OPEN: In our office file cabinet there is a chunk of cement. It’s not very large. It’s painted on one side with what appears to be approximately 3 or 4 colors of spray paint. For all intents and purposes it looks like a piece of rubble. And that’s what it is – it is rubble from what was once the Berlin Wall (it was given to us as a gift from one of our missionaries to Germany).
The Berlin Wall once stood like a prison wall separating West Berlin (a free city with a bustling economy) from East Berlin: home to a weary and enslaved people. The Wall was built to keep the people in communist Germany from escaping to the freedom of the West. And it was lined with barbed wire. Dogs and armed guards, and gunboats patrolled the river.
On a clear day in September of 1988 a tourist on the West German side of the wall captured a daring escape from East Germany on videotape! Four people, dressed in black wetsuits, were first seen leaping from the top of the Berlin Wall. One of them, a woman, broke her ankle in the process. They scrambled down the riverbank, plunged into the river, and swam furiously toward freedom. Onlookers on the West German side could be heard cheering them on.
Suddenly, an East German patrol boat was seen slicing through the waves, trying to prevent the escape. Three of the swimmers made it to shore, falling into the outstretched arms of delighted West Germans and tourists. But the 4th escapee, the woman with the broken ankle, was having difficulty.
The patrol boat bore down on her but overshot its target. Reversing its engines, the boat circled and headed again for the floundering woman. Instinctively, several men on the West German side of the river, disdaining the gun-toting soldiers on the deck of the patrol boat, plunged into the river and drug the woman to safety. Their shouts of triumph were mixed with her gasps of exhausted exhilaration.
APPLY: That imagery clearly describes the picture I had in my mind as I read the story of the demoniac who “ran” to Jesus. He was escaping from the prison of his demon possession by running to the only source of freedom he could see.
LOOK again at Mark 5:6
“When he saw Jesus from a distance, he ran and fell on his knees in front of him.” (NIV)
The KJV says: “But when he saw Jesus afar off, he ran and worshipped him.”
I. Now… I puzzled over over the difference I saw in these two versions.
There was an apparent contrast between how this verse was interpreted in the NIV and the KJV, and I asked myself: Why had the KJV said that this demoniac had WORSHIPPED Jesus… while NIV declared that the demon-possessed man merely fell on his knees in front of him?
Then I realized… the translators of the NIV hadn’t believed this man was capable of worshipping Jesus! This man was possessed by demons. He had no control of his life.
Mark 5:4-5 tell us “…he had often been chained hand and foot, but he tore the chains apart and broke the irons on his feet. No one was strong enough to subdue him. Night and day among the tombs and in the hills he would cry out and cut himself with stones.”
Even after the demoniac “kneels” before Jesus, we’re told that the demons within him cried out:
"What do you want with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? Swear to God that you won’t torture me!" Mark 5:7
So… obviously, this man wouldn’t be capable of “worshipping Jesus”.
But, then I studied a little deeper in the text. I looked into the Greek words that were used in Mark 5:6 and found that there was a sound reason why the KJV said the demoniac had worshipped Jesus: The Greek word in the text is “proskuneo” - which was translated practically everywhere else in EVERY version (including the NIV) as “worshipped.”
So, this man obviously “worshipped” Jesus.
But why?
Did the demons tell him to do it?
No, the demons were horrified to find themselves face to face with the Son of God. They cried out: WHAT DO YOU WANT WITH US? SWEAR YOU WON’T HURT US!
The last thing these demons wanted was to face Jesus.
So, why had this man RUN to Jesus, falling down before Him to worship?
There was only one reason I could think of:
He WANTED OUT (just like those people escaping E. Berlin).
He was tired of living like this
He was tired of the madness
… tired of the pain
… tired of the shame
He wanted a normal life.
II. The impression I get from this story is that this man hadn’t always been demon possessed.
At one time (I believe) he had lived a “sane” life
At one time, he’d been much like his neighbors
Luke 8:27 tells us
“When Jesus stepped ashore, he was met by a demon-possessed man from the town. For a long time this man had not worn clothes or lived in a house, but had lived in the tombs.”
