Jonah Albrecht…September 7^th, 2025…Trinity 12…Mark 7:31-37…Jesus Does All Things Well

Peace to the brethren, and love with faith, from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

Then he returned from the region of Tyre and went through Sidon to the Sea of Galilee, in the region of the Decapolis. ³² And they brought to him a man who was deaf and had a speech impediment, and they begged him to lay his hand on him. ³³ And taking him aside from the crowd privately, he put his fingers into his ears, and after spitting touched his tongue. ³⁴ And looking up to heaven, he sighed and said to him, “Ephphatha,” that is, “Be opened.” ³⁵ And his ears were opened, his tongue was released, and he spoke plainly. ³⁶ And Jesus charged them to tell no one. But the more he charged them, the more zealously they proclaimed it. ³⁷ And they were astonished beyond measure, saying, “He has done all things well. He even makes the deaf hear and the mute speak.”

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The man in our text this morning did not know what to think when he was brought before a random man. But that man, being the Lord of Heaven and Earth was indeed the best person this man could ask for. As we will see, Jesus does all things well. Not just in His healing of the man who was deaf and mute, but also as He brings life and salvation to all who believe in Him.

Let us pray: Sanctify us by Your truth, O Lord, Your Word is truth. Amen.

We meet Jesus coming down from the territory to the North of Israel, Tyre and Sidon. He crosses the Jordan River into an area called Decapolis. Decapolis means, “ten cities.” They were a conglomeration of Greek city states which meant it was a majority of Gentile people living there. These were people who would not have known about Jesus on a normal basis – they didn’t have a Jewish influence. Except, we are told that a crowd had gathered around Jesus when He arrived. This is because it isn’t the first time Jesus passed through this area.

In Mark 5, we are told of Jesus coming to the Gerasenes, within the Decapolis, and was confronted by a man possessed by numerous demons. Jesus cast out the demons into a herd of pigs, which then ran off of a cliff. When the locals saw what Jesus did, they begged Him to leave out of fear, and the man who had been demon possessed asked to come with Him. But Jesus told him no and said, “Go home to your friends and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and how he has had mercy on you.” ²⁰ And he went away and began to proclaim in the Decapolis how much Jesus had done for him, and everyone marveled.”

That one man’s witnessing to Jesus and God’s power had an incredible effect on the people. Now, Jesus was not a stranger or someone they feared. They greeted Him and welcomed His arrival. It goes to show how the Gospel message can truly change the heart.

³² And they brought to him a man who was deaf and had a speech impediment, and they begged him to lay his hand on him.

The crowd put their faith on display. They knew that Jesus had power to heal just as He had done with the demoniac. A simple wave of the Lord’s hand would do the trick. It was a simple fix really. But that isn’t what Jesus does because Jesus sees more than just the outward needs of this man.

³³ And taking him aside from the crowd privately, he put his fingers into his ears, and after spitting touched his tongue. ³⁴ And looking up to heaven, he sighed and said to him, “Ephphatha,” that is, “Be opened.” ³⁵ And his ears were opened, his tongue was released, and he spoke plainly.

Jesus does all things well, and this includes diagnosing the heart of a problem. He knew this man was deaf and couldn’t speak, but He also knew what was in this man’s heart. Just imagine his situation: He is brought into the middle of a crowd, set before a Man he has never seen before, and no way to understand what is going on around Him.

Step 1. Jesus takes him away from the crowd so they could be in private. This wasn’t so the people couldn’t see what He was going to do, but it was for the benefit of the deaf man, to deal with him one-on-one and bring him peace.

Step 2. Jesus puts His fingers into the man’s ears, spits on the ground, and touches the man’s tongue. Now you might think to yourself, “What in the world? That’s gross! Why would Jesus do that?” I’m sure the man thought similar at first, but quickly understood what Jesus was doing. Jesus was communicating with him, using sign language to tell the man, “I know what is wrong and I am going to do something about it.”

Step 3. Having given the man a peace of mind and fastening his attention on his two greatest disabilities, Jesus looks up to heaven and gives a deep sigh. Not for the man to hear, but to see. No charm is being applied, no human powers are put into operation. No; the help comes from heaven, from God. It was impossible for the man to not understand: he is standing before God Himself.

