Matthew 9:27-34
Not much surprises us anymore. With media options available where
news is instantaneous, and personal conversations shared in split-second
exchanges from thousands of miles apart, we tend to think we have seen and heard
it all.
In our text, Jesus heals three men...two who were blind, and one who
was mute. Though told to keep their good fortune quiet, this surprise
is simply too good for these newly-sighted men to keep to themselves. One cannot
blame them for telling everyone in sight...everyone they could now see with
their own eyes. Hearing this mute man speak for perhaps the first time, the
crowd is amazed. "Never has anything like this been seen in Israel,"
they exclaim. The predictable norms of everyday living had been turned
upside down by this man, this surprising Jesus.
The Pharisees, of course, explained this surprise as demonic
in nature. Their God seemed only to interact with them in
the surprises of past generations. Perhaps now, as then, particularly
among "religious people", faith can be overshadowed by tradition. Does God still
surprise? Seeing the wonder of what God has done and is now doing, do we, in
our amazement say, "Never has anything like this been seen...?"
Prayer: Your wonders are new every morning, Lord. May these
surprises open our blinded eyes to see, and our muted voices to sing
your praises. Amen.
Jim Abernathy
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