Tag Archives: healed

He Understood Faith

Bible Study, , ,

HE UNDERSTOOD FAITH

“Jesus went with them. When He was still quite far from the house, the captain sent friends to tell Him, ‘Master, you don’t have to go to all this trouble. I’m not that good a person, you know. I’d be embarrassed for you to come to my house, even embarrassed to come to you in person. Just give the order and my servant will get well. I’m a man under orders; I also give orders. I tell one soldier, ‘Go,’ and he goes; another, ‘Come,’ and he comes; my slave, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.’

“Taken aback, Jesus addressed the accompanying crowd, ‘I’ve yet to come across this kind of simple trust anywhere in Israel, the very people who are supposed to know about God and how He works.’ When the messengers got back home, they found the servant up and well.”  Luke 7:6-10 (The Message).

What an unusual man!

He was obviously a person of some authority who was used to giving orders and used to being obeyed. Twice in the story, he sent people to Jesus to carry messages for him. He dispatched a group of Jewish leaders to ask for help, and then he sent friends to tell Jesus that he did not expect Him to come to his home but just to give the command and his servant would be healed.

He recognised in Jesus a man who carried the same sort of authority over spiritual forces as he carried over his subordinates. Did that mean that he attributed his servant’s illness to dark powers in the unseen realm? We who are “enlightened” with scientific knowledge would pooh-pooh that idea because we have a better understanding of where diseases come from and why human bodies malfunction.

But what lies behind these causes of imperfections and suffering in the natural world? Was it not the deception of the devil in the beginning that led the first pair into disobedience and all its consequences? However this man perceived Jesus’ authority, he trusted Him enough to know that His word was to be obeyed in the unseen realm.

He was also a man who knew the Jews well enough to honour their scruples about hob-knobbing with Gentiles. He did not expect Jesus to enter his house because he was a despised Roman. It was enough for Jesus to use His authority over sickness to dismiss it from a distance.

To what did Jesus respond — to the man’s reluctance to invite Him into his home or to the expression of faith that revealed his understanding of authority?

It was undoubtedly the man’s grasp of the meaning of faith that caught His attention. Jesus was not bothered by the scruples of His fellow Jews. He touched sick people; He embraced “unclean” people; He handled dead people, and none of these violations of taboos ever affected Him. The sick were healed; unclean people were made clean and the dead lived at the sound of His voice.

He marvelled that a pagan Roman soldier had a better understanding of faith than His own people who had a history of faithlessness and disobedience from the beginning. It seems that Jesus’ response to the soldier’s request was one better than his expectation. Luke doesn’t tell us whether He even spoke to the sickness from afar. He only reports that when the messengers got back to the captain’s home, the servant was up and well.

There is nothing that pleases the Lord more than the confidence we have in Him that  doubts neither His ability nor His will to intervene when we cry for help. “And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to Him must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who earnestly seek Him.” Hebrews 11:6 (NIV).

How can we have a faith like that? By soaking ourselves in God’s Word. “So faith comes by hearing, that is, hearing the Good News about Christ.” Romans 10:17 (NLT).

Are you reading God’s Word? It’s the only way.

Bringing Heaven To Earth

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BRINGING HEAVEN TO EARTH

“He left the meeting place and went to Simon’s house. Simon’s mother-in-law was running a high fever and they asked Him to do something for her. He stood over her, told the fever to leave — and it left. Before they knew it she was up getting dinner for them.” Luke 4:38-39 (The Message).

Just like that! Luke tells the story in a matter-of-fact way, as though it was an everyday occurrence. Speak to the sickness and it goes! But to the people who observed it, it was riveting.

They were not unfamiliar with miracles. Their Scriptures were dotted with stories of miracles from the time their first forefathers were born; Isaac, conceived by two old people; Rebekah — barren; Rachel — barren; Hannah — barren; and all the miraculous events surrounding their deliverance from Egypt and journey to the Promised Land, to say nothing of the miracles prophets like Elijah and Elisha did.

