Demonicac Described: Parallels to Rock Music

Introduction: The Gospel of Jesus Christ, Son of God

0:02 This sermon was preached on Sunday morning, April 14th, 1985, at the Trinity Baptist Church in Montville, New Jersey. Now will you turn with me, please, to the fifth chapter of Mark's Gospel, as today we resume our consecutive expositions of this portion of the Word of God, Mark's Gospel, and the fifth chapter. And I shall read the first twenty verses, Mark chapter 5, verses 1 through 20.

1:07 No, not with a chain, because that he had been often bound with fetters and chains, and the chains had been rent asunder by him, and the fetters broken in pieces, and no man had strength to tame him. And always, night and day, in the tombs and in the mountains, he was crying out and cutting himself with stones. When he saw Jesus from afar, he ran and worshipped him, and crying out with a loud voice, he said, What have I to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of the Most High God? I adjure you by God, torment me not.

1:53 For he said unto him, Come forth, you unclean spirit, out of the man. And he asked him, What is your name? And he said unto him, My name is Legion, for we are many. And he said unto him, My name is Legion, for we are many.

2:09 And he besought him much that he would not send them away out of the country. Now there was on the mountainside a great herd of swine feeding. And they besought him, saying, Send us into the swine, that we may enter into them. And he gave them leave.

2:27 And the unclean spirits came out and entered into the swine, and the herd rushed down the steep into the sea in number about two thousand. And they were drowned in the sea. They that fed them fled, and told it in the city and in the country. And they came to see what it was that had come to pass.

2:50 And they came to Jesus, and behold him that was possessed with demons, sitting, clothed, and in his right mind, even him that had the Legion. And they were afraid. And they that saw it declared unto them how it befell him, that was possessed with demons, and concerning the swine. And they began to beseech him to depart from their borders.

3:17 And as he was entering into the boat, he that had been possessed with demons besought him that he might be with him. And he suffered him not, but said unto him, Go to your house, unto your friends, and tell them how great things the Lord has done for you, and how he had mercy on you. And he went. And he went in his way, and began to publish in Decapolis how great things Jesus had done for him.

3:47 And all men marveled. Now let us once again seek the very thing we have asked of God in the singing of that hymn, that the unction from above would come down upon preacher and people, and that we may hear the voice of God speaking to us in his own word. Let us together seek God's face. Our Father, we come confessing that you have recorded in your word things that astound and amaze us.

4:25 Yet we thank you that we have your written revelation of your mind and will in the scriptures. We thank you especially for this record of the mighty power and grace of our Lord Jesus to this poor, pathetic man, possessed by a legion of demons, and we pray that as we begin to examine this passage this morning, the unction of the Holy Spirit will so rest upon preacher and listener that together we may be caught up in a fresh sight on the one hand of the ugliness and the horribleness of sin and of the devil, and the wonder and the glory and the power of our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen. Amen. Amen.

5:14 Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen.

5:14 Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen.

5:14 Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen.

5:14 Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen.

5:15 Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen.

5:15 Amen. Amen. Amen. Come and do your work of convicting of sin and revealing the Lord Jesus.

5:23 Hear our cry and meet us, we plead in Jesus' name. Amen. I have often had occasion to remind you that the opening words of Mark's gospel are indeed the standing clue to an understanding of that gospel. We read in those opening words, the beginning of the gospel, the gospel or the good news of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.

5:58 And after formally introducing him by an account of the ministry of John the Baptist, Mark then proceeds to set the Lord Jesus before us in all the glory of his mighty power, his condescending compassion and his forgiving mercy. Amen. Amen. Amen.

6:21 What good is this, that is, to please his righteousness? Well, he cannot shoes. David is passionate about the church. He is passionate about his people.

6:51 David is striving for the glory of Jesus Christ. He is desiring the Lord Jesus Christ as well. the emphasis of that incident recorded in the last paragraph of chapter 4. The disciples with our Lord were in that boat that suddenly almost sank under the waves that crashed in upon it in the midst of that sudden storm upon the lake of Galilee. And after the Lord Jesus was awakened and by the word of his power had stilled the tumultuous sea, the scripture tells us in verse 41 of chapter 4 that they feared exceedingly and said one to another, who then is this that even the wind and the sea obey him? No longer afraid of the elements, the tumultuous sea and the waves crashing upon the boat, for the sea had now become calm as glass. They are filled with a deep religious fear, with an awe that they are in the presence of someone who is more than man, the one who can speak a word to the tumultuous sea, and the sea recognizes the voice of its

