Spit; Spoke; And The Man Heard

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. 

                                                                                 (Mark 7:31-35 KJV)

He spit and spoke and the man was healed!

I often remind everyone that it is imperative for faith to grow that we hear the word of God. We need to attend worship and Bible studies as often as we can. If we cannot be with others because we are home bound for otherwise unavailable for whatever reason then we should read the scriptures aloud to ourselves. I have often reminded you (and myself) that: "So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God." (Rom 10:17)

So last night I was in an online Bible Study with that beloved theologian Dr. James Nestingen who led the study on the lessons for this Sunday. As he read and then discussed this lesson from the Gospel of Mark, I could not help but smile as my head heard how Jesus spit and spoke and the man was healed; because as I heard those words my mind translated those words to water and the Word. I could not help but smile as it came to me that Jesus used both water and the Word to heal the deaf man. No, I'm not attempting to turn this into a comparison with Baptism or a major theological discussion. It just struck me as very interesting (even odd) that he would spit; that he would use this form of water, to bring about healing of this man. Knowing Jesus, I am pretty sure that he did not have to use any form of physical substance to heal the deaf man. He did not even need to put his fingers in the man's ears. All he had to do was say it or maybe even think it because after all the deaf man could not hear the words until after he was healed. But, he did use them for whatever his reason was. I do not know that what Jesus did and continues to do is because of his love of all people.

I have been told too many times that it is difficult to understand the Bible so they have given up trying to understand it. Some parts of it are really boring. Those genealogies can be pretty boring. But, the truth is that is that it can be very interesting and enlightening for those who have ears to hear. There will be times when you will be smiling a lot. Just consider what would you might do if you were sick and someone came along and spit before they laid their hands on you for healing. I am not sure if you'd be smiling if someone tried that. But, it's definitely worth a smile. Or, how would you react if your pastor told you to "Get behind me, Satan!" (Mark 8:33) I'm pretty sure you'd be quickly conspiring to get rid of him or her. Oh, yes, Jesus was a character. He was pretty radical in the things he said and did. I often wonder how many Christians would put up with him if he walked the earth today as he did 2000 years ago.

Do not put off hearing the Word of God. Get to worship! Join a Bible Study! If you cannot get there in person there are a lot of live resources online. Relax! Enjoy! Live life! Hear the Word of God!

God's Peace - Pr. J.