He Hath Done All Things Well
The miracle of healing the deaf and dumb man in Mark chapter seven, not only illustrates the story of salvation, but also unfolds the deep and troubled concern of the Saviour for the children of men, and demonstrates the perfectness of His actions. It was on His return from the coastal cities of Tyre and Sidon, and on the eastern Galliean shore, that He was met by a man deaf and dumb. His frequent journeys had taken Him many weary miles for meetings such as this one. He has been called a “Seeking Saviour” and once said of Himself that He “came to seek and to save the lost.” Even when we were cold and reluctant toward Him, He sought us out to save us. He seeks us today to minister to our every need, and our needs are many and varied. There are needs of every day living. There are the needs of the unusual problem and circumstances which come into our lives on occasion.
“He Took Him Aside”
The Saviour took the afflicted man away from the noisy and curious group of people who surrounded them. He gave this man the full and undivided power of His personal attention. Our medical doctors of today provide us with privacy and it is a real relief to be alone with someone who will give the full and undivided attention of his wisdom and skill to our immediate distresses. To be alone with God! What a luxury of joy it brings to the Christian! Our first experience was that moment we shall never forget, when as though face to face, we met the Saviour and accepted Him as Lord and Christ. Deep spiritual experiences occur when we are alone with God. Moses was given the law when alone with God on the mountain top. Jesus expounded “all things” to His disciples in Mark 4:34 when they were alone. When we are deaf and dumb with our sorrows and our failures, and our lack of faith, He will take us aside and restore our communion and our joy.
“He Put His Finger in His Ear”
The next action by our Lord was to put His finger into the man’s ear and to spit, and touch his tongue. The woman who touched the hem of His garment apparently was undetected until Jesus said, “Virtue hath gone out of Me.” The dramatic touch of the Saviour brought sympathy, and transmitted virtue and power directly to the afflicted part. The finger of God denotes His power and His working and this is demonstrated in this miracle. He is ever ready to reach out to us in power, and to touch our infirmity, and to work against the sin that so easily besets us.
“He Looked Up”
In Scripture, “looking up” indicates the attitude of prayer. After touching the afflicted man Jesus looked up to Heaven. He could say, “I and My Father are one.” The communion between God the Father and God the Son is so evident in the significant “look up” to Heaven. When raising Lazarus from the dead, Jesus lifted up His eyes and prayed, “Father, I thank Thee that Thou hast heard Me.” Here is the acknowledgment of oneness and an illustration of communion with the Father. Today Jesus is in Heaven at His Father’s right hand “ever living to make intercession for us.” This is a blessed truth. The One who saved us from our sin is our Advocate with the Father, and the One who intercedes for us in the presence of God.
“He Sighed”
The word sigh used in the Scripture means to groan or an inward unexpressed feeling of sorrow. In Hebrews 13:17 this same word is translated “grief” when referring to the feeling of those elders who must give an account for souls, when they cannot do so with joy. In Romans 8:23 this same word is translated “groan,” “We ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit the redemption of our body.” A sigh is not even a word, but an expression which conveys a depth of meaning in fatigue, grief, sorrow, or relief. What pathos, tender sorrow, sympathy, and love are expressed in the sigh of our Lord Jesus! What personal concern is shown as He looks upon the effects of sin in this man, and as He thinks upon its effect in the world! Perhaps He also looked forward to the cross when His Holy Sinless Person would bear the effects of this sin, and experience the awful depths of the wrath of God against sin to be poured out upon Him. This is the One who sighs perhaps even now as He looks down upon our sorrows, tears, and lack of faith and who makes us the objects of His tender compassion. This thought is a compelling motive to submit ourselves to Him, and not to cause Him grief.
“He Spoke”
The sign of DIETY! He spoke and it was done. He created the world by the word of His power. He said, “Ephphatha” or “Be opened,” and the dumb spoke. This is an Aramic word in the imperative mood, a word of command. There is no request here. This is an order. The miracle was accomplished, and “the man’s ears were opened and the string of his tongue was loosed and he spake plain.” In Ephesians chapter one we are told the exceeding greatness of His mighty power to usward who believe is that power which raised Christ from the dead. Who can imagine the working of His mighty power in overcoming Satan, the prince of the power of the air. Here is the thought of power which in our greatest imagination we might consider with the great power of the nuclear hydrogen bomb! But this power is from the One who created the Heavens and the Earth and originated the sources of power which man is rapidly discovering today. The source of the power which raised Christ from the dead is available to us. Let us use it in our lives.
“He Hath Done All Things Well”
The testimony of God the Father is, “This is My beloved Son in whom I am well pleased.” The people who witnessed this great miracle said, “He hath done all things well.” Surely, an amen to this exclamation rises from our own hearts. We have a Saviour who will take us aside, deal personally with us, touch our infirmities and afflictions, and who makes intercession for us with God the Father. He is One who sighs over us with compassion and tender sorrow, and heals our many troubles by the Word of His power. Surely, “He hath done all things well.”