WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:06.379 Good morning. In Psalm 119, the psalmist prays to God. He says, 00:00:07.000 --> 00:00:14.939 Oh, how I love your law. It is my meditation all the day. Your commandment makes me wiser than my 00:00:14.939 --> 00:00:20.699 enemies, for it is ever with me. I have more understanding than all my teachers, for your 00:00:20.699 --> 00:00:28.460 testimonies are my meditation. I understand more than the aged, for I keep your precepts. I hold 00:00:28.460 --> 00:00:35.679 back my feet from every evil way in order to keep your word. I do not turn aside from your rules, 00:00:35.799 --> 00:00:43.399 for you have taught me. How sweet are your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth. Through 00:00:43.399 --> 00:00:52.920 your precepts, I get understanding. Therefore, I hate every false way. Your word is a lamp to my feet 00:00:52.920 --> 00:01:04.540 and a light to my path. The psalmist tells us that God's law is a lamp unto our feet. His scriptures 00:01:04.540 --> 00:01:12.659 are sweet in our mouth. By his word, we get wisdom, and by his word, we get life. And in his words, 00:01:12.799 --> 00:01:20.520 spiritual wonders may always be found. And so after all this, the psalmist then adds this little prayer. 00:01:20.519 --> 00:01:27.819 Father, open my eyes that I may behold wondrous things out of your law. 00:01:29.619 --> 00:01:37.140 And this will be our prayer today. This morning, we read a brief passage from the Gospel of Mark about 00:01:37.140 --> 00:01:44.099 Jesus healing a deaf man. But though Jesus works a miracle of healing in this passage, how he works it 00:01:44.099 --> 00:01:51.919 can come across sometimes as a little strange or confusing to us. At first sight, it may not seem to 00:01:51.919 --> 00:01:58.839 you that there are wondrous things in this passage. But God promises that wondrous things can always be 00:01:58.839 --> 00:02:06.259 found in all of his words. So as we look at this passage, we will do so with that prayer in our hearts 00:02:06.260 --> 00:02:12.500 from the psalmist. Oh Lord, open my eyes that I may behold wondrous things out of your law. 00:02:13.700 --> 00:02:21.020 The passage is from the Gospel of Mark, chapter 7, verses 31 through 37. 00:02:22.620 --> 00:02:28.659 And it reads like this. That's chapter 7, verses 31 through 37 of the Gospel of Mark. 00:02:28.659 --> 00:02:35.539 Then he, Jesus, returned from the region of Tyre and went through Sidon to the Sea of Galilee in the 00:02:35.539 --> 00:02:41.519 region of Decapolis. And they brought to him a man who was deaf and had a speech impediment. And they 00:02:41.519 --> 00:02:48.479 begged him to lay his hand on him. And taking him aside from the crowd privately, he put his fingers 00:02:48.479 --> 00:02:57.219 into his ears and after spitting, touched his tongue. And looking up to heaven, he sighed and said to him, 00:02:57.219 --> 00:03:03.259 Ephthatha, that is, be opened. And his ears were opened, his tongue was released, and he spoke plainly. 00:03:03.500 --> 00:03:09.300 And Jesus charged them to tell no one. But the more he charged them, the more zealously they proclaimed 00:03:09.300 --> 00:03:15.240 it. And they were astonished beyond measure, saying, He has done all things well. He even makes the deaf 00:03:15.240 --> 00:03:24.840 hear and the mute speak. In the story we just heard, Jesus heals a man who is deaf and mute. 00:03:24.840 --> 00:03:30.819 And now, Jesus does a lot of things like this in the Gospels. But as I said, this particular story 00:03:30.819 --> 00:03:38.259 often strikes people as somehow different or puzzling, possibly even a little weird. There are a few 00:03:38.259 --> 00:03:44.039 reasons for this. The most obvious one is in verse 33, where Jesus spits and then touches the man's 00:03:44.039 --> 00:03:51.120 tongue. Why does he do that? If we're honest, this makes some of us a little uncomfortable and seems a 00:03:51.120 --> 00:03:57.360 little gross. There's some other odd things, too. When healing the man, Jesus performs all these 00:03:57.360 --> 00:04:03.580 physical actions. He touches the man's ears. He touches his tongue. He looks up to heaven. He sighs. 00:04:03.680 --> 00:04:08.740 We know from other miracles that Jesus didn't have to do all those things. We knew that he didn't like 00:04:08.740 --> 00:04:14.960 making a show of things. With just a simple touch, he worked even greater miracles. With just a word of 00:04:14.960 --> 00:04:22.379 command, he raised Lazarus from the dead. In fact, Jesus often tries to hide his miracles and make 00:04:22.379 --> 00:04:26.199 sure people don't spread news about them. But this time, with this miracle, he has all these 00:04:26.199 --> 00:04:32.319 gesticulations going on. And there are other things also that are a little puzzling. Why doesn't he want 00:04:32.319 --> 00:04:39.519 people to speak about this miracle? And what about that strange, almost unpronounceable word, 00:04:39.519 --> 00:04:46.740 epitha, that Mark records Jesus as saying? What's going on here? Well, the first thing to do when 00:04:46.740 --> 00:04:51.740 interpreting this passage is the same thing you should do when interpreting any passage of Scripture 00:04:51.740 --> 00:05:01.219 that is confusing to you. You should pray that prayer of the psalmist. Oh, Lord, open my eyes that I may 00:05:01.219 --> 00:05:07.779 behold wondrous things out of your law. God has promised that there are wonders in every passage of 00:05:07.779 --> 00:05:14.279 Scripture. So whenever you find something confusing in the Scriptures, ask God to open your eyes, open 00:05:14.279 --> 00:05:21.599 your ears, soften your heart, and humble your soul to see the wonders that are there. And over the years, 00:05:21.879 --> 00:05:30.779 I've had many times when my eyes were too weak or my ears too hard of hearing. In my study of the 00:05:30.779 --> 00:05:36.859 Scriptures, where there have been words or verses or passages or even whole books of Scripture that I did 00:05:36.860 --> 00:05:44.199 not understand or that I did not like and which I stumbled. But time and again, God opened my eyes 00:05:44.199 --> 00:05:53.060 and my ears to reveal many spiritual wonders. So let's do this now. Let's pray together and ask God 00:05:53.060 --> 00:05:58.920 to open our eyes and let's see what's hidden in his Word together in the Gospel of Mark. Join me in prayer. 