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Demonized individuals are not to be viewed so much as a pigeon hole category, as they are a continuem. For these demons to be sent out of the country would have meant that they would then be confined along with other fallen angels (cf. May 2015 Making statements based on opinion; back them up with references or personal experience. Sproul says in his commentary on Mark, When the Holy One is manifest in the midst of unholy people, the only appropriate human response is dread.. January 2017 The choice is to be free by submission to Christ (cf. Lets learn why. Fear that you might do something that would embarrass you? And the people went out to see what happened; and they came to Jesus, and found the man from whom the demons had gone out, sitting down at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind; and they became frightened. Author of The Gnostic Notebook series, stand-up comedian, and Gnostic. You can flip a coin hoping for heads, but you know that tails is a very real probability. We will examine two incidents -- the stilling of the storm on the sea of Galilee, and that which follows immediately, the healing of the demoniac. The Truth is Jesus is a safe Person Who loves them, values them, wants their best and will never force Himself on them. "The name "Gerasenes" is to be associated with the modern city of Jerash, located in Transjordan, 22 miles N of Amman." John McRay, "Gerasenes," ed. when He was the only One Who truly knew what had happened. Some illicitly use drugs, supposing that they have them completely under their control. 37 Then all the people of the surrounding country of the Gerasenes asked Jesus to leave them; for they were seized with great fear. 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. In the past several weeks, there has come to light the case of a man arrested for various crimes who has several of the symptoms of demon possession, including multiple personalities, even multiple IQs. The presence of holiness and, moreover, the most intense divine holiness is undesirable; I mean, unless you are an angel or a saintly recluse in his ascetic toils in a cave or a top of a pillar. Confusion, fear in moments after crash "There were many big pieces of steel," said Vassilis Polyzos, a local resident who said he was one of the first people on the scene. They likely were Gentiles and had been under the influence of the demonic principality of the region their whole life. seen it told them how the demon-possessed man had been healed. In Luke 2:8 it is applied to the city of Bethlehem; in Acts 18:23 to Galatia and Phrygia. As an alternative to confinement, the demons posed the option of being permitted to enter the pigs, some 2,000 in number, feeding nearby. Bible-believing Christians have always accepted the fact of demons and their activity in New Testament times, but most of us are inclined to relegate demonic activity in these days to pagan lands and missionary experiences. It is mentioned in some ancient manuscripts of the . Is it a bug? As always, we must begin with the principle: Interpretation is one, application is many. Their first question is a rather pragmatic one, namely, How can demons possess animals? To this we must confess that we know too little to understand the mechanism of demon possession but the reality is very evident. The Lord refused this request and commissioned this delivered man to return to his own people and declare to them what God had done for him. October 2021 (5) What our Lord could have given the people of this territory was much greater than what He took away. So he got into a boat and returned. With a little knowledge of the geography of the region, this apparent contradiction can be resolved. When our Lord confronted the demons, they had to submit to His power and authority. The demons freak out that Jesus is there because it's not time for them to be tormented by Him yet. Dave has been happily married to his wife Judy since October 1984. In contrast, the people of Gerasene are asking him to leave their place. The people who witnessed this are . March 2018 By His power, we, too, are able to overcome Satans treacheries. Then all the people of the region of the Gerasenes asked Jesus to leave them, because they were overcome with fear. Thus an economic lose of revenue was involved. November 2015 Today, it is identified with El-Koursi or Kursi. and thank you for your contribution. Acts 16:16), while others were the virtual pawns of these spirits, losing their own identity and autonomy. And all the people of the country of the Gerasenes and the surrounding district asked Him to depart from them; for they were gripped with great fear; and