Grace Overcomes

Grace overcomes. There is no better picture of grace overcoming than what is pictured in Mark 5.

Jesus and His disciples had crossed to the other side of the Sea of Galilee to the Gerasene region. He encountered a man possessed by a demon.

In this passage we see Jesus by grace overcoming the forces of Satan and society.

Mark 5:2-5

And when Jesus stepped out of the boat, immediately there met Him out of the tombs a man with an unclean spirit. He lived among the tombs. And no one could bind him anymore, not even with a chain, for he had often been bound with shackles and chains, but he wrenched the chains apart, and he broke the shackles in pieces. No one had the strength to subdue him. Night and day among the tombs and on the mountain he was always crying out and cutting himself with stones.

Here we see the power of Satan to kill, steal, and destroy. The man was:

Spiritually and Emotionally Tormented

Physically Harmful to Himself and Others

Living in an Environment of Death

This man had lost his peace and purpose for living.

This man had lost his home and family.

This man had lost his decency and his humanity.

Satan is our enemy and wants to destroy us and make us children of disobedience, who disobey God’s will.

Mark 5:6-13

And when he saw Jesus from afar, he ran and fell down before Him. And crying out with a loud voice, he said, “What have You to do with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I adjure you by God, do not torment me.” For He was saying to him, “Come out of the man, you unclean spirit!” And Jesus asked him, “What is your name?” He replied, “My name is Legion, for we are many.” And he begged Him earnestly not to send them out of the country. Now a great heard of pigs was feeding there on the hillside, and they begged Him, saying, “Send us to the pigs; let us enter them.” So He gave them permission. And the unclean spirits came out and entered the pigs; and the herd, numbering about two thousand, rushed down the steep bank into the sea and drowned in the sea.

We see the destructive power of Satan as the demons enter the pigs and they rush down the steep bank and drown themselves. But we also see the reality of who Jesus is and His power to overcome Satan. The demons acknowledge who Jesus is, the Son of the Most High God. The demons recognize Jesus’ power by begging Him not to send them out of the country. The demons recognize Jesus’ authority by doing what He commands them to do.

Jesus out of His grace uses His power and authority to rid this man of the demons.

Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is knowing Jesus can and letting Jesus overcome Satan’s influence in our lives.

Mark 5:14-17

The herdsman fled and told it in the city and in the country. And people came to see what it was that had happened. And they came to Jesus and saw the demon-possessed man, the one who had had the legion, sitting there, clothed and in his right mind, and they were afraid. And those who had seen it described to them what had happened to the demon-possessed man and to the pigs. And they began to beg Jesus to depart from their region.

Society had labeled the man possessed by demons. They labeled him as a crazy, dangerous, demon-possessed man. When they saw him, they didn’t see the person; they saw the label. But when they saw him with Jesus, they realized he had changed and they didn’t know what to do with that. They also were fearful of Jesus because He had done something that they believed to be impossible. Their response was to ask Jesus to leave.

Society is fallen and naturally doesn’t understand Jesus. They feel safer when Jesus is at a distance. Jesus in His grace still works even in the midst of a nonbelieving society. Society does not determine what Jesus can do. Grace works in any and every situation.

Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is trusting in God’s grace, no matter the situation.

Mark 5:18-20

As He was getting into the boat, the man who had been possessed with demons begged Him that he might be with Him. And He did not permit him but said to him, “Go home to your friends and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and how He has had mercy on you.” And he went away and began to proclaim in the Decapolis how much Jesus had done for him, and everyone marveled.

The result of Jesus by grace overcoming Satan and society was the transformation of the man. He was no longer controlled by Satan, but by grace was directed and guided by Jesus.

Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is being transformed by the grace of God.

By God’s Grace Raising the Roof and Removing the Walls,

                                        Joe