Sabbath: Free to Rest

Image © Pacific Press

Sabbath Afternoon

Read for This Week’s Study: Mark 2:1-12, 1 Kings 1:1-46, 1 Kings 19:1-8, Matthew 5:1-3, Isaiah 53:4-6, 2 Kings 2:11.

Memory Text: “The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The LORD is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?” (Psalm 27:1).

Many of the people Jesus encountered in His earthly ministry were sick, sometimes even unto death. They thronged to Jesus for healing and for rest from their sufferings. And they always received it, too.

Sometimes He just spoke a word, and they were fully recovered. Sometimes He touched the sick, and miraculously, they were healed. Sometimes He sent them off, and healing took place as they went on their way. Jesus healed men, women, children, Jews, non-Jews, rich people, and poor, unassuming people. The worst cases of leprosy and blindness were not beyond His reach. Indeed, He even healed those with the worst “sickness” of all — death.

This week, we look at two very different examples of healing. In the one, the sufferer was so ill that he could not even come to Jesus on his own. His symptoms were clearly visible to everyone. In the other case, there were no obvious visible symptoms. In both cases, healing came in God’s time and way.

As we explore the topic of rest from pain and suffering, we will also contemplate the question that all of us, at some point or another in our Christian walk, have experienced. And what happens when our prayers for healing aren’t answered?

How do we find rest then?