Mission 66 (English podcast)
Mark 5 Demons, Diseases and Despair
Jairus goes to get Jesus and asks him to do something about his sick daughter, but on their way to the house, the girl dies. The Bible believes us in a bit of suspense here. Jesus says, "Don't worry. Only believe." In Mark's account, it doesn't mention what Jairus said, but other gospels do say. He said, "Lord, I believe. Help my unbelief." This is Mission 66. Your deep dive into the 66 books of the Bible brought to you by Bible teacher and pastor Dr. Luis Seow, in collaboration with Trans World Radio. Let me remind you to download your free study guide of the gospels. You'll be able to go deeper into God's word and follow along with each day's program. It's a great companion resource of the audio teaching of John Matthews and Esther Sussulu. To get your free study guide of the gospels, visit Mission66.org. That's Mission66.org. Get ready for an impactful session as John Matthews, along with his co-host, Esther Sussulu, guide us through today's study. Today we find ourselves in the Gospel of Mark chapter 5, where our teacher John Matthews will focus on the theme "demons, diseases and despair." I know, it sounds depressing, but take heart. If you are beset with doubts and anxieties, problems and questions about hard things going on in your life, there are solutions. In fact, let's get to it. Hi, John. Hello, Esther. And a very warm welcome to your great to have your company, as all always said today, we're beginning by reading the very end here of chapter 4 that is relevant to this passage. The text says that Jesus said to his disciples, "Let us go across to the other side and leave in the crowd. They took him with them in the boat just as he was, and other boats were with them, and this great windstorm arises, and the waves were breaking into the boat so that the boat was filling up. Jesus was in the stern asleep on the cushion, and the disciples, guess what? They were in despair and overcome by fear, and they woke him and said to him, "Teacher, do you not care that we're perishing? And he awoke and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, "Peace! Be still!" And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm, and he said to them, "Why are you so afraid? Have you still no faith?" And they were filled with great fear and said to one another, "Who then is this?" That even the wind and the sea obey him. Who indeed? Well, my dear listener, the winds and the waves of life still know the voice of Jesus, who calmed that sea of Galilee so many years ago, and sometimes we do get terrified by the storms of life around us, just like the disciples were terrified, and just like them, we often do not take into consideration the fact that God is in control of everything, and takes care of us all the time, and he is there with us, even in situations like this. But now it just is about to get even scarier into chapter 5, because when they all reached the other side of the sea of Galilee and arrived at the land of the Gerasenis, or also known as the Gaterennes, named because of the town there called Gadara, Jesus finds a man who is possessed by an evil spirit. Now, the account tells us that he was in such a terrible condition this man that he lived naked amongst the tombs and that nobody could bind him. Why? Because the demons gave him such physical strength that he would just break loose from the iron chains on his feet and nobody could control this man, and the oppression of this evil spirit was so horrible that this man would cry out and would cut himself with stones night and day amongst these tombs in the hillsides. And this is the demon-possessed man that is sometimes called the Gaterenn or the Gerasen. But since Jesus is the one who rebukes the wind and the waves notice, he is also the one who has power over demons and the spiritual forces of evil. In verse 6 it says, "And when this man 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 adure you by God. Do not torment me.'" Now this was not the man speaking, but actually the demonic beings that were possessing him, they knew exactly who Jesus was and so they cried out and begged that they would not be tortured. This is interesting, isn't it? And then Jesus commands the demon to leave that man and he asks him a question saying, "What is your name?" And the demon answered, and this is incredible, saying, "My name is Legion, for we are many." In other words, there were more than one demons here. There were many demons, in fact, dwelling within this man and they begged Jesus not to send them away from that region. And there was a large group of pigs, an entire herd of pigs passing by and the demons asked Jesus for permission to go into the pigs and Jesus granted this request. And the demons went into the herd of about 2000 pigs and the pigs then suddenly all ran off a cliff and were drowned in the sea. Can you imagine observing this encounter unfolding? And those who were tending the pigs ran away terrified after seeing what had just happened. And villagers heard about it, they came to see what all the excitement was all about and there they found this man who had been possessed but now sitting peacefully clothed and in his right mind. Now, you would have thought that the people around there who knew this troubled person