Scripture:
Mark 7:31-37
Quick Summary:
Jesus
goes to pagan territory, and heals a deaf man who cannot speak. He is careful
to do it a whole different ways than the magicians who just do it for show.
The Point:
Jesus is no magician! He doesn’t play
tricks, but changes lives!
Questions for Family Time:
1.
Who did Jesus heal this week?
a.
The deaf man who could not speak
2.
Who else did healings in the man’s neighborhood?
a.
Magicians would pretend to heal people, but it wasn’t
real. It was always a trick.
3.
What did Jesus diferent than the magicians?
a.
He did it in secret, without a crowd. He told the man
exactly what was happening as he did it, making sure the man knew it was a
healing from God. Then, he told the man not to tell anyone…a magician would
NEVER do that!
4.
Did the man keep it a secret like Jesus wanted?
a.
No, he was too excited.
Deeper:
Zeke
and I were watching Arthur the other day. The episode was all about when D.W. heard
a secret. It seemed like everyone else in her family had secrets, so she was
really excited when she got her first secret. She had gone to the nurse to get
a band aid, and one of the little boys in her class had split his pants in the
back. She knew that telling his secret would most likely hurt him. But it was
so juicy. She had nightmares about telling it she wanted to so bad. She had to
let it out.
Have you ever had a
secret like that? Even though you knew you shouldn’t let it out, it just kind
of pressed on your insides. Every conversation you have seems to connect with
this little bit of information. In fact, when someone says “I have a secret”
our natural instinct is not to turn away, but to lean in.
This story is all about
hearing. But not just hearing. It’s a story about hearing the secret of Jesus. In
this story, Jesus is far from home when some of these people bring a deaf man
to Jesus, and they beg for Jesus to heal him. Jesus knows these people. He
knows about how these same people crowd around magicians who put on a show for
the people as they provide “cures.” How the audience loves a good show!
He looks at the deaf
man and he sees not a man waiting for a performance, but a man wanting to hear.
So he takes the man away from the crowd and he starts to communicate to the
man. Now this was before American Sign Language, but Jesus signs to the man
what is happening. He puts his fingers in the man’s ears, he spit and puts the
spit on his tongue. Then to make sure the man knows where the healing is coming
from, he looks up to heaven. The man hears, for the first time, at Jesus’
words, “Be opened!”
But then Jesus tells
them: Keep it a secret. The scripture tells us, they couldn’t do it. The more
sternly he told them to be quiet, the more people they had to tell.
Why does Jesus ask them
to keep this secret? It seems like a pretty unlikely request right from the
start. After all, what does he expect when he heals a mute man but that he
would start talking? If he really wanted the man to be quiet, don’t fix his
ability to speak!
This request to keep a
secret is a pattern all the way through Mark. The word “commanded” in Greek is
used more in Mark than anywhere else in the NT combined. All but once it is
used as Jesus tells people not to tell. It doesn’t seem to fit. After all, we
are always trying to share the Good News of Jesus. So why here does it seem
that Jesus is encouraging the opposite?
I have a few guesses. Jesus
did the healing in secret- just the man and him. So perhaps he was trying to
separate his ministry from the magic of the day. But perhaps, there was more
than that…
After all Jesus had to
know what his popularity meant…He had to know that as the crowds increased, the
established leaders grew more jealous of him. He had to know how indignant they
must have been at the idea of him teaching in Gentile territory. He had to know
it wasn’t just the Jewish Pharisees, Sadducees, and Synagogue Leaders. He had
to know the pagan priests and magicians weren’t too happy about his presence
either. He had to know that he was taking a risk. He had to know that with
every leader he enraged, he stepped closer to his own death.
So why? Why would he
not just avoid the secret all together? Why not just leave the man deaf and
mute? Why bother?
Perhaps Jesus’
sacrifice didn’t start on the cross. Perhaps, Jesus sacrificed each time he
healed someone. His sacrifice in this story, isn’t just for those gathered in
the synagogue or the temple or those filling the established church. His
sacrifice in this story is on the other side of the river. It is with those who
believe in magic incantations. Who worship false gods. This sacrifice is for the
outsiders, too.
Maybe
that is you. You believe in God, but you are not what I have heard called a “churchie.”
You aren’t one of those people who gather together. You are an outsider who
feels more comfortable in the magician’s crowd than in Jewish territory.
Jesus
sacrificed for you. His followers are those of us who have been rejected by “The
Joneses.” We don’t fit in. But then, Jesus calls us together. And because of
his sacrificial love, we find meaning. We find each other. We find life. And we
can’t keep it to ourselves. If that is what you are looking for, I want you to
find that kind of love and belonging with us. We meet after KICK in the
sanctuary from 5:15-5:45 and then share a meal together. Usually we are done
around 6:30, so there is still plenty of evening left to get homework and baths
done before bedtime. Join Us.
Personal Reflection:
How
is Jesus different than a magician? How has the secret of Jesus sneaked out of
you?