Jesus was many things… he was a teacher… he was a prophet… he was a healer.
I have a hard time with this healer “thing.” I’ve seen too many wacko televangelists whacking people on the head…
But Jesus was a healer.
Jesus healed people. He healed the sick. He cured diseases. He restored sight to the blind. He made the lame able to walk...
In addition to healing, Jesus also cast out demons. That, too, seems a little out there to me. I’m not even sure what the Bible means when it talks about demons. But Jesus was able to get rid of whatever it was in people that kept them from living lives of wholeness.
In ancient times, people believed that sickness and disability were spiritual afflictions.
If you were sick or lame or in need of healing, this was thought to be a spiritual dis-ease. Perhaps it was even a sign of being possessed by a demon.
So being sick and being possessed by a demon really weren’t all that different from each other. They were both signs of a spiritual dis-ease.
In other words, someone who was sick or disabled had something wrong, spiritually, with them.
At least, that’s how people in the first century viewed things.
And the religious elite in Jesus’s time weren’t very sympathetic to people who had something spiritually wrong with them. If you were sick or disabled or had a deformity, a religious leader might tell you that it’s your fault, that you weren’t right with God, and that’s why you were suffering from that affliction.
And then, to make matters worse, that religious leader might then tell you that you were not welcome among the people of faith, because your affliction might spread your spiritual uncleanliness to others. You would be kicked out of the faith community. And you might even be kicked out of your family. You could be disowned or divorced and cut off from society.
Just like Quasimodo in the Hunchback of Notre Dame: the religious leader took one look at him, saw his deformity, and assumed that there was something spiritually wrong with him, that he was possibly even a demon.
So a person who was sick or disabled didn’t always find compassion.
So, healing someone didn’t just get rid of their physical illness or disability; it also restored them to the community. It allowed them to reclaim their space in society.
When Jesus healed people, he restored them. He brought them back to their family, friends, and community. By being healed and restored, individuals could resume their role in society. They were made whole again.
And making someone whole again is the essence of salvation. Study the ancient languages, and you will see that salvation is healing and wholeness. Biblically speaking, to be saved is to be made well, in body and spirit.
Brandon read for us a story about Simon, whose mother-in-law was not well. She was sick.
And Simon was probably at a loss regarding his mother-in-law. What could he do? Since illness was considered a spiritual as well as a physical sickness, should Simon kick her out of the house, since that’s what people often did to those who were spiritually sick or spiritually unclean?
Her sickness kept her from performing her role in society. Because she could not perform her role in society, she was less than whole. And what if her spiritual uncleanliness spread to other members of the household?...
It doesn’t seem that Simon was ready to kick her out. Thank goodness!
But he did tell Jesus about her, and that could have been a risky thing to do. What if Jesus responded like so many other religious leaders, and decided to treat Simon’s mother-in-law the way those other religious leaders treated those who were spiritually unclean? What if he condemned her for her sin? What if he cast her out of society, in order to protect the community of faithful from her uncleanliness?
That’s not what Jesus did. Instead of condemning her or casting her out, Jesus healed her. He had compassion on her, and he healed her.
After she was healed, she was able to resume her role in society. She began to serve others. She acted with kindness toward others. She became an agent of healing for others.
All because Jesus healed her. All because he looked at her with compassion, with kindness, with love. All because he took her by the hand and lifted her up.
Kindness has healing power.
For many years, I underestimated the power of kindness. But kindness has real power to heal. Kindness has real power to transform.
I’m still learning about the power of kindness.
Some of what I’ve learned, I’ve learned from being a scout leader. I’ve seen older scouts show kindness to younger scouts, and it made all the difference. You older scouts: when you see a scout who is new, a scout who doesn’t really know what’s going on, and you walk over and say a friendly word, an encouraging word, that simple gesture can make all the difference.
It’s tough to be the new kid. It’s tough to not know what’s going on. It can be intimidating. Scary, even. It might make you think about quitting. But a kind word can make all the difference.
And for someone who is hurting, dealing with pain that you may not even realize they have, your kind word of encouragement can bring about healing.
That is the 6th point of the scout law: a scout is kind. Don’t ever underestimate how important that is.
Back to our story...
So the disciples watched how Jesus healed people. They watched him treat people with kindness. They had listened to Jesus’s teachings, they had heard his sermons… And then they watched him heal all these people, and show kindness to them.
For you scouts, that’s the first two steps of the EDGE method, isn’t it? Explain, and Demonstrate. Jesus taught the disciples about the Kingdom of God - that’s Explain - and then he healed people and cast out demons, demonstrating what life in the kingdom of God is like.
After Explain and Demonstrate, what comes next?
Guide, and Enable.
And that’s exactly what Jesus did.