He got into a boat, and returned (Luke 8:35-37). In Acts 8:1 we have the regions of Judaea and Samaria (KJV), and in Acts 16:6, Galatia alone. There is no true freedom and fulfillment apart from Jesus Christ, the Creator and Redeemer of men. The most likely answer is to the country of the Gerasenes: i.e., Gerasa, a Greek town thought to be the same as the similarly-named Kersa on the east shore of Lake Tiberias. The sons of god ended up becoming the gods of these nations. What they were not willing to accept was the frightening power that could cure him. As the servant of Elisha was told, Do not fear, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them (2 Kings 6:16). I understand why," the HBO "Real Time" host told Jake Tapper on Tuesday as part . Ananias and Sapphira did so by allowing their greed to grip their hearts (cf. The region and polygon don't match. Smiths Bible Dictionary provides what I find to be a quite plausible explanation (not special pleading at all), and analogous to how we still use place names today: These three names are used indiscriminately to designate the place where Jesus healed two demoniacs. Series NotesScripture references are based on the King James translation. Just imagine, a man in a cinema, having bought popcorn and cola and watching an action movie, with a lot of violence and harsh language in it, and then he sees suddenly that a saintly bishop is sitting just next to his seat, not watching the movie, but reading silently psalms with a countenance radiating a deep contemplation; will not the first man be upset and lose all pleasure of watching the movie? It might be better to hide behind masks than risk being hurt again After all, if God rejects youwhere else can you go? As we pass from this section to the next, let us not end on the note of the death of the pigs, but on the deliverance of the demoniac. The man, who was naked when he saw Jesus, had the added ability of enduring both freezing and sweltering temperatures as well as pain he inflicted upon himself! Bob was born and raised in a Christian home i More, The Net Pastors Journal, Eng. . The account occurs in all three Synoptic gospels; in Mark (the shortest gospel) the story is in the longest and most detailed version; Matthew 8.28-34 is the shortest, 21,22). The Gadarenes was the place where Jesus confronted a man whose possession by demons gave him a level of superhuman strength like Samson (Mark 5:3 - 5, Luke 8:27). July 2015 But about a mile further south there is a fairly steep slope within forty yards from the shore, and about two miles from there cavern tombs are found which appear to have been used for dwellings. William L. Lane, The Gospel According to Mark (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1974), p.181. Many times people - Non-Christians and Christians - push Jesus away because they do not want to change. We see the first reaction to this in the storm MARK 4:7 And a great windstorm arose [snip]. Even the demons confessed that He was the Son of the Most High (Mark 5:7). It is amazing to think that people could be fearful of Jesus. The lectionary reading for Trinity 1, Year C, is Luke's version of Jesus meeting and healing the demon-possessed man in the 'region of the Gerasenes' (Luke 8.26-39). The center of personality, the volitional and active ego, is impaired by alien powers which seek to ruin the man and sometimes drive him to self-destruction (Mk. The lose of the pigs meant loose of partial income in the area. The commission of our Lord is considerably different from His instructions to the Israelites whom He had delivered. July 2018 The difference between the phonemes /p/ and /b/ in Japanese, Is there a solutiuon to add special characters from software and how to do it. in 1971. Events that are important to our Church Community, Mark 5:1-20 Jesus Heals the Gerasene Demoniac. HELPING CHRISTIANS BUILD POSITIVE, GODLY FAMILIES, CHURCHES, AND NATIONS, Follow us on social media for daily Scripture comments and more at. As these people began to piece together the previous events, not only of the destruction of the pigs, but also the deliverance of Legion, they began to sense that there was One far more awesome, much more to be feared, than Legion. Anonymous, October 25 2014 35Then people came out to see what had happened, and when they came to Jesus, they found the man from whom the demons had gone sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind. This is probably the Gerasa of Mark and Luke. Both Gerasa and Gadara were cities to the east of the Sea of Galilee and the River Jordan. The demoniac further evidenced demon activity by the depth of his spiritual insight. or school. What scared them was a power so fierce it could free a man. For more information, please see our Where did the demons go after they went into the pigs and caused them to jump to their death. First of all the Scriptures do not say that the local Pagans were afraid of Jesus, but that they merely begged him to leave their neighbourhood. March 2015 No one was strong enough to subdue him (verses 3,4). However, the point was clearly made; Jesus, the Son of God, has power over all things, including the powers of darkness. 