Astonished Beyond Measure Series

Astonished Beyond Measure

Mark 7:31-37

Today I would like to preach on the thought “astonished beyond measure”. This title is taken directly from the text; verse 37 tells us that the people were “astonished beyond measure”. The word “astonished” means to be “struck with amazement”. In our modern vernacular we would say that we are “blown away”. Why is it that these people were “astonished beyond measure”? Mark tells us that it was because they witnessed Jesus heal a deaf mute. After seeing the mighty works of Jesus, the people were astonished and they proclaimed that He had “done all things well”.

Jesus never did anything halfway. Each and every one of His miracles was complete and perfect. The blind received 20/20 vision. The lame walked perfectly (even though some of them had never taken a step their entire life). The lepers were completely cleansed; there was not a single blemish on their flesh after meeting Jesus. Our selected text describes a man who was a deaf and suffered from a speech impediment. After receiving a touch from the Master’s hand, this man could hear a pin drop and he spoke clearly.

The physical miracles that Jesus did are all amazing. But they simply cannot compare to the work that Jesus has done in our lives. We who are saved have received a miraculous, complete and eternal healing at the hands of our Savior. Because of His great power we are saved, sanctified and secure! Like the people in the multitude on that day, we can and should boldly proclaim “He has done all things well!”

This (formerly) deaf man, found himself in a unique situation. There was a time when he could not hear or speak. Then Jesus came along and miraculously healed him. As a result he could both hear clearly and speak plainly. But then, Jesus commanded this man and those who were with him not to speak of this miracle to others.

We can be certain that his greatest desire was to go tell everyone he knew, (and probably people that he didn’t know) all about what Jesus had done for him. There is a natural desire to share good news with the ones that we love.

It is very ironic that Jesus gave this man the ability to speak and then told him to remain silent concerning the greatest thing that ever happened to him. The command to remain silent was not just for this man, it was for those in the crowd as well. However, there was a problem; the people were so amazed that they simply could not remain silent.

- I would like to join this crowd for a little while and see just exactly what they saw on that day. As we do, it will become apparent as to why they were “Astonished Beyond Measure”. Let’s begin in - v31 Again, departing from the region of Tyre and Sidon, He came through the midst of the region of Decapolis to the Sea of Galilee.

For over a year, Jesus had been involved in public ministry throughout Galilee. Now, He has departed from that region and His ministry focus has shifted. Instead of reaching out to the multitudes, Jesus will spend the next several months teaching, training and personally instructing His Disciples. His goal was to prepare them for their ministry after His death, burial and Resurrection.

Recently, Jesus and the Disciples had traveled to the region of Tyre. They entered into a house hoping to rest for a while, but “Jesus could not be hid”. He was approached by a Gentile woman who pleaded with Him to deliver her daughter that was possessed by an “unclean spirit”. This was a preview of the work that the Disciples would eventually do among the Gentiles. There was coming a day when they would see many Gentiles come to faith in Christ.

Upon leaving Tyre, they journeyed through Sidon and then on to the Decapolis. Decapolis literally means “ten cities”. The region of Decapolis was gentile territory and it was outside of Herod’s jurisdiction.

This area is familiar to us because it was in this region that Jesus encountered and delivered a man who was possessed by a “legion of demons”. Jesus was already well known in this region and part of the reason was because of this man’s testimony. After Jesus delivered him from the demons, this man wanted to remain with Jesus.

However, Jesus did not permit him, but said to him, "Go home to your friends, and tell them what great things the Lord has done for you, and how He has had compassion on you." (Mark 5:19)

It seems that this man’s testimony had a tremendous impact on the people of Decapolis. Also contributing to Jesus’ fame was the fact that many others from Decapolis had traveled to Galilee to see Jesus. (Matthew 4:25 Great multitudes followed Him--from Galilee, and from Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea, and beyond the Jordan.)