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So, I heard that you guys are going through a series in Matthew, but this morning I actually

want to take you to a book over to the Gospel of Mark.

And so, if you've got your Bibles, turn to the Gospel of Mark, chapter 5.

Mark 5 · chapter mention

That's where we're going to be at this morning.

So, Gospel of Mark, chapter 5, and we're going to be looking at verses 1 to 20 today.

Mark 5 · chapter mention

And so, this morning, in Mark 5, I want us to be drawn in to a dramatic scene in Jesus'

earthly ministry.

In this passage, we're going to see Jesus engage with truly an unforgettable man.

And in this unforgettable encounter, we're going to see a little more clearly who Jesus

really is and what difference that should make in our lives.

Before we get there, I want to start by just by doing something.

I want to start by saying a word, and I want to have you see what comes into your mind.

Okay?

So, I'm just going to say a word, and then you can feel free to write something down if

you want, or just think about something, whatever comes to mind.

So, here's the word.

You ready?

The word is this.

Freedom.

Freedom.

Freedom.

What comes into your mind when you think about the word freedom?

Perhaps for you, you think about America.

The land of the free, right?

And the home of the brave.

Or maybe you think about specific freedoms that we have in our country.

The freedom of religion.

The freedom of speech.

Freedom of press.

The freedom to petition.

Freedom to assemble.

Freedom.

Or maybe for you, freedom is something a little bit more personal.

Freedom over a struggle that's in your life right now.

Freedom from a deep hurt or painful memories that haunt you.

Freedom from a bad habit you just can't kick.

Perhaps it's freedom of movement from your body or freedom from illness.

Financial freedom.

Freedom.

If you're a student, freedom of summer.

No more homework.

Students, we're not going with this.

No more tests.

Freedom.

Can I get an amen from the students out there, anybody?

Okay.

Okay.

Thank you.

Well, I don't know what comes to your mind when you think about freedom.

But I think it's safe to say that freedom is important to all of us, right?

We like being people who are free.

And yet imagine, imagine with me that you were not free.

Imagine if all of your freedoms were suddenly stripped away.

Freedom to carry on a normal life.

Gone.

Freedom to be with your family and friends.

Gone.

Freedom to speak and think clearly.

Gone.

Gone.

Freedom even over the movement of your own body.

That gone as well.

And then to top it all off in this situation, imagine that you were in bondage to a cruel and ruthless master.

Can you imagine that kind of experience?

It would be horrifying, right?

It would be absolutely terrible.

And yet it's into that kind of nightmare that we step as we open up the Gospel of Mark to chapter 5.

So let's see what happens, starting in verse 1.

They came to the other side of the sea, to the country of the Gerasenes.

And when Jesus had stepped out of the boat, immediately there met him out of the tombs a man with an unclean spirit.

He lived among the tombs, and no one could bind him anymore, not even with a chain.

For he had often been bound with shackles and chains, but he wrenched the chains apart, and he broke the shackles in pieces.

No one had the strength to subdue him.

Night and day among the tombs and on the mountains, he was always crying out and cutting himself with stones.

When he saw Jesus from afar, he ran and fell down before him.

And crying out with a loud voice, he said,

What have you to do with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God?

I adjure you by God, do not torment me.

For he was saying to him,

Come out of the man, you unclean spirit.

And Jesus asked him,

What is your name?

He replied,

My name is Legion, for we are many.

And he begged him earnestly not to send them out of the country.

Now, a great herd of pigs was feeding there on the hillside,

and they begged him, saying,

Send us to the pigs!

Let us enter them!

So he gave them permission,

and the unclean spirits came out and entered the pigs.

And the herd, numbering about 2,000,

rushed down the steep bank into the sea and drowned in the sea.

The herdsmen fled and told it in the city and in the country.

And people came to see what it was that had happened.

And they came to Jesus and saw the demon-possessed man,

the one who had had the legion sitting there,

clothed and in his right mind.

And they were afraid.

And those who had seen it described to them

what had happened to the demon-possessed man and to the pigs,

and they began to beg Jesus to depart from their region.

As he was getting into the boat,

the man who had been possessed with the demons begged him

that he might be with him.