would have been so happy to see him dressed and in his right mind. But surprisingly, the people aren't happy. In fact, they're afraid and they run away. And perhaps what's even more surprising is that when the word about this incident gets around, the people in the areas were so terrified that they asked Jesus to leave their territory. You see, they didn't want their little world to be upset. Furthermore, the guy who kept the pigs had just lost his entire herd and was probably out of a good bit of money. And so different, we could well ask, well, who is this? Who commands the winds and the waves and to whom the demons even are subject? And the answer is Jesus, more than just a common man far more. Here was someone who could stop the wind and the sea in its tracks, a man who had power over the most terrifying group of demons. Who indeed was this? And the power of Jesus is not only over human despair and demons, but it's also over disease. And this can be seen as we reach verse 21. When they reached the other side of the Sea of Galilee, there was a big crowd of people there. And then came one of the rulers of the synagogue. Geras was his name. And seeing Jesus, he fell at his feet and implored him earnestly, saying, "My little daughter is at the point of death. Come and lay your hands on her so that she may be made well and live." And Jesus went with him and a great crowd followed him and thronged about him. And there was a woman there who had a discharge of blood for 12 years and who had suffered much under many physicians, had spent all that she had trying to fix this problem and in fact was no better but rather was growing worse. And she'd heard the reports about Jesus, that he was coming and came up behind him in the crowd and touched his garment. For she said and thought, "If I touch even his garments, I will be made well." And immediately the flow of blood dried up and she felt in her body that she'd been healed of her disease. And Jesus perceiving in himself that power had gone out from him, immediately turned about in the crowd and said, "Who touched my garments?" And his disciples said to him, "You see the crowd, they're pressing all around you and yet you say, 'You touched me?'" And he looked around to see who had done it but the woman, knowing what had happened to her, came in fear and trembling and fell down before him and told the whole truth. And he said to her, "Daughter, your faith has made you well. Go in peace and be healed of your disease." And Jesus after having healed this woman in the midst of this whole situation continues to accompany Jairus, the synagogue lead on his way to his house. And then some people come up and say to Jairus, "Your daughter has just died. You no longer have to bother the teacher." Not giving much attention to what they said. Jesus says to Jairus, "Don't be afraid. Just believe." And he didn't let anyone follow him except for Peter, James, and John. And then they arrive at Jairus' house and there was a huge commotion there. Can you imagine the scene confusion? People mourning, crying loudly. You see back then people really, really well at funerals. It was no small noise. And Jesus then enters the house and asks, "While this commotion and wailing, the child is not dead, but asleep." And at that everyone laughed at him. Maybe not out loud, but surely they sniggered at themselves. And then he ordered for all of them to leave and he took the child's father and mother and the disciples who were with him and went in there where the child was laying. And he took her by the hand and said to her, "To Lithaikumai." This is an Aramaic expression that means little girl, I say to you, arise. And the girl who was 12 years old got up and began to walk. And that left everyone absolutely amazed and astonished. And Jesus then gives everyone strict orders to not tell anyone of what had just happened, but also tells the mum and dad to go and give the girl something to eat. Who is this indeed? Who is this? Who has the power over the wind and the sea, over demons, over any and all kinds of disease and who brings the dead, even the dead, back to life? Jesus cannot be only a prophet or a good man. He is the Lord, the one who also came to establish the kingdom of God. My dear listeners, indeed, our lives are many times set upon by demonic attack, disease and despair. Many people are in desperate straights, depression and troubled by shortages, wars, famines and problems of all kinds. But Jesus, isn't that a wonderful expression? But Jesus is ray of hope to the one in the midst of human conflict and problems, the son of God, the servant of the Lord, the messiah king who manifested himself to us, came to help us in our insufficiencies and in our weakness. And we would love to sincerely invite you in the midst of your moment of difficulty and despair in your battle, perhaps against demons or against disease to turn to God. Seek help from the Lord Jesus and give him permission to come into your life and help you, for the Psalms say that he is an ever-present help in time of trouble. Yeah, what a glorious truth to behold. This is Mission 66 and we've been hearing from Mark chapter 5 taught by our teacher John Matthews. And as you know, usually questions arise and we are curious. So John, please explain to us what are demons? Well