Tag: Skin Disease

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Miracles moved by compassion.

Reading Time: 3 minutes

”A man with leprosy came and knelt in front of Jesus, begging to be healed. “If you are willing, you can heal me and make me clean,” he said. Moved with compassion, Jesus reached out and touched him. “I am willing,” he said. “Be healed!” ‭‭Mark‬ ‭1‬:‭40‬-‭41‬ ‭NLT‬‬

If I asked most folks if they wanted to see more miracles in their life OR even more miracles in others – I’m pretty sure the answer would be YES. Mark’s gospel shows us that indeed, the Messiah has power over medical abnormalities. However, Jesus also shows us the motivations behind these kinds of miracles.

Jesus was moved with “splagchnizomai,” to be moved in the inward parts. Jesus felt compassion deep in his gut, down to his (splen) spleen! With both great humility and need, this man showed his desperation. This earnestness moved the heart of the Savior. This coupled with the man’s faith, “if you are willing,” brought about Jesus immediate response – “I am willing.” Which also means that God is willing to listen and be moved by compassion to work a miracle.

The bigger question for me is not can I GET miracles from God. My question is, do I have compassion and faith to pray the prayers necessary for God to heal, God to do supernatural miracles in OTHER’S lives?

Why are we so timid about being and doing the things Jesus clearly wanted His followers to continue to be and do? Ask someone to pray in public and it scares them to death! Ask someone to put their own faith, totally in God by the way, out there and BELIEVE on behalf of another and again – creepy-freaky for most of us. Like we’re doing something impossible or wrong! You may have an argument that says, “but I am not one of the original disciples,” so I cannot do these things. But if all the luxuries and commands are only geared toward the original disciples (the OD’s) then NOTHING is for us! What about when Jesus said, “I tell you the truth, anyone who believes in me will do the same works I have done, and even greater works, because I am going to be with the Father,” in John 14:12. We would have to redefine “anyone” as solely those who physically walked with Jesus back then. Jesus actually said, “to the one ‘pisteuó,’ believing, faithing.” That’s for those hearing Jesus’ words and for us today!

I want to be the one believing! I want to be the one humbly moved by compassion, feeling it in my gut and apply my faith to believe in the God who heals – today! I just don’t want to see miracles, I want to see God do miracles through us – Jesus followers! Did Jesus perform miracles as a human or as God? Did Jesus access supernatural faith from God or did He initiate it on His own – from within? Remember, the Apostle Paul told us in Philippians 2 that Jesus surrendered, emptied himself of His diving privileges, becoming a servant.

God is compassionate and merciful. When we see or act with compassion (in our spleens) we are seeing and believing as God would. God performs the miracles, we just need to lend our faith to those in need and trust God to do what only He can do! Want to see more miracles? Maybe we should pray more like Jesus, with one small adjustment, saying, “God is willing, be healed!”

Prayer

​Dad,
Wow, we have really complicated a very simple process. We have convoluted the truth of your word with our own feelings, doubts and cultural dissolution. No wonder we don’t see more miracles in our country, we rationalized it away in fear and shame. I get it, it feels like I don’t have the right kind of faith. Or, I don’t really live the life that looks like Jesus. Or, any number of excuses to NOT BELIEVE you at your word. My faith feels so weak, yet I believe you are so strong! How can I rectify these things? How can I increase my faith despite my fears? Help me God to have compassion and faith. Amen.

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I’ll give you something to complain about!

Reading Time: 3 minutes

“Then the people of Israel set out from Mount Hor, taking the road to the Red Sea to go around the land of Edom. But the people grew impatient with the long journey, and they began to speak against God and Moses. “Why have you brought us out of Egypt to die here in the wilderness?” they complained. “There is nothing to eat here and nothing to drink. And we hate this horrible manna!”” ‭‭Numbers‬ ‭21‬:‭4‬-‭5‬ ‭NLT‬‬

I’m not sure my mother said this to me directly, or I heard her tell my little sister. Either way, my mom was famous for asking THE parental, rhetorical question. “What are you crying about?” Before I could answer, because honestly I didn’t know why myself or my sister was crying – we just had the feels! My mother would then say what she really wanted to say. “I’ll give you something to cry about.” Which totally confused me as a child. There were already tears. Why would anyone want more of whatever caused the tears to begin with. Not me!

At first glance, one might read the Old Testament stories, especially this freedom trek from slavery to independence and say, “boy those Israelites were sure negative. They’re a bunch of complainers and whiners.” Is negativity genetic? Can whining be passed down through our DNA? Come on. You know you have family or friends that are negative about most things. The constant grind of questions and an Eeyore approach to life can get any parent, any leader irritated. Especially when one is trying to get them from point A to point B and, for goodness sake, does not need the extra headache necessary to drag people into faith and freedom the entire way.

I have learned that it’s not just an Jewish exile issue. It’s a human trait, a bent character flaw in all of us. The whiners took it way too far. This wasn’t just honest prayers of angst like we find in Psalms. This was BLAME. This was toxic negativity that would eventually infect every person, every family. They spoke AGAINST God and Moses. Moses own sister had played this game once, and caught an awful case of skin disease because of it! I mean yeah, her name, Miriam, means bitter, but really? She started trash talking Moses wife because she was a Cushite. God turned her skin ashen and sent her off for a seven day timeout.

Here, the the complainers cried, “you brought us out here to die!” When freedom starts looking like slavery you know you’re messed up! God brought in a snake infestation and it killed a bunch of them. Come on Pastor out there, you know you’ve at least thought about this story when you got served complaining and misery while trying to lead the flock.

When the whiners started watching their friends die, they wised up pretty quick. To stop them from dying, to stop them from complaining, God had Moses make a bronze snake and hang it on a pole. Was it an idol, I don’t think so. They weren’t told to worship it. They were required to stare at it hoping the odd remedy would work. And it did. God even used the whole object lesson to help us understand that the one hanged on a tree (or pole) was cursed but would bring healing through faith as one gazed on him. We gaze at Jesus who became sin and was hung up on the pole for our own cure. Not just for whining but for living a life of sin.

Two points to be made from this story. One, the complainers and doubters ended up dying in the desert after all. They never made it to the promised land. Two, I should be very careful not to accuse God of leading me to freedom and live a whiner’s life believing that He’s going to just let me die in the desert.

Prayer

Dad,
It used to be so easy to read the Old Testament and get so judgey about your Israelites. Then after growing up a little and looking into the pure mirror of your word, I realized that I struggle with an Eeyore attitude and dip into negativity far too often. I want to live a life of faith, not fear. And, certainly not go down as a whiner and complainer. Thank you for your grace as a self awareness of my faults. Help me in my faith and please, no snakes for me!