When I read about Jesus’s ministry, I sometimes think, “Well, it would be easy to turn people to God if I could heal their diseases.” People tend to be easily convinced by something that affects them so obviously, so dramatically, and so positively. Without the ability to miraculously heal people though, I’m just another person saying stuff. So much less convincing and easy to ignore.
The reply I get from God is, “Have you tried?”
Um. No.
I have never gone all over teaching in synagogues (or churches or temples or assembly halls or conference rooms…) preaching the good news of the kingdom. And I have certainly never healed anyone’s disease or sickness.
It’s true that in the Bible Jesus tells His disciples more than once that their faith should allow them to heal people miraculously. And they do!
So why haven’t I? Is it a lack of faith? A lack of trying? Probably both!
I’ve seen on TV and heard stories of miraculous healings at tent revivals and things like that. Where a person in a wheelchair, for example, comes to the front of the tent during a frenzy of praise songs and waving arms. A preacher pushes his hand against their forehead and in a loud quavering voice cries, “Be healed in the name of Jesus!” The person stands tentatively from the wheelchair and starts to weep for joy as the crowd gasps and then cheers and applauds.
My reaction to those scenes and stories is always disbelief and dismissal. I assume there is a trick. The seemingly wheelchair-bound person must have been in on the scam with the traveling preacher, and both were aiming to make some quick bucks before leaving town.
While there certainly are plenty of con-artists using religious fervor to their advantage, the fact remains that Jesus does say that miraculous healing is available to His followers.
So how do I get there? How do I get enough faith to heal someone?
Maybe part of the answer is in today’s verse. The order that Jesus did things is go, teach, preach, and then heal. Healing wasn’t the first thing or the main thing. Maybe if I go around teaching and preaching, eventually God will lead me to the healing part. It would be a lot easier to start with the healing, right? But then I wouldn’t really need faith.
Dear God,
I’d love to have sufficient faith to heal anyone who came to me with a disease or illness. Your word says this is possible — everything is possible for you. Teach me what I need to do today to be your obedient child and faithful servant whether it ever includes healing or not. I want to believe in your infinite possibilities!
CamDevo 