What Jesus Cannot Do: Mark 7:24-30
Focus Passage: Mark 7:24-30 (NIrV)
Leading up to one of the most politically incorrect conversation for Jesus to have with someone, the gospel of Mark sets the stage with an interesting verse that Matthew chose not to include in his gospel. In Mark’s gospel, this event opens up with the statement: “Jesus went from there to a place near Tyre. He entered a house. He did not want anyone to know where he was. But he could not keep it a secret.” (v. 24)
Opening this event in the way he does, Mark subtly suggests that Jesus wanted His presence in the region to remain hidden from everyone – including this woman who He would insult before agreeing to help with her request. While Matthew’s gospel includes more details regarding the conversation that took place, Mark gives us more detail about the back-story and setting for this event. Mark tells us that not only did Jesus want to stay hidden, but that this woman was a Greek, even including where she was born.
However, the key phrase in Marks gospel that jumped off the page when I read it was this: “But he could not keep it a secret.” (v. 24b)
This simple statement speaks volumes about God. Even when Jesus wanted to do something secretly, He could not do so. When God moves, nothing about it remains a secret. While Satan realizes this, he is quick to bring other explanations into our minds, and he does everything he can to rationalize, minimize, or trivialize God’s movements, but that is simply because when God moves, we cannot help but notice that something happened.
While Mark tells us that Jesus could not keep His location a secret from this woman, this also implies that others knew where Jesus was and perhaps other people came to be helped while Jesus was trying to hide in this house. Jesus had a hard time keeping His location a secret during the entire time He was living on earth after His ministry had begun.
But what about today? Is Jesus able to hide now that He has returned to heaven?
In my own mind and experience, the answer depends on the person asking it. While Satan is trying to eliminate Jesus from public discussion, he can do nothing to hide Jesus from those who are looking for Him. Just like Jesus could not stay hidden in a random home on the outskirts of a city He normally would not go near, Jesus cannot stay hidden from those who are actively seeking Him.
This is a promise and a challenge for all of us followers living today: The only way we will find Jesus in the 21st century is if we are proactive in looking for Him. While there will be a point when history ends and Jesus returns in person, if we want to find Jesus before the last day when it will be too late to change our decision, we must be intentional about seeking Him during the days we have left. Satan is doing everything he can to stop this from happening, but he cannot stop someone who wants to find Jesus and accept Him into his/her heart.
This thought was inspired by studying the Walking With Jesus “Reflective Bible Study” package. To discover insights like this in your own study time, click here and give Reflective Bible Study a try today!
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