The Disciple That Stayed At Home
Introduction
Dr. Vance Havner (1901-1986) published his first book when he served as pastor of Salem Baptist Church in Weeksville, North Carolina. In this premiere volume titled By the Still Waters he shares some perceptive insights about “The disciple who stayed at home”.1
Our text is Mark 5:1-20, were we read, “Then they came to the other side of the sea, to the country of the Gadarenes. And when He had come out of the boat, immediately there met Him out of the tombs a man with an unclean spirit, who had his dwelling among the tombs; and no one could bind him, not even with chains, 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. And always, night and day, he was in the mountains and in the tombs, crying out and cutting himself with stones. When he saw Jesus from afar, he ran and worshiped Him. 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.’ For He said to him, ‘Come out of the man, unclean spirit!’ Then He asked him, ‘What is your name? And he answered, saying, ‘My name is Legion; for we are many.’ Also he begged Him earnestly that He would not send them out of the country. Now a large herd of swine was feeding there near the mountains. So all the demons begged Him, saying, ‘Send us to the swine, that we may enter them.’ 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. 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. 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. And those who saw it told them how it happened to him who had been demon-possessed, and about the swine. Then they began to plead with Him to depart from their region. And when He got into the boat, he who had been demon-possessed begged Him that he might be with Him. 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.’ And he departed and began to proclaim in Decapolis all that Jesus had done for him; and all marveled.”
Deliverance stories have a special appeal. Generally, these accounts have elements of high drama. Biblical accounts of deliverance are especially magnetic. This is due in part, because these stories remind us of our own deliverance. We know from Holy Scripture that God has power over everything that comes against mankind. At this point as believers we recall the words of 1 John 4:4. Here, John writes, “You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.”
Although there are many things to note about this event from the Synoptic Gospels (Matthew 8:28-34, Mark 5:1-20, and Luke 8:26-33); we will focus on three parts in the life of this demon possessed man.
I. First, we see his demonstration against the Lord.
We read in Mark 5:1-5, “Then they came to the other side of the sea, to the country of the Gadarenes. And when He had come out of the boat, immediately there met Him out of the tombs a man with an unclean spirit, who had his dwelling among the tombs; and no one could bind him, not even with chains, 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. And always, night and day, he was in the mountains and in the tombs, crying out and cutting himself with stones.”
Rev. Joseph Samuel Exell (1849-1909) cites a comment from Arthur Thompson about “My name is Legion” (v. 9) in The Biblical Illustrator: “The legacy of sin. Truly the name of sin is Legion. It is anger, malice, intemperance, murder, impurity, unfaithfulness, dishonesty, equivocation, dissimulation, falsehood, hypocrisy, ingratitude, disobedience, impatience, discontent, envy, covetousness; it is profanity, formality, superstition, idolatry, blasphemy, and atheism. It is a repudiation of the authority, a defiance of the power, a slight to the wisdom, a contempt of the holiness, and unthankfulness for the goodness of God. It is the cause of all the error, conflict, cruelty, suffering, weeping, and woe that exist in this world. Like a foul demon, it has poisoned and polluted, blighted and cursed everything it has touched. It has caused man, the noblest work of God, to become a destroyer of his own soul, the murder of his brother, the enemy of his God.”2
II. Secondly, we see his deliverance by the Lord.
We read in Mark 5:6-17, “When he saw Jesus from afar, he ran and worshiped Him. 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.’ For He said to him, ‘Come out of the man, unclean spirit!’ Then He asked him, ‘What is your name? And he answered, saying, ‘My name is Legion; for we are many.’ Also he begged Him earnestly that He would not send them out of the country. Now a large herd of swine was feeding there near the mountains. So all the demons begged Him, saying, ‘Send us to the swine, that we may enter them.’ 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. 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. 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. And those who saw it told them how it happened to him who had been demon-possessed, and about the swine. Then they began to plead with Him to depart from their region.”