But that was then and this was now. God hadn’t even spoken to them in four hundred years until John. This was different. Jesus just spoke and things happened on a scale they didn’t believe possible.

What was happening? First John and then Jesus made an announcement that changed everything. “The kingdom of God is here.” What did that mean? Where was the kingdom of God before this? What was the kingdom, anyway? To the Jewish people the kingdom meant the land and people of Israel under their own king and not under the hated Romans.

What did the kingdom mean to Jesus? Jesus had been sent by the Father to represent Him in an enterprise that would take the whole of creation back to His original purpose. For four thousand years God had been preparing the way for His restoration plan, building a nation that would bring forth the Messiah, God in the flesh to show and tell by becoming one of us.

He would show the world what God is really like, repair the damaged relationship with His estranged children by paying their debt for sin, and build a world-wide body of loyal people who would continue what He began, bringing  heaven to earth through living like Jesus did. When demons invaded human beings, they had to go because they did not belong in God’s kingdom. When fever struck Peter’s mother-in-law, it had to go because sickness was not part of the way God did things.

Step-by-step Jesus was introducing His people to what the kingdom of God was all about — not a geographical and political realm like the land and people of Israel, but an inward change of heart towards God where His rule was restored. Like Jesus, His people would have the power to show the world, through their love and generosity and the miracles Jesus did, that God is good, all the time!

Of course He was operating in a fallen world where sin, pain, suffering and death were all very real. God’s kingdom was there, but so was the influence of the demonic realm, manipulating and dominating through deceit. By evicting what was part of the fallen world, Jesus was showing His people what it would be like to live under God’s rule and inviting people to return to God’s original intention.

He had come to pay the price the whole world owed God because there was no-one else on earth qualified to do so. People would no longer have to hide from God. There was nothing in the way any more. They could return to the Father and become a part of His recovery plan.

It’s no wonder that what He said and did shocked them. This was new to them, not anything like the arrogant, harsh and judgmental attitudes of their religious leaders. And they loved Him for it.

Mission Accomplished!

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MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!

“The head man in that part of the island was Publius. He took us into his home as his guests, drying us out and putting us up in fine style for the next three days. Publius’ father was sick at the time, down with a high fever and dysentery. Paul went to the old man’s room, and when he laid hands on him and prayed, the man was healed. Word of the healing got around fast, and soon everyone on the island who was sick came and got healed.” Acts 28:7-9 (The Message).

Imagine a small community of islanders having to play host to 256 unexpected guests, and not just for a day!

But with Paul among them, they were not parasites. Through him, God repaid their hosts’ kindness and generosity in ways that were far beyond what money could buy. Wherever he went, you could count on it that Paul would share his priceless message and the mercy of God that reached out to all people. In the unshakeable knowledge of God’s grace, he gave away the gift of healing to people who were ignorant and undeserving but who needed to know Him as much as anyone else.

Once again the devil’s agenda was thwarted and what could have been a terrible disaster turned out to be another of God’s opportunities to share His love with an isolated community which might not have otherwise heard. Paul did it in a very practical way, dispensing healing through the power of the Holy Spirit to the whole island. I’m sure many of the people would have wished they were sick just to experience God’s healing power!

“We spent a wonderful three months on Malta. They treated us royally, took care of all our needs and outfitted us for the rest of the journey. When an Egyptian ship that wintered there in the harbour prepared to leave for Italy, we got on board. The ship had a carved Gemini for its figurehead: “The Heavenly Twins.”

“We put in at Syracuse for three days and then went up the coast to Rhegium. Two days later, with the wind out of the south, we sailed into the Bay of Naples. We found Christian friends there and stayed with them for a week.” Acts 28:10-14 (The Message).