And he did not permit him,

but said to him,

Go home to your friends

and tell them how much the Lord has done for you

and how he has had mercy on you.

And he went away

and began to proclaim it in the Decapolis

how much Jesus had done for him.

And everyone marveled.

Let's pray.

Father, we come to your word this morning.

We thank you that you speak to us.

God, we thank you that you've spoken to us

in many times and in many ways in your word

and to the prophets.

We thank you most of all by sending Jesus,

the word made flesh.

And God, we thank you that we had this written word

in our own language in our laps this morning.

And so we pray, God,

we ask that you would feed our souls this morning.

We would ask, we would pray

that you would open up your word

and show us wonderful things.

Show us more of who Jesus is.

I pray in his name.

Amen.

So we've read the passage.

We've entered into the nightmare.

And we see Jesus coming

and he changes everything, right?

But what are we supposed to make of all of this?

All this stuff that just happened?

Well, this morning,

I want to briefly walk through this story again

to get a feel for what's actually going on.

And then I want us to pull back from the story

and think about this passage's compelling truth

and how it applies to our lives.

And so I think there's something

that God wants us to know

from this passage this morning.

So let's get that

and then let's apply that to our lives.

So first, let's walk through the story again.

So the passage starts off in a rather eerie way.

Look at verse one.

They came to the other side of the sea,

so Jesus and his disciples,

to the country of the Gerasenes.

And when Jesus had stepped out of the boat,

immediately there met him out of the tombs,

a man with an unclean spirit.

And so Jesus and his band of disciples

have gone to the eastern side

of the Sea of Galilee.

Now, what's so strange or eerie about that?

Well, this is Gentile territory.

Gentiles are non-Jews.

They are considered unclean to the Jews.

And so they don't worship the one true God.

And yet here is Jesus, a Jew,

boldly going to the other side.

He's going to the country of the Gerasenes

to raise some questions in our mind.

What's going on here?

And yet the suspense only begins to build

because as soon as Jesus steps out of the boat,

out of nowhere comes running up to him

a wild, naked, screaming man.

And so we read that this man

has an unclean spirit.

Somehow he's been possessed by a demon

which has overpowered him

and enslaved him

and turned his life into a living horror show.

And so look at verse 3 to 5.

This man lived among the tombs

and no one could bind him anymore,

not even with a chain,

for he had often been bound with shackles and chains,

but he wrenched the chains apart

and he broke the shackles in pieces.

No one had the strength to subdue him.

Night and day, imagine this,

among the tombs and on the mountains,

he was always crying out

and cutting himself with stones.

And so this enslaved man

is in complete misery.

He is such a danger to society

that he's been isolated

to live among the dirty, bone-riddled tombs.

And he's so far beyond hope

that the locals have repeatedly tried to shackle him

so he doesn't hurt himself

or hurt other people.

And yet, it doesn't work.

Time and time again,

this guy has wrenched these things off of him

with his Herculean strength.

And so cut off from society

with no cure in sight,

all this tortured, demonized man

is left to do is to wander around,

crying out and cutting himself with stones.

I mean, this is a wretched, wretched picture.

I mean, maybe you've been in a situation

where you felt stuck.

You were weighed down.

You were overwhelmed.

You were isolated from others.

You saw no way out of the darkness

gathering around you

and gathering in you.

If you've had a taste of that kind of misery,

imagine that multiplied by 10,000.

And that is what this man is experiencing.

His life is really a living hell.

And yet, into this seemingly hopeless

and enslaved situation,

steps a deliverer.

Jesus arrives.

He steps out of the boat

and in verse 6,

we have a picture of the demon-possessed man

falling down before Jesus.

The fact that he falls down

is a reminder that a power

far greater than Satan

is present here.

In fact, we know that because Jesus

begins to command the demon to leave.

And the demon cries out

through the man in verse 7,

What have you to do with me,

Jesus, Son of the Most High God?

I adjure you,

by God,

do not torment me.

Do not torment me.

The demons know that Jesus

is not here to mess around.

And yet, the demons

can do nothing to stop him.

In calling Jesus

the Son of the Most High God,

some have thought that the demon

is trying to gain control of Jesus

by uttering his name.

And yet, Jesus

is the one who's really in control.

