Jesus Casting out Demons

[0:00] Let's come before the Lord in prayer. Lord, we thank you just now as we come mindful of your presence, mindful of our time together today.

[0:12] As we come just now mindful of the privilege we have of worshipping and gathering together as your people. We bow ourselves down before you just now. As we just heard spoken to the boys and the girls, we come to this place with our lives at times so unsettled at our minds and our spirits so busy.

[0:31] With so many worries, so many anxieties, so many strains and stresses bowing down on top of us. We come to this place and we ask you give us peace today.

[0:43] As we come around your word we ask it would speak to our hearts and speak to our souls. We would find rest only in the risen Saviour. I pray just now for those especially needing that rest here today.

[0:56] Those here today who are finding themselves in hard days and in dark days. You alone, Lord, know perhaps the exact details. Pray just now for those who are suffering.

[1:07] Those who are suffering in their body and their mind. Pray for those who are caring and who are worried for others who are suffering in their lives. Close relatives, close friends.

[1:18] Lord, alone you know the details. You know the pain and the hurt that goes on behind us or the closed doors of this congregation and of this wider community. We live in a sin-sick world and we ourselves suffer from the same illness.

[1:32] We are so acquainted to suffering. So acquainted to grief. So acquainted with all the darkness and worry and pain of this world. And we bring all these things to the Prince of Peace.

[1:44] To the Lord Jesus Christ. To him who promises. Who assures us and who reassures us that all who come to him. That all who come to him can know for certain that he carries our burden.

[1:58] That he calls to all the weary. All the weak. All the small. He calls to all those who are going through trials and tribulation. He calls to all those who know that they can't do it by themselves.

[2:11] And to all of us he offers his peace. He offers his rest. Rest and peace for our souls. We thank you Lord just now for your people here today.

[2:23] Help us as we come around your word to be uplifted by it. To be invigorated as we begin this new week. To serve you well. Help us never just to come to this place to grow in knowledge.

[2:35] To help us to come to this place to join in the worship alongside our fellow brothers and sisters. To come alongside and around your word. To grow in understanding yes but also to grow in how we apply that word in our own lives.

[2:51] We come to a living word. Help us to have living hearts today. Help us not to come to this place coldly today. But to come looking to what it is you are saying to us.

[3:01] Help us to come looking forward to reading and hearing from your word. Help us to come looking forward to singing our praises together. As we sing and praise your word.

[3:13] We sing your word to you. And we know the words we sing they are perfect and they are true. Because they are from you. Help us to enjoy this time of worship as brothers and sisters together.

[3:24] Until you aside the various many burdens and anxieties which assail us so often. Even this past week, this past day. We are conscious we bring to this place so much trouble.

[3:36] We bring to this place so many worries. Help us to find peace we ask and comfort in your word even just now. Remember just now our friends that have gathered with us. Friends that have gathered with us week after week, year after year.

[3:50] For some here decade after many decades. We thank you that they are here. We ask that today through your word you would open your word to them.

[4:01] You would speak to their hearts. They would come to understand. And come not just to hear. But to truly listen for the first time. What you are saying to them through your living word.

[4:14] Those here who feel unworthy of the gospel. Unworthy of salvation. Who feel that they are too far away. Lord you would show them you are the saviour. Who sent your son.

[4:26] You are the king. Who finds the lost sheep. No matter how far they may have wandered. For any here who think they need no salvation.

[4:37] Lord you would humble them even today. And remind them of their dire eternal desperate need of salvation before you. Before they head to a lost eternity. For those here who have no care and no concern.

[4:49] Lord we ask you to awaken a care and a concern. For those here who have many questions. Lord they would feel free and open to ask these questions to you. But also to the brothers and sisters here.

[5:00] In the use of resources given to them in this community. Lord we ask that you open your word to all of us today. Brothers and sisters and friends alike. Help us to see in it marvelous things.

[5:12] Give you praise Lord for this communion season. We found ourselves in the past week. We thank you Lord for all those who came to engage and take part in this congregational's life.

[5:28] We pray Lord to thank you for the visitors and friends and brothers and sisters who received this congregation. We also remember today especially Reverend Thomas Davis and Reverend Roy John Campbell.

[5:38] We thank you for their service over the last weekend. For their willingness to come and to share the gospel work. We pray Lord for your ongoing communion services all throughout our island over the next few weeks.

[5:53] We pray for our brothers and sisters in Kinloch as they take part in the Lord's table at this moment. We bless their service. We bless Mark as he leads them.

[6:05] We pray for ourselves as a congregation. Help us in these days, these strange days, these dark days at times to be salt and light in this community. We ask you bless all the efforts that we seek to engage in to reach out to this community.

[6:21] Lord we ask you bless the planning, bless the carrying out of those plans. That all we seek to do as elders, as brothers and sisters would be for your glory.

[6:32] Not for our sake but for your sake and your sake alone. But bless this congregation we ask. Give us guidance. Be with us. Help us to serve you faithfully.

[6:44] Pray the same for our brothers and sisters next door. Lord until we see days perhaps of unity and days of revival and days of togetherness. We ask you bless both congregations.

[6:58] If it's your will Lord you provide for them an under shepherd to lead them and to guide them. Help us Lord to be witnesses in this community. Prepare just now for those who are heavy in our minds.

[7:10] Our friends. Our family members. Those who are so close to us. Those who come to mind just now as we think of those we long to see saved. Lord we ask Lord for that salvation to be known in this place.

[7:23] In our homes. In our friends and family's homes. We would come to know Jesus as the only way of salvation. Lord encourage us we ask today through your word.

