OUR SCRIPTURE INTRO
I’ll call her Suzanna. I tweaked a question she recently posted.
“Why take someone who is living such good things in life and make them suffer, while some lazy, sneaky, and miserable people have all the best things in life?”
Suzanna didn’t include the following in her post, but she wonders why some people receive healing and wellness in their lives. Others do not.
As September continues, let’s look at her question through a sermon series that speaks to how Jesus heals in His way in His time.
As these weeks progress, we will see why and even where Jesus heals. The goal of this series is to understand that each of us, regardless of our health conditions, can be the hands and the heart in the way Jesus is present to those who suffer.
We may not all be well, but wellness is something we can all live into and share.
Our text for September 8th, 2024 is
Mark 7:24-37, NLT
The Faith of a Gentile Woman
24 Then Jesus left Galilee and went north to the region of Tyre.[a] He didn’t want anyone to know which house he was staying in, but he couldn’t keep it a secret. 25 Right away a woman who had heard about him came and fell at his feet. Her little girl was possessed by an evil[b] spirit, 26 and she begged him to cast out the demon from her daughter.
Since she was a Gentile, born in Syrian Phoenicia, 27 Jesus told her, “First I should feed the children—my own family, the Jews.[c] It isn’t right to take food from the children and throw it to the dogs.”
28 She replied, “That’s true, Lord, but even the dogs under the table are allowed to eat the scraps from the children’s plates.”
29 “Good answer!” he said. “Now go home, for the demon has left your daughter.” 30 And when she arrived home, she found her little girl lying quietly in bed, and the demon was gone.
Jesus Heals a Deaf Man
31 Jesus left Tyre and went up to Sidon before going back to the Sea of Galilee and the region of the Ten Towns.[d] 32 A deaf man with a speech impediment was brought to him, and the people begged Jesus to lay his hands on the man to heal him.
33 Jesus led him away from the crowd so they could be alone. He put his fingers into the man’s ears. Then, spitting on his own fingers, he touched the man’s tongue. 34 Looking up to heaven, he sighed and said, “Ephphatha,” which means, “Be opened!” 35 Instantly the man could hear perfectly, and his tongue was freed so he could speak plainly!
36 Jesus told the crowd not to tell anyone, but the more he told them not to, the more they spread the news. 37 They were completely amazed and said again and again, “Everything he does is wonderful. He even makes the deaf to hear and gives speech to those who cannot speak.”
Footnotes
7:24 Some manuscripts add and Sidon.
7:25 Greek unclean.
7:27 Greek Let the children eat first.
7:31 Greek Decapolis.
PRAYER:
Dear Lord,
The question of who is healed (and, in turn, who is not healed) can cause us to stumble or struggle sometimes. Help us see that You are at work in all things, including those of us who stumble or struggle at times.
We pray for Your presence and for love to reach those who hurt. With Your watchfulness and Your concern, be with those who hold little hope in the days before them.
May each of us be the hands that hold those who are hurting.
It is in Christ's name we pray,
Amen.
