Jesus called the twelve together and gave them power and authority over all demons and to cure diseases, and he sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal the sick.
Luke 9:1-2
Dear members and friends,
Christianity is one of three major religions in the world. According to a Google search, there are about 2.4 billion people identifying themselves as Christians. This is about 30% of the entire population of the world. However, if you were to ask any given Christian, “What does it mean to be a Christian?,” you might receive many different answers. In fact, some of those answers might even surprise you – especially if you are familiar with the teachings of Jesus in Gospels – because they seem to have no connection with Jesus’s teachings. The ironic fact is that many Christians confidently quote the words of Paul as the word of God more so than the actual teachings of Jesus.
Jesus’s teachings in Gospels are not complicated nor do they promote hierarchy among people. According to Luke, Jesus gave two objectives to the disciples as he was sending them out: to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal the sick. The news about the kingdom of God was simply to be proclaimed, and not to be imposed or forced. A striking truth is that Jesus never mentioned original sin nor eternal damnation of people to hell. After proclaiming the kingdom of God, Jesus expected his disciples to heal the sick. In other words, the mission of being disciples means to accept this expectation of Jesus, “heal the sick.” The sick means both those who have physical illness and those who have spiritual illness. Either way, the sick are those who have pain and suffering. And, the disciples of Jesus are supposed to heal their pain. Thus, causing pain to people is diametrically opposite of what Jesus expects them to do.
My brothers and sisters in God, let us take a moment of prayer this week. Let us take a deep and clear look into our lives. Are we healing people? Or are we causing pain to people? May the power and presence of Divine guide and empower us to be the instruments of healing.
Blessings, Rev. Junchol Lee