[7:33] We live in a day we confess of small things. Where we struggle often to find any form of encouragement. Lord we ask you to encourage us. Encourage your people. I pray today Lord for those who meet as we do.

[7:49] And who love you as we do. But who are doing so in fear. In constant fear of their lives. In constant fear of persecution and attack. Lord you be with them.

[8:00] And you would remind them. That as they give up their lives even for sake of the gospel. That they are building your kingdom. Help us to truly appreciate the freedom we have in this country.

[8:12] The freedom we have to share the gospel so openly. With no fear of retaliation. No fear of serious attack. Lord give us the wisdom we ask to make the most of his freedom. To be salt and light.

[8:23] To be blazing lights. Whilst the day is still given to us. We Lord soon the night will come. And we will find our own freedoms being removed. But until that day comes. Lord help us to serve you faithfully.

[8:35] And to serve you well in this place. We ask you to transform hearts and minds. Revive your people here today. Give us a renewed sense of love for our saviour. A renewed zeal of service towards him.

[8:48] Help us to be faithful witnesses. Come just now confessing sin. Confessing backsliding. Confessing in our thoughts. Our words. Our very actions. We have gone against you a holy God.

[8:59] Lord take us away from these sins. Take us away from these patterns of sin. And bring us again and again. Back to the foot of the cross.

[9:10] Where we see an empty cross. A risen saviour. Who bears in his body. Remarks with his love for his people. Lord help us.

[9:20] Be with us. And keep us. Ask all these things. As we find ourselves at times. Cling on to a saviour. Who holds eternally on to us. Ask all these things.

[9:31] In and through. And for his precious name's sake. Amen. Let's turn to reading God's word. We're carrying on our series. In the book of Mark.

[9:45] We're at Mark chapter 5. Spend a few more weeks in this series. And then we can take a break. And of course come back to it later on.

[9:56] God willing. In the year. But. Mark chapter 5. It's on page 788. Of the church Bibles. Mark 5. On 788.

[10:08] We can read verses 1. Down to verse 20. Let's hear the word. Of God. They came to the other side of the sea. To the country.

[10:20] Of the Gerasenes. And when Jesus had stepped out of the boat. Immediately. There met him out of the tombs. A man of an unclean spirit. He lived among the tombs.

[10:30] And no one could bind him anymore. Not even of a chain. For he had often bound with shackles. And chains. But he wrenched the chains apart. And he broke the shackles in pieces.

[10:43] 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. And when he saw Jesus from afar.

[10:54] He ran and fell down before him. And crying out of a loud voice. He said. What have you to do with me? Jesus. Son of the most high God.

[11:04] I adjure you by God. Do not torment me. For he was saying to him. Come out of a man. You unclean spirit. And Jesus asked him. What is your name?

[11:16] 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.

[11:27] And they begged him saying. Send us to the pigs. Let us enter them. So he gave him permission. And the unclean spirits came out. And entered the pigs. And the herd numbering about two thousand.

[11:40] 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.

[11:52] 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.

[12:04] 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.

[12:15] As he was getting into the boat. The man who had been possessed with demons. Begged him. That he might be with him. And he did not permit him. But said to him.

[12:27] 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.

[12:38] In Decapolis. How much Jesus. Had done for him. And everyone. Marvelled. And then I go praise to God. For his holy. And his perfect. Word.

[12:49] Let's again sing. To God's praise. This time. Again sing Psalms. And Psalm. 24. Sing Psalms. Psalm.

[13:00] 24. Sing the whole Psalm. Psalm. To God's praise. Sing Psalms. Psalm 24. It's on page 28. Of the Blue Psalm books.

[13:11] Which is a Psalm of course. Of God's power. But also a Psalm. It reminds us. There's only one. Who is worthy. And able. To enter in. Before the king. Psalm 24.

[13:23] The world and all in it. Are gods. All peoples of the earth. For it was founded by the Lord. Upon the seas beneath. Who may ascend. The hill of God. Or in his temple stand.

[13:33] For one who shuns. False gods and lies. Who is pure. In heart and hand. Psalm 24. The whole Psalm. To God's praise. Amen. The poor can you.

[13:50] All in it. The poor. All peoples of the earth.

[14:01] The poor. All in it. If you raise your hand. Am I return.

[14:17] Andrewosse. A man. To me I send the good of God, all in this temple stand.

[14:35] The one who shalt, for sports and ladders, is to live heart and heart.

[14:53] He will find heaven from the Lord, and from His Savior's face.

[15:11] Thus I may bless, for she comes to all new to His security.

[15:30] Your ancient gates, the God of the rest, your doors in the open wide.

[15:48] So be the King of glory now, for ever to abide.

[16:07] The purestness exalted in what glorious King is He.

[16:26] It is the Lord of strength and light, the Lord of victory.

[16:45] You are the King of glory now, for ever to abide.

[17:04] So be the King of glory now, for ever to abide.

[17:23] The purestness exalted in what glorious King is He.

[17:42] That our Almighty is King of glory and glory.

[18:03] Let's turn back to the chapter we had for a short time. Mark chapter 5. Mark 5, as we said, taking in verses 1 down to verse 20.

[18:14] Mark 5, verses 1 down to verse 20. Let's take a text we can take.

[18:26] Verse 2. And when Jesus had stepped out of the boat, immediately there met Him out of the tombs a man of an unclean spirit. We heard left, about two weeks ago now, Jesus and the disciples in a boat.

