The Collect for the Twelfth Sunday after Trinity
Almighty and Everlasting God, who is always more ready to hear then we to pray, and always wants to give more than either we desire, or deserve; Pour down upon us the abundance of Your mercy; forgiving us those things our conscience is afraid of, and giving us those good things which we are not worthy to ask for, but through merits and mediation of Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord. Amen.
The Epistle 2 Corinthians 3:4-11
4 Such confidence we have through Christ before God. 5 Not that we are competent in ourselves to claim anything for ourselves, but our competence comes from God. 6 He has made us competent as ministers of a new covenant—not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.
7 Now if the ministry that brought death, which was engraved in letters on stone, came with glory, so that the Israelites could not look steadily at the face of Moses because of its glory, transitory though it was, 8 will not the ministry of the Spirit be even more glorious?
9 If the ministry that brought condemnation was glorious, how much more glorious is the ministry that brings righteousness! 10 For what was glorious has no glory now in comparison with the surpassing glory. 11 And if what was transitory came with glory, how much greater is the glory of that which lasts!
The Holy Gospel of St Mark 7:31-37
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.
36 Jesus commanded them not to tell anyone. But the more he did so, the more they kept talking about it. 37 People were overwhelmed with amazement. “He has done everything well,” they said. “He even makes the deaf hear and the mute speak.”
Bishop Ian’s Thoughts
Today’s Epistle Reading is taken from St Paul’s second letter to the Corinthian Church, Chapter 3, Verses 4-11.
In this passage of his Epistle St Paul contrasts the nature of the Law of Moses (The Old Covenant) with the nature of the Holy Gospel of The Lord Jesus Christ (The New Covenant).
St Paul begins by establishing the basis of our confidence to approach God without fear:
"4 Such confidence we have through Christ before God. 5 Not that we are competent in ourselves to claim anything for ourselves, but our competence comes from God. 6 He has made us competent as ministers of a new covenant—not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life."
It is through the Holy Gospel of the Lord Jesus that a believer is clothed in the Holy Righteousness of the Lord Jesus, and is enabled to stand, with confidence, before God, the Almighty Creator, and Ruler of all things.
To emphasise the limitless Glory of the Lord Jesus, St Paul directs us to consider the Glory of God, manifested as a bright illumination temporarily emanating from Moses' face, after he received the Law of God, on stone tablets, on Mount Sinai:
"7 Now if the ministry that brought death, which was engraved in letters on stone, came with glory, so that the Israelites could not look steadily at the face of Moses because of its glory, transitory though it was, 8 will not the ministry of the Spirit be even more glorious?"
St Paul's reference to Moses' Glory would call to his readers’ minds their knowledge of Mosaic Worship that ancient Israel had developed from the time of the reception of God's Law, written by God, on stone tablets, and delivered to Moses on Mount Sinai, until the time of the Lord Jesus.
St Paul describes the Old Covenant as being of the “Letter” and the end result of this was death.
The Old Covenant’s purpose was to show that no person possessed the ability to keep all the commandments that were imposed, on a worshiper, by the Law of Moses (Mosaic Law).
No person ever born of woman could do this !
To keep those commandments 24 hours a day for an entire lifetime was impossible, so God initially provided a means of escape for His people. This means of escape was the system of animal sacrifices for the forgiveness of sin.
These sacrifices were prescribed for a variety of sins and thanksgivings. The most important sacrifices took place on one day of the year that was known as the Day of Atonement (known by the Jews as “Yom Kippur").
On the Day of Atonement the High Priest sacrificed a young bull, a ram, and and one of two goats, and then entered through a great curtain, or veil, into the inmost, and most sacred, part of the Jewish Temple. This chamber was known as the Holy of Holies.
God also commanded that the second goat, chosen with the first sacrificial goat was to be brought into His presence, and to be used as the “Scapegoat” to ceremonially carry away the Israelites’ sins into the wilderness.
Inside the Holy of Holies was a golden alter of incense and the Ark of the Covenant, which represented God’s Covenant and Presence with His people. The Ark contained the stone tablets on which was written the Law of Moses, Aaron’s staff that had budded in the presence of Moses and Pharoah, and a gold container of Heavenly Manna that God provided the people of Israel with during their long journey to the land promised to them by God. The contents of the Holy Ark are specified in the New Testament Epistle to the Hebrews Chapter 9, Verses 3 and 4:
"3 Behind the second curtain was a room called the Most Holy Place, 4 which had the golden altar of incense and the gold-covered ark of the covenant. This ark contained the gold jar of manna, Aaron’s staff that had budded, and the stone tablets of the covenant."
