Be Opened

This is Matthew Capone, and I'm the pastor here at Cheyenne Mountain Presbyterian Church,

and it's my joy to bring God's Word to you today.

A special welcome if you're new or visiting with us.

We're glad that you're here, and we're glad that you're here,

not because we're trying to fill seats, but because we're following Jesus together as one community.

And as we follow Jesus together, we've become convinced that there's no one so good,

they don't need God's grace, and no one so bad that they can't have it,

which is why we come back week after week to hear what God has to say to us in His Word.

We're continuing our series in the Gospel of Mark.

You'll remember that the Gospels tell the story of Jesus and His life and His death and His resurrection.

And as we go through this Gospel, we're asking two questions.

First, who is Jesus? And second, how do we respond to Him?

And these are questions not that we impose from the outside on the text,

but they're questions from the inside that come out of the text.

Last week, we asked this question of what does great faith look like?

And we saw that great faith includes the persistence that we saw from the Syrophoenician woman

and also the humility that she demonstrated, her understanding of God's grace.

This week, we're going to ask a related question, which is how do we get that type of faith?

How do we get that type of faith?

It's with that that we turn now to God's Word.

I invite you to turn with me to Mark 7, verse 31.

Mark 7:31

You can turn in your worship guide.

You can turn in your Bible. You can turn on your phone.

No matter where you turn, remember that this is God's Word.

And God tells us that His Word is more precious than gold, even the finest gold.

And it's sweeter than honey, even honey that comes straight from the honeycomb.

Which is why we read now Mark 7, verse 31.

Mark 7:31

Then He returned from the region of Tyre and went through Sidon to the Sea of Galilee in the region of the Decapolis.

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.

And taking Him aside from the crowd privately, He put His fingers into His ears.

And after spitting, touched His tongue.

And looking up to heaven, He sighed and said to Him,

Verse 36,

And Jesus charged them to tell no one.

But the more He charged them, the more zealously they proclaimed it.

And they were astonished beyond measure, saying,

He has done all things well.

He even makes the deaf hear and the mute speak.

I invite you to pray with me as we come to this portion of God's Word.

Our Father in heaven, we praise You again for Your goodness in speaking to us.

We're reminded of Your words in Matthew chapter 11.

Matthew 11 · chapter mention

Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give You rest.

And so we ask for that rest this morning,

that You would open up Your Word to us,

that we would be able to understand it clearly,

that we would see our need for Your grace,

for Your miraculous work in our lives,

and we would also understand and see how You meet us at that very same place.

Most of all, we ask that You would help us to see Jesus,

that You would shine a spotlight on Him for us,

that we would see Him clearly,

that we would love Him,

that we would worship Him,

that we would obey Him.

We thank You that we don't have to worry about

whether we've earned these things or deserve them,

but instead we simply ask them in the mighty name of Jesus Christ.

Amen.

Amen.

In his book, The Good American,

Robert Kaplan tells the story of a man named Bob Gersani,

and Bob, the subtitle of the book is

The U.S. Government's Greatest Humanitarian.

And the reason he gives him this exceptional title

is that Bob had this incredible influence throughout his life

working for both USAID and the State Department.

He gathered information and he made recommendations

that affected world events,

public policy decisions,

made their way all the way up to U.S. presidents,

especially during the Cold War.

Of course, we could probably find many people

who've done exceptional things.

What was surprising about Bob

was the fact that he was unexpected and unequipped.

He'd had incredible learning disabilities,

and so he was unable to finish high school.

I believe he dropped out around the 10th grade.

And he was running in these circles

that were filled with people who had graduated

not just from college,

but from elite colleges and universities.

He was way in over his depth from a worldly perspective.

He was someone who was traveling in third world countries,

often separated from communication for weeks at a time,

and yet had a very sensitive stomach.

And so you can imagine the sort of things

that that brought on him.

In addition to that,

he was in many ways emotionally fragile.

