From Clocker Valley in County Tyrone we present Let the Bible Speak. It's good to have you join us as Gospel Minister the Reverend Peter McIntyre is here to let the Bible speak and preach Christ in all his fullness. This afternoon we'll be thinking about this second incident that took place during a 24 hour cycle in the life of the Lord Jesus Christ. He has just calmed the waters of Galilee and now he arrives on the shore. And who does he meet? Please listen to the reading. Mark 5 beginning at verse 1. and they came over unto the other side of the sea into the country of the Gadarenes. And when he was come out of the ship, immediately there met him out of the tombs a man with an unclean spirit, who had his dwelling among the tombs, and no man could bind him, no, not with chains, because that he had been often bound with fetters and chains. And the chains had been plucked asunder by him, and the fetters broken in pieces, neither could any man tame him. And always, night and day, he was in the mountains and in the tombs, crying and cutting himself with stones. But when he saw Jesus afar off, he ran and worshipped him, and cried with a loud voice, and said, What have I to do with thee, Jesus, thou son of the Most High God? I adjure thee by God, that thou torment me not. For he said unto him, Come out of the man, thou unclean spirit. And he asked him, What is thy name? And he answered, saying, My name is Legion, for we are many. And he besought him much. that he would not send them away out of the country. Now there was nigh unto the mountains a great herd of swine feeding, and all the devils besought him, saying, Send us into the swine, that we may enter into them. And forthwith Jesus gave them leave. And the unclean spirits went out, and entered into the swine, and the herd ran violently down a steep place into the sea. They were about two thousand, and were choked in the sea. And they that fed the swine fled, and told it in the city and in the country, And they went out to see what it was that was done. And they came to Jesus, and see him that was possessed with the devil, and had the legion sitting, and clothed, and in his right mind. And they were afraid. And they that saw it told them how it befell to him that was possessed with the devil, and also concerning the swine. And they began to pray him to depart out of their coasts. And when he was come into the ship, he that had been possessed with the devil prayed him that he might be with him. Howbeit Jesus suffered him not, but saith unto him, Go home to thy friends, and tell them how great things the Lord hath done for thee, and hath had compassion on thee. and he departed and began to publish in Decapolis how great things Jesus had done for him and all men did marvel. We'll end our reading there at the verse 20. Jesus, the constant servant and minister, has spent a prolonged day teaching and instructing using his favourite parabolic method, connecting with the hearts of his congregation. As dusk settled, and as the final embers of daylight died out in the eastern sky, Christ lay in the rear of the ship for some rest, while the disciples navigated the passage across to the country of the Girgashins or Gedara as it is so named here. It was a short voyage as the lake was at its widest some six miles, and it is reckoned that this particular journey was approximately five miles. As was always the case with our Lord's ministry, there was a purpose in everything which his followers did not appreciate. As they navigated the sea with the Master fast asleep, he was in control directing that ship to an isolated desolate place where a tormented man needed his intervention as Christ stilled the waves in that crossing. The disciples were being prepared for the coming of a man's soul and mind, a man who was driven mad by the multitude of demons which had ravaged his life. The disciples, in the light of the silvery moon, were agitated and restless. Many thoughts were troubling their hearts that evening. They were still thinking about the suddenness with which the Saviour had brought the storm to a conclusion. And then when the boat came to shore, out of the darkness a strange wailing and screaming is heard. The disciples tremble as the howling sound draws closer until out of the blackness springs the emaciated bleeding form of a man Here was a man who lived among the dead, who possessed superhuman strength that enabled him to break whatever ropes or chains were employed to detain him. Here was a man with a mutilated body who was contributing to his own destruction. A suffering man who felt no pain. He was one to be avoided. He was a danger, a menace in his society. The Lord was face to face with the one whom we recognised by the name Legion. The circumstances were quite enough to frighten a normal person half to death. Let us consider what lessons we can learn from Legion. In the first place, Legion was tormented. The cause of his torment was demons. It is said that a Roman Legion numbered 6,000 soldiers. Whether Legion actually had 6,000 demons within him, we cannot tell, but he had a multitude of evil spirits that had tormented him. You do not have to be possessed by devils to be tormented by Satan. The scripture tells us that Satan steals away the good word of God from the heart. The Bible tells us that Satan accuses us of our sins and makes us feel guilty as if we cannot be forgiven. He tells us that God does not love us. He blinds our hearts to the gospel. That is torment enough. This man lived among the tombs. That was his residence. He was preoccupied with death. The Bible tells us that when we do not know God, we are dead in our sins. We are not members of his family. There's a life to be lived in the Lord, and if you do not live that life, if you do not enjoy the Christian life, then you're dead. You're living on the dark side. This man, he suffered. He cut himself with stones. His suffering was self-inflicted. Living for this world will always cause you pain. We see graphic reminders of that. People seek pleasure in alcohol, they seek pleasure from drugs and yet it causes them pain and