"Delivered for the Purpose!" (Part 2 of 2)

"Delivered for the Purpose!" (part 2 of 2)

Falling in Love with Jesus…all over again! An epic journey through the Gospel of Mark (message #30)

Pastor Jerry Ingalls

August 21, 2011

The Word of God from Mark 5:14-20 (NAU), ¹⁴ Their herdsmen ran away and reported it in the city and in the country. And the people came to see what it was that had happened. ¹⁵ They came to Jesus and observed the man who had been demon-possessed sitting down, clothed and in his right mind, the very man who had had the "legion"; and they became frightened. ¹⁶ Those who had seen it described to them how it had happened to the demon-possessed man, and all about the swine. ¹⁷ And they began to implore Him to leave their region. ¹⁸ As He was getting into the boat, the man who had been demon-possessed was imploring Him that he might accompany Him. ¹⁹ And He did not let him, but He said to him, "Go home to your people and report to them what great things the Lord has done for you, and how He had mercy on you." ²⁰ And he went away and began to proclaim in Decapolis what great things Jesus had done for him; and everyone was amazed.

Last week, we learned that the purpose of demon possession is to spoil humanity from fulfilling its intended purpose as the image bearers of God and stewards of God's creation. We looked at the first 13 verses of this story culminating with this deep truth:

demons are unclean spirits seeking tools to carry on the devil's work (to steal, kill, and destroy), but Jesus Christ delivers us from evil domination to be temples of the Holy Spirit to carry on the Mission of God! Let's continue this thought with our first learning point today: AS A DISCIPLE OF JESUS CHRIST, WE HAVE VICTORY OVER EVIL DOMINATION! When you accept Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, then His Victory over evil won through His death on the Cross and resurrection from the grave becomes your victory over sin's snare on your life!

Colossians 1:13-14 proclaims, "For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins."

Looking at Mark 5:1-20, Let's experience together a firsthand account of a man's transformation after Jesus delivers him from evil domination:

· From Lawlessness, Restlessness, and Violence toward others and himself (Mark 5:3b-5) to Peace (Mark 5:15).

· From Isolation (Mark 5:2-3a) to Relationship (Mark 5:18).

· From Loss of true identity (Mark 5:9) to Purpose in Life (Mark 5:19-20).

1 John 4:4 teaches us about the victory we have in Jesus Christ when He delivers us from evil domination to become temples of His Spirit: "You are from God, little children, and have overcome them [evil spirits]; because greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world."

There is NO COMPARISON of power between the devil and God! It would be like a fist fight between me and Mike Tyson. It's over in one punch! And our lives are to be a testimony of this REALITY! In Jesus Christ, you are a partaker of this Victory and The witness of a disciple must display Jesus Christ's victory over evil! Do you have peace (inside and out)? Are you healthy in your relationships (vertical and horizontal)? Are you living your life for His purposes?

The Bible teaches us overwhelmingly that as the temples of the Holy Spirit we have a part to play. We must submit to God in all things and resist the devil in all his ways (James 4:7). We must willingly submit to the process of sanctification that increases our usefulness and effectiveness to be a conduit of God's love, mercy, and power. 2 Timothy 2:21 teaches, "Therefore, if anyone cleanses himself from these things [evil], he will be a vessel for honor, sanctified, useful to the Master, prepared for every good work."

You are a temple of the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 6:19)! Are you willing to submit every area of your life to Jesus' power and authority over evil? Then you will be useful… and that leads us to our next point:

ALL PEOPLE NEED TO BE DELIVERED, BUT NOT ALL PEOPLE ARE WILLING TO SUBMIT THEIR LIVES TO THE DELIVERANCE OFFERED BY JESUS CHRIST!

The story takes a very troublesome twist in Mark 5:15-17, "They came to Jesus and observed the man who had been demon-possessed sitting down, clothed and in his right mind, the very man who had had the 'legion'; and they became frightened. Those who had seen it described to them how it had happened to the demon-possessed man, and all about the swine. And they began to implore Him to leave their region."

Every time I read this passage it sobers me to the condition of our own communities in the USA. Why? Because the town folk are first hand witnesses to the absolute power of Jesus Christ to deliver people from evil domination, but they rejected Him from their lives and their land; they put their own self-interest first (profit and enterprise; family business and economic stability) and that prevented them from welcoming Jesus to deliver them of evil domination in their own lives. They cared more about surviving than they did about thriving! Jesus is offering the abundant life to these people; the Gospel has been brought to the Gentiles in the Decapolis and they reject Him after seeing one of their own completely transformed and restored to community. Can we soberly ask ourselves this question: Have we in any way, as individuals, families, churches, and as a community, done this—have we asked Jesus to leave a certain area of our lives or community because we thought what we have is good enough or we are scared of what would be? Has survival or stability become a stumbling block to the abundant life?

