Why would Jesus tell the demoniac he didn't need further training, but could go on mission right away and tell his story?
When we don't think we know enough or haven't been trained yet, are we being tricked by our enemy who is handcuffing our faith and putting us in his prison?
Mark 5:15 - 20
ESV - 15 And they came to Jesus and saw the demon-possessed man, the one who had had the legion, sitting there, clothed and in his right mind, and they were afraid. 16 And those who had seen it described to them what had happened to the demon-possessed man and to the pigs.
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Asked February 19 2021
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Grant Abbott
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Donna Williams
I believe that many of us in the Body of Christ have been deceived into believing that it takes formal training to serve in "the ministry". That is why Jesus gave gifts for the equipping of the saints for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, until we all come to the unity of the faith and knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ. Ephesians 4:12-13 NKJV In the narrative that you have presented for our consideration, I believe that Jesus sent this man on a mission to tell others about the goodness of God. Jesus knew that by this man's testimony many souls would come to Him for the glory of God the Father. Jesus Himself astounded the religious leaders and the people in the Synagogue on the Sabbaths by the power and authority of His Word. No formal training, He spoke and taught as He was commanded by His Father. Jesus told the disciples before His Ascension in Acts 1:8, "But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth." All we need is to be empowered by the Holy Ghost to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the lost. Jesus taught His disciples by His example; He said, "Follow Me and I will make you fishers of men." They did what their Master instructed them to do, and when they were empowered by the Holy Spirit they were used greatly and the gospel spread by the power of their testimony!
Tim Maas
All Christians are commanded (as Jesus commanded the demoniac) to testify and give witness to their faith, based on their own personal experiences. Since very few Christians have (or will ever have) "formal" theological training (over and above familiarity with the inspired words of the Bible), that must mean that such training is not a requirement for effective mission work. In addition, it is very hard for opponents to dispute or rebut such personal accounts. Paul gave an account of his extensive formal religious training in Philippians 3:4-11. Yet, in that same passage, He said that he counted all that training as loss in comparison to the simple fact of knowing Jesus. Of course, Christians should seek to continually grow and mature in their knowledge of God, which will also increase the effectiveness of their witness. But, to me and as indicated in the question, it would be the belief by a Christian that s/he was somehow "not qualified" to share his or her faith because of a lack of formal training that would be the most restrictive "handcuffs" on the individual, and a consideration that Christians should not allow to negatively affect their sharing of their faith.
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