[18:42] They had gone through the storm. Jesus had calmed the storm. And they were making their way on the boat, of course, to where they're going now. They've now landed. The storm's over. And they've, I'm sure to the disciples' relief, have hit land.

[18:56] And the second they touch land. You see that in the wording here, immediately. The second they touch land, Jesus is met with this poor soul of a man.

[19:11] We'll see even more about him in a second. We didn't touch on last week, and time is perhaps more detailed in this in the future.

[19:23] There's a whole series here for us. But very often, we saw with the gardens and the prayer meetings, and we've seen even in our first series together with looking at Jonah, there's patterns in Scripture.

[19:37] There's images used again and again. And like Jonah, and as we see here, very often storms at sea is very much associated with the enemy.

[19:49] It's associated with evil trying to go against the plans of God. Again, this is a series of different days, but just to note, there are many who will draw the comparison.

[20:01] But as Jesus and the disciples get in a boat heading towards this man, towards this place to heal this man of his demon possession, they face a storm.

[20:14] And that storm is there to disrupt, to somehow ruin the plans. Of course, Jesus then shows he has full control over all the elements, full control over every atom, every drop of water in that sea.

[20:35] They land now on shore. And today, we see the reality that what he was teaching the disciples of his power, or he showed them of his incredible miracle working power.

[20:53] They will now see used, not against the wind and the waves, but now they will see it used to help a single man. A single man whose life is so much more turbulent, whose situation is so much more distressing than any sea storm.

[21:11] As we come to look at this section today, first of all, brothers and sisters, we are reminded as to the power of our Savior. But nothing is a barrier to him performing and fulfilling his mission, his plan.

[21:27] Also, brothers and sisters, we can note later on the care of our Savior towards this man. This is a man who had been abandoned by the world.

[21:39] A man who had abandoned himself in some ways, but Christ did not abandon him. Jesus dealt with him. Jesus cared for him in a precise way.

[21:50] And Jesus heals him. He releases him, as we'll see, of course, in a second. To our friends here today, those who, as of yet, you can't call yourself a Christian.

[22:01] You, as of yet, can't say that you love and that you know Jesus. Now, first of all, this account is a reminder to us all that evil is real.

[22:12] Evil is real. Now, often, especially today, many folks will say that all the so-called demon-possessed people in the Bible, they were just mentally ill.

[22:24] They were just physically ill. They were going through trauma of some sorts. And they were just Jesus and disciples. They were just simple carpenters and fishermen. They didn't understand what was taking place.

[22:36] Thankfully, this chapter proves that to be false. We'll see, God willing, next week that Jesus heals physical diseases and quite clearly calls them a physical disease.

[22:48] He heals mental conditions. We'll see that later on in our series. But here today, the situation is not mental. It's not physical. It is spiritual. But it manifests itself in its mental and its physical condition.

[23:04] We are beings. We are body and we are mind and we are soul. We are what we are. All that we think and all that we are, it shows itself in our bodies. If we're happy or sad, we know that.

[23:17] This man being so demon-possessed, that was his problem. The symptoms showed itself in other ways. But his true problem was he was demon-possessed.

[23:29] This is not just some metaphor. It's not just some story. This is a reality. Friends and brothers and sisters, we're wrong to think this stopped at the time of Christ somehow.

[23:42] The church never believed that. The church never taught that. The reformers never believed that, never taught that. It's only our modern age where everything has to be physical. And we as a church have given in to that.

[23:54] We have lost sight as to the spiritual reality of this world. We are living in a world that is, yes, fully physical, but also we live and exist in a spiritual world too.

[24:05] We covered that in times in depth next door to the prayer meetings. A good quarter of the warnings we see in the New Testament towards for Christians to follow.

[24:17] It's about preparing yourself to fight against what? Not flesh and blood, but spirits, dominions, realms above and beyond our understanding.

[24:28] We engage in constant spiritual warfare as Christians. And we have been given in to the spirit of this age, this materialistic age, where everything has to be just what we see and touch and feel and what we can sense.

[24:42] The scripture tells us there is much more going on than that. We live and engage in a spiritual world. If you think that sounds a bit airy-fairy, if it sounds a bit out there, then I would gently say perhaps you've been more influenced by this modern world than you think.

[25:00] Think of generations. I think even of the older brothers and sisters when I was growing up. They talk quite freely of the spiritual realm. They talk quite freely of the spiritual warfare they face as Christians.

[25:14] We've become a bit scared of that. A bit worried about that. But in a right biblical way, we actually do a disservice to the gospel by not being realistic about what it is we face.

[25:25] And here we see that is true. The spiritual realm is real and active. Both good and bad. Just four points to help us look at this man's life.

[25:37] First of all, we can see his daily life. Then we can see his tormentors. Then his saviour. And then his new life. So his daily life, his tormentors, his saviour, and then his new life.

[25:51] First of all, this man's daily life. What is his daily routine? Verses 3 down to verse 5.

[26:02] First of all, we see this man. Where does he live? He lives in the tombs in the mountains. In the tombs in the caves.

[26:13] He lives in the desolate, out there, away from the city, away from the town places. He lives among the tombs.

[26:25] Now this is a mostly gentile area. But even the gentiles had their own laws. And the culture and religion had their own laws. It wasn't just the Jews who had the cleanliness laws.

[26:36] And even for ourselves. Imagine ourselves today. If we saw someone and they chose to have a tent and live in the graveyard. They lived in the graveyard.

[26:48] They had a wee tent in the car park. And they spent their whole day and their whole night wandering in the graveyard. Shouting and screaming and cutting themselves. You'd think, well, our reaction would be quite similar to the reaction that this man faced.