The Setting and Structure of the Narrative

7:58 creator and its ruler and obeys him. Now with all of those thoughts still flushing as it were through their minds and percolating in their own spirits, try to do away with the chapter division as we take up the reading in chapter 5 and verse 1, and they came to the other side, of the sea. According to chapter 4 and verse 35, it was our Lord who had initiated this trip from the northern shore of the Sea of Galilee to some spot over on the eastern shore about six to eight miles south and east of Capernaum. And as they come to this part of the sea, the text says they come into the country of the Gerasenes. And as we come to this portion that I've read in your hearing, there are basically three sections in the narrative of what transpired when the Lord Jesus, with his disciples, came into the country of the Gerasenes. We have first of all a description of the wretched condition of this demon-possessed man in verses 1 to 5. And then we have in the second place an account of his

9:20 amazing power. And then we have in the second place an account of his amazing power. And then we have in the second place an account of his amazing power. And then we have in the second place an account of his amazing deliverance in verses 6 through 13. And then in verses 14 to 20, we have a record of the sequel to his amazing deliverance. In our study this morning, we'll have time only to examine the first section of the narrative, namely a description of the wretched condition of the demoniac of the Gerasenes. Now the record begins with a reference to the condition of the demoniac of the Gerasenes. Now the record begins with a reference to the place in which all of this transpired. It is called the country of the Gerasenes. Now much has been written and debated concerning the different spellings and the precise geographical location of this place described by Mark as the country of the Gerasenes. And I will say no more about that oft debated and lengthened description of the Gerasenes.

10:21 And I will say no more about that oft debated and lengthened description of the Gerasenes. And I will say no more about that oft debated and lengthened description of the Gerasenes. The Gerasenes was located 37 miles southeast of the Sea of Galilee. Then the designation was used very loosely to connect the area with the well-known city in the general area with which the non-Palestinian reader would be familiar. More probably, the reference is to the small town called Kirsa or Gersa, located near the sea about midway on the eastern shore. Matthew called it the country of the Gerasenes.

11:21 828. With reference to the city of Gadara, located six miles southeast of the southern end of the sea. The jurisdiction of the city of Gadara may have extended to the sea to include the small town of Kersa on the shore. Obviously, the story took place on the eastern shore of the lake. The area near the village of Kirsa meets the topographical requirements for the story.

11:50 End quote. In other words, archaeologists have discovered a town called Kirsa within that general region that is right on the eastern shore of Galilee is indeed a section where sharp cliffs come right up to the shore where there is a mountainous region and where to this day one can actually visit caves that were used as tombs in the day of our Lord. End quote. And that's all I'm going to say.

The Ultimate Cause of the Demoniac's Condition: Demonic Possession

12:21 About the place, I felt I needed to say that much since God, by the Holy Spirit, has told us that what transpires in this narrative took place in the country of the Gerasenes. Now, as we come to open up this first section, namely a description of the wretched condition of this demoniac, notice first of all what the text tells us about the ultimate cause. Of his condition. What was the ultimate cause of the condition of this pathetic man?

12:58 Verse 2 gives us the answer. And when he was come out of the boat, straightway there met him out of the tombs a man with an unclean spirit. Literally, there met them a man in an unclean spirit. In other words, he was so unclean.

13:21 In other words, he was so unclean. In other words, he was so unclean. He was utterly possessed and dominated by this evil spirit, that the evil spirit was the very realm of his existence. And as we read on in the narrative, and this is one reason why I read the entire narrative in your hearing, we see that this is no ordinary case of demon possession, in which one demon, one foul, evil personality took possession, of another human personality and body.

13:55 But in this case, far beyond the experience of Mary Magdalene, out of whom seven demons had been cast, this man was possessed literally by a multitude of demons. For you'll remember in verse 9, when Jesus asks, What is your name? The answer comes back, my name is Legion, for we are many. Now, the word Legion is perhaps not to be taken literally.

14:25 Taken literally, it would mean 6,000, a legion of Roman soldiers constituted 6,000 soldiers. And in Palestine, the presence of a legion of soldiers immediately spoke of an unconquerable power of oppression and of might. And when the demon responds and says, my name is Legion, And when the demon responds and says, my name is Legion, there is an acknowledgement that a multitude of evil spirits did indeed possess this one human personality, this one body and spirit of this man. And furthermore, in verse 13, that same emphasis is clearly set before us. He gave them leave, and the unclean spirits, plural, came out. And there were at least 2,000 of them, because, the 2,000 swine were inhabited, at least one evil spirit going into each swine and driving them all into the sea. Verse 15, And they came to Jesus, and behold, him that was possessed with demons, plural, even him that had the legion.