00:05:58.920 --> 00:06:06.080 Father, Father, we come before you and, Lord, we confess that our eyes are weak and our ears are hard of 00:06:06.080 --> 00:06:14.060 hearing to see and to hear your Word. And we ask that you would anoint us with your Holy Spirit 00:06:14.060 --> 00:06:21.800 to enable us, Lord, to look upon your shining self and to hear your softly spoken words. 00:06:21.800 --> 00:06:29.199 Lord, we submit to you in this. And we pray this in the name of your Son, Jesus. Amen. 00:06:31.680 --> 00:06:36.960 So to find all of the wonders in this passage, let's work through it verse by verse. We'll start 00:06:36.960 --> 00:06:40.960 with verse 31 in chapter 7. Verse 31, 00:06:40.960 --> 00:06:45.960 Then he, Jesus, returned from the region of Tyre and went through Sidon to the Sea of Galilee in the 00:06:45.960 --> 00:06:51.639 region of Decapolis. In verse 31, Jesus is in the north of Israel. He's in Gentile 00:06:51.639 --> 00:06:57.419 country. He's near the cities of Tyre and Sidon. This is up where modern Lebanon is today. Jesus, 00:06:57.599 --> 00:07:03.079 as we saw last week, he's been resting there. And he comes down south to the territory near the Sea of 00:07:03.079 --> 00:07:09.300 Galilee. Now, the Sea of Galilee is very familiar to Jesus. It's very familiar territory. But Mark tells 00:07:09.300 --> 00:07:15.899 us that Jesus departs from his normal practice. Instead of ministering on the western side of the 00:07:15.899 --> 00:07:21.620 Sea of Galilee, which was heavily Jewish, he instead is ministering in the Decapolis, which is 00:07:21.620 --> 00:07:27.439 on the eastern side of the Sea of Galilee. And this is an area dominated by Gentiles. 00:07:28.160 --> 00:07:33.420 What this means is that many of the people to whom Jesus was ministering were likely Gentiles 00:07:33.420 --> 00:07:40.959 and not Jewish. And this little fact casts this story in a different light. It suggests that the 00:07:40.959 --> 00:07:46.780 local residents may not have been as familiar with reports of Jesus as the Jewish inhabitants on the 00:07:46.779 --> 00:07:53.079 western side of the Sea of Galilee. And it suggests they may not have known as much or much at all about 00:07:53.079 --> 00:07:59.619 Jesus's teachings. Let's see what happens next in verse 32. And they brought to Jesus a man who was deaf 00:07:59.619 --> 00:08:04.299 and had a speech impediment. And they begged him to lay his hand on him. 00:08:06.799 --> 00:08:11.339 In verse 32, there occurs something very typical when Jesus comes to a new place. 00:08:11.339 --> 00:08:17.859 People hear that a great healer has come to town. So they bring all those with various ailments to him 00:08:17.859 --> 00:08:24.939 to see what he can do with them. And this time, they bring a man who was deaf and who spoke with 00:08:24.939 --> 00:08:31.239 difficulty. Now the fact that this man was deaf, but yet still could speak with some difficulty, 00:08:31.379 --> 00:08:37.720 this fact tells us that the man probably lost his hearing when he was a small child. If he had been 00:08:37.720 --> 00:08:42.519 born deaf, he probably would not have been able to speak at all. Perhaps he got a very high fever 00:08:42.519 --> 00:08:48.160 and woke up one day without his hearing while he was a toddler or a very little boy. We can infer 00:08:48.160 --> 00:08:54.379 more about this man too. Because he was deaf, he likely had an almost impossible time communicating 00:08:54.379 --> 00:09:01.379 with others. And this is because there was no sign language back then. There was also no therapy for 00:09:01.379 --> 00:09:07.460 people who were deaf. And on account of this, the deaf man could barely speak. And moreover, 00:09:07.460 --> 00:09:11.500 there was no formal training for reading lips. So this man would have passed through life only 00:09:11.500 --> 00:09:18.820 understanding a small percentage of what was going on. People would have had trouble communicating with 00:09:18.820 --> 00:09:25.820 him and he would have had a terrible time communicating with others. He probably spent most of his time 00:09:25.820 --> 00:09:34.840 being ignored and being alone. It was probably a very hard life and likely a very lonely life. 00:09:34.840 --> 00:09:41.879 And Mark tells us in verse 32 that the crowd brings this man to Jesus and begs him to heal the man. 00:09:42.840 --> 00:09:50.660 Notice here in the passage that the man is not the one asking to be healed or even motioning or 00:09:50.660 --> 00:09:56.560 gesturing to be healed. This is another indication that this man has a difficult time communicating 00:09:56.559 --> 00:10:03.479 and people also had a difficult time communicating with him. But this little observation also gives us a clue 00:10:03.479 --> 00:10:10.119 about what is really going on here. It's not too much to imagine that this man may not have even known 00:10:10.119 --> 00:10:17.099 exactly why he was standing before Jesus. Mark implies that it is not the man who goes out and seeks Jesus. 00:10:17.219 --> 00:10:23.479 The crowd does. It's not the man who approaches Jesus. The crowd does. The man is not trying to rudimentarily 00:10:23.480 --> 00:10:29.779 communicate that he needs healing. Instead the crowd begs Jesus to heal him. And Jesus is also 00:10:29.779 --> 00:10:35.759 ministering in an area where he was likely relatively unknown. So the man may not have known about Jesus 00:10:35.759 --> 00:10:43.980 even if he could hear and speak. But if it's true that this man may not know entirely why he's standing 00:10:43.980 --> 00:10:53.000 before Jesus, then what do you think is going through his mind as he looks at Jesus? In fact, let's go back 00:10:53.000 --> 00:10:58.399 a few steps. What do you think it was like for this deaf man when a crowd showed up and hurried him off 00:10:58.399 --> 00:11:06.860 to some unknown direction? Imagine in your mind all of a sudden you are being jostled, you are led along, 00:11:06.960 --> 00:11:12.920 you are hurried, you're pushed. Imagine if this happened to you. You've lived your life deaf and mute in the 00:11:12.919 --> 00:11:19.120 ancient world. You've been ignored and lonely with few if anyone to communicate with. And then suddenly 00:11:19.120 --> 00:11:26.240 a crowd comes and hurries you off. You don't understand what is happening. Where are they taking 00:11:26.240 --> 00:11:33.219 me, you wonder? What is going on? And now you're standing before a strange man while a crowd surrounds 00:11:33.219 --> 00:11:42.500 you. Who is this man? What is going on, you're wondering? It is probably fair to say that the deaf man 00:11:42.500 --> 00:11:50.159 is feeling some uncertainty or fear or anxiety, worry and confusion. And even if he understood what was 00:11:50.159 --> 00:11:55.539 going on, it must have been terribly fearful being surrounded by so much chaos without being able to 00:11:55.539 --> 00:12:03.919 hear or to communicate. And now he stands before this strange man. Let's see what Jesus does in verse 33. 