My name is Legion; for we are many

 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.

- Mark 5:1-20

Yesterday, we read that when evening had come after a day of preaching to the crowds in parables, He said to them, "Let us cross over to the other side."  Now when they had left the multitude, they took Him along in the boat as He was.  And other little boats were also with Him.  And a great windstorm arose, and the waves beat into the boat, so that it was already filling.  But He was in the stern, asleep on a pillow.  And they awoke Him and said to Him, "Teacher, do You not care that we are perishing?"  Then He arose and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, "Peace, be still!"  And the wind ceased and there was a great calm.  But He said to them, "Why are you so fearful?  How is it that you have no faith?"  And they feared exceedingly, and said to one another, "Who can this be, that even the wind and the sea obey Him!"

  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."  Let's consider the scene before us, like a stage that is set.   Jesus and the disciples have come from across the other side of the Sea of Galilee, through a raging windstorm that had seasoned fishermen worried for their lives.  It was Jesus who told the disciples, "Let us cross over to the other side."  Clearly, there was some aim or purpose in mind on Jesus' part.   My study bible says that the country of the Gadarenes, located in Galilee, was an area with many Gentiles living among the Jews.  But as they arrive, the disciples see this scene.   He's a man so completely outside of community that he's been forced to live among the tombs; he can't be bound or contained inside of community laws, rules, order.  Even the shackles and the chains can't hold him.  He cries out night and day, cutting himself with stones.  He's a man clearly in chaos, outside of right order or rationality.  He's far away from what Logos represents, and we find out why:  he's "occupied" by a legion of unclean spirits.  But we get a clue as to the heart of this man:  his first action is to run to Jesus and worship Him.  Some people dispute the translation of this Greek word into "worship," but it's the word commonly used for the worship position, kneeling down as if to kiss the feet of Christ.  As is now "usual" in Mark's Gospel, the unclean spirits know who Jesus is.  It must be a shocking, stunning sight to the disciples, who've already crossed the sea in terror for their lives because of the night storm.

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.   The evidence of Gentile influence is here in the herding of the swine.  My study bible tells us that in the opinion of many, these are apostate Jews who've taken to herding swine, forbidden by Law (Deuteronomy 14:8) as swine are considered unclean animals.  In that sense, it's "fitting" that the unclean spirits go into the swine.  We note that while God protected this man as human being from the full influence of these destructive demons, the swine sweep down the cliff in suicidal frenzy.

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.   Again, we see evidence of the "impurity" or irreverence of these people; they aren't glad that the man is healed.  Instead, they're just upset because of the loss of the swine.   They reject Christ and His work for themselves and plead with Him to leave.  This isn't real community, it's a place that has "wrong-relatedness" -- they are not righteous people.

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.  The Decapolis (Greek, meaning "ten cities") was a region of Greek-speaking cities in a frontier of the Roman Empire.  Each was a city-state but they shared Greek and Roman culture.  Again, we're dealing with a region with a high level of Gentile influence, but this healed demoniac becomes the perfect "apostle" for Christ's work, showing and proclaiming all that Jesus had done for him.

