Pigs, Demons and You

Bible Study

CBC WLA

June 13, 2008

Learning Objectives

1. Who was the demon-possessed man, where was he from?

2. Where was Jesus from?

3. Where did Jesus travel to?

4. Why did Jesus use pigs?

5. Why was Jesus asked to leave?

6. Why was going there controversial?

7. Application

Mark 5: 1-20

The healing of the demon-possessed man

The Decapolis

Gerasa

Gerasa City Plaza

The Decapolis

• Made up of 10 city-states, each with its own ruler/king

• Founded during the reign of Alexander the Great

• Hellenistic culture - seen as gentile territory by the Jews

Israel: A country divided

Israel divided in two:

North: 1. Galilee, Galileans2. Ruled by King Herod

South: 1. Judea, Judeans2. Ruled by Roman

governors

A Country Divided: Galilee and Judea

Judea1. Ruled by Roman

Governors2. Where Jerusalem is3. Cosmopolitan,

sophisticated4. Viewed Galileans as

unsophisticated country hicks

5. John 7:416. Acts 2:4-7

A Country Divided: Galilee and Judah

Galilee1. Ruled by Herod2. Religiously

conservative3. Center of Jewish

Messianic Nationalism4. Jesus and most

disciples were Galileans

5. Land of the Twelve

Judah1. Ruled by Roman

Governors2. Where Jerusalem is3. Cosmopolitan,

sophisticated4. Viewed Galileans as

unsophisticated country hicks

5. John 7:416. Acts 2:4-7

Galilee: Land of the TwelveWhy was it called Land of the Twelve?

Mark 6:30-44

Jesus feeds the five thousand in the land of the twelve

Mark 6:30-44

• Where did the feeding of the five thousand take place?

• How many baskets left over?

• What was another name for “Galilee”?

• What was the significance of the number twelve in the feeding of the five thousand?

The Decapolis

• What was the Decapolis?

• When was it found?

• How was the culture different from Israel?

• What other name did the Jewish people use to describe that area?

The Decapolis

The Galileans referred to it as:

“The Land of the Seven”

WHY?

The DecapolisDeuteronomy 7:1

When the LORD your God brings you into the land you are entering to possess and drives out before you many nations—the Hittites, Girgashites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites, seven nations larger and stronger than you…

Land of the Seven

For the Jews, the Decapolis represented gentile territory, a pagan and unclean land.

“Land of the seven” became a phrase Jewish people used to referred to a gentile land.

Who Am I?

• My father was god and mother was a mortal woman

Who Am I?

• My father was god and mother was a mortal woman

• I died then resurrected

Who Am I?

• My father was god and mother was a mortal woman• I died then resurrected

• I turn water into wine

Who Am I?

• My father was god and mother was a mortal woman• I died then resurrected• I turn water into wine

• I am worshipped for bringing new life

Who Am I?

• My father was god and mother was a mortal woman• I died then resurrected• I turn water into wine• I am worshipped for bringing new life

• My mother’s name was Semele

Who Am I?

• My father was god and mother was a mortal woman

• I died then resurrected• I turn water into wine• I am worshipped for bringing new life• My mother’s was a mortal named Semele

• My father was Zeus, Greek god of lightning

Dionysus

Dionysus

Dionysus

1. Born out of Zeus’ affair with Semele, a priestess of Zeus

2. Was called god-man or son of god

3. Became god of fertility and the vine

4. Wine represented life, blood5. Main miracle: turning water

into wine6. Followers would leave a jar of

water outside the home and Dionysus was to turn it into wine by the next day

7. One of the sacred animals sacrificed to Dionysus was the pig

v. 11-13Were the pigs in the story by accident? Or

did Jesus use the pigs for a reason?

v.14-17

Why was Jesus asked to leave the Decapolis?

Jesus forces us to choose between the false gods of this

world and Himself.

How did the man respond to what Jesus did for him?

Mark 7:31

Jesus returns to the Decapolis

Mark 8:1-9

Jesus feeds the four thousand

Mark 8:17-21

How many baskets of bread were left?

And the Decapolis was also called: the Land of the _______.

What is the significance of the number of baskets left?

Learning objectives

• Where was Jesus From?• Where did Jesus travel to?• Why pigs?• Why was Jesus asked to leave? • Why was going to the Decapolis

controversial?• Application

Land of the seven: super unclean!

1. Gentile territory

2. Pigs roaming the place

3. A tomb

4. A demon-possessed man

No Pharisee or Jewish teacher would want to go to such a place!

Conclusions

• Jesus came to earth to feed and minister to both Jews and Gentiles.

• As Jesus followers, our job is to tell the story of what God has done for us.

• Who is qualified to evangelize?

• Have we made it too complicated?

Evangelism in the First Century was pretty simple…

“Hi, Come meet my friend Jesus.”

Conclusions

Where is the Decapolis in your life?

• A particular part of the world?

• A particular group of people?

Application

1. In your family group today, write down the person or people you want to evangelize to.

2. Pray openly for yourself.