00:12:04.700 --> 00:12:06.639 Verse 33, the first part says, 00:12:06.639 --> 00:12:15.259 And Jesus, taking him aside from the crowd privately. Well, Jesus, the first thing he does 00:12:15.259 --> 00:12:24.860 is to calm the situation down. He settles everything. He brings the man aside privately and reassures the 00:12:24.860 --> 00:12:31.200 man. The man is probably relieved and put at ease. Now it's just him and Jesus. And as we learn later 00:12:31.200 --> 00:12:37.840 in the passage, a few other people as well. And then verse 33 goes on. He put his fingers into his ears 00:12:37.840 --> 00:12:43.540 and after spitting, touched his tongue. And looking up to heaven, he sighed and said to him, 00:12:43.960 --> 00:12:47.759 Ephatha, that is, be opened. 00:12:50.220 --> 00:12:56.860 All right, it's in this verse that we get to some of those odd bits. Because here Jesus puts his fingers 00:12:56.860 --> 00:13:03.899 into the man's ears. He spits and he touches the man's tongue. Some Bible translations say that Jesus 00:13:03.899 --> 00:13:10.600 touched the man's tongue with the spit. But the Greek does not actually say this. But either way, 00:13:11.220 --> 00:13:17.840 what's going on here? Why is Jesus touching the man's ears and even reaching his fingers into them? 00:13:17.940 --> 00:13:23.960 And why is he touching this man's mouth and even reaching his finger in to touch his tongue? 00:13:23.960 --> 00:13:30.019 And why does he spit? Well, to understand all this, we need to view this story through the eyes 00:13:30.019 --> 00:13:37.180 of the deaf and mute man. And I mean this somewhat literally. Because remember that this man cannot 00:13:37.180 --> 00:13:44.519 hear. He relies on a sense of sight and a sense of touch far more than most. So let's envision this 00:13:44.519 --> 00:13:50.639 story from his point of view, through his eyes and his sense of touch. And I think all will be revealed. 00:13:50.639 --> 00:13:56.919 The man is standing alone in front of Jesus. Jesus puts his fingers in the man's ears. 00:13:58.699 --> 00:14:04.340 What would the man think about that? Well, naturally, he would think, Jesus 00:14:04.340 --> 00:14:12.860 is touching the part of me that does not work properly. And then Jesus spits. Now, in our culture, 00:14:13.699 --> 00:14:19.019 spitting is viewed as something unclean or gross. It's unhygienic. It's rude. It's offensive. 00:14:19.019 --> 00:14:25.860 And this was also true in the ancient world. This is why when Jesus went to the cross, the high 00:14:25.860 --> 00:14:34.259 priests tried to humiliate him by spitting on him. But in the Greco-Roman world, saliva was also 00:14:34.259 --> 00:14:40.659 thought of as having healing or restorative properties. There are, in fact, whole chapters 00:14:40.659 --> 00:14:47.919 in ancient literature devoted to the healing properties of saliva. And unfortunately, I've read 00:14:47.919 --> 00:14:57.599 some of these. But in this way, the ancients thought of saliva like how we think of something 00:14:57.599 --> 00:15:03.759 like manure. Normally, we find manure to be gross and off-putting, in certain contexts even offensive. 00:15:04.399 --> 00:15:10.159 But we also agree that manure can be a very desirable thing when used for certain purposes, 00:15:10.159 --> 00:15:17.079 like fertilizer for crops and gardens. So like manure, the ancients thought of saliva in the same 00:15:17.079 --> 00:15:24.120 way. In certain contexts, it was offensive and gross. But in medical settings, it could be quite 00:15:24.120 --> 00:15:31.100 useful. So putting all this together, what this means is that when Jesus spits, the deaf and mute man 00:15:31.100 --> 00:15:36.339 would see him spitting right after he touched his ears. And this would probably cause the man to think 00:15:36.340 --> 00:15:45.379 of healing, restoration, and rejuvenation. Perhaps he might begin to wonder, is Jesus going to heal my ears? 00:15:47.060 --> 00:15:54.300 Then, after Jesus spits, the man sees and feels Jesus touch his tongue. And the man thinks, 00:15:54.660 --> 00:16:00.540 I can't speak well. And Jesus is touching the other part of my body that does not work properly. 00:16:00.539 --> 00:16:06.179 And this prompts the man to think, is Jesus also going to heal my tongue and let me speak? 00:16:07.539 --> 00:16:10.259 Next, the man sees Jesus looking up to heaven. 00:16:12.439 --> 00:16:15.939 Now, what is one of the first things that comes to our mind when we think of heaven? 00:16:18.219 --> 00:16:24.319 We think of God. And so the man seeing Jesus look up to heaven would be prompted to think, 00:16:24.320 --> 00:16:33.379 Jesus is focusing on God. Afterwards, the man sees Jesus sighing deeply. To do that, he needed to fill 00:16:33.379 --> 00:16:38.500 his lungs with air. This is a visible action. The man could have seen Jesus' chest expanding. He could 00:16:38.500 --> 00:16:43.640 see his shoulders rising a little bit. We do this when we're getting ready to do or say something very 00:16:43.640 --> 00:16:48.800 important. We take a deep breath to ready ourselves. The man sees Jesus doing this while he's looking up 00:16:48.799 --> 00:16:55.839 to heaven. And the man puts both of these together and he thinks, Jesus is getting ready to say 00:16:55.839 --> 00:17:02.979 something to heaven. Perhaps he's getting ready to pray an important prayer to God. 00:17:05.379 --> 00:17:10.980 Let's go over this again. The deaf and mute man's first encounter with Jesus is when Jesus 00:17:10.980 --> 00:17:16.659 caringly takes him aside from the large crowd to put him at ease. And then he sees and he feels Jesus 00:17:16.660 --> 00:17:21.400 put his finger in his ears. And then he sees Jesus spit, which as I said, indicates healing. 