It's important that we understand the disciples have gone with Jesus into what is still historically Jewish territory, but with a very strong Gentile influence from colonization throughout various historical periods.  We see those who are ostensibly Jewish herding swine, unthinkable in more "pure" Jewish regions like Jerusalem and Judea.  And for this sort of influence those from Galilee are looked down upon, generally speaking.  In fact Jesus' own ministry is disparaged because of His own Galilean origins (by those who do not know He was born in Bethlehem, we should note).   In John's Gospel, we read statements to this effect more than once (see John 7:52, also John 1:46).   But nothing stops Jesus from traveling to this place -- we might call it "God-forsaken" otherwise! -- and coming to this man occupied with a legion of demons, or "unclean spirits" as the passage tells us.  A Legion was a unit of the Roman army (and therefore also a symbol of the Gentile influence and occupation) composed of between 3,000 to 6,000 men.  We can't imagine the baffling, frightening, even terrifying meaning of this image confronting the disciples.  The demons rush into the thousands of swine, also no doubt disturbing to the disciples who consider themselves to be devout Jews.  It's an extraordinary sort of picture, as a scene possibly set in a Greek myth such as the stories of Jason or Odysseus, but with an essentially Jewish spiritual understanding to the story.  The meaning can't be lost on us, either, as we see that Jesus has traveled here and commanded His disciples to do so apparently just to reach this one man.  It's an extraordinary feat:  dispatching thousands of demons along with (appropriately for the spiritual perspective of the story), in effect, thousands of swine.  This part of the story shows Jesus' great spiritual power.  But there's also the adventure of faith in the crossing of the sea by night in a terrible storm, Jesus' fearless leadership into this place where God has been abandoned by God's people, in order to save this man who has become frenzied and outcast by the influence of the demons.   He lives among the tombs as a sign of the loss of his right and proper life under God's care.  Our hero in this "mythical-type" story is Christ who comes across the sea and into strange territory in order to salvage the life of one so besieged and yet full of faith, who runs to worship at Jesus' feet when He appears.  And that's what we take with us.  That is the Jesus who is the Redeemer, the Ransomer, the one who rescues us from wherever we are held and bound, from our place as outcasts driven by torment of one kind or another.  This is the Christ we know, and the faith and discipleship He calls us toward.  This is the Man who has taught the leadership that the Sabbath was made for man, whose whole ministry characterizes the "Most High God" as the One who heals, in every kind of possible way.  Jesus gives us salvation, and there is nothing too powerful for Him to reach into and to transform;  He saves the demoniac as He saves the world.  There is no territory where He is unwelcome or unable to enter via faith, no matter how abandoned we may feel. 

My name is Legion; for we are many

 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.

- Mark 5:1-20

 In yesterday's reading, we read that when evening had come, Jesus said to His disciples, "Let us cross over to the other side."  Now when they had left the multitude, they took Him along in the boat as He was.  And other little boats were also with Him.  And a great windstorm arose, and the waves beat into the boat, so that it was already filling.  But He was in the stern, asleep on a pillow.  And they awoke Him and said to Him, "Teacher, do You not care that we are perishing?"  Then He arose and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, "Peace, be still!"  And the wind ceased and there was a great calm.  But He said to them, "Why are you so fearful?  How is it that you have no faith?"  And they feared exceedingly, and said to one another, "Who can this be, that even the wind and the sea obey Him!" 

Then they came to the other side of the sea, to the country of the Gadarenes. Here, we and the disciples with Christ find ourselves in Gentile territory.  This is a place where pigs are raised, which were considered unclean by Jews.  We are on the other side of the Sea of Galilee, which was crossed in the storm in yesterday's reading.

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.   Here's a very descriptive and vivid image of this man with an unclean spirit.  The tombs here are caves cut out of soft rock.   This episode in Mark's Gospel could almost remind us of stories of Jason or Odysseus, but in this case the leader of this voyage across the sea into strange territory is Jesus.  It is He who has directed them to this place, where this tormented man is found.  The description here is very strong:  no one can bind him, not even with chains.  He goes about in his broken shackles and chains; he's untameable.  He can't live among the civilized, but he's in the mountains and tombs.  His life is self-destructive:  we can hear the wail of someone ceaselessly tortured by their own inner lives -- day and night he was crying out and cutting himself with stones.  He is fully isolated by his affliction from any sort of community life with other human beings.

 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."   My study bible tells us, "The deranged man worshiped Jesus; the demons see Him and fear torment. Not only are the demons unable to resist Jesus' command, they are unable to escape confrontation with Him.  though they have power over the man, they have no power over Jesus.  Jesus' words accomplish in an instant what shackles and chains cannot." The word for torment here can also mean a kind of examination or trial using beatings or torture. 

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.  My study bible says that "out of the country perhaps reflects both the wretched man's fear of being compelled to leave his homeland and the demons' fear of being cast out of the man."   A Roman army legion consisted of several thousand foot soldiers with cavalry.  In contrast to the demons' fear of trial by torment, Jesus' examination is a simple and straightforward one:  "What is your name?"

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.  My study bible says that "the destruction of the unclean swine was appropriate according to Jewish law."   In this sense the "unclean" demons go into an "unclean" territory.  Their effect on the swine is the same self-destructive impulse witnessed in the tortured man.