And yet, despite all of his handicaps,

all the things that held him back,

he was able to have this incredible career

all around the globe.

Why?

Well, Bob had a few secret superpowers,

and one of them was this.

He had this incredible ability to work with people

and connect with them.

He was able to exceed all the things we might expect

because he understood things that no one else did.

He would go and interview dozens, if not hundreds,

of people in different countries

so that he could have access to information

that no one else in the State Department had.

He would sit with them for hours.

He knew exactly how to build rapport,

and he knew, more than anything,

how to be a great listener.

That was the superpower that allowed him

to punch so far above his weight.

He didn't judge people based on their education.

In fact, he commented that often,

it was those who were uneducated that he found intelligent

and full of information.

During his interviews, he developed these techniques

that he would use to be able to learn as much as he could.

One of them was he insisted on privacy

with everyone he interviewed.

If possible, it was just him and the person

and maybe a translator

so that he could build trust with them

and get the information that he needed.

Now, he also had this other trick

that I found fascinating,

that as he worked with these individuals,

most of the time, he didn't speak the same language

that they did.

And so he had to use these translators to communicate.

And he had something that I would never have thought of,

which is that he wanted to make sure

the person he was talking to trusted the translator.

Well, how can you make sure

that someone trusts a translator

when you don't speak their language?

He would do it by sign language.

And so he would ask questions like this.

What was the first thing that you heard?

And then he would tug his ear

so that when they heard the translator say it,

they would know that it was an accurate translation.

And he would say,

what was the next thing that you saw?

And he would pull at his eye

so that they would know

the translator was saying the right thing.

He might talk about that person running

and he would pump his arms

so they would know

that what was coming across was accurate.

Because of that, because of his skill,

because of his care for people

and building their trust and rapport with them,

despite all his handicaps,

this man was able to affect the course of world events.

It was because of his care for people

and his sensitivity with people

that he was able to do things

that other people with greater skills,

perhaps in education,

were not able to accomplish.

It's that tremendous skill with people

that we observe with Jesus here in this passage.

As we pick up in verse 31,

he's continuing his tour of the Gentile area

that we saw last week

when he was in the region of Tyre and Sidon.

He goes north to Sidon,

which is also a Gentile area,

and then heads to the area of the Decapolis,

which may sound familiar

if you were with us when we were in chapter five,

because that was the section

where he met that man who had an unclean spirit.

And you'll recall in that story,

the spirit said,

I'm not just one,

I'm legion,

there's many of me.

And Jesus allows the spirits

to go into the pigs

that run down into the water.

The end of that story

is when then Jesus tells that man

to go and tell his town how he was healed.

And if you remember,

he is an overachiever.

He doesn't just tell his town,

he tells the entire Decapolis.

He goes throughout the entire 10 city region,

making sure everyone knows how Jesus healed him.

It should not surprise us then

that as Jesus returns to that area,

this story has had an effect.

People in that region know

what Jesus has done in the past

and what he's capable of in the present,

which is why this group, verse 32,

brings to Jesus a man who's deaf

and had a speech impediment.

Jesus' response here

is to use the same tactics

that we just talked about with Bob Gersani,

his tactics of building this trust

and this rapport with this individual.

First, we see verse 33,

Jesus cares about being in privacy with this man.

He takes him off by himself away from the crowd.

This helps us understand

that Jesus is not interested in putting on a show.

Instead, he wants to meet this man

in his humanity without any tricks or gimmicks.

Jesus is meeting this man

not as an attempt to show his power off

to a great crowd,

but instead to minister to this man

personally and specifically.

It's not just that, though.

He also uses sign language with this man.

Remember, this is someone who cannot hear,

and so that answers the question

of why we haven't seen Jesus

use this method of healing before.

He hasn't had to.

Those he's healed in the past

have been able to hear and understand

what Jesus is doing here.

Jesus, though, knows that this man

is going to need more,

and so he acts out with his hands

the miracle he's about to perform.

