As
mortals, we break. It applies to
all facets: physical, emotional, mental, spiritual. We are breakable.
Whether it be through our individual choices, the decisions of others, or
tribulations that are appointed unto us, we all, at some point, find ourselves to
be broken. Sometimes we become
fractured, in need of mending and restoring. Yet at other times, we discover that we are thoroughly
shattered, requiring patient reconstruction and devoted rectification. Knowing that both our temporal bodies
and spiritual compositions can be fragile to the circumstances of this earthly
experience, we may find ourselves anxious to find a source of restoration, for
we all seek to be whole. However,
trepidation need not take hold on our hearts, for we have been provided with
the Great Physician. It does not
make a difference if we are fragmented or demolished, He can heal all, and has
the ability to bring us to restitution.
What hope this delivers to a broken soul.
The story
of the healing of the man at Bethesda attracts me. Within Jerusalem, aside a sheep market, lay a pool. This small body of water drew the
ailing. Around it the diseased,
debilitated, and afflicted could be found, looking out into the water, awaiting
it to move. Tradition had led to
the belief that when the water became troubled, an angel of healing had
arrived. The first person to enter
its curative depths would be restored.
By the side of the pool lay a man who had been impaired with a grim
infirmity, lasting thirty-eight years, probably a vast majority of his
life. He had to have been a
man of substantial faith. The
scriptures do not expound as to how long he had been aside the edge of the
pool, but based on his resolved dedication and steady trust in the water’s
remedial abilities, we can suppose that this was not the first time he anxiously
gazed into its depths. He was a
lame man. He could not walk, nor
rapidly move himself to the water.
As he viewed the others surrounding him with their own maladies, he
undoubtedly had a firm understanding that the likelihood of one sacrificing
their own healing for his benefit was improbable. Yet, there he stationed himself. Devoted to his belief and committed to being restored
through Divine intervention. On a
Sabbath day, the Savior came upon this man of faith, and through His miraculous
power, heals him entirely, through His touch and word. No dramatic display or extravagant show
to manifest His abilities. It came
as quiet, yet supreme healing, through the steadfast faith of a broken child of
God. The Lord’s power has always
been accomplished through small and simple acts. It’s an incredible story and example of the Healer’s hand,
but perhaps the greatest message to receive comes in the words He spoke prior to
restoring the crippled man:
When Jesus saw him lie, and knew that he had
been now a long time in that case, he saith unto him, Wilt thou be made
whole? (John 5:6)
The
Savior’s power is not finite. We
understand that if a whisper were to part from His lips commanding a colossal
mountain to descend, it would fold and crumble instantaneously. His ability to heal His sheep is not
limited, but it is suppressed by our inward and outward expressions of
faith. We hold a significant role
in our own individual healing. As
we recognize the part we play and actively fulfill it, we enable the Savior to
place His restorative hands upon us, repairing what has been impaired. He is the only true source of healing that exists. All else may provide a moment of respite, but will wither in
due course. As we humbly offer our
brokenness to the Lord, exhibiting boundless trust in His abilities, we will
find perpetual correction and restoration.
We should
not be convinced that we must possess perfect faith in order to be
recovered. We are all imperfect
beings, it is as it is designed to be.
If we were flawless, our earthly probation would be of no purpose. We are here to learn and evolve, to
acquire the perfect faith we need for exaltation. But we are not perfect in these very moments, and the Lord
knows of this. He does not place a
prerequisite of perfection in order to attain blessings of His mercy. If that was the condition, blessings
would not be recorded or experienced, because Christ was the only perfect being
to walk the earth. However, we are
requested to be committed to the faith that we have obtained, not to forsake or
renounce what we have acquired. We
must remain constant, even through our darkest of hours, and sustain through each
experience, no matter how inequitable they may seem.