15:43 People were conscious of this unusual extent of his possession. Verse 16, And how it befell him that was possessed with demons, plural, verse 18, that he had been possessed with demons. And so, when we address the question of the ultimate cause of this man's pathetic condition, the answer of the word of God is clear. His human personality, with mind and will and affections and the faculties of memory, all that makes man the mysterious creature, he is possessed of a soul.

16:24 And that soul, inseparably joined to a body, in that human personality, there dwelt this multitude of distinct evil spirits. Now, unless we are prepared to negate the plain testimony of the word of God in a soul-destructive, carnal arrogance, or in a damning skepticism, the only answer to the question, what was the ultimate cause of this man's condition, is clear. The ultimate cause was that he was inhabited by a multitude of evil spirits. And as one commentator has wisely said, those who refuse to believe in the devil will end up refusing to believe in God. And if you sit here this morning and find the slightest pinch of skepticism over the plain testimony of the word of God, beware, to doubt that there are such things as demons, evil personalities, that can inhabit human personalities and bodies

17:42 is to doubt the plainest testimony of the Word of God! And he who in the arrogance of his skepticism doubts the existence of the devil and of demons, will ultimately doubt the existence of the God of the Bible himself. And although scripture tells us the devil and his minions often present themselves as angels of light, and sometimes even as messengers of mercy and of righteousness, here in this passage, the foul fiend of hell and all of his lackeys are seen in their true and native character. The ultimate cause then of the condition of this man was that he was possessed by a multitude of demons. Now secondly, notice what the text tells us about the specific manifestations of his condition. The ultimate cause of his condition is set before us first in the text. He was possessed with demons.

Specific Manifestations: Dwelling Among the Dead

18:54 But now what were the specific manifestations of his condition? Well, there are at least three things or three categories in which the specific manifestations of his condition are set before us. First of all, the place of his dwelling. Look at the text.

19:15 When he was come out of the boat, that is the Lord Jesus, straightway there met him out of the tombs a man with an unclean spirit who had his dwelling in the tombs. He is described as one who came out of the tombs, who had his very dwelling, or the word used could literally be rendered his living quarters, in the tombs. In that geographical area, as I've already suggested, we are told that there are some natural caves as well as some man-made caves that served as the burying places for the dead. This man was not always a dweller in the tombs, for in Luke's parallel passage, chapter 8 and verse 27 of Luke's gospel, we read that at one time, he was an ordinary city dweller, verse 27. And when he was come forth upon the land, there met him a certain man out of the city who had demons.

20:29 And for a long time he had worn no clothes and abode not in any house, but in the tombs. Here was a man who at one time mingled in the city life of the nearby town. A man who, if you saw him, apparently could not be distinguished. He could not be distinguished from any other ordinary northern Palestinian of that particular generation.

20:53 But now his dwelling place is among the dead. His companions at night are the bones of those who've long since left this scene. His companions were the embalmed bodies of the dead. And for anyone with any understanding of what this meant for a Jew, to touch a dead body, was to be rendered unclean, so that his very dwelling place, as it were, externally symbolized the uncleanness to which this man had sunk, being possessed by a multitude of unclean spirits, cast out from society, cut off from normal interaction, his dwelling place among the dead. The specific manifestation of his condition is, first of all, underscored with reference to the place of his dwelling. But then secondly, his activity and appearance. And Mark tells us four things about his activity and his appearance.

Specific Manifestations: Activity and Appearance

22:01 First of all, he was fearful in his supernatural strength. Verses 3 and 4. He had his dwelling in the tombs, and no man could anymore bind him, no, not with a chain. Because he had been often bound with fetters and chains, and the chains had been rent asunder by him, and the fetters, probably foot or ankle irons, broken in pieces, and no man had strength to tame him.

22:40 He was what we might call the devil's Samson. The devil's Samson. A man who was fearful in his supernatural strength. Apparently early in his condition, when the spirits would be active upon his spirit, and he would begin to go into one of his angry rages, they were able to bind him, but now it says they could no more bind him.

