Mark 7:3  “…wash their hands in a special way, holding the tradition…”
Ceremonial washing.

6  “…This people honors Me with their lips, But their heart is far from Me”
So concerned with traditions and ceremony, but nothing with real repentance or change of heart and life.  Ceremony was supposed to show they had cleansed the inside, but they left that part out.

13  “…many such things you do”
They were swapping commandments for traditions in a lot of areas.  I would suspect in places that were financially advantageous for them.

15  “…the things which come out of him…”
The heart change, the real man.  Not just his appearance.  The whole point of salvation, a person must be changed from the inside, made new.

24  “…wanted no one to know it, but He could not be hidden”
Part of Him wanting to stick with the Jews first.  He’s now in Gentile territory.  But His fame has spread even here.

26  “…she kept asking Him…”
Persistence.  Her faith that He could do something pushed her to keep asking until He responded.

28  “…yet even the little dogs under the table eat…”
Wasn’t insulted by His response, but stuck to her faith.  I think this was what Jesus was after.  As many times as Gentiles showed faith in Jesus’s healing power you would think the disciples would be more inclined to believe they could be saved as well.  Old beliefs affect our thinking more than we realize.  Hard to get out of ruts.

33  “…put His fingers in his ears, and He spat and touched his tongue”
Sounds somewhat nasty.  One wonders why Jesus healed in such diverse ways.  Sometimes He spoke, sometimes He touched, sometimes He spat on the ground to make mud and used it, sometimes He just spat on someone.  Why the difference.  Someone suggested it was to prevent His disciples from thinking it was a formula rather than a connection to God.  When Peter and Paul later healed, they made no big ceremony out of it.  They just declared the power of Christ over the situation and spoke to or touched the person.  We like to get into a routine, use a formula, obey certain laws, anything but have a real relationship with Jesus.  But that’s the idea.  Everything is about the relationship with Christ.

I hope you enjoy reading and studying His word.  May it accomplish what He desires.  Please feel free to comment or post questions.  Thanks for reading!

Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.