Covid Stinks and Broken Legs are Worse!

Sept. 23

Read: Matthew 4:23-25

Covid Stinks and Broken Legs are Worse!

““And Jesus answered them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick…”

Covid 19 sucks. It is horrible. As many of you know, the last few weeks my wife and I have been struck with this illness and it was rotten. Day after day in bed with a fever, I called out to the Lord. What does Jesus Christ think about sickness? What does the Holy Spirit do for those who are ill? Does God the Father care when we are bedridden… broken… in pain?

Matthew 8:16-17 says this:

“That evening they brought to (Jesus) many who were oppressed by demons, and he cast out the spirits with a word and healed all who were sick. This was to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet Isaiah: “He took our illnesses and bore our diseases.”

Part of why Jesus came into this world is to “take our illness” and “bear our diseases”. This becomes somewhat complicated when we realize that our “life is hidden in Christ” and that Christ is in us and we are in him! (cf. Col. 1, 3:3) Christ carries our sickness upon himself and yet never leaves us, rather he sustains us through the illness. Is this how we want it? What if we said, “Jesus - take my illness upon you and then leave me… go far away!” ? That doesn’t sound good at all. Maybe this is why the New Testament picture of ministry looks so different at times? Does Jesus take the illness “with him” when he heals these people? Is it that he knows that right now - in that time and space - he could not remain with them, so he doesn’t leave them to bear the illness alone?

I am not sure of the answers. It has often bothered me that I feel a gap between the accounts of Jesus’ and the disciple’s ministry and what I have been able to be a part of today. I have seen miraculous healing, yet my experience of it is few and far between. I have experienced it in my own life. I can also tell you that it did not happen with Covid. As often as I cried out to the Lord to take the illness, he instead bore it with me. He drew near in the fever and the aches and comforted me. One of the primary ways he did this is THROUGH HIS PEOPLE. The body of Christ blew me away during this time of illness! I cannot begin to count all of the ways Jesus was near in and through his people. When I thought I was going to die, and the enemy was telling me that God had abandoned me - the people of God spoke truth to me… they sent text messages… they prayed. When I was hungry, they brought food. When I was thirsty, they brought drinks. I know that Jesus is speaking to them when he says, “as much as you have given food and water to the least of these, you have done it for me.” I have been lowered to the “least of these” at the mercy of God and his people.

In Luke 10:8, Jesus says this to his followers:

“Whenever you enter a town and they receive you, eat what is set before you. Heal the sick in it and say to them, The kingdom of God has come near to you.’ “ The people of God bring the Kingdom of God with them. The Kingdom of God comes NEAR when the people of God show up, share a meal, and heal the sick. The Kingdom of God was near to Olivia and I while we were sick. So near. Would we… should we… have traded that nearness of the Kingdom for a miraculous healing that had us avoid Covid all together? I am not sure.

Here is what I do know: God - Father, Son, and Spirit - is NOT indifferent to the sick. In fact, God is uniquely near to those who are sick, broken, and in need of mending. The greater the amount of illness, the greater the needs and the greater the opportunity to experience the nearness of Christ and the Kingdom of God. We are living in a time of great opportunity… a time when the Kingdom will come near to others through US - God’s people. I also know that it is a time when we will continue to see humanities GREATEST ILLNESS put on display: SIN. “And Jesus answered them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I have not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance.” (Luke 5:31) Those who are sick need a physician. Jesus came to draw near to those who are sick. Sin is an illness. It is humanity's greatest malady - more so than any Coronavirus, cancer, or other disease. Those things can only kill the body - sin wrecks the body AND soul. (cf. Matt 10:28) God's desire is to HEAL and to mend. As his people, I believe we should be asking the Father what he is up to, and open and willing to participate when he calls us. I think we can and should see more “healing” like we see in the New Testament. Nevertheless, I think I can honestly say that the blessing of experiencing the love of Christ through his people and his nearness in the sickness was WORTH MORE than if he would have simply healed me. Don’t get me wrong though… I do not want to go through it again. Maybe that is the final point, we would never choose for ourselves the trials that bring us the closest to the Lord and the love of his people… so he picks them for us. Thank you all for your love and prayers. Here’s to being back to writing devos for you all! - JDP