Jesus Does All Things Well

Mark 7:31-37

If you brought your bibles turn with me over to the gospel of Mark chapter 7. The Gospel of Mark chapter 7 and in a moment we are going to read Vs. 31-37 as we continue our study of the gospel of Mark.

We took a couple of weeks off, but we are diving back into our study in Mark this morning, and I want to talk to you about the fact that: Jesus Does All Things Well!!

Whatever we face in life, the ultimate solution to our problem is God. Only God possesses all the ability to meet every need, no matter what we face.

Not only is that true, but we praise Him for it. We praise Him because He is not only able, but willing to meet our needs.

We see the ability of God, and the willingness of God, when we look at His Son. When we see Jesus on the pages of scripture, we are looking at all mighty God in human flesh. We are meeting with the divine attributes of God in bodily form.

Jesus said in John 14:9 “ He who has seen Me has seen the Father.”

Paul would say in Colossians 2:9 “For in Him all the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form,”

The eternal Son of God came to earth, two thousand years ago, and took to Himself a sinless human nature, becoming the God-man, but He didn’t lay aside the divine attributes that belong to Him, He used them with compassion. And Mark points that out in our passage this morning.

Jesus, meets the needs of a desperate man. The question is: has He done that in your life? Because the most desperate need each and every one of us has, is to be saved, and only Jesus can do that.

That is what I want to talk to you about this morning. So, lets read this passage here in:

Mark 7:31–37 KJV

And again, departing from the coasts of Tyre and Sidon, he came unto the sea of Galilee, through the midst of the coasts of Decapolis. And they bring unto him one that was deaf, and had an impediment in his speech; and they beseech him to put his hand upon him. And he took him aside from the multitude, and put his fingers into his ears, and he spit, and touched his tongue; And looking up to heaven, he sighed, and saith unto him, Ephphatha, that is, Be opened. And straightway his ears were opened, and the string of his tongue was loosed, and he spake plain. And he charged them that they should tell no man: but the more he charged them, so much the more a great deal they published it; And were beyond measure astonished, saying, He hath done all things well: he maketh both the deaf to hear, and the dumb to speak.

Lets pray together,

Heavenly Father I thank You for Your Word. I pray that as we look at Your Word, You would allow us to see, hear, and believe the truth we find in it.

I pray You would encourage us through the Holy Spirit to apply what we learn to the way we live.

I thank You Lord, that Jesus not only has the ability, but is willing to meet our deepest needs.

I pray that if there are any here among us my God that are lost, You would draw them to You, that they might be saved.

I pray these things in the name of Jesus, Amen!

In our passage this morning, Jesus and His disciples are leaving the Gentile cities of Tyre and Sidon, and going back to Galilee.

But, what is interesting, is He doesn’t just go back the way He came. Vs. 31 tells us they went to Decapolis.

If you were to look at a ancient map of the area, you would see that Jesus and His disciples, took the long way around. In fact, going through Decapolis to get to Galilee would be like going through Detroit to get to Grand Rapids. You just wouldn’t do it.

Scholars tell us, this journey, would have taken about eight months, by foot. That is important because, That is eight months that we have no record of what Jesus was doing. We can only speculate.

However, we believe He was teaching and training the disciples during that time. He was preparing them for what they would face.

Because When Jesus and the disciples return to Galilee, they are going to come under incredible attacks from the Jewish leaders.

This will be one of the last opportunities Jesus has to be alone with the Disciples before He goes to the cross.

It is also interesting, that Jesus would go back to Decapolis at all, because Mark 5:17 tells us, the people of that area asked Jesus to leave. They didn’t want Him there.

If you remember, He had cast out a legion of demons from a man living in the tombs, and those demons entered a herd of swine, ran down a hill into the sea. So, the people of Decapolis rejected Jesus and forced Him to leave.

Well, now He returns, and they welcome Him back with open arms. Why? What is different? We find the answer in Mark 5:19-20.

