Chapter # 5 Paragraph # 1 Study # 6
December 29, 2020
Moss Bluff, Louisiana
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Thesis: The reasonings of the unclean spirits as they face Jesus' authority.
Introduction: In our last study we considered Mark's presentation of the unclean spirits' recognition of Jesus' absolute authority over them. As we have said multiple times now, this was Mark's conclusive argument for "faith" in Jesus as the Mighty Coming One (
1:7) whose message was "The time is fulfilled, and the Kingdom of the God has drawn near; repent and believe in The Gospel" (
1:15). Absolute authority is the ultimate foundation for that Kingdom. There can be no kingdom that can endure if it exists on a foundation of competing agendas and methods: a kingdom divided against itself cannot endure (
3:24); a principle that exists across the entire spectrum of relational reality (from a "kingdom" down to the smallest part, a "house":
3:25). There will be no final experience of the fulness of "The Life" God has intended from the beginning until every oppositional force has been deprived of every portion of resistance within it (
Luke 20:43). Mark's focus upon "repent and believe in the Gospel" is his focus upon the positive aspect of this principle: turning enemies into friends.
The study before us this evening is a continuation of Mark's presentation of the alternative aspect of that principle: subduing the intransigent enemies. Mark sought to exalt the authority of Jesus over the unclean spirits as primary elements of the oppositional kingdom, which not only had the seeds of the destruction of itself within itself (3:26), but also threatened the enduring existence of Christ's Kingdom by the principle of the inevitable demise of every kingdom divided against itself.
In this attempt to exalt the absolute authority of Jesus as King of The Kingdom of The God, Mark determined to reveal to us the underlying attitudes of the opposition. So, let us consider the words of the unclean spirits as they "run in a determined way" toward Jesus to attempt to head off His imposition of His authority over them.
- I. The Loudness of The Cries.
- A. Mark records "loud cries" in ten of his texts.
- 1. Some of these texts have "unclean spirits" using the vocal abilities of those possessed by them to scream out strong resistance (3:11; 5:7; 9:26) to Jesus and His purposes.
- 2. One of them (5:5) is a record of the agony of a man possessed by a legion of unclean spirits.
- 3. Three of them are records of people loudly expressing their deep desire for Jesus' authority to be exercised for their sake (9:24; 10:47-48).
- 4. One records the loud noise of the crowd when Jesus entered Jerusalem because it "believed" that Jesus was The Coming Mighty One Who would establish the Kingdom of David (11:9); a fulfillment of Daniel's prophecy of Messiah being recognized as such before He was "cut off" (Daniel 9:26).
- 5. And the final two texts record the extremely loud calls of the crowd for Jesus to be crucified in the face of Pilate's reluctance (15:13-14) [this last text being Mark's subtle connecting of the chief priests' with the demonic kingdom of darkness].
- B. In every case, this "loud screaming" is a revelation of what resides deeply in the hearts of those lifting their voices in such a way.
- C. This is Mark's preparation for his readers to anticipate the seriousness of what is going on.
- II. The Content of the Loud Cries.
- A. First, a question of "commonality": "What to me and to you?"
- 1. This is a question form of a declaration: "We have nothing to do with each other".
- 2. This is an attempt to argue that what the unclean spirits are doing is not something that Jesus has any business addressing.
- a. Mark, out of chronological order, tells us that Jesus created this response by telling the unclean spirit to come out of the man.
- b. The screeching is a record of the unclean spirits' horror of losing their dominion over the body of the man within whom they dwelt.
- c. The loud question is the unclean spirit's attempt to forestall Jesus' demand by claiming that they weren't doing anything that affected Him, or His agenda.
- 1) There is no indication in the text as to whether the man possessed was a Jew or a Gentile, except this claim.
- 2) In any case, the unclean spirits had settled in "hog country" most likely because they figured that the "uncleanness" of the place would protect them from a God Whose revulsion against "uncleanness" was a matter of potent revelation in history.
- 3) In effect, the unclean spirits were loudly claiming that Jesus was "out of His territory" and had no business involving Himself in their business, a huge mistake on their part by thinking that Jesus' creation had been ceded, at least in part, to them.
- B. Then, An Identification of Jesus by Them.
- 1. They called Him by the name given by divine commandment before His birth: Jesus (Matthew 1:21).
- a. This name described Him as to His activity: He shall save His people from their sins.
- b. The unclean spirits apparently felt that "Jesus' people" were a small, insulated group in Galilee and Judea and that they were "out of His range of interest".
- 2. They characterized Him as "Son of The God Most High".
- a. This was an acknowledgment that they understood that He had the power of the Most High Executor of Power at His disposal.
- b. But, they apparently thought that His power was being illegitimately used against them (at least at this time: Matthew 8:29 records this as a part of the conversation in this context).
- C. Third, An Attempt By Them To Put Him Under Oath to God (only two uses of the verb in the New Testament, with the other one clearly showing an element of "demand" within it: Acts 19:13).
- 1. Given Romans 1:28, this was clearly an irrational attempt.
- 2. For whatever reason, they thought to try to force Him into an oath that would restrain Him because of His absolute loyalty to "The God".
- D. And, Finally, A "Request" That Jesus Refrain From "Tormenting" Him.
- 1. The word "torment" has a broad spectrum of meaning in terms of how severe the issue is (from being frustrated by a storm from being able to row to a place desired to being cast into the Lake of Fire), but it is always a "burden impossible to carry".
- 2. The following verse indicates the nature of the present "torment": being forced to leave the body of the man.
- a. It does not seem to be that big of a deal to us, but we must remember the "screaming".
- b. This tells us that the denizens of the Kingdom of Darkness "live" to be able to "torment" others by imposing the "death of that darkness" upon them .
