Richard Roberts – First of four parts
In the Gospel of Mark, written by the disciple who at one time traveled with Paul and later with Peter, you will find that Mark wrote mostly to impress the Roman Empire, which controlled all the armies and who worshipped raw military and political power. Any sign of weakness among the Romans was simply not tolerated.
Jesus could calm the storm-tossed waters of the Sea of Galilee. That was something the Romans could not do, let alone heal an incurable disease, cast out a legion of demons, or drive the money changers out of the temple with a single word.
Rome represented power, and in his Gospel of Jesus, Mark shows us a Jesus who has power. With His word, He cast seven demons out of a town harlot and turned a demoniac into a gentle father. Then He went to the Cross, cutting a new covenant in His shed blood and conquering death itself by saying, Because I live, ye shall live also (John 14:19).
Mark 5:9˗13 tells us how Jesus cast demons out of an insane man. And [Jesus] asked him, What is thy name? And he answered, saying, My name is Legion: for we are many. And he besought him much that he would not send them away out of the country.
Now there was there nigh unto the mountains a great herd of swine feeding. And all the devils besought him, saying, Send us into the swine, that we may enter into them. And forthwith Jesus gave them leave. And the unclean spirits went out, and entered into the swine: and the herd ran violently down a steep place into the sea.
When a man meets Jesus, a change comes into his life. His history begins anew. He gets a new way of walking and a new way of talking. He gets a new story to tell and a new song to sing. He gets a new nature, a new understanding, and he has a new purpose for his life. A spiritual metamorphosis occurs. He gets a change in the board of directors of his life, and nothing is ever the same again!