I’ve read the story before…you probably have too:
Mark 7:31-35
31 Then Jesus left the vicinity of Tyre and went through Sidon, down to the Sea of Galilee and into the region of the Decapolis. 32 There some people brought to him a man who was deaf and could hardly talk, and they begged Jesus to place his hand on him.
33 After he took him aside, away from the crowd, Jesus put his fingers into the man’s ears. Then he spit and touched the man’s tongue. 34 He looked up to heaven and with a deep sigh said to him, “Ephphatha!” (which means “Be opened!”). 35 At this, the man’s ears were opened, his tongue was loosened and he began to speak plainly.
Muteness is the inability to speak and articulate clear words. It’s not a very common issue but it does exist. Sometimes it is an issue of how the ear was formed in the womb. But oftentimes muteness and stuttering are reactions to deep emotional stress and trauma. This was highlighted in the 2010 British film The King’s Speech with King George VI. But it was highlighted to me again just recently in a friend’s post upon meeting her husband:
And then it dawned on me…when Jesus healed a mute man, he was more than likely healing instantaneous some deep, traumatic emotional wounds. When Jesus came with healing, it wasn’t just about healing bodies and saving souls, he was about healing the whole person.
Why does this matter? All of us have wounds that affect us in how we act and react to things. And all of us encounter people who are deeply wounded. And while yes, we do pray for the physically sick, but perhaps we should pray more boldly for supernatural healing of one’s heart and mind.
And this: The love we offer one another is more profound than we realize…it too can bring physical healing. The power of love is a great mystery.
