David Bahn – Reflections

Mark 5:1-8

They came to the other side of the sea, to the country of the Gerasenes. ² And when Jesus had stepped out of the boat, immediately there met him out of the tombs a man with an unclean spirit. ³ He lived among the tombs. And no one could bind him anymore, not even with a chain, ⁴ 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. ⁵ Night and day among the tombs and on the mountains he was always crying out and cutting himself with stones. ⁶ And when he saw Jesus from afar, he ran and fell down before him. ⁷ 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.” ⁸ For he was saying to him, “Come out of the man, you unclean spirit!

I was playing golf several years ago with my son. There were just two of us and we were teamed up with two more golfers who did not know each other. As we started our round one of the two new acquaintances’ shots went badly – very badly. That isn’t totally remarkable – happens to me all the time! – but it was remarkable in that the man who hit the shot had the outward appearance (before this and many more shots) of being a good golfer. The other golfer remarked to us: “Dresses like 70 plays like 90.” It was an accurate though not particularly kind comment.

Looks matter to us far more than they should. But God looks beyond the outward appearance of things. He looks at the heart. He looks into the soul, beyond the sin, to the person. When Jesus encountered the man with the unclean spirit every outward appearance would repel. He lived among the tombs, could not be bound with chains, cried out constantly, and was a bloody mess. But this did not disuade Jesus. He saw the man and cast out the demon.

The only thing that the man did outwardly in a positive light is telling: He ran to Jesus and fell down before him. It’s not clear whether this was an act of worship on the man’s part. It’s not certain that he had managed in that moment to overcome the unclean spirit and settle down for this brief time to honor Jesus. But it is clear from Mark’s description that nothing else he did would endear himself to anyone.

Let’s say our lives are a mess. Let’s say we blow it everywhere. Let’s say, though, that we do recognize Jesus as Lord. Let’s say that we bow before him whenever we recognize he is present. It might be that we need to be rid of an unclean spirit. It might also be that we could better and more consistently recognize Jesus’ presence in our lives. Whatever our lot in life, when we bow before Jesus, we bow before someone who sees us, loves us, and frees us. That’s good news for any who look to him and trust him as Lord. That’s the look that really matters.

Mark 5:1-13

They came to the other side of the sea, to the country of the Gerasenes. ² And when Jesus had stepped out of the boat, immediately there met him out of the tombs a man with an unclean spirit. ³ He lived among the tombs. And no one could bind him anymore, not even with a chain, ⁴ 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. ⁵ Night and day among the tombs and on the mountains he was always crying out and cutting himself with stones. ⁶ And when he saw Jesus from afar, he ran and fell down before him. ⁷ 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.” ⁸ For he was saying to him, “Come out of the man, you unclean spirit!” ⁹ And Jesus asked him, “What is your name?” He replied, “My name is Legion, for we are many.” ¹⁰ And he begged him earnestly not to send them out of the country. ¹¹ Now a great herd of pigs was feeding there on the hillside, ¹² and they begged him, saying, “Send us to the pigs; let us enter them.” ¹³ So he gave them permission. And the unclean spirits came out and entered the pigs; and the herd, numbering about two thousand, rushed down the steep bank into the sea and drowned in the sea.