Mission accomplished! The Roman centurion and soldiers must have breathed a sigh of relief when they placed their feet on Italian soil. Luke does not specify, but it seems that the centurion trusted Paul enough to allow him to stay with friends until they could deliver him to Caesar. Perhaps he left him in the custody of one or two soldiers while he continued on to Rome to make arrangements for Paul.

One wonders why Luke commented on the figurehead on the Egyptian ship. Was he telling his reader that the ship sailed under the protection of “Gemini” until the moment that Paul and his little company of believers stepped on board? From then on, while they were on the ship, it sailed under the covering of Paul’s God. The company that boarded the ship after their own was wrecked had learned that anywhere was safe, even in a hurricane storm, where they were in the hands of God.

Would they ever forget their interlude in the company of Paul? Their time on Malta was no trial –they had experienced the bounty of God’s provision through the islanders, and all because God was showing them the care and favour of a loving Father. No doubt Paul took every opportunity to tell them the story of Jesus and demonstrate His resurrection power by healing sick people.

Wherever he went, Paul was a living, walking, breathing testimony to Jesus. He turned every disaster into an opportunity to put the glory of his Master on display. As turbulent and eventful as his life had been, it was all lived for and focussed on the one person who had captured his heart and transformed him from angry persecutor to passionate preacher. For Paul, God’s peace which was his priceless possession was all that mattered and came to him through his unassailable trust in God.

“You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in you.” Isaiah 26:3 (NIV).

The War Intensifies

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THE WAR INTENSIFIES

‘”But then there was a split in public opinion, some siding with the Jews, some with the apostles. One day, learning that both the Jews and non-Jews had been organised by their leaders to beat them up, they escaped as best they could to the next towns — Lyconia, Lystra, Derbe and that neighbourhood — but then they were right back at it again, getting out the Message.” Acts 14:4-7 (The Message).

What a life! Always on the run! But they had a divine commission to fulfil and a message to deliver and they could not afford to become faint-hearted about it. As long as there was new ground to break they pressed on, their hearts burning with a passion to make Jesus known. Fortunately for them, they never knew what lay around the next corner for them.

“There was a man in Lystra who couldn’t walk. He sat there, crippled since the day of his birth. He heard Paul talking, and Paul, looking him in the eye, saw that he was ripe for God’s work, ready to believe. So he said, loud enough for everyone to hear, ‘Up on your feet!’ The man was up in a flash — jumped up and walked around as if he had been walking all his life.” Acts 14:8-10 (The Message).

All in a day’s work! Whether it was hearts or bodies God was healing, it was all miracle! Paul and Barnabas were on a mission for the kingdom of God and nothing would stop them. Imagine the thrill, in the midst of opposition and the threat of being killed, of seeing God at work like that — a partnership between Him and them that they would not miss for anything in the world.

These two emissaries for the kingdom of God were in the thick of pagan society, surrounded by a culture of godless living and religious superstition and yet they were not deterred from their task of making Jesus known. His power through them was lighting up the darkness, bringing life to those who would believe. One man in the crowd showed a spark of faith and Paul pounced on his opportunity to rescue him from a life of useless disability.

One day Jesus purposefully took His disciples to a place no self-respecting Jew would ever want to visit — equivalent to feasting one’s eyes on the images in “Playboy” magazines — Caesarea Philippi — the red light district of Israel! In full view of the debauchery and sexual orgies on the go there He told them, ‘On this rock I will build my church.’ So confident was He in His power to change people’s lives that He could announce it in the worst possible circumstances.

Paul and Barnabas were personally involved in the fulfilment of Jesus’ promise. No matter where they proclaimed their message, God’s power was there to transform lives. A crippled man, deformed from birth, healed in an instant; history repeating itself in a pagan city! Peter and John had seen the same thing happen at the Beautiful Gate of the temple in Jerusalem with surprising results — the outbreak of opposition against them from the Jewish hierarchy.

Paul and Barnabas were in for a surprise too. Initially it was not rejection but worship!

