Mark’s account of the demon possessed man in region of the Gadarenes (Gerasenes) is always intriguing. This man certainly comes closest to the idea of “demon possession” of any person in scripture. Demonization is usually the more accurate term when a person is afflicted by a spirit from time to time, but not controlled 24/7. This man seems to be possessed because he was tormented day and night.
Mark writes, “They went across the lake to the region of the Gerasenes. When Jesus got out of the boat, a man with an evil spirit came from the tombs to meet him. This man lived in the tombs, and no one could bind him any more, not even with a chain. For he had often been chained hand and foot, but he tore the chains apart and broke the irons on his feet. No one was strong enough to subdue him. Night and day among the tombs and in the hills he would cry out and cut himself with stones” (MK.5:1-5).
The story of Jesus setting this man free by allowing multiple (Legion) demons to enter into a herd of swine which then rushed down a hill and drowned themselves in the sea is dramatic and memorable. But the part I want to focus on in this blog is the man’s response after he had been set free.
We don’t know how long this man had been in this ultra-tormented state, but it seems like it had been more than a few weeks. These tombs in which he lived were along the shore of the Sea of Galilee. On still nights he shrieking as he cut himself could be heard for miles across the water. It is likely that even Jesus had heard him from time to time. If any consciousness of “self” remained in this man, he was truly a tormented soul feeling helpless to control his body.
One question I have always asked is how did this man become susceptible to this many demons? Perhaps, he had become involved in the occult and had lost himself to witchcraft through which he invited “spirits” into himself. Modern day witches invite demons to take up residence within them because they draw power from the demons. As we draw power from the Holy Spirit, witches and Satanists draw power from unholy spirits. Perhaps, this man did as well and it simply got out of hand. We often see spirits of witchcraft afflicting the children of parents or grandparents who were involved in the occult, so perhaps he was the victim of generational curses.
Whatever the source, this man was in overwhelming torment and without hope…until Jesus. After Jesus commanded the demons to leave, we are told that he was dressed and in his right mind. The locals who had witnessed the miracle and the destruction of the swine, begged Jesus to leave. As he was getting into a boat, this formerly possessed man begged to go with him. I certainly would have done the same. I would have expected to be rejected by most people as a man who used to run naked among the tombs screaming at night. More than that, I would been terrified that those spirits whom Jesus had cast out would return without his presence and protection. I would have been terrified that I would have found myself in the same torment as before.
I would have expected Jesus to understand all that and take me with him, if I had been that man. Afterall, Jesus had some other formerly demonized folks who travelled with him…Mary Magdalene for one. But Jesus did not let him get in the boat. Instead, he told the man to, “Go home to your own people and tell them how much the Lord has done for you and how he has had mercy on you” (MK.5:19).
This command of Jesus to a man who had been tormented and humiliated by the devil, is the heart of evangelism. So often we feel unequipped to share the gospel with others. We think we need more knowledge, more answers to possible objections to what we are declaring. What most of us need is not more Bible before we share the gospel, but a testimony of what Jesus has done for each of us. People may try to argue against our understanding of scripture, but it is hard to argue against our experience with Jesus. Remember the Samaritan woman at the well. She did not go back to her village trying to convince them that Jesus might fit the profile of Isaiah’s prophecies about the Messiah. She simply said that she had just met a man who told her everything she had ever done. That testimony drew people out of the village and when they themselves had heard Jesus speak, they believed.
Perhaps, like the Gadarene, we should spend more time thinking about what Jesus has done for us and more time sharing those experiences rather than continuing to think we need more Bible knowledge before we can share our faith. More Bible is always good but Jesus did not command him to go to Torah school and become a Rabbi. He told him to go and tell those he knew what Jesus had done for him. By the way, when Jesus returned to that area, crowds were waiting to hear him.