00:17:21.700 --> 00:17:27.180 Then he sees and feels Jesus touch his tongue. Then Jesus looks up to heaven. And then he sees Jesus 00:17:27.180 --> 00:17:35.480 fill his lungs with air. What is Jesus doing here? Well, I've wrestled with this passage for many years. 00:17:35.700 --> 00:17:45.120 And I keep being led back to the same inescapable conclusion. Jesus seems to be trying to communicate 00:17:45.119 --> 00:17:50.739 with this man who cannot hear. But instead of speaking with audible words, he speaks with him 00:17:50.739 --> 00:17:58.759 via rudimentary sign language. Jesus speaks with visible movements and with physical touch. 00:18:00.599 --> 00:18:04.699 And there's a good chance that no one, especially no stranger, 00:18:05.699 --> 00:18:12.959 had ever done something like this for this man. But Jesus understands this man's struggles. He sees his 00:18:12.960 --> 00:18:18.579 weakness and he comforts the man. He communicates to the man that he's going to help him. Throughout 00:18:18.579 --> 00:18:23.980 this whole process, he's telling the man he's going to heal him. He's going to heal his ears so he can 00:18:23.980 --> 00:18:29.819 hear. He's going to heal his tongue so he can speak. And this isn't going to be by some magic spell. 00:18:30.079 --> 00:18:37.620 This is going to be from the God of heaven. This is going to be through prayer. Consider the love 00:18:37.619 --> 00:18:47.719 that Jesus had for this man. Consider how this man may have felt loved by Jesus. Jesus takes time away 00:18:47.719 --> 00:18:54.699 from the demands of his day to give his attention to this disabled man and to speak with him in a way 00:18:54.699 --> 00:19:01.739 that the deaf man could understand. We know that Jesus could have snapped his fingers and healed the 00:19:01.740 --> 00:19:10.940 man. But he didn't. He first took time to love the man. And I think it is fair to say that this act of 00:19:10.940 --> 00:19:19.680 love is the first miracle Jesus did for this man. And this is typical of Jesus. We read in the Gospels 00:19:19.680 --> 00:19:26.019 that out of the same love, Jesus touches a leper who had not felt touch in years. With the same love, 00:19:26.019 --> 00:19:31.879 when Jesus was at a dinner party and a disabled man was present, he told the host he should have 00:19:31.879 --> 00:19:37.879 invited that disabled man as the guest of honor. We read further that Jesus welcomes little children, 00:19:38.000 --> 00:19:43.599 though others rejected them. He speaks with a despised Samaritan woman. He allows an unclean 00:19:43.599 --> 00:19:50.740 and desperate woman to touch his garment for healing. And I should say too, Scripture testifies 00:19:50.740 --> 00:19:56.500 that most of all Jesus, while seeing all of your sins, went to the cross to wipe them away. 00:19:59.160 --> 00:20:04.299 But I want to return to Jesus and this deaf man for a moment. If Jesus is indeed endeavoring to 00:20:04.299 --> 00:20:09.720 communicate with this man, and I think he is, then we should spend a little more time 00:20:09.720 --> 00:20:16.620 on how remarkable this is. These rudimentary signs Jesus made would have impacted this deaf man 00:20:16.619 --> 00:20:23.259 powerfully. We are fortunate to have an account from history about what it is like to be unable to 00:20:23.259 --> 00:20:30.159 speak or communicate, and then what it is like to gain this ability when someone attempts to make 00:20:30.159 --> 00:20:37.659 physical signs to you as Jesus was doing with this deaf man. And this account comes from a woman, 00:20:38.259 --> 00:20:43.179 some of you might recognize this name, named Helen Keller. And her story will help us to understand 00:20:43.180 --> 00:20:49.160 this deaf man and what it was like for him and what Jesus did for him by physically signing. 00:20:50.180 --> 00:20:59.320 Helen was born about 1880. When she was two years old, she grew gravely ill, and her fever caused her 00:20:59.320 --> 00:21:05.820 to become deaf and blind. And for five years, until she was seven years old, Helen went through life alone, 00:21:05.820 --> 00:21:10.880 without speech or communication, and given to tantrums and raging. 00:21:10.880 --> 00:21:17.640 In her autobiography, she says that one day a teacher named Ann Sullivan arrived at her house, 00:21:18.220 --> 00:21:21.560 and Ann attempted to start signing into Helen's hands. 00:21:23.500 --> 00:21:28.400 Signing into someone's hands is when you trace letters into someone's hands to spell a word. 00:21:29.200 --> 00:21:34.860 And to do this, Ann first gave Helen a porcelain doll as a gift, and then spelled the word doll 00:21:34.860 --> 00:21:40.280 into Helen's hands. As Helen relates years later, she did not understand. 00:21:40.279 --> 00:21:44.839 And grew quickly frustrated and smashed the porcelain doll on the ground. 00:21:46.420 --> 00:21:52.500 Undeterred, Ann gently led Helen outside. And then while Helen was feeling cool water pour over her hands, 00:21:53.099 --> 00:21:58.339 Ann signed the word water into her hands. And then for the first time, 00:21:58.759 --> 00:22:02.819 Helen understood that Ann Sullivan was communicating with her. 00:22:02.819 --> 00:22:05.700 Ann Helen writes this, 00:22:05.700 --> 00:22:14.080 That living word awakened my soul. It gave it light, hope, joy, and set it free. 00:22:15.220 --> 00:22:20.680 I left the well eager to learn. Everything had a name, and each name gave birth to a new thought. 00:22:21.319 --> 00:22:26.000 As we returned to the house, every object which I touched seemed to quiver with life. 00:22:27.140 --> 00:22:31.500 That was because I saw everything with the strange new sight that had come to me. 00:22:31.500 --> 00:22:34.799 On entering the door, I remembered the doll I had broken. 00:22:35.220 --> 00:22:37.880 I felt my way to the hearth and picked up the pieces. 00:22:38.660 --> 00:22:40.259 I tried vainly to put them together. 00:22:41.099 --> 00:22:42.920 And then my eyes filled with tears. 00:22:44.079 --> 00:22:46.079 For I realized what I had done. 00:22:46.720 --> 00:22:48.480 And for the first time, 00:22:49.079 --> 00:22:50.619 I felt repentance 00:22:50.619 --> 00:22:52.640 and sorrow. 