He gets the name of the demon,

Legion,

and to our horror,

we learn that this man

is not just possessed by a demon,

but by a vast number of demons.

A Roman Legion

was a unit of around 6,000 soldiers,

an organized, efficient,

mighty fighting force.

And so a legion of demons

is a terrifying,

terrifying supernatural foe.

And yet,

this supernatural confrontation

is almost over before it begins.

Jesus walks onto the scene

and this powerful legion of demons

is falling to his feet.

When Jesus simply speaks,

the demons are begging

to be sent away.

Send us away!

Send us away!

This legion of demons

can't stand being in the presence

of such holy power,

in the presence of unmistakable divinity.

But where will they go?

Well, they want to be sent

into a local herd of pigs,

peacefully grazing on the hillside.

And so if they can't destroy this man,

then they want to destroy something else.

And so we read what happens in verse 13.

And so he gave them permission,

and the unclean spirits came out

and entered the pigs,

and the herd,

numbering about 2,000,

rushed down the steep bank

into the sea

and drowned in the sea.

Wow.

I mean, can you imagine

what that would have been like

to see that?

A stampede,

a stampede of 2,000 pigs,

suicidal pigs,

rushing down,

rushing down a steep embankment,

plummeting right into the sea.

I mean, just try to imagine that.

I mean, I'm sure the jaws of the herzmen

just dropped.

Whoa.

You know,

what in the world just happened?

Our pigs,

they're just gone.

I mean, so these guys,

obviously,

run off to tell everyone

what they just saw.

I mean,

they get to their town,

maybe,

and they're like,

you wouldn't believe

what just happened.

You know that crazy,

demon-possessed guy

out in the tombs?

Yeah, well,

there's this guy named Jesus,

and he came,

and then he cast out

all the demons

into our pigs.

And then the pigs,

like,

took off down the hill

and into the sea.

I mean,

you can just imagine

people's wide eyes,

like,

what?

I mean,

if it happened today,

it would have been

on the front page

of the Gerasene Daily News,

flying pigs

or something like that.

It would have been

a trending topic

on the Gerasene Twitter feed,

hashtag pigs

into the sea.

So it's not surprising

that these people

from the country

begin flocking in

to see what happened.

And when they come,

guess what they find?

Look at verse 15.

And they came to Jesus

and saw the demon-possessed man,

the one who had had the legion,

sitting there,

clothed,

and in his right mind.

And they were afraid.

I mean,

if the pigs were wowed,

this is double wowed.

I mean,

it's one thing

to see 2,000 swine

shooting into the sea.

It's another thing

to see what used to be

a naked,

insane,

raging,

demon-possessed man,

now sane,

clothed,

and peacefully sitting

at the feet of Jesus.

What an amazing transformation.

I mean,

this is kind of like,

you know,

you meet someone

you used to know

like years ago,

and then you meet them

and they're like

completely different.

You ever had that experience?

You get that feeling

of shock that comes over.

You're like,

are you the same person

like,

in grade school

I used to know?

Okay.

That's what these people

were feeling.

Last they knew,

this crazy naked guy

was gashing himself

in the graveyard

and screaming like a maniac.

And now,

here he is,

clothed,

calm,

clear-headed.

I mean,

surely you would have

to think

that this would have

inspired hope

for real change

and spiritual freedom

in that area.

But look,

I mean,

this guy was healed.

He's free.

But look what happens.

Verse 16,

And those who had seen it

described to them

what had happened

to the demon-possessed man

to the pigs.

Notice this.

And they began

to beg Jesus

to depart

from their region.

As he was getting

into the boat,

the man who had been

possessed by the demons

begged him

that he might be

with him.

that people

are completely

spooked.

That people don't know

what to make

of this Jesus character.

I mean,

is he some kind

of sorcerer?

And what about

those 2,000 pigs?

I mean,

that's a lot of money

that just got hurled

into the sea.

Or maybe they were thinking,

you know,

if we couldn't control

the demon-possessed guy

with all the chains

broken in the tombs,

we're definitely

not going to be able

to control this Jesus

who just healed him.

I mean,

whatever they were thinking,

we don't know for sure.

We do know this.