The top, or lid, of the Ark was overlaid with gold and had two gold Cherubim (Angelic beings who serve God) with their wings outstretched covering the central part of the Ark’s cover. This area was called “The Mercy Seat of God” and was symbolic of the place where God Sat and Met His people to Forgive their sins.
The Old Testament Book of Leviticus Chapter 16 details the elaborate ritual carried out by Aaron, the first High Priest, in connection with the Day of Atonement:
1 “The Lord spoke to Moses after the death of the two sons of Aaron who died when they approached the Lord. 2 The Lord said to Moses: “Tell your brother Aaron that he is not to come whenever he chooses into the Most Holy Place behind the curtain in front of the atonement cover on the ark, or else he will die. For I will appear in the cloud over the atonement cover.
3 “This is how Aaron is to enter the Most Holy Place: He must first bring a young bull for a sin offering and a ram for a burnt offering. 4 He is to put on the sacred linen tunic, with linen undergarments next to his body; he is to tie the linen sash around him and put on the linen turban. These are sacred garments; so he must bathe himself with water before he puts them on. 5 From the Israelite community he is to take two male goats for a sin offering and a ram for a burnt offering.
6 “Aaron is to offer the bull for his own sin offering to make atonement for himself and his household. 7 Then he is to take the two goats and present them before the Lord at the entrance to the tent of meeting. 8 He is to cast lots for the two goats—one lot for the Lord and the other for the scapegoat. 9 Aaron shall bring the goat whose lot falls to the Lord and sacrifice it for a sin offering. 10 But the goat chosen by lot as the scapegoat shall be presented alive before the Lord to be used for making atonement by sending it into the wilderness as a scapegoat.
11 “Aaron shall bring the bull for his own sin offering to make atonement for himself and his household, and he is to slaughter the bull for his own sin offering. 12 He is to take a censer full of burning coals from the altar before the Lord and two handfuls of finely ground fragrant incense and take them behind the curtain. 13 He is to put the incense on the fire before the Lord, and the smoke of the incense will conceal the atonement cover above the tablets of the covenant law, so that he will not die. 14 He is to take some of the bull’s blood and with his finger sprinkle it on the front of the atonement cover; then he shall sprinkle some of it with his finger seven times before the atonement cover.
15 “He shall then slaughter the goat for the sin offering for the people and take its blood behind the curtain and do with it as he did with the bull’s blood: He shall sprinkle it on the atonement cover and in front of it. 16 In this way he will make atonement for the Most Holy Place because of the uncleanness and rebellion of the Israelites, whatever their sins have been. He is to do the same for the tent of meeting, which is among them in the midst of their uncleanness. 17 No one is to be in the tent of meeting from the time Aaron goes in to make atonement in the Most Holy Place until he comes out, having made atonement for himself, his household and the whole community of Israel.
18 “Then he shall come out to the altar that is before the Lord and make atonement for it. He shall take some of the bull’s blood and some of the goat’s blood and put it on all the horns of the altar. 19 He shall sprinkle some of the blood on it with his finger seven times to cleanse it and to consecrate it from the uncleanness of the Israelites.
20 “When Aaron has finished making atonement for the Most Holy Place, the tent of meeting and the altar, he shall bring forward the live goat. 21 He is to lay both hands on the head of the live goat and confess over it all the wickedness and rebellion of the Israelites—all their sins—and put them on the goat’s head. He shall send the goat away into the wilderness in the care of someone appointed for the task. 22 The goat will carry on itself all their sins to a remote place; and the man shall release it in the wilderness.
23 “Then Aaron is to go into the tent of meeting and take off the linen garments he put on before he entered the Most Holy Place, and he is to leave them there. 24 He shall bathe himself with water in the sanctuary area and put on his regular garments. Then he shall come out and sacrifice the burnt offering for himself and the burnt offering for the people, to make atonement for himself and for the people. 25 He shall also burn the fat of the sin offering on the altar.
26 “The man who releases the goat as a scapegoat must wash his clothes and bathe himself with water; afterward he may come into the camp. 27 The bull and the goat for the sin offerings, whose blood was brought into the Most Holy Place to make atonement, must be taken outside the camp; their hides, flesh and intestines are to be burned up. 28 The man who burns them must wash his clothes and bathe himself with water; afterward he may come into the camp.
29 “This is to be a lasting ordinance for you: On the tenth day of the seventh month you must deny yourselves and not do any work—whether native-born or a foreigner residing among you— 30 because on this day atonement will be made for you, to cleanse you. Then, before the Lord, you will be clean from all your sins. 31 It is a day of sabbath rest, and you must deny yourselves; it is a lasting ordinance. 32 The priest who is anointed and ordained to succeed his father as high priest is to make atonement. He is to put on the sacred linen garments 33 and make atonement for the Most Holy Place, for the tent of meeting and the altar, and for the priests and all the members of the community.
