Pigs, Demons and You Bible Study CBC WLA June 13, 2008.
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Transcript of 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
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
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 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• 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
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?
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?
Conclusions
Where is the Decapolis in your life?
• A particular part of the world?
• A particular group of people?