They begged Jesus

to leave.

Get out of here,

Jesus.

And yet,

the exact opposite

is true of the man

who had been possessed

by the demons.

In verse 18,

he begs Jesus

that he might be

with him.

Now,

think about this.

Think about this.

Almost everyone else

in this passage,

the demons,

the people in the region,

are begging

to be far from Jesus.

But this one man,

this former wretch,

is begging,

pleading

to be near Jesus.

Jesus has just

saved his life.

Jesus had freed him.

Why would he not

want to be with Jesus?

And yet,

in one last

surprising turn of events,

Jesus says something

to this man

that probably blew him away.

He said no.

What?

Why, Jesus?

I want to be with you.

No.

Jesus has a bigger plan.

Jesus says to the man,

verse 19,

he did not permit him

to go,

to permit him,

but said to him,

go home

to your friends

and tell them

how much the Lord

has done for you

and how he has

had mercy on you.

And he went away

and began to proclaim

in the Decapolis

how much Jesus

had done for him

and everyone

marveled.

A miserable man

tortured and enslaved

by a legion of demons

is freed

into being

a joyful proclaimer

of God's powerful mercy.

What a powerful story

of healing,

of freedom

from slavery.

But what are you

and I supposed

to make of that?

What difference

should this true story

make in our lives?

Well, I think

the compelling truth,

the compelling truth

of this passage

is simply this.

We are to find

true freedom

in the powerful Jesus.

This passage

is calling us

to find

true freedom

in the powerful Jesus.

If you want

to truly be free,

if you want

the shackles

broken in your life,

if you want

to be transformed,

you need,

I need,

a strong deliverer.

We need Jesus.

You need the power

and the mercy

of Jesus

to find true freedom.

That's what this passage

is telling us.

And yet,

in order to apply

that correctly,

we need to think

very carefully

about what freedom

really is.

See,

is freedom

just having the ability

to do whatever we want

as long as we don't

hurt anybody?

Is that the freedom

that Jesus gives us?

If we just come to him,

we can spend our money

however we want.

We can talk

however we want.

We can do whatever we want

with our sexuality

as long as we don't

hurt anybody.

Is that the freedom

that Jesus provides?

And the answer

is no.

Doing whatever you want

as long as you don't

hurt anyone

is not true freedom.

Our culture might say it is,

but it's not.

According to the Bible,

that's not true freedom.

No,

true freedom

is shaped

by two things.

By what Jesus

frees us from

and what Jesus

frees us to.

True freedom

is shaped

by what Jesus

frees us from

and by what Jesus

frees us to.

There's something

very specific

he frees us from

and there's something

very specific

he frees us to.

And so I think

we need to see

both sides

of this freedom coin

to get a clearer picture

of the true freedom

that Jesus

powerfully provides.

So first,

Jesus frees us

from

the slavery

of sin

and Satan.

Jesus frees us

from

the slavery

of sin

and Satan.

Clearly,

this demon-possessed man

is under

the destructive

sway

of Satan.

Satan knows

that this man

and each one of us

are made

in the image

of God.

And since

Satan hates God,

there is nothing

more that he enjoys

than destroying

those made

in the image

of God.

Do you remember

that kid growing up

that always loved

to destroy

other people's creations?

Maybe it was

your Lego set,

wham,

took it right out.

Maybe you went

to the beach

and you're building

some beautiful

sandcastle

and over they come

and they start

kicking away

your sandcastle.

Well,

that's Satan.

That's what he loves

to do with humanity.

He gets pleasure

out of our misery.

He enjoys tempting,

he enjoys accusing,

he enjoys wreaking

havoc

with God's creation.

Now,

knowing that about

Satan,

would you want

someone like that

to have a massive

influence

in your life?

Well,

no,

of course not.

And yet,

that's exactly

the kind of power

that Satan has

over the lives

of every single

person born

into this world.

2 Corinthians 4,

4 says that Satan

has blinded

the minds

of unbelievers

to keep them

from seeing

the light

of the gospel.

And Ephesians 2

says that

all of us

by nature

follow Satan,

the prince

of the power

of the air,

and are sons

of disobedience,

naturally children

of wrath.

So think about

your relatives.