The Demoniac who was redeemed, went home and became a witness for Christ. He began to tell everyone what Jesus had done for him, and now the people can’t wait to see Jesus again.

The lesson in this for us is: if you know the Lord Jesus Christ, as you Savior, make it your mission in life to become a witness. Tell those around you what He has done in your life.

So, Jesus went back to Decapolis where He was rejected, and He would have been completely justified to never go there again. But, He came back and gave them a second chance.

And I am so grateful today that Jesus gives second chances. I am grateful He didn’t write me off the fist time I rejected Him? But, He continues to call me back to Him, even when I fail.

So, In this passage, Jesus returns to Decapolis and the people bring a deaf man to Him. He heals the man and the people are amazed, and they proclaim, “He hath done all things well!”

The question is: has He done all things well in your life? Because only Jesus can meet our greatest need to be saved.

I. The Man and His Condition Vs. 32

Not only could this man not hear, but his speech was effected by his condition.

Look at Vs. 32, “And they bring unto him one that was deaf, and had an impediment in his speech; and they beseech him to put his hand upon him.”

The word “deaf” here means to be “blunt or dull” He may have lost his hearing from an injury, or he may have been born that way, we don’t know. But, this poor man couldn’t hear.

And now, not only was he deaf, but his speech was effected. He could talk, but it was a struggle.

These two conditions always seem to go hand and hand. Because when a person can’t hear themselves speak, they always have trouble with the words.

So, we see this mans condition was tragic, but he was also blessed. Even though he was handicapped, he had people around him that cared about him. And when they heard Jesus had come back to town, they brought their deaf friend to Jesus.

Why? because they believed in the One, who had cast the demons out of the man, could heal their handicapped friend.

There are a three implications about this story, I think we need to recognize.

First, there was something in the heart of Jesus that drew Him to people like this handicapped man. We see it over and over again in the gospels. He loved people who were rejected by the world. He spent a lot of time ministering to people like this man. Why?

Because He had a heart full of love and compassion for their needs. That tells us, if we want to be like Jesus, we need to do the same. We need to be willing to reach out to people, the world ignores.

Second, notice that handicapped people seem to have been drawn to Jesus. Why? Because He accepted them. He loved them just like they were.

Handicapped people want to be accepted. They want to be loved, but they live in a world that rejects them because they are different. But, Jesus loved them like they were, and so should we.

Something we need to think about is there are many handicapped people in the world who would love to hear the gospel, if someone cared enough to share it with them!!

Third, this passage also teaches us something about heaven. It is important we understand, there will not be a single handicapped person living in heaven. There will not be one shriveled body, feeble mind, or paralyzed frame in heaven.

The precious people who have suffered so much in the world, and trusted Jesus will be made perfect. They will be delivered forever, from their wheelchairs, their crutches, their beds, and their institutions. Their bodies will be made whole and their minds will be renewed.

At the same time, You might have a strong mind and a healthy body today. But, if you are lost, you are in far worse condition than any physical handicap that exists in the world.

Because if you are lost, you are separated from God. Your spiritual body is crippled and you don’t even know it. And if you were to die in that condition, you will be lost forever, That is the most horrible condition to be in.

One of these days the physically and mentally challenged people of the world who trusted Jesus will leave their infirmities behind. They will go to heaven and receive a new body and a perfect mind.

But, if a person dies without Jesus, they leave this world and are separated from God forever in hell. That is far more serious than any physical handicap a person could endure!!

So, in this story, we have seen the man and his condition. It was tragic condition, but he was blessed. He had people who cared about him, and he came to meet the Savior. The next thing I want you to see is:

II. The Master and His Cure Vs. 33-35

Here we see the compassion of Christ in the healing of the deaf man. BTW Jesus is the cure for every need we have in life because He is the eternal cure.

