Mark 5:18-20

Scripture:Mark 5:18-20 “As he [Jesus] was getting into the boat, the man who had been possessed with demons begged him that he might be with him. ¹⁹And he did not permit him but said to him, ‘Go home to your friends and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and how he has had mercy on you.’ ²⁰And he went away and began to proclaim in the Decapolis how much Jesus had done for him, and everyone marveled.”

Observation: The possessed man who Jesus healed was described as a man with an unclean spirit who lived among the tombs. He was so strong that he could not even be bound with chains and shackles. The response of the man to being freed from his possession by the demons is understandable. He wanted to be with the one who freed him. He wanted to be with Jesus. At first it is shocking to us that Jesus refused to allow the man to join him and his inner group of disciples and travel with them. We think of Jesus calling people to follow him not telling people that they are not to follow him. But notice what Jesus told the man in verse 19, “Go home to your friends and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and how he has had mercy on you.” Jesus had a mission and a ministry for the formerly possessed man. Jesus’ plan was not for the man to simply follow along after him. Jesus’ plan was for the man to more fully follow Jesus by going to do ministry rather than just watching ministry being done by Jesus. This reminds me of the angels’ question to the disciples after Jesus had ascended to heaven. Acts 1:10-11 paints this amazing picture for us. We are told that immediately after Jesus’ ascension that “Behold, two men stood by them in white robes, ¹¹and said, ‘Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.” We notice in the passage from Acts that the disciples were dumbstruck. They were just staring into the sky. They were seemingly immobilized. Then the angels asked them a pivotal question, “Why do you stand looking into heaven?” They were not to just stare in awe, they were to “Go” and do ministry.

Application:We often hear a great sermon or read an inspiring passage from the Bible. But it is what we do next that is of great importance. Will we just stare into the sky – frozen like the disciples? Or will we “Go” and act on what God has shown us as the disciples were instructed to do by the angels? We have a choice. Which path will we take? Will we take the path that ends with our hearing God’s word but not acting or will we take the path that results in mission and ministry? Robert Frost explains the significance of our decision, “Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—I took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference.”

Prayer: Lord lead me, Lord guide me, Lord use me in your mission and your ministry. Amen.

Dwight Enfield