Think about

your neighbors,

your co-workers,

your friends.

All of them.

If they have not

been set free,

are in the death

grip of Satan.

Their slavery,

and perhaps

your slavery,

may not look like

this man's

in this passage,

but it's no less

slavery to a cruel

master who is bent

on our utter

destruction.

But here's the

really sad thing.

Satan doesn't have

to work that hard.

Why is that?

Because each of us

gladly put the shackles

on ourselves.

From the moment

we are born,

we love,

we look to sin.

Romans 3, 10

through 12

says this,

None is righteous,

no, not one.

No one understands.

No one seeks

after God.

All have turned aside.

Together they have

become worthless.

No one does good,

not even one.

We don't need to

teach our children

to disobey.

I'm learning that.

We don't have to

figure out how

to be greedy.

You don't have to

have a tutor

to know how to lust.

It all comes

so naturally.

Because we are

native-born slaves

to sin.

Jesus said in

John 8, 34,

Everyone who

practices sin

is a slave to sin.

That's us.

On our own,

that's us.

Every single

one of us.

So do you see,

each of us

need to be freed

from something.

We need to be

freed from the

slavery of sin

and Satan

in our lives.

And all of the

consequences

that come from that.

Guilt,

shame,

broken relationships,

despair,

death itself,

the list goes on.

We need true

freedom.

And that's

exactly,

exactly,

exactly,

what Jesus

provides.

Jesus comes

to free us.

He comes to do

what we cannot do.

He came to break

the grip of Satan

on our lives.

And just like this

man,

Jesus comes to

make us whole,

to put us in

our right minds,

to bring us

near to God.

And he does that.

Think about this.

He does that

despite great

cost.

Here,

in this passage,

Jesus crosses

a stormy sea

to go to a region

where he's not

welcome to free

a man whom

everybody had

probably given up

on.

And if that

costs 2,000 pigs,

Jesus is willing

to make the

sacrifice.

He's willing

to go to great

lengths to free

even one person

from their bondage

to sin and Satan.

He's willing

to go to great

lengths to heal

a broken soul.

And the ultimate

display of this

is seen in his

willingness to go

all the way to the

cross.

Jesus was willing

to pay the ultimate

price to set us

free.

He was willing

to be forsaken

by the Father.

He was willing

to be tortured

in our place.

He was willing

to overcome

death itself

for you and me.

So when Jesus

says in John 8,

36,

so if the Son

sets you free,

you will be free

indeed.

He means it.

He's done

everything to make

our true freedom

from sin

and Satan

possible.

So the question

is this morning,

have you

personally come

to Jesus

to find freedom?

Let me encourage

you today

to pause

and take a

hard look

in the mirror

and to see

the insanity

of your sin.

It promises freedom.

It always does.

But as we all know,

it enslaves us.

It only leads

to misery

in the long run.

If not in this life,

then in the eternity

apart from God.

There is no freedom

in sin.

There is only freedom

in Jesus.

And so now,

friends,

now is the time

to turn from your sin

and turn to Jesus

who can free you.

Now is the time

to fall at His feet.

Now is the time

to receive His mercy.

Have you done that?

Jesus stands ready

to free

all those

who come to Him.

If you are hearing

His call this morning,

come to Jesus.

He can free you.

But if you have

trusted in Jesus,

if you have come to Jesus,

let me encourage you

this morning as well

to consider this

piece of beautiful news.

guess what?

You have been set free.

You're free.

You're no longer

a Christian,

a slave

to sin

or Satan.

You are a child

of the Most High God.

And that means

you do not have to sin.

You don't have to believe

Satan's lies anymore.

You don't have to live

in isolation,

struggling by yourself.

You are a new person

in Christ.

The all-powerful God

of the universe

is at work in you.

And every day

He wants you to live

into the freedom

you already have

in Christ.

1 Peter 2.16 says,

Live as people

who are free.

Not using your freedom

as a cover-up for evil,

but living as servants

of God.

Live as people

who are free.

Believer,

that is what you are now.

You are free.

A servant of God

and nothing

can change that.

Now this doesn't mean,

believer,

that we aren't

going to struggle

with sin.