23:08 But whatever chains they forged to bind his hands and his ankles, he broke them asunder. And apparently, in his fury, he turned upon others, for we read in Matthew 8, 28, no man could pass by that way. Word went through that entire area to any visitor who came into the area. If you're making your way from this point to that point, don't go by that area.

23:35 There's a madman, possessed of supernatural strength. The devil's Samson is there. Beware. His activity and appearance is first of all set before, for us in terms of this fearful supernatural strength.

23:51 But secondly, he was frightening in his irrational bellowings. Verse 5. He was frightening in his irrational bellowings. Notice the language.

24:05 And always, night and day, in the tombs and in the mountains, he was crying out.

24:17 Now you know how sound, sound carries over the water. You know how sound echoes from mountain to mountain. Some of us who've been in the mountains have been fascinated when we've said, Hello! And then from mountain to mountain, Hello!

24:32 Hello! Hello! Hello! Hello!

24:34 Hello! Hello! And the text tells Us that one of the marks of his activity was this frightening and irrational pattern of bellowing night and day. I wonder, after the sea, was calmed, and before the boat slipped up onto the shore, if our Lord and the disciples had not already heard some of that bellowing echoing across the Sea of Galilee.

25:01 For it says, night and day, he was crying out irrational shrieks and screams and this maddening bellowing from this poor, pathetic, demon-possessed man. Night and day, night and day, night and day, night and day, night and day, night and day, night and day, night and day, night and day, piercing cries echoed through the mountains.

25:24 Piercing cries shot across the Sea of Galilee. This was his activity. But thirdly, we are told he was pathetic in his frenzied self-destruction. Not only fearful in his supernatural strength, no man could tame him.

25:44 Not only frightening in his irrational bellowings day and night, hollering about the mountains and in the mountains, and in the tombs. But he was pathetic in his frenzied self-destruction. The latter part of verse 5, and cutting himself with stones. The form of the verb indicates that this was his constant pattern.

26:08 When he came under the agitation of these evil spirits, he would find sharp stones and he would gouge himself and cut himself.

26:17 We don't know how long this pattern had gone on, but the whole thrust of the passage seems to indicate it was longer than a day or a week or a month that this man had become what we call a notorious town character. One can only imagine what the body of that man must have looked like. With scars from old wounds. With wounds just beginning to scab over and caked with dust and half-dried blood.

26:47 And with fresh open wounds pouring forth his own life's blood. Am I being gory? No. I'm expounding the word of God.

26:56 It says he was cutting himself with stones. You see what your kids look like when they fall down on the macadam and just little stones scrape the knee? What did this man look like? Who with that tremendous supernatural strength was engaged in this frenzied, pathetic pattern of self-destruction.

27:19 And then the fourth thing we are told is about his activity and appearance is that he was shameful in his self-imposed nakedness. Mark 5 in verse 15 says that when he was restored to sanity after the demons were passed were sent out of him that he was found clothed. The hint being that prior to that he was unclothed but what is only hinted in Mark is explicitly stated in Luke 8 and verse 27. So that we need not rest the case upon inference we read in verse 27 of Mark Luke chapter 8 for a long time you see this was not a condition that had existed for a day or a week or a month for a long time he had worn no clothing. So here he was in his shameful self-imposed nakedness no sense of embarrassment that people should see him in his nakedness all sense of modesty gone all sense of propriety gone a pathetic demon-possessed man.

Specific Manifestations: Hopeless Prospects for Change

28:44 Well the specific manifestations of his condition are not only set before us in terms of the place of his dwelling the tombs among the dead his activity and his appearance but thirdly thirdly his prospects for any change his prospects for any change the end of verse 4 no man had strength to tame him no man had strength to tame him and the indication seems to be in reading the parallel account in Luke that if there were times when he made attempts to go back into the city once the demons agitated him he was again driven out into the tomb. and there seemed to be no hope whatsoever from the human standpoint no man could help him no man could tame him no man could subdue him here is the picture of this demoniac now think back you mothers think back you fathers there was a time when in the city in which he was born the joyful news went forth the joyful news went forth mr. and mrs. so and so have a son and this demoniac was once a little baby that nursed at his mother's breast whose head was caressed

