Tell Them What Great Things the Lord Has Done For You: St. Mark 5:1-20

St. Mark 5:1-20: "1 Then they came to the other side of the sea, to the country of the Gadarenes. 2 And when He had come out of the boat, immediately there met Him out of the tombs a man with an unclean spirit, 3 who had his dwelling among the tombs; and no one could bind him, not even with chains, 4 because he had often been bound with shackles and chains. And the chains had been pulled apart by him, and the shackles broken in pieces; neither could anyone tame him. 5 And always, night and day, he was in the mountains and in the tombs, crying out and cutting himself with stones. 6 When he saw Jesus from afar, he ran and worshiped Him. 7 And he cried out with a loud voice and said, 'What have I to do with You, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I implore You by God that You do not torment me.' 8 For He said to him, 'Come out of the man, unclean spirit!' 9 Then He asked him, 'What is your name?' And he answered, saying, 'My name is Legion; for we are many.' 10 Also he begged Him earnestly that He would not send them out of the country. 11 Now a large herd of swine was feeding there near the mountains. 12 So all the demons begged Him, saying, 'Send us to the swine, that we may enter them.' 13 And at once Jesus gave them permission. Then the unclean spirits went out and entered the swine (there were about two thousand); and the herd ran violently down the steep place into the sea, and drowned in the sea. 14 So those who fed the swine fled, and they told it in the city and in the country. And they went out to see what it was that had happened. 15 Then they came to Jesus, and saw the one who had been demon-possessed and had the legion, sitting and clothed and in his right mind. And they were afraid. 16 And those who saw it told them how it happened to him who had been demon-possessed, and about the swine. 17 Then they began to plead with Him to depart from their region. 18 And when He got into the boat, he who had been demon-possessed begged Him that he might be with Him. 19 However, Jesus did not permit him, but said to him, 'Go home to your friends, and tell them what great things the Lord has done for you, and how He has had compassion on you.' 20 And he departed and began to proclaim in Decapolis all that Jesus had done for him; and all marveled."

Today we have the fairly familiar narrative of our Lord Jesus casting out the group of demons called Legion. It is significant to point out the context of this pericope, for this narrative comes directly after our Lord calms the sea, wind and waves, where the disciples felt they were perishing, which this lectionary skips over. The calming of the sea is concluded by the disciples asking themselves and each other, "What manner of man is this that even the wind and the sea obey Him?" The answer to this question is supplied by the our Lord's enemy. For we are told by the Evangelist St. Mark that the demon Legion comes running up to Jesus and worships Him, calling Him exactly who He is, "Jesus, Son of the Most High God."

This is somewhat strange that His disciples do not know who or what He is, however, a group of demons know exactly who and what He is. But in this we see the intent of the framers of this lectionary, for they go straight from our Lord being accused of casting out demons by Beelzebub, to a demon, who states that he has nothing to do with our Lord. "What have I to do with You?" From this we see clearly that devils do not want anything to do with our Lord Jesus, and we also see that He is definitely not in league with them, since He desires to send them all away.

We can also see the power of this particular group of demons, for no other demons converse with our Lord. This can simply be because there are many of them, and their is strength in numbers. But even this great many devils reveal their fear of our Lord, for they know that a final punishment awaits them in the eternal hell fire. This is actually shown us in St. Luke's Gospel where he uses the phrase "into the abyss" where St. Mark says, "out of the country." This statement is to be understood as the place of punishment and torment. And it shows that the devils are fully aware of their impending final judgment. It also shows the audacity of these demons, for in their pleading they lay claim to this region, as if they had a right to torment and persecute this land and region. Then, our Lord, in order to show to His disciples that this man is possessed by a number of devils, asks the devils their name.

This reveals our Lord's power and authority over demons and the powers of darkness. They have no authority, but our Lord has all authority. In this we also see that our Lord has come to destroy the powers of darkness, sin, death, and the devil. And He does it simply by His Word. We can take comfort then when His Word is spoken to us, both in preaching and through the means of grace, that His Word has power to forgiven our sins, to remove darkness and power of the devil within us. We can see this even more readily in the man's response, who is healed. Having been cleansed by our Lord, having heard His Word, and having been restored, he desires to join our Lord, and be with Him.

However, our Lord turns him down. This man is not chosen to be an apostle. He does not have this calling, and is forbidden by our Lord in this way. This shows us that not every person has a call to preach the Word of God. Our Lord says no to certain individuals and to certain genders, as we learn from St. Paul. And certainly, only twelve men were chosen to be apostles. And these apostles, only chose certain men to replace them, and carry on the task entrusted to them by our Lord. But this man is given a task, and that is to tell his friends. He is given the task to tell his friends what great things the Lord has done for him. This is the task that our Lord gives to all of us. This is not the same as preaching and administering the Sacraments which require a man who is rightly called and ordained. This is simply the conversation that one has with his friends and family after receiving the great gift of forgiveness from their Lord. This is how the early Church grew, by the faithful sharing with their friends and family the great things that the Lord did for them. And this is how the Church on earth will continue to grow today, by the faithful telling their friends to what the Lord has done for them, and inviting their friends to come to the Lord's house, so that they may hear and be cleansed of their sins and faults by the Lord through His holy means.