00:22:52.640 --> 00:22:56.620 In Helen's account, 00:22:56.740 --> 00:23:01.180 a simple word to a wordless soul awakened her and gave her life and joy. 00:23:01.880 --> 00:23:03.140 And in a manner of speaking, 00:23:03.259 --> 00:23:05.780 even gave her the knowledge of her sins. 00:23:07.300 --> 00:23:08.500 Forever afterwards, 00:23:08.860 --> 00:23:11.440 Helen would call this day her soul's birthday. 00:23:12.480 --> 00:23:15.700 One word to a wordless soul did this. 00:23:17.020 --> 00:23:19.220 How much more, therefore, did Jesus do 00:23:19.220 --> 00:23:21.720 for this deaf and mute man? 00:23:22.640 --> 00:23:24.100 How much more 00:23:24.100 --> 00:23:26.500 does Jesus do for you? 00:23:27.900 --> 00:23:28.820 After all, 00:23:29.020 --> 00:23:32.520 Jesus does not simply speak true words to you. 00:23:33.100 --> 00:23:34.820 He is the true word 00:23:34.820 --> 00:23:36.600 for you. 00:23:37.660 --> 00:23:38.180 Jesus 00:23:38.180 --> 00:23:40.820 is the word of God made flesh. 00:23:41.080 --> 00:23:43.080 He is the word of God descending to earth 00:23:43.080 --> 00:23:44.520 and becoming like us 00:23:44.520 --> 00:23:46.180 in order to reach us 00:23:46.180 --> 00:23:47.400 and to communicate with us 00:23:47.400 --> 00:23:49.080 and to save us from our sins. 00:23:49.640 --> 00:23:50.240 And Jesus 00:23:50.240 --> 00:23:52.140 is the word of God. 00:23:52.140 --> 00:23:52.980 It is he 00:23:52.980 --> 00:23:54.840 who speaks to the deaf man, 00:23:54.920 --> 00:23:56.140 not with audible words, 00:23:56.820 --> 00:23:58.520 but with words he can understand. 00:23:59.920 --> 00:24:00.360 Friends, 00:24:00.440 --> 00:24:01.840 is not this a beautiful picture 00:24:01.840 --> 00:24:03.380 of the incarnation of Jesus, 00:24:03.600 --> 00:24:04.440 the Son of God? 00:24:05.140 --> 00:24:05.980 And this 00:24:05.980 --> 00:24:07.580 is what Jesus does 00:24:07.580 --> 00:24:09.660 for all of you. 00:24:10.740 --> 00:24:12.060 Jesus speaks to all of you 00:24:12.060 --> 00:24:13.340 in ways you can understand. 00:24:14.180 --> 00:24:14.700 Now, of course, 00:24:14.780 --> 00:24:15.700 the deaf and mute man 00:24:15.700 --> 00:24:16.680 was a special case. 00:24:16.680 --> 00:24:18.380 Jesus couldn't speak to him 00:24:18.380 --> 00:24:19.660 with audible words, 00:24:19.900 --> 00:24:21.640 so he used physical signing. 00:24:22.500 --> 00:24:23.279 But in truth, 00:24:24.660 --> 00:24:26.279 you're all special cases. 00:24:27.320 --> 00:24:28.700 And Jesus speaks to all of you 00:24:28.700 --> 00:24:29.460 in your own language 00:24:29.460 --> 00:24:31.160 with images that you can understand 00:24:31.160 --> 00:24:34.140 so that you can be brought to repentance. 00:24:35.600 --> 00:24:36.840 Consider all the ways 00:24:36.840 --> 00:24:38.380 Jesus describes himself 00:24:38.380 --> 00:24:39.320 in the scriptures. 00:24:39.900 --> 00:24:41.160 He is the good shepherd 00:24:41.160 --> 00:24:43.300 who lays his life down 00:24:43.300 --> 00:24:44.000 for his sheep. 00:24:44.440 --> 00:24:45.420 He is the mother hen 00:24:45.420 --> 00:24:46.540 who gathers her chicks 00:24:46.540 --> 00:24:47.440 under her wings. 00:24:48.180 --> 00:24:49.080 He is the father 00:24:49.080 --> 00:24:49.820 who forgives 00:24:49.820 --> 00:24:50.840 the wayward son. 00:24:51.400 --> 00:24:52.160 He is the woman 00:24:52.160 --> 00:24:53.580 looking for the lost coin. 00:24:54.000 --> 00:24:54.880 He is the husband 00:24:54.880 --> 00:24:55.920 who welcomes back 00:24:55.920 --> 00:24:57.060 the unfaithful wife. 00:24:57.540 --> 00:24:58.440 He is the vine 00:24:58.440 --> 00:25:00.040 and you are the branches. 00:25:00.759 --> 00:25:01.680 He is a wellspring 00:25:01.680 --> 00:25:02.580 and you are thirsty. 00:25:02.759 --> 00:25:03.519 He is a healer 00:25:03.519 --> 00:25:04.300 and you are sick. 00:25:04.480 --> 00:25:05.120 He is light 00:25:05.120 --> 00:25:06.040 and you are darkness. 00:25:06.820 --> 00:25:08.180 He is the word of God 00:25:08.180 --> 00:25:10.100 and you are deaf and mute 00:25:10.100 --> 00:25:11.279 and you cannot hear him 00:25:11.279 --> 00:25:13.120 and you cannot understand his message. 00:25:13.940 --> 00:25:15.680 So he speaks in a way 00:25:15.680 --> 00:25:16.700 that you can hear. 00:25:19.000 --> 00:25:20.539 Have you heard God lately? 00:25:21.820 --> 00:25:24.259 Are you listening for his voice? 00:25:24.259 --> 00:25:27.519 Are you listening to his voice? 00:25:28.779 --> 00:25:32.140 Sometimes he speaks words of comfort, 00:25:32.500 --> 00:25:33.420 sometimes encouragement, 00:25:33.860 --> 00:25:34.640 sometimes forgiveness, 00:25:35.700 --> 00:25:36.740 but sometimes rebuke, 00:25:36.740 --> 00:25:38.940 sometimes words of command. 00:25:41.759 --> 00:25:43.640 What is he saying to you? 00:25:44.380 --> 00:25:46.279 Because he is speaking to you, 00:25:46.720 --> 00:25:47.339 sometimes, 00:25:48.460 --> 00:25:49.559 or just heart of hearing 00:25:49.559 --> 00:25:50.440 or heart of heart. 00:25:51.059 --> 00:25:53.279 And his constant call 00:25:53.279 --> 00:25:54.620 to every one of you 00:25:54.620 --> 00:25:56.880 is to repent of your sins 00:25:56.880 --> 00:25:59.019 and to be comforted 00:25:59.019 --> 00:26:00.240 by his Holy Spirit 00:26:00.240 --> 00:26:01.880 whom he has sent into your hearts 00:26:01.880 --> 00:26:03.960 and to follow Jesus 00:26:03.960 --> 00:26:04.779 with joyfulness. 00:26:04.779 --> 00:26:08.160 Are you listening to him today? 00:26:13.160 --> 00:26:15.119 Let's return to our gospel passage 00:26:15.119 --> 00:26:16.720 because Jesus is not done 00:26:16.720 --> 00:26:17.740 speaking to this man. 00:26:18.139 --> 00:26:19.559 Let's see what he does next. 00:26:20.559 --> 00:26:21.299 Verse 34, 00:26:22.299 --> 00:26:23.279 And looking up to heaven, 00:26:23.440 --> 00:26:24.299 Jesus sighed 00:26:24.299 --> 00:26:25.279 and says to the man, 00:26:25.799 --> 00:26:26.440 Ephephithah, 00:26:26.599 --> 00:26:26.960 that is, 00:26:27.019 --> 00:26:27.519 be opened. 00:26:27.940 --> 00:26:29.119 And his ears were opened 00:26:29.119 --> 00:26:30.240 and his tongue was released 00:26:30.240 --> 00:26:31.339 and he spoke plainly. 00:26:31.339 --> 00:26:34.599 Jesus says this odd little word, 00:26:35.019 --> 00:26:35.639 Ephephithah. 00:26:36.059 --> 00:26:37.500 This word is Aramaic 00:26:37.500 --> 00:26:38.259 for be opened. 