Look at Vs. 33-35, “And he took him aside from the multitude, and put his fingers into his ears, and he spit, and touched his tongue; And looking up to heaven, he sighed, and saith unto him, Ephphatha, that is, Be opened. And straightway his ears were opened, and the string of his tongue was loosed, and he spake plain.”

I want you to notice the way Christ ministers to this man.

First notice in Vs. 33 He “took the man aside.” The crowd expected Jesus to touch him right there, but Jesus shows compassion because He doesn’t want to embarrass the man.

A person who is deaf, is a special kind of handicap. Most other physical handicaps can be seen, and we make special arrangements for them. We give parking spots to people who have trouble walking, or we help a blind person cross the street.

But you can’t see it when a person is deaf, so we become impatient with them, and we treat them as less intelligent because they can’t hear.

And what happens is: a deaf person will become embarrassed and they will withdraw from people.

Well, Jesus refused to make a public spectacle of this man, so, He took him aside to be with him personally and privately.

By taking him aside, Jesus is saying, “You are not a problem but you are someone important to me. I care about you and what you are going through.

We should all be grateful today, Jesus doesn’t just treat us like a number. You can see that by His ministry. He healed people in many different ways, but it was always based on the needs of that person.

For example, He touched and cleansed the leper. He spit in the mud, and rubbed it on a blind mans eyes. He allowed an unclean woman, to come up behind and touch Him. Others He healed from a distance, but every case it was different and special.

Everyone who is saved, is saved through the same gospel and by the same blood of Jesus, but, Jesus uses personal methods in every case.

And I love that about God! You can’t put Him in a box! He doesn’t always work the same way, but the one constant you can depend on is: Jesus cares about you on a personal level, and His work in your life is unique.

Notice Vs. 33, Jesus continues to minister to the deaf man. He can’t tell the man what He is going to do, so He uses a rough form of sign language.

First, He sticks His fingers in the mans ears, to let Him know He is going to do something about his hearing. Then He spits on His finger and touches his tongue, to let him know, He is going to do something about his speech.

As gross as that sounds to us, that’s what Jesus did. It seems as though He was trying to wake something up in this mans heart. He is trying to get him to understand that something special is getting ready to happen that will change his life forever.

But for whatever the reason, Jesus touches the man. This is something we see throughout scripture. He touched the sick and made them well. He touched the lepper and made him clean. He touched dead and made it alive.

I am so grateful Jesus was willing to touch the defiled, because He knew that sickness and disease had no power over Him.

That should make us all grateful today, because He left heaven and came to us, and He touched us with the glory of God. He didn’t shy away from our sin, but He took it upon Himself on the cross.

2 Corinthians 5:21 “He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God”

1 Peter 2:24 “and He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross, so that we might die to sin and live to righteousness; for by His wounds you were healed.”

So, those who are redeemed, are redeemed because Jesus was willing to take our sickness and disease.

BTW, If we are going to reach lost people in this world, we are going to have to be willing to go them and be willing to touch them.

We don’t participate in their sin, but we can’t isolate from the world and expect to be a witness for Christ.

Notice Vs. 34 tells us, “Jesus looked up to heaven.”

He does this for two reasons. First, it told the deaf man where his healing was coming from. By looking up to heaven, it was a sign, his healing was coming from the Father.

Second, by looking up to heaven, Jesus was showing His dependence on God. Remember, He did this same thing at the tomb of Lazarus, in John 11:41. It wasn’t that Jesus needed help from heaven, but it was sign of communion with the Father.

And it teaches us an important lesson. If we are going to be effective for Christ we need to be in communion with God. We need to depend on Him.

We do that by staying close and staying clean. We do that by spending time in prayer and in His Word. Remembering He blesses those who make Him their priority.

Notice Vs. 34 tells us, after Jesus looked to heaven, “He sighed.” The word means, He groaned.

Remember the deaf man couldn’t hear Jesus groan, but he could see it, and that spoke volumes to him. It said that Jesus cared about him and what he was going through.

