Focus:
kjv@Revelation:14:12 @ Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.
(
FaithOfJesus thread begun by r
RandyP )
Today's Verse:
kjv@Mark:7:31-37
kjv@Mark:7:31 @ 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.
kjv@Mark:7:32 @ 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.
kjv@Mark:7:33 @ And he took him aside from the multitude, and put his fingers into his ears, and he spit, and touched his tongue;
kjv@Mark:7:34 @ And looking up to heaven, he sighed, and saith unto him, Ephphatha, that is, Be opened.
kjv@Mark:7:35 @ And straightway his ears were opened, and the string of his tongue was loosed, and he spake plain.
kjv@Mark:7:36 @ 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;
kjv@Mark:7:37 @ And were beyond measure astonished, saying, He hath done all things well: he maketh both the deaf to hear, and the dumb to speak.
Today's notes:
Context:
- Before - Crumbs from the table
- After - How is it you do not understand?
Key Concepts:
slide:kjv@heaven
What is God's righteousness observed doing?:
- Having the ill brought to Jesus, moving Jesus about.
- Taking one aside, Jesus making physical gestures to him when healing.
- Charging those that brought him not to tell others.
What does this tell us about God's righteousness?:
- The alternative would be to release the healing upon all sickness staying stationary out to where ever it is. Remember though that the object is not to heal all sickness (that comes when the curse is finally lifted), it is to confirm Jesus as the Son sent from God; the Anointed (so that the curse can be lifted and by that become healed). Which of the two courses serves the objective best? Man is best served by the individual's present relationship to Jesus, that is why He goes to where individuals can come to meet with Him one to one.
- It is obvious to see that Jesus is not using any certain method of healing. We have seen hands, hems of garment, commands from a distance, commands to rise and walk, individual's faith, mud, spit, even the gifting to disciples. It is not about the method, it is all about the source. There seems to be an effort to keep the medium changing to help prove this and to keep men from attempting to confiscate any of this on their own.
- There will soon be a point where the testimony of others is most all that we have, and that because of the size and scope of it will be sufficient for our faith. Until that time, personal experience and eye witness is what is called for and plenty of it. It does takes publicity to get people curious enough to come certainly. However, there is a point where it becomes nothing more than that when the fame is spreading without enough actual supportive testimony. The fame can also become mis-represented and twist more toward myth or urban legend. Too many people could also bring the ministry to an unwanted imbalance of words and works as well.
How is man reacting?:
- Publishing word of this any way.
Notes:
kjv@Mark:5:20 Decapolis is where the man with a legion of devils cast out who wanted to continue with Jesus returned to telling his friends who marveled. The people meeting Jesus on this day likely know something of this man. He was told by Jesus in his case to tell his friends.
How many people there that day do you suppose went home and experimented with their spittle? Will you?
The word of astonishment spread is not fair to the one healed as well. The man would barely have a life to live once recognized as the man the prophet Jesus healed. Either he would be avoided/questioned/even outcast or he would be celebrated/idolized/implored to do or be something other than he wanted.
The string of the tongue is an interesting description of the physical malady. The string being too tight is loosened allowing the tongue to form words plainly. The ears opening is a more common phrase, but may not be as physical likely having to do more with the electrical pathway to the brain. To be able to speak plainly as a result suggest either that the man could hear root forms of words beforehand perhaps without all the overtones or that the hearing was there but being scrambled by the brain or else that the complete effect was entirely supernatural. It all is astonishing regardless. These word pictures may or may not be meant as a medical definition. They are at the very least meant to be a description of how the malady was perceived by others.
There is an interesting contrast between what the man was first being able to hear and speak with what the newly forming spiritual man in the others was able. Men were now hearing the word of God for the first time (or approaching), it was resonating with the sonic shapes and colors that they heard unintelligibly before (hearing they did not hear). Same with what they were now able to speak. They are being told however not to speak of this one occurrence and their judgment yet will not allow them to obey that. It will have consequence that Jesus is well aware of. It is commanded in the one sense and allowed for/considered into the larger plan in another (not that this makes it right for us).
Key Messages:
What does this say about our present condition?
- We say that we would naturally want to make such a great deal known, the question is though what part of our nature seeks this. It is almost the sense of pride that makes us to announce this, that we have seen what others have not, that we could tell you something that you could not tell us. It is a sense of arrogance that having been told not to tell that we tell presuming to know all the better. Granted, it would be a challenge not to reveal this even by the best of motives, the challenge becomes nearly a impossibility though when combined these lesser rationales.
- The ability to hear, to see, to speak in a spiritual sense is directly connected to one's judgment. Perhaps sight and sound can immediately be restored or made whole, but can the judgment? Cannot judgment bend and twist a perceivable thing into something it would have been better not to have sensed if the later resembles nothing to the original artifact? And if my judgment askew, than my judgment's effect upon you and beyond, your's upon me. Such is the minefield of judgment and logic that the Lord must steer us all through.
Further Resources:
Comment Board:Mark:7:31-37
index:FAITHOFJESUSDEVOTION - Devotional Index
strkjv@Mark:7:31-37 rwp@Mark:7:31-37 mhcc@Mark:7:31-37
FaithOfJesus2 - Devotion Index
![[pBiblx2]](/img/pbiblx2_logo3.png){kind=logo}