Although demon-possession after that time no longer occurs on such a devastating and noticeable scale, the absolute form of demon-possession will appear at the end of the age in the Antichrist and in his followers (2 Thess. It is a violent tempest, that is, outside of the natural. Our Lord responded sternly by calling this accusation blasphemy against the Holy Spirit, and as such was the one unpardonable sin (verses 28-30). The Politics of Luke 8:26-39. They ask Him if they can enter some nearby pigs, and He lets them. Sermon for July 26, 2020: Why Were They So Afraid: Mark 5:1-20. The country of the Gadarenes (Gergesenes) is one of the few areas Jesus visited where Gentiles (non-Jews) composed the majority of the population. Gerasa, Gadara, Gergesa - from where did the pigs stampede? Brazilian Charity Caring for Children Who Survived Abortions Issues Urgent Appeal, Memento Mori: Remember You Are Going to Die, The Meat of the Matter: St. Patricks Day and the Lenten Fast. That is why he was living in the solitude of the tombs, away from civilization. The Man Jesus Renamed | Reformed Theological Seminary 17, pp. (it should be added that Plummer himelf does not hold to any of these views.). (2) Anti-social behavior. (5) What our Lord could have given the people of this territory was much greater than what He took away. Into the country of the Gadarenes, or rather, Gera-senes, which is now generally admitted to be the true reading, from Gerasa, Gersa, or Kersa.There was another Gerasa, situated at some distance from the sea, on the borders of Arabia Petraea. This incident in the Gerasenes requires some entry understanding. Spam. Christians are to be the answer, but often they are part of the problem. Why did the demon-possessed Gadarene bow down before Jesus? 16, x. Luke 8:26-39 Mark 5:1-20 ESV - 1 They came to the other side of the sea, to the country of the Gerasenes. The commission of our Lord is considerably different from His instructions to the Israelites whom He had delivered. In all three instances the word is chra (Strongs word #5561). 123 1. Then any greatest of men, like any prophet, hero or king? November 2022 One is that he was a fascinating man. The choice is to be free by submission to Christ (cf. As C. S. Lewis aptly put it: There are two equal and opposite errors into which our race can fall about the devils. "The Gerasenes were the people of the district of which Gerasa was the capital. and clothed, and in his right mind: and they were afraid. Putting all of these factors together the term demon-possessed inplies too much. By clicking Post Your Answer, you agree to our terms of service, privacy policy and cookie policy. and 1 Kings xxii. A crowd had come to see what had happened for themselves. F. F. Bruce adds additional helpful insight: According to the best texts, Matthew calls it the country of the Gadarenes (viii. August 2015 These, however, are not the problem raised by Bible students. NEW STAR WARS MERCH PAGE: https://bit.ly/3baWVZv For all sponsorship and business inquiries please contact: thestupendousscrub@gmail.com NEW CHANNEL: https:/. Reddit and its partners use cookies and similar technologies to provide you with a better experience. Such was the case with this man (cf. In fact the region was known as the Gadarenes-Gerasenes region. Small sins lead to big sins, and big sins bring about a terrible spiritual darkness. Oh Hye-son recently published a Korean-language memoir on how she and her husband Thae Yong-ho, then deputy ambassador at North Korea's London embassy, defected in 2016. With a little knowledge of the geography of the region, this apparent contradiction can be resolved. If it is a feminine spirit, the voice will be a feminine one, if masculine then very manly. 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. And no wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light (2 Corinthians 11:14). 118 H. Acts 16:16), while others were the virtual pawns of these spirits, losing their own identity and autonomy. 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 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. Gospel Parallels: The Gerasene Demoniac - READ-SCRIPTURE.COM Jesus asked a sick man if he wanted to get well. They were willing to post guards and chain and shackle their neighbor to keep him from hurting someone. Far from this, He had stormed the gates of Hell and prevailed. On the other hand, the scene gains in grandeurhas, so to speak, a fitting backgroundif we suppose the Saviour and His disciples to have landed on the other side late in the evening, when perhaps the silvery moon was shedding her pale light on the weird scene, and laying her halo around the shadows cast upon the sea by the steep cliff down