Motivated by fear (Mark 5:15) and self-preservation (Mark 5:16) these people rejected Jesus and begged Him to no longer disturb their lives; to leave their land! Are you willing to allow Jesus Christ to disturb you: your comfort; your way of life; your worldview; your relationships; your possessions? Will we settle for the American Dream when Jesus promises us the Abundant Life (John 10:10)?

We must pray and allow the Holy Spirit to search our hearts and our history—to confess and repent! It is time for the Light of God to shine brightly in and through your life! And one person can make a difference! JESUS CHRIST WILL USE ONE FULLY COMMITTED DISCIPLE TO BRING THE KINGDOM OF GOD TO A PREVIOUSLY UNREACHED PEOPLE GROUP!

The story finishes with Mark 5:18-20, "As He was getting into the boat, the man who had been demon-possessed was imploring Him that he might accompany Him. And He did not let him, but He said to him, 'Go home to your people and report to them what great things the Lord has done for you, and how He had mercy on you.' And he went away and began to proclaim in Decapolis what great things Jesus had done for him; and everyone was amazed."

Do you remember what happened on the way over from Galilee to Decapolis when Jesus says, "Let us go over to the other side"? This is their first big over-the-sea trip and apparently it has hit storm after storm.

Storm 1 raised up in the very creation itself—this fierce storm was so bad that the experienced fishermen who had become fishers of men woke Jesus from His restful sleep accusingly and fearfully questioning, "Do you not care that we are perishing?"

Their fear was misplaced and unnecessary just like ours is so many times! Storm 2 was within the spiritual realm when they are met by the demons called 'Legion' as soon as they land ashore. And Storm 3 (the one that takes most of us out too!) was the wave of human rejection by the very people they sought to reach in the first place with the Gospel! So, they barely escaped death to reach one man and from human eyes he was not quite the prize—he was not a distinguished, influential man, but he was the outcast of outcasts; truly, the least of all those in Decapolis! And not only did they only reach one man, but then they were kicked out of town by the lowest of low—the pig farmers who cared more about their pigs than a redeemed human being. This had to be insult upon insult for these disciples. Was this trip a complete failure?

Absolutely NOT, because "God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose" (Romans 8:28). With what they could see, none of this would have looked like success to the disciples, so we must remember that as disciples we live by faith and not by sight! Following His Father's plan communicated clearly through the Holy Spirit to Jesus, Jesus knew that they did not reach one man; rather, they planted a seed that would yield an abundant harvest! Jesus Christ gained a foothold into the unreached people group of the Gentiles. Jesus successfully delivered then commissioned the first missionary to the Gentiles and that man obediently fulfilled the purpose for his life—freely received, freely given! He was blessed to be a blessing!

He was delivered for THE PUPROSE--to be a witness to God's victory! Jesus said to him and I believe He is saying this to each of us today, 'Go home to your people and report to them what great things the Lord has done for you, and how He had mercy on you.'

Acts 1:8 declares for all who have been delivered,

"You shall be My witnesses…to the ends of the earth."

2 Corinthians 5:20 says it again about the ministry of reconciliation, "We are ambassadors for Christ…"

The purpose we are delivered from sin's grip (eternal damnation) is to witness the mercy of God until every people group is reached with the Gospel. Matthew 24:14 declares, "This gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all the nations [ethnos = people or ethnic group], and then the end [telos = end state goal or final purpose] will come." What exactly is this end we hope to hasten through our obedience? Listen to it from Revelation 7:9-10, "Behold, a great multitude which no one could count, from every nation and all tribes and peoples and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, and palm branches were in their hands; and they cry out with a loud voice, saying, 'Salvation to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.'"

We have been delivered so that we can have a right relationship with God and through Him, with our neighbor. We are to love one another without dividing lines of ethnos—we are the One body of Christ!

Jesus delivers people with the purpose [telos] in mind! Does your life demonstrate that you have been delivered with the purpose in mind? Are you living as Jesus' witness, sent to the unreached people within your spheres of influence? Go from this place and share the "great things the Lord has done for you, and how He had mercy on you."

Brothers and sisters, the formerly demon-possessed man did not focus on the behavior of his fellow countrymen (1. the way they reacted to his deliverance with fear; 2. their concern for their economic well being rather than their spiritual well being; or 3. the absolute disdain they showed to Jesus Christ). Rather he focused on what Jesus Christ had done in his life. Is it a hard choice for you to decide who you will talk about? Will you report (gossip!) about the behavior of your neighbors and fellow countrymen or will you witness to your neighbor about the One who gave you life? Life is too short to focus on the wrong things and remember that have been set free for the mission of God!

On the back of your sermon notes, I invite you write your name in the blank and pray this prayer with me: FATHER, PLEASE USE (write your name here) TO COMPLETE THE MISSION OF GOD! IN JESUS' NAME; AMEN!

And I leave you with the promise of Jesus Christ from the Gospel of John 14:12, "Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father."