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Mark 7:31-37
31 Then he returned from the region of Tyre and went through Sidon to the Sea of Galilee, in the region of the Decapolis. 32 And they brought to him a man who was deaf and had a speech impediment, and they begged him to lay his hand on him. 33 And taking him aside from the crowd privately, he put his fingers into his ears, and after spitting touched his tongue. 34 And looking up to heaven, he sighed and said to him, “Ephphatha,” that is, “Be opened.” 35 And his ears were opened, his tongue was released, and he spoke plainly. 36 And Jesus charged them to tell no one. But the more he charged them, the more zealously they proclaimed it. 37 And they were astonished beyond measure, saying, “He has done all things well. He even makes the deaf hear and the mute speak.”
Watch the Sermon
Summary: Jesus' miracles continue to reveal to us who He is and what His Kingdom is like. In Mark 7:31-37, after healing the Syro-Phoenician woman's daughter in Tyre, Jesus journeys to the region of the Decapolis, another predominantly Gentile region outside of 1st century Israel. His ministry will continue to make a contrast between the hard-hearted Pharisees and the receptive Gentiles that would have been considered unclean. While Matthew's gospel records several miracles during Jesus' time in the Decapolis, Mark's account zeros in on one particular healing; the healing of the deaf and mute man. What we see in Jesus' peculiar method of healing by taking the man aside and touching his infirmities, is his tender and personal care. After receiving his healing, we see the man and those around him naively misunderstand the nature of Christ's kingdom by proclaiming zealously despite Jesus' charge to the contrary. The story ends on a worshipful note revealing that Jesus has come to establish a Kingdom where suffering and sighing will be no more.
Review & Apply
Why do you think Jesus took the man "aside from the crowd privately"?
What details make this healing peculiar or even uncomfortable?
What reasons might Jesus have had for charging them to "tell no one."
What does this miracle reveal about the nature of Christ's Kingdom? about Jesus himself?
Do you ever feel like God is distant or impersonal? How does Jesus' approach to this needy man encourage you?
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