All Things Well

One of the most amazing verses in the New Testament is Mark 7:37. The verses just preceding describe how Jesus healed a deaf man. Those who witnessed the healing proclaimed of Jesus, "He has done all things well." I see the various strands of Christendom as selectively emphasizing one or another event in the life of Christ. For some, it's the Incarnation; for others, the Passion and the Cross; and for still others, the Resurrection and Pentecost. Each event is so profound that none of us can fully comprehend its depths. But Mark 7:37, I believe, summarizes the earthly life of Jesus. The statement is amazing because when describing the goodness of his life, it is not bound to one aspect or another—he heals well, or he teaches well, or he loves well. Goodness reached the full span of a lived life. Its quality—yes, its perfection—was entire. He has done all things well. This teaches us something about what Jesus accomplished on our behalf: He left a model that each of us must strive to emulate, but without any hope of reaching its fullness, at least this side of heaven. But the span is what's so sobering: All things. Our spirituality cannot be squeezed down to prayer or charitable acts or even moral purity. It extends to every corner, every pocket, and every shadow. Its sweep is total.