Mark 5 - Do We Pray for Healing Enough in the Church Today? Yes or No?
Enduring Word Commentary - Mark 5
Jesus Restores a Demon-Possessed Man
5 They went across the lake to the region of the Gerasenes.[a] 2 When Jesus got out of the boat, a man with an impure spirit came from the tombs to meet him. 3 This man lived in the tombs, and no one could bind him anymore, not even with a chain. 4 For he had often been chained hand and foot, but he tore the chains apart and broke the irons on his feet. No one was strong enough to subdue him. 5 Night and day among the tombs and in the hills he would cry out and cut himself with stones.
This is the most detailed description of a demon possession we have in the New Testament (Guzik).
When have seen already in Mark that demons were some of the first ones to recognize Jesus' power and authority. We see that demons do have physical power, as the man had almost supernatural power to break chains etc... I.e. There was no one who could subdue him.
He was also tortured emotionally and would cut himself with sharp stones. We see this today among teenagers known as "cutters". This is something we are seeing a lot with teenagers who are in emotional pain.
The notion that hurting yourself can make you feel better seems like a contradiction. About 17% of teenagers engage in self-harm at least once, according to the American Psychological Association."Kids who engage in self-injury have difficulty tolerating emotional distress and are more likely to try to escape from those feelings," he says. "It might be that their pain demands attention, and when they're really upset, cutting themselves focuses on their physical pain and reduces their psychological pain." (Harvard Health)
6 When he saw Jesus from a distance, he ran and fell on his knees in front of him. 7 He shouted at the top of his voice, “What do you want with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? In God’s name don’t torture me!” 8 For Jesus had said to him, “Come out of this man, you impure spirit!” 9 Then Jesus asked him, “What is your name?” “My name is Legion,” he replied, “for we are many.” 10 And he begged Jesus again and again not to send them out of the area. 11 A large herd of pigs was feeding on the nearby hillside. 12 The demons begged Jesus, “Send us among the pigs; allow us to go into them.” 13 He gave them permission, and the impure spirits came out and went into the pigs. The herd, about two thousand in number, rushed down the steep bank into the lake and were drowned.
The demon realized Jesus' power and authority was much greater than his own. It reminds us that because we have the Spirit of Jesus living us, we need never be afraid the demonic realm. "Greater is He that is in You than he that is in the world!" 1 John 4:4
The demon represented himself as "Legion" and added that he was only one of the demons inside the man. Perhaps he was the main demon, or the demon coordinating the others. Some had said Legion was a "host of demons". There is not a lot of biblical teaching on this, so we have to be careful about making erroneous conclusions. Some people get a little too into demons and focus more on them than the power of Jesus and the Holy Spirit.
Interestingly the demons begged Jesus not to send them out of the area. The demons were bargaining with Jesus. This shows us that demons, though they are spiritual beings, do have personalities.
If it was important for Jesus to know their names, He could have demanded “name, rank, and serial number” for each of them one by one. But Jesus would not play into their superstitions. His power was greater than them. When it comes to demons and spiritual warfare, we must never be caught up in foolish and counter-productive superstitions.
Why did they beg Jesus to send them into the swine (group of pigs)?
Luke 8:31 tells us that the demons also begged Him that He would not command them to go out into the abyss. They did not want to become “inactive.” “Lo, it is another hell to the devil to be idle, or otherwise than evil-occupied.” (Trapp)
The demons wanted to enter the swine because demons are bent on destruction, and they hate to be idle. “The devil is so fond of doing mischief, that he will rather play at a small game than stand out.” (Poole)
This shows another reason why Jesus allowed the demons to enter the pigs – because He wanted everyone to know what the real intention of these demons was. They wanted to destroy the man just as they destroyed the pigs. Because men are made in the image of God, they could not have their way as easily with the man, but their intention was just the same: to completely destroy him.