Later in the gospel, Jesus assigns to the disciples the task of healing. They go out, they give it a try... They report back to Jesus that their level of success is mixed at best. They failed a number of times. They didn’t tie that square knot right the first time. They weren’t able to heal everyone in need of healing. So Jesus guides them until they get it right.
And, eventually, they are enabled to be healers on their own.
It is important to Jesus that the disciples learn how to heal. Jesus instructed the disciples to preach the good news, but he also instructed them to heal.
And he showed them how.
Think for a moment about the healing you have received in your life...What healing have you received?
What kindness has been shown to you? Who has fed you, who took care of you when you were sick? Who took you by the hand and helped you along? Who has guided you, patiently, showing you how to move forward? Who gives you a ride when you need a ride? Who comforts you when you are sad or grieving?
That is the healing you have received.
It’s important to recognize when you have received acts of healing. Like Simon’s mother-in-law, once you have been healed, you are then able to take your place, and help heal others.
Who do you see in need of healing? Who needs someone to take them by the hand and lift them up? Who needs a kind word of encouragement?
People are desperate for this kind of healing. How desperate? The scripture says that, as a result of the healings Jesus did, the “whole city” gathered around him, that “everyone” came looking for him.
That’s how desperate they were for healing. They all came, to witness, and possible experience, healing.
The kingdom of God is present when healing takes place. Please don’t think that the kingdom of God only takes place after we die. The kingdom of God takes place right now, in our midst. You can be an agent of God’s healing, and the kingdom of God can be manifested through you...
And many of the points of the scout law will guide you on the path of being a healer. If you are helpful, friendly, courteous and kind, you will be a healer. There is a desperate lack of friendliness and courtesy and kindness today, especially in public discourse. There is a desperate lack of friendliness and courtesy and kindness today, on social media. People are often mean on facebook, on snapchat… and that is the opposite of healing.
So people today are desperate for a little friendliness, a little courtesy, a little kindness. People desperately desired to see these qualities in ancient times, and they desperately desire to see them today.
Because many people today are hurting. Many people today are in need of healing.
Much of the sickness - much of the dis-ease - in our society today can be cured if we can learn to be friendly, courteous, and kind.
That doesn’t mean we shy away from speaking the truth. But it does mean that in everything we do, we keep in mind the restoration to wholeness of all of God’s children. God’s kingdom will come when we look to the healing and wholeness of all people.
I have a hard time with this healer “thing.” I’ve seen too many wacko televangelists whacking people on the head…
But Jesus was a healer.
Jesus healed people. He healed the sick. He cured diseases. He restored sight to the blind. He made the lame able to walk...
In addition to healing, Jesus also cast out demons. That, too, seems a little out there to me. I’m not even sure what the Bible means when it talks about demons. But Jesus was able to get rid of whatever it was in people that kept them from living lives of wholeness.
In ancient times, people believed that sickness and disability were spiritual afflictions.
If you were sick or lame or in need of healing, this was thought to be a spiritual dis-ease. Perhaps it was even a sign of being possessed by a demon.
So being sick and being possessed by a demon really weren’t all that different from each other. They were both signs of a spiritual dis-ease.
In other words, someone who was sick or disabled had something wrong, spiritually, with them.
At least, that’s how people in the first century viewed things.
And the religious elite in Jesus’s time weren’t very sympathetic to people who had something spiritually wrong with them. If you were sick or disabled or had a deformity, a religious leader might tell you that it’s your fault, that you weren’t right with God, and that’s why you were suffering from that affliction.
And then, to make matters worse, that religious leader might then tell you that you were not welcome among the people of faith, because your affliction might spread your spiritual uncleanliness to others. You would be kicked out of the faith community. And you might even be kicked out of your family. You could be disowned or divorced and cut off from society.
Just like Quasimodo in the Hunchback of Notre Dame: the religious leader took one look at him, saw his deformity, and assumed that there was something spiritually wrong with him, that he was possibly even a demon.
So a person who was sick or disabled didn’t always find compassion.
So, healing someone didn’t just get rid of their physical illness or disability; it also restored them to the community. It allowed them to reclaim their space in society.
When Jesus healed people, he restored them. He brought them back to their family, friends, and community. By being healed and restored, individuals could resume their role in society. They were made whole again.
And making someone whole again is the essence of salvation. Study the ancient languages, and you will see that salvation is healing and wholeness. Biblically speaking, to be saved is to be made well, in body and spirit.
Brandon read for us a story about Simon, whose mother-in-law was not well. She was sick.
And Simon was probably at a loss regarding his mother-in-law. What could he do? Since illness was considered a spiritual as well as a physical sickness, should Simon kick her out of the house, since that’s what people often did to those who were spiritually sick or spiritually unclean?
