Posted on 08/02/2019 10:43:01 AM PDT by metmom
“When He came to the other side into the country of the Gadarenes, two men who weredemon-possessed met Him . . . and they cried out, saying, ‘What business do we have with each other, Son of God? Have You come here to torment us before the time?’” (Matthew 8:28–29).
Demons can attack people mentally, physically, or spiritually. Spiritually, they oppose true religion, promote the false, and control the occult. Intellectually, they advocate false ideologies, insanity, and masochism. Our Lord always recognized demonized people as being victims of powers beyond their control and in need of deliverance, not condemnation or exhortation.
By calling Jesus “Son of God,” the demons controlling the Gadarene men showed they knew His true identity. They recognized Him as their spiritual antagonist who had the full authority to destroy them at will. Their question “Have You come here to torment us before the time?” further recognized that there is a God-ordained schedule, not yet completed, when He will relegate them to eternal damnation. As in other subjects, the demons had a correct doctrine of last things. But such belief is mere recognition, not acceptance. James reveals that even they tremble at the consequences of unbelief: “the demons also believe, and shudder” (James 2:19).
Demons despise everything about God and His Son. Yet they can’t do anything but pay Jesus the greatest deferential respect when in His presence. That supports Paul’s teaching that one day at the name of Christ, “every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Phil. 2:10–11).
Ask Yourself
Seeing the demons so obviously in fear of Christ’s dominance should encourage us that He is more than able to handle any situation. Have you been withholding a need from Him, not sure He cared or could do anything about it? Bring it boldly to Him today.
Studying God’s Word ping
I disagree. The demons possessing the man from the Gedarene's were in contempt of the Son of God. They paid Him none of His due respect and in fact seemed to question why Jesus would deign to be in their presence.
I full well understand and honor the authority Christ has over all things but I have two questions with regard to how we interact with the fallen:
1- Since Jesus has ultimate authority and demons MUST submit to that authority, why are His disciples not permitted to cast them out immediately?
2- Christ told us that there were demons that can only be cast out through fasting and prayer. Why? and why did He not tell us how to distinguish between them?
Okay, the last one was a compound question...
For clarity. Mark 5:1-13, The Gadarene Demoniac delivered.
And they came over unto the other side of the sea, into the country of the Gadarenes. 2 And when he was come out of the ship, immediately there met him out of the tombs a man with an unclean spirit, 3 Who had his dwelling among the tombs; and no man could bind him, no, not with chains: 4 Because that he had been often bound with fetters and chains, and the chains had been plucked asunder by him, and the fetters broken in pieces: neither could any man tame him. 5 And always, night and day, he was in the mountains, and in the tombs, crying, and cutting himself with stones. 6 But when he saw Jesus afar off, he ran and worshipped him, 7 And cried with a loud voice, and said, What have I to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of the most high God? I adjure thee by God, that thou torment me not. 8 For he said unto him, Come out of the man, thou unclean spirit. 9 And he asked him, What is thy name? And he answered, saying, My name is Legion: for we are many. 10 And he besought him much that he would not send them away out of the country. 11 Now there was there nigh unto the mountains a great herd of swine feeding. 12 And all the devils besought him, saying, Send us into the swine, that we may enter into them. 13 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, (they were about two thousand;) and were choked in the sea.
I always wondered about the swine part. Do the pigs drown themselvesbecause they knew that they were now demon possessed, or did the demons drown the pigs carrying them so that they would be.... free?
And who reimbursed the farmer for the loss of his massive herd? Could ruin a man and his family.
Luke 8: 33-37 (Same story, told in Luke)
33 Then went the devils out of the man, and entered into the swine: and the herd ran violently down a steep place into the lake, and were choked. 34 When they that fed them saw what was done, they fled, and went and told it in the city and in the country. 35 Then they went out to see what was done; and came to Jesus, and found the man, out of whom the devils were departed, sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed, and in his right mind: and they were afraid. 36 They also which saw it told them by what means he that was possessed of the devils was healed.
37 ¶ Then the whole multitude of the country of the Gadarenes round about besought him to depart from them; for they were taken with great fear: and he went up into the ship, and returned back again.”
1) From what I have read and gathered, demons (or devils) prefer to be in a body, whether human or animal.
2) If the Gadarenes raising these hogs were Jews, it had been forbidden them by God in Exodus and Leviticus.