30:11 as he went off to sleep in his cradle over whom parents dogged and delighted when they announced to everyone that he had cut his first tooth and taken his first step and spoken his first word he was like any other baby that becomes a little boy that becomes a young man and when we ask the question how does he come into this pathetic state dwelling in the tombs engaged day and night in irrational bellowings constantly seeking to destroy himself as he cuts himself with jagged stones clonking about with the remains of the fetters and chains upon ankles and wrists and we say how did he come to that state? over that question the bible cast a blanket of silence I can't ask we know what he once was and now we know what he was when the ship of the Lord Jesus slipped up upon the shore near the place of his dwelling but that's all we know the picture is set before us in terms of the horrible frightening pathetic state of this demoniac of the Gerasenes now as I have sought simply to expound the first five verses

Application 1: The True Nature of the Devil's Influence

31:40 that set forth his wretched condition what are the practical lessons to be derived from this description? God willing next week we'll look at his marvelous deliverance in its details but I want us to concentrate now for the remaining time upon the practical lessons to be derived simply from this dreary dark frightening almost shall we say paralyzing picture of this pathetic man well I want to give three lines of application this morning first of all behold in this description of the wretched condition of the Gerasene demoniac the true nature and intention of the devil's influence upon mankind what is the true nature and intention of the devil's influence upon mankind if the devil could have his way with every one of the sons and daughters of Adam what would he make us?

32:46 precisely what his minions and his imps made this man for the scripture tells us according to John 8 44 that the devil is a murderer from the beginning the thief cometh not but for to steal to kill and to kill to destroy the devil from the moment he made his appearance in Eden had one intention with reference to mankind and that was utterly to obliterate if he could every last vestige of the image of God in man he was determined that man who had been made in God's image and after God's likeness the God whom he hated would be somehow changed from the likeness and image of God into his own image and into his own likeness here in this passage we see the true nature and intention of the devil's influence upon mankind if he could have his way with every one of us he would do precisely what he did with this man to drive us into the realm of the dead and there to have us utterly obsessed with irrational bellowings like mad beasts destroying ourselves until ultimately

34:14 the cries of our madness would join the cries of the damned in hell forever and forever in a real sense this description of the demoniac is the closest description of hell on earth that you'll find anywhere in the bible because how does the bible describe hell weeping wailing gnashing out the teeth the language of our blessed lord when he describes hell the rich man in hell in pain cried out I am tormented in these flames now granted all of the fallen sons and daughters of Adam are not demon possessed the bible nowhere teaches that all unsaved people are demon possessed but it does teach that they are devil controlled yes it does teach that if you are not in vital union with Jesus Christ through repentance and faith and the indwelling of the spirit you are devil controlled I did not say you're demon possessed for Ephesians chapter 2 says you hath he made alive who were dead in trespasses in sin wherein in time past you walked according to the

35:41 course of this world according to the prince of the power of the air the spirit who is at work in the sons of disobedience you are of your father the devil and the lust of your father you will do if you are not in Christ you are controlled by the devil and being controlled by the devil if he could have his way were it not for God's restraining grace were it not for the wonderful doctrine of common grace the devil would turn you into something just like this demon that's his true colors and don't you ever forget it now he may see in his wiles and stratagems that he can delude you and damn you by keeping you respectable well clothed properly clothed even modest he will do anything to keep you from seeing your need of Christ and embracing Christ that ultimately he may take you with him to the place where you will be like this demoniac where night and day you will wail not upon mountains and caves but in the lake of fire and in the pit of everlasting

Application 2: The Demonic Nature of Rock Music

37:08 burnings and this passage unmasks that foul deceiver who presents himself as a messenger of righteousness at times and as an angel of light and here in the passage we see something of the true nature and intention of the devil's influence upon mankind but secondly and here I plead with you children and young people and parents to listen to me I told my fellow elders it's been a long time since I've had such a sense of spiritual trauma and agony in coming to preach on a Lord's Day morning there's an issue that's in this passage some of you have already picked up on it I'm sure if you're at all sensitive that I must address this morning and it's this this description of this poor demoniac is an unmistakable parallel to the demonic nature of the rock music scene and you listen to me and you listen carefully I am not about to debate whether or not the musical elements of rock music are inherently evil or not let the musicologists debate it

38:37 but what I'm saying is this that the rock music scene has come to birth and full flower in the videotape rock music craze is nothing short of pervasively demonic in every way one of its aspects what is the great obsession with the videotapes and the rock music ghosts and the dead I forced myself two months ago to watch for a half an hour the top forty and again and again ghosts ghouls skeletons and the dead that is dwelling among the tombs parallel number one the second thing about this man was his what his frenzied bellowing any parallels any parallels kids listen to pastor in God's name listen to me this morning any parallels