suffering and torment and breaks up their relationships. The devil's method is destruction and when you refuse Christ as saviour you're on the path to destruction. This man was so helpless no one could tame him. They tried but he was beyond human help. No one can help your soul today. There is no preacher can save you. There is no man can save you. There is no church can save you. You cannot save yourself. We are helpless in our torment if we do not know God. Also, I'd like to talk to you about Legion being delivered. He was delivered when the demons recognised Christ. This is most interesting. They knew Christ. They realised that they would have to leave when Christ spoke. These devils, they recognised the authority of Jesus. These were damned and doomed spiritual creatures and yet they knew that they would have to surrender to Christ's voice. You are not damned and doomed. You're a precious soul whom Christ has died for. Will you not recognize the authority of Christ and submit to him? The Lord evicted these demons. He cast them into a herd of swine, feeding nearby. And the swine, they ran headlong down the side of the hill. over the cliff into the depths of the sea. The devils were Legion's sin. They were what troubled him. Your sin is what troubles you. And whenever you become a Christian, God puts your sin, and he puts it far away. In the Old Testament, we read of our sins being put into the depths of the sea. The Old Testament read of our sins being put right behind God's back forever and ever. God removing the guilt. This is what he can do for you today. He can deliver you from whatever torments you. Legion was also transformed. We see him now sitting at the feet of Jesus. He's not running about in his wild state of despair but he's at peace. He's at the feet of Christ. This is the first place for the new convert. When Christ saves a soul, He brings that soul to a place of happiness, and that place of happiness is at the very feet of Jesus. This man is in his right mind. He now sees life differently. The only way by which you can understand life with wisdom is through knowing Christ as your Saviour. When you come to Christ, He converts the soul. He changes the mind. It's called regeneration. You become born again and life becomes altogether different because you've been changed from within. This man looks different. He's wearing clothing now. The society that he lives in automatically recognises that a change has taken place. When God saves us, he works within, he changes the soul, he regenerates the mind and the outer man too is changed. The old sins are cast away. It becomes a natural progression and it becomes evident that we have been to Jesus for the cleansing power and that we've been washed in the blood of the Lamb. Fourthly and finally, legion was commissioned. The attitude of the people that Legion lived among is striking. It would appear that the pig farmers became afraid. Two thousand swine was a huge loss for one individual to bear. They were afraid that their businesses would be bankrupted also by this stranger from across the water and although Legion was cured they could not risk another episode of pigs being driven mad and so they said to Christ, please leave us. Christ offered that community more than they would ever lose and yet they put their wealth before what Christ would offer to them. Christ is offering you life today. Don't allow anything to come between you and the salvation of your soul. Don't allow any person any relationship, any pleasure to come between you and Jesus. If you do, you're on the way to disaster. Don't tell Jesus to go away as these people did. Now this man, Legion, he had a request. He said to the Lord, I want to go with you. If you're going to go back to Capernaum across the Sea of Galilee, I want to come with you. Jesus said, no, I don't want you to come. I want you to stay here. I want you to go home and tell your friends what great things God has done for your soul. Whenever we are Christians, We are so conscious that the Lord is not with us as he was with the disciples 2,000 years ago. Yes, he is with us in spirit, but he's not in body. He's in heaven in his body. But while he is away, he commissions us to go to our friends and to our family and tell them of Jesus. I can see this man leaving the ship, waving farewell to Jesus and the disciples on the seashore. I can see him taking the path that leads home. I can see him entering his local community. I can see the astonished look of the friends who had known him in a bygone age. I can see his family, perhaps his mother, wrapping her arms around him. Her boy had come. What has happened? Jesus has made the difference. It is good to evangelise in other places, but the best place to evangelise is home. If we have not got a testimony at home, there is no point in doing God's work anywhere else. Are you a Christian? Are you saved? Are you born again? You tell your friends what the Lord has done for your soul. Legion was a new convert but he did God's work and if you're a Christian I pray that today you will do God's work and that you will see the Lord working in your home and in your family. I thank you so much for listening. you've been listening to Let the Bible Speak. If we can be of any further spiritual help, or if you would like to receive some free gospel literature, we invite you to write to us. Our mailing address is Let the Bible Speak, Rev. Peter McIntyre, 13 Willand Crescent, Five Mile Town, County Tyrone, BT75OQL. That's Let the Bible Speak, Rev. Peter McIntyre, Thirteen, Willand, Crescent, Five Mile Town, County Tyrone, BT75, OQL. You may hear Mr. McIntyre preach each Lord's Day here in Clocker Valley Free Presbyterian Church at 11.30am and 7pm. For further information you may phone us at 028 8952 1611. 028 8952 1611. We assure you of a very warm welcome at all the services and look forward to having you visit with us. Thank you for listening today, may the Lord richly bless you, and don't forget to tune in on this same station at the same time next week, when once again we turn to the scriptures and let the Bible speak.