Holston Daily Devotional February 3, 2021

Focus Scripture

Mark 5:1-20

Jesus Heals the Gerasene Demoniac

5 They came to the other side of the sea, to the country of the Gerasenes.[a] 2 And when he had stepped out of the boat, immediately a man out of the tombs with an unclean spirit met him. 3 He lived among the tombs; and no one could restrain him any more, even with a chain; 4 for he had often been restrained with shackles and chains, but the chains he wrenched apart, and the shackles he broke in pieces; and no one had the strength to subdue him. 5 Night and day among the tombs and on the mountains he was always howling and bruising himself with stones. 6 When he saw Jesus from a distance, he ran and bowed down before him; 7 and he shouted at the top of his voice, “What have you to do with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I adjure you by God, do not torment me.” 8 For he had said to him, “Come out of the man, you unclean spirit!” 9 Then Jesus[b] asked him, “What is your name?” He replied, “My name is Legion; for we are many.” 10 He begged him earnestly not to send them out of the country. 11 Now there on the hillside a great herd of swine was feeding; 12 and the unclean spirits[c] begged him, “Send us into the swine; let us enter them.” 13 So he gave them permission. And the unclean spirits came out and entered the swine; and the herd, numbering about two thousand, rushed down the steep bank into the sea, and were drowned in the sea.

14 The swineherds ran off and told it in the city and in the country. Then people came to see what it was that had happened. 15 They came to Jesus and saw the demoniac sitting there, clothed and in his right mind, the very man who had had the legion; and they were afraid. 16 Those who had seen what had happened to the demoniac and to the swine reported it. 17 Then they began to beg Jesus[d] to leave their neighborhood. 18 As he was getting into the boat, the man who had been possessed by demons begged him that he might be with him. 19 But Jesus[e] refused, and said to him, “Go home to your friends, and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and what mercy he has shown you.” 20 And he went away and began to proclaim in the Decapolis how much Jesus had done for him; and everyone was amazed.

Devotion

It’s hard for me to imagine being possessed by a demon, much less many of them. Though it’s hard to empathize, I do feel heartache for the Garasene man in today’s scripture: the demons inside him were so violent, the townspeople tried to hold him back with chains. But this was only a temporary answer; scripture tells us he tore the chains apart and broke the shackles into pieces. When that didn’t work, they sent him out to live among the tombs. Somehow, it seemed a fitting end for him. For the townspeople, he was as good as dead anyway. It wasn’t until Jesus Christ set foot on the Decapolis that things changed. Jesus didn’t offer to tie up the man in stronger chains. Instead, he removed the root of the anguish from the man’s life.

I recently heard a pastor compare racism to the demons inside the Garasene man; our laws and best efforts may restrain it temporarily, but it still breaks free and causes great harm to others. Similarly, racism requires not just human efforts to stop it but also Jesus who will uproot the anger, pride, and hate in our hearts that drive poor decisions and give life to bad attitudes.

The sins we face in our life and as a society can be restrained temporarily with our own efforts. But it isn’t until we let Jesus Christ step into our heart that real change begins. Jesus is the one who can help us get rid of our sin for good. As with the demoniac in the story, Jesus not only frees us from torment but restores us to our right mind. We can try to hold back our sins with different strategies, but it’s only Jesus who brings lasting freedom.

When Jesus brings about this change, don’t be surprised if some people react the way the crowd did when they saw the demoniacs healing. Jesus cast the demons out of the man and into a nearby swine herd that then drowned in the ocean. People may be scared, skeptical, angry, and unappreciative of how Jesus restores order to our lives. Beware of those who value their comfort more than your healing.

Prayer

“Come, Lord Jesus, and transform our hearts. Rid of us of the sins that we can’t restrain, contain, or transform on our own. With your help and our sincere effort, we trust that we will overcome. Amen.”