40:05 when did you see a rock star self-possessed like a sane person trying to communicate sensible thought in a meaningful musical motif in a meaningful musical motif never with the insanity and madness of the wild rational bellowings of the rock star and that is not a caricature that's the truth and it's the same demons that possessed that so that they and they are rational bellowing like the poor madman let's get that what was the third mark of his condition we saw him didn't we we saw him didn't we self-destruction any parallels

41:29 someone speaking of the wonderful breakthrough that China was now open to the west and welcomed one of England's large rock troops you hear what happened in the course of going through their tour one of their numbers killed himself with his own knife when they worked themselves up into their frenzy and they begin to whip and to beat one another with their instruments and other things what is it it is the very demons that inhabited this man don't you say it's just an innocent phase don't you say it's a modern expression of musical liberty it is demonic it is from the pit what was the other mark of his condition his nakedness shameless nakedness shameful from the objective standpoint but from his standpoint shameless what happens in the rock stars really are rocking and the whole arena and theater is alive with what they're attempting to do then the frenzy leads to the tearing off of clothing most of which already bordered on nakedness by its immodest clinging nature nakedness

42:57 nakedness supernatural strength I've looked at some of those men and said how can they do that for four and five hours who gives them the strength the energy I expend preaching in an hour leaves me at times with a throbbing headache and utterly weary to the last cell of my being they go on expending treble that energy hour after hour after hour driven by a power that is not native to human beings you see the parallels I haven't forced them they're right there and as I meditated upon that passage I said oh God you could take this man and set him on the stage and let the video crew come in with its cams and this would be number one before the end of the month now you dear teenagers listen to me listen to me God help you to listen to me you know me well enough to know that I'm no killjoy I've been in many of your homes and I've laughed with you and wrestled with you on your own living room floors when you were smaller I hugged you and I kissed you and kidded with you you know I love you

44:27 you know it your conscience affirms it I'm not here to try to spoil your fun listen to me listen to me in the name of God teenagers hear me I don't care what kind of pressure is on you to listen to that stuff do you want to open your soul to the devil? to open your soul to demonic influence? then stick your Walkman on in secret when mom and dad aren't around and flip on the TV and go to your friend's house you expose yourself to the motif and to the emphasis and to the climate of the modern rock scene and my precious young people over whom many of us have wept many times in secret you're going to damn your soul

45:23 you'll open yourself up to influences that right now you say I'd never do that I wonder I wonder I wonder what was it in the development of that man what point was it in his life when he began to dabble with things that opened him up first of all to more general satanic control of his life and then a little more by degrees to the invasion of one spirit and then another until legion inhabited to the end of his life you say if there's something going on you tell me and tell me I know there are some of you precious girls here the thought that you'd lay with any man that blinked an eye at you is abhorrent you say not me I'll enter marriage a virgin you keep fooling around with rock music and virginity will be something you'll laugh at within three years mark my words you mark my words you'll sell your virginity you'll stay you'll neutralize all that mom and dad and Pastors in the House aren't there you'll sell your virginity you'll stain your cocoon you'll stain and you can've you're going to go and pastors and Sunday school teachers have labored to inculcate from the word of God because you'll open your soul and your personality to that concentrated demonic influence. I have even touched on the lyrics.

46:47 I don't need sadism, illicit sex, like animals in heat, everyone panting after his neighbor's wife.

47:03 Now you listen to me, parents.

47:06 May God give you ears to hear. Some of you parents have allowed your children to have their own TV.

47:17 Either you're hopelessly naive or you're a gutless wonder.

47:22 You hear me? You're hopelessly naive or you're a gutless wonder.

47:29 Let me ask you something. As a mature adult, do you find it a struggle to keep your TV disciplined so you can keep a good conscience about it? Yes or no? As a mature adult, do you find you must struggle to keep a good conscience about what you do and don't watch on your TV?

47:45 Yes or no? Hmm? Yes! What about that poor young teenager buffeted by the pressure of tears just beginning to be conscious of that emerging tremendous energy and potential of human sexuality trying to find his or her own identity and in the midst of all of that instability and undeveloped will, what do you do?

48:12 You give them their own TV? I say you're hopelessly naive. You're hopelessly naive or you're a gutless wonder. You don't have the spiritual guts to rear back and say to your kids, No!

48:26 I will not allow a TV in your room unmonitored by me. I will not allow indiscriminate TV watching in this household. I will not allow a radio in your room with earplugs so that only you know what's being lit. No, I will!

