Jesus the Healer

Rev. Debbie Cato

Isaiah 40:21-31 and Mark 1:29-39

Peace Presbyterian Church

February 8, 2015

Jesus the Healer

Probably one of the more frequent questions pastors hear – or maybe I should say – one of the most frequent questions Christians ask is - “why?” I’ve been praying that God would heal me… my friend… my family member… but he isn’t answering my prayer or he didn’t answer my prayer. Why? I know God can heal people so why doesn’t he/why didn’t he heal ….. (pause) … you fill in the blank. Have you ever asked that question of God?  Have you ever thought that maybe if your faith were just a little stronger, God would answer your prayer?

In June, 2011, I traveled from Casper, Wyoming to Tacoma, Washington. Jessica was graduating with her Masters of Social Work and I had saved up enough money to be there. I was beyond excited. I had not seen the girls for almost a year and a half – sheer torture. We had plans to celebrate Jessica's graduation and then do lots of fun things – just the three of us. I could not wait to spend time with Jessica and Tracy. I felt like a little girl at Christmas.

The day after Jessica's graduation, my phone rang. My Mom had taken a sudden turn and was in the hospital here in Eugene – River Bend. She was not doing well. The next day, while I was making plans to come to Eugene, my brother called. Mom was going home under hospice care. The family was gathering together.

We got in the car and made the drive to Eugene. I arrived with much trepidation. Not only was my Mom dying, but 7 of my 8 brothers and sisters would be there. We did not get along with one another . Most of my brothers and sisters had not talked to me in nearly 20 years. I had not met many of their spouses. They did not know my daughters. What would it be like to all be together in Mom's small apartment at Williamette Oaks?

Despite my prayers, God did not heal Mom. My Mom died 4 days after I had to head back to Casper. So you can imagine that as I planned my sermon for today, these healing miracles caused me to pause.

Simon’s mother had a fever and Jesus healed her – immediately. She got up and fixed dinner as if she had never been sick. And then, after dinner, “all who were sick or possessed with demons” were brought to Jesus. He cured many and cast out demons from many.

I’ve read this passage in Mark many times but this time when I read it I caught something I hadn’t noticed before. It’s subtle but did you catch it?  “All” who were sick, all who had demons were brought to Jesus. But… “Many” were healed. Many were healed. Many. Not all. Not everyone who was sick; not everyone who was demon possessed was healed. Jesus healed some of them. Just some. He obviously had the ability to heal everyone. But he didn’t. He healed many. But not everyone.

Now let’s get a good picture of this. Jesus is just getting started in his ministry. He’s making a name for himself. People are flocking to see him. They’ve heard the news. It’s not just talk. They have seen evidence. People that were sick and invalid are miraculously healed. People that had emotional and spiritual ailments – demons as scripture calls them – are made whole. Jesus had a great thing going. He was a hero.

Maybe it got too late in the night and he didn’t have time to heal everyone.  Maybe the ones he didn’t heal that night were going to come back the next day so Jesus could heal them then. I think even more people would come the next morning, don’t you? News gets around! There’s a healer in town. Jesus had the opportunity for an encore performance. He was a big draw. Jesus could make a name for himself as a healer.

It’s certainly what his disciples expected. When they get up the next morning, they are upset because he isn’t there. They think Jesus should be ready for the crowd that will be coming back. Jesus isn’t where they think he should be. Where is he? In the Greek it says the disciples “hunted” for him. They were frantic.

But Jesus had other plans. He got up early – while it was still dark. Apparently, he didn’t want others to know he was leaving – that he was going off by himself. Away from the voices telling him what to do. Away from those who needed him. Away from the demands of the world. He wanted to be alone with God. Jesus left early in the morning by himself to go somewhere alone and pray. (pause)

"Everyone is looking for you!" the disciples tell him. I imagine the crowds were already beginning to gather. The disciples were ready for their leader to do more healing miracles. Everyone is looking for you, Jesus. Come on! It’s sort of like – “you’re on in 2 minutes”.

But after spending time alone; after spending time in prayer; with His Father, Jesus has other plans. He’s not going to do what the others expect him to do. After his early morning prayer, he chooses to move on. "Let us go somewhere else,”  Jesus says. “We need to go to the nearby villages-- so I can preach there also. That is why I have come."

True, there were more sick people in Capernaum. People who had not been healed the night before. People who needed Jesus’ healing touch. Yet Jesus moves on. (pause) “All” who were sick, all who had demons were brought to Jesus. But… “Many” were healed.

Jesus does not just heal just the physical. He heals the demon possessed – he heals the psychological and spiritual sicknesses. He brings healing and wholeness to our minds and our hearts. We are made whole in The Kingdom of God. The Good News of Jesus Christ – the good news of the Kingdom of God brings psychological, spiritual, and physical healing. Jesus’ healings brought a glimpse of the Kingdom of God to the people and communities he touched and visited. “All” who were sick, all who had demons were brought to Jesus. But… “Many” were healed.

Those four days I spent with my family were amazing. We got to know one another. We talked. We laughed. We cried together. Many old hurts were healed. Forgiven. Jesus did in fact bring healing – not physical healing to my Mom, but emotional healing to my family. Some of us became friends and are in contact with one another. What I was dreading turned out to be a time of healing and wholeness.

Where in your life do you need healing? How do you need God to bring wholeness and well-being and peace into your life? Perhaps Jesus has already brought healing into your life that you may not recognize?

Healing occurs when we can see what God intends for us – when we see the  beauty God sees in us. The apostle Paul proclaimed that in Christ we are a "new creation;" the "old has passed away;" behold, "everything has become new" (2 Corinthians 5:17).

Jesus stays focused on God by going off alone to pray. Jesus knows what he needs to do. It isn’t what his disciples expect him to do. It isn’t what the crowds want him to do. Jesus moves on to the next village because Jesus knows his mission. Jesus doesn’t get caught up in the fanfare; the notoriety. He doesn’t get distracted.

Jesus did not come to be some healing miracle worker to draw large crowds. He is not a sorcerer who heals peoples’ aches and pains on some whim. Jesus can’t be distracted by the expectations of the crowds or even his own disciples. He has a message – a life changing message for all who listen. Jesus came to proclaim the good news of the Kingdom of God. Not just to one village. Not just to Capernaum. Jesus came to proclaim the good news of the Kingdom of God throughout Galilee.

The healing miracles that Jesus performed in Capernaum and other places through Galilee are a taste of things to come – when all creation will be restored to God’s image - when shalom will be restored to all creation. But for now, we get a taste.

Jesus’ compassionate healings underscore what the restoration of the Kingdom of God will be like – complete fulfillment of fellowship with God and the shalom of all creation – under the Lordship of Jesus Christ. With the fulfillment of the Kingdom of God, finally, all will be healed.

May we all eagerly wait with great anticipation and hope for the time when Christ will come again and the Kingdom of God is fully realized.