It is interesting also is that the demon-possessed individual, because of the devils inside him, dwelt among the tombs. This was done to lead the people of that region to falsely think that the dead became demons. This is really no different than today with those who falsely believe that the dead become angels, or walk among the living as spirits. One may say that this doesn't really matter, but it is a subtle trick and tool of the devil to lead people away from our Lord. For there are many people today, who on account of this teaching, falsely think that everybody goes to heaven. What that means, is that Satan is trying to convince people, and perhaps himself, that their is no hell; that there will be no final punishment; no everlasting torment, because people will just become spirits that walk the earth.

However, this pericope dispels that notion, by revealing the true wickedness of devils, and by extension shows how the Lord limits the power of the devils, and only allows them to tempt us to a certain point, so that by the temptation we might be led to our Lord, and cling to Him for our salvation. And also by the temptation strengthen us from further assaults of the devil. This is shown us by the swine. The demon Legion, begs our Lord Jesus to send them into the swine, and He obliges. Our Lord could have easily sent them away to the nether regions, the abyss, out of the country. But He instead chooses to show the disciples the true evil of the devils by allowing them to do to the swine as they wished. And possessing the swine, they immediately run off a cliff into the sea, killing and drowning the swine. We can see from this that if our Lord does not hold back and protect us from the attack of the devil, what the devil would desire to do to us, and the whole world. Satan would destroy us completely.

But our Lord Jesus is gracious and compassionate, and does not want any of us to be hurt. Therefore He preaches His holy Word to us, so that we might be strenghthened and renewed in faith and trust in Him. And having received these gifts we share what great things the Lord has done for us, inviting all who would listen to join us in the family of God.

May God be with you!

Deacon Dulas

The Angel of the LORD Appeared to Him in a Flame of Fire from the Midst of a Bush: Exodus 3:1-22

Exodus 3:1-22: "1 Now Moses was tending the flock of Jethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian. And he led the flock to the back of the desert, and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. 2 And the Angel of the LORD appeared to him in a flame of fire from the midst of a bush. So he looked, and behold, the bush was burning with fire, but the bush was not consumed. 3 Then Moses said, 'I will now turn aside and see this great sight, why the bush does not burn.' 4 So when the LORD saw that he turned aside to look, God called to him from the midst of the bush and said, 'Moses, Moses!' And he said, 'Here I am.' 5 Then He said, 'Do not draw near this place. Take your sandals off your feet, for the place where you stand is holy ground.' 6 Moreover He said, ;I am the God of your father--the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.' And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look upon God. 7 And the LORD said: 'I have surely seen the oppression of My people who are in Egypt, and have heard their cry because of their taskmasters, for I know their sorrows. 8 So I have come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up from that land to a good and large land, to a land flowing with milk and honey, to the place of the Canaanites and the Hittites and the Amorites and the Perizzites and the Hivites and the Jebusites. 9 Now therefore, behold, the cry of the children of Israel has come to Me, and I have also seen the oppression with which the Egyptians oppress them. 10 Come now, therefore, and I will send you to Pharaoh that you may bring My people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt.' 11 But Moses said to God, 'Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh, and that I should bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?' 12 So He said, 'I will certainly be with you. And this shall be a sign to you that I have sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall serve God on this mountain.' 13 Then Moses said to God, 'Indeed, when I come to the children of Israel and say to them, "The God of your fathers has sent me to you," and they say to me, "What is His name?" what shall I say to them?' 14 And God said to Moses, 'I AM WHO I AM.' And He said, 'Thus you shall say to the children of Israel, "I AM has sent me to you."' 15 Moreover God said to Moses, 'Thus you shall say to the children of Israel: "The LORD God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you. This is My name forever, and this is My memorial to all generations." 16 Go and gather the elders of Israel together, and say to them, "The LORD God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob, appeared to me, saying, 'I have surely visited you and seen what is done to you in Egypt; 17 and I have said I will bring you up out of the affliction of Egypt to the land of the Canaanites and the Hittites and the Amorites and the Perizzites and the Hivites and the Jebusites, to a land flowing with milk and honey.'" 18 Then they will heed your voice; and you shall come, you and the elders of Israel, to the king of Egypt; and you shall say to him, "The LORD God of the Hebrews has met with us; and now, please, let us go three days' journey into the wilderness, that we may sacrifice to the LORD our God." 19 But I am sure that the king of Egypt will not let you go, no, not even by a mighty hand. 20 So I will stretch out My hand and strike Egypt with all My wonders which I will do in its midst; and after that he will let you go. 21 And I will give this people favor in the sight of the Egyptians; and it shall be, when you go, that you shall not go empty-handed. 22 But every woman shall ask of her neighbor, namely, of her who dwells near her house, articles of silver, articles of gold, and clothing; and you shall put them on your sons and on your daughters. So you shall plunder the Egyptians.'"

