“Out of the Asylum: Story of the Demon-possessed Man of Gerasa” 1
Introduction
I don’t know how many of you have ever sat around a campfire and started telling scary stories.
When you are out under the stars, and the flickering flames of the campfire throws strange shadows
all around you, the noises of the night are strange to your ears, and the darkness closes in on you like
a shroud – a good, scary story has the ability to make your hair stand on end.
It was a dark, dark night . . .
It has been a long day.
Large crowds.
12 men chosen to commit their lives as disciples.
Teaching . . .
Healing . . .
Performing miracles . . .
It is late.
And Jesus and the chosen 12 decide to find a place of quietness on the other side of the lake.
It is now a dark, dark night . . .
For most of these guys, this was a lake they were used to.
At least 4 of them drew their living from this lake.
They knew how suddenly dangerous it could be to be caught out in open water.
“So they took Jesus in the boat and started out, leaving the crowds behind (although
other boats followed). A violent windstorm came up. The waves were breaking into the
boat so that it was quickly filling up. Jesus was sleeping at the back of the boat with his
head on a cushion. The disciples woke him up, shouting, ‘Teacher, don’t you care that
we’re going to drown?’
Then he got up, ordered the wind to stop, and said to the sea, ‘Be still, absolutely still!’
The wind stopped blowing, and the sea became very calm.
Jesus asked his disciples, ‘Why were you afraid? Don’t you have any faith?’
The disciples were absolutely terrified. ‘Who is this man?’ they asked each other. ‘Even
the wind and waves obey him!’” (Mark 4:35-41 adapted)
What an exhausting and emotional experience it was.
These disciples had just come through a very difficult experience as they were crossing the Sea of
Galilee.
How do you think you would be feeling if you were one of these disciples in the boat.
The screaming, violent wind.
The thunderous drenching waves.
Death by drowning just moments, no . . . seconds away.
And then . . . peace!
1
Unless otherwise indicated, all Scriptures are adapted from:
Contemporary English Version (CEV) Copyright © 1995 by American Bible Society
GOD’S WORD Translation (GW) Copyright © 1995 by God's Word to the Nations. Used by permission of Baker
Publishing Group
Good News Translation (GNT) Copyright © 1992 by American Bible Society
New Century Version (NCV) The Holy Bible, New Century Version®. Copyright © 2005 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.
New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible. New Living Translation copyright© 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House
Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
And a whole, new fear.
Scripture Reading: Mark 5:1-20 adapted
Jesus and his disciples crossed Lake Galilee and came to shore near the territory of
the Gerasenes. When Jesus climbed out of the boat, a man possessed by an
evil spirit came out from the tombs or burial caves to meet him. This man was
controlled by an evil spirit and lived among the tombs. He was too strong for anyone
to subdue and control him. Even when he was placed under guard and put in
chains and shackles, he simply broke them and rushed out into the wilderness,
completely under the demon’s power. Day and night he wandered among the burial
caves and in the hills, howling and cutting himself with sharp stones.
While Jesus was still far away, the man saw him, ran to him, and fell on his knees
before him, and screamed in a loud voice, “Why are you bothering me now, Jesus,
Son of the Most High God? Promise me in God’s name that you won’t torture me!”
He said this because Jesus had already said to the spirit, “Come out of the man, you
evil spirit.”
Then Jesus demanded, “What is your name?”
The man answered, “My name is Legion [Six Thousand], because there are many of
us inside this man.” Then the evil spirits kept begging Jesus not to send them into
the bottomless pit where they would be punished.
There happened to be a large herd of pigs nearby, feeding on a hillside. So the evil
spirits begged Jesus, “Send us into those pigs! Let us go into them.”
Jesus allowed them to do this, and the evil spirits went out of the man and entered
the pigs. The whole herd – about two thousand pigs in all – rushed down the side of
the cliff into the lake and was drowned.
The herdsmen who had been taking care of the pigs ran away and spread the news
in the town and among the farms, reporting everything that had happened. Then the
people rushed out to see what had happened. A crowd soon gathered around Jesus,
and they saw the man who used to have the many evil spirits, sitting there fully
clothed and in his right mind, and they were terrified.
The people who saw this told the others what had happened to the man who had the
demons living in him, and they told about the pigs. And the crowd began pleading
with Jesus to go away and leave them alone.
As Jesus stepped into the boat, the man who had been demon-possessed begged
him, “Let me go with you!” But Jesus would not let him. He said, “No, go home to
your family and tell them how much the Lord has done for you and how he has had
mercy on you.” So the man went away into the region near the ten cities known as
Decapolis, or Ten Cities, and began telling everyone, about the great things Jesus
had done for him; and everyone was amazed at what he told them.
They had encountered a storm . . . and survived.
Now, they had reached landfall . . . and safety.
This side of the lake was a n area where there were many caves in the limestone rock.
Many of these caves were used as tombs.
They had landed in a graveyard.
Out of the tombs came this demon-possessed man.
This was a perilous place
and it was a perilous hour
and this was a very dangerous man.
And there was something devilish, demonic about his condition.
Here he is separated from society as if they could protect their own world from the threat of his
existence.
Here he is living in a graveyard – the home and haunts of demons.
Here he is bound with chains as if to control his inner condition – his inner violence – yet has a
maniacal, physical strength that he could snap these chains just like that!
How do you think the disciples were feeling at this time of arriving on the other side of the lake?
How do you think the disciples were feeling once they realize they have landed in a graveyard?
How do you think the disciples were feeling as this demon-possessed man runs toward them?
