Mark 5:1-2
Have
you ever noticed that there are some people that you have a hard time getting
along with in life? You know what I’m talking about. It takes extra effort to
stay focused when they talk to you. Maybe you have to bite your tongue in order
not to say what you really think or you make an excuse to break away from the
conversation. Or perhaps you duck out of sight when you see them coming.
As
I read our text for today, I wonder if any of the disciples wanted to get back
into the boat when they saw this man from the tombs rushing toward them. It had
been a tough night in the boat. They thought they were going to die. I am sure
he looked the part. How would you look if you lived in the cemetery? Would you
want an encounter like this after a hard night?
They
have landed in the territory that the two and a half tribes chose when Israel
had left Egypt and were ready to enter the Promised Land. These tribes chose to
stay on the wrong side of the Jordan. All the tribes were supposed to cross the
Jordan and take over that land, but they got lazy. They took the easy road, the
road frequently traveled. They began compromising with God’s promises and the
compromises continued. We find that they now raise pigs! Talk about compromise!
Good Jews don’t eat pig. It isn’t kosher. So either they had a thriving export
business, or they were eating meat they weren’t supposed to eat.
The
disciples would have know this history when they landed. So why was Jesus going
to this area where the people had rejected God’s best? And of course the first
person they encounter when they land reinforces every negative stereotype they
might have had about these people. Have
you ever been somewhere and thought to yourself, “These people are crazy.” I
know I have been in places like that. And I wanted to get out of there as fast
as I could.
Notice
that the man comes to meet Jesus before Foxnews has even reported that Jesus
has arrived. How did this man know that Jesus was coming? There is a source of
knowledge about which we know very little. The demons tap into this source and
get this spiritual intel long before anyone else. The demons somehow know about
Jesus’ movements. Don’t ask me how. Perhaps there is a WiFi network set up for
demonic powers!
So
how do you react when that ‘someone’ approaches you unexpectedly? Jesus was
willing to meet the man right where he was. He didn’t expect the man to change
prior to their meeting. He was there to meet him. He was willing to talk. He
was willing to listen. He was willing to meet the man’s need. Are we?