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In today's gospel selection
we hear that some people brought a man to Jesus who was deaf and had a
speech impediment. In Jesus' time there was no sign language or special
technology to assist those with such a condition. Many people
considered them to be cursed by God and so they were treated with little
compassion. Mark was not very clear about the motivation of those who
brought the man to Jesus. They begged him to touch the man. Perhaps
their faith was so great that they believed Jesus could help, or they
might have been hoping to present Jesus with an affliction too severe to
be cured. Whatever the case, Jesus took the man off by himself, touched
his ears and tongue, and cured him. He could hear and speak clearly.
Imagine his joy, and that of his family and friends! After all those
years he was finally able to hear the words of others and was able to
share long harbored thoughts and feelings. What a wonderful cure for
Jesus to work, restoring the man to the community of mankind. The
significance of this miracle goes far beyond this one man's good
fortune. There is a prophetic action here in Jesus' healing. Some
of us experience a certain deafness and inability to communicate where
the almighty is concerned.
We may possess wonderful communication skills but don't have a clue how
to listen to what God is trying to tell us. This condition is
actually worse than the condition of the man in the gospel because while
he could see those around him trying to communicate, we can't see or
hear God. How then can we ever hope to know that He is there at all?
Someone must bring us to
Jesus. It must be someone who has met and heard the Lord, someone who
knows where Christ can be found. Can you find yourself in this gospel
story? Has someone brought you to the Lord? Are you a person who brings
others to Christ? Or are you a person who needs to be cured of your
deafness? Do you need healing so you can speak out for Christ? |