00:26:39.000 --> 00:26:40.079 Jesus' native language 00:26:40.079 --> 00:26:40.759 was Aramaic 00:26:40.759 --> 00:26:42.500 and here Mark spells out 00:26:42.500 --> 00:26:44.039 Jesus' Aramaic phrase 00:26:44.039 --> 00:26:45.819 and then translates it 00:26:45.819 --> 00:26:47.179 into Greek for his readers. 00:26:47.579 --> 00:26:48.659 So in our English Bibles, 00:26:49.119 --> 00:26:49.859 we have the practice 00:26:49.859 --> 00:26:50.839 of spelling out 00:26:50.839 --> 00:26:51.759 the Aramaic word 00:26:51.759 --> 00:26:52.579 like Mark did 00:26:52.579 --> 00:26:54.139 and then we translate it 00:26:54.139 --> 00:26:54.939 into English. 00:26:54.940 --> 00:26:58.799 But this linguistic information aside, 00:26:58.900 --> 00:26:59.660 what's really remarkable 00:26:59.660 --> 00:27:00.640 about all of this 00:27:00.640 --> 00:27:01.799 is that this word, 00:27:01.880 --> 00:27:02.279 be opened, 00:27:02.340 --> 00:27:03.340 was the first word 00:27:03.340 --> 00:27:04.580 this man had ever heard 00:27:04.580 --> 00:27:06.080 or at least the first word 00:27:06.080 --> 00:27:07.200 he'd heard in a long time. 00:27:07.779 --> 00:27:08.940 And thanks to modern medicine, 00:27:09.120 --> 00:27:10.000 we have examples 00:27:10.000 --> 00:27:11.140 of people who are deaf 00:27:11.140 --> 00:27:12.120 and then who are given 00:27:12.120 --> 00:27:13.559 the ability to hear 00:27:13.559 --> 00:27:14.660 like this man was given 00:27:14.660 --> 00:27:16.000 miraculously by Jesus. 00:27:16.720 --> 00:27:17.980 And you can go on the internet, 00:27:18.120 --> 00:27:19.019 you can find videos 00:27:19.019 --> 00:27:20.460 of people hearing voices 00:27:20.460 --> 00:27:21.360 for the first time 00:27:21.360 --> 00:27:22.500 and if you do, 00:27:22.920 --> 00:27:24.299 you'll see that the experience 00:27:24.299 --> 00:27:26.200 is often completely overwhelming. 00:27:26.899 --> 00:27:28.099 They're surrounded by sounds. 00:27:28.200 --> 00:27:28.940 At long last, 00:27:29.059 --> 00:27:29.759 they hear voices 00:27:29.759 --> 00:27:30.779 of their loved ones. 00:27:30.899 --> 00:27:31.819 It's so overwhelming 00:27:31.819 --> 00:27:33.000 and new 00:27:33.000 --> 00:27:33.960 that their brain 00:27:33.960 --> 00:27:34.879 has to acclimate 00:27:34.879 --> 00:27:36.240 and learn how to process 00:27:36.240 --> 00:27:36.859 the sounds. 00:27:37.000 --> 00:27:38.180 Often people break down 00:27:38.180 --> 00:27:38.819 sobbing 00:27:38.819 --> 00:27:40.319 when they're given the gift 00:27:40.319 --> 00:27:41.859 of hearing for the first time. 00:27:42.220 --> 00:27:43.539 It's amazing to watch 00:27:43.539 --> 00:27:44.839 and this man probably 00:27:44.839 --> 00:27:46.039 had a similar reaction 00:27:46.039 --> 00:27:47.279 but let's see 00:27:47.279 --> 00:27:48.599 what Jesus says. 00:27:49.339 --> 00:27:50.240 In verse 36, 00:27:51.079 --> 00:27:52.139 and Jesus charged them 00:27:52.139 --> 00:27:53.059 to tell no one. 00:27:54.299 --> 00:27:57.079 Jesus heals 00:27:57.079 --> 00:27:58.339 this man of deafness 00:27:58.339 --> 00:27:59.379 and the first thing 00:27:59.379 --> 00:28:00.259 he tells him 00:28:00.259 --> 00:28:01.379 is not to tell anyone. 00:28:03.579 --> 00:28:04.500 This would have been 00:28:04.500 --> 00:28:06.419 a very difficult command 00:28:06.419 --> 00:28:07.680 to obey. 00:28:08.680 --> 00:28:09.700 This man has just 00:28:09.700 --> 00:28:10.659 miraculously gained 00:28:10.659 --> 00:28:11.119 the ability 00:28:11.119 --> 00:28:12.099 to hear and to speak 00:28:12.099 --> 00:28:13.119 and Jesus tells him 00:28:13.119 --> 00:28:14.599 that he can't share this. 00:28:16.079 --> 00:28:17.099 Can you imagine? 00:28:17.899 --> 00:28:18.859 Can you imagine 00:28:18.859 --> 00:28:21.139 you can finally speak, 00:28:21.399 --> 00:28:22.379 you're miraculously healed 00:28:22.380 --> 00:28:23.040 by Jesus 00:28:23.040 --> 00:28:24.780 and Jesus doesn't want 00:28:24.780 --> 00:28:25.780 you telling anybody. 00:28:26.680 --> 00:28:27.300 And Jesus tells 00:28:27.300 --> 00:28:27.840 the same thing 00:28:27.840 --> 00:28:28.700 not just to the man 00:28:28.700 --> 00:28:29.900 but the few others 00:28:29.900 --> 00:28:30.880 who witnessed the miracle. 00:28:31.040 --> 00:28:31.620 He commands them 00:28:31.620 --> 00:28:32.460 not to tell anyone. 00:28:32.980 --> 00:28:33.660 But Mark goes on 00:28:33.660 --> 00:28:35.080 in verse 36 and 37. 00:28:35.600 --> 00:28:35.920 He says, 00:28:36.040 --> 00:28:37.040 but the more he charged them 00:28:37.040 --> 00:28:37.680 the more zealously 00:28:37.680 --> 00:28:38.540 they proclaimed it 00:28:38.540 --> 00:28:39.780 and they were astonished 00:28:39.780 --> 00:28:40.420 beyond measure 00:28:40.420 --> 00:28:41.200 saying he's done 00:28:41.200 --> 00:28:42.120 all things well. 00:28:42.500 --> 00:28:43.700 He even makes the deaf hear 00:28:43.700 --> 00:28:44.960 and the mute speak. 00:28:46.600 --> 00:28:47.480 Here we see that 00:28:47.480 --> 00:28:48.680 though Jesus commands people 00:28:48.680 --> 00:28:49.660 not to spread around 00:28:49.660 --> 00:28:50.800 the news of his miracles 00:28:50.800 --> 00:28:51.900 all the more 00:28:51.900 --> 00:28:53.120 do they proclaim it. 00:28:53.860 --> 00:28:54.580 So the question 00:28:54.580 --> 00:28:55.400 needs to be asked 00:28:55.400 --> 00:28:56.200 why did Jesus 00:28:56.200 --> 00:28:57.120 not want people 00:28:57.120 --> 00:28:58.500 to speak about his miracles? 00:28:59.720 --> 00:29:00.700 Jesus just gave 00:29:00.700 --> 00:29:01.220 the mute man 00:29:01.220 --> 00:29:02.259 this miraculous ability 00:29:02.259 --> 00:29:02.940 to speak. 00:29:03.259 --> 00:29:04.040 Why doesn't he want him 00:29:04.040 --> 00:29:04.920 to speak about it? 00:29:05.300 --> 00:29:06.519 And what should we make 00:29:06.519 --> 00:29:07.180 of the people 00:29:07.180 --> 00:29:08.920 who disobey Jesus here? 00:29:09.800 --> 00:29:10.340 He told them 00:29:10.340 --> 00:29:11.200 not to tell anyone 00:29:11.200 --> 00:29:11.900 and then they go 00:29:11.900 --> 00:29:12.580 and do it anyway 00:29:12.580 --> 00:29:13.340 but they're saying 00:29:13.340 --> 00:29:14.700 good things about Jesus. 00:29:14.880 --> 00:29:15.759 They compliment Jesus. 00:29:15.920 --> 00:29:16.600 They praise him. 00:29:16.940 --> 00:29:17.620 They say he's done 00:29:17.620 --> 00:29:18.360 all things well. 00:29:18.359 --> 00:29:19.679 He even makes the deaf hear 00:29:19.679 --> 00:29:20.539 and the mute speak. 