48:47 Some of you don't have the spiritual fortitude to stand up to your own kids. I don't often use vulgarisms but I'm using it today. You're a gutless wonder.

49:00 And you know what you're going to end up doing? When your kids go down the tubes and end up wrecked, you're going to say,

49:14 and you'll blame the church. I've heard it. Remember, I've been around in this business for over 30 years.

49:21 And I've seen parents who didn't have the spiritual fortitude to set the guidelines and say, if you're going to defile yourself with this, that, and the other, it will not be with my health. It will not be with my approval.

49:38 Can you stop it? Someone said, Pastor Martin, it didn't seem to work in your case.

49:49 You had a son that vaulted. Yes, I did.

49:53 But he can rise up in this building this morning and say that it wasn't because I cooperated in feeding his soul with the filth that took him down the road from which God has mercifully brought him back. And I can preach this with him present.

50:14 Can you? What's wrong with you, parent? God-given dignity? Where's your sense of accountability?

50:29 Oh, but you say, if I don't let them have it at home, they'll get it elsewhere. All right, if they're so determined to damn themselves by bolting your authority and sneaking behind your back, let them answer to God for it. But if they end up ruined or for a period of time go into a path that breaks your heart, you want a little bit of comfort. You better have the comfort of putting your head on your pillow at night.

50:53 You better have the comfort of putting your head on your pillow at night. You better have the comfort of putting your head on your pillow at night as you stain it with your tears and say, God, as best I know, they didn't go that way because I helped them.

51:04 And I'm not theorizing.

51:09 You better be able to pillow your head and say, God, I didn't help them. By my example and to the best of my ability as I ordered my home, I did not allow that kind of demonic influence into my house.

Parental Accountability and Warning

51:36 Now, what do you think, parents?

51:40 You talk about madmen. Look at him. All right, call me mad. But you see these hands?

51:48 See them?

51:50 If your children are damned and in the day of judgment God holds you accountable because you wouldn't listen to me this morning, these hands, under the microscopic eye of God, won't have a spot of your children's blood on them.

52:06 You hear me? There'll be none of their blood on these hands.

52:18 Don't you consider this whole rock craze just a fad like swallowing goldfish and cramming goldfish into a phone booth. Don't consider it a fad like crinolines and bobby socks. Crinolines and bobby socks and cramming into phone booths were not demonically inspired. They were childish foolishness.

52:43 But you take the parallels.

52:46 There are too many to discount all of this as just the ravings of a preacher looking for a cause.

Application 3: No One is Beyond Divine Grace

52:56 And then my final application, and thank God I can make this from the passage, though we'll have to wait till next week to see the full opening up of it. In this passage, behold the description of the glorious truth that no one, no one, no one, thank God, no one is beyond the power of divine grace. If ever there was someone for whom there was no hope, it was this guy. No man could tame him.

53:30 Thank God Jesus could. No man could tame him. Bless him. God, Jesus did.

53:41 And there may be some loved one who even now breaks your heart. A child, a relative, a husband, a wife. And they seem to be utterly possessed by a demon of greed, a demon of worldliness, a demon of pride. Whatever the demons be, whatever the sinful chains be that seem to cling to their wrists and their feet, my friend, they are not beyond the power of Christ.

54:12 Someone concerning whom a whole town had given up became Jesus' first subject of grace when he came to the shore.

54:23 When he said, look, let's go to the other side, you think he was making that suggestion willy-nilly? He knew there was a poor demon-possessed man whose condition was hopeless unless he got there. And when he got there, it would all be changed. Oh, dear people, let us not give up hope for anyone.

54:47 Let us not give up praying for anyone. Let us not despair for anyone. For if Jesus can take this man and not only cast out the demons, but obviously bind him to himself as a true disciple, so much so that he wanted to go with Jesus wherever he went. And Jesus had to tell him, no, I appreciate the Spirit, but you've got some work to do with your home folk and your kinfolk, so you go there and you tell them what I've done for you.

55:16 What a marvelous thing to see the grace of God break into a situation that looks hopeless to us. We say, oh God, what's the use of prayer? I've prayed until I feel I can pray no more. I've wept until I feel like David.

55:33 I must say, my moisture's turned into the drought of summer. Lord, what's the hope? What's the use? Child of God, pray on.

55:42 Jesus may be settling a storm with some of his disciples on the shore, and as soon as he's done, that boat's going to slip up to the very place where that person is, and the Lord Jesus is going to say, that's enough, devil, get.