This formerly demon possessed man experienced physical rest [“sitting”]. In Matthew 11:28-30 we read, “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”
This formerly demon possessed man exhibited moral restraint [“clothed”]. In Proverbs 29:18 we read, “Where there is no revelation, the people cast off restraint; / But happy is he who keeps the law.”
This formerly demon possessed man exercised spiritual reason [“in his right mind”]. From Daniel 4:34 we read about the humbled Nebuchadnezzar, “And at the end of the time I, Nebuchadnezzar, lifted my eyes to heaven, and my understanding returned to me; and I blessed the Most High and praised and honored Him who lives forever: For His dominion is an everlasting dominion, / And His kingdom is from generation to generation.”
He could sing in the words of Rufus H. McDaniel (1850-1940), “What a wonderful change in my life has been wrought / Since Jesus came into my heart! I have light in my soul for which long I have sought, / Since Jesus came into my heart!”
Carter F. Bundy comments on Mark 5:17-18, "Sinners are the same now. They desire to be rid of the Lord Jesus because His presence irks them. They are uncomfortable with Him. It matters not what good He has done, or what evidence there is that He is the Saviour and they are sinners. In contrast, all who have felt His miraculous power wish to be with Him. The former maniac of the tombs 'prayed Him that he might be with Him.' Once you know him, you can never tire of His presence."
III. Thirdly, we see his devotion to the Lord.
We read in Mark 5:18-20, “And when He got into the boat, he who had been demon-possessed begged Him that he might be with Him. 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.’ And he departed and began to proclaim in Decapolis all that Jesus had done for him; and all marveled.”
Dr. Vance Havner paraphrased our Lord’s comment to Legion, the Gadarne demoniac, in the following way, “Don’t run away from Gadara, stay right there and live for Me as earnestly as once you did for the devil.”3
Let’s take a look at the life of Legion in review.
i. Legion and his Habitation
He lived in caves among the tombs of the deceased (Mark 5:2-3a).
ii. Legion and his Helplessness
He felt unable to stop his self-destructive behavior (Mark 5:3b-5).
iii. Legion and his Hindrance
He found himself separated from things most men enjoy (Mark 5:6a).
iv. Legion and his Hope
He declared the deity of Jesus (Mark 5:6b-7), while others deny it.
v. Legion and his Humility
He asked and accepted the answer in relationship to his place of service (Mark 5:18-20).
In the words attributed to A. C. Palmer (1845-1882):
“Ready to suffer grief or pain,
Ready to stand the test,
Ready to stay at home and send
Others if He sees best.
Ready to go, ready to stay,
Ready my place to fill,
Ready for service, lowly or great,
Ready to do His will.
Ready to go, ready to bear,
Ready to watch and pray,
Ready to stand aside and give,
Till He shall clear the way.
Ready to speak, ready to think,
Ready with heart and brain,
Ready to stand where He sees fit,
Ready to bear the strain.
Ready to speak, ready to warn,
Ready o’er souls to yearn,
Ready in life, ready in death,
Ready for His return.”
Dr. Stephen F. Olford (1918-2004) frequent mentioned, “R.F.A.” which stands for “Ready for anything.” Are you ready for anything? As believers we must be ready.
Dr. W. Y. Fullerton (1857-1932), was a gifted Baptist preacher and Keswick speaker. As a writer he provided penetrating insights into the lives of men like Charles Haddon Spurgeon, Frederick Brotherton Meyer, and John Bunyan. He shares the following account, "Luigi Tarisio was found dead one morning with scarce a comfort in his home, but with two hundred and forty-six exquisite fiddles, which he had been collecting all his life, crammed into an attic, the best in the bottom drawer of an old rickety bureau. In very devotion to the violin he had robbed the world of all that music all the time he treasured them; others before him had done the same, so that when the greatest Stradivarius was first played it had had one hundred and forty-seven speechless years.
