Contemplative Bible Reading

Matthew 8:16-17 (New Living Translation)

…and he (Jesus) healed all the sick. 17 This fulfilled the word of the Lord through the prophet Isaiah, who said,

“He took our sicknesses
    and removed our diseases.”

Told many centuries earlier, the Messiah, the Son of God, the one who would take away the sins of mankind, the Christ would take our sicknesses and remove our diseases. And Jesus of Nazareth did these things.

People became well. What’s more, their diseases went to Jesus. Jesus removed the sickness from the people and took the sickness into Himself. Jesus bore the sickness Himself. Jesus became sick so that the people would not be sick.

Only whole and well people could enter the Temple and be in the presence of God. Jesus was not just being the world’s best doctor. He was changing the state of the people so that they could be in the presence of God. Jesus continues to do this for me. Jesus takes my dirty sins away so that I am clean enough to be in the presence of God.

That is a miracle. That is only something the Son of God could do.