The Other Side

The Other Side
Words of Faith 11-29-2023
Dr. Jeffrey D. Hoy © 2023
Jeff.Hoy@faithfellowshipweb.com
Faith Fellowship Church - Melbourne, FL
www.faithfellowshipweb.com
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Mark 5
They went across the lake to the region of the Gerasenes. [2] When Jesus got out of the boat, a man with an evil spirit came from the tombs to meet him. [3] This man lived in the tombs, and no one could bind him anymore, not even with a chain. [4] 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. [5] Night and day among the tombs and in the hills he would cry out and cut himself with stones.

Jesus landed on the "other side" of the lake, the region of the Gerasenes. This area was known for demonic activity and was essentially "enemy territory." Those who were odd, homeless, crazy, or demon-possessed lived among the tombs nearby, and the area surrounding the tombs was considered especially unclean.
Jesus had no more set foot upon the shore, but He was confronted by a man tortured by demons. The man was in a terrible state. He was self-destructive. He ran around naked and lived among the tombs. People had attempted to constrain him with chains but to no avail. He ran around, clattering with broken chains. He seemed like a hopeless case to everyone. Everyone except Jesus. Jesus did not accidentally happen upon this tortured soul. He was why Jesus came.
Jesus specializes in hopeless cases, in people that everyone else has given up on, and in reaching out to those that everyone else throws away. Even the disciples had no interest in this case. During this whole episode, Jesus was apparently on His own as far as the disciples were concerned. Jesus exited the boat, but the Twelve elected to remain behind.
We can almost hear them... "You go ahead, Jesus. You take care of the naked, cut-up, bruised, screaming demon-possessed man with the broken chains hanging on his arms. We'll just stay here and tidy up the boat. Anyway, it's almost lunchtime, so we'll just see what we can find."
When the storm came, the disciples' faith was little, and we don't see much more now. They had just heard Jesus ask, "Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?" They responded by being terrified and asking each other, "Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!" Jesus was about to answer that question clearly, but they would be watching from a distance.
The truth is that it's always easier to stay in the boat- to stay in the safe and predictable places, to stay away from bruised, wounded, naked, bleeding people. But guess what? If you choose to stay in the boat, you may suddenly realize that you are no longer where Jesus is. He is out there with a hopeless case that no one wants to work on.
Now, don't misunderstand. Jesus sometimes withdrew from the crowds, observed the Sabbath, and practiced sanctuary with the Father. But along the way, the Spirit of God continually draws us out of the safe places.

Lord, I want to be where You are. Not just to be where the action is but to be where you are. Forgive me for the times I have stayed behind. Draw me out of the safety of the boat. Give me wisdom and grace to hear and know the call and the courage to respond. In Jesus' name, Amen.

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© Jeffrey D. Hoy 2023
Dr. Jeffrey D. Hoy - Faith Fellowship Church (EFCA)
2820 Business Center Blvd.
Melbourne, Florida 32940 (321)-259-7200
Jeff.Hoy@faithfellowshipweb.com
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The Words of Faith devotion is published five days a week by E-mail, excluding Federal holidays. Please feel free to forward this devotion to a friend who might be blessed by this devotion. Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture is quoted from the New International Version (R) of The Holy Bible. Copyright (c) 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved. Words of Faith (c) 1997, 2023 Jeffrey D. Hoy. All rights reserved. Permission is granted to forward this copyrighted material or use portions of it with appropriate notation of the source for non-profit purposes.