Third Sunday after Trinity (Proper 10)

Healing through Peace

(Continuous): Gen. 12:1–9 Abram sets out in faith; Ps. 33:1–12 The Word in creation; or (Related): Hos. 5:15—6:6 Return to the Lord; Ps. 50:7-15 A sacrifice of thanksgiving; Rom. 4:13-25 Abraham's faith, not works of the law; Matt. 9:9–13, 18-26 Healing, forgiveness and faith

'Jesus turned, and seeing her he said, "Take heart, daughter; your faith has made you well. " And instantly the woman was made well.' Matthew 9:22

Miracles

Do you believe in miracles? We read in the Gospels that Jesus healed many sick people, and that appears to be a miracle, though the word miracle appears in none of the Gospels. Most people think a miracle is something which goes against the laws of science. But many scientists and medical people have no problem with the healings in the Bible.

Science

Science consists in analysing events, and predicting what'll happen if they're repeated under controlled conditions. In that sense it's very like the Christian faith: we look at the evidence, guess at an explanation, and then perform an experiment to see whether the explanation is true. Only, in the case of Christianity, the experiment involves giving your whole life to God. But in this sense, medicine, while it depends on observation and experiment, is not an exact science, because the same set of circumstances are never repeated in two patients. All a doctor can say is that, if nothing unexpected happens, there's a statistical probability whether a patient will be healed or not. But the presence of Jesus, God incarnate, was a very unforeseen circumstance, and no scientist would dare to predict what could or could not happen in that case.

Hindrances and helps

What's more, God's put into our bodies a wonderful and complex mechanism for self-healing. Very often what the doctor does is to create the right circumstances to enable the body to heal itself. Among the chief hindrances to this process are the stresses and tensions which are set up in the mind. The body affects the mind, but the mind also affects the body. It's well known that stress can cause cancer, and can aggravate many other illnesses. Many of the cases of paralysis that Jesus healed, and maybe also those of blindness, may have been psychosomatic, when the mind caused the body to show symptoms which saved it from having to face the causes of stress. So if Jesus could bring peace to troubled minds, it could easily have been the means of healing.

Forgiveness

Jesus said to the woman with a haemorrhage, in today's Gospel reading, ‘Your sins are forgiven, your faith has saved you.' That must have surprised her; it wasn't what she'd been asking for. Many people believed then in a judgemental God, who punishes us and rejects us because of the things we've done. Many people today still think of God like that. Jesus taught them about a loving Father, who's only waiting for us to turn to him, so that he can welcome us back to his heart. Faith in a God like that will remove stress and give a deep inner peace.

Peace and healing

In some cases peace will give physical healing; it did with this woman. This is still true today. People who pray with somebody who's sick, or, failing that, pray for them in their absence, have always found that to surround somebody with love brings deep peace of mind, and sometimes physical healing. Sometimes, but not always. Nearly everyone has seen some miraculous answers to prayer, and the healing of people who nobody had expected would get better. God always answers prayer, but not always in the way and at the time that we want him to. Often in a better way than we had expected. Sometimes, instead of taking away the pain, God gives us the patience and the grace to endure it. Finally, death is surely the ultimate healing, when all tears are wiped from our eyes, and sufferers are at peace in eternity with our loving heavenly Father. It may not be the form of healing we'd asked for, but often we can see in retrospect that eternal rest is a better outcome than the one we'd wanted. God's will for us is peace, and with his peace he gives us his healing. The peace which comes to us when we pray

is the real miracle. The healing which often follows is quite natural. I began by asking whether you believe in miracles. One of those fridge-magnet things has the words, ‘I don't just believe in miracles – I depend on them!' I pray that you, too, may know God's peace in your hearts.

All-age worship

Relax, one after the other, each leg and arm, your neck and your face, then your mind. Ask God to take away your pain and stress.

Suggested hymns

Be still, for the presence (Spirit) of the Lord; Lord of all, to whom alone; Peace, perfect peace; Thine arm, 0 Lord, in days of old.