Beware of the Leaven (Mark 7:31-8:26)

Introduction

The old saying, “if it was a snake it would have bit you.” This phrase is getting more and more common in our house with a moving toddler. As our daughter continues to play with more things and ultimately lose more things. Often at night as we are trying to find a paci for bedtime or the beloved lovey, we can easily overlook it as we are trying to get everything to put our girl down. And in the moment of finding it, I think more and more of this old saying.

But, could you imagine being those who spent so much time with Jesus, and yet you began to overlook who he was, failing to grasp his full identity?

That’s what I want us to look at this morning in Mark 7:31-8:26. How the disciples of Jesus missed who he was, even as they were near to him.

Recap

Jesus has been going around teaching and doing many signs along the way. His disciples have been with him for some time, hearing him teach and seeing more of his wonders performed than any others. And yet, they have continued to struggle in coming to understand who Jesus is, and we continue that trend this morning as we look at Mark 7:31-8:26. Would you follow along with me as I read (READ).

Main Point: Our faith in Jesus does not come through seeing miracles and signs, but through a softened heart.

Points

Jesus and physical healing (Mark 7:31-37; 8:22-26)

Jesus and his compassion (Mark 8:1-10)

Jesus and spiritual healing (Mark 8:11-21)

Jesus and physical healing

Man who was deaf and had a speech impediment

We have come once more to a set of healings of Jesus. This time, Jesus is healing a deaf man with a speech impediment and a blind man. And yet, even though we have seen miracles and healings already performed by Jesus, in these healings, we continue to see more of Jesus unfolded through them.

Let’s start by looking closer at the healing of the deaf man there in Mark 7:31-37. Jesus and his disciples return from their previous trip to Tyre and journey into the region of the Decapolis. Decapolis was the region that the man who was possessed by the many demons back in Mark 5 went to tell what Jesus had done for him. This is the same region in which Jesus had previously been asked to leave. But now he has returned to this region. Jesus continues to go through the land of the Gentiles here. There are some who speculate the reason for this is that Jesus is avoiding the Pharisees in their pursuit of him. However, that doesn’t seem likely since Jesus continues to minister among and extend his compassion towards the Gentiles.

The crowd here bringing the deaf man to Jesus is probably a result of the previously possessed man who had gone and shared what Jesus had done for him in the region. The man they bring here to Jesus is not only deaf, but also has a speech impediment. And the crowd begs Jesus to lay his hand on him in order to heal him. But, notice what it says there in verse 33, it says: And taking him aside from the crowd privately, he put his fingers into his ears, and after spitting touched his tongue. Jesus could have spoken a word and the man would have been healed. The man could have touched his garment and he could have been healed. Here Jesus takes this man aside from the crowd in a 1 on 1 setting and then does these things it adds, And as he does these, it adds in verse 34: And looking up to heaven, he sighed and said to him, “Ephphatha,” that is, “Be opened.”

Jesus sighed in grief over the fallen nature of mankind in which sickness and disease has come. And yet, again Jesus identifies with the unclean through the use of spit to heal this man from his deafness and his speech impediment. And while we do have the example of Jesus healing the mute, the man here was able to speak but poorly. And Jesus heals both of these as you can read again there in verse 35. Jesus was able to restore the man’s hearing and give him the ability to speak clearly. Jesus continues to identify with the outcasts, the vulnerable, those in need in giving them healing of their physical afflictions.

But, following the healing of this man, notice that Jesus charges the crowds here to tell no one about what has happened. However, the more he told them not to say anything, the more they proclaimed what he had done. This being a result of their astonishment at what Jesus had done. In fact, they were saying there in verse 37 that Jesus had done all things well. In that he had healed the man well, taught well, and performed other miracles well.

There is an intended connection here to revealing Jesus’ identity and his work though. Think back to Genesis 1 and the creation account. When each day of creation was finished, it was said that it was good. In creation, God’s goodness was revealed. And in saying Jesus does all well, it is intended to show us that connection that Jesus does all well in restoring creation..

Just think for a moment about this reality. In the beginning all was created by God and it was all good. And now, Jesus is the one who is restoring creation and it is all done well. Jesus is doing all things well in healing those who need healing, but how much more will he continue to do all things well as the exalted Christ who is now seated at the right hand of God the Father? Jesus will continue to do all things well as he continues to extend his Kingdom throughout the earth through his bride, the church. Jesus will continue to do all things well as he continues to restore broken sinners to himself. Jesus will continue to do all things well as he brings the new heavens and the new earth into existence as it’s glorious King. And even as we fail, Christ will not. For it is he who does all things well to the glory of his Father. Therefore he will do all things well in keeping those who belong to him. He will continue to sanctify them, that is to make them more like him. He will do all things well in continuing to hold us fast. Jesus is therefore the one we need to lean wholly on and trust, for it is he who does all well. It is he who alone has kept the whole of the law. It is he alone who has done all things well in pleasing the Father.

