Fear No Fear

(All scripture from the NET, netbible.org, all rights reserved)

At that very time Jesus cured many people of diseases, sicknesses, and evil spirits, and granted sight to many who were blind.
Luke 7:21 (emphasis added)

This verse is a fulfilment of a prophesy in Isaiah 35. That chapter opens with these words: “Let the wilderness and desert be happy; let the arid rift valley rejoice and bloom like a lily!” (vs 1). The word for wilderness is ‘midbar’ which can mean a desert or dry place, but ALSO means speech, word, or mouth. The word for arid is ‘tziyyah’ which can mean a parched land. Let the word speaking in the dry place be happy because the parched land will rejoice and bloom beautiful blooms. This is speaking to more than one time period, but it clearly a Messianic prophesy which is partially fulfilled by John the Baptiser (John 1:23) and completely fulfilled by Jesus (today’s verse). The wilderness is a negative for the world, but it is a place of great blessing and nourishment for the children of Yahweh.

Yaakov Brown (Founder of the Beth Melekh International Messiah Following Jewish Community) wrote about this verse and said that the hint or teaching that we can get from it is to reword it like this: ‘Rejoice from the Word in your wilderness experience, and you dry ones (Tziyah: residents of Zion) be glad even as far as the arabah (the desert parts of your God given land), behold, God is making you blossom and prosper.’ This was the call of Messiah. This was the Anointing of Messiah. Bringing salvation and restoration to people who are lost (Matthew 9:36).

Jewish commentators have always identified this verse with the Messianic kingdom. In the time of Jesus it was the same. The thing is, they were expecting Messiah Son of David (Daniel 7:13; Habakuk 2:14), not just Messiah Son of Joseph (Obadiah 1:18; Zechariah 9:9). The first is a conquering redeemer. The one who will establish a kingdom and rule it with an iron hand. The other is the suffering servant who (like Joseph) will suffer, be brought low, and only later be raised to be a ruler.

At the time of Jesus, the Jews were under the thumb of Rome. They were not interested in a long haul toward redemption (the path of Joseph), and I can understand that. They were all looking for a king who would fight. Drive off their enemies and rulers. To rip off the yoke of Rome and turn things around so that they would be the rulers (Psalm 48). They wanted the Mashiach ben David. Jesus though, wasn’t following that path.

Jesus was peaceful. Gentle. Kind. He didn’t pull punches. He didn’t mind being offensive as long as He was speaking truth and the Father’s words. Jesus wasn’t inciting armed revolt. Jesus wasn’t speaking against Rome. Jesus wasn’t gathering an army. Jesus wasn’t doing ANYTHING that they were expecting. John the Baptiser spoke out against the unlawful marriage of Herod – who had divorced his own wife and married the wife of his brother-in-law which was against the Law – and got thrown into prison for it. He was there for months (some think years, but that gets confusing and a WHOLE lot of he said/she said kind of historical investigation). After being there for a long time, John was beginning to doubt that the Kingdom was being founded. He had heard of NOTHING that showed the Romans were about to be kicked out. He didn’t necessarily WANT to doubt, but doubt was knocking on his door. So he asked Jesus for a confirmation.

Isaiah 35 continues after it establishes that we’re looking at Messiah and signs that He has arrived. Blind eyes would be opened (vs 5). Hearing would be restored (vs 5). The crippled or incapacitated would be able to move about again (vs 6). People who couldn’t speak would be able to sing (vs 6). Water would burst forth in the wilderness and streams from the desert (vs 6). When we look at today’s verse we see fulfilment of all of it. “At that very time Jesus cured many people of diseases, sicknesses, and evil spirits, and granted sight to many who were blind.“

Jesus cured physical sickness (the blind, the lame, the deaf, the mute, the sick, and diseased). Jesus also cured spiritual sickness (evil spirits, unclean spirits, and demonic spirits). Jesus was and is the water of life. “On the last day of the feast, the greatest day, Jesus stood up and shouted out, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me, and let the one who believes in me drink. Just as the scripture says, ‘From within him will flow rivers of living water.’” (Now he said this about the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were going to receive, for the Spirit had not yet been given because Jesus was not yet glorified.)” (John 7:37-39). “Jesus replied, “Everyone who drinks some of this water will be thirsty again. But whoever drinks some of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty again, but the water that I will give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up to eternal life.”” (John 4:13-14). In the desert of our sin, Jesus waters us and brings us back to life.

