Box

When reading through the Gospels, we get the powerful accounts of Jesus' healing and teaching as he travels around with his disciples.

I had read this story before, but something caught my eye the second time around.

In Mark chapter 5 Jesus encounters a demon possessed man who has a bad reputation from around that region.

"This man lived in the tombs, and no one could bind him anymore, not even with a chain. 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. Night and day among the tombs and in the hills he would cry out and cut himself with stones." Mark 5:1-5

… Now maybe its just me, but that doesn't sound like a person you would run into in the back alley (or I guess, in this case, the dark hillside)

But the next verse is what got me:

"When he saw Jesus from a distance, he ran and fell on his knees in front of him" 

Mind blown? 

No?

Let me explain.

We have a demon possessed man who NOBODY has been able to contain because of his power. No man or man made item has done the trick of controlling this man.

Yet "when he saw Jesus from a distance" he completely surrenders and the demons beg Jesus to be cast into the pigs. The NIV version even says in verse 13 "He gave them permission…". 

Most people who talk about this story really just hit on the fact that Jesus had the power to cast demons out of the mans body but I argue it is way more.

It took the sense of sight, from a distance, for the man to fall to his knees before Jesus.

It's nothing new to most of us to hear that Jesus had the power and authority to cast the demons out of the possessed tomb-junkie but most of us aren't rejoicing in this fact fully because in our everyday lives we aren't trusting the demon-commanding power of God, we are scared and halfway trusting some sort of flaky boxed up God.

"Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever" Hebrews 13:8

Some of us go to this verse for reassurance that Gods love will never fail because his love is unconditional because he never changes. And this beautiful promise is definitely true, but lets remember this in the scope of Jesus' power. The same God who gave his son authority and power to drive out a legion of demons from this man in Mark, is the same God who is with his children always and is powerful enough to control every situation in your life and is good enough to work them out for your good.

Realize his power.

Jesus is not a box-worthy God.