Man who was blind

Even to take this a step farther, let's drop down to Mark 8:22-26 with the healing of the blind man. Both the healing of the deaf man with the speech impediment and the healing of the blind man have similar points. In both of these, people bring them to Jesus and beg him to touch them in order to heal them. In both of them, Jesus seemingly takes both of these men aside from the crowds. In Mark 7:33, it clearly says that Jesus took the man aside from the crowd privately. And in Mark 8:23 we read that Jesus took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the village. Different wording, but similar ideas. The other similarity in the two is the use of spit. This time Jesus spits on the man’s eyes and then lays his hands on him vs spitting and touching his ears and tongue. These two healings are to sandwich the events between them with these similarities as Mark is building to highlight a theme of healings.

The difference in this second healing however, is that instead of immediately seeing, the man says he sees people, but that they look like trees walking. In other words, the man sees, but it's blurry and fuzzy. So we read in verse 25: Then Jesus laid his hands on his eyes again; and he opened his eyes, his sight was restored, and he saw everything clearly.

Was Jesus’ first attempt a bad healing? Did Jesus lack the ability to fully restore the man? Absolutely not. We just saw a moment ago how Jesus does all things well. He doesn’t in a short time go from doing all things well to the inability to fully heal. The double touch of healing is pointing to something much deeper. It is pointing to a spiritual reality. The reality that there are those who are spiritually blind, those who are partially blind, and then those who can see. But we are going to have to wait for that answer when we come back to this in our third point this morning.

Instead for now, we need to shift our focus to verse 26, where again Jesus sends someone away after healing them and calls the man to not even enter the village. In both healings in this section of text, Jesus calls for the crowds to be silent. While Jesus continues to show compassion to the sick and needy, Jesus seems to be concealing these miracles, especially with that of the demons and the crowds from telling who he is. Greg Lanier, a writer for The Gospel Coalition noted that Jesus probably hid these for two reasons. One, he tried to hide them to prolong his traveling freedom before the time came to go to Jerusalem. Two, it was an attempt to keep misinformation from being spread about who Jesus is. He went on in the article to say, “In other words, for outsiders the secrecy motif relates to concealing who Jesus is—and isn’t—until the proper time has arrived for his true revealing.”

Much of Jesus' ministry is very public and intended to be visible and to be heard. However, as we even see around us today, it is easy for misunderstandings about Jesus to spread and to take hold. Jesus in his wisdom seeks to limit this spread of misunderstanding. For instance, think about how our Muslim neighbors misunderstand who Jesus is. They think Jesus is a great prophet, but do not understand him to be the Son of God. Others around us will say that Jesus is a good teacher, but that he is not the only way. Still others will marvel at Jesus and want to be near him until they hear what it means to follow him, they turn and leave him such as the rich young ruler. And it is this misinformation that Jesus seems to be aiming to prevent. The healings of the new testament are not meant to be a mercy ministry, though that is certainly part of it. Jesus in these healings and miracles is revealing to the world who he really is as the Beloved Son of God and that he has the power and ability to restore all things in the world from its brokenness.

Jesus has come to restore creation that itself is groaning from the effects of the fall. Jesus has come to restore the effects of sin on our bodies with that of sickness and disease. Jesus has come to even raise the dead which he makes possible in his own death and resurrection. And above all, Jesus comes and extends compassion to the hurting and broken.

Jesus and his compassion

This is where we turn with our second point this morning: Jesus and his compassion. Mark 8:1 opens with, in those days. This simply means in the days while Jesus was traveling through Sidon to the Sea of Galilee. During this time, another great crowd gathers around him. Again this crowd is without food as with the feeding of the 5,000. But notice where this shifts from the previous feeding. In Mark 6:35 the disciples pointed out the late hour and lack of food. But, in Mark 8:1, Jesus calls his disciples to him, and says to them in 8:2 and 3: “I have compassion on the crowd, because they have been with me now three days and have nothing to eat. And if I send them away hungry to their homes, they will faint on the way. And some of them have come from far away.”

Despite how the world has rejected the things of God and his righteous ways, Jesus continues to go out and show compassion on those who are lost and vulnerable. The ministry of Jesus is all about bringing the hope of the gospel to the world. And the very heart of that gospel is his compassion. And in Mark 8:1-10 Jesus feeds the crowds as he shows his compassion. And while it seems redundant to have a second large feeding miracle in the gospel, there is one big difference between the feeding of the 5,000 and this feeding. The feeding of the 5,000 plus was for the Jews. The feeding of the 4,000 here is for the Gentiles, that is non-Jews.