We see him in verse 33.

He puts his fingers into his ears,

which is his way of saying,

you know, these ears are stopped right now.

I'm going to unstop them.

He puts his finger onto his tongue,

which is his way of saying,

I'm about to fix your speech.

And so don't miss what Jesus is doing here.

Jesus cares so much about this man,

he is not another number

to be touched and healed.

This is a man that Jesus is meeting personally,

making sure that he communicates

in a way that he can understand.

And in case we get pulled off track,

I want you to know the power here

is not in Jesus' actions.

He is not performing some sort of magic trick

in the touching of the ears and the tongue,

and we know that for a couple reasons.

First of all, Jesus has not had to do this before.

We haven't seen Jesus do these other things

in his prior healings.

Also, we know it because of verse 34,

which tells us what actually happens.

Jesus looks up to heaven,

which is a sign of his reliance on God, his Father.

The last time we saw Jesus look up to heaven

was when he prayed to bless the food

at the feeding of the 5,000.

And then it's his command,

this ethvatha,

this order to be opened,

that's what results in the healing.

In other words,

Jesus is doing whatever he can

to draw close to this man.

He's doing everything he can

to take down the barriers

that separate him from someone

who cannot hear communication

and cannot give communication.

This is an individual who is locked away

in his own reality,

cut off from the world in many ways.

If you're anything like me,

as you've grown older

and as you've watched others age,

you've learned that there are

two kinds of doctors in this world.

There's the first kind of doctor

who cares a lot about making money.

There's the second kind of doctor

who cares a lot about you.

Now, don't hear what I'm not saying.

I'm not here to rag on doctors.

We could say this

about all sorts of professions.

You could say it about pastors

if you wanted to.

But I bring up doctors here

because we have seen Jesus before

as the great physician.

There's the doctor

who wants to get you in and out.

He's not careful to look at your records

or your sheets

and know what's happened in the past.

He's not bothered to spend

too much time talking to you

because he's already seen it before.

And before he talks to you,

he knows what he's going to prescribe.

Then there's the doctor

who cares deeply about you.

He wants to understand

exactly what your experience

has been like,

what's unique about the struggles

that you are facing

and the way that he can help you the best.

For him, you are not another number.

He's not trying to get you in and out

so that your copay hits as fast as possible.

Brothers and sisters,

Mark chapter 7 verses 31 through 37

Mark 7:31–37

is telling us that Jesus

is the second kind of doctor.

Jesus is not here

because you are another number in his system.

He is not interested in this man

for what he can gain by him

in showing a display

to the crowds of his power.

No, Jesus is interested

specifically and individually

in this man.

Jesus in his healing

and his salvation

is specifically,

individually interested in you.

Jesus is the doctor

who cares deeply

about each and every one

of his patients.

And in case we were in any doubt,

we see in verse 34,

not only does Jesus look up to heaven

relying on the power of his Father,

we also see that he sighs.

When Jesus sighs in the Gospels,

it is a sign of his grief

and frustration

and anger

at the brokenness of the world.

It is a sign of how upset he is

about the disease

and sickness of sin.

Jesus is actually moved

by this specific individual

in this Gentile territory

in the fact that he cannot hear

or speak.

And he's interested in that

more than what the crowds

might know or see.

Who is Jesus?

Jesus is the one

who draws near

and cares about you

individually,

personally,

specifically.

No matter what your story is,

if you are a Christian,

that is true of you.

God's grace to you,

his drawing near to you

might have been as simple

as providing a church

that is in your part of town

where your language is spoken.

God's grace in meeting you

might have been

in providing you

with your actual parents

who actually taught you

about Jesus,

which is not a small thing.

God's grace to you

might have been

that you were suspicious

of Christians

and hurt by the church,

and God brought

the one person

that you trusted

and respected

to talk to you about it.

God's grace to you

might have been

that you didn't get it,

and he finally brought

someone who could explain it

in words you could understand.