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.   A note in my study bible says, "They ('those who fed the swine') fear Jesus' power, which they do not understand, and possible further disturbance from Him.  Their primary concern is with animals and property rights; Jesus is more concerned about the life of a demon-possessed man." 

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.  My study bible tells us:  "Jesus allows an exception to the messianic secret:  this man may tell others.  Perhaps in Gentile territory misunderstanding of Jesus' mission was not so much a problem, because the Gentiles had no preconceptions about the Messiah."  The Decapolis ("Ten Cities") was a Greek-speaking region east of Galilee, and included a city called Gadara.

One thing is very clear from this story:  Jesus' power and authority extend way beyond the boundaries of Jewish life, beyond the boundaries of Israel.  Here, in this foreign territory, His power extends over a legion of demons who possess one man who cannot be subdued or tamed.  And in that sense, it is another illustration of the parables taught in Monday's and Tuesday's readings.  The growth of this Kingdom is surprising, and its seeds may be sown anywhere.  We can't really tell where the good ground may be found.  Even in this most unlikely of places, good ground is found in this poor man tormented by a legion of demons, who lives among the tombs and the herds of swine, and surrounded by people who only want Jesus to leave them.   That the man himself worshiped Jesus is important, because it tells us about the heart.  We can be going through a sea of afflictions and difficulties, with all kinds of strikes against us in our lives, but the love of Christ transcends all of that.  Most importantly, Christ's response to our love sees past all of that.  And we get down, once again, to the heart of this Gospel:  Jesus is the stronger man who has come to subdue the strong man (and his legions) that afflict us.  There is hope, wherever we are and whoever we are.  This is why we refrain from judgment, and the judgment is not ours:  it's Christ's.  He is the knower-of-hearts.  So in this Legion demoniac we have illustrated a very vivid example of Jesus' teaching about the heart, and about how we receive the Kingdom.  This demoniac recognized the One who'd come to the place from afar and was capable of healing him, helping him, and fell down on his knees before Jesus, even as he continued to be afflicted by the presence of the demons.  This is the literal meaning of the word translated as worship here in the text:  it is a full physical way of showing obeisance and love.  At the heart of this word (proskyneo) is a word meaning "to kiss" as in an act of profound reverence.  There are so many things that we can see in this reading of the demoniac in Mark's Gospel.  But for today, let us look at the heart of this man in forsaken territory among the tombs, and with so many afflictions, so many strikes against him.  Nothing in this world could make him a part of community, but the power of Christ responds to faith and love, to a heart that cries out in prayer and recognition of this Savior, this "stronger man."  Let us remember that wherever we are we have this hope, in whatever circumstances we may be found -- or those of others we wish to help -- He is there with His response, and sees through all things that might seem to stand in the way of His love for us. 

What have I to do with You, Jesus, Son of the Most High God?

 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.

- Mark 5:1-20

In yesterday's reading, we were told that after a day of preaching in many parables, when evening had come, He said to them, "Let us cross over to the other side."  Now when they had left the multitude, they took Him along in the boat as He was.  And other little boats were also with Him.  And a great windstorm arose, and the waves beat into the boat, so that it was already filling.  But He was in the stern, asleep on a pillow.  And they awoke Him and said to Him, "Teacher, do You not care that we are perishing?"  Then He arose and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, "Peace, be still!"  And the wind ceased and there was a great calm.  But He said to them, "Why are you so fearful?  How is it that you have no faith?"  And they feared exceedingly, and said to one another, "Who can this be, that even the wind and the sea obey Him!"

 Then they came to the other side of the sea, to the country of the Gadarenes.  My study bible points out about this passage:  "The Gadarenes were Gentiles, so they could raise pigs, which were considered unclean by Jews."  We are now on the "other side" of the sea of Galilee, in Gentile territory, where Jesus has instructed His disciples to go.  He carries His ministry to the Gentiles.