Her sickness kept her from performing her role in society. Because she could not perform her role in society, she was less than whole. And what if her spiritual uncleanliness spread to other members of the household?...
It doesn’t seem that Simon was ready to kick her out. Thank goodness!
But he did tell Jesus about her, and that could have been a risky thing to do. What if Jesus responded like so many other religious leaders, and decided to treat Simon’s mother-in-law the way those other religious leaders treated those who were spiritually unclean? What if he condemned her for her sin? What if he cast her out of society, in order to protect the community of faithful from her uncleanliness?
That’s not what Jesus did. Instead of condemning her or casting her out, Jesus healed her. He had compassion on her, and he healed her.
After she was healed, she was able to resume her role in society. She began to serve others. She acted with kindness toward others. She became an agent of healing for others.
All because Jesus healed her. All because he looked at her with compassion, with kindness, with love. All because he took her by the hand and lifted her up.
Kindness has healing power.
For many years, I underestimated the power of kindness. But kindness has real power to heal. Kindness has real power to transform.
I’m still learning about the power of kindness.
Some of what I’ve learned, I’ve learned from being a scout leader. I’ve seen older scouts show kindness to younger scouts, and it made all the difference. You older scouts: when you see a scout who is new, a scout who doesn’t really know what’s going on, and you walk over and say a friendly word, an encouraging word, that simple gesture can make all the difference.
It’s tough to be the new kid. It’s tough to not know what’s going on. It can be intimidating. Scary, even. It might make you think about quitting. But a kind word can make all the difference.
And for someone who is hurting, dealing with pain that you may not even realize they have, your kind word of encouragement can bring about healing.
That is the 6th point of the scout law: a scout is kind. Don’t ever underestimate how important that is.
Back to our story...
So the disciples watched how Jesus healed people. They watched him treat people with kindness. They had listened to Jesus’s teachings, they had heard his sermons… And then they watched him heal all these people, and show kindness to them.
For you scouts, that’s the first two steps of the EDGE method, isn’t it? Explain, and Demonstrate. Jesus taught the disciples about the Kingdom of God - that’s Explain - and then he healed people and cast out demons, demonstrating what life in the kingdom of God is like.
After Explain and Demonstrate, what comes next?
Guide, and Enable.
And that’s exactly what Jesus did.
Later in the gospel, Jesus assigns to the disciples the task of healing. They go out, they give it a try... They report back to Jesus that their level of success is mixed at best. They failed a number of times. They didn’t tie that square knot right the first time. They weren’t able to heal everyone in need of healing. So Jesus guides them until they get it right.
And, eventually, they are enabled to be healers on their own.
It is important to Jesus that the disciples learn how to heal. Jesus instructed the disciples to preach the good news, but he also instructed them to heal.
And he showed them how.
Think for a moment about the healing you have received in your life...What healing have you received?
What kindness has been shown to you? Who has fed you, who took care of you when you were sick? Who took you by the hand and helped you along? Who has guided you, patiently, showing you how to move forward? Who gives you a ride when you need a ride? Who comforts you when you are sad or grieving?
That is the healing you have received.
It’s important to recognize when you have received acts of healing. Like Simon’s mother-in-law, once you have been healed, you are then able to take your place, and help heal others.
Who do you see in need of healing? Who needs someone to take them by the hand and lift them up? Who needs a kind word of encouragement?
People are desperate for this kind of healing. How desperate? The scripture says that, as a result of the healings Jesus did, the “whole city” gathered around him, that “everyone” came looking for him.
That’s how desperate they were for healing. They all came, to witness, and possible experience, healing.
The kingdom of God is present when healing takes place. Please don’t think that the kingdom of God only takes place after we die. The kingdom of God takes place right now, in our midst. You can be an agent of God’s healing, and the kingdom of God can be manifested through you...
And many of the points of the scout law will guide you on the path of being a healer. If you are helpful, friendly, courteous and kind, you will be a healer. There is a desperate lack of friendliness and courtesy and kindness today, especially in public discourse. There is a desperate lack of friendliness and courtesy and kindness today, on social media. People are often mean on facebook, on snapchat… and that is the opposite of healing.
So people today are desperate for a little friendliness, a little courtesy, a little kindness. People desperately desired to see these qualities in ancient times, and they desperately desire to see them today.
Because many people today are hurting. Many people today are in need of healing.
Much of the sickness - much of the dis-ease - in our society today can be cured if we can learn to be friendly, courteous, and kind.
That doesn’t mean we shy away from speaking the truth. But it does mean that in everything we do, we keep in mind the restoration to wholeness of all of God’s children. God’s kingdom will come when we look to the healing and wholeness of all people.
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