which the herd of swine hurried and fell. Gergesa - Wikipedia The first two are in the Authorized Version. Why is this even an issue, I wonder? Luke 8 Afraid of Jesus? | Sermons | College Park Church 4, p. 102. This supposition would be further confirmed, if the evening when Jesus embarked was what the Jews were wont to call the first evening, that is, the time when the sun was declining in the heaven, but before it had actually set, the latter time being the second evening. For it seems most unlikely that multitudes would have resorted to Jesus at Capernaum after the second evening, or that either the disciples or other boats would have put to sea after nightfall. He also maintains a popular Facebook page. Why were the people of Gerasene afraid of the presence of Jesus? Does a barbarian benefit from the fast movement ability while wearing medium armor? (4) Our Lord did not command the demons to enter into the pigs and bring about their destruction; He only permitted it.124. As I have been studying this account through the week, it has seemed to me a rather bizarre and remote situation, the liberation of this Gerasene demoniac. Paul says of the former life of the Christian, And you were dead in your trespasses and sins, in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience (Ephesians 1:1-2). Now' as to the pigs (an unclean animal, so you know Jesus wasnt in Israel! 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.. Once a menace to society, now a messenger with words of deliverance and healing. 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. At their request, He left. As indicated in the textual note, the best Greek text reads Gerasenes in Mark and Luke, Gadarenes in Matthew. COMMENTARY: Atheism is generally the expression of a moral attitude more than a real intellectual conviction based on evidence thought through. 10). May 2021 How Satan blinds our minds! It only takes a minute to sign up. The spread of cholera was linked to the movements of . 22, xvii. Bill Maher: 'I am afraid of Trump on a very personal level' It is something like the behavior and personality change in a man who is totally intoxicated. The demoniac further evidenced demon activity by the depth of his spiritual insight. 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. But here we speak not about a bishop, but about Christ who made His Godhead revealed through devils beseeching Him not to cast them to hell but enter the swine. This man demonstrated all four characteristics. Lane, Mark, p. 182, fn. This story is a little bit of an Easter story. That would be a strong message, by allowing them to be possessed and then drowned. October 2018 Instead, they reject Him because all they know is His power and purity. When the Gadarenes saw what Christ was capable of, they panicked. First let us see what the Sacred Texts says: The swineherds ran off and told it in the city and in the country. Luke 8:26And they arrived at the country of the Gadarenes, which is over against Galilee. Neither is it only a kind of physical disease, although spiritual and physical disease often accompany it (e.g. 8; Mark vi. And, yes, Dana did just read us something about a man possessed by a whole bunch of demons that later go and possess a bunch of hogs. No! Also, the wholesale slaughter of these pigs dramatically illustrated the destructive purposes of the demons. Another approach is to note the different intentions of the Gospel writers. February 2018 At the side of Kersa the shore is level, and there are no tombs. In the third chapter of Marks Gospel, our Lords miraculous works were attributed by His opponents to the power of Satan (verse 22). But the distance is so short that, even making allowance for the delay by the tempest, the passage could scarcely have occupied the whole night. It is Geldenhuys who gives us the most concise description of demon-possession: in the New Testament demon-possession means that a person is dominated by the spirit of a demon and tormented by him. If they dare to open up their lives to Jesus what will happen? I am wondering if the demoniac was pagan or an Israelite. As He had landed with His disciples He had been confronted with a demon-possessed man - a man that no one had been able to control. Some illicitly use drugs, supposing that they have them completely under their control. (3) Spiritual insight. Privacy Policy. Like it or not, demons and demonic activity are likely to become much more of a concern to you in days to come. 5:5). People who have no appr Fallen people reject God not because they do not know His power. It is mentioned in some ancient manuscripts of the . When the pigs were sent into the sea, the people of Gadara lost money. Gerasenes could