36 Those who had seen it told them how the one who had been possessed by demons had been healed. Matt. July 2021 The Politics of Luke 8:26-39. Luke 8:26And they arrived at the country of the Gadarenes, which is over against Galilee. I think that this story is a little bit of an Easter story. Pigs were seen as unclean animals in the eyes of the people of Israel. Why do people like Jesus a lot? Satans most effective tool is not the demoniac wandering about the desolate places. He obviously attracted crowds. The Lord, in an act of great mercy, freed the Gadarenes' man by casting the demons out of him and allowing them to enter a nearby herd of pigs. Non-Christians can often experience this fear of Jesus as well. First let us see what the Sacred Texts says: The swineherds ran off and told it in the city and in the country. We read at Mk 5:14-17 (NRSVCE), the immediate after-effects of the driving out of evil spirits by Jesus at Gerasene by allowing them to enter pigs: The swineherds ran off and told it in the city and in the country. It was not the loss of their property or investment that caused them to be afraid of Jesus. He was Someone Who could control the spirit realm. Bob is a pastor/teacher and elder at Community Bible Chapel in Richardson, Texas, and has contributed many of his Bible study series for use by the Foundation. art thou come hither to torment us before the time? The exorcism of the Gerasene demoniac (Matthew 8.28-34; Mark 5.1-20; Luke 8.26-39), frequently known as the Miracle of the (Gadarene) Swine and the exorcism of Legion, is one of the miracles performed by Jesus according to the New Testament. Top Ten Reasons Why There Were Pigs In Gerasenes Remember the story of Jesus casting demons out of the crazy man in Luke 8? The best known Gerasa was a Greek city nearly forty miles southeast of the lake (modern village of Khersa, on the east shore of the lake. They were afraid and astonished, saying to one another, "Who then is this, that He commands even the winds and the sea, and they obey Him?" . Fallen people reject God not because they do not know His power. The New Testament speaks of those who had a spirit, or a demon, or demons, or an unclean spirit, or the spirit of an unclean demon, but chiefly of persons who were demonised. Edersheim, Life and Times, I, p. 479. Did Jesus command the demon before he fell on his knees in Mark 5:6? 114 We are indebted to Edersheim, who reminds us that the expression demon possession never occurs in the New Testament: The term demoniacal possession occurs not in the New Testament. 0 Responses The expression to be with Jesus is used particularly of His disciples (cf. Mark 9:17-29). Father Macaire, 33, who was ordained fewer than two years ago, was kidnapped the morning of Feb. 7 when he was on his way to his missionary community in Kazal, about 20 miles north of Port-au-Prince. And, behold, the whole city came out to meet Jesus: and when they saw him, they besought him that he would depart out of their coasts. I asked why people are afraid of commitment and relationships and some said they are afraid because they fear being hurt again. Subscriber Service CenterAlready a subscriber? Hence it would be called the land of the Gadarenes.. Life with him would be heaven on earth. The other is to believe, and to feel an excessive and unhealthy interest in them. October 2018 It is not difficult to imagine what was going through the minds of the disciples as their ship landed and as these two demon possessed men rushed to them. They liked Him and wanted to be with Him. (2) Pork was a food forbidden to Jews, and as such, those who raised these pigs may have done so knowingly in violation of divine injunction. How ironic, as others have noted, that the tormentor pleads not to be tormented. And he said to them, Where is your faith? 