Mark 7:31-37 - Then He [Jesus] 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, "Ephphatha," that is, "Be opened." And his ears were opened, his tongue was released, and he spoke plainly. 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."

This is a strange little miracle. We know that Jesus can heal with a word, with a touch. But in this case, He takes the man off privately and does some very odd motions. He puts His fingers in his ears—why? He spits, and touches the man's tongue—again, why? And He sighs. And then He commands, "Be opened," and right away the man can speak and hear.

Why all the extra actions? It looks to me like Jesus is "re-doing" the way God created people in the first place. He touches his ears and tongue, and then breathes (sighs)—which is a pretty good echo of how God created Adam: "then the Lord God formed the man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living creature" (Genesis 2:7). It's also very intimate—Jesus' human fingers are in the man's ears; Jesus' own spit is apparently touching the man's tongue. Jesus links Himself to the man, and that is how He heals him.

So what? you might ask. How does this matter to me? Well, this is also how Jesus heals us—how He takes our wrecked and ruined lives and re-creates us as children of God, loved and forgiven. He uses His body and blood to remake ours, gives His own life to redeem ours. He comes as close to us as He did to the deaf man—you can see it in Holy Communion, where He calls to us, "Eat, this is My body ... Drink, this is My blood." God wants to be close to you. He loves you, and He wants to recreate you in the image of Christ—strong, healthy, joyful, alive.

THE PRAYER: Lord, I am broken. Come close to me and re-make me in Your image. Amen.

This Daily Devotion was written by Dr. Kari Vo.

Reflection Questions:

1. Have you ever tried to fix something broken? How well did you succeed?

2. When have you seen God fixing a broken area of your life?

3. Does He always fix it the way you expect?

Today's Bible Readings: 2 Chronicles 19-20    2 Corinthians 7

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