Tag Archives: Healing

What God Gave Up for Lent – Day 27

27. Peace & Healing

Jesus World

Surely our griefs He Himself bore, and our sorrows He carried; yet we ourselves esteemed Him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But He was pierced through for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the chastening for our well-being fell upon Him, and by His scourging we are healed. Isaiah 53:4-5

To conclude this portion of Isaiah, here again, are the six substitutions:

Surely our griefs He Himself bore.
Our sorrows He carried.
But He was pierced through for our transgressions.
He was crushed for our iniquities.
The chastening for our well-being fell upon Him.
By His scourging we are healed.

Not only did Christ die, so that we might have peace, He is our peace.

Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among men with whom He is pleased. ( Luke 2:14)

All these years when I have listened and read the nativity story, I have always thought the peace mentioned here was a result of God’s pleasure resting upon men. But what if it is more personal than that? What if peace among men that night literally came among men.

The prepositional word “in” when found in Greek has some interesting translations:

It could be translated as peace with men (e.g. – Emmanuel, God with us)
It could also be translated as peace in men (e.g. – Christ may dwell in your hearts)
It also is translated as child: Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: when His mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child by the Holy Spirit. Behold, the virgin shall be with child and shall bear a Son, and they shall call his name Immanuel,” which translated means, “God with us.” ( Matthew 1:18,23) The peace among men was literally Jesus.

But now in Christ Jesus you who formerly were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For He Himself is our peace, who made both groups into one and broke down the barrier of the dividing wall, by abolishing in His flesh the enmity, which is the Law of commandments contained in ordinances, so that in Himself He might make the two into one new man, thus establishing peace, and might reconcile them both in one body to God through the cross, by it having put to death the enmity. And He came and preached peace to you who were far away, and peace to those who were near; for through Him we both have our access in one Spirit to the Father. ( Ephesians 2:13-18)

Not only did Christ die so that we might be healed, He is our healing (and our salvation).

Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, “Rulers and elders of the people, if we are on trial today for a benefit done to a sick man, as to how this man has been made well, let it be known to all of you and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead—by this name this man stands here before you in good health. He is the stone which was rejected by you, the builders, but which became the chief corner stone. And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved.” ( Acts 4:8-12)

He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross, so that we might die to sin and live to righteousness; for by His wounds you were healed. ( 1 Pet 2:24)

Take the World2

If you’re asking God for peace, He’ll give you Jesus. If you’re asking God for healing, He’ll give you Jesus. As the old spiritual said: You can have all this world, just give me Jesus.

What God Gave Up for Lent – Day 26

Leave a reply

26. Scourging & Healing

scourging

The Hebrew word for scourging appears only seven times in the Old Testament. They are translated are: bruise, scourging, striking, stripes, welts, and wounds.

There is a notable passage in Proverbs which states: Stripes that wound scour away evil, and strokes reach the innermost parts. (Proverbs 20:30) Solomon reveals to us what Christ’s death on the cross accomplished for us: evil is scoured away and we are changed as deeply as the innermost parts.

Innermost has to do with inner chambers of a house, the bedroom, and its root means to encompass, surround, and enclose. These are the places that are the safest, and can be the most intimate.

Parts has to do with our guts and can mean belly, abdomen or womb.

Who’s applying the whip? It’s a question that deserves an answer. When Solomon penned this verse I have no doubt the Holy Spirit had in mind the stripes Christ would bear. Solomon however, probably thought the one using the whip was one (like a father or a kindly master) who had the good of the erring party in mind. But a beating for the sake of brutality (as with the Romans) would have no therapeutic properties, no cleansing, no scouring. These two scenarios speak more to the physical rather than the eternal, and while the former can point us in the direction of eternity, and the latter may cause us to flee in that direction. But if we focus on the One Who received the stripes—and why—we are look straight into the face of our peace, healing and salvation.

The scourging by the Romans could not accomplish our healing. What would it take, to take away the sins of the world? Was it God the Father Who wielded the whip? We have seen previously at the end of verse four: yet we ourselves esteemed Him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. So if is it the Son bearing the stripes and the Father wielding the whip, then the scouring (the healing) would indeed be both everlasting and deep (life-changing).

Healer is a word used in one of the LORD’s names: And He said, “If you will give earnest heed to the voice of the LORD your God, and do what is right in His sight, and give ear to His commandments, and keep all His statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you which I have put on the Egyptians; for I, the LORD, am your healer.” (Exodus 15:26) Yahweh Raphah.