00:29:20.919 --> 00:29:22.219 What's so bad about that? 00:29:23.879 --> 00:29:25.339 Well practically speaking 00:29:25.339 --> 00:29:27.759 what's so bad 00:29:27.759 --> 00:29:28.919 about saying those things 00:29:28.919 --> 00:29:30.039 is that Jesus 00:29:30.039 --> 00:29:31.199 told them not to do it. 00:29:32.419 --> 00:29:34.099 And friends 00:29:34.099 --> 00:29:36.859 how often we commit 00:29:36.859 --> 00:29:37.639 similar things 00:29:37.639 --> 00:29:38.219 when we think 00:29:38.219 --> 00:29:39.379 we know better than God. 00:29:40.259 --> 00:29:41.879 Then we act much like 00:29:41.879 --> 00:29:42.740 Saul the king 00:29:42.740 --> 00:29:43.759 in the Old Testament 00:29:43.759 --> 00:29:45.359 where he disobeys 00:29:45.359 --> 00:29:46.179 God's command 00:29:46.179 --> 00:29:47.639 so that he could offer 00:29:47.640 --> 00:29:48.980 a sacrifice to God 00:29:48.980 --> 00:29:50.780 and the prophet Samuel 00:29:50.780 --> 00:29:51.600 rebuked him 00:29:51.600 --> 00:29:52.780 and said obedience 00:29:52.780 --> 00:29:54.400 is better than sacrifice. 00:29:55.840 --> 00:29:56.600 Remember that 00:29:56.600 --> 00:29:57.920 in your walk with Christ 00:29:57.920 --> 00:29:59.300 God will sometimes 00:29:59.300 --> 00:29:59.880 command you 00:29:59.880 --> 00:30:00.600 to do things 00:30:00.600 --> 00:30:02.040 you don't always 00:30:02.040 --> 00:30:03.720 fully understand. 00:30:04.800 --> 00:30:06.000 But this is just like 00:30:06.000 --> 00:30:06.900 when you read the scriptures 00:30:06.900 --> 00:30:07.600 and you come to 00:30:07.600 --> 00:30:08.460 a difficult passage 00:30:08.460 --> 00:30:09.020 which you don't 00:30:09.020 --> 00:30:09.860 fully understand. 00:30:10.620 --> 00:30:11.759 In both situations 00:30:11.759 --> 00:30:12.400 you should do 00:30:12.400 --> 00:30:13.420 the very same thing. 00:30:15.240 --> 00:30:16.000 Humble yourself. 00:30:16.000 --> 00:30:17.960 submit to God. 00:30:18.960 --> 00:30:19.599 Obey him. 00:30:20.420 --> 00:30:21.480 And pray that prayer 00:30:21.480 --> 00:30:22.779 the psalmist prayed earlier 00:30:22.779 --> 00:30:23.480 O Lord 00:30:23.480 --> 00:30:24.900 open my eyes 00:30:24.900 --> 00:30:26.140 that I may see 00:30:26.140 --> 00:30:26.900 wondrous things 00:30:26.900 --> 00:30:27.700 in your law. 00:30:29.759 --> 00:30:31.000 And we might also 00:30:31.000 --> 00:30:32.359 pray like this deaf man 00:30:32.359 --> 00:30:33.240 would have prayed 00:30:33.240 --> 00:30:34.140 O Lord 00:30:34.140 --> 00:30:35.180 open my ears 00:30:35.180 --> 00:30:36.160 that I may hear 00:30:36.160 --> 00:30:36.920 wondrous things 00:30:36.920 --> 00:30:37.599 in your law. 00:30:38.119 --> 00:30:39.019 Because there are 00:30:39.019 --> 00:30:39.799 always reasons 00:30:39.799 --> 00:30:40.380 why God 00:30:40.380 --> 00:30:41.740 commands things. 00:30:42.259 --> 00:30:42.819 And sometimes 00:30:42.819 --> 00:30:44.119 these reasons 00:30:44.119 --> 00:30:44.799 are for us 00:30:44.799 --> 00:30:45.359 to hear 00:30:45.359 --> 00:30:45.960 and to know 00:30:45.960 --> 00:30:46.679 on the other side 00:30:46.679 --> 00:30:47.240 of eternity. 00:30:48.240 --> 00:30:48.960 But God also 00:30:48.960 --> 00:30:49.559 delights 00:30:49.559 --> 00:30:50.240 in sharing 00:30:50.240 --> 00:30:50.980 his purposes 00:30:50.980 --> 00:30:51.939 with his children. 00:30:52.619 --> 00:30:53.339 And he will often 00:30:53.339 --> 00:30:54.539 explain his commands 00:30:54.539 --> 00:30:55.659 if you come to him 00:30:55.659 --> 00:30:56.460 in humility 00:30:56.460 --> 00:30:57.960 and with patience. 00:30:58.779 --> 00:30:59.659 In the case 00:30:59.659 --> 00:31:00.720 of the deaf and mute man 00:31:00.720 --> 00:31:01.899 Jesus commands 00:31:01.899 --> 00:31:02.579 the man and others 00:31:02.579 --> 00:31:03.500 around not to speak 00:31:03.500 --> 00:31:04.179 of his miracles. 00:31:04.599 --> 00:31:05.299 And this is just 00:31:05.299 --> 00:31:06.559 the same old thing 00:31:06.559 --> 00:31:08.000 Jesus does many times 00:31:08.000 --> 00:31:08.899 throughout the gospels 00:31:08.899 --> 00:31:10.139 where he tells people 00:31:10.139 --> 00:31:10.939 not to speak 00:31:10.939 --> 00:31:11.759 about his miracles. 00:31:11.759 --> 00:31:13.000 And if we read 00:31:13.000 --> 00:31:13.660 those passages 00:31:13.660 --> 00:31:15.379 there may be observed 00:31:15.379 --> 00:31:16.299 a profound 00:31:16.299 --> 00:31:17.700 gospel centered reason 00:31:17.700 --> 00:31:18.779 for why Jesus 00:31:18.779 --> 00:31:20.140 often wants his miracles 00:31:20.140 --> 00:31:21.799 to be kept secret. 00:31:22.720 --> 00:31:23.319 The passages 00:31:23.319 --> 00:31:24.119 as a whole 00:31:24.119 --> 00:31:24.819 make clear 00:31:24.819 --> 00:31:26.720 that the whole point 00:31:26.720 --> 00:31:28.279 of Jesus' ministry 00:31:28.279 --> 00:31:29.480 is ultimately 00:31:29.480 --> 00:31:30.940 not earthly signs 00:31:30.940 --> 00:31:31.460 and wonders. 00:31:32.119 --> 00:31:33.059 The whole purpose 00:31:33.059 --> 00:31:34.379 of Jesus' ministry 00:31:34.379 --> 00:31:35.379 first, last 00:31:35.379 --> 00:31:36.339 and all the time 00:31:36.339 --> 00:31:37.740 is nothing else 00:31:37.740 --> 00:31:38.519 than the forgiveness 00:31:38.519 --> 00:31:39.460 of sins 00:31:39.460 --> 00:31:40.299 and the glory 00:31:40.299 --> 00:31:40.940 of God. 00:31:40.940 --> 00:31:40.980 God. 00:31:41.880 --> 00:31:43.400 This is the entire 00:31:43.400 --> 00:31:44.400 purpose for Jesus 00:31:44.400 --> 00:31:45.480 going to the cross 00:31:45.480 --> 00:31:47.180 and rising from the dead. 00:31:47.680 --> 00:31:48.240 And as good 00:31:48.240 --> 00:31:48.840 and wonderful 00:31:48.840 --> 00:31:49.440 as Jesus' 00:31:49.720 --> 00:31:51.140 miraculous ministry 00:31:51.140 --> 00:31:52.279 was and it was 00:31:52.279 --> 00:31:52.779 wonderful 00:31:52.779 --> 00:31:53.880 and some of us 00:31:53.880 --> 00:31:54.779 have experienced 00:31:54.779 --> 00:31:55.580 true miracles 00:31:55.580 --> 00:31:56.880 but as wonderful 00:31:56.880 --> 00:31:58.039 as these things are 00:31:58.039 --> 00:31:59.200 they do not compare 00:31:59.200 --> 00:32:00.660 with the ministry 00:32:00.660 --> 00:32:01.279 of Jesus 00:32:01.279 --> 00:32:03.360 for forgiving sins 00:32:03.360 --> 00:32:04.759 and bringing the sinner 00:32:04.759 --> 00:32:05.860 into newness of life 00:32:05.860 --> 00:32:07.259 for the glory of God. 00:32:07.259 --> 00:32:07.299 God. 00:32:07.940 --> 00:32:09.299 This is why 00:32:09.299 --> 00:32:11.299 Jesus repeatedly says 00:32:11.299 --> 00:32:12.980 a wicked generation 00:32:12.980 --> 00:32:14.440 seeks for a sign. 00:32:15.099 --> 00:32:15.720 This is why 00:32:15.720 --> 00:32:16.799 when a paralyzed man 00:32:16.799 --> 00:32:17.640 was brought to Jesus 00:32:17.640 --> 00:32:19.259 the first thing he did 00:32:19.259 --> 00:32:20.799 was not to heal him 00:32:20.799 --> 00:32:21.400 but to say 00:32:21.400 --> 00:32:21.940 son 00:32:21.940 --> 00:32:23.700 your sins are forgiven. 