It doesn't mean

that there aren't

going to be consequences

that we might have

to face for some

of the sins

that we have committed.

It doesn't mean

that we won't have

to face the effects

of living in a world

that is in bondage

to corruption.

Our minds are likely

going to wither.

Our bodies will fall apart.

Sadly,

we will die.

And yet,

as believers,

we are truly free.

An article reminded me

this week

that we have to remember

the three Ps.

What are those?

Penalty,

power,

and presence.

In Christ,

we have been set free

from the penalty

of our sin.

Done away with.

In Christ,

we are being set free

from the power

of sin.

Going on right now.

And one day,

in Christ,

we will be set free

from the presence

of sin.

Penalty,

power,

and presence.

We've been set free

from the penalty.

We are being set free

from the power

of sin in our lives.

And one day,

one glorious day,

we're going to be set free

from the presence

of sin.

Forever.

See,

that's the kind

of true freedom

that Jesus provides

to all those

who come to Him.

So believer,

keep coming to Jesus.

Come to Him daily

for the deliverance

from sin

that you still struggle with.

He does not grow weary

of you.

He loves you.

Come to Him

for strength

and perspective

in your marriage

and your parenting.

Come to Him

for the power

to persevere

through every trial

and every suffering

you will face.

Because in Him

lies your hope.

And in Him

lies your freedom.

So come to Jesus.

There's one more thing

we need to see here

before we close.

Jesus not only frees us

from something,

He also frees us

to something.

Jesus frees us

to join God's mission

of mercy.

Jesus frees us

to join God's mission

of mercy.

Did you notice

what happened to the man

after he was freed

from the demons?

Almost instantly

as Jesus begins to leave,

the man wants to be

with Jesus.

He wants to go

with Jesus.

And it's not surprising.

I mean, he realizes

that his life

is not his own.

He didn't free himself.

Jesus freed him.

And so out of gratitude

and love,

he now wants to be

with the one

who freed him.

It's not a burden

to be with Jesus.

It's a joy.

It's a privilege.

And that should be

the heart's desire

of all those

who have been

freed by Jesus.

We want to be with Him.

We want to join Him

in what He is doing.

Yet this doesn't have

to be as complicated

as we sometimes make it.

Jesus is simply

telling this man,

go home

and tell your relatives

and tell your friends

about what God

has done for you.

Tell them about

how enslaved you were.

Tell them about

how hopeless you were.

And then tell them

how God reached down

and showed you mercy.

Tell them about

how He gave you

true freedom

for your soul.

And do you know what?

Each of us,

each of us,

we know Christ,

have the same exact call.

In His sovereign plan,

God has given us,

each of us,

a unique network

of relationships

that other people

don't have.

We have particular children.

We have particular

classmates.

We have particular

co-workers.

We have particular

neighbors.

Think of their names.

It's not a mistake

that you are

in their lives.

No, it's a unique

opportunity.

Those are the people

that God wants you

to go and tell

about His mercy.

So have you been

set free, believer?

Have you tasted

of God's mercy

in Christ?

Have you been clothed

in the white robes

of His righteousness?

Do you know

of God's immense

love for you

in Christ?

If so,

then you have

so much to share.

You have had

the mercy of God

poured out on your life

and others need

to hear about that.

Others need to hear

about the mercy

that God,

that Jesus,

can show to them.

And so maybe

that will happen

this week

when you are

taking out the trash

and you talk

to a neighbor.

Maybe when you're

putting your child

to sleep at night.

Or at the lunch table

with some classmates

or at a local Starbucks

with a friend.

Maybe there's someone

you've known for a while

that you simply

want to invite

to, hey,

let's just read

the Gospel of Mark

one chapter at a time.

Just see what Jesus

is all about.

I don't know

what it looks like

for you,

but may God

help each of us

who have been freed

to tell others

where they can find

true freedom.

And that's only

in the powerful Jesus.

Let's pray.

Lord, we thank you

so much for your word.

We pray that you

would now plant it

deep within us.

And we pray that you

would produce much fruit

for your glory

and for the good

of those around us.

And for the good

of our own lives,

God.

We thank you

for the freedom

that you give us

in Christ.

Help us to live

in that this week.

I pray in Jesus' name.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.