In this message Pastor Scott teaches from Mark 5:1-20. There is a persistent enemy named Satan who seeks to destroy our lives, but He is under the authority of a powerful Savior who seeks to deliver us. That is what we explore in this sermon.
Sermon Notes
THE GOSPEL OF MARK
MARK 5:1-20 //Jesus’ authority over the enemy
“For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.” Ephesians 6:12
“There are two equal and opposite errors into which our race can fall about the devils. One is to disbelieve in their existence. The other is to believe, and to feel an excessive and unhealthy interest in them. They themselves are equally pleased by both errors and hail a materialist and magician with the same delight.” C.S. Lewis, The Screwtape Letters
Exousia - unquestioned authority that is tied to a person's position.
Mark 5:1-20
They came to the other side of the sea, to the country of the Gerasenes. And when Jesusb]"> had stepped out of the boat, immediately there met him out of the tombs a man with an unclean spirit. He lived among the tombs. And no one could bind him anymore, not even with a chain, 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. 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, 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 adjure you by God, do not torment me.” For he was saying to him, “Come out of the man, you unclean spirit!” And Jesus asked him, “What is your name?” 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, and they begged him, saying, “Send us to the pigs; let us enter them.” 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. The herdsmen fled and told it in the city and in the country. And people came to see what it was that had happened. And they came to Jesus and saw the demon-possessedc]"> man, the one who had had the legion, sitting there, clothed and in his right mind, and they were afraid. 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 Jesusd]">[d] to depart from their region. 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, “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 in the Decapolis how much Jesus had done for him, and everyone marveled.
Demons are real and dangerous.
Demons are fallen angels and powerful spiritual beings.
Demons are not autonomous.
SERMON IN A SENTENCE: There is a persistent enemy named Satan who seeks to destroy our lives, but He is under the authority of a powerful Savior who seeks to deliver us.
THE POSSESSION OF A MAN (v.1-7)
John 10:10: “A thief comes only to steal and to kill and to destroy.”
John 8:44: “[The Devil] was a murderer from the beginning…”
1 Pet 5:8: “Your adversary the Devil is prowling around like a roaring lion, looking for anyone he can devour.”
“And when he 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 adjure you by God, do not torment me.” Mark 5:6-7
“You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe—and shudder!” James 2:19
“Real faith is more than mental assent to truth. It is a belief that involves the heart…tragically Hell will have its share of people who are monotheistic, Trinitarian, orthodox, and lost.” Kent Hughes
THE AUTHORITY OF JESUS (v.8-13)
“You were dead because of your sins and because your sinful nature was not yet cut away. Then God made you alive with Christ, for he forgave all our sins. He canceled the record of the charges against us and took it away by nailing it to the cross. In this way, he disarmed the spiritual rulers and authorities. He shamed them publicly by his victory over them on the cross.”Colossians 2:13-15 (NLT)
THE RESPONSE OF THE PEOPLE (v.14-17)
“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. 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.” Mark 5:15-17
THE TESTIMONY OF A CHANGED LIFE (v.18-20)
'"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 in the Decapolis how much Jesus had done for him, and everyone marveled.” Mark 5:19b-20
“Your scars bear witness to the reviving, restoring power of Christ. He turns those shameful marks into emblems of honor. Each can become an opportunity to glorify God and influence others to find the healing and dignity you received!” Chuck Swindoll
SERMON IN A SENTENCE:
There is a persistent enemy named Satan who seeks to destroy our lives, but He is under the authority of a powerful Savior who seeks to deliver us.