[27:02] This man was estranged completely from his community. Totally estranged. He is out there in the wilderness. He has been pushed away from society.

[27:14] He is too dangerous to be in society. He is living amongst death and decay and destruction. He is out in the wilderness. Out in the tombs.

[27:26] But he is also a man we see who is not just facing, as it were, community estrangement. We also see mental estrangement. He is wandering all day on his own.

[27:37] All night on his own. He has no one and nothing. He is completely solitary in his whole existence. No one can go near him. When they do, he seems to fight them off.

[27:52] And quite literally and spiritually, this man is living a life surrounded by death. Every waking moment in the tombs, as he lives there, as he spends his days there, he is wandering around death and decay.

[28:12] And within himself, he is harboring, as we'll see in a second, demons and agony and pain. He lived among the tombs.

[28:23] Physically, he lived among death and decay. Spiritually, he was dead. Mentally, physically, we'll see later on. He's fallen to bits.

[28:34] He is decaying himself. This is a man who truly was almost one who was living, but dead at the same time. We see he's in pain night and day.

[28:46] He's not just estranged, not just cast out. He is in pain. Verse 5. Night and day among the tombs on the mountains, he was always crying out and cutting himself with stones.

[28:57] He's awake, first of all, night and day. He gets little to no sleep, it seems. Night and day, this man's in constant agony, constant pain. He's crying out. And the crying out term there doesn't quite do it justice, perhaps.

[29:10] This is a sense this man is screaming. He is agonizing all the time. All the time he's in constant agony. He is at the very wit's end.

[29:22] It's a blood-curdling scream is a sense of the words here. You would hear him from your homes and the villages. You would hear him in the distance screaming and wandering around the mountains in fear and in pain.

[29:38] And look, he's cutting himself with stones. He's so distressed. He's at such an end of himself. He's finding no relief in anything else. He has to turn to, of course, anything that will give him some sense of control and some sense of reality.

[29:55] There's mental agony. There's spiritual agony. In short, this is a man whose life is being destroyed slowly.

[30:08] Whose sanity, we could say, is being stolen slowly. Who is being killed slowly. He is even worse for this poor man.

[30:21] We see that he's being restricted and restrained. Verse 3 and verse 4. So not just internally in his own spirit, his own mind, but externally.

[30:32] He's also being restrained and constricted while there's been attempts anyway. Here we see the reality of this man's life. He lived among the tombs and no one could bind him. Verse 3.

[30:43] Anymore. There's no mistakes in God's word. No one could bind him anymore. That implies they've tried plenty of times and failed plenty of times. Again and again they tried to bind this man.

[30:56] And again and again this man has broken the chains. See the strength of evil. The strength of evil. The chains are destroyed.

[31:09] This is a weak man. This is a naked man who's wandering all day with no community. Physically he is so weak. Can you imagine how weak he is? He's poor and cold and naked.

[31:20] Starving probably. But yet physically he can break chains again and again and again. And none. None are able to subdue him.

[31:33] At the end of verse 4. No one had the strength to subdue him. Brothers and sisters. It's a humbling reminder.

[31:44] It's a solemn reminder. When we come face to face with real spiritual evil. You and I have no strength. None. Those of us brothers and sisters who have faced spiritual warfare.

[31:57] Have faced spiritual attacks. You will know just how little power you have in these situations. You will feel yourself so small and so weak. As you feel the darkness surrounding you. You think what do I do?

[32:09] I can't fight this. I can't help this. I'm reminded that we in ourselves have no power. No power. The community had no power to restrain or restrict this man.

[32:21] Spiritually speaking. We ourselves have no power. Enough ourselves. In the face of true evil. None.

[32:32] None. This man. His daily life is one of misery. Of death. Of pain. I think it's worse.

[32:43] As we've been told of course. About his tormentors. Verses 6 down to verse 9. When he saw Jesus. From afar. He ran and fell down before him.

[32:55] And sang of 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. In verse 6.

[33:07] We see something strange taking place. We see that the second in verse 2. The second Jesus as it were. Touches land. The second Jesus steps out. Immediately. This man is running towards him.

[33:20] From the tombs. He makes his way towards him. And this man then falls down. In verse 6. Before.

[33:31] Jesus. The question is. Who is falling down here? Is it the man. Himself. Begging for help. Or is it the demons? Of course this man.

[33:45] We could say. Well if we're seeing the man fall down. Well he knew he needed help. Yes. And. This man. Might have heard something about Jesus. But. How did the man know who Jesus was? Think of it.

[33:58] The vastness of this sea. There are boats touching down again and again. There are hundreds of boats. There are a busy sea channel. A busy. Massive sea. This is a busy trading area.

[34:08] The capitalists. It's ten or so cities. All put together. It's a big area. A busy area. How did a man living in tombs on his own. With no contact with anyone else.

[34:19] How did he know to run. And to meet Jesus. And to address Jesus. The horrifying thing. Is when you realise. It's not the man. Who's doing the work here.

[34:31] It's not the man. Who's doing the running here. Could be. The question is. Is it the demons. Who compel. The man to bow down before Jesus.

[34:42] You think well. Why would demons run before Jesus? Why would demons come near to Jesus? To Jesus. Brothers and sisters.

[34:53] We're reminded here. We have a saviour. To whom all knees. Must bow. What does the verse tell us? On earth and what? Under the earth.

[35:04] The common phrase of the day. Which reminds us. Of the evil spiritual powers. That's how they would. Short handed. All. Must bow before Christ. Physical. And spiritual.

