Today I want to draw your attention to the passage of Mark 5:1-20. In this passage we find Jesus and His disciples arriving in the region of the Gerasenes, a place on the east of the Sea of Galilee. When they arrived they were meet by a naked man who was possessed by many demons. This man was so feared by the people of this region. They found that they couldn't restrain him even with chains.
Jesus commanded the spirits to leave the man and the begged Him not to torture them. They asked Jesus to send them into a herd of pigs. Jesus agreed and the pigs ran into the sea killing themselves.
We then read about the town people coming to see what happened and there reaction. The scriptures say, "When they came to Jesus, they saw the man who had been possessed by the legion of demons, sitting there, dressed and in his right mind; and they were afraid." vs. 15
I find it very interesting how people respond to change, even positive change. It seems we get so comfortable with the way things are that the very notion of change scares us.
The Good News:
What I really love about this event in the life of Lord Jesus is the fact that it didn't matter to Him how messed up this guy was. Think about it. What would be your reaction if a naked man covered in cuts and scars and broken pieces of chain came walking to you from a tomb? How many of us would have got right back on that boat and sailed away?
But not Jesus. Jesus looked at the man and saw great need. This gives me hope! Like this guy I come with a lot of baggage. I come before God with everything exposed, He sees my nakedness. He sees all my cuts and scars. He sees my chains of bondage and all the filth of the grave, in and on me. He also sees the "Legion" of darkness in me. He sees it all and doesn't turn away. He knows my need and He acts, casting away all of these things that corrupt me before Him so that I too may be found, "sitting there, dressed and in his right mind"
The Good News we have is that God doesn't want us to get our life straightened out so that we can come to Him. On the contrary, He bids us to come to Him and then He will straighten out our life. It is this kind of love that set me free from the bondage of addiction. It is this kind of love that cleansed me of the filth of my sin. It is this kind of love that healed my broken heart and mind.
May you come to Jesus as you are, knowing that He loves you and accepts you.
"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!" ~2 Corinthians 5:17
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