Reading: Mark chapter 5 verses 1-20
The previous night had seen the disciples in a storm that struck fear into them; indeed, it led them to ask Jesus, ‘Teacher, do You not care that we are perishing?’ verse 38. He graciously showed them that He cared – He rebuked and calmed the sea, saying, ‘Peace, be still’, verse 39.

The following morning the Lord entered a battlefield. The name of the demon-possessed man, LEGION, reminds us of an army of 6,000 men, only here it is not men, but demons! ‘Compassion’ (verse 19) is the furthest thought from our minds on this battlefield; yet, by the close of the day, COMPASSION HAD TRIUMPHED! Initially, there had been a violent struggle on the battlefield, as men sought to bind a man with an unclean spirit but he could not be tamed, verses 4-5.

If ever there was an occasion that cried out for a spirit of compassion, it was this. Things changed, dramatically, with the arrival of the Lord Jesus. He caused consternation among the demons and the final outcome was a man ‘sitting, and clothed, and in his right mind’, verse 15. It was no surprise that he wanted to follow the Lord but He had another vital mission for him to undertake: ‘Go home to your friends, and tell them what great things the Lord has done to you, and how He has had COMPASSION on you’, verse 19.

How grateful we should be that the Lord’s COMPASSION towards us led Him to the battlefield of Calvary. It was there that He gained the victory over Satan, sin and death.