Both Mark and Luke, ch’s 5 and 8 respectively, record the dramatically heartbreaking story of a man tormented by a legion of demons, living among the tombs, cutting himself, and crying out.

We don’t know if the name “Legion” is literal or figurative. A Roman Legion comprised some 6000 soldiers. But what we do know is that the demons said to Jesus, “we are many.“

“Among the tombs” is nothing like modern cemeteries. The pics below show the area where the man roamed. The first pic looking east from the Sea of Galilee to the region where the man lived. The second pic is from the region looking west back toward the Sea of Galilee. And the other pics are among the mountain tombs. The “tombs” are actually small caves where loved ones were buried.

As I’ve contemplated what i saw, I’ve thought about the torment I’ve experienced through loss, the suffocating darkness of depression, and growing up in a horrifically violent home. Additionally, I’ve thought of so many people I know who have lived (and are living) with great pain.

In a way, we’ve all “lived among our own tombs” desperately crying out for help.

Mark records that the demons had made the man so maddeningly strong, “No one could subdue him.” Then – Jesus shows up, and the demons were terrified, screaming and begging for mercy.

We aren’t told how long that poor man had suffered. All we know is that he cried out for the one thing that would liberate him from his suffering: peace. And then, one day the Prince of Peace walked up to him and – with a word – set him free.

I hope I get to meet that man in heaven. He can tell me the whole story of how Jesus set him free and saved his life. Then I can tell him my story of how Jesus has set me free and saved my life.

Don’t miss this part of the story:

The man didn’t have to go looking for Jesus. Jesus came looking for him! He entered the man’s darkness and pain. Jesus walked right into the man’s vile behavior. Jesus, the Light of the World, lit that man up.

Are you living “among your own tombs” of pain, worry, fear, anger, loneliness, doubt, etc.?

Jesus is there, among your tombs. He is there  And he loves you. In him you will find the peace, love, and hope you’ve been crying out for.

nw