Last updated on October 23, 2024
The story of the demon-possessed Gerasene is a powerful one. One day Jesus and his disciples went across the Sea of Galilee to the region of the Gerasenes. These were Gentile (non-Jewish) people, and this was non-Jewish territory. One reason we know this is because pigs play a big role in the story, and pigs made these people unclean. Therefore, the Jewish people stayed away from this region.
Jesus stepped out of the boat, and all of a sudden a mostly naked man was running towards him.
We saw a few days ago that one of the marks of the Kingdom coming on earth as it is in heaven is that the oppressed would be set free. This man was definitely oppressed, and he longed to be set free. What did oppression look like for this man?
At the root this man’s oppression came because he had an impure spirit. Because of this he lived in the tombs, which tells us that he was isolated from his family and friends. They were deeply scared of him. They once binded him with chains and he broke them. Those in the town would hear his crying out, but there was nothing they could do for him. Mark says that he would cut himself with stones. This was truly a sad and desperate situation.
So when Jesus stepped out the boat, this desperate man came running towards him. When he got to Jesus he fell to his knees. Jesus loved this man and felt deep compassion for him. He knew immediately what he was dealing with, so he said, “Come out of this man, you impure spirit!” The man didn’t respond, but the impure spirit did. It said “What do you want with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? In God’s name don’t torture me.”
What happens next is pretty wild. Jesus asks the spirit what it’s name is, and it says, “My name is Legion, for we are many.” The spirit apparently knew that Jesus was about to cast it out of the man, so it asked Jesus if he could cast them into the herd of pigs that were nearby. I’m not really sure why Jesus agreed to this, but he did, and the next thing you know, these two thousand pigs rushed into the sea and drowned.
Word spread throughout the village quickly, and soon everyone was there. The whole pig thing was crazy, but what was crazier was that the man was sitting with Jesus, dressed and “in his right mind.” And it says that the people were afraid. This was a different type of fear than what they felt before with this man.
The people asked Jesus to leave. This was too much for them. The man begged Jesus to allow him to go with them. Jesus said no, which is sad. But Jesus had a great reason. He said, “Go home to your own people and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and how he has had mercy on you.”
So that’s exactly what the man did.
We don’t hear anything else about this man. We don’t know what happened to him. But the next time that Jesus stepped foot in this region, it seems like everyone knows who he is. For that reason NT Wright calls this man the first apostle to the Gentiles.
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