Morbid to Motivated

“And they come 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.” Mark 5:15-17

Here in Mark 5 is one of the most instructive examples of man’s depravity. The Gadarenes are relieved of a devil-possessed maniac who was roaming the countryside and rather than praise and glorify God, they worry about their swine business. For doing good, these people return evil and bid the Lord Himself to depart from them. And so it is with us. We are more concerned with our swine. If we have criminals and addicts roaming the streets of America so be it as long as we have our coins to count! We prefer our swine.

The devil-possessed man is a powerful depiction of our unregenerate nature: morbid, self-destructive, impossible to control. Yet Jesus seeks out and saves that which was lost1, and after conversion we find ourselves clothed with the righteousness of Christ, and in our right minds.

And after clothing us and justifying us we are given our instructions:

“Go home to thy friends, and tell them how great things the Lord hath done for thee, and hath had compassion on thee.”2

Scriptures:

1 Luke 19:10

2 Mark 7:19

Living Water

“And it came to pass, when she came to him, that she moved him to ask of her father a field: and she lighted off her ass; and Caleb said unto her, what wilt thou? And she said unto him, Give me a blessing: for thou hast given me a south land; give me also springs of water. And Caleb gave her the upper springs and the nether springs.” Judges 1:14-15

“If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it.” John 14:14

Here is the Lord’s boundless generosity. After giving Othniel a great victory over the land of Hebron and the hand of Caleb’s daughter in marriage the newlyweds make another request: springs of water for their land. Caleb has served the Lord faithfully all the days of his life, being one of the only ones of Joshua’s generation to inherit the land of Canaan. Notice Caleb does not rebuke his daughter’s request. He does not say, “You have received all of this land why are you being greedy for more.” She asks for water, which has a special significance in the scriptures.

Revelation speaks of “a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God…”1 Isaiah says of that water, “Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters…”2 and Jesus says that “the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.

And so Caleb, picturing the Lord gives her both the upper and nether springs, as he always does for His children abundantly above all that we ask or think...3

...whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely. - Revelation 22:17

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Rebecca and Eleazar at the Well - Ferdinand Bol public domain

Scriptures:

1Rev 22:1

2Is 55:1

3Eph 3:20

All Things Are of God

“Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered.

Blessed is the man unto whom the LORD imputeth not iniquity,

 and in whose spirit there is no guile.”

— Psalm 32:1-2

“And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself

by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation;

To wit, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to himself,

 not imputing their trespasses unto them;

and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation.”

— 2nd Corinthians 5:15-19

            While I was Arminian in my thinking and understanding of how the gospel works, it seemed to me that I had been carrying all this grievous sin in my past, and only after I came to the end of myself and said a sinner’s prayer did I obtain forgiveness. After all it is written, Draw nigh to God, and he will draw night to you[1]. I could have so easily died in my sins from the many foolish and dangerous things I got up to in my youth I thought!

            But Paul is saying something different and far more profound. That God himself is the prime mover of salvation, that through Christ he reconciled his people to Himself throughout all ages, that he always only ever sees us in Christ. Yes, we sinned and fell short of the glory of God. Yes we are by nature children of wrath like everyone else[2] and yet even when we were dead in sins,[God] quickened us together with Christ...[3]

            That is why David can say with such certainty after his first child by Bathsheba dies, “I shall go to him, but he shall not return to me...[4]”

            While I was Arminian I feared that people were dying and going to hell because I had not bothered to preach the gospel to them. The Bible says that while we should be evangelists and preach the gospel to all nations, salvation is not primarily a work of man but of the Lord. God is sovereign, and all things are of God and therefore not one hair on your head can fall to the ground without His knowledge and consent. My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father’s hand[5].

What was obscure in the Old Testament was the true name and identity of Jesus, and how he would ultimately inherit all nations,[6] but His work of reconciliation and his High Priestly office were from everlasting. He is “a priest forever after the order of Melchisedec[7].

“...Thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins.” — Matthew 1:21

[1]James 4:8

[2]Eph 2:3

[3]Eph 2:5

[4]2nd Sam 12:23

[5]John 10:29

[6]Ps 82:8

[7]Heb 7:17, Ps 110:4