Tuesday: Healing the Children
Read the following passages: Matthew 9:18-26, Mark 7:24-30, Luke 9:37-43, John 4:46-54. Whose children were restored in these stories? How are these children’s backgrounds similar? What differences might you detect? What lessons can we learn from these texts that can help us today?
Image © Lars Justinen from GoodSalt.com
In all of these stories, one overwhelming similarity is that, in each case, a desperate parent came to Jesus, seeking help for a child. What parent cannot relate? What parent hasn’t felt pain, anguish, fear, and outright horror when a child was very sick, or even dying? For those who have been there, there’s nothing worse.
And though Jesus Himself had not been a parent, He related enough to them in His humanity that He healed their children. In each case the healing came. He turned no one away. Thus, His love not just for the parents but for the children came through clearly.
Of course, this leads to a whole host of questions regarding cases when praying and pleading parents call out to Jesus and, yet, their children are not healed. There is, perhaps, no sadder experience than burying children. Death should be reserved for older generations. The unnatural order of parents mourning their children’s death makes the heart revolt. During these funerals nearly every parent asks, Shouldn’t it have been me?
Mourning physical death and observing spiritual decay may be equally painful. How many parents have agonized about children overwhelmed by drug addiction, by pornography, or adolescent indifference? Whatever the affliction, we must learn to trust in the Lord and His goodness and love, even when things do not turn out so happily, as they did in the biblical stories listed above. Ellen G. White, a prophet, buried two children. Our world is a rough place; our God, though, is a loving God, and that truth is what we must cling to, no matter what.
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Jesus still heals today! For those who are sick, sometimes His healing is immediate and all encompassing. Other times it is a gradual healing process or a daily healing in order to make it through the day with the physical and emotional pain of some type of illness. He always heals, and, someday, all God's children will be completely and totally healed. We know the end of the story and can take great hope from His promises for the future even when our little ones are sick or in pain!
Jackie, Will you explain your statement about Jesus always heals?
Not all children get well, some die.
Evie Young
I'm not sure what was meant, personally with friends that have lost children they felt there prayers were answered, that their child would be in heaven and gave God the glory for saving their souls. Knowing they would get to raise them in heaven in a perfect world of no pain. I've also known the parents that didn't do this sadly 15 years later they are still angry and hurt. At times like these is is no easy thing for any of us. Pray for the child but pray more for the parent.. ( pray for souls not lives)
Evie Young, this is for you:
Romans 6:23 reads, "For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is Eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord".
And Romans 3:23 reads. "For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God" However, we have been given hope that Christ covers us with His righteousness if we believe, ie, have faith in Him in Romans 3:22.
In in world, in this life, we are all destined to die but Christ who defeated sin on the cross is able to give us eternal life. He has conquered death on the cross and our salvation is certain through Him.
Whether we get our healing now or later will be determined by His will but it is certain for all that believe. one day the dead in Christ shall rise, and that is our hope that we live and die in Him because He has given us the gift of eternal life.
Unfortunately, while we remain on earth, we continue to suffer the pain of sicknesses, losing loved ones, betrayals, afflictions, etc. But we have a hope, that when all is said and done, at the close of the war between good and evil, we shall be healed and restored to eternal life, and there will be no more death, no sickness and no more pain! Hallelujah! A day will come when we will understand it all.
Jesus heals not only physical and spiritual sicknesses but also emotional wounds caused by death of loved ones, heartbreaks and all sort of traumatic experiences. He is the Great Physician.
I think we need to be a little careful when we are talking about healing. I have sat in congregations where one person is giving a testimony of how they have been miraculously healed while others in the same congregation have been coming to terms with the fact that their loved-ones were not healed. I had to come to terms with that one myself when my relatively young grandfather died of cancer. I had even climbed trees to be closer to heaven so that Jesus could hear me better as I had prayed for his healing.
Since then I have come to the realisation that the awful thing about sin is that the playing field is not level. Things happen that tend to make God look capricious. That is the nature of sin. Secondly, I understand the cross much better and know that God suffers with us as a result of sin.
I wish I knew all the answers but I don't. But I do know this, that when bad things happen to people we know, we are charged with providing support and empathy in Jesus name. And that is a lot more than just muttering a few words of comfort after the funeral. We have to be God's hands for these folk.
Hello Jackie,
Your comment can be hard for those that do study the Bible but I understand. As an sda man looking for the Lord's return I keep on praying that I will walk again some day. I now know what the song means it says that we have this hope. Take care sister.
Generalreply to all: Jesus always heals, He is working always like the Father, healing is just a tiny part of them. Many people experience His healing, and yoj may even saw his healing done on others. His healing for your prayer may not be realized according to your expected time but God has His own time and purpose. He knows better , for He can sewer the future and the outcome of His action. He will give us His best. Not all our requests are good according to His will. That is why we always pray "Thu will be done".
I trust and love The Lord. I pray every day for my children's safety. What's really difficult to understand is why so many innocent children have to bare pain. Why do some have cancer and others are healthy? Why are some children kidnapped and others are safe? These are questions I think about because I fear for the safety of my girls.
Janet, I believe that the answer to children's suffering is that "an enemy has done this." We live in a sinful world, and we all suffer from the results of sin, including children. This world is a demonstration of what happens under the rulership of Satan.
Jesus healing of children is a perfect example of that which God wants for His children. Those who are broken. If we have hope and faith we surely have a purpose to be healed_both spiritually(which is a little more better) andof course physically
A child like character is required for heaven