Life is so much more than existence. We have hospitals all over the world full of people who are sick, diseased, or failing from what is called old age. Frequently there is a conversation about whether they should be let go. Whether or not their ‘quality of life’ is worth it. There are people who make living wills so that the plugs will be pulled and they won’t languish in a bed, comatose and invalid, drooling for peeing through a tube for the rest of their lives. It is NEVER about whether the years are still ticking by. It is ALWAYS about the condition we are in while the years tick by.

When water gets applied to plant life, it gets green. It blooms. It produces. When the Jews started to trickle back to Israel (both pre- and post- 1948), they bought up land. Stagnant swamps and useless desert that was EAGERLY sold by Arabs for high prices. They bought it. They nurtured it. And it produced. Today Israel is a sought after piece of real estate by those who didn’t care about it a hundred years ago. Water brings life. The cleaner the water, the more vibrant the life.

No one would claim that someone wracked with sickness, riddled with disease, or stuck drooling in a vegetative state in a hospital bed are enjoying vibrant life. No, we can be sure of that because of the advertising industry. None of the ads that promote activity, social spending, and enjoyment or relaxation include those groups of people. Those are reserved for the words of warning adds (the ‘this is your brain on drugs’ type). It is always young, healthy, happy, and active people who are portrayed as our goal when it comes to living a vibrant life.

“The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come so that they may have life, and may have it abundantly” (John 10:10). We often talk of sickness stealing from us. I was robbed of my graduation, I was robbed of my vacation, etc. We never use those terms when we get to enjoy ourselves. Sickness is universally BAD. Active and vibrant life is universally GOOD. “All generous giving and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or the slightest hint of change” (James 1:17). Only GOOD things come from Adonai. James continues in verse 18: “By his sovereign plan he gave us birth through the message of truth, that we would be a kind of firstfruits of all he created.” Good things come down and they produce FRUIT. Water = vibrant, active life. ABUNDANT life.

Sickness has NO PLACE in that. Jesus came to cleanse our souls of sin. Jesus came to heal us of spiritual sickness. Jesus came to heal us of physical sickness (regardless of cause). Jesus came to restore to us our pride (NOT prideFUL) in our stewardship of all the Father has given us – starting with our own bodies. We are not in Grace to keep on sinning. We are not in health to keep on with the behaviours under our control that led to sickness – sickness is not always under our control, but science shows us in detail that there are a side variety of ways that we DO control our health.

Jesus equals healing on ALL levels. THAT is one of the signs that He IS Messiah. There are HUNDREDS of Messianic prophesies that Jesus has fulfilled. There are many more still to come. But we can take ASSURANCE that He IS Messiah (both a Son of David AND a Son of Joseph). He DID heal us. We ARE healed and part of having life inside us welling up is health and wholeness because otherwise we will have life but not ABUNDANT, VIBRANT, and ACTIVE life.

Don’t settle for less. Nothing less comes from the Father. Take the FULLNESS of what He offers instead of stopping where human thinking says we should. Renew your mind to HIS ways, not ours. HIS are full of Grace, Mercy, Redemption, Restoration, and Abundance. THAT is the way we were CREATED to live.

Daily Affirmation Jesus IS Messiah: Psalm 22:16

“Yes, wild dogs surround me—a gang of evil men crowd around me; like a lion they pin my hands and feet.” Messiah Son of Joseph, the suffering servant, would have nails driven through His hands and feet. Taking the attentions of the wicked on Himself instead of leaving us exposed. Regardless of whether we deserve it, He did it. Messiah came and ushered in a new Covenant. An authoritative model, not a legislative one. In order to do that, He had to fulfil the conditions of that legal system. He had to do the time even though He hadn’t done the crime. He was pinned to a tree by His hands and feet. Hands are a vehicle for faith. Our steadfast acceptance of His Grace. Our feet are the compass for our journey along His path, the consistent dedication to our trust in Him. He enabled that by taking the nails. Jesus took it for us. “And again another scripture says, “They will look on the one whom they have pierced.”” (John 19:37). “The other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord!” But he replied, “Unless I see the wounds from the nails in his hands, and put my finger into the wounds from the nails, and put my hand into his side, I will never believe it!”” (John 20:25). Jesus’ hands. Jesus’ feet. He took our punishment. He bled so that we could have faith. He made our way. Jesus IS our Way. Jesus IS the Messiah!

Your Daily Confession of Jesus/Yeshua’s Identity:

Yeshua is the Christ, the Son of the living God.

Matthew 16:16b