God's grace to you

might have been

that you were hurting

and suffering like this man,

and you walked into a study

in a group,

and someone said

the right words

that finally got through.

God's grace to you

might be

that you're rebellious

and hard-hearted

and cynical,

and God arranged

the circumstances

of your life

in such a way

that he finally broke you.

God's grace for you

is personal

and specific

and careful,

and that's every story

with Jesus.

Jesus came to be able

to make you here

if you're a Christian.

If you're not a Christian,

this right now

might be God's moment

of moving towards you.

That, perhaps,

we hope,

is why you are here

with us now.

That like the blind man,

Jesus is moving closer

to touch you personally,

specifically,

privately,

powerfully.

That is who Jesus is.

And so we see

Jesus' care.

We also see,

this will sound familiar,

this man's great need.

He is utterly helpless.

Verse 32,

other people have to bring him

to Jesus.

Verse 32, again,

he's deaf

and he cannot speak.

He's so helpless

that Jesus has to invent

some rudimentary sign language

to have a hope

of communicating something

to him.

Verse 34,

and don't miss this,

Jesus commands him

to do something, right?

Ethophah,

be opened,

is a command.

It's telling.

And Jesus has to be the one

to give him

the power to obey.

Jesus doesn't just command him

to see,

Jesus causes him to see.

Don't miss that.

That is one of the

spiritual principles

that's the baseline

of Christianity,

that what God commands,

he also empowers.

The obedience he expects

is the obedience

he enables.

Moralism tells us

just obey.

End of discussion.

But it provides

no power.

The gospel says obey

and comes along

with the engine

that fuels it.

God empowers our obedience

by his spirit,

through his promises,

just like in this man

as he commands his eyes,

his ears to be opened

and his mouth to be loose,

he's the one

at the same time

providing the power

for that to happen.

Brothers and sisters,

if you're a Christian,

that is the same thing

that has happened to you.

God commands obedience

that only he can enable

and empower.

as he meets you personally,

specifically,

carefully,

he is the one

who is giving you

what you need.

You are so helpless

that you can't do anything

unless God performs

a miracle.

You are so helpless.

You cannot respond to God

unless he performs

a miracle.

And so we've been asking

this question,

who Jesus is,

and what we're finding out

in this passage

is we're actually incapable

of answering it

unless God gives us sight.

We're asking a question

that's impossible for us

to conclude.

We won't be able

to see it,

grasp it,

apply it,

understand it,

live differently

unless God is the one

who comes and performs

a miracle in our hearts

and our lives.

We, together,

this morning

and every Sunday

when we open up God's word

are doing something

that is actually impossible

unless God comes

and helps us.

That's why at the beginning

of every worship service

I pray that God

would send his spirit

to us in the prayer

of invocation

that he would help us

because we know

that unless there's

a miracle

we are wasting

our time together.

Unless God works

powerfully in our midst

to help us see

and hear

and understand

we will not be able

to change

or grow.

And so how do we

respond to Jesus?

We respond to him

by recognizing

the helplessness

of us

and those around us.

We are spiritually dead

without God's intervention

in our lives.

We are not

as clever

or independent

as we'd like to think.

If you're a Christian

there is nothing

that you have

that is not by grace.

That's what Paul tells us

in 1 Corinthians 4.

If the gospel

does nothing else

if the gospel of Mark

has no other effect on us

it should do this

it should remove us

far away

from the land

of self-congratulation

and pride.

Many people think

that this story

appears in Mark

and appears in none

of the other gospels

because Mark

is the record

that comes from

the apostle Peter.

In the next chapter

chapter 8

we're going to see

that the apostle Peter

thinks he gets it

and he doesn't.

And so many people

think that this story

shows up in this place

in this gospel

because Peter is saying

this is what had

to happen to me.

This is what I was

why I couldn't see

or understand Jesus.

It was this

sort of radical

transformation

that had to take place

in my life.

