Thursday 4 July

Genesis 22:1-19; Psalm 115; Matthew 9:1-8

Illness and sin

In curing this paralytic Jesus identifies both illness and sin – the former affecting the man’s health, the reality of sin bringing a deeper dis-ease to his soul. Notice Jesus does not say the man’s illness is caused by sin, he rejects that prejudice of the Pharisees who held that every illness was the result of sin. Instead, Jesus looks into this man’s heart and meets his twin need for healing and for forgiveness. In our prayer today may we not be afraid to allow Jesus to read our hearts in all their uniqueness and depth. Let us pray that he brings us his rich healing and peace wherever we need it.