Step 4: Jesus says, “Ephphatha.” Mark tells us this word means, “be opened,” and, in fact, it is stronger than just be opened. Be completely opened. Ears, mouth, the whole thing in completeness. Let none of his disabilities remain! It was so. The man spoke plainly as if he had never had any issues in his entire life. There was no learning phonics, not sounding things out. Jesus’ healing was complete. He does all things well.

Have you ever encountered someone who is deaf? Just by walking up to them, you would never guess that they had any ailment whatsoever. Deafness isn’t something that you can “see”. It isn’t until you see some other sign that you know what is wrong – it remains hidden.

Do you suppose this applies to you? Maybe not physically, but spiritually? When I graduated Seminary, they didn’t give me special glass to be able to look into your heart every time you entered church and know what problems lay on your heart. No one can do that. Each one of us carries the burden of sin and guilt. Maybe it is from years past and you’ve lived with it all these years, or maybe it is more recent and hard to push into the shadows of your heart.

Either way, it is there, isn’t it? I know it is in my own heart too. If you’re like me, there is a part of you that likes it that way – where no one can see through your façade and see the guilty things you have done. Even when it comes to the Confession of Sins that we did earlier in the service…it’s pretty easy to let those words pass across your lips without letting them touch a nerve. There’s anonymity in a group like this…and that is exactly how our flesh wants it. “I’ll go through the motions, but don’t look too closely.”

Well, I have good news for you. When we do confess our sin – “we are by nature sinful and unclean and that we have sinned against You by thought, word, and deed.” Our sins don’t just fly under the radar without anyone noticing. Because Jesus does.

“I thought you said you had good news!?”

I did. And it is good news. As Jesus took aside that deaf man, away from the crowds to approach him in private, He does the same with you and me. Whether in church or at home, whenever you confess your sins Jesus comes to you in your heart – where it is just you and Him. And He says, “I know. Your sin, your guilt, your struggles, your pain. I know it and see it.” Jesus does all things well. He looks past our outward image and He cuts right to the heart – and that is exactly what we need.

O wretched man that I am, Paul says in Romans 7:24, who will deliver me from this body of death? Sin and guilt breeds death. We can ignore it all we want; we can dull our conscience down so that it is nothing more than a boiled potato. But that is a life that leads to death. Jesus comes to you so that He can give you life. He identifies the problem with your heart and mine so that He can offer healing that otherwise we could ne’er afford.

Jesus does all things well. Yes, He makes it plain and obvious to us as He did to the deaf man. He points to our heart, our mind, and soul, identifying our problem. But then He points us to the holes in HIS hands and the wound in HIS side. He turns our face to His cross and says, “See how much I love you; I have given you healing through My cross.”

On Calvary, God’s love was made manifest for the world to see. His Son, our Savior crucified and punished with the sin and guilt that is from my heart and mind, the sin and guilt from your past and your future.

Jesus offers you rest from the burden of your sin. In Isaiah 1:18 the LORD declares, “Come now, let us reason together, says the LORD: though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool.” And just two verses after what Paul wrote in Romans 7:24, he writes this, “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” This is the healing Jesus offers you.

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Each and every one of us has a 100% death rate because of sin. It doesn’t matter if you live in isolation to avoid sin, or avoid tv and the internet. Sin infects us all and death comes by sin. But Jesus does all things well, including His cure for our sin disease. Jesus’ death and resurrection is 100% effective eradicating all sin and plummeting the eternal death rate to 0%. He does not only forgive some sins and others you have to figure out yourself. It’s not forgiveness now and pay later. It is 100% forgiveness for the rest of your life – until the day comes when He turns these wretched bodies of death into glorious bodies like His in heaven.

There is one last interesting bit in our text. ³⁶ And Jesus charged them to tell no one. But the more he charged them, the more zealously they proclaimed it. It might seem strange that Jesus would say this, but He is in the last few months before He goes to the cross to suffer and die. He doesn’t want people to think He is some ’faith healer,’ or miracle worker that only came to make people’s lives easier. He came here to be the Savior from sin. And yet, the people so overwhelmed with joy, could not help but proclaim Jesus’ love and power with everyone they met because they had been touched by His grace.

You have received a much greater miracle – the forgiveness of your sins and eternal life in Jesus’ name. But for you, there is no gag order. Jesus has died. He has risen from the dead and ascended into heaven. He does not say to you, “tell no one,” but rather tell everyone! You are not the only one who is sick with sin – who is on your way to eternal death. But you are the ones who have the cure. Bring the healing message of the Gospel with you wherever you go, you never know who God can free from their burden. Amen.