Lord Over Legion
Mark 5:1-20
God often uses the darkest and most hopeless situations to shine a light on Satan’s purposes of destruction, while at the same time revealing the glory of Jesus through His power to deliver.
The glory of Jesus is seen in His:
1. Compassion for the marginalized and oppressed (vs. 1-5)
- This is who Jesus is and why He came (cf. Lk. 4:18; 19:10)
- God orchestrates the events of people’s lives (including our own) to introduce them to Jesus
(cf. Eph. 1:11-12; Acts. 17:26-27)
- Jesus meets people right where they are, just as they are, and is the only One who can deliver and transform lives (cf. Mt. 9:9-13)
Do you take time to reflect and give thanks for God’s wonderful grace that brought you to Jesus? We should regularly pray, “restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me” (Ps. 51:12).
2. Control over Satan and his demonic forces (vs. 6-13)
- Demon possession is “the state of being indwelt by a demon who has direct control over the thoughts and/or actions of a person” (e.g. Mt. 17:14-18; Lk. 4:33-35)
- Demons accurately and truthfully acknowledge who Jesus is, and even though they hate it, they recognize His authority over them (cf. Mk. 1:27; Lk. 4:41; James 2:19)
- Satan and his evil host can do only what the Lord allows them to do
(cf. Job 1-2; Mt. 28:18)
Do you live in fear of our enemy? Has that led to an unhealthy fascination of the demonic realm? Keep your eyes fixed on Jesus! Pursue God, clothe yourself with the armour of God and rely on His strength (Eph. 6:10-18). We have nothing to fear from the evil one, for God rules over all!
3. Commissioning of captives who are set free to be His ambassadors (vs. 14-20)
- “If anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old is gone, the new is here!
(2 Cor. 5:17)
- Jesus stills the turmoil of our brokenness for His glory and our good
- Jesus miraculously sets us free from bondage to release us to be messengers of His grace and mercy (cf. 1 Pt. 2:9-10)
How are you living out your life? Are you so preoccupied with temporal things that you keep Jesus at a distance, or are you like the man who was gloriously delivered and publicly proclaimed all that Jesus had done for him? Are you taking advantage of every opportunity to tell others, “How much the Lord has done for you, and how He has had mercy on you”?
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