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.   These tombs, my study bible says, were caves cut out of soft rock.  We see the damaged and constantly damaging state of this poor man.  He's wild, untamable and uncontrollable.  This gives us a message about his state of being, that it is in chaos, like the wind and the wild surf in yesterday's reading.  But in this case, it is a human being who is so terribly afflicted by disorder that he lives among the tombs, with the dead.  He cannot control himself, not even with shackles and chains can he be in order at all.  Night and day, he's in the mountains and in the tombs, outside of all civilized life, "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!"  My study bible says, "The deranged man worshiped Jesus; the demons see Him and fear torment.  Not only are the demons unable to resist Jesus' command, they are unable to escape confrontation with Him.  Though they have power over the man, they have no power over Jesus.  Jesus' words accomplish in an instant what shackles and chains cannot."  There's a kind of state of war going on within this man, a war for possession of his life, including his mind and heart:  it is his own natural impulse to worship Christ.  But the demons fear the same torment with which they afflict the man.  Jesus comes to save and to heal.

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.   My study bible says that "out of the country perhaps reflects both the wretched man's fear of being compelled to leave his homeland and the demons' fear of being cast out of the man."  It also seems possible to me that "out of the country" may reflect the demons' fear of being thrown out of the country of this place outside the city, where they dwell among the tombs, the rocks and desolate mountains, perhaps into Jewish territory.  Whatever it is, this phrase reflects the great fear that accompanies their presence. 

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.   My study bible says that "the destruction of the unclean swine was appropriate according to Jewish law."   Mark gives us the number of the swine; this is a "legion" indeed.  Their terrible violence gives us a clue as to the nature of this legion of unclean spirits; not only are they violent, they are wholly self-destructive and destructive of any life they touch.  This mass suicide also reflects the deranged fear that dominates their presence.

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.  My study bible notes:  "They ('those who fed the swine')  fear Jesus' power, which they do not understand, and possible further disturbance from Him.  Their primary concern is with animals and property rights; Jesus is more concerned about the life of a demon-possessed man."  The juxtaposition of the words here in these verses does give us a striking picture:  the people who fed the swine "saw the one who had been demon-possessed and had the legion, sitting and clothed and in his right mind."  And then they were afraid.

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.  My study bible notes here:  "Jesus allows an exception to the messianic secret:  this man may tell others.  Perhaps in Gentile territory misunderstanding of Jesus' mission was not so much a problem, because the Gentiles had no preconceptions about the Messiah."  At any rate, this saved and healed man becomes an evangelist and an apostle.  Even before the Twelve, he is sent out to "tell what great things the Lord has done for you, and how He has had compassion on you."  He is, in this sense, sent on a mission to spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the Gentiles.

In the story of the Gadarene demoniac, there are once again many different ways of seeing and looking at this story, many different angles that can tell us something about this Kingdom of Jesus Christ.  First of all, the man is in an absolutely terrible state, "occupied" by a legion of foreign troops in this sense, by those who care nothing for him but only exist to bring him destruction and to exploit him.  He has no control over what happens to his body, his mind and spirit, but nevertheless he struggles under this occupation.  He sees Jesus whom he knows immediately as a saving force, a power that can knock the demons over and claim their power and "save" him.  He worships Jesus immediately.  The metaphors of the strong man (or Legion in this case) and the stronger man who comes to save hold true for this story.  But in another sense, we can see in this story an example of what this demonic power, this afflicting kingdom, does to us as human beings.  It is parasitical.  It thrives on fear.  It leaves us afflicted, self-destructive, in disorder and chaos, and it thrives on this desolate place that it knows best and fears leaving.  What things can you think of in our modern world that reflect these characteristics?  While modern psychology and medical science may tell us many true things about the elements of disease and addiction that trouble us today, we also note their characteristics that are reflected in this story.  There's no doubt that the truth about any illness is an essential part of healing and a cure, but we needn't leave out the obvious understanding that we are also spiritual beings, and that when anything reflects characteristics which we've recognized in spiritual history as that which belongs to an afflictive power, it helps us to understand what loving, and just, and saving power can and will do.  We cannot leave out the grace of God, the spiritual truth of Christ.  It helps us to recognize the insidious sort of power of affliction, that which binds us to what is familiar but destructive and desolate, and the kind of disorder it creates that needs the order of Logos, that which gives us meaning and value and right-relatedness, true justice.  Let us remember the saving power of spiritual truth and prayer and grace at work.  Without it, we may just find we are in a kind of disorder that only faith can help us to adjust back to our true nature, with all the tools we can use to restore our right-relatedness to assist, under a right and true direction.  It is this grace that gives us the faith and hope even against a whole army, a legion, of troubles that afflict and oppress us.