Faith & Insight: The movement of God

In the Gospel of Matthew, just before Jesus performs that great miracle of feeding thousands of people — literally, thousands and thousands of people — we get a quick and yet beautiful encounter between Jesus and those who had gathered and needed to be healed. In Matthew 14:14 it clearly says: “When he went ashore, he saw a large crowd, and felt compassion for them and healed their sick.”

As evidenced throughout scripture, our loving and gracious God has promised he will respond to us when we faithfully come to him. And in Matthew 14, God moved in the lives of those who gathered. He didn’t just heal some of the sick who had gathered, or the ones who perhaps were more deserving, but rather, moved by compassion for all he saw, Jesus healed the sick — every one of them. No matter who you are, no matter your past and no matter what the future holds for you, God desires to move in your life and bring forth his healing.

So perhaps you’re on the shoreline, gathered and wanting God to move in your life and heal you. In faith, you can seek the Lord and cry out to him. You can seek to experience his healing, his transformation and his redemption. The Lord desires to compassionately move in our lives. To move us from death, to life. From darkness, to light. From defeat, to victory. From shame, to grace and from fear to faith. To move you from places of sorrow to great joy. To heal us of all of our bondage and to move us to a place of real freedom. Your loving Heavenly Father desires to heal you and move in your life.

All who gathered in Matthew 14 who were sick needed to be healed. Max Lucado writes: “Surely, among the many thousands, there were a few people unworthy of good health. Undoubtedly there were those in the multitude who would use their newfound health to hurt others. Jesus released tongues that would someday curse. He gave sight to eyes that would lust. He healed hands that would kill. Each time Jesus healed, he had to overlook the future and the past, something, by the way, he still does.”

Filled with great compassion, while knowing your past and with knowing your future, God will move and heal you. Physically. Emotionally. Spiritually. He will heal you according to his perfect will. Not so you can claim some kind of self-promoting victory, but so he can be glorified and others will see his movement and healing in your life, and be pointed to him and his mighty and gracious working because it’s all about his kingdom, here and now, being displayed powerfully throughout our lives.

So, may we no longer wait for a move of the Lord, but may we daily be his movement of healed, of restored and of grace-filled Christ followers who live by faith and who, with great joy, live out a genuine and authentic life of worship. May we live out a holy pursuit of him that passionately demonstrates the hope and holiness of Jesus Christ in our lives, in our homes, in our churches, in our neighborhoods, in our city, and throughout the places we call home.

Draw close to the father, set aside your agenda, and let him heal you and move in your life and the life of his bride, the church.

Nick Emery is the senior pastor at Good Shepherd Wesleyan Church. He can be reached at pastornick@gswc.org.