Mark 7:24-37
24 And from there he arose and went away to the region of Tyre and Sidon.
And he entered a house and did not want anyone to know, yet he could not be hidden. 25 But immediately a woman whose little daughter had an unclean spirit heard of him and came and fell down at his feet. 26 Now the woman was a Gentile, a Syrophoenician by birth. And she begged him to cast the demon out of her daughter. 27 And he said to her, “Let the children be fed first, for it is not right to take the children's bread and throw it to the dogs.” 28 But she answered him, “Yes, Lord; yet even the dogs under the table eat the children's crumbs.” 29 And he said to her, “For this statement you may go your way; the demon has left your daughter.” 30 And she went home and found the child lying in bed and the demon gone.
31 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.”
Jesus travels outside of Judah. He is with the goy - the gentiles. Deliberately. Something Jesus did not suggest for his extended 72 Disciples.
Matthew 11:21–24)
Jesus pronounced judgment on Chorazin and Bethsaida suggesting that if the pagan cities of Tyre and Sidon had experienced what Chorazin and Bethsaida did, they would have long ago repented in sackcloth and ashes.
An interesting set of circumstances.
Jesus was known to travel the distance of the Sea of Galilee three times in a day to find that one specific person on God's calendar. And here, Jesus tells the Syrophoenician woman to be humble - she is not of the elect. I'd bet ... Jesus traveled to meet her.
Her heritage was closely known to Judah:
David loved the Phoenicians and built his Palace in the Phoenician style. Tyre was considered an ally and friend to Israel and then Judah. They supplied wood and laborers for both Temples.
Early in Jesus’ ministry, people from Sidon and Tyre heard about Jesus. They came to see Him (Mark 3:8) and be healed by Him (Luke 6:17).
Christ Jesus really tells us He is a Light to the Nations.
The Bible is arranged carefully by people who had seen Jesus. Mark's Gospel is the top hits of Jesus to help Peter tell the Biblical narrative quickly. At the time of the early Church - these were the Chapters on Jesus' life people liked the most and understood the best describing Jesus' personality.
Jesus returns from the Syrophoenician woman to the blind and deaf of Judah. Healing what is blind and deaf. The two events of Jesus' life are linked not by coincidence, instead to say, wake up see that Jesus sees the gentiles have humility and faith. Saying what matters to Jesus is a person as an individual. This healing was not to please the masses, is a personal God to one individual. Jesus is telling us the blind and deaf man is not healed by the reason of popular support - this is Jesus' Own Choice.
The people so new to following Jesus as Christ - saw Jesus as personal to them.
Jesus said to be quiet. Why? The answer goes as far back as Jeremiah. A personal God. Answering one person.
Jeremiah 45
The word that Jeremiah the prophet spoke to Baruch the son of Neriah, when he wrote these words in a book at the dictation of Jeremiah, in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah:
2 “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, to you, O Baruch:
3 You said, ‘Woe is me! For the Lord has added sorrow to my pain. I am weary with my groaning, and I find no rest.’ 4 Thus shall you say to him,
Thus says the Lord: Behold, what I have built I am breaking down, and what I have planted I am plucking up—that is, the whole land. 5 And do you seek great things for yourself? Seek them not, for behold, I am bringing disaster upon all flesh, declares the Lord. But I will give you your life as a prize of war in all places to which you may go.”
Baruch had to be terrified. And Father God had compassion on the man He would not make famous.
However:
Found beside the prison holding cell in the King's Palace (David's Phonetician Palace he bravely built outside the fortified walls of Jerusalem to obtain the view and have God's protection) was the Bulla, the stamp, the letter sealer belonging to Baruch, the son of Neriah. Freed by Emperor Nebuchadnezzar II from this prison. And including from 597 B.C. the very fingerprint of Baruch. Willing to Abide in the Lord, even when all was dire. There was not a parade for Jeremiah or Baruch and yet they were abiding in the Lord.
Father God uses all His Majesty to reach out to you and to me. The Bible is a miracle in our hands today. Brought to us by men and women who gave their lives to bring Truth. The astonishing and eternal proclamation, "Jesus does all things well." The horn of the Temple Shofar tells us "Nothing is impossible for God." All things are possible with God.
Father God,
When we look at Luke 7, we find when circumstance is dire. The point even of death - feel worthy to ask Jesus. A loving heart calls to Jesus.
When we read the Bible, we are far away in time and sometimes circumstance. We rarely think to presume to come to You, past the Gates of Heaven, to Your Home and Throne.
On one Word of Jesus, of Abba, what You say will be done. We will aspire to this faith, only in Love of the Lord Father God Almighty.
Let us hear from Jesus this: When Jesus heard these things, he marveled at him, and turning to the crowd that followed him, said, “I tell you, not even in Israel have I found such faith.” 10 And when those who had been sent returned to the house, they found the servant well.
Father God, I pray for my ears to stop ringing, I pray for my mother's hearing and her Pneumonia and her failed x-ray swallow study - for her healing. For the joy in seeing her on her 83rd Birthday to have as much Joy as she did in her younger years. A blessing of a filled soul. We pray this for our families.
We lift up the concerns to you of our loved ones. And pray daily for them to be loved and encouraged by Your Wonders. We lift up our Communities to be led by You and radiate Your Joy and Love. We lift up our Churches for Your Love. We lift up this Nation to be led by You. We praise You for the Love and prayers of all around the world the believers who Love You.
We look to You with expectation of Your Glory. We want to see more Heaven on earth. We encourage Your Glory. Your Promises of Salvation are now. The Kingdom of Heaven is here in Christ Jesus. Glory, Glory, Alleluia.
Amen - Jesus - Amen.
♔ Lord Jesus Saves! †
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