[35:15] Good. And evil. There is no getting away from it. The demons are in full control of this man. That much is clear.

[35:26] And on finding. Jesus coming near them. They are compelled. To throw themselves down before Jesus. The question is. When did they last see Jesus?

[35:38] They know him. How do they know him? Because they know Jesus. They know him. How do they know him? Because the last time they saw him. He was casting them out of heaven. For the rebellion. For the rebellion.

[35:49] The last time they saw Jesus. He was there. Removing them. From the glory of heaven. For their evil. They know Jesus very well. They once served him.

[36:00] They were once in his presence. And now. They are compelled. To come before him. But we see. They are still fighting. They are still fighting. Look.

[36:11] At the evidence. Of their fighting. Evil is still railing against Jesus. The tormentors inside of this man. They are railing against Jesus. First of all. Note in verse 7. They are shouting at him.

[36:22] We perhaps miss out this. And crying out of a loud voice. He said. What have you to do with me? So on. A loud voice. Again. It perhaps stifles a wee bit. This is shouting and screaming.

[36:34] It's the same terminology. As a man. Walking around the mountain. By his own. Shouting and screaming. Cutting himself. They are screaming. The man. Is screaming. In the face of Jesus.

[36:47] This is not a pleasant conversation. They are on their knees. Yes. Before his glory. But at the same time. They are fighting. With all their evil against him. And they are saying. Who are you? I know who you are.

[36:59] You are Jesus. The son of God. The son of God. I know you. I rebelled against you. What have you. Got to do. With me.

[37:12] There is no humbleness. We perhaps read this. The demon speaking. As if they are somehow being kind. Somehow being respectful. Read it properly. And imagine the actual words themselves. What have you.

[37:24] To do with me. Why are you here. What do you think you are doing. You cast us away. Now you come back to us. This is our place.

[37:36] The prince of the power of the air. Has dominion over the earth. This is ours. This man is ours. These humans are ours. What are you doing here?

[37:49] As you shout. And scream. I say they and he. Because. It is interchangeable. Because there is one man. With many demons inside him. Within a second. So. The words are interchangeable. We are speaking as many.

[38:01] But speaking as one. Through this poor man. They shout. And they rail. Just in passing.

[38:12] Again time. Is not on our side. But. The common. The common. I guess. Cultural show of power. In this day. Was to know someone's full name.

[38:24] If you knew someone's full name. We covered this before. Even in judges recently. But if you know someone's full name. If you use someone's full name. It showed you had.

[38:35] Full knowledge of them. The knowledge of them. We had our own culture too. Our own culture too. Our own culture too. It's a respect thing. It's not. Perhaps as it was. But. Even myself. I'm still.

[38:46] To be honest. Struck every time I get called. Mr. McLeod. Or Reverend McLeod. I'm still waiting to hear Donald. It's our culture. You know. To use someone's full name. Is to assume. You've got some kind of familiarity. With them.

[38:57] More so in this culture. And the demons use. Almost a full title. The canon of Jesus. Jesus. Jesus. Son of the most high God.

[39:08] They name him. They say. We know you are. We know you. Trying to almost intimidate. Our savior. It doesn't work. They're showing off again.

[39:19] Their knowledge of him. We see that. The disciples. Last time we're together. The disciples have to ask. What kind of man is this? Who is this? The demons. They. Know.

[39:30] Know. Far more about Jesus. Than the disciples did. The demons know. The whole. Trinitarian nature. Of the second person. Of the Godhead. The demons show.

[39:41] We have knowledge. That the disciples. Have no idea about. And won't. Perhaps for many years. To come after this moment. The demons. They. Know.

[39:52] Jesus. And they try and control. They try and plead with him. They see that. At the end of verse 7. And look what we do.

[40:03] Look at the blasphemy here. Look at the demons. Says. I adjure you. I beg you. By God. Do not torment me. How dare they?

[40:14] They're speaking to the son of God. They're saying. I beg you by God. Don't do this to me. The arrogance. The evil has.

[40:25] To speak to God. And to use God's name. To somehow try and wrangle. Their way out of the situation. Kill. Steal. Destroy.

[40:36] Arrogance. Pride. That is the evil power. That these evil creatures exist in. Brothers and sisters. That is what we face up against. Every day. Every moment of every day. And they try.

[40:48] We say. And intimidate him. Jesus asks for a name. In verse 9. And note. They never actually give a name. What do they give? They give a number.

[41:01] What is your name? Jesus asks. They ignore the question. And they reply. My name is Legion. For we are many. This is not them. Answering the question. Politely. This is them.

[41:12] Intimidating. Saying we're many of us. There's hundreds. If not thousands of us. And we're here. There. In front of you. Jesus. God.

[41:23] Yes. But now you're inhuman. And you're full humanity. We last time. They saw Jesus. He was in his full. A deity. Had not yet become human. Had not yet entered into humanity.

[41:34] They saw him in the courts of eternity. Pass at some point. And they were saying. We stand before you Jesus. And we are many. There's you. And your useless wee disciples. In the boat.

[41:45] Who are too scared. To even come out of this stage. It seems. We're many. Who are you? Brothers and sisters.

[41:58] Let's not. For a second. Be deceived. The demonic. Spiritual world. Is real. And by pretending it's not real. And the Christians. We are guilty of this.

[42:09] By pretending somehow. It's not real. By explaining things away. It perhaps is easier sometimes. To go with.

[42:20] But we do ourselves. And the church. And our saviour. To serve us. Because he is clear. That these things are real. We live. And we battle against.