Esther, we know from scripture that demons are evil spirits. In fact, they are fallen angels who are loyal to Satan. Now Satan himself was Lucifer, a created being that at one time way back in the immeasurable past used to serve God. In Isaiah 28 we find him described as the king of Tyre. He was one of the chiefest of the cherubim and he walked among the fiery stones of heaven. But at some point he becomes proud and tries to usurp God's throne. And the angels who followed Lucifer in this rebellion lost their standing in heaven and they become demons. They can never be redeemed. And Jesus himself describes in the Gospel of Luke that he saw Satan fall from heaven and along with him went a big group of evil spirits. And these spirits are filled with wickedness now and can do nothing but harm to people. They have this ability to deceive people. They lie. They show up here in the Bible, especially during Jesus's ministry in order for us to see how Jesus has power over them. And they were constantly afflicting people who did not know God. And Jesus then shows up here. And Mark tells us a lot about these demons, some of which we've studied about today. And there is some false information actually that goes round about demons. Some people think and believe that what we consider to be a manifestation of evil might actually be called negative fluid energy or something along those lines that exist in the spiritual realm. Other people perhaps believe that these could be the spirits of people who've already died. Well, this cannot be because nowhere in scripture do we ever see a human being or becoming an angel, either good or bad. We're not free to go beyond what is written about in scripture. And the truth is that not everyone accepts the witness of the Bible when it talks about demons or indeed the nature of evil. You know, this is so true, John. I've heard many people trying to explain about demonic possession claiming that it was ignorance on the part of the people of that time who didn't know how to explain mental or psychological problems. But the question is, is there such a thing as demonic possession? Oh, yeah, it is real big time. It is real. All right. Again, are demonic possessions. They exist. And what we just read in Mark show us how demons possessed the member, the God, a reen man gave him this supernatural kind of strength, but also tormented him with unimaginable pain. And Jesus casts them out. You remember, he referred to it as Legion. There were there were almost a legion of demons. And the man sanity then is instantly restored. And the demons go into a herd of pigs and make these pigs run down the hill to their death markedly at Jesus's permission. So I don't know how you could explain this story any other way than by demon possession, where an evil spiritual entity ends up dominating this person's mind in such a way that he or she is no longer able to control themselves or even actually know what's happening. But once the demon is cast out, the person returns instantly to normal. Now psychology can't explain that. There are, of course, people who suffer very real psychological and psychiatric illness. We see that clearly sometimes. But when you look at the kind of unrest and upheaval that dominates society and the kind of criminal activity that you hear about in the news these days, it can't be explained apart from the demonic. And in fact, I believe that our society today is more under the control of evil demonic entities than anybody is willing or perhaps ready to admit. Yeah, you know, Mark says that demons respond to Jesus by saying, my name is Legion, for we are many. That's incredible. Right. The legion that possessed the man admitted that there were more than one of them in the Roman military. The legion was a large number of soldiers. So there were plenty of these demons right here. And we'll note that the demons recognized who Jesus was. When these entities notice Jesus' power, they've no way to resist him. They are compelled to fall at his feet and address him as someone who has authority. Jesus is the Lord of Lords. And there are people who think that the devil is the boss of everything and that the demons can do as they please. But this Esther, it's simply not true. God is the Lord of all the earth and all authority and power are in the hands of Jesus. And these evil spiritual beings, well, they have no choice but to bow down and recognize the authority that belongs to the Son of God. They have limited power. They can only do what God allows them to do. And what is their fear? They know that their day of judgment is coming. This terrifies them because they are afraid, so afraid of being thrown into the lake of fire. You know, John, I've engaged in countless discussions pertaining to what I'm about to ask you. Okay. Do you think that it's possible for one who believes in Jesus to be demon possessed? Yeah, I can understand the discussions you've been involved with. And you know, I don't think it's possible for a true faithful believer in Jesus to be possessed in the sense that we've been talking about. But I do think it's possible for us to let down our guard and give demons permission to mess with us and influence us. So all the more reason that we really ought to stay away from any occult involvement and remain firm in