How would you be feeling?
Chains might not be effective in holding him on the outside.
But, he was bound inwardly - even greater than those exterior chains could bind him.
He was in isolation.
He was tormented – self-destructive,
self-abusive.
He was feared by others.
And then . . .there’s Jesus!
Stepping off the boat, how do you think Jesus reacted to this very strange (demon-possessed) man?
Did he show kindness, fear, uncertainty about what to do?
Was there an instant recognition of the Enemy – Satan?
Was he confident in the power of his heavenly Father?
If we think this is an exaggeration of what things really are, we need to think again.
We need to take a good look at our world today.
The reality of power of evil in a person’s life comes straight out of today.
But then . . .there’s Jesus!
The whole point of the telling of this “encounter with Jesus” is this: Jesus Christ is Sovereign over the
dark, demonic powers of evil.
There was no power,
no ability in this man to control his own destiny,
no end, but destruction
So, how does Jesus treat this person differently from the way other people have treated him?
He is calm,
unafraid.
Jesus came and brought a healing, creative power that totally and completely transformed this man
and his way of life.
No matter who we may be,
no matter what our own circumstances might be – trapped in our guilts,
caught in the self-destructive patterns of living,
sick of ourselves – not even having the heart to want to do better.
Jesus Christ can do for any person what he did for this man.
And then . . . there’s Jesus!
But the choice is ours.
We can be set free from the domination,
cruelty,
oppressiveness,
tyranny of sin OR we are hopelessly lost among all the graves of our dead hopes and futile
struggles.
Then we get hit by the people in our world around us.
What question do you think bothered the bystanders the most:
a) what just happened here?
b) who is going to pay the damages for the lost pigs?
c) is this healing for real?
d) who is this man Jesus?
e) can any person see God and live?
So many times, when Jesus comes on the scene, people react . . . and react strongly.
“Jesus, don’t disturb me!”
In this story, a man had been healed, but their pigs had been destroyed.
They didn’t want anything else to happen to upset their ‘status quo.’
“Jesus, don’t disturb me!”
The routine of life had been turned upside-down.
It was disturbing.
It felt . . . very uncomfortable.
The one thing most people want when confronted with Jesus is to be left alone.
Why did the bystanders want Jesus to leave town?
He didn’t belong there.
They needed time to think things through.
They didn’t want him to cast out THEIR demons
They were afraid he might be . . . well, God.
These bystanders – the Gerasenes – hated having the routine of life disturbed.
Life was rolling peacefully on – and then came Jesus – disturbing their every-day way of life.
They hated him for upsetting the ‘apple cart.’
More people hate Jesus because he disturbs them than for any other reason.
“If Jesus says to a man, “You must give up this habit, you must change your life”; if Jesus
says to an employer, “You can’t be a Christian and make people work under conditions like
that”; if Jesus says to a landlord, “You can’t take money for slums like that” – one and all
are liable to say to him, “Go away and let me be in peace.” (Barclay, 1953, 9th Edition 1965, p. 109)
They loved their pigs more than they valued the soul of a person.
One of the greatest dangers is to value things above people.
We tend to selfishly demand our ease and comfort even if it means that someone else has to ‘pay the
price’ for our negligence
If we were to conclude at this point, it would be a great and happy ending to a very, scary story.
But there is an important part of this story yet to be discovered.
This demon-possessed man has been cured!
Revival has happened!
Good things are happening!
This man wanted to stay with Jesus – the mountain-top,
the camp-meeting,
the revival – BUT Jesus sent him home.
“Come down off the mountain and back into the valley.”
“But why, Lord, it felt so good being on top.
Why do we have to go down where it is dark
and weary
and busy
and tiring
and lonely
and loud
and . . .?”
Christian witness – like Christian love (charity) – begins at home
The easiest thing to do would be to go to people who did not know us to speak to them about Jesus –
family,
friends,
neighbours make it so much harder.
It is our duty – our responsibility – where Jesus has set us – to be the living witness – the living object
lesson of God’s love – for him.
If we were to be the only Christian where we live out our day-to-day lives – grocery store,
post office,
coffee-shop,
on the road,
community center,
workplace – the place where we live or work – this is not a matter of getting upset.
It is a challenge to us in which God says, “Go and tell the people you meet every day what I have
done for you.”
I don’t know where you are in this story, with whom you connect, this morning?
But whether it is one of the disciples,
the demon-possessed man,
the herders,
the bystanders . . . there’s Jesus!
At this present moment you may feel isolated in solitary places,
or crying out to Jesus,
or experiencing God’s healing,
or sitting at Jesus’ feet,
or telling everyone what Jesus has done for you.
So, what is your story?
“. . . there’s Jesus!”
AMEN
Bibliography
Barclay, W. (1953, 9th Edition 1965). The Daily Study Bible: The Gospel of Luke. Edinburgh, Scotland: The Saint Andrew Press.
CEV. (1995). Contemporary English Version (CEV). New York: American Bible Society.
GNT. (1992). Good News Translation (GNT)® (Today’s English Version, Second Edition). New York: American Bible Society.
God's Word to the Nations. (1995). GOD'S WORD Translation (GW). Cleveland, Ohio: God's Word to the Nations: Baker Publishing Group.
NLT. (2005). Holy Bible, The New Living Translation (NLT). Carol Stream, Illinois: Tyndale House Publishers, Inc.
The Holy Bible, New Century Version (NCV)®. (1987, 1988, 1991). Nashville, Tennessee: Thomas Nelson Publishers, Inc. (a subsidiary of
HarperCollins).