As we look

at the world

around us

sometimes

it is tempting

to say

how could those

people be

so stupid?

Don't hear

what I'm not saying.

It is good

and right

to lament

the sin

and evil

and brokenness

of this world

and

apart from

God's grace

we are no

better.

It is only

because of a miracle

it is only

because God

has touched

our ears

and our tongue

that we are able

to see what we see.

And so there's

a posture

of humility

and grace

that comes

to the world

around us

even as we grieve

and lament

its wickedness

and sin

and evil.

Because we know

that we stand

apart from it

only by God's

grace.

If you're not

a Christian

you can hear

and listen

all you want

and it will

make no difference

unless God's

grace

his powerful

miraculous work

in your life

penetrates

your heart

and your life

and your mind.

And so you can pray.

There's a reason

that you're here.

Nothing happens

by accident.

And you can pray

that God's power

would be at work

in your life

that he would cut

through the things

that you can't hear

and understand

that he would

unstop

your ears

that you would be able

to finally see

and understand

and believe

Jesus for who he is

and all his power

and beauty

and holiness.

It is Jesus

ultimately

who is able

to do that

for us.

The things I say

in other words

have no impact.

They are powerless.

They are futile

unless God

is at work.

Unless God

chooses to use

my words

as his

instrument.

Christian.

So if you're

not a Christian

you can pray

that God

would make

these things

effective in your life.

That he would

open your eyes.

If you are a Christian

you can pray

that God

would continue

to open your eyes.

In two weeks

we're going to look

at another healing

and we're going to

talk about that more.

There's going to be

a man who sort of

sees

doesn't fully see.

It's going to be

a picture

of what it looks like

to be

a Christian.

Finally I want you

to recognize

not just that

we are blind

also those

around us

are blind as well.

Do you want

to see your friend

come to know

and follow Jesus?

Do you know

someone

who thinks

they're okay

spiritually

but they're not?

What's the best

thing you can do?

Yes,

speak to them

but even more

than that

pray that God

would be at work

in the words

you speak.

God is the one

who must

perform

the miracle.

Ask that God's

supernatural work

would be shown

by his power.

Last week

and this week

you may have noticed

that a lot of my

application is that

we pray.

Why?

Because that's the way

we talk to God

now.

Jesus is not

with us physically

he's with us

spiritually.

The disciples

could go up

to Jesus

and see him

and ask him.

We now

go to God

in prayer

and ask

in the same

way.

The best

illustration

the clearest

explanation

is worthless

if it falls

on deaf ears.

God

and God

alone

is the one

who unstops

the ears

of people.

He's the one

who unstops

our ears

he's the one

who unstops

the ears

of those

around us.

So we look

to him

we pray to him

we trust in him.

That's exactly

what we've already

sung this morning.

I invite you to

look with me

at page four

of your worship

guide.

We sang

about Jesus

as the one

who meets us

verse one

Jesus ready

stands to save you

full of pity

love

and power.

That's the doctor

who cares

about you.

That is the doctor

who sighs.

And then

the next

last verse

if you tarry

till you're better

you will never

come at all.

Come to Jesus

now.

Let him

heal you.

you are deaf

Jesus

is the one

who has

to give you

hearing.

Who is Jesus?

Jesus

is the doctor

who cares

about you.

He comes

into your life

personally

and specifically.

How do we respond?

God

we recognize

how helpless

we are

without God

and his power

in our lives

and we throw

ourselves

on his mercy.

Let's pray.

our father

in heaven

we praise you

and thank you

for the work

that you have

done

that you are

doing

and that you

will do

in our lives.

We thank you

for the grace

that you've

offered to us

that you give us.

We ask that it

would abound

more and more

that we would

grow

in our ability

to see

and hear

and understand

and believe

that you

are our good

and loving

Lord and Savior

the doctor

who cares for us

who heals us

who saves us.

We ask these things

in the mighty name

of Jesus Christ.

Amen.