He had ONCE been from the town, but now he lived in the tombs.
For a long time he HADN’T worn clothes or lived in a house …but that implies that at one time he HAD worn clothes and lived in a house.
So, what changed?
How had this man come to be demon possessed? (pause…)
I don’t know… the Bible doesn’t tell us.
But one thing I do know… the demons were there because God wasn’t. (repeat)
In Luke 11:24-26 Jesus tells us "When an evil spirit comes out of a man, it goes through arid places seeking rest and does not find it. Then it says, ‘I will return to the house I left.’ When it arrives, it finds the house swept clean and put in order.
Then it goes and takes seven other spirits more wicked than itself, and they go in and live there. And the final condition of that man is worse than the first."
Why would those demons move in?
Because no one else lived there.
God wasn’t there so the place was empty.
This was a “moral” person. His was a clean home… an orderly home. But God didn’t live there.
ILLUS: I once had a conversation with a lady I have known for some time. She doesn’t believe in Jesus like you and I do. To her Jesus was a “nice person” who doesn’t have any kind of impact on her life.
As we were talking I was doing what I always do - I was sharing my “God stories”. Stories that tell about what God has done in my life and in the lives of others. These are the same stories I’d tell you if you were in my home. I share them with friends and family and even with perfect strangers. I love to tell them because they mean so much to me.
I hadn’t been attempting to convert her at the time, I was simply telling her about how God had changed peoples lives.
All of sudden she became angry: “Stop preaching at me” she shouted.
I smiled as I replied that that was what she should expect from me – after all I was a preacher.
But then she began to go on about how she was a moral person and her mother had been a moral person and her father had been a moral person. This puzzled me because I hadn’t said anything about her morality… let alone her mother or father’s.
Later, I realized that my stories about God were convicting her in a very powerful way.
She WAS a very moral person. A very nice person… but God didn’t live in her heart. She wanted nothing to do with Him. Her “house” – her heart - was clean and orderly, but God didn’t live there. And thus the stories troubled her because they pointed to a God she didn’t have.
III. Now, let me let you in on a secret:
Satan can’t live in the same heart that God lives in.
Satan can’t even touch the soul of someone who has Jesus living inside.
The Bible tells us: “We know that whoever is born of God… the wicked one does not touch him.” 1 John 5:18 NKJV
There are churches that teach that Christians can be demon possessed.
But that’s not true. That’s false doctrine.
It is physically impossible for God and Satan to live in the same heart. To live in the same soul.
If one moves in… the other has to move out
Now, does that mean that everyone who doesn’t belong to Jesus is demon possessed?
Oh No!
What it DOES mean is that anyone who doesn’t belong to Jesus is fair game for Satan.
If you don’t belong to Jesus – Satan can touch you all over the place.
If you don’t belong to Jesus - you leave yourself wide open
… for Satan to destroy your character
… for Satan to damage to your relationships
… for Satan to reach into the very depths of your soul and torment you and torture you by bringing up all the things you’ve failed at and by reminding you of all the sins you’ve kept hidden in the dark recesses of your heart
Scripture tells us that Satan is “… the accuser of our brethren.” Revelation 12:10
He just loves to torment people.
In fact, Satan doesn’t have to fill folks with demons to hurt them. I think this “demon possession” thing is something Satan does just for jollies - kind of like the little boy that tears the wings of flies just to see what will happen.
Satan greatest pleasure is to damage and destroy that which is created in God’s image: YOU!
Satan wants to hurt you because you remind him of his archenemy, God.
But, Satan doesn’t have to get people “demon possessed” to really hurt them. Because you see - when it’s all said and done – if you don’t belong to Jesus, Satan’s got you.
And he’s got you for all eternity where he can torment you as lonnngggg as he likes…
IF you don’t belong to Jesus
Which brings me to the question…
IV. Why would ANYBODY in his right mind want to remain outside of God?
Why would anybody in their right mind prefer the sufferings of Satan’s realm to the peace and they can find in Jesus?