Here we have the calling of Moses by our Lord God to bring His people out of Egypt. When our Lord calls to Moses from the fiery bush, He calls Him twice, "Moses, Moses." This reminds us of when Abraham was to sacrifice his son, and our Lord called his name twice, "Abraham, Abraham." Moses' response is the same as Abraham's response, "Here I am." We hear this response, or something similar, from various persons in the holy Scriptures: Isaiah, Samuel, the mother of our Lord, to name a few. This response is the response of faith. It is the response of the willing listener, who hears the voice of the Lord and heeds it; blocking out everything else to give the voice of our Lord God full attention.

Moses, too, is a willing listener. In fact even before this, he shows his faith by turning aside from the path that he was on to see the fiery bush. Upon doing so, our Lord instructs him to take off his shoes, and to come closer, but not too close. Here we see the grace of our Lord. For He invites Moses into His presence. However, on account of the uncleanness and sinfulness of Moses, he is only allowed to come so close. But there is a communal oneness that is shown in this invitation of our Lord to Moses. Our Lord invites Moses to be with Him and join with Him. And this relationship will last for the rest of Moses' earthly days.

There is symbolism also in the fiery bush itself, for bushes are different than trees. And trees show up in figurative language a lot in holy Scripture. Trees represent strength, and fortitude. The bush however, represents humility. This bush is a symbol of the oppression of the Israelites, who live lives of heavy toil. So, in a sense they are being burned up. But, just like the fire does not consume the bush, our Lord God preserves the Israelites in Egypt, so that they are not completely burned up by the oppression in Egypt. We can see in all this, that our Lord allows the oppression, so that they might be prepared for the rigors of life in the desert, which they will endure for forty years. The oppression also prompts them to cry out to the Lord God for salvation.

This is common still today, we cry out and pray to our God the most when we face oppression. Whether that oppression by because of our sin, our some sickness or illness, or because of some physical disability, or loneliness, or the oppression that comes from living in a world that either ignores God, or actively seeks to root Him out of the world, our prayers are greatest when we have struggle and turmoil. The same is true of the Israelites, their labor was hard, they were enslaved, and so they cry out to the Lord God. Here He gives us good news. He hears our cries. Just like He heard the cries of the Israelites. And after they have been prepared to meet Him, and see His wonders, and hear His Word, so that they would follow Him wherever He willed them to go, He comes to call His servant Moses to lead them out of misery and pain.

Our Lord sends us a Moses as well, to lead us out of the oppression that is caused by the slavery of sin, death and the devil. He sends us His ministers to bring us out of oppression through preaching and the Sacraments. Through these things, He purifies us, just as fire purifies, and opens our blind eyes of faith so that we might see Him through this dark world, just like fire produces light so that people can see.

We also see in this pericope the willingness of Moses to serve our Lord God. Moses, for certain, as we see in other parts of holy Scripture, will show his timidity and, one could argue, cowardess. But not here, we see the willing servant of the Lord, willing to do what He wants Him to do. Even when Moses questions our Lord by saying, "Who am I?", this is not meant as doubt. It is really no different than the Blessed Virgin Mary saying, "How shall this be?" Moses does not see what our Lord sees. Moses sees his sinfulness, and unworthyness, but our Lord sees the prophet who was born just for this purpose. Moses reveals his humility. And that is what truly makes a good servant of our Lord, is a humble servant of the Lord.

The humble servant will do what the Lord wills, because he believes Him to be his Lord and Savior. But, this is humility is not to be confused with timidity, or cowardness, for these are the signs of weakness and doubt, not the signs of strength and faith in our Lord. Moses certainly shows during his lifetime that he can be both humble, pleading the cause of the people of Israel to the Lord God who would wipe them off the face of the earth for their disobedience and faithlessness, and bold, defending the will of God, to a people who would rather go back to Egypt, than live in a desert.

Therefore, in the calling of Moses, we learn something about the men who the Lord God calls today to fill Moses' position. He calls those who, in the eyes of the world, are insignificant, just like Moses was an insignificant shepherd. He calls those who are humble, caring more for other people above themselves, desiring, like a shepherd, to lead the sheep beside quiet waters, so that our Lord might feed them with the pure milk of His holy Word. He also calls the bold, those who serve Him willing in the midst of trial and tribulation and persecution, because they fully believe that He is their God and Savior, and will do anything for Him.

May our Lord God grant and send you men of God like Moses who will defend you from the devil, the world, and your sinful flesh, and boldly preach to you all that our Lord God does for you, even when you may not want to hear the truth of His Word.

May God be with you!

Deacon Dulas