Imagine
this man who sat on the banks of Bethesda. His establishment at the very edge of the water is my
favorite symbol in the story. It
stands as an emblem of his unfeigned efforts to do his part in preparing and
receiving his healing. It
signifies the fulfillment of his role in the repair of his disablement. He brought himself as close as he could
come, but needed intervention for completion. How unfair his plight must have seemed. He thoroughly believed in the ability
to be healed, and knew that it most certainly would come through Divine means,
hence why he came to the only place he knew, in his immediate surroundings,
where the grace of the Lord penetrated the earth. But his weak
and disabled physical frame could not collaborate with the faith of his
heart. How many times had he
attempted to reach the water, physically exerting all he had, only to observe
another, one with physical abilities he was not given, enter before him. It must have been terribly enervating
and taxing in all aspects. Yet, he
remained. His faith never
faltered, because he knew that only through the grace of the Lord could his
afflictions be cured. This very
faith is what healed the man. The
Savior, through His divine inspiration, felt and understood the faith that
existed inside of him before approaching.
Once identifying him, he drew near, and immediately asked: Wilt thou be made whole? The Lord knew that the necessary faith
existed within him, but inquired if the man would accept His healing influence.
This man was prepared for His healing power, and because of this, it was
provided unto him. He stands as an
example to us all. We, too, must
ready ourselves for healing. We
must employ our individual abilities and exertions to satisfy our part of the
process, and then patiently await upon the Lord, with determined and anchored
faith. As we do so, we will
be prepared to reply with eagerness that we, indeed, will be made whole through
His hands.
There
will be times when our healing hopes will go unmet. We will be unlike the man that was healed at Bethesda, and
will find that we do not have the ability to rise, take up our bed, and walk.
Perhaps, it is because there is no opportunity to fall back into
time to change our decisions or actions.
Maybe it is due to the fact that people we love are allowed free agency,
and their choices cut us to our core and wound our hearts. Other times, we will discover that our
physical or mental abnormalities do not fade as we desire them to. Or possibly, things or people that are
dear to us will be removed for our side.
In these moments we may feel abandoned, and may cry to the Lord with
perplexity entwined in our words. We
may lose hope or wonder why we have been called to suffer such a hardship,
especially if we have remained faithful and true. We may question our worth and the love of our Father. Doubt may try to thwart our faith. During these moments we must trust that
healing is taking place, just not in the designated way we had planned. We must sustain the understanding that
He knows us, distinctively and personally. Which means, that He knows what paths are needed for us to
become perfected, which, in turn, will allow us to receive exaltation. One of my best-loved quotes relating to
Christ’s tenacity in advancing us towards perfection comes from C.S. Lewis:
Once you call Christ in, He will give you
the full treatment. That is why He
warned people to ‘count the cost’ before becoming Christians. ‘Make no mistake’, He says, ‘if you let
me, I will make you perfect. The
moment you put yourself in My hands, that is what you are in for. Nothing less, or other, than that. You have free will, and if you choose,
you can push Me away. But if you
do not push Me away, understand that I am going to see this job through. Whatever suffering it may cost
you…whatever it costs Me, I will never rest, nor let you rest, until you are
literally perfect-until my Father can say without reservation that He is well
pleased with you, as He said He was well pleased with me. This I can do and will do. But I will not do anything less.
Enduring
devotedly is our objective. If we
do so, there will be a time when we look back on what we have suffered, and
identify the places within us, that once were concealed, which are healed
because we were permitted to carry our
individualized burden, and because we sustained it through. It is not easy and was never designed to
be. It can, and will, be
distressing, traumatic, and cause an aching that pounds from within us, which may
seem to destroy our very soul. But
we have been promised that we will never be left alone to bear it. Not only does The Lord offer his strength,
but He pleads for us to enable Him to do so. He stands at the door awaiting us to turn the handle, which
only exists on our side. If we
choose Him, He has promised that our burden, no matter how crippling, will be lightened. It may not be taken from us, but it
will be possible to withstand. With His companionship we will find that we can persevere
through our time of testing, not without pain, but with hope of one day
receiving absolute healing. When that
day arrives, as He approaches us, He will utter the same words he did to the
troubled man at Bethesda: Wilt thou be
made whole? In that moment,
due to our persistent labors, resolute faith, and our knowledge that through
Him our brokenness can be exchanged for completeness, we can fall at His feet
and reply: Although my flesh is weak, my spirit is strong, my faith is firm,
and my knowledge is true, that through you, my Great Physician, I can be
healed. And we will arise, take our beds, and walk.
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