14 Those tending the pigs ran off and reported this in the town and countryside, and the people went out to see what had happened. 15 When they came to Jesus, they saw the man who had been possessed by the legion of demons, sitting there, dressed and in his right mind; and they were afraid. 16 Those who had seen it told the people what had happened to the demon-possessed man—and told about the pigs as well. 17 Then the people began to plead with Jesus to leave their region. 18 As Jesus was getting into the boat, the man who had been demon-possessed begged to go with him. 19 Jesus did not let him, but 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.” 20 So the man went away and began to tell in the Decapolis[b] how much Jesus had done for him. And all the people were amazed.
The people begged Jesus to leave, as we learn in Luke, because they not only lost their livestock but also because they were afraid of Jesus. Instead of rejoicing with the man who was delivered from demons, they were self-centered. Meanwhile the man who was demon possessed returned and begged Jesus to go with him. You can only imagine how grateful he was. He was restored to how God made him to be originally. The devil is also trying to seek and destroy us, because he hates everything God has created which is good.
(See all these passage in relationship to the devil's desire to harm us -John 10:10,Luke 22:31,1 Peter 5:8)
Instead Jesus told the man to go and spread the message about how Jesus had delivered him. In the Lutheran church we say, "Jesus has delivered us from sin, death, and the power of the devil."
The man who had been set free by Jesus just wanted to be with Jesus. This man didn’t want only what Jesus could do for him. The true change in his heart was shown by his desire to be with Jesus. (Guzik)
This was a great message to tell. This is a gospel we should all be able to preach. The man set free did, because he departed and began to proclaim… all that Jesus had done for him. His story showed the value of one life to Jesus, because this was the only reason why Jesus came to this side of the Sea of Galilee. His story also showed that with Jesus, no one is beyond hope, because if this man could be changed then anyone could. (Guzik)
Jesus Raises a Dead Girl and Heals a Sick Woman
21 When Jesus had again crossed over by boat to the other side of the lake, a large crowd gathered around him while he was by the lake. 22 Then one of the synagogue leaders, named Jairus, came, and when he saw Jesus, he fell at his feet. 23 He pleaded earnestly with him, “My little daughter is dying. Please come and put your hands on her so that she will be healed and live.” 24 So Jesus went with him.
Jesus went across the Sea of Galilee where there were more Jewish towns (Guzik). In this case the synagogue leader came and fell at Jesus' feet and pleaded with him to heal his little daughter who was dying. As a father of a young daughter, I can only imagine how desperate he was to see if Jesus could heal her. He had heard the news about the miraculous healing powers that Jesus had exhibited and wondered if his daughter could be saved.
The man specifically asked Jesus to lay hands on her. Jesus used many methods for praying for people for healing. You can see the man's faith when he says, "So that she will be healed." He is one of the first Jewish leaders to exhibit faith and it was not lost on Jesus.
A large crowd followed and pressed around him. 25 And a woman was there who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years. 26 She had suffered a great deal under the care of many doctors and had spent all she had, yet instead of getting better she grew worse. 27 When she heard about Jesus, she came up behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak, 28 because she thought, “If I just touch his clothes, I will be healed.” 29 Immediately her bleeding stopped and she felt in her body that she was freed from her suffering. 30 At once Jesus realized that power had gone out from him. He turned around in the crowd and asked, “Who touched my clothes?” 31 “You see the people crowding against you,” his disciples answered, “and yet you can ask, ‘Who touched me?’ ” 32 But Jesus kept looking around to see who had done it. 33 Then the woman, knowing what had happened to her, came and fell at his feet and, trembling with fear, told him the whole truth. 34 He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be freed from your suffering.”
As Jesus was en route to the Jairus' house, once again a large crowd pressed in on him. A woman who had a chronic bleeding managed to get through the crowd and grabbed Jesus' clothes. Once again this woman was desperate for healing. Jesus represented a way out of her pain, which had also caused her a ton of embarrasment and shame.
