“不要怕，只要信…。” - 路 8:50

前段时间，我和一个朋友聊天，他正在处理许多健康问题。在他即将接受另一个大手术时，他说，虽然他对自己的健康感到焦虑，不想死，但他不需要害怕生病或死亡。我问为什么——他说他知道无论发生什么，神都在掌控之中。

一个患病多年的女人，战战兢兢地靠近耶稣。然后她摸了摸耶稣的衣裳繸子，立即得到了医治！虽然她不敢说出自己做的事，但耶稣坚固她说，她的信使她痊愈了。

一位父亲的女儿快要死了，他跪在耶稣的脚前，为他女儿的生命祈求。他害怕失去女儿——当他听说她已经死了，他更加害怕了。但耶稣向他保证，她会好起来的。祂说：“只要信，她就会痊愈”。

我们都会以这样或那样的方式惧怕疾病和死亡。但当我们看到这些严峻的现实时，我们需要通过耶稣为我们做出的牺牲和神对我们的爱来看待它们。疾病和死亡在主再来之前不会消失，但我们不需要像不知道神对我们的爱那样害怕它们。

祷告

慈爱的神，我们害怕在我们和我们所爱之人的生活中出现疾病和死亡。帮助我们克服这些惧怕，即使在我们害怕的时候也能倚靠你的爱。阿们。

路加福音 8:40-56

40耶稣回来的时候，众人迎接他，因为他们都等候他。
41有一个管会堂的，名叫睚鲁，来俯伏在耶稣脚前，求耶稣到他家里去，
42因他有一个独生女儿，约有十二岁，快要死了。耶稣去的时候，众人拥挤他。
43有一个女人患了十二年的血漏，在医生手里花尽了她一切养生的，并没有一人能医好她。
44她来到耶稣背后，摸他的衣裳穗子，血漏立刻就止住了。
45耶稣说：“摸我的是谁？”众人都不承认。彼得和同行的人都说：“夫子，众人拥拥挤挤紧靠着你。”
46耶稣说：“总有人摸我，因我觉得有能力从我身上出去。”
47那女人知道不能隐藏，就战战兢兢地来俯伏在耶稣脚前，把摸他的缘故和怎样立刻得好了，当着众人都说出来。
48耶稣对她说：“女儿，你的信救了你，平平安安地去吧！”
49还说话的时候，有人从管会堂的家里来，说：“你的女儿死了，不要劳动夫子。”
50耶稣听见就对他说：“不要怕，只要信！你的女儿就必得救。”
51耶稣到了他的家，除了彼得、约翰、雅各和女儿的父母，不许别人同他进去。
52众人都为这女儿哀哭捶胸。耶稣说：“不要哭，她不是死了，是睡着了。”
53他们晓得女儿已经死了，就嗤笑耶稣。
54耶稣拉着她的手，呼叫说：“女儿，起来吧！”
55她的灵魂便回来，她就立刻起来了。耶稣吩咐给她东西吃。
56她的父母惊奇得很。耶稣嘱咐他们，不要把所做的事告诉人。

Sickness And Death

"Don’t be afraid, just believe. . . ." - Luke 8:50

I was talking to a friend a while back who was dealing with many health concerns. As he was about to undergo another major surgery, he said that while he was anxious about his health and didn’t want to die, he wasn’t necessarily afraid of being sick or dying. I asked why—and he said he knew that whatever happened, God was in control.

A trembling woman who had been sick for many years approached Jesus. Then she touched the edge of his cloak and was immediately healed! While she was afraid to speak up about what she had done, Jesus assured her that her faith in him had made her well.

A father whose daughter was dying fell at Jesus’ feet begging for his daughter’s life. He was afraid to lose her—and even more afraid when he heard that she was dead. But Jesus assured him that she would be fine. “Just believe,” he said, “and she will be healed.”

Sickness and death are things that we all fear in one way or another. But as we look at these grim realities, we need to see them through the lens of Jesus’ sacrifice for us and God’s love for us. Sickness and death won’t go away until the Lord’s return, but we don’t need to fear them as we would if we did not know about God’s love for us.

Prayer

Loving God, we fear sickness and death in our lives and in the lives of our loved ones. Help us to overcome those fears and to rely on your love even when we are afraid. Amen.