Healing

We often read in the Gospels about the miracles Jesus performed, and we like those stories of how the crippled people were made to walk, or the blind were made to see, or the dead were raised back to life, or the lepers were cleansed. Pastor has pointed out, though, that these healings were not ends in themselves, but were signs to the true healing that comes when our flesh is raised from the cemetery on the Last Day. After all, Lazarus had to die again. Peter's mother-in-law, though healed by Jesus, did eventually die one day.

I think too often we look for the temporal goodies God has to offer. The healing from illness. The money to solve our poverty. Hearing given to the deaf. But in our self-centeredness and our love of comfort, we take our eyes and hearts away from the true healing and instead lust after the temporal/temporary ones.

There is one line I love in Macbeth. (Okay. There's more than one. But there's one I'm thinking of right now.) Macbeth's henchmen hit up Macduff's house while Macduff is away. They kill his wife and children. The messenger arrives to announce the news to Macduff. Macduff asks how his family is doing. And the messenger answers truly that, actually, right now, they're doing great.

Do we really believe that?