ILLUS: I mean, people like that kind of remind me of the story of the man who kept beating his head against the wall because it felt so good when he quit.
But, why would anybody prefer to do without Jesus in this world?
1. Sometimes it’s because they don’t want to give up control
ILLUS: One man once said he’d “Rather be a king in hell than a pauper in heaven”
But of course… that’s just plain stupid. The only king in Hell will be Satan and anyone who ends up abiding there with him would gladly exchange that privilege for being a pauper ANYWHERE… let alone in heaven.
But there will be NO paupers in heaven
Jesus promises us that one day “…we will also reign with him.” (2 Timothy 2:12)
There will be no paupers in heaven. In heaven there will be only Kings and Queens – people like you and me who have been honored to belong to our Savior.
Why would anybody prefer to do without Jesus in this world?
2. Sometimes they do without Jesus because they don’t think He’d have them.
They’ve sinned so badly that their shame keeps them away. They wouldn’t want anyone like themselves around… so why would God?
ILLUS: In all other world religions, people are told “God won’t accept you until you’ve cleaned yourself up first.”
They believe that you have to live lives of repentance FIRST… then God will accept you. If they believe in reincarnation… they teach that you have to live several lives – over and over again - til you get it right. Then you can be acceptable.
But that’s a lie. It’s falsehood. It’s heresy.
Did you realize that Jesus came across the sea of Galilee JUST for this demoniac. It’s true. Jesus stepped off the boat, healed this man, and then got right back into the boat to return to the other side. Jesus came for this unclean, unkempt and uncontrollable demon possessed man. He came to him while the man was rejected by everyone in his family… by everyone in his town… by everyone in the region round about.
The Bible tells us “… While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” (Romans 5:8)
Jesus didn’t die for you because you were a nice person. He didn’t die for you because you were a nice man or a nice woman. Jesus died for you because you were a sinner.
He died for you before you ever thought about cleaning yourself up.
Because, you see, you can’t wash away your sins… only the blood of Jesus can do that.
ILLUS: The Apostle Paul was a nice guy. The Bible tells us that he was “blameless” according to the law. And yet, when Ananias came to him, Paul was told: “… what are you waiting for? Get up, be baptized and WASH YOUR SINS AWAY…” Acts 22:16
You cannot be acceptable to God by trying to wash your sins away by doing good deeds. You can only be washed by the blood of Jesus.
Why would anybody prefer to do without Jesus in this world?
3. Sometimes it’s because they don’t know how to get Jesus into their lives.
I’m not sure the demoniac knew exactly how to get Jesus into his life. But I do know, he realized he could only do so by placing himself at the feet of Jesus.
He may not have understood everything there was to know about Jesus.
He may not have understood exactly why Jesus had come his town.
But he DID know that HE needed Jesus. And when he knew he needed Jesus …
He RAN to Him
He threw himself at Jesus feet
And he let Jesus cleanse him of his demons.
He didn’t want to live another minute the way he’d been living.
CLOSE: I called this sermon “Getting Your 2nd Wind” because in order to become a Christian… in order to have Jesus in your life, you need to be born a 2nd time. You need to be “born again.” Jesus told one man that "… no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit.” (John 3:5)
We believe that so strongly here that we offer an invitation at the end of every service.
How about you?
Have you been living without Jesus?
Have you grown tired of Satan “touching” your life and bringing you shame and guilt?
Have you decided that you want Jesus to cleanse you of your past with all of it’s hurts and pain?
If God has spoken to you during this message, won’t you come forward now as we give the invitation…
OTHER SERMONS IN THIS SERIES
Cool Runnings - Isaiah 40:1-40:31
The Race Toward Evil - Isaiah 59:1-59:21
A Prize Every Time - 1 Corinthians 9:19-9:27
Getting Your 2nd Wind - Mark 5:1-5:20
Running For Freedom - Acts 8:26-8:40
The Runaway Lad and The Waiting Dad - Luke 15:11-15:24