34 “This is to be a lasting ordinance for you: Atonement is to be made once a year for all the sins of the Israelites.”
And it was done, as the Lord commanded Moses.
On the Day of Atonement the High Priest sprinkled the blood of the sacrificial animal onto the Mercy Seat, of the Ark, to obtain forgiveness of sins for the whole nation of Israel.
The Old Testament Book of Exodus Chapters 36-40 detail the building of the first Tabernacle (Tent of Meeting) and the Ark of the Covenant. This Tabernacle was the dwelling place of God on earth amongst His people. This Tabernacle was portable and carried with the people of Israel during their long journey to Canaan.
Approximately 500 years later the portable Tabernacle was replaced by the first Jewish Temple, built in Jerusalem.
This first Temple was built by King Solomon around 830 BC and was the focus of Jewish Worship for 233 years, until it was destroyed in 587 BC during the Babylonian conquest.
The Ark of the Covenant disappeared after the destruction of the Temple. Some ancient legends say that it was hidden in a cave under the Temple Mount while other legends say that it was lost or destroyed, while yet other legends say that it was taken into heaven by God.
The second Temple was built around 516 BC, on the same location as the first Temple, and this second Temple was extensively renovated by King Herod the Great around 100 BC. The second Temple became known as Herod’s Temple due to the scope of the restoration work carried out during Herod’s reign.
In the second Temple the Holy of Holies was an empty chamber, as the Ark of the Covenant had been lost with the destruction of the first Temple, some 480 years before.
The daily ritual of the Temple and especially the ritual of the Day of Atonement, had a twofold purpose. The first purpose was to deal with the sins of God’s people. The second and more importance purpose was to point forward to the coming of the Messiah.
We now know that Messiah is the Lord Jesus Christ who became the Perfect and Eternal Sacrifice for the sins of all God’s people, past, present and future.
The Holy Blood of the Lord Jesus Christ, shed, once, for all sins, is infinitely greater than the blood of animals that needed to be shed repeatedly.
The High Priest could only enter the Holy of Holies once a year to sprinkle blood for the forgiveness of the people’s sin. When the Lord Jesus Christ was crucified the curtain of the Holy of Holies (where God’s presence dwelt) was torn in two and the most Holy Place in Jewish worship was opened to all people to enter as they wished.
This tearing of the curtain was symbolic of God’s presence being accessible to all people through the forgiveness provided by The Lord Jesus, whose Perfect, once only, Sacrifice erased all the sins of His Chosen People forever.
St Paul then goes on to contrast the temporary nature Old Covenant of Moses with the New and Everlasting Covenant of God.
It is vital to understand that the Greek word for “new” used to describe the New Covenant of the Lord Jesus Christ, denotes newness of quality, not new as in time.
As previously mentioned, when Moses came down from Mount Sinai, after receiving the Law from God, his face shone with a radiance that came from being in the presence of God. This miraculous event is recorded in the Old Testament Book of Exodus Chapter 34, Verses 29-35:
"29 When Moses came down from Mount Sinai with the two tablets of the covenant law in his hands, he was not aware that his face was radiant because he had spoken with the Lord. 30 When Aaron and all the Israelites saw Moses, his face was radiant, and they were afraid to come near him. 31 But Moses called to them; so Aaron and all the leaders of the community came back to him, and he spoke to them. 32 Afterward all the Israelites came near him, and he gave them all the commands the Lord had given him on Mount Sinai."
This radiance was so bright that the people could not bear to look at Moses’ face for any length of time.
St Paul concludes our Epistle Reading by telling us that Moses' Radiance (glory) was a spectacular but temporary phenomenon that faded with time. If such glory was associated with the Temporary Covenant of Moses, the Glory of the New Covenant of the Lord Jesus Christ will far surpass it:
“9 If the ministry that brought condemnation was glorious, how much more glorious is the ministry that brings righteousness! 10 For what was glorious has no glory now in comparison with the surpassing glory. 11 And if what was transitory came with glory, how much greater is the glory of that which lasts!”
Although the Old Covenant, given by God to Moses, was the basis for a Holy and Merciful relationship, the Holy Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ is the only Perfect and Everlasting Foundation for our Eternal Relationship with God, as His Chosen people.
We who have faith in the Holy Gospel of the Lord Jesus are forever clothed in the Holy Righteousness of the Lord Jesus, and have been made the Adopted Children of our Heavenly Father.
Let us always give God thanks for the Holy Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the Salvation that has been won for us through the shedding of the Holy and Righteous Blood of the Lord Jesus, our Holy Saviour and Mighty God. Amen.
The Holy Gospel Reading is taken from the Holy Gospel of St Mark Chapter 7, Verses 31-37.