[42:31] What? Not flesh and blood. Principalities. And powers. In spiritual realms. That is the reality. Of our lives as Christians.

[42:42] And those here. Who have battled. And have seen. And have sensed. The reality. Of the presence. Of spiritual warfare. Once you. See it.

[42:53] And experience it. And have a sense of it. You know it's real. You know it's real. But our sisters. We have noted here. The power of evil.

[43:05] We've noticed here. The attempt. Of evil. To try and. Somehow intimidate. And show off. Their power. But let's also note.

[43:16] The weakness. Of evil. Great power. Great effort. Great show of power. But note their weakness. The demons are compelled.

[43:28] To bow. To bow. Before Jesus. They're compelled. See Jesus foot. Almost hadn't even. Touched the shore. He immediately. He just stepped out. The boat. And this man.

[43:39] Comes round towards them. And he throws himself. Down before Jesus. They must bow. The demons also know. Jesus has power over them. They're trying very hard. To forget that.

[43:50] They're trying very hard. To go against that. But they know. He has power. We'll see in a second. That Jesus of course. Has all the power. Think. Well how. Can the demons.

[44:01] Be so silly. To think. That. That they can. Somehow come up. Against the power. Of Jesus. Go against Jesus. To think. Go against Jesus. Go against Jesus.

[44:12] Well friends. You're doing it. Every second. Of your life. James 2.

[44:23] Verse 19. James. Quite solemnly. Reminds us. And says. You believe in God. What? What? Even the demons believe and shudder.

[44:37] You believe in God? Fine. So what? So what? You come to church? Fine. So what? You know your Bible? Fine. So what? You know all about Jesus? Fine.

[44:49] So what? The demons know. The demons believe. The demons see more than we ever do. At this stage anyway. And they shudder. But yet there's no salvation for them.

[45:01] Knowing about God. Understanding about God. It means nothing if we don't come to him. It means nothing.

[45:15] Ours in Scripture. Good things. Of course are good things. But in terms of salvation. The demons see. The demons believe. The demons know and yet they remain unchanged.

[45:26] You must come to Christ. One thing they will never do. They cannot do. You can do. And you must do. Dear friends. The tormentors are there.

[45:38] And there are many. But we end. With the Saviour. Verses 10 down to verse 14. Again.

[45:50] We see in verse 10 to verse 14. The plural and the singular changes all the time. Verse 10. And he begged him. So the demon possessed man begs Jesus. Not to send them out of the country.

[46:03] Again. It's a little confusing. But it's many demons speaking of course through one man's voice. This poor man. The confusion he must be in. There's hundreds and thousands of voices inside him.

[46:14] All speaking. All having a go. And they come out one single voice. This poor man. Can you imagine the torment? Anyway. What takes place? Well there's no long winded exorcism.

[46:27] Brothers and sisters. When we come to face a battle. As it were. Our spiritual battles. It's not about following any prescribed course of action. We bring the battle to Christ.

[46:38] Christ. In your prayers. If you find yourself spiritually oppressed. Dear brother. Dear sister. You find yourself attacked. If you find yourself in the face of spiritual evil. You bring it to Jesus. Don't try and do anything by yourself.

[46:50] You'll fail. And it will end badly. You bring it to Jesus. He is the power. And he alone. There's no great song or dance taking place.

[47:02] Quite simply. Jesus says. To them. Come out. Often. Verse 9. Come out of a man.

[47:12] You unclean spirit. It's simple. It's clear. It's plain. Now we'll cover this perhaps more in a future series.

[47:24] Looking at spiritual warfare. But note verse 10. What's going on here. And there's much mystery here. And the problem is. These verses might leave us more questions than we have answers to.

[47:34] But it's good to dig into scripture. Verse 10. The demons speak. And they say to Jesus. Not to send them out of the country. And there's various reasons for this.

[47:46] There's various thoughts behind this. But one I find perhaps personally most compelling. Although you're free to have other opinions. Because opinion on this is so far spread. Is it seems almost that there are geographic strongholds.

[48:04] That these demons have their work to do perhaps in this area. And by sending them away from the area. They no longer have work to do. No longer have a place to be.

[48:15] They are sent as though we're out in the wilderness. We saw that even in Gideon's story. We touched on it very briefly. But in Gideon's story. Where was the temple of Baal built? On a stronghold.

[48:28] The text mentions it. And passes on. God tells Gideon to destroy the temple. The altar of Baal. Built on the stronghold. You could argue that's not a physical encampment perhaps.

[48:42] But the text doesn't say that. It says on the stronghold. Is there places as a part of this world perhaps. Where these creatures. Where these spiritual powers exist.

[48:53] Again. The details we don't have. It's a study perhaps. The future for us. There's plenty to study. Plenty of evidence for that. But not for today. But just to say. Note here. They have a job to do these demons.

[49:05] They have an area to cover of some sorts. And they are desperate not to be removed from their area. Not to be sent out of the country. And interesting here.

[49:16] Where Jesus. He gives the demons what they want. They ask to be sent out of a herd of pigs. Which of course is a strange request for us.

[49:28] But who are we to try and understand what the demons want to do? It's not us to understand that. Praise the Lord. We can't understand that. But there's perhaps some reasons as to why they want to do that. Notably being.

[49:39] Because they're demons. They have to somehow possess. They have to somehow do something. If they're not possessing. If they're not doing a job. What purpose do they serve? They are here to kill and steal and destroy.

[49:51] To bring destruction and pain and misery. Somehow. So they demand to be sent into these. Of course for Jews anyway. Unclean animals.

