[Aug. 9 – Aug. 15 : Walking Where Jesus Walked]
And he sent them to preach the kingdom of God, and to heal the sick. Luke 9:2
Christ established His temporary hospital on the green hill slopes of Galilee and in every other place where the sick and the suffering could be brought to Him. In every city, every town, every village through which He passed, with the tender compassion of a loving Father He laid His hand upon the afflicted ones, and made them whole. This same work Christ has empowered His church to do.
At the close of His earthly ministry, when He charged His disciples with a solemn commission to go “into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature,” He declared that their ministry would receive confirmation through the restoration of the sick to health. Ye “shall lay hands on the sick,” He said, “and they shall recover.” Mark 16:15, 18. By healing in His name the diseases of the body, they would testify to His power for the healing of the soul.
The Saviour’s commission to the disciples includes all believers to the end of time…. Never has the world’s need for teaching and healing been greater than it is today. The world is full of those who need to be ministered unto—the weak, the helpless, the ignorant, the degraded.
God’s people are to be genuine medical missionaries. They are to learn to minister to the needs of soul and body. They should know how to give the simple treatments that do so much to relieve pain and remove disease. They should be familiar with the principles of health reform, that they may show others how, by right habits of eating, drinking, and dressing, disease may be prevented and health regained. … The Great Physician … will bless every one who will go forward humbly and trustfully, seeking to impart the truth for this time.
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In a special sense the healing of the sick is our work.
