Many people think the greater miracle is a physical cure, but the real miracle is when God transforms a life of hardship and gives it power, purpose, and contentment to love God no matter what!
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Hi, I’m Joni Eareckson Tada and I have been healed!
So, if you have been praying for me to be healed, get excited. Your prayers have been answered, far more profoundly than I could’ve asked for! But let me explain. Because when the Bible speaks of healing, it’s talking about something far greater than a physical cure. Being cured of a physical problem is temporary; you can be cured of a disease, or cured from an injury, but you’ll still waste away and eventually die. Healing, on the other hand, is an ongoing higher, deeper, wider, and fuller process that continues all the way into eternity. And that’s where I’m at. My hands and my legs are still paralyzed. I haven’t been cured of my physical ailments, but I sure have been healed.
You see, the Bible’s concept of healing is holistic, it’s more than that which is physical. It’s like, well, it’s like the concept of shalom. Shalom basically means “peace,” but it’s even bigger than that it means wholeness, completeness, a strong sense of well-being and a right relationship with God and with others. Shalom [that’s the Bible’s word for healing] shalom is broader than having good health or the absence of a physical impairment. It’s about the healing presence of God that transforms us deep in our innermost being and those around us.
This is why biblical scholars make a distinction between the terms. Though the words healing and cure are often used interchangeably [let me say it again], healing has a much broader meaning. Cures may eliminate a person’s physical plight, while true healing brings about peace and wellbeing, comfort, and support [and yes, sometimes it even brings a cure, but sometimes not]. Cures remove something from a person’s life, while healing contributes something. A cure results in the absence of symptoms; but healing is the presence of Jesus. A cure is isolated to the body; but healing extends to the community.
We see this distinction in Luke 17 when Jesus cures ten men with leprosy, but only one comes back to Jesus to praise him. And in response to his devotion, Jesus proclaims to him alone: “Rise and go; your faith has made you well [that is, your faith has made you whole]. So, while ten lepers received a cure, only one received the healing that Jesus intended for all of them. And, oh, do I resonate with that 10th leper. My faith in Jesus has made me well. My focus on Christ has made me whole. And my physical disability can’t even compare with it. Like I often say, “I would rather be in this wheelchair knowing Jesus as I do, than to be on my feet without him and the shalom he gives. Now true, I’m looking forward to the resurrection of my body, but today, I’m content because I’ve got biblical hope. I’m content because the Biblical hope I experience is like already being in heaven. I live in the joy of heaven.
You know, many people think the greater miracle would be a physical cure, but I am convinced the real miracle is when God transforms a life of hardship and gives it power, and purpose, and contentment to love God no matter what the circumstances, and to love your neighbor. If you have an interest in this idea of shalom, that deeper healing, we cover it in our Beyond Suffering course of study. So, visit joniradio.org where you will find a link to our beyond suffering textbook. Or explore the possibilities of studying with us online.
© Joni and Friends