Everything is a matter of the heart. In Jesus’ world, the heart is where the soul lives, the source of emotion.

In the Gospel, Jesus says Ephphatha to open the ear of the deaf man. Leading up to this, we hear the account with detail, “He put his finger into the man’s ears and, spitting, touched his tongue; then he looked up to heaven and groaned” (7:33-34). In Jesus’ world, people thought that saliva had medicinal properties. By spitting, Jesus enters the world of the deaf man, his culture, his worldview to communicate his healing power. Jesus touches his tongue, again a non-verbal act of demonstrating his healing authority. The groaning of Jesus can also be translated as a sigh or a moan. The same word is found in Paul’s description of how the spirit groans in his intercession (Romans 8:26). This groaning is an expression of Jesus praying from the depth of his prayer to restore this man to his original state.

This is an example of God’s nearness to us in the incarnation. Jesus uses sign language to touch us, enters our customs and context, and prays from the depth of his whole being to restore the deaf man so he can hear.

Jesus heals the man’s deafness and shows no partiality. Everyone, even the fatherless and orphan, belongs to the kingdom of God. By healing his deafness, Jesus healed his heart. Jesus gave him the gift of loving God.

Jesus lives in our hearts. He is not a museum piece. He is active and always prompts us for the opportunity to love him, to cure our spiritual deafness, and to walk in his love.