This passage from the Holy Gospel of St Mark records the healing of a man who was deaf and had a severe speech impediment that prevented him from speaking clearly:
"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."
The Lord Jesus had previously healed a demon possessed man in the same area so the reports and testimonies of that miracle had no doubt spread throughout that region. These reports were believed and accepted by many people, who as a result of hearing of this miracle, placed their faith in the Lord Jesus.
The afflicted man was brought, by a group of people, to the feet of the Lord Jesus where they begged for His help.
In response to the faith of those that brought the man, the Lord Jesus took him aside from those that brought 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.”
The Lord Jesus took the man aside, from the great bulk of the crowd, to avoid any distraction that the crowd would have made during the healing process.
We can assume the that the deaf man’s close friends were with him.
The Lord Jesus then put his fingers into the deaf man’s ears and spat on His finger and touched the man’s tongue. While doing this The Lord Jesus lifted His head towards Heaven and with a deep sigh said to the man “Ephphatha” (be opened).
The detail that Jesus made a deep sigh during the healing process is St Mark’s way of showing that the Lord Jesus experienced, and displayed, every emotion that a truly human person would display.
The Lord Jesus was Truly Man and Truly God.
Immediately when Jesus commanded “be opened” the man’s ears were opened so that he heard, and his tongue was loosened so that he spoke plainly.
It is interesting that the Greek word used to describe the man’s speech impediment is very rare and is only used in one other place in the Greek translation of the Old Testament. This same word is used in connection with the miracles that will accompany the coming of the Messiah (Mighty Deliverer), as recorded in the Old Testament Book of The Prophet Isaiah Chapter 35, Verses 5-6:
5 Then will the eyes of the blind be opened
and the ears of the deaf unstopped.
6 Then will the lame leap like a deer,
and the mute tongue shout for joy.
This word was obviously in the mind of St Mark as he recorded this passage in his Holy Gospel. St Mark thus declares that the Lord Jesus’ Miracle of Healing of this deaf, and speech impaired man, to be one of those miracles that were prophesied, many years before, by the prophet Isaiah concerning the coming of the Messiah.
St Mark in using this word from the Book of Isaiah declares, to all, that the long promised Messiah was the Lord Jesus Christ.
Our Holy Gospel Reading concludes with the Lord Jesus commanding the healed man, and his friends, not to spread the news of his healing, as the Lord Jesus always preferred to base His Mighty acts of healing on pre-existant faith rather than proof evident after the event. The man, and his friends, however, disregarded the Lord Jesus' request and news of this miracle soon spread throughout the region and was received with tremendous amazement:
“36 Jesus commanded them not to tell anyone. But the more he did so, the more they kept talking about it. 37 People were overwhelmed with amazement. “He has done everything well,” they said. “He even makes the deaf hear and the mute speak.”
The long awaited Messiah had come in the person of the Lord Jesus Christ.
When St John the Baptist was imprisoned by King Herod Antipas, awaiting execution, he was in a state of Satanic inspired depression, and wondered if God was punishing him for promoting a false messiah.
John was alone, and knew his death could not be far away.
John sent his disciples to The Lord Jesus to ask if He was the Messiah or should we look for another.
The Lord Jesus' wonderful reply is recorded in the Holy Gospel of St Matthew Chapter 11 versus 2-11:
"2 When John, who was in prison, heard about the deeds of the Messiah, he sent his disciples 3 to ask him, “Are you the one who is to come, or should we expect someone else?”
“4 Jesus replied, “Go back and report to John what you hear and see: 5 The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is proclaimed to the poor. 6 Blessed is anyone who does not stumble on account of me.”
“7 As John’s disciples were leaving, Jesus began to speak to the crowd about John: “What did you go out into the wilderness to see? A reed swayed by the wind? 8 If not, what did you go out to see? A man dressed in fine clothes? No, those who wear fine clothes are in kings’ palaces. 9 Then what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. 10 This is the one about whom it is written:
“‘I will send my messenger ahead of you,
who will prepare your way before you.”
(The Old Testament Book of Malachi Chapter 3, Verse 1)
“11 Truly I tell you, among those born of women there has not risen anyone greater than John the Baptist; yet whoever is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he."
The man whose healing is recorded in our Holy Gospel Reading, was an important part of the revelation that God's Messiah had come.
The answer that was reported back to John, would have have lifted his spirits enormously as John knew the scriptures concerning the coming of the Messiah and John’s disciples would have told him that they had witnessed those prophesies, made long ago, being fulfilled in the Ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ.
May the Lord Jesus Bless today's Readings, from the Epistle and Holy Gospel, to us, and give us the confidence to confess our sins and doubts to Him, in full assurance that He will forgive our sins and pour upon us His Heavenly Blessings that exceed all that we can imagine. Amen.
Bishop Ian