7 After he had finished all his sayings in the hearing of the people, b he entered Capernaum. Not long after that, while I was still a student in seminary, there was a car parked by the seminary in a somewhat suspicious manner and I called the police to check it out. Norval Geldenhuys, Commentary on the Gospel of Luke (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1951), p. 174. The swine then immediately killed themselves by rushing off a cliff. The US Congress is currently debating whether TikTok should be banned for everyone in the US, not just government officials. All of this sure seems perfectly consistent with calling the same area the country (chra) of either the Gerasenes or the Gadarenes, after the two major cities. May 2020 Even as the purpose of Roman legions was to enforce the will of the emperor, the goal of the multiple evil spirits was to carry out the devil's will of bringing pain, destruction and chaos to humans! The drowning of the swine was an accident, possibly simultaneous with the healing, and report mixed up the two incidents. In all three instances the word is chra (Strongs word #5561). The confrontation between the powers of heaven and hell are nowhere seen in better perspective than in Marks account of the encounter of the Gerasene demoniac with our Lord Jesus Christ. Why did the demons ask to be cast into the herd of pigs, and why did the pigs then run into the water to be drowned? It was significant. How to show that an expression of a finite type must be one of the finitely many possible values? 26). Thats just westernised interpretation which simply doesnt work when interpretating a Jewish book. September 2016 Yes, I know that Easter was weeks ago in April. Some of the proposed answers to this question are totally unacceptable to an orthodox, evangelical Christian.123 By way of explanation, there are several factors which should be given serious consideration. Why did Jesus not allow demons to proclaim his name, Archaeological or Historical Support for the Gerasene Pigs. And, it can not be understood properly out of this context. Finally, there is in demon possession a counterpart to the filling (or control) of the Holy Spirit. monetization of National Catholic Register RSS feeds is strictly prohibited. French Monastery Survives War and Famine After 885 Years, the Basilica of St. Ambrose in Milan, and More Great Links! Matthew 9:2-8 Why was "This man is blaspheming" considered an evil thought without knowing Jesus' identity? Then they sailed to the region of the Gerasenes, across the lake from Galilee. This story is a little bit of an Easter story. Thus, it is not always used of one specific country (nation), but rather, usually to regions or areas of either small (Bethlehem) or large (Judaea and Samaria) size, including regions surrounding large cities. Jesus has lead me away from my old life. No! There seems to be no excuse here for the charge of contradiction. It's a curious passage with many unanswered questions. On several occasions, when Jesus forgave someone, He specifically said, Go and sin no more. That only works for people who are sick of their sin and want to change. How Can a Person Get Rid of Evil Spirits. 2). 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. No matter who you are. He who feared His arrival now dreaded His departure. Bulk update symbol size units from mm to map units in rule-based symbology. Matthew 8:28 - 29, 31, 34And when he was come to the other side into the country of the Gergesenes, there met him two possessed with devils, coming out of the tombs, exceeding fierce, so that no man might pass by that way. His teachings have inspired great moral reformations such as abolition of slavery and the Civil Rights movement. In this context, however, he insists that legion has nothing of its usual Roman military overtones, but is the designation of numerous powers which oppose themselves to Jesus as the embodiment of the power of God. Lane, Mark, fn. Though Legion bowed before Jesus (verse 6), it was no act of worship (as the King James Version would seem to indicate). The drowning of these pigs has caused a great deal of discussion amongst Bible students, for as a friend of mine once observed, Thats a lot of pork chops! Had our Lord achieved such a miracle today He would have been in deep trouble. As the world's top superpower, how unsure of itself can the US be to . So he got into the boat and left., Luke 8:37, NIV, great fear [KJV] thoroughly frightened [Phillips]gripped with great fear [NASB]. Having been properly warned of the demonic underworld, let us not fall into the opposite error of absolute paranoia. It hit them hard in the pocketbook. He had only known Jesus for a few hours, but had already determined to be Jesus' disciple for life. More than this, however, is the fact that the mans own identity and individuality were swallowed up by the demons with him. Far from this, He had stormed the gates of Hell and prevailed. Bill Maher says he's scared of former President Trump "on a very personal level" and "what he would do" to the comedian if he were to win the 2024 White House race.