The Baddest Man In the World - Mark 5:1-20

"And Jesus asked him, 'What is your name?' He replied, “My name is Legion, for we are many.” And he begged him earnestly not to send them out of the country. Now a great herd of pigs was feeding there on the hillside, and they begged him, saying, 'Send us to the pigs; let us enter them.' So he gave them permission. And the unclean spirits came out and entered the pigs; and the herd, numbering about two thousand, rushed down the steep bank into the sea and drowned in the sea...As he was getting into the boat, the man who had been possessed with demons begged him that he might be with him.And he did not permit him but said to him, 'Go home to your friends and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and how he has had mercy on you.' And he went away and began to proclaim in the Decapolis how much Jesus had done for him, and everyone marveled" (Mark 5:9-13, 18-20, ESV).

As Jesus was preaching on the east side of the sea of Galilee, He encountered a man possessed or controlled by evil spirits or demons.

This man lived alone in a cemetery and he was so bad that the people living in the region had tried to bind him with shackles and chains but he was always able to break the chains apart.

When the man saw Jesus, the demons possessing him recognized Him as the Son of God and begged Jesus not to torment them. Jesus asked the demons what their name was and they answered "Legion" because there were so many of them possessing the man.

Have you ever wondered how many demons there were that possessed this man?

We know that Jesus sent the evil spirits into a heard of about 2,000 pigs, but a Roman legion was comprised of 5,000 to 6,000 men.

That's a lot of evil to possess one man!

In fact, he probably has to be the baddest man on record, the baddest man, ever!

But, if Jesus could save and deliver the baddest man in the world, and put him in his right mind, then don't you think He can do the same for you and for me?

No matter how bad your problems are, no matter how bad of a person you are or have been, you can call out for Jesus to deliver you.

He is in the restoration business and he can transform you into the person you were meant to be!

"He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake." (Psalm 23:3, ESV)