00:32:24.599 --> 00:32:25.339 This is why 00:32:25.339 --> 00:32:26.539 when Jesus healed 00:32:26.539 --> 00:32:27.299 a blind man 00:32:27.299 --> 00:32:27.779 he said 00:32:27.779 --> 00:32:29.299 you have been made well 00:32:29.299 --> 00:32:31.279 stop sinning 00:32:31.279 --> 00:32:32.640 or something worse 00:32:32.640 --> 00:32:33.660 may happen to you. 00:32:34.360 --> 00:32:34.960 This is why 00:32:34.960 --> 00:32:35.940 when a crowd of people 00:32:35.940 --> 00:32:37.040 sought Jesus out 00:32:37.040 --> 00:32:37.740 he said 00:32:37.740 --> 00:32:38.580 truly truly 00:32:38.580 --> 00:32:39.540 I say to you 00:32:39.540 --> 00:32:40.880 you are seeking me 00:32:40.880 --> 00:32:42.400 not because you saw signs 00:32:42.400 --> 00:32:44.080 but because you ate 00:32:44.080 --> 00:32:45.680 and were filled. 00:32:46.580 --> 00:32:47.360 For they had eaten 00:32:47.360 --> 00:32:48.580 the spiritual food 00:32:48.580 --> 00:32:50.140 that Jesus had given to them. 00:32:50.920 --> 00:32:51.779 This is why 00:32:51.779 --> 00:32:53.300 when a deaf and mute man 00:32:53.300 --> 00:32:54.380 was brought to Jesus 00:32:54.380 --> 00:32:55.560 he did not skip 00:32:55.560 --> 00:32:56.519 straight to the miracle 00:32:56.519 --> 00:32:57.800 he saw that 00:32:57.800 --> 00:32:58.740 what this man needed 00:32:58.740 --> 00:32:59.540 above all else 00:32:59.540 --> 00:33:00.360 was for fellowship 00:33:00.360 --> 00:33:01.220 and reconciliation 00:33:01.220 --> 00:33:02.259 with God. 00:33:02.259 --> 00:33:04.559 So Jesus took him aside 00:33:04.559 --> 00:33:06.440 away from the crowd 00:33:06.440 --> 00:33:08.160 and he patiently spoke 00:33:08.160 --> 00:33:09.579 to him with physical signs 00:33:09.579 --> 00:33:10.240 which the man 00:33:10.240 --> 00:33:11.000 could understand 00:33:11.000 --> 00:33:12.660 and he communicated 00:33:12.660 --> 00:33:13.660 that this miracle 00:33:13.660 --> 00:33:14.619 would be by the God 00:33:14.619 --> 00:33:15.059 of heaven 00:33:15.059 --> 00:33:16.759 and in doing this 00:33:16.759 --> 00:33:18.240 Jesus prepared 00:33:18.240 --> 00:33:19.500 this man's heart 00:33:19.500 --> 00:33:20.759 for accepting 00:33:20.759 --> 00:33:21.480 the gospel 00:33:21.480 --> 00:33:23.680 that God had come down 00:33:23.680 --> 00:33:24.579 to save those 00:33:24.579 --> 00:33:25.400 who are lost. 00:33:28.480 --> 00:33:29.920 But what about you? 00:33:29.920 --> 00:33:32.779 How is Jesus 00:33:32.779 --> 00:33:33.800 taking you aside 00:33:33.800 --> 00:33:35.039 away from the crowd today? 00:33:35.759 --> 00:33:36.940 What is he communicating 00:33:36.940 --> 00:33:37.660 to you? 00:33:38.000 --> 00:33:39.580 How is he preparing 00:33:39.580 --> 00:33:40.300 your heart 00:33:40.300 --> 00:33:40.980 for repentance? 00:33:41.759 --> 00:33:43.200 What is his command 00:33:43.200 --> 00:33:44.380 to you? 00:33:45.220 --> 00:33:46.320 If his message 00:33:46.320 --> 00:33:47.800 is difficult 00:33:47.800 --> 00:33:49.060 to understand 00:33:49.060 --> 00:33:50.519 are you praying 00:33:50.519 --> 00:33:51.120 O Lord 00:33:51.120 --> 00:33:52.080 open my eyes 00:33:52.080 --> 00:33:53.060 that I may see 00:33:53.060 --> 00:33:53.700 wondrous things 00:33:53.700 --> 00:33:54.380 in your law? 00:33:54.759 --> 00:33:55.759 Or like this deaf 00:33:55.759 --> 00:33:56.360 and mute man 00:33:56.360 --> 00:33:56.860 are you praying 00:33:56.860 --> 00:33:57.300 O Lord 00:33:57.300 --> 00:33:58.240 open my ears 00:33:58.240 --> 00:33:59.400 that I may hear 00:33:59.400 --> 00:34:00.299 wondrous things? 00:34:01.120 --> 00:34:01.700 Are you praying 00:34:01.700 --> 00:34:02.120 O Lord 00:34:02.120 --> 00:34:03.220 loosen my tongue 00:34:03.220 --> 00:34:04.400 that I may proclaim 00:34:04.400 --> 00:34:05.759 wondrous things? 00:34:06.960 --> 00:34:08.019 If you truly 00:34:08.019 --> 00:34:08.980 pray these things 00:34:08.980 --> 00:34:11.159 then God will make you 00:34:11.159 --> 00:34:12.179 to be his disciple. 00:34:13.239 --> 00:34:14.239 And this is what 00:34:14.239 --> 00:34:15.420 Isaiah the prophet 00:34:15.420 --> 00:34:16.780 declared in chapter 50 00:34:16.780 --> 00:34:17.460 of his book. 00:34:17.880 --> 00:34:18.519 He says 00:34:18.519 --> 00:34:39.179 Let's pray for these things now. 00:34:39.179 --> 00:34:43.000 O Father in heaven 00:34:43.000 --> 00:34:47.599 we come to you Lord 00:34:47.599 --> 00:34:48.940 and we 00:34:48.940 --> 00:34:50.679 are hard of hearing 00:34:50.679 --> 00:34:53.679 we are slow of speech 00:34:53.679 --> 00:34:55.139 our eyes are dim 00:34:55.139 --> 00:34:57.179 and it is difficult 00:34:57.179 --> 00:34:58.759 for us to understand you 00:34:58.759 --> 00:34:59.599 and to seek you 00:34:59.599 --> 00:35:00.139 and we pray 00:35:00.139 --> 00:35:01.480 that you would reach down 00:35:01.480 --> 00:35:03.299 and awaken our ears 00:35:03.299 --> 00:35:05.079 and our eyes 00:35:05.079 --> 00:35:05.879 to behold 00:35:05.879 --> 00:35:07.739 what you have for us. 00:35:07.739 --> 00:35:08.979 Loosen our tongues 00:35:08.979 --> 00:35:10.679 that we can proclaim 00:35:10.679 --> 00:35:11.559 your gospel message 00:35:11.559 --> 00:35:12.199 of forgiveness. 00:35:12.939 --> 00:35:13.859 Show us Lord 00:35:13.859 --> 00:35:16.479 show us Lord 00:35:16.479 --> 00:35:19.699 how we can share 00:35:19.699 --> 00:35:21.059 your love 00:35:21.059 --> 00:35:23.500 and your precious truth 00:35:23.500 --> 00:35:24.439 and your scriptures 00:35:24.439 --> 00:35:25.439 with this world. 00:35:26.719 --> 00:35:28.039 Help us to delight 00:35:28.039 --> 00:35:28.799 in your word 00:35:28.799 --> 00:35:32.059 and we pray this 00:35:32.059 --> 00:35:34.079 in the name of Jesus. 00:35:35.339 --> 00:35:35.619 Amen. 00:35:35.619 --> 00:35:35.719 Amen.