“When the crowd saw what Paul had done, they went wild, calling out in their Lyconian dialect, ‘The gods have come down! These men are gods!’ They called Barnabas “Zeus” and Paul “Hermes” (since Paul did most of the speaking). The priest of the local Zeus shrine got up a parade — bulls and banners and people lined right up to the gates, ready for the ritual of sacrifice.” Acts 14:11-13 (The Message).

In their pagan ignorance, these people responded in the only way they knew. A miracle had happened, so it must be the work of a god. They mistakenly thought that Paul and Barnabas were gods, not understanding that God really did come, in the person of His son, Jesus. A showdown was about to happen, a clash between the kingdoms of darkness and light. Satan was snatching every opportunity he could to destroy these men because they were a constant threat to his unchallenged rule over whole world.

Back In The Limelight

Christian Life, , ,

BACK IN THE LIMELIGHT

“Peter went off on a mission to visit all the churches. In the course of his travels, he arrived at Lydda and met with the believers there. He came across a man — his name was Aeneas — who had been in bed eight years, paralysed. Peter said, ‘Aeneas, Jesus Christ heals you. Get up and make your bed!’ And he did it — jumped right out of bed.. Everybody who lived in Lydda and Sharon saw him walking around and woke up to the fact that God was alive and active among them.” Acts 9:32-35 (The Message).

With Saul safely out of sight for a while, Peter was back on centre stage. There was no getting away from the fact that he had spent three years in the company of Jesus. He may not have understood all the implications of what this Man had said and done, but Peter had been absorbing it all, none-the-less.

Healing seems to have been his speciality. He had watched Jesus, healed under supervision with Jesus and gone on preaching and healing tours with the other disciples with Jesus’ authorisation. He was trained and equipped to do the works of the kingdom and he was not afraid to get his hands dirty.

Peter may not have been an educated man or a polished preacher but he did what he had been trained to do. Under the unction of the Holy Spirit, he put his Master’s glory on display by applying the rule of God to suffering people. He never let an opportunity go by to dispense God’s mercy to sick people and, by doing so, he could not escape the attention of the people around him.

Where Saul’s fiery preaching aroused opposition, in a less confrontational way so did Peter’s healing ministry. Jesus was alive in the transformation of people through the truth proclaimed and in the healing of the sick and disabled through the demonstration of the power of His name, and no one could dispute that.

The religious authorities had no answer for these phenomena and it put them in a very bad light. They were the ones who had discredited Jesus’ claim to be the Son of God and put Him to death for blasphemy without a careful and honest evaluation of the evidence. As hard as they tried, they could not put out the fires of faith and loyalty to the risen Jesus. They had lost face and their grip on the people. It would not be long before their fury would break out again.

In the meantime the church was enjoying a lull in the storm. The apostles and the believers were making use of every opportunity to spread the Word. The movement was gathering momentum and churches were popping up everywhere. They were dependant on the propagation of this message by word of mouth. They had no convenient Bible to turn to for instruction.

Peter made it his business to move around from church to church to check on their progress and to teach them from his own knowledge and experience, and from his understanding of the Scriptures. Even at this early stage of the church’s history, there were those who slipped in to sow lies and discord among the believers. It has always been so and will always be so.

Like newborn infants, these little groups of believers needed to be nurtured and protected, and the church leaders had their time cut out taking care of them. This was the nature of the first century church — not large congregations meeting in ornate buildings and guided by theologically trained ministers, but little groups of people meeting in homes and doing life together.

Their leadership and lives were simple and unsophisticated. They worshipped and prayed together, shared their experiences and their resources, and encouraged one another as best they could according to their understanding of this new Way. They loved and protected one another in a hostile environment.

This way of life was so foreign to the average person that they were attracted to it and many joined the church in spite of the dangers. It was a place of safety and hope in a dangerous and uncertain world since living under Roman domination was no Sunday School picnic.