This woman was in a desperate condition. Her condition made her ceremonially and socially unclean, and this was a significant burden to live under for 12 years. (Guzik)
She went to the doctors to get better, but only suffered worse – and became poorer. Luke the physician also tells us that she had spent all her livelihood on physicians (Luke 8:43). He knew how doctor bills could take all the money a family had. (Guzik)
There was so much power emanating out of Jesus, that instantly she was healed. This shows us that there is no one way that Jesus prayed for healing. We need to remember this and not think there is only way to pray for healing. The standard way in most churches is anointing with oil and the laying on of hands, but this by itself is not magical. James says,
Is anyone among you sick? Let them call the elders of the church to pray over them and anoint them with oil in the name of the Lord. James 5:14
Jesus felt the power go out of him, but he was not omnicient (all-knowing). He wasn't sure who had touched him. The woman knowing she was healed, fell at Jesus' feet and afraid of what she had done. Perhaps she thought she was in trouble for being so bold.
Because this woman was embarrassed and thought her uncleanness meant no one would let her touch Jesus, she tried to do it secretly. But God often brings His work out into the open, even if it may start secretly. (Guzik)
But Jesus gently rewarded and affirmed her by saying, "Daughter, your faith has made you well." Jesus not only assured her she was healed permanently but also granted her peace. Jesus so compassionate he worried not just about her body but also her emotions.
35 While Jesus was still speaking, some people came from the house of Jairus, the synagogue leader. “Your daughter is dead,” they said. “Why bother the teacher anymore?”
Poor Jairus! During all this, his daughter laid ill at home, her life slipping away. It was torture to see Jesus take time out to minister to this woman while his daughter suffered. God is never slow, but He often seems slow to the sufferer. (Guzik)
Sometimes we think our prayer request is too little for Jesus. Or, he is too busy to care about our little problem. But, Jesus cares about each one of us equally. There is no prayer too small or insignificant to go the Father with in Jesus' name. It shows the Father not only your faith, but also your trust in Him for every area of you life.
36 Overhearing what they said, Jesus told him, “Don’t be afraid; just believe.” 37 He did not let anyone follow him except Peter, James and John the brother of James. 38 When they came to the home of the synagogue leader, Jesus saw a commotion, with people crying and wailing loudly. 39 He went in and said to them, “Why all this commotion and wailing? The child is not dead but asleep.” 40 But they laughed at him. After he put them all out, he took the child’s father and mother and the disciples who were with him, and went in where the child was. 41 He took her by the hand and said to her, “Talitha koum!” (which means “Little girl, I say to you, get up!”). 42 Immediately the girl stood up and began to walk around (she was twelve years old). At this they were completely astonished. 43 He gave strict orders not to let anyone know about this, and told them to give her something to eat.
The people in the house were wailing and crying, which was a sign they believed the girl to be dead. Others laughed at Jesus, which seems highly inappropriate given the situation. Jesus overheard the other people murmuring about him not being there, and he told them to not be afraid but to believe. When Jesus went into the house, the only three persons he allowed in were Peter, James, and John.
We will see as we journey through the gospels, we will see that Peter, James, and John formed an inner circle of those Jesus allowed to see certain things the other disciples did not. I.e. Jesus' Transfiguration.
Why did Jesus not allow the others in? Perhaps they might have been a nuisance or disturbance. Or, Jesus did not want to reward their lack of faith. Jesus performed his miracles judiciously and with discernment, because as we have already seen, the number of people following him had grown very large. Jesus didn't want to be seen as a magic show. Or, looked at only for his supernatural healing powers.
One can only imagine how grateful Jairus was after seeing his daughter raised from the dead, or at least nearly dead? I would have loved to hear his first message at the synagogue the next week. I am sure many Jews in his synagogue came to faith after hearing his story of his daughter's miraculous healing.
Do you have the faith to believe Jesus can heal you or anyone else from whatever their problem is big or small? Do you think the church should have more of an emphasis on healing prayer? For example should this be a part of Sunday morning worship services? If not, why not?
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