Christ Heals a Deaf & Dumb Man – Mark 7:31-37

Exposition of Christ’s healing of a deaf and dumb man. There are lessons for both salvation and Christian service.

Consider secondly…

Christ’s Healing of a Deaf & Dumb Man (Vs. 31-37)

His Conveying to the Lord (Vs. 32)

1. Their compassion for this man – “they bring unto him one that was deaf”
   1. Matthew 15:29-31 makes it clear there were multiple people healed during this time – the lame, blind, dumb, maimed and many others. Mark focuses upon this one man as an example.
   2. In Bible times, people with these sorts of conditions were often looked down upon as if they were that way on account of sin and therefore under God’s displeasure.
   3. These men were moved beyond prejudice by compassion for this man’s need.
2. Their supplication for this man – “they beseech him”
   1. ‘beseech’ = to beg, intreat. The sought the Lord’s healing touch for this needy man.
   2. Challenge: What a challenge to us in the area of soul-winning! We cannot save the sinner. But we can seek to point them to Christ and to pray earnestly for their salvation.

His Condition for the Lord (Vs. 32)

1. He was deaf – he could not hear. What a picture of the lost sinner whose ears are only able to comprehend natural things.
2. He was dumb – he had an impediment in his speech. This was on account of his hearing problem. Because he could not hear, he could not speak properly. So with the lost sinner, their tongues can only speak the foolishness of this world.

His Cure by the Lord (Vs. 33-35)

1. The Lord’s Method (Vs. 33-34) Christ’s actions preceding the cure appear to be tailored to the man’s unique condition. There are 7 steps the Lord takes…
   1. He took him aside from the multitude – his dealing with the man was personal. He removed him from the distraction of the crowd.
   2. He put his fingers into his ears – to draw attention to the area that required healing and to quicken the man’s faith. He used sign language.
   3. He spit – to draw attention to the tongue and mouth. “It conveyed the thought that the power to deal with them came from Jesus.” (Hiebert)
   4. He touched his tongue – to draw attention to the area of need
   5. He looked up to heaven – a common prayer posture of the Lord indicating His dependence on the Heavenly Father to do the miracle through Him. It would also draw the man’s attention to the Divine Source of the healing.
   6. He sighed – word means ‘groaned’. Reveals His deep emotional sympathy and compassion for the man. Twice in Mark’s Gospel it is recorded that Christ sighed (see also Mk. 8:12). Oh, the wonder of the Saviour’s sighs for sinners! What infinite love and compassion is within our Saviour’s heart for the lost.
   7. He said to him “Eph-pha-tha” – a simple Aramaic word that this man could likely lip read. Mark quickly interprets the meaning for us, “Be opened”. Romans 10:17 says, “So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” Observe the sequence in the verse. Faith is a result of hearing and hearing is produced by the Word of God. What power there is in the Gospel to open the ears to the truth!
2. The Lord’s Miracle (Vs. 35)
   1. An immediate transformation in his faculty of hearing
   2. An immediate transformation in his faculty of speech
   3. J.C. Ryle: “Here we are meant to see our Lord’s power to heal the spiritually deaf. He can give the chief of sinners a hearing ear…Here also we are meant to see our Lord’s power to heal the spiritually dumb. He can teach the hardest of transgressors to call upon God. He can put a new song in the mouth of him whose talk was once only of this world. He can make the vilest of men speak of spiritual things, and testify the Gospel of the grace of God.”

His Command from the Lord (Vs. 36-37)

1. The requirement – to not spread the news. This seems to contradict other clear Scriptures that command us to go and tell. The context brings clarity to this. Christ was seeking to discourage the tendency of the crowd to respond to miracles like this with attempting to make Him a political Messiah. Christ also discouraged miracle made converts. What a contrast to the modern “faith healers” who advertise and promote their so called “healings”.
2. The response – the more He commanded them the more they published it. There was zeal and excitement which was admirable but it wasn’t exercised within the realm of obedience. That aside, their testimony of Christ was true – “He hath done all things well”.

Conclusion

1. Has your life been transformed by the power of Christ?
2. Are we being faithful in prayer as believers despite the obstacles?
3. Are we seeking to bring others to Christ for salvation?

Sermon 30 of 59 in Mark Series

Sermon Audio Id: 119192027461297