have had a sense of reference to the entire region (as well as to a city: just as New Yorker can refer to the state or city), and Gadarenes likely was a reference to the most prominent city of the region at the time. He obviously attracted crowds. Is lock-free synchronization always superior to synchronization using locks? July 2020 And Jesus, being a Gentleman, was not about to force Himself on them. A Summary and Analysis of Jesus and the Gadarene Swine The best answers are voted up and rise to the top, Not the answer you're looking for? Exercising authority in the land allocated to Abraham, for Israel, the land set aside for God and his people. Jesus deserves the benefit of the doubt even when we don't have all the facts. It was significant. Christians are to be a "safe" people - an expression of that love of God so people who do not know Him can be drawn to the Truth. 34When the swineherds saw what had happened, they ran off and told it in the city and in the country. (London: InterVarsity Fellowship, 1950), fn. How ironic, as others have noted, that the tormentor pleads not to be tormented. Instantly he recognized the Lord Jesus to be the Son of God (verse 7).116 There was a source of spiritual insight beyond human capabilities here. More than this, however, is the fact that the mans own identity and individuality were swallowed up by the demons with him. They had heard what had happened to the pigs and knew the Jews considered Gentiles unclean, too. Five squad cars converged on it. 05 /5 Another theory. Jesus had been performing miracles in Gods nation - Israel. Now appreciate the reaction - another God was messing with their god - and demonstrating authority! Can devils entreat in such a manner any highest of angels, be he Michael, Gabriel or Raphael, or any greatest cherub or seraph? 18). 37 Then all the people of the surrounding country of the Gerasenes asked Jesus to leave them; for they were seized with great fear. October 2021 Here is one of the few times that a miracle drove people away, rather than to draw them to Jesus. They would have to trust Jesus. The Lord granted the only request of these residents, which was for Him to leave. He did not appear to rush upon the small group of men to attack them (as he would normally have done), but rather to plead with Jesus. Why were the people of Gerasene afraid of the presence of Jesus among them? When once he was an instrument of Satanic opposition against the Messiah, now he is a witness to His power. The people of Gerasenes were willing to live with the devils they knew - quite literally. To the evildoer, anonymity is always preferable to identification. 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 2022 Others cited unfaithfulness, lack of seriousness, and the lack of confidence to sustain a relationship. Pig carcasses were washing ashore and drifting out to sea. . Was there some sort of unwritten rule that Darrow (or any non-Bellona) was supposed to throw the fight? Demonized individuals are not to be viewed so much as a pigeon hole category, as they are a continuem. August 2017 Although it is likely that the larger towns of Galilee were predominantly Gentile, as was the Decapolis, the first-century civilian diet did not . Mark 3:14). Jesus did say to count the cost [Luke 14:28-33]. Dave has been happily married to his wife Judy since October 1984. November 2014. Thanks for contributing an answer to Biblical Hermeneutics Stack Exchange! art thou come hither to torment us before the time? Robert L. (Bob)Deffinbaugh graduated from Dallas Theological Seminary with his Th.M. What sort of strategies would a medieval military use against a fantasy giant? Embedded into both stories are people who were afraid of Jesus. It is very appropriate that these two incidents . October 2020 Demonic influence further destroys mans reflection of God as originally designed.128 Demons have great spiritual insight and reluctantly submit to Jesus as Lord of all. So he got into a boat and returned. 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. In Jewish thinking, spirit beings were assigned to certain geographical territories.120. I used to want the longest life, perfect health and happiness, but really it is that feeling that I am so glad that this isnt all there is and that we have heaven to wait for, and that well be with Jesus, and there will be no more tears Amber VanVickle (1982-2023), The headquarters of the charity, which serves as a consecrated family to 46 disabled children, were badly damaged in major flooding near Rio de Janeiro last year. In the wake of new restrictions on the traditional Latin Mass, two American bishops spoke with EWTNs Raymond Arroyo Thursday about how their dioceses have responded.