Here is a link to a sermon called “Hogs vs. Heaven” by Pastor Win Worley of Hegewisch Baptist Church. It becomes interesting around minute 9.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_MV8yQ530l4
“2- Christ told us that there were demons that can only be cast out through fasting and prayer. Why? and why did He not tell us how to distinguish between them?” The Demons that render the afflicted dumb. see Luk 11:19 And if I by Beelzebub cast out devils, by whom do your sons cast them out? therefore shall they be your judges. Luke 11:14-23 The people recognize when Jesus cast out dumb spirits he did something unusual.
Mat 12:22 Then was brought unto him one possessed with a devil, blind, and dumb: and he healed him, insomuch that the blind and dumb both spake and saw.
Mat 12:23 And all the people were amazed, and said, Is not this the son of David?
Very interesting. Thank you much!
Geiko
Were there goyim around who liked bacon?
in Mar_5:1 it is called "the country of the Gadarenes" and the classic commentator John Gill says that Origen has a remarkable passage, showing the different situations of Gadara and Gergesa; and that the latter cannot be Gerasa in Arabia; and also the signification of the name,on the different situations of Gadara and Gergesa; and that the latter cannot be Gerasa in Arabia
...Gadara indeed was a city of Judea, about which were many famous baths; but there was no lake, or sea in it, adjacent with precipices; but Gergesa, from whence were the Gergasenes, is an ancient city about the lake; now called Tiberias; about which is a precipice adjacent to the lake, from whence is shown, that the swine were cast down by the devils. Gergesa is interpreted, παροικια εκβεβληκοτων, "the habitation of those that cast out"; being called so perhaps prophetically, for what the inhabitants of those places did to the Saviour, beseeching him to depart out of their coasts.''
Were there goyim around who liked bacon?
Matthew Henry surmises,
Probably, lying in the outskirts of the land, there were many Gentiles among them, to whom this herd of swine belonged: or they kept them to be sold, or bartered, to the Romans, with whom they had now great dealings, and who were admirers of swine's flesh.
Proverbs 8:36 states that "he that sinneth against me wrongeth his own soul: all they that hate me love death." (Proverbs 8:36)
The classic commentator Matthew Henry states,
They chose to be any where, rather than depart the country; and especially than to be sent into the deep, the abyss, or bottomless pit; and they chose to be sent into the swine, as being impure creatures like themselves; and no doubt with a view to destroy them, that they might satisfy themselves as much as they could with doing mischief; though not to that degree they would, nor to those persons they were desirous of; and so bring as much odium and reproach upon Christ as they could, who gave them leave. The devils are unwearied in doing mischief, they cannot rest unless they are about it; and they choose to be concerned in doing it in a lesser way, if they are not allowed to do it as largely as they would; if they are not suffered to touch the lives of men, or ruin their souls, it, is some satisfaction to them to be suffered to hurt their bodies; and if that is no longer permitted, rather than be doing nothing, they are desirous of doing injury to irrational creatures, the property of men; all which shows the malice and wickedness of these evil spirits:
And who reimbursed the farmer for the loss of his massive herd? Could ruin a man and his family.
Swine were unclean animals under the Law which only Gentiles or unfaithful Jews would be raising, and such were idolaters, which is always sin, and who preferred swine over the Savior of all men
And, behold, the whole city came out to meet Jesus: and when they saw him, they besought him that he would depart out of their coasts. (Mat 8:34)
So do you think the Creator is obligated to reimbursed such for the loss of livelihood in the context of deliverance from demonic possession, esp. when this demonstration would have been for their salvation if they repented in faith?
Neither one of you answered my question. I am quite familiar with the verses you cited, but they are the crux of the question. Jesus was able to cast them out instantly, even the one that the disciples were told had to be cast out ONLY by prayer and fasting. Jesus has ultimate authority but He gave his disciples limited authority in His name. I am asking why limit that? And why did He not teach us the difference in discerning between unclean spirits? Is it ONLY those that cause people to go mute? There are other reasons for physical limitations, reference the withered hand that Jesus restored, He did not cast out a demon in that situation.
“1- Since Jesus has ultimate authority and demons MUST submit to that authority, why are His disciples not permitted to cast them out immediately?”
To clarify, is this the question to which you refer?
Do Geico policies cover acts of God?
That is one of the 2.
Here is one link to material which may assist you in your research. Please see page 11 of this manual for the list.
http://www.genemoody.com/uploads/9/3/7/9/93799862/the_complete_deliverance_manual_by_gene_moody.pdf
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.