A Different Kind Of Storm

February 27th, 2023

A Different Kind Of Storm

“They came to the other side of the sea, to the country of the Gerasenes. And when Jesus had stepped out of the boat, immediately there met him out of the tombs a man with an unclean spirit. He lived among the tombs. And no one could bind him anymore, not even with a chain, for he had often been bound with shackles and chains, but he wrenched the chains apart, and he broke the shackles in pieces. No one had the strength to subdue him. Night and day among the tombs and on the mountains he was always crying out and cutting himself with stones. And when he saw Jesus from afar, he ran and fell down before him. And crying out with a loud voice, he said, “What have you to do with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I adjure you by God, do not torment me.” For he was saying to him, “Come out of the man, you unclean spirit!” And Jesus asked him, “What is your name?” He replied, “My name is Legion, for we are many.” And he begged him earnestly not to send them out of the country. Now a great herd of pigs was feeding there on the hillside, and they begged him, saying, “Send us to the pigs; let us enter them.” So he gave them permission. And the unclean spirits came out and entered the pigs; and the herd, numbering about two thousand, rushed down the steep bank into the sea and drowned in the sea. The herdsmen fled and told it in the city and in the country. And people came to see what it was that had happened. And they came to Jesus and saw the demon-possessed man, the one who had had the legion, sitting there, clothed and in his right mind, and they were afraid. And those who had seen it described to them what had happened to the demon-possessed man and to the pigs. And they began to beg Jesus to depart from their region. As he was getting into the boat, the man who had been possessed with demons begged him that he might be with him. And he did not permit him but said to him, “Go home to your friends and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and how he has had mercy on you.” And he went away and began to proclaim in the Decapolis how much Jesus had done for him, and everyone marveled.”
Mark 5:1–20

A Poor Unfortunate Soul

Jesus not only had the power to calm physical storms but spiritual ones as well. Jesus and his followers encounter a man whose life is nothing short of torment. He's been taken over by multiple demons, earning him the nickname 'Legion,' based on an army of 6,000 Roman soldiers. These evil forces gave him immense strength. Their presence brings fear to all around him and danger to himself. This man was in extreme desperation, and no one could offer him any aid or even restrict his actions. This abandoned soul lived in isolation among tombs.

We Know Who You Are

The demonic entities possessing the man confess the power of Jesus and quickly succumb to His orders. He permits them to depart from their host, a man in a dreadful state, and they rampage through a large herd of pigs that had been grazing nearby. The horde race down an incline into the sea and drown. The herdsmen fled and spread the news about what they had witnessed.

Should I Stay Or Should I Go?

As the locals learn what has occurred, they no longer fear Legion but become fearful of Jesus. They plead with Him to leave their part of the world. Instead of petitioning Jesus to stay with them, they implored him to leave. The man who had been healed asked permission to go with Jesus. Despite his desperation to join as a disciple, Jesus sends the man back home to be reunited with his family and commissions him to tell others what he had done for the man.