Yet how many of Christ's people are like old Tarisio! In our very love to the church we fail to give the glad tidings to the world; in our zeal for the truth we forget to publish it. When shall we all learn that the good news needs the telling, and that all men need to know?"
In the words of the chorus of the traditional spiritual song, “Everybody ought to know. Everybody ought to know. Everybody ought to know who Jesus is.”
Jesus Christ is fully God and fully man. Many believe in another Jesus. Paul the Apostle warns in 2 Corinthians 11:3-4, “But I fear, lest somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, so your minds may be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ. For if he who comes preaches another Jesus whom we have not preached, or if you receive a different spirit which you have not received, or a different gospel which you have not accepted—you may well put up with it!”
"On God's Will", Dr. Andrew A. Bonar (1810-1892) shares the following, "When a young man is converted he is almost always inclined at first to say, 'I know I could do far more good if I was a preacher, so I'll leave my business and become a preacher of the gospel.' But very often mistakes are made just in this way. God may have given you some work to do for him in the position in which he has placed you which no one else could do if you were to leave it undone. We should be very careful how we wish to change from whatever position in life which God has seen fit to put us."
An unknown poet states, "We cannot all be preachers, and sway with voice and pen, / As strong winds sway the forest, the minds and hearts of men; / But we can be evangels to souls within our reach; / There's always love's own Gospel for faithful hearts to teach."
The most important thing for every believer is to do the will of God. We read the words of Jesus recorded in Matthew 7:21-23, “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’”
From this passage we learn that someone could become a preacher, exorcist, or miracle worker and not be doing the will of God. Unbelievers must repent and believe the gospel. The problem is that there are many who attempt to serve a God they do not know and even more sadly does not know them.
Do not apologize for doing the will of God. If God has not called you to be a preacher, do God’s will and know that you please Him. Those who do the will of God from the heart will receive a rich reward.
Beware of attempting to justify doing anything in the name of God clearly condemned in the Bible. Never say that the Holy Spirit told you to violate the clear teaching of Holy Scripture.
If God calls you to be a preacher, do not stoop to be a king.
Conclusion
Dr. Vance Havner writes, “‘There is Preacher Blank. I wonder why he stuck to those country churches in the mountains. He was pretty rough back in other days when he grew up in the community. Then he was saved and went to school. Nobody thought he would ever come back to the country, for he was smart and able and we thought he would land in a city pulpit. But he turned down several chances and stayed in the backwoods, built up churches, lived down the past and turned many to righteousness.’”
Dr. Havner asks, “Haven’t you heard that once in a while? We have an idea that such Preacher Blanks maybe knew a day when they cast a long, eager look toward the sea, toward far lands and distant horizons. But the ship pulled way without them, while they turned back to commonplace sights in familiar old Gadara. For it is not given to all men to go with the ship to fields of fine romance. There must be the disciple who stayed at home to tell his friends what the Lord had done for his soul.” [emphasis mine]4
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1Vance Havner, By the Still Waters (New York: Fleming H. Revell, MCMXXXIV [1934]), p. 109-112
2The Biblical Illustrator, ed. Joseph S. Exell, Saint Mark, (New York / Chicago / Toronto / London and Edinburgh: Fleming H. Revell, 1905), p. 196 Available from: http://www.archive.org/stream/biblicalillustra41exel#page/196/mode/2up Accessed: 07/11/11
3Vance Havner, By the Still Waters: (New York: Fleming H. Revell, MCMXXXIV [1934]), p. 110
4Vance Havner, By the Still Waters: (New York: Fleming H. Revell, MCMXXXIV [1934]), pp. 110-111
By Dr. Franklin L. Kirksey, pastor First Baptist Church of Spanish Fort 30775 Jay Drive Spanish Fort, Alabama 36527
Author of Sound Biblical Preaching: Giving the Bible a Voice Available on Amazon.com and WORDsearchbible.com
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