And the same thing is true in your life and mine. We have a Savior that cares about us. Isaiah 53:3 tells us, “He was a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief;”

Hebrews 4:15 tells us, He is touched with the feelings of our infirmities.” So, regardless of what we are going through, in Christ we have a Savior who cares about us.

Then Jesus uses one word, in Vs. 34, “Ephphatha” which means “be open.” And when Jesus said that, the mans ears were opened and his tongue was loosed. It was a miracle. The man could hear and He could speak.

One command from Jesus and his life was changed forever. That’s the power of the Word of God!!

I have seen it in my own life. I have seen people who were spiritually deaf, and spiritually blind, begin to see and hear again, by the power of the Word of God.

I have seen people who were spiritually dead, living in sin, begin to live again, by the power of the Word of God.

The question is: has that happened in your life? Because only Jesus can meet our greatest need to be saved.

The final thing I want to show you in this passage is:

III. The Multitude and Their Confession Vs. 36-37

After Jesus heals their friend, He gives them specific instructions not to tell anyone what He has done.

Notice the phrase in Vs. 36, “He charged them.” The verb tense there means, He kept commanding them. In other words, He was telling them over and over again, to keep this quiet.

What is amazing is: the more He tells them not to say anything, the more they spread the news. How ironic is it that? because we do just the opposite.

Jesus has told us to go spread the good news to the world and we keep it to ourselves. Yet He told these people to keep it to themselves, and they told everyone.

If you have been saved, reconciled to God and your life changed by the Lord Jesus Christ you are commanded to share that with the world.

Mark 16:15 “And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation.”

Matthew 28:19 ““Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations”

Acts 1:8 “but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses”

All three of these passages, represent what we call the great commission of the church. This is not a suggestion.

This is the mandate for all believers. Jesus didn’t tell us to share the good news when we feel led, but to go and tell His story everywhere.

Notice Vs. 37, these people were “beyond measure astonished.” In other words, they were shocked. They were amazed. They couldn’t comprehend what Jesus had done. And the only thing they could say is:, “He hath done all things well!”

That is a statement of faith. They looked at all He had done and all they knew about Jesus and they approved, and they believed. They considered His miracles, and they considered His ministry, and they said, “He hath done all things well!”

And I can echo that statement in my own life today. I can look back at my life and where Jesus has brought me from, and I can tell you He has never failed me.

Even when I was openly and consciously living in my sin, He was leading and guiding me toward the moment He would save my soul. And sense that moment, He has blessed me, and used me in so many powerful ways.

And He can do the same thing in your life. No matter who you are, no matter what you have done, and no matter how long you have been doing it. God can transform your life into something new.

You may not understand why certain things have happened in your life . You may have had terrible things happen to you, and you wonder, why?

I can’t tell you why your life has gone like that. What I can tell you is: one day you are going to leave this world and stand in the presence of God, and if you have surrendered your life to Jesus, you will look back on your life and say, “Jesus has done all things well, and I wouldn’t change a thing.”

Don’t put that off. Do that today. 2 Corinthians 6:2 says, “ Behold, now is “the acceptable time,” behold, today is “the day of salvation”—”

Conclusion

The man in our text met Jesus that day and his life was never the same again. Jesus changed his life forever.

The question is: has that happened in your life? Because only Jesus can meet our greatest need to be saved. Only Jesus can forgive your sins and help you to live a Godly life. Only Jesus can lift your burden and give you peace in your heart.

Jesus said, “come to me all you who are weary and heavy laden and I will give you rest. Take up on you My yoke for My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”

Lets pray together,

Heavenly Father, I thank you for your word. Lord I pray right now that your word would speak to our hearts about who we are and what you mean to us.

Open our eyes and allow us to see, that You do all things well. And you want to do great things in our life. Use us Father in a powerful way to build Your Kingdom.

In Jesus Name I Pray, Amen!