[50:04] And he sends them into animals. He lets them go into the animals. Jesus permits them this. And you think first of all. Why? Why is Jesus allowing the demons to get what they want?

[50:19] See the demons are sent. As it were. Into the pigs. But what perhaps the demons had no idea was about to happen. Was what takes place with the pigs. So they beg.

[50:30] Jesus to send them away into these animals. And they do it. But look what takes place the second they entered the pigs. The herd numbering 2,000.

[50:41] Now some will say that to my demons are aware. We don't know. Perhaps. Rushed down the steep bank. Into the sea and drowned. Now the spiritual thing is taking place here.

[50:57] That we don't have a grasp on. And we shouldn't try and grasp onto it. Because it's not for us to understand. What we can say is. And what seems to be seen in the scripture. Is that the demons are then almost as we were sent back into the abyss.

[51:11] They have no function. No purpose. They have no one to torment. The pigs die. Of course the demons don't die. They're waiting. They won't die. They have.

[51:22] I guess undying souls. They'll be sent to hell. When a day arises. The final day. Until that day happens. They don't die as it were. But they're sent away.

[51:33] No more to trouble. And Jesus grants them what they want. He then shows us full power. In letting them not come back. They can no longer bother anyone.

[51:43] Where they go. Where they're sent. What takes place after that. We don't know. We can't say for certain. The senses. They're sent away. No longer to trouble this place. And death.

[51:54] No longer to trouble this man. See. This is not a story. Not an account. About the levels. And the details. Of spiritual warfare. This is an account. About a man.

[52:07] And here we find this man. As we come to a conclusion. Verses 15. Down to verse 20. Where do we find the man? The herdsmen fled.

[52:18] The people of the city come. And they find the man. Verse 15. The demon possessed man. The one who had the legion. They find him what? Sitting there. Clothed.

[52:29] And in his right mind. He's sitting there. This man is wandering night and day. He now sits down. It's the first time we see him. Not moving.

[52:40] Not doing something. He's at rest. Demons are gone. He's been healed. He's been saved. His saviour has rescued him. And because his saviour has rescued him.

[52:53] This man can finally sit down. He can finally have some peace. Perhaps the first time in his life. He's there resting. And he's clothed.

[53:04] And in his right mind. This man is back to himself. After who knows how many years. Perhaps a whole life being possessed.

[53:15] And being under the power of his demons. He is now under a new power. A new power which would never be removed from him. Never be taken away from him.

[53:29] People are afraid. They're afraid because they've seen something take place. They have no idea what's taking place. They don't understand the power of Jesus. Also being practical. They've seen Jesus is now destroyed.

[53:39] Well in their perception. Jesus came and now they've lost 2,000 pigs. That's a lot today. It's a lot more back then. That's a lot of resources. Just gone.

[53:50] Jesus comes. Heals one man. And destroys this lucrative business of theirs. At least in their mind. Which we know how it panned out that they didn't. A herdsman go tell the story.

[54:01] The pigs are gone. We've lost 2,000 of them. So we beg Jesus just to go. Please leave. We beg him to depart from our region. We've seen a miracle take place.

[54:13] We've seen a man healed. A man cured. A man with a brand new life. And the first thing he says. Nah. Not for us. Not for us. Things don't change.

[54:24] Think of yourself. Our own culture. Again it's still there in the background. Someone catching the quorum. Someone being changed. And your friends. Oh.

[54:36] Not for us thanks. Nope. No way. Yeah. You've got a whole new life. You're a brand new person. You love the Lord. Great. Fine. Not for us. No, no, no. No. Nothing to do with us.

[54:48] Not yet anyway. Not now. Nothing changes. They don't want anything to do with Jesus. And the power. And his healing. And his care. And his love.

[55:05] And now look to the man himself. We've come to the conclusion of this. Jesus goes back into the boat. And the man comes. Understandably. Begging Jesus. Asking Jesus.

[55:16] Pleading with Jesus to go with him. But Jesus has a greater purpose for this man. Verse 19. And Jesus and he did not permit him.

[55:26] 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 this man goes.

[55:37] To his Gentile groupings of towns. In the capital. It's a ten or so villages. Ten small towns. And he goes and becomes a missionary. In this place. He goes and tells the gospel.

[55:48] To all who listen. The good news of Jesus. This is a man who has saved me. And he'd be well known. Can you imagine yourself. The horror. Is that him? Is that him? The one who was cutting himself.

[56:00] And screaming and crying. Who would break chains. And who would do awful demonic things. And now he's dressed. And talking normally. And acting normally. And talking about this man called Jesus.

[56:11] Who has saved him. Jesus at times. Does not allow to happen. Perhaps in our lives. What we want to happen. But he has a reason for it.

[56:23] This man wanted to go with Jesus. Which one of us wouldn't want to go with Jesus? He says healed you. He cured you. Let me go with you. But Jesus goes no. Your purpose is with your own people here. To serve me in this place.

[56:35] To be a witness for me in this place. His plan is better. This is a man. Who is taken from pain. To peace.

[56:46] A man taken. From utter destruction. Now to a brand new destination. He is now wandering around.

[56:56] Not the mountains or the hills. Or the tombs. He wanders around his villages. His towns. His area. Proclaiming the good news. This is a man finally. Who has been taken from possession. To peace.

[57:09] Proclamation. Possession. To peace. To proclamation. As we come to an conclusion. One final thought. And it's not an easy thought. By any means.

