God’s Hands

Acts 28:7-10

"There was an estate nearby that belonged to Publius, the chief official of the island. He welcomed us to his home and for three days entertained us hospitably. His father was sick in bed, suffering from fever and dysentery. Paul went in to see him and, after prayer, placed his hands on him and healed him. When this had happened, the rest of the sick on the island came and were cured. They honored us in many ways and when we were ready to sail, they furnished us with the supplies we needed."

I like what the Living Life writer said: "As messengers of God, we should address the physical needs of people as well as their spiritual needs. If Christians only bring the Good News without demonstrating any care or compassion for physical needs, then we are not reflecting the love of Christ. When people see that Christians care about them, this can also soften their hearts to receive the Gospel message." We still need people to believe God for forgiveness of sins and redemption, I think it goes hand-in-hand. The Lord, "at once knew in His spirit that they were considering this within themselves" when they said, “Why does this man speak like this? He is blaspheming! Who can forgive sins but God alone?” “Why do you question these things in your hearts?” He asked. “Which is easier: to say to a paralyzed man, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up, pick up your mat, and walk’ But so that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins...” He said to the paralytic, “I tell you, get up, pick up your mat, and go home.” And immediately the man got up, picked up his mat, and walked out in front of them all. As a result, everyone was amazed and glorified God, saying, “We have never seen anything like this!" (Mark 2:7-12) Today, we, the Church, body of the Lord, are His hands in a suffering world empowered by the Holy Spirit to bring about healing, physically and especially spiritually, demonstrating the Father's compassion, grace, and love.