Healing was a significant part of Christ’s ministry: The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me, because the LORD has anointed me to bring good news to the afflicted; He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to captives and freedom to prisoners. (Isaiah 61:1)

When Jesus came into Peter’s home, He saw his mother-in-law lying sick in bed with a fever. He touched her hand, and the fever left her; and she got up and waited on Him. When evening came, they brought to Him many who were demon-possessed; and He cast out the spirits with a word, and healed all who were ill. This was to fulfill what was spoken through Isaiah the prophet: “He Himself took our infirmities and carried away our diseases.” (Matthew 8:14-17)

Jump for Joy

And large crowds came to Him, bringing with them those who were lame, crippled, blind, mute, and many others, and they laid them down at His feet; and He healed them. So the crowd marveled as they saw the mute speaking, the crippled restored, and the lame walking, and the blind seeing; and they glorified the God of Israel. (Matthew 15:30-31)

He entered again into a synagogue; and a man was there whose hand was withered. They were watching Him to see if He would heal him on the Sabbath, so that they might accuse Him. He said to the man with the withered hand, “Get up and come forward!” And He said to them, “Is it lawful to do good or to do harm on the Sabbath, to save a life or to kill?” But they kept silent. After looking around at them with anger, grieved at their hardness of heart, He said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” And he stretched it out, and his hand was restored. The Pharisees went out and immediately began conspiring with the Herodians against Him, as to how they might destroy Him. ( Mark 3:1-6) This passage illustrates just how broken we are, and how desperate we are in need of healing. Sometimes the healing that is needed is not physical, but spiritual. Perhaps we need to be healed from legalism.

Maybe we need to be healed of our preconceptions: Jesus went out from there and came into His hometown; and His disciples followed Him. When the Sabbath came, He began to teach in the synagogue; and the many listeners were astonished, saying, “Where did this man get these things, and what is this wisdom given to Him, and such miracles as these performed by His hands? Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary, and brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon? Are not His sisters here with us?” And they took offense at Him. Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor except in his hometown and among his own relatives and in his own household.” And He could do no miracle there except that He laid His hands on a few sick people and healed them. And He wondered at their unbelief. And He was going around the villages teaching. ( Mark 6:1-6) Healing and teaching was Jesus dual mode of operation. But both can be hindered by our unbelief.

One day He was teaching; and there were some Pharisees and teachers of the law sitting there, who had come from every village of Galilee and Judea and from Jerusalem; and the power of the Lord was present for Him to perform healing. And some men were carrying on a bed a man who was paralyzed; and they were trying to bring him in and to set him down in front of Him. But not finding any way to bring him in because of the crowd, they went up on the roof and let him down through the tiles with his stretcher, into the middle of the crowd, in front of Jesus. Seeing their faith, He said, “Friend, your sins are forgiven you.” The scribes and the Pharisees began to reason, saying, “Who is this man who speaks blasphemies? Who can forgive sins, but God alone?” But Jesus, aware of their reasonings, answered and said to them, “Why are you reasoning in your hearts? Which is easier, to say, ‘Your sins have been forgiven you,’ or to say, ‘Get up and walk’? But, so that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins,”—He said to the paralytic— “I say to you, get up, and pick up your stretcher and go home.” Immediately he got up before them, and picked up what he had been lying on, and went home glorifying God. They were all struck with astonishment and began glorifying God; and they were filled with fear, saying, “We have seen remarkable things today.” ( Luke 5:17-26) Healing and forgiveness are closely related. And is there any wonder when we find grief being defined as sickness and disease. We find in the midst of all of this sin, that we need forgiveness and healing.

Now there is in Jerusalem by the sheep gate a pool, which is called in Hebrew Bethesda, having five porticoes. In these lay a multitude of those who were sick, blind, lame, and withered, waiting for the moving of the waters; for an angel of the Lord went down at certain seasons into the pool and stirred up the water; whoever then first, after the stirring up of the water, stepped in was made well from whatever disease with which he was afflicted. A man was there who had been ill for thirty-eight years. When Jesus saw him lying there, and knew that he had already been a long time in that condition, He said to him, “Do you wish to get well?” The sick man answered Him, “Sir, I have no man to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up, but while I am coming, another steps down before me.” Jesus said to him, “Get up, pick up your pallet and walk.” Immediately the man became well, and picked up his pallet and began to walk. ( John 5:2-9) Have we grown comfortable—or at least accustomed—with our infirmities? Do you want to be healed? Do you want your sins forgiven?

This is the sixth substitution: For our healing, He was scourged, bruised, and wounded.

What God Gave Up for Lent – Day 16

Leave a reply

16. Healing & Teaching

Woman healed

A man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. (Isaiah 53:3d)

As we saw in yesterday’s teaching, the word grief was often translated as sickness and disease. And we noted that a significant part of Christ’s ministry was the healing of the sick.

A close associate with healing, is teaching. They move in unison throughout Christ’s ministry. And in this case (probably in most) the healing becomes the application for His teaching.

