Jesus said to him, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.
Memory of the Month: 2 Corinthians 5:17
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.
Today's reading: NUMBERS 9-11 MARK 5:1-20
If We...He Will
Jesus commanded the demon called 'Legion' to leave the man and go into a herd of pigs and it was as Jesus commanded. The local folks saw a 'crazy man' one day and after his encounter with Jesus, they found him quiet, sane, and fully clothed. Jesus had started his entire world over completely. Jesus had deleted this man's history-as far as God is concerned-and started the man's life over completely.(from Mark 5)
Jesus gave the man His peace and the man sat quietly-the man who once roamed screaming and crying and cutting himself with sharp stones as he ran through the burial grounds-this man sat calmly.
Jesus made the man completely sane. The once ravaged and shattered mind was sane-without any confusion His mind functioned the way God had intended.
Jesus provided for the man. The locals found him fully clothed. We don't know if Jesus provided the clothing; that's not really the point. The point is that the man had the mind to be clothed. He was no longer tearing off his clothes-a crazy man does that. He was fully clothed because Jesus had made him whole.
Ever hear of a 'come to Jesus meeting'? This man had had a 'come to Jesus meeting'. It started with the man's sight of Jesus. The man, the demon inside him, knew who Jesus was. He ran to Jesus and fell on his knees and asked Jesus, "What's this all about?"
Your day-the rest of your life-starts every time you come to Jesus-every time you pray, God removes the anxiety and worry; He re-centers your mind and makes all the crooked straight and removes confusion; the Holy Spirit covers you with the full armor of God.
All we have to ask of God is, what is this all about. All we have to do is fall on our knees in front of God. This is our humbling. When all our 'stuff' is confessed, we need not say a word-just sit clothed in His righteousness-clothed in Jesus.
Romans 13:14 ►
Rather, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not think about how to gratify the desires of the flesh.
At the end of this story, the man asked if he could go with Jesus. Jesus said,
" Stay here; I want you to go back home to your own people and let them see what the Lord has done—how He has had mercy on you." Mark 5:19
The man saw Jesus and ran to Him and fell on his knees. He asked what this was all about. Jesus changed him completely and gave Him God's peace and God's sanity and gave the man his duties.
Every time we stop and really see Jesus it brings us to our knees in humility. Each time we ask Him to, the Holy Spirit wipes away all confusion and fills us with His peace, covers us with His righteousness and gives us direction.
The key is that we 'really see' him. The key is going to Jesus when we are confused and roaming(when we are in sin) and humbling ourselves at His feet. Every morning when we rise, Jesus is right there waiting. We must run to Him and let Him center us up, clean us up, and cover us up.
Remember that the crazy man had lived like Jesus found him for years and had mercy on Him and fixed Him. Remember the man obeyed Jesus. Remember that in Christ we have the Holy Spirit always to keep us where we should be and He is always ready to bring us face to face-when we have turned our backs on Him when we sin-and restores us in complete forgiveness.
Stop running from Him(if you run)-run to Him; stop ignoring the truth(if you ignore Him); do what He tells you to do.
1 John 1:9, ESV: "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."
That is the big 'if'. If we confess, if we humble ourselves, if we return to Jesus-He will forgive and restore as many times as we return. If we...He will...
Right now-Your whole world is perfect in Christ Jesus if you ask...
...because He loves us...
Father in Heaven,
Forgive me my own confusion. It is mine by my decisions. Thank you for Your mercy on me. I want Your divine sanity and righteousness.
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