Jesus and Healing...

As Jesus approached Jericho, a blind man was sitting by the roadside begging. When he heard the crowd going by, he asked what was happening. They told him, "Jesus of Nazareth is passing by."
He called out, "Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!"

Those who led the way rebuked him and told him to be quiet, but he shouted all the more, "Son of David, have mercy on me!"
Jesus stopped and ordered the man to be brought to him. When he came near, Jesus asked him, "What do you want me to do for you?"
"Lord, I want to see," he replied.

Jesus said to him, "Receive your sight; your faith has healed you." Immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus, praising God. When all the people saw it, they also praised God.
Luke 18v35-43 (TNIV)

There is no doubt that every single healing Jesus did was a goose-bump inducing event. Pure miracle, beautiful, amazing, glorious. But then the next day would come, and that person would still be in stark poverty, still have the same family and friends, still live in the same village, still be under Roman occupation and Herodian corruption. They'd have to maybe learn a new trade as a middle-aged man, relearn a former trade, or hope they didn't get hurt again once Jesus left. The healing was simply remarkable, but reality would eventually settle in. And then what? What to do with your life as a non-cripple, non-disabled person?

We wish that Jesus would show up, heal all our diseases like he used to, cure the sick, restore the crippled, raise the dead. But then what? Will the misery be banished as well? Will our minds and heart be bitter or sweet and supple? Will our attitudes be dark or light? It's very interesting that only people with faith were healed, only people that trusted Jesus of Nazareth, only people that showed belief in his abilities were able to get healed. Apparently untrusting, bitter, dark-hearted people could not be healed...in part because they didn't want, didn't think Jesus could do it, or didn't consider it a worthwhile gift.

It's worth noting that for a lot of the ailments afflicting the crowds, much of it was society induced. Demon-possession/madness would have been expected as a result of the heart-wrenching atrocities repeatedly committed upon the villages and cities by the Greeks and Romans for centuries. Depleted soils and chronic malnutrition due to wrecked harvests, famines, and ravaged lands led to expected birth defects like blindness, deafness, muteness, lameness and other problems. Not to mention the hard labor required of people born healthy, people prone to unending exhaustion and the resulting accidents and maimings.

When Jesus healed people who trusted him, he gave them a new lease on life; apparently they had the kind of heart and mind to re-engage a dark and cruel world with a restored body. These were people willing to start over again in a hard life, but a life touched by God. These weren't people just clamoring for convenience, they were seeing God at work in their land, God had indeed come to visit - and they wanted Him to come to them.

Jesus doesn't walk the land these days like he did in Palestine all those years ago. But the art of healing has come a long way - the availability of it, as well as the excellence of it, would make God proud. And it's still an art and science that brings awe and joy to many people. But getting healed up is not a right - it's the result of a lot of circumstances coming together in the right way. Getting healed is beautiful when it happens - but it's not the best part. The best part is what you do with yourself before you get healed, while you await healing, and what you do with yourself after you get healed. If you are seeking God these days for healing - for you or for someone else - don't overlook the hard work of making the best of life as it is now... otherwise you will be unprepared for making the best of your life after the healing.