Healing for an Anxious Heart Isaiah 35:4-7a; James 2:1-10, 14-18; Mark 7: 31-37

 

Grace, mercy and peace be with you, from God, our Father, and our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, who gives healing to the hurting heart.

 

Healing for an Anxious Heart is the title of our message, based on our Old Testament, Say to those who have an anxious heart, “Be strong; fear not! Behold, your God will come… and save you.”.

 

There are many things in life that can make us anxious and cause us to worry. 

 

The Covid virus with it various strains, new ones popping up all the time, and all the challenges we’ve had because of the virus, has caused anxiety for many.

 

In Afghanistan, many worry if they will be safe under the new regime, or if their freedoms will be taken away, and they’ll have to live under oppression, like they did 20 years ago.

 

Some people are worried that we may see a resurgence of international terrorism.

 

In the western United States, some are worried and anxious about the forest fires, if they will spread and consume their homes. And with the reservoirs drying up, some are worried if they will have enough water to survive.

 

And then there are the worries and anxieties that we have about our personal situations: it might be anxiety because of family or marital problems, or problems at work, or financial troubles, or health issues, and many more troubles.

 

In this world of worry, this life of anxiety, God comes to us, to comfort our minds and heal our hearts. Say to those who have an anxious heart, “Be strong; fear not!

 

Our Old Testament is one of many prophecies in Isaiah about the Messiah. Behold, your God will come with vengeance, with the recompense of God.

 

Behold, your God will come. God came to us in Jesus: the Word made flesh. He continues to come to us in His Word and Sacraments. 

And God will come to us one last time, when Jesus returns to judge the living and the dead. From then on, all who have put their trust in Him, will live in the visible and glorious presence of God forever. 

 

Behold, your God will come… with vengeance, with the recompense (or payback) of God.

 

That doesn’t sound very nice. In fact, knowing that can cause some serious anxiety, God coming with vengeance and payback; God with all His power to punish.

 

But not for those in Christ. The next line of our text clarifies this: He will come… and save you.”

 

Jesus took the vengeance and payback for us, He paid for our sins with His life.

 

Repenting of all we have done against God, and trusting in His Son who was sent to save us, we are now healed of our guilt, and forgiven for our sins. 

 

God’s healing and forgiveness calms our anxious, troubled hearts. 

 

But for all who ignore or reject Jesus, there is every reason to be anxious, to the extreme, because without Christ in your life, there is no payment for your sins, and the day will come when the bill is due, the Day of Judgment. 

 

The bill always comes due. And only Jesus can pay it for you, from the reservoir of His grace, the total forgiveness He won for the world by His death and resurrection. 

 

He is your way out of eternal suffering and grief, and into eternal glory and joy.

 

In Afghanistan we see people with visas and passports trying to get into the airport at Kabul, so that they can fly to someplace safe. 

 

Jesus is your passport into Heaven. If your heart is stamped with faith in Christ, then the gates of Heaven will be opened for you. 

Psalm 118:19-20 says, Open to me the gates of righteousness, that I may enter through them and give thanks to the Lord. 20 This is the gate of the Lord; the righteous shall enter through it.

 

Jesus is the gate to the Church and to Heaven; we enter through Him. As he said to His disciples in John 14:6, I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

 

And in His sermon on the mount, in Matthew 7:7, Jesus says, Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.

 

When you seek Jesus you will find Him, and when you find Him, you will rejoice in Him, now and in eternity.

 

Isaiah says, 5 Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf unstopped; 6 then shall the lame man leap like a deer, and the tongue of the mute sing for joy.

 

As we said, this is a Messianic promise, and we see it fulfilled in today’s Gospel, as Jesus healed the man who was deaf. 

 

Marks says, He put his fingers into his ears, and after spitting touched his tongue. 34 And looking up to heaven, he sighed and said to him, “Ephphatha,” that is, “Be opened.” 35 And his ears were opened, his tongue was released, and he spoke plainly… And they were astonished beyond measure, saying, “He has done all things well. He even makes the deaf hear and the mute speak.”

 

Jesus did that to help and heal the disabled man, but also to fulfill Isaiah’s prophecy and show Himself to be the Messiah, God’s Son sent to save the world.

 

If He can heal the body, He can heal the soul. If He can calm the storm, then he can calm your heart. 

 

So, as Isaiah says, be strongand fear not, don’t be anxious. 

 

Or as Jesus told His disciples, Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God. Believe also in Me.

Behold your God, Isaiah says, … He will come and save you. 

 

Jesus is your Savior for eternity, but He’s also your Savior for today. 

 

What makes your heart anxious today? What do you fear today? Or what do you fear today about tomorrow, about what may happen tomorrow, or any day in the 

future?

 

Jesus will help you with your present and future troubles. He will give you the heart you need; the strength and the courage to face your fears with faith. 

 

As our faith grows stronger, our fears tend to fade away, and they distract us less. Jesus is healing for an anxious heart.

 

An anxious heart is like a diseased or dysfunctional heart. Such a heart needs to be emotionally and spiritually healed, and Jesus is the Great Physician of body and soul.

 

We all have our fears and anxieties. That’s just how it is to live in his fallen world. 

 

In the next world, for those who have banked on Jesus, so to speak, much more than banked on Him, put all their trust in Him, for them the world to come will be a way of life with no worries, no fears, no disappointments, no let downs, no tragedies, no catastrophes, only blessings and joys. 

 

On earth we have surprises, good and bad. The only surprises we will have in Heaven, and there will be many, will be how wonderful each day is, each day better than the last.

 

Each day might not be better, because every day will be perfect; but it might feel that way. 

 

How amazed we will be at the new and daily blessings God pours upon us. He will never run out of new and amazing ways to bless us, to always surprise us. 

 

That’s a quite a thing to look forward to!

 

Knowing that, doesn’t your heart feel better? 

 

Doesn’t having that kind of a hope make your heart stronger for today’s challenges, and for tomorrow’s surprises, good or bad, whatever they may be? 

 

Indeed it does; hope in Christ helps and heals the anxious heart.

 

So fear not the troubles or circumstances of this world. Trust Jesus to get you through. 

 

As 1 Peter 5:17 says, Cast your cares on Him, for He cares for you.

 

And as you cast your cares on Him, the peace of God that passes understanding, will guard your heart and mind, in Christ Jesus, who heals the anxious heart. Amen.