Matthew 15:29-31 Jesus left there and went along the Sea of Galilee. Then he went up on a mountainside and sat down. Great crowds came to him, bringing the lame, the blind, the crippled, the mute and many others, and laid them at his feet; and he healed them. The people were amazed when they saw the mute speaking, the crippled made well, the lame walking and the blind seeing. And they praised the God of Israel.
Jesus left the land of Sidon and Tyre where He performed many miracles and began to teach in the area of the Sea of Galilee. Because He was a popular healer, the people followed him, wherever He went great crowds came to him. They sought him out because Jesus could heal. He taught them about God and their purpose for living. Of course as the Messiah, He came to set the people free from captivity to the evil one. This was God’s plan since the creation, to free humans made in his image from bondage to sin. Jesus performed miracles that no man had done from the beginning of time. These healings, miracles, validated his claim of being the true Messiah. The lame walked, the blind saw, and the mute talked. God’s Shepherd was in their midst: a shepherd who knew the sheep. They could tell by his teachings and by his ministry of healing that He was a special messenger sent by God. They followed him in great numbers. He taught them about the blessings of God; He also taught them the necessity of living holy lives. He wanted them to investigate the content of their hearts, how they talked, how they thought. What goes into someone’s mouth does not defile them, but what comes out of their mouth, that is what defiles them. (Matthew 15:11) Jesus’ teachings were often very demanding, but He wanted the people to know that God was on their side regardless of their status, needs, position in life. In the Sermon of the Mount He expressed God’s concern for the people: Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy, and the like. (Matthew 5:3-7) Moses’ law was demanding, placing the responsibility of knowing God on the people’s shoulders. You shall have no other gods before me. “You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments. “You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name. “Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy, and so on. (Exodus 20:3-17) We see in the beatitudes God’s mercy and grace toward the people. Literally, Jesus is mercy, Jesus is grace. He healed the people without demanding they become holy or investigating their hearts before He did something good for them. The law required obedience before God would bless people. To know Jesus and his grace and mercy, you must receive; to know God and his holiness, you must fulfill his demands. By receiving Jesus into your heart, you receive the holiness of God, for Jesus is God in the flesh. The Canaanite woman received healing even though her lifestyle and beliefs did not line up with Judaism. God through Jesus intervened in her life because of her belief and faith that Jesus could actually do away with the evil spirit in her daughter’s life. In her ignorance, she received Jesus as the Messiah, the Lamb of God, who delivers people from the hands of the evil one.
When the Israelites were delivered from the hands of Pharaoh, a one-year-old lamb or goat was sacrificed in each household and the blood of this animal was placed around the doorframe of their house for their protection. The Lord would pass over the homes where the blood was around the doors of their dwellings. No death would enter those houses, but where the blood was not present, death would enter the household and kill the first born. The blood was necessary to keep death away and to eventually free the Israelites from the hands of the evil one: Pharaoh. The Israelites did all of this, believing that God had a plan for them that was greater than their limited vision. What actually happened after that first night of the passover probably was beyond their imagination, for Pharaoh freed them from their slavery, kicking them out of his country. The Israelites were FREE INDEED. The angel of death that passed over the houses did not investigate the nature of those who were in the house, whether they were worthy of being delivered from Pharaoh, to be set free from slavery. No, the Lord did not investigate the content of the hearts of those who were in the households that had the blood around their doors. He passed over them because of the sacrifices of the perfect lambs or goats—animals without defect, innocent, helpless, unable to rescue themselves. Their blood paid the price for those who were in the homes. Their blood paved the way for freedom. When we see Jesus healing people, we see the perfect Lamb of God healing whosoever will come to him. He does not look into the content of their hearts before He heals them. He has compassion on them, for they are as sheep without a shepherd with no one to fix their wounds, to provide for their needs. Great crowds came to him, bringing the lame, the blind, the crippled, the mute and many others, and laid them at his feet; and he healed them. He healed all of them. As the Lamb of God He covered their household; He delivered them from the hands of the evil one. He did the work, not them. He cleansed them from their defects brought on by the imperfections of this world, a dominion where the devil reigns. He did not question them about how much evil they had done in the past. He did not question them about the content of their hearts. He knew their hearts. One time He said to them, “Very truly I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw the signs I performed but because you ate the loaves and had your fill.” (John 6:26) Many probably had little love for Jesus. They just wanted Jesus to touch them or feed them. They were pursuing him because of their own selfish reasons. But Jesus met their needs: the Lamb of God was present to heal them, to deliver them from bondage. He represented God on earth.
After Jesus’ crucifixion and resurrection, the message of the Lamb became a reality to the world. In Jesus, through his blood, deliverance was now available to all people. Whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. (John 3:16) We do not have to change the content of our hearts before we accept the work of Jesus. We just need to place his blood over the doorpost of our lives. We see in Acts, Jesus’ work of healing the biological man was still very much present in the apostles’ daily experience. The disciples were teaching not only of God’s salvation plan through Christ, they were also healing people who came to them. Crowds gathered also from the towns around Jerusalem, bringing their sick and those tormented by impure spirits, and all of them were healed. (Acts 5:16) As with Jesus’ healing and as the Passover revealed, the content of the hearts of those who came to the disciples was not investigated, analyzed, or determined to be worthy of a touch from God. The disciples prayed for these people. They laid hands on them and all of them were healed. Even Peter’s shadow would bring healing to some. God was opening the door of salvation to the Jewish people. Healing was a necessary component of this door opening. The spiritual eyes and ears of a hardened community of Jews were being sensitized to the voice of God through these miracles. Christ’s church was expanding rapidly in Israel. Where darkness abides, miracles are needed. Religion can bring darkness to a people. Jesus castigated the religious leaders of his time, for they accentuated works to please God. But they were hypocrites, for they did not follow their own teachings. Religion, self-help techniques, will never solve the need of the heart to know God. We need the reality of God in our lives. We need to know what it means to be healed, to have the blood of the Lamb of God over our doorpost. We need to know what is meant by freedom. Freedom is the ultimate healing, for it means our souls are right with God. We are right with God because of his works not ours. The Lord’s prayer reveals so much about what God does and not what we do. "Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.” (Matthew 6:9-13) The beatitudes talk about God taking care of us, blessing us. The law and it stipulations require us doing good for God. The Law can lead us into bondage; beatitudes express the goodness of God and his plan for eternal freedom for us. Darkness has to be dispelled by light or we remain in darkness. God through our faith in Jesus dispels darkness and delivers us from evil. We who are IN CHRIST MUST BE AT HIS WORK. We must pray for others, pray for their healing, believe for miracles in their lives. Wherever there is no light, miracles must happen. Jesus healed all of the people who came to him. The disciples healed all of them. The nut of darkness in the Jewish community had to be broken open. Healing and miracles smashed that darkness. Let us pray for healing for ourselves and others. Let us accept our healing, our freedom, for light has broken through the darkness of our souls and made us whole. Let that healing and all biological healing come under the authority of God. Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Amen!
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