Mark 7:31-37 "Touched"
About Mark: Mark's is the action Gospel having 18 of Jesus' miracles in his 16 chapters. In spite of the Gospel of Luke being 50% longer, Luke uses only one more miracle than Mark. Matthew is longer yet, but has only two more miracles than Mark. John has only seven miracles. These other books have more of Jesus' sermons, parables, and teaching metaphors than Mark.
About Mark: Mark's is the action Gospel having 18 of Jesus' miracles in his 16 chapters. In spite of the Gospel of Luke being 50% longer, Luke uses only one more miracle than Mark. Matthew is longer yet, but has only two more miracles than Mark. John has only seven miracles. These other books have more of Jesus' sermons, parables, and teaching metaphors than Mark.
For his Roman audience, Mark seems to select and include miracle stories for teaching about Jesus and the kingdom of God. So we are right to ask about the meanings which Mark hopes to convey through his miracle stories of Jesus.
Bible: Mark 7:31-37, Jesus Cures a Deaf Man
31 Then he returned from the region of Tyre, and went by way of Sidon towards the Sea of Galilee, in the region of the Decapolis. 32 They brought to him a deaf man who had an impediment in his speech; and they begged him to lay his hand on him. 33 He took him aside in private, away from the crowd, and put his fingers into his ears, and he spat and touched his tongue. 34 Then looking up to heaven, he sighed and said to him, "Ephphatha," that is, "Be opened." 35 And immediately his ears were opened, his tongue was released, and he spoke plainly. 36 Then Jesus ordered them to tell no one; but the more he ordered them, the more zealously they proclaimed it. 37 They were astounded beyond measure, saying, "He has done everything well; he even makes the deaf to hear and the mute to speak."
Comment: "TOUCHED"
In this story Jesus heals a person whose deafness had also impeded his speech. He had ears but failed to hear! This is the last part of Mark's first cycle, showing the disciples' gradual discovery of who Jesus is, leading to their confession that he is Messiah. At this same stage in the second cycle, Mark tells of a man whose sight is restored (8:22-26). He had eyes but failed to see! In each series of events, Jesus heals a malfunction of someone's organs of perception. This gives point to the related question of Jesus to the disciples as they ponder his miracles, "Do you have eyes, and fail to see? Do you have ears and fail to hear?" (8:18). Do we?
Bible: Mark 7:31-37, Jesus Cures a Deaf Man
Comment: "TOUCHED"
In this story Jesus heals a person whose deafness had also impeded his speech. He had ears but failed to hear! This is the last part of Mark's first cycle, showing the disciples' gradual discovery of who Jesus is, leading to their confession that he is Messiah. At this same stage in the second cycle, Mark tells of a man whose sight is restored (8:22-26). He had eyes but failed to see! In each series of events, Jesus heals a malfunction of someone's organs of perception. This gives point to the related question of Jesus to the disciples as they ponder his miracles, "Do you have eyes, and fail to see? Do you have ears and fail to hear?" (8:18). Do we?
As Mark tells the story he emphasizes the heavenly intervention needed for deaf ears and blind eyes to ... "Be opened!". Jesus has taken the man away from the crowd. He looks up to heaven. He touched him (34). Matthew omits this story, but records Jesus' later words at Peter's confession, "Flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my father in heaven" (Mt.16:17). Paul will write, "Eye does not see, and ear does not hear, .... but God reveals" (1 Cor.2:9-10).
And at the touch of Jesus the man spoke plainly (35), as similarly, another will see clearly (8:25). Such a revealing encounter with Jesus fires an exuberant anthem of praise that nothing at all can restrain, "He has done everything well!" (7:37).
Discipleship today: On the surface, this account illustrates the power of Jesus over a physical world that beats us. He healed someone whose illness had defeated all others.
And at the touch of Jesus the man spoke plainly (35), as similarly, another will see clearly (8:25). Such a revealing encounter with Jesus fires an exuberant anthem of praise that nothing at all can restrain, "He has done everything well!" (7:37).
Discipleship today: On the surface, this account illustrates the power of Jesus over a physical world that beats us. He healed someone whose illness had defeated all others.
If we can be handicapped in the physical realm, we may also be handicapped in the spiritual realm. We may be spiritually deaf and dumb because we are flawed by inner moral or emotional damage. Only the touch of God can reveal the unseen realities around us.
In such situations of hopelessness, Jesus opened the ears of the deaf and the eyes of the blind. You may even have noticed that the word of God you are reading here in Mark's Gospel has meaning and impact you never before "heard" so well.
People were "astounded beyond measure" at what Jesus did, and to some extent he has amazed us also. We may even feel drawn towards saying something like those in this story, with their, "He has done everything well!" These would be signs of ears that are hearing by a divine touch, and a confession that emerges from a new awareness of the realm of God.
No comments:
Post a Comment