Clothed, and in his right mind

The Lord Jesus had instigated the voyage to ‘the other side’, Mark 4. 35, and yet the whole venture bristled with difficulties. There was the storm, and then there was a satanic assault; ultimately He was expelled from the district, v. 17. The lesson is that to move at His bidding does not guarantee an easy road, or ensure success.

Attention has been drawn to the recurrence of the word ‘immediately’ in describing the ceaseless activity of the Perfect Servant. To keep us on our guard, at times Mark shows us that the devil is alert and busy also. No sooner had the Lord Jesus set foot on land, than ‘immediately’ the demoniac confronted Him, cp. 4. 15. Observe too how swiftly the daughter of Herodias and the executioner did Satan’s work in chapter 6.

We are confronted here by a man whom evil spirits had made reclusive, morbid, violent, self-destructive, and untameable; he possessed superhuman strength. This was an extreme case that only the power of Christ could put right, and wonderfully, as the narrative proceeds, that restless, naked, demented being was ‘sitting, and clothed, and in his right mind’. It should have been a source of great rejoicing for the community, but they seemed to be more concerned about the loss of the pigs; it gives us an insight into the warped values of the human heart. Happily, when the Lord Jesus was next in Decapolis, their attitude had altered significantly, Mark 7. 31-37. The testimony of a transformed life had made an impact! Similarly, many ‘believed on Jesus’ because of Lazarus, John 12. 10, 11.

The liberated soul wanted to be an instant missionary, but his first sphere of responsibility had to be his own home territory, ‘Go home to thy friends, and tell them’. The Lord always employs people in their own district before widening their field of activity. The apostles were used extensively in the spread of the gospel, but it started in Jerusalem before ever it radiated to ‘the uttermost part of the earth’, Acts 1. 8. Labour where you live, and it may be that the Lord will relocate you to some other area of service. Years ago men used to tell us that we must ‘cross the street before we cross the sea’.