55:56 This is one of mine, upon whom I've set my heart, upon whom I've set my love, for whom I died upon the cross, for whom I've been praying at the right hand of the Father, and I'm going to get him. And when I go to get my man, I never come back empty. And the man, whose day began with the remnants of the chains upon his wrist, at the end of the day, he was chained in another way, chained in cords of love and gratitude to the Lord Jesus, so much so that wherever Jesus went, he wanted to be with him. That's what God's grace can do, dear people.

56:32 That's what this is all about. That's what this building exists for. That's what this preacher's standing here for. Not to make a living.

56:41 Not to put on a show. But to tell you there's a mighty Savior. And whatever your bondage, whatever your sin, whatever chains you, go to Christ, and he will break the chains. And he'll bind you to himself in cords of love and mercy, for time and for eternity.

Exhortation to Purge Demonic Influences and Pray

57:06 Well, we've looked at the description of this pathetic person, this poor, demon-possessed man. Having looked at him, may we learn, may we learn the lesson. Here's the nature and true intention of the devil's influence. See in this, dear people, the unmistakable demonic nature of the rock music scene, and avoid it like hell itself.

57:31 Purge your home of it. May God give some of you grace to go home today and walk right into your kid's room and pick up their records and smash them! That's your house! You need to smash them!

57:52 You go in and take that radio and say, I don't trust him. You're too young to be trusted. You're not proven enough to be trusted. Now, if you've got a son or daughter, as Pastor Nichols said, who's had a pattern of trustworthiness, you may be able to trust them with a radio.

58:09 I think you're foolish to trust them with a television. I believe you're tempting God and tempting them. And so I'm not legislating in every particular, but what I am saying is this, if you don't have reason to believe that that radio is being used, for their good, but is a tool of the devil to damn them, how can you allow it to remain in their room? That headset to remain under their bed.

58:36 Dear people, the devil's got enough fuel in their own hearts to damn them without you giving them some more. Don't cooperate with the devil to see them damned. All of the labors of this pulpit in the classrooms and the family altar can be undone in one hour of absorption with rock music. In God's name, clean it up.

58:58 Get it out of your house. And pray that God will change the hearts of your kids and clean it out of their hearts and keep them pure and holy and unspotted until the day of Christ. Let's pray. Our Father, our hearts are pained when we look at this pathetic man who was once a little boy, someone's little darling, so possessed and twisted, ruined by the devil, but how we thank you that Jesus came to rescue ruined sinners. And oh, we pray today for any who are in this very hour sitting here, the wrecks and ruins of the devil's work. Oh, may they see the hope that is in Christ. We pray, Lord, especially for our dear teenagers, pressured on every hand to conform to the funky styles of these wild, demonically possessed people with all their unnatural acts and their unnatural appearance in every facet of their lives

60:24 determined to throw off the yoke of decency and law. Oh, God, may not these children of hell be the models of our teenagers, but may they set their eyes upon women who are true women and men who are true men, and may they emulate them as they emulate Christ. We pray for our parents. Lord, have mercy upon some who ought to sit here this morning filled with shame and grief that they've been so spineless, they've been so weak and unwilling to stand up against their own flesh and blood.

60:59 Lord, give them grace to take your side against their children. God, have mercy upon them, we pray. May they not justify their present course. May they not go out of here sulking that they feel their cause has been misrepresented.

61:17 Oh, Father, bring them to repentance. Bring them to brokenness. Bring them to reformation. Clean their houses of all this music spawned in hell.

61:29 Give them the discipline over their radios and their television sets and over the friends that their children keep and over what they do when they are with them. Oh, Holy Father, we cannot change the hearts of our children, but we know you have given to us the responsibility to set walls around them and to seek to protect them insomuch as lies within our power. Steal then this word to the hearts of our parents. And we pray, oh God, for any who are rationalizing their addiction to that music of hell.

62:06 We pray that you'd smite them with conviction as they behold you. As they behold that demoniac and see the parallels, may their consciences so convince them that they'll have no rest nor peace until they give themselves to the things that are lovely and pure and noble and upright and good and godly. Oh, our Father, bless your word as we have sought this morning to open it up and apply it to the conscience. Do what we cannot do.

62:37 We commit our cause to you, loving Father, may the word not return to you void, but may it accomplish that whereunto you have sent it. For Jesus' sake. Amen.