is served and cleaned up.  We assume in the house of a fisherman, the diet would be a simple one of pita bread, fish, and perhaps some olive oil.  Peter was not a wealthy man, but he was honored to have His Lord in his home this fine Sabbath day.  Then he recalls that Christ spent the day in fellowship with Peter and his disciples and family.  Perhaps Jesus taught his mother in law, wife, and others in attendance what it means to love others like He loves them.  It is interesting though, the following texts would reveal that a great number of the people in the region still clung to the traditions of the Pharisees where it comes to Sabbath observance.  Note the following texts.

Mark continues in verse 32 saying … “And at even, when the sun did set, they brought unto him all that were diseased, and them that were possessed with devils. [verse 33] And all the city was gathered together at the door. [verse 34] And he healed many that were sick of divers diseases, and cast out many devils; and suffered not the devils to speak, because they knew him.”  The people of the region wait until sunset, when the Sabbath is officially over, before they bring Jesus Christ those who were sick and possessed with devils in order to be healed.  Perhaps the people were afraid to walk too far to find relief.  Perhaps they believed it a “sin” to seek relief on the Sabbath day itself.  But Peter dispels those ideas by citing his own mother in law’s experience with Jesus before lunch.  You will also note, Jesus does not condemn these people for waiting until after Sabbath to seek healing.  There is no lecture about how they are “doing it wrong”.  It is only His own heart, that so longed to give them relief earlier, yet none would ask.

Notice too, whether they were sick or not, the entire city gathered at the door of Peter.  Many just wanted to see what Christ could or would do, and they were not disappointed.  All those who later would demand “yet another miracle” and they would believe in Jesus, would have had to have forgotten the events at Capernaum on this day.  No matter what the disease Jesus healed them all.  Jesus forbid the devils to speak, so they could not injure His ministry further, but drive them out He did.  The Author of the Sabbath was not present to condemn the people for “how” they kept that day.  He was there to liberate them from their own chains and ideas.  He was there to free them from the possession of sin they had no idea they were enslaved by.  He was there to meet their every need with acts of love that defined His life of service to others.  Jesus did not use the Sabbath as an excuse to setup a health clinic, justifying performing health works on Sabbath.  But He did not delay meeting a need when it was presented just because it was Sabbath either.

To study the behavior of the Author of Sabbath is to change how we think about what it means to keep that time Holy.  It changes what we are intended to “remember”.  It changes the nature of joy we can experience when spending time with Dad.  It can even change what it means to truly worship our God.  And the lessons of Jesus Christ had only just begun …