And He was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sabbath. And there was a woman who for eighteen years had had a sickness caused by a spirit; and she was bent double, and could not straighten up at all. When Jesus saw her, He called her over and said to her, “Woman, you are freed from your sickness.” And He laid His hands on her; and immediately she was made erect again and began glorifying God. But the synagogue official, indignant because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath, began saying to the crowd in response, “There are six days in which work should be done; so come during them and get healed, and not on the Sabbath day.” But the Lord answered him and said, “You hypocrites, does not each of you on the Sabbath untie his ox or his donkey from the stall and lead him away to water him? And this woman, a daughter of Abraham as she is, whom Satan has bound for eighteen long years, should she not have been released from this bond on the Sabbath day?” As He said this, all His opponents were being humiliated; and the entire crowd was rejoicing over all the glorious things being done by Him. (Luke 13:10-17)

For eighteen years a daughter of Abraham had been bound by Satan, bent over double. Did she attend synagogue every Sabbath? The fact the Jesus called her a daughter of Abraham indicates she was faithful to her God, and probably attended synagogue every time it was open. Where else would she find healing? But did she receive comfort there, or even attention? We can’t tell. But I suspect that all she received was their inattention. For eighteen years they ignored her. For eighteen years they probably offered nothing more than ingenuous ungracious greetings, and superficial, legalistic instruction.

So here’s Jesus, at a synagogue, in the midst of a really excellent teaching and this doubled-over woman catches His eye. He calls her over and pronounces her freed from her sickness. Her response is quite appropriate: she stood up straight and began glorifying God. How scandalous, that a woman should start praising God in the midst of synagogue.

We immediately see the hardness of the hearts found in the religious authorities. How dare you heal on the Sabbath! Yes you may teach, indeed even teach with authority never heard before, but don’t start healing, especially don’t heal a woman.

I’m pretty sure that it was not Christ’s goal to humiliate his adversaries. They did that quite handily themselves. Indeed, I believe that He would have eagerly healed them from their pride and arrogance, and even their hard hearts, if had they only asked.

The application is: Jesus sees us in all of our infirmities, sins, and brokenness. We all need healing. So let us be bold in our infirmities; let us acknowledge what He already knows and then be healed by Him. We would probably receive the same scorn that she did, for interrupting their religious service, but it will give you the opportunity to straighten up and glorify God.

One more thought about being made straight by Jesus. Are you straight? Or are you bent over with a load of sin? You were never intended to carry that load. Yes, it is yours. You certainly deserve it and have quite properly earned it. But it should not be carried by you. Christ has already taken that burden upon Himself at the cross. Now if He has already laid down His life for you, and left your sins in the grave, why aren’t you standing straight and glorifying God?

What God Gave Up for Lent – Day 15

Leave a reply

15. Acquainted with Grief

grief3

A man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. (Isaiah 53:3c)

Acquainted is an archaic term and, unfortunately, tends to have a shallow meaning today. Actually, there is depth in this word. Christ knew grief by experience. You might say it was up close and personal.

Grief in the Hebrew is more often translated as sickness and disease. In most of its occurrences, this sickness is the consequence for sins committed. But for Christ, it was sickness which was a result of the sins of the world He took upon Himself.

A significant part of Christ’s ministry in this world was the healing the sick.

Jesus was going throughout all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every kind of disease and every kind of sickness among the people. (Matthew 4:23)

When they got out of the boat, immediately the people recognized Him, and ran about that whole country and began to carry here and there on their pallets those who were sick, to the place they heard He was. Wherever He entered villages, or cities, or countryside, they were laying the sick in the market places, and imploring Him that they might just touch the fringe of His cloak; and as many as touched it were being cured. (Mark 6:54-56)

And Levi gave a big reception for Him in his house; and there was a great crowd of tax collectors and other people who were reclining at the table with them. The Pharisees and their scribes began grumbling at His disciples, saying, “Why do you eat and drink with the tax collectors and sinners?” And Jesus answered and said to them, “It is not those who are well who need a physician, but those who are sick. I have not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance.” (Luke 5:29-32)

Are there any who are not sick? Are there any who are not sinners? In our delusional and deceived state of wellness, and our defectively defined view and practice of righteousness, we miss the opportunity to be healed.

Do not miss Christ’s invitation:

Do you wish to get well? I’ve often thought this a strange question. After all, the guy had been sick for 38 years, and for had for many of those years, been laying by the pool, hoping he might make it in to the waters when they were stirred. But he just wasn’t quick enough. Had he given up? Was he just there out of habit? You know, that’s the way it can be with our sins; we’ve gotten too used to them to change what we are doing. But like this guy, if you answer Jesus’ question with a “Yes”, you will be healed from your sins. Go ahead… ask.