[57:20] It's also not a fun thought to talk about. We hear about possession. We think. Well that's awful. It's traumatic. It's a big terrifying thing. Imagine to live a life possessed by thousands of hundreds of demons.

[57:34] Scripture is clear. But. And Scripture is honest. And Scripture is blunt. But to one extent or the other.

[57:46] Everyone who does not know Jesus. Or follow Jesus. Are still under. The prince. Of the power of the air. If you're not for Christ.

[57:57] You're against him. If you're not serving Christ. You serve the enemy of Christ. You think. I don't. You know. Who are you? Donald. Who are you?

[58:07] You know. You're not even 30 yet. You come from Graver. Up to this place. And tell us. You serve Satan. Read this section again yourselves.

[58:20] Ephesians 1, 2, 3 and 4. Read them again yourselves. And see what Scripture says to you. So every time Scripture reminds us. That if we're not in Christ. We serve still against Christ.

[58:31] We're then offered. Are we not? The release from that reality. We're offered then. The release. The peace. The reminder. But if we're not in Christ. We're against him. Yes. But if we're against him.

[58:43] There is a way to be for him. Again. He saves. All who come to him.

[58:54] All who cry out. For salvation. For him. You can read by reading. Ephesians. Ephesians 2, verses 1. Down to the end of verse.

[59:07] 4, verse 5. Friends. This is where you now are. And you were dead in the trespasses and sins. In which you once walked.

[59:19] Following the course of this world. Following the prince of the power of the air. The spirit that is now at work. And the sons of disobedience. Among whom we all once lived.

[59:31] In the passions of our flesh. Carrying out the desires of the body and the mind. Or by nature. Children of wrath. Like the rest of mankind. But listen to the transformation.

[59:42] Which can take place in your life. Verse 4. But God. Being rich in mercy. Because of a great love with which he loved us. Even when we were dead in our trespasses.

[59:54] Made us alive together with Christ. By grace. You have been saved. And so on. Scripture is clear. Without Christ. You are under the prince of the power of the air.

[60:07] You are one of the sons and daughters of disobedience. But scripture is also clear. That with God. There is mercy. And forgiveness. And access to salvation.

[60:18] For the finished work of Jesus. We look at the demonic man. The possessed man. And we shake our heads. And we fear. And we think. What a poor soul.

[60:30] Brothers and sisters. Look to yourselves today. And think. Without Christ. You are also lost. Without help. And without hope. But look also at the work of Christ. He takes that man.

[60:41] So possessed. So attacked. In a second. He transforms him. Transforms him. He brings him peace. He gives him a brand. New. Life.

[60:53] The man did nothing. And said nothing. Christ does all the work. He transforms. That broken man. To restored. New. Vibrant life.

[61:03] Serving Jesus. That's. Your story. And it could easily be your story today. If only you would come to Jesus. Come to him. Have him as Lord and Saviour.

[61:15] All your life. Let's bow our heads in that. A word of prayer. Lord God. We come before you. We thank you once more. For the. The truth. And also the.

[61:26] The wonder of your word. We confess. There are often passages. Like today. Where. We may have. Perhaps some questions. We have no answers to. And questions. Which we'll never have answers to. This side of glory.

[61:37] Perhaps. But we come. And we. Confess that in your word. We have. These accounts. That. Remind us. To the wonder. And the power. And the care. Of our Saviour.

[61:47] We pray. We pray for all those today. Who as of yet. Don't know Jesus. That you bring them. To a. A saving knowledge of yourself. Who would come to know. That same care. That the Saviour showed. To the man.

[61:58] That demon possessed man. Who had such pain. And such agony in life. But who through the. Finished work of Jesus. Who through the. Ongoing reality. Of Christ's saving power. Could know freedom.

[62:09] From all his oppression. And live the life of service to him. Help us as Christians. To understand. We live in a spiritual world. Engaging in spiritual warfare. Prepare us from your word. Help us not to shy away.

[62:20] It would help us to be in the front line. Of these wars. Knowing that as we battle. It is your battle we battle. It is in your strength. We go forward. With your full armour. We wear. Fighting.

[62:31] Knowing we are fighting a battle. That is already won. Through the finished work of our Saviour. Be with us. We come to sing our. Final item of praise. To do so of hearts and minds.

[62:42] Full of worship. And praise. To our risen Saviour. As God we sing. In and through. And for his precious name's sake. Amen. Let's conclude by singing.

[62:54] To God's praise. And sing Psalms. And Psalm 34. Sing Psalms. Psalm 34. We can sing verses 1 down to verse 9.

[63:10] Sing Psalms. Psalm 34 verses 1 down to verse 9. Of course it was a psalm of God's deliverance. And God's love towards his people. Psalm 34. At all times I will bless the Lord.

[63:22] I will praise him with my voice. Because I glory in the Lord. Let troubled souls rejoice. Together let us praise the Lord. Exalt his name with me. I sought the Lord.

[63:33] His answer came from fears. He set me free. Psalm 34. 1 to 9. To God's praise. Amen. At all times I will bless the Lord.

[63:51] I praise him with my voice. Because I glory in the Lord.

[64:04] Let us praise the Lord. Together let us praise the Lord.

[64:19] Thanks God. Let us praise him with me. I sought the Lord.

[64:30] His answer came from fear. As he set me free.

[64:41] They who took the land. I will join. They are not good to shame.

[64:56] This suffering and died with the Lord. Come and give us here.

[65:11] The Lord. All those who who appear. Today. The Lord and guerre. And God's contrary.

[65:23] Amen. Amen.

[66:23] Amen.