our faith and hold on tight to Christ. God will always hold on to a true believer in Jesus, absolutely. I believe that. And thank you for that clarification, John. We need to understand the truth of God's Word. So please tell us this. Why does Jesus seem to grant the demons request to go into the pigs? You know, Esther, it's a difficult question to answer. And it's one that really needs to be placed in this cultural context, whether pig was an unclean animal, according to ceremonial law. And so people who were raising these pigs were breaking the law of Moses. And we know that Jesus granted the demons their request, not because the demons insisted on it, but perhaps as a temporary punishment in view of what they had coming for them. You know, it just reminds us we need to be warned here. We have said it before, but messing around with demons and the occult is a dangerous, dangerous thing. And we ought not to be curious about Black magic and the occult. Stick to the Word of God and press on to know the Lord who will be your protector and the best friend you will ever have. I could not agree with you more, John. Wow. Okay. Let's raise our sights to more encouraging topics now, like faith and healing. And Jesus' power over death that we find here on chapter five of Mark. So what about faith healing? The woman, let's think about the woman who is healed by touching the hem of Jesus' garment. Yeah, I absolutely love this story. You know, you'll find in the New Testament that Jesus did not always do things the same way twice. There doesn't appear to be one specific method for healing, but Jesus healed everyone that he encountered in his earthly ministry because, you know, that was a sign of his deity. We never see him, for instance, saying to anyone, oh, sorry, you know, you're too sick for me to heal or not you because God wants you to remain sick at this time. And he talked about faith the size of a mustard seed. So it doesn't take you great faith in Jesus, but it does take some. We'll observe that Jesus said to this woman, your faith has made you well. She'd heard about Jesus and his healings, and she believed that if I could only touch him, I will be healed. And others, well, they were healed similarly, the blind and the lame who exercised faith when Jesus was in town. And we need to be careful, perhaps not to confuse what Jesus did in his earthly ministry with human efforts. It is true God can heal and does heal, but keep in mind that Jesus didn't heal everyone for all time, even though he raised from the dead, died again eventually. His own disciples became sick and died eventually. So today we can only say that sometime it is God's will to heal, and yet we cannot blame ourselves for a lack of faith if we don't see healing. Some healings are spiritual, not physical. Also, you know, there are people who try to pretend that a healing has come about when it hasn't. You know, God alone is always sovereign. And in the Bible, many times he heals people who exercise great faith. And sometimes he heals people who seem to have no faith at all. I guess it's the same for raising the dead, right? Think about Jairus' little daughter. Yeah, absolutely. Jairus goes to get Jesus and he asks him to do something about his sick daughter, but on the way to his house, the girl dies. Now, the Bible leaves us in a little bit of suspense here. Jesus says, "Don't worry. Only believe." In Mark's account, he doesn't mention what Jairus said, but other gospels do. Jairus said, "Lord, I believe help my unbelief." And look, most of us can really identify with Jairus on that point, can't we? Absolutely. Wow, thank you so much, John. Another great teaching here on Mission 66. We studied all the way through the book of Mark Chapter 5. So how do we wrap all of this up today? Yeah, I think today, look, it might have been a bit of a tough one, demons, diseases, and despair. But these are all things that affect us at some point or another. And we all live, don't we? With difficulties, complications, and problems that to us seem unsolvable. You know, we all get sick, don't we, Esther? We all experience deep frustration and cause for fear and doubt. But the message of Mark 5 here is that Jesus Christ proved by his earthly ministry that he's Lord over any problem that we could name or experience. And he can provide us with the cure, the blessings, the right information, and most importantly, the salvation that we need. So I ask you, dear listener, are you in trouble today? Talk to the Lord Jesus. Talk direct to him about it because his phone is never busy. And thank you so much, dear friend, for listening. And I hope to have you with us next time right here on Mission 66. As we close today's program, let me remind you to download your free study guide of the Gospels. You'll be able to go deeper into God's Word and follow along with each day's program. It's a great companion resource of the audio teaching of John Matthews and Esther Sussulu. To get your free study guide of the Gospels, visit Mission66.org. That's Mission66.org. It's a great resource. You can also support the Ministry of Mission 66 when you visit the site. You'll help continue the program here and around the world. Mission 66 is a Ministry of Transworld Radio in partnership with Dr. Louise Cial. I'm Rob Dempsey. [Music]