Mark 5:1-20

Power & Mercy

Devotional 25 of 50 · Mark chapter 5

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After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb. Suddenly there was a great earthquake, for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven, rolled away the stone, and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. The guards trembled in fear of him and became like dead men. But the angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; He has risen, just as He said! Come, see the place where He lay. Then go quickly and tell His disciples, ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see Him.’ See, I have told you.” So they hurried away from the tomb in fear and great joy, and ran to tell His disciples. Suddenly Jesus met them and said, “Greetings!” They came to Him, grasped His feet, and worshiped Him. “Do not be afraid,” said Jesus. “Go and tell My brothers to go to Galilee. There they will see Me.” While the women were on their way, some of the guards went into the city and reported to the chief priests all that had happened. And after the chief priests had met with the elders and formed a plan, they gave the soldiers a large sum of money and instructed them: “You are to say, ‘His disciples came by night and stole Him away while we were asleep.’ If this report reaches the governor, we will satisfy him and keep you out of trouble.” So the guards took the money and did as they were instructed. And this account has been circulated among the Jews to this very day. Meanwhile, the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain Jesus had designated. When they saw Him, they worshiped Him, but some doubted. Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey all that I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb. Suddenly there was a great earthquake, for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven, rolled away the stone, and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. The guards trembled in fear of him and became

Mark 5:1-20 · BSB

¹On the other side of the sea, they arrived in the region of the Gerasenes. ²As soon as Jesus got out of the boat, He was met by a man with an unclean spirit, who was coming from the tombs. ³This man had been living in the tombs and could no longer be restrained, even with chains. ⁴Though he was often bound with chains and shackles, he had broken the chains and shattered the shackles. Now there was no one with the strength to subdue him. ⁵Night and day in the tombs and in the mountains he kept crying out and cutting himself with stones. ⁶When the man saw Jesus from a distance, he ran and fell on his knees before Him. ⁷And he shouted in a loud voice, “What do You want with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg You before God not to torture me!” ⁸For Jesus had already declared, “Come out of this man, you unclean spirit!” ⁹“What is your name?” Jesus asked. “My name is Legion,” he replied, “for we are many.” ¹⁰And he begged Jesus repeatedly not to send them out of that region. ¹¹There on the nearby hillside a large herd of pigs was feeding. ¹²So the demons begged Jesus, “Send us to the pigs, so that we may enter them.” ¹³He gave them permission, and the unclean spirits came out and went into the pigs, and the herd of about two thousand rushed down the steep bank into the sea and drowned in the water. ¹⁴Those tending the pigs ran off and reported this in the town and countryside, and the people went out to see what had happened. ¹⁵When they came to Jesus, they saw the man who had been possessed by the legion of demons sitting there, clothed and in his right mind; and they were afraid. ¹⁶Those who had seen it described what had happened to the demon-possessed man and also to the pigs. ¹⁷And the people began to beg Jesus to leave their region. ¹⁸As He was getting into the boat, the man who had been possessed by the demons begged to go with Him. ¹⁹But Jesus would not allow him. “Go home to your own people,” He said, “and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and what mercy He has shown you.” ²⁰So the man went away and began to proclaim throughout the Decapolis how much Jesus had done for him. And everyone was amazed.

Jesus

Why would Jesus grant the request of demons to go into the pigs, then deny the request of this man to follow Him? On top of that, why would He send the demons into the pigs, causing significant economic hardship on this town of pig herders? These are valid questions. Yet, the question the disciples were likely asking is, why would Jesus even go to an unclean people in the first place?

All of these questions find their answer when we see the mercy of Christ. Jesus goes out of His way to show mercy to this demon-possessed man. He does this by diverting from His normal route through the Jewish cities to go to him in this Gentile settlement. In this story of deliverance, we see the power of Christ alongside His mercy. This demon possessed man was breaking every chain people put on him, but this didn’t even cause Jesus to flinch. Instead, the whole army of demons is seen bowing and begging Jesus not to be tortured by Him. Jesus is known to them as the one who will one day judge them once and for all. Until then, Jesus delivers this man from this demonic legion just as effortlessly as we see Him cast out a single demon.

How does granting the demons' request to enter the pigs show mercy? Jesus is not showing mercy to the demons, but to the people. Jesus knows there is a coming judgment on these demons, yet uses their own plan against them. By permitting them to go into the pigs, Jesus reveals the actual destructive power of the demonic and His authority over it in ways the townspeople could not deny. This destruction also gives the people an opportunity to place their hope in the eternal Kingdom of God and not the temporary financial security of wealth, represented by the pigs. However, when they are faced with Jesus' power and potential harm to their security, they beg Jesus to leave. They seem to place more value on their herds of pigs than one of their own people being set free from a legion of darkness.

Although they reject Jesus, His mercy for them goes on. This is why Jesus restores this man to his right mind and then denies him the opportunity to follow as a disciple. Jesus commissions him to be a witness to his own people. Jesus sends this man out to "Go home to your own people, and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and what mercy He has shown you." Jesus does not even give up on those who beg for Him to leave; He sends a mighty witness with an undeniable testimony of His power and mercy.

His Desires

As seen above, Jesus desires that we share His effect on our lives with those around us. We may not have been breaking chains with the powers of demons, but we have been rescued from a darkness and suffering beyond comprehension to a future in heaven beyond our wildest dreams. We also see His immense mercy and steadfast love in going after people that were begging for Him to leave.

Follow Through

Tell the people in your life how much the Lord has done for you and the mercy He has shown you.
Seek to go after the one who might seem like a lost cause.
Pray to care more about the eternal than the temporary.

Testimonies

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