I previously posted on Jesus' first miracle, turning water into wine and thought it might be interesting to look at his last miracle before being crucified. His last miracle took place in a Garden, he was praying and a group came to arrest him. One of the apostles, it is believed to have been Peter, cut off the ear of one of the people. Jesus healed the mans ear.
Why did he bother healing the guy? The man was not at risk of dying. Prior to that, as far as I know, Jesus only healed believers. This man was not a believer. On one occasion a woman who was not Jewish asked Jesus to heal her daughter who was demon possessed, he told her to leave; but, she persisted and he relented and healed the daughter because of the woman's faith.
This healing was not requested by anyone. The man himself was arresting Jesus so we have reason to believe he was not a follower. So my first question is still, why did Jesus heal him? He did not heal everyone that he met and this man meant him harm. I believe there may be two reasons. The first was to show forgiveness. Most people read the story and see that reason; but, I think there is more to the story.
The second question is what happened next, not to Jesus, to the guy whose ear he healed with a simple touch? How did that change that man's night and life? We never hear about the guy again; but, how could he doubt who Jesus was after being healed? How did he feel knowing he was responsible for helping kill Jesus after having his ear restored?
Perhaps, like Paul, he became a follower and told the story to others who also came to believe. An eyewitness account.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
1 comment:
Perhaps also, he did it to keep Peter, whom was que to the future of the church, from being arrested or killed.
Post a Comment