Back in Mark 7:24-30 it was the healing of the Gentile woman. In traveling through Sidon it is Gentile territory. We see this in the manner that Jesus gives thanks for the food. Look back at Mark 6:41. It says: And taking the five loaves and the two fish, he looked up to heaven and said a blessing and broke the loaves and gave them to the disciples to set before the people. But then in Mark 8:6 it says: And he directed the crowd to sit down on the ground. And he took the seven loaves, and having given thanks, he broke them and gave them to his disciples to set before the people; and they set them before the crowd.

See one blessing looked towards the heavens, a Jewish custom, the other did not. For the Gentiles that custom and practice would not have existed. On top of this detail, Mark in the Greek uses two different terms for the thanksgiving. In Mark 6:41, Mark uses the Greek word ελογησεν which is used more with Jewish background believers. But in Mark 8:6 he uses ευχαριστησας which is more of a Gentile believer form of blessing.

And the reason we take a moment to pull this out is because of the importance of the Gentiles, that is all of us who are not of Jewish birth, are being included in the coming redemption. Jesus doesn’t just come and care for the needs of the Jews, but even for those of Gentile nations. The compassion of Jesus was never intended to just stay with the nation of Israel, but to spread to the nations of the world. What mercy and compassion has been shown to us in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus? We who the promises of God did not belong to are now being invited in to enjoy those promises in coming to Jesus.

In this feeding too, all who took part in the breaking of the bread left satisfied. In fact, they were so satisfied that there were still 7 basket fulls of leftovers taken up from the crumbs. None of the 4,000 present left hungry.

The feeding of the 4,000 is a further step in showing that this gospel hope is not just being extended for the rebellious people of Israel, but the nations of the world. And as Jesus ministers along both now the Jews and the Gentiles he is inviting them to come and depend upon him, to find comfort in him. For Jesus is the Great Shepherd of Psalm 23 who leads his sheep to green pastures. He is the one whose rod and staff comfort us. And as he leads his sheep, he invites all that he meets along the way to come to him also. And in that invitation to come, there is nothing we need to do to clean ourselves up before coming to Jesus. To quote Dane Ortland from his book Gentle and Lowly, “You don’t need to unburden or collect yourself and then come to Jesus. Your very burden is what qualifies you to come.”

Because Jesus is one filled with compassion, he has extended his hands to reach out to us and invites us to come to him. No matter how sin filled we are, no matter how broken, no matter how much shame we have, Jesus stands ready to save us. It is this same compassion and grace that still is continued to us no matter how many times we have turned away from the LORD and his word, Jesus invites us to humble ourselves and turn to him. The sweet compassion of the Savior is there. A compassion so great that even the greatness of a mother’s love fails in comparison.

The only question for us is will we see that compassion and come to him. Will we awaken and realize our own need for him?

Jesus and spiritual healing

For it is this redeeming work that is at the heart of Jesus’ ministry and where we turn in our third and final point this morning. We come to Jesus and spiritual healing. In Mark 4:11-21 we have two events that are really part of one story. Scene 1 of the story is that of Jesus and the Pharisees. Scene 2 is that of Jesus and the disciples.

First, let's look at scene 1 with the Pharisees. The Pharisees are up to their tricks again in trying to trap Jesus. This time, they come to argue with him in seeking from him a sign from heaven in order to put Jesus to the test. The Pharisees in seeking the sign are not looking for the miracles that Jesus has been doing, although these should be enough that he is from God in that he has authority in his teaching, over creation, demons, sickness, blindness, and deafness. However, they want a sign to verify that Jesus’ ministry is indeed the work of God.

Yet, that is not happening. Jesus’ response in verse 12 says: And he sighed deeply in his spirit and said, “Why does this generation seek a sign? Truly, I say to you, no sign will be given to this generation.” Now, from Matthew 16:4, we read, “An evil and adulterous generation seeks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of Jonah.” So he left them and departed.

The Pharisees are not getting a sign outside of the story of Jonah and him being in the belly of a whale 3 days and nights. Their attempt to further trap Jesus proves unsuccessful. The Pharisees along with us have the entirety of the Old Testament that reveals the coming of the Messiah and signs that Jesus fulfills. Each of these should be enough. But for the Pharisees, even a sign would not allow them to see Jesus for who he is.

