Reading the four gospels in the New Testament is always a good experience – the immediacy of Christ’s words; His teachings and actions – it’s wonderful to read and imagine, and so satisfying because of the directness with which He spoke. One of the best things is the miracles recorded, most of them healings. It’s also a bit painful, though, because I think it’s really natural to read of these miraculous healings, and feel a bit jealous. Why did they get to be healed? Why did God perform these healings for them, but does not for me?
An obvious reason is that the Gospels record what happened during a very brief period in one, tiny, part of the world. This was where the Saviour’s mortal ministry took place – but the effect of His ministry reaches far and wide; back to the beginning of the world and forward to its end, and beyond. Why did He perform so many miracles? Why don’t we see these sorts of miracles around us more often? These are questions that would be good to consider at some point, but today, there’s another thought I’d like to share, and that is the personal context of these healings.
When you think about being healed, you’re thinking about now. You might be also thinking about how long you’ve been suffering whatever ailment or difficulty you’d like healed, and just how long and unfair that is. How much it’s affected your life, and stopped you from doing or experiencing things you would have, all things being equal. When we read about the healings in the scriptures, we’re reading about the moment when things changed for those people – not everything that went before. But we often get a glimpse. And that glimpse tells us this: most of those whom Jesus healed had suffered for a long time before the miracle occurred. The woman who had a haemorrhaging disease for 12 years, and had tried everything to fix it, including spending all her money on physicians. The boy who had epilepsy since he was little. The man at the pool who had waited years and years to be healed, and couldn’t reach the mythological source at the time it was supposed to work. The youth possessed by evil spirits – hundreds of them – for several years.
They all suffered much, and long. The miracle did not happen immediately for them, either.
And how many more people with afflictions lived in all the regions around Palestine? How many have lived before and since, with no Saviour there to physically heal them, as He did for the Jews? Does God not love all of them? Of course He does; but His purposes and wisdom and means are not ours. Faith in Him involves faith that His purposes are right; that whatever happens in our lives here, it will be well. Even though we think having illnesses or unfair circumstances is a bad thing… we must trust that all that we experience will be for our good – and not resentfully.
So what might God really have in mind, when He allows us to continue dealing with these things?
- our increased need/desire/willingness to turn to Him
- seeking out solutions with self-reliance
- the development of attributes such as patience and humility
- a realisation that we are dependent upon God for everything
- the opportunity for others to serve us – for their and our benefit
- developing deeper understanding of life: “things as they really are”; insights and wisdom
- increasing our faith: if we were healed of all the hard things, when we want to be, we wouldn’t develop faith, or it would be quite flimsy faith, based on getting what we want.
- empathy – understanding others who suffer, better, and gaining compassion for them. Thus helping them endure, and realising that we are not alone in our suffering. Our pains might lead us to directly help others in these situations, which we might not have done before – not just because we might not have been aware, or so aware, of their need, but because now, we understand; we know, intimately; personally.
Remembering that our lives here are a test – an opportunity to meet all sorts of circumstances and respond to them; to learn and to grow – helps to make clear why these things will often remain, and not be healed. All is well. As long as we exercise faith in Christ, and live righteously, all is and will be well – regardless of how it seems to our mortal perception.
I think it is beautiful to see the Saviour so compassionately recognising and responding to the many, many needs of the people He lived among during those years. He was almost constantly healing, with all the things He needed to do, and all the fatigue he must have felt. He couldn’t ignore them – his bowels are filled with mercy. That’s no different to how He must see us; His bowels are still filled with mercy toward us. He has not forsaken us – we are graven upon His palms! Let us trust in the love He has so immeasurably demonstrated, and see the blessings already given us, and coming to us each day. Let us imagine the beauty and healing we can help Him create, for each other, as we share our burdens and work to lift each other’s.
Peaceable Treasures 