In scene 2, Jesus is with the disciples as they get in the boat again for the third boat scene in Mark’s gospel. And the disciples have not brought any bread except one loaf. And with this reality looming in their minds, we read this in verse 15: And he cautioned them, saying, “Watch out; beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod.” Here the disciples begin to freak out in realizing they didn’t have any bread with them. Of course this was far from what Jesus was getting at. That is why down in verses 19-21 Jesus questions them on what happened with the 5,000 and 4,000. Jesus has already proven to them time and time again that he can take the smallest amount of food and make it provide for the massive crowds. How much more could he then provide for the 12 and himself here with this one loaf? Or as Charles Spurgeon said, “When there were only a few disciples on board the boat, why did they begin to distrust the Lord because they had only one loaf when he had made enough food for five thousand and for four thousand out of a few scanty loaves? Can we not learn from past experience? If the Lord has helped us before, is he not equally ready to help us again?”

The point though in Jesus calling them to beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod is a warning of their self-centered self-reliance. This self-centered self-reliance is deadly. For the Pharisees were teaching a works based salvation and Herod was power hungry. The Pharisees downright rejected the teachings of Jesus, they wanted to trap him in order to put him to death. Herod simply wanted power. This led to an inward turned heart where there was no care for others. And this wickedness was deadly to others if it spread, hence why the disciples now are being warned of it.

So, in warning the disciples to beware of this leaven, Jesus is calling them to pay close attention to their own hearts. In fact, when they began discussing their lack of physical bread, Jesus asks them there in verses 17 and 18: Do you not yet perceive or understand? Are your hearts hardened? Having eyes do you not see, and having ears do you not hear? And do you not remember?”

The disciples are deaf as the deaf man in Mark 7:31-37 and they are blind as the blind man in Mark 8:22-26. Therefore, going back to the double touch to heal the blind man from our first point, the disciples who have been with Jesus this whole time are like the blind man, as well as that of the deaf man. They have yet to come to the point of rightly perceiving who Jesus is. They have yet to fully hear who he is even though they are near to him in proximity. The disciples are therefore spiritually blind and deaf. They have not come to understand who exactly they are following in Jesus. They are missing the authority given to him by the Father. And therefore in verse 21 they are left with the question, “do you not yet understand?”

The disciples therefore see partially, they have not rejected Jesus, however their vision is blurry at best just like the blind man after the first touch of Jesus’ hands. And they too will need to wake up and see who Jesus is to come to the moment of saving faith as Jesus is about to open their eyes to see clearly.

For understanding who Jesus is, is essential to coming to faith in Jesus. James Edwards in his commentary writes, “Failure to understand leads to hardness of heart. The plea for understanding is a reminder that faith is not separate from understanding, but possible only through understanding. This passage is a good apology for a proper understanding of Christian education. If intellectual and spiritual blindness lead to hardness of heart, blind faith without content must inevitably lead there as well. The faith for which Jesus appeals is a faith born of understanding and insight. The disciples are not chastised for not believing but for not seeing and understanding.”

We, like the disciples, can miss who Jesus fully is if our hearts remain deaf and blind. We too need to rightly understand who Jesus is to ensure that we understand who it is we are following. Faith and understanding go together. For apart from knowing who Jesus is, we cannot understand who it is that we are being called to rest in for our salvation. Some in recent years have tried to remove doctrine and theology from the church. Friends, this is a grave mistake. In fact, it is the doing of this that has led to a shallow understanding of the gospel and of our Savior Jesus Christ. For it is a deeper understanding of who Jesus is that deepens our faith in Jesus. We cannot understand the depth of the beauty of the gospel without understanding the depravity of man. We cannot fully grasp the grace of the cross apart from understanding the holiness of God. It is this that is theology and doctrine. And it is these that help us to more understand Christ Jesus our Lord and Savior. May we have eyes to see and ears to hear more of the beauty of Christ so that we may know him more intimately.

As time goes, let us go deeper and deeper into the depth of Jesus that our love may abound more and more. For the disciples were following Jesus, but their faith had not yet bloomed up to this point. What about you sitting here this morning? Maybe for some, you are still blind to who Jesus is. Will you have eyes to see this morning? May Jesus grant you even in this moment the ability for you to be opened to the beauty and the power of the gospel. Maybe for others you are like the blind man after Jesus touched his eyes for the first time. You see, but its blurry and foggy. You see images, but you cannot see the glory of Christ. May today you fully see that Jesus is the one who is the Beloved Son of God who came to save sinners by laying down his own life to rescue us from our own sin that had left us dead. Marvel in this and let this truth move you to eagerly and willingly follow Jesus with clear eyes. And still others who have seen who Jesus is, never stop growing closer to Christ and more in love with him. For this is the one who purchased us by his own blood. What love could remember no wrongs that we have done? Only the love of God for us in Christ.

Conclusion

It is easy for us to overlook things and surely if it had been a snake it would have bitten us as we have been standing on top of those things. Let that not be the case for us in being near to Jesus in proximity, but relationally missing it. We need to dive more fully in leaning more upon the Savior in our faith. Knowing that he alone has us and can keep us.

Let’s pray...