Christopher Trodden

looks at the way life can

bruise us, and the healing message of

Easter

EastEr bruisEs

C O V E R S T O R Y 54 April 2015

A s A y o u n g b o y g r o w i n g u p i n s c o t l A n d , i

remember one of our favourite spots to play after school was on a nature strip at the bottom of our street. It was about the size of a small football oval and, at one end, was home to a dense family of conifer trees. We would often play games in there—like tag, hide and seek, and pirates versus Peter Pan.

I recall one afternoon sitting at the top of one of the smaller trees—as all good boys playing Peter Pan do—and casually leaning back. Last time I looked there was a branch there, but for some reason it had decided to move. I came crashing down with a mighty thump and landed on my arm. I didn’t break anything but the next morning I woke up and could hardly move my left elbow.

Swollen and bruised, I had to keep my arm restricted in a pressure bandage for weeks until I could move it safely again. I was proud of the deep purple bruise that eventually came to the surface and I gladly showed it to anyone who was interested. I got many bruises from climbing and bustling about in those trees.

Bruises are not typically the type of visual image you’d normally assign to the concept of Easter but it is one that is reflected at the very heart of its message. In Luke’s Gospel, Jesus says ‘…I have come to set at liberty those that are bruised’ (Luke 4:18 KJV). What did he mean by this? What type of bruising is he referring to? How did we get it? Where is it? How big is it? More specifically, what does this have to do with Easter?

b r u i s i n g

Bruises appear in all shapes and sizes. Some bruises come up quickly; others can take several days to appear. They occur when one or several of the small veins rupture under the skin, due to a hard knock or collision, and blood leaks out and is trapped underneath the skin. They start off red but quickly turn blue or purple. As they begin to fade, they turn green and yellow before they disappear entirely.

t h e t r u t h i s w e A r e A l l b r u i s e d

However, some bruises cannot be seen. It could be the pain of a broken relationship with someone we care about. Like having a bruise on the heart, it causes pain when you hear their name or remember how they are no longer with you. It could be pain of anxiety and stress caused by a lack of finances, lack of food, or lack of employment. It may be genetic pain, an illness or physical ailment that we carry and contend with. The truth is we are all carrying a bruise of some sort. We all have areas of pain in our lives that we are trying to heal or are hoping, or praying, will go away.

l u k e 4 :1 8

But what about the bruise Jesus was referring to in the Gospels? The very first bruise the human race received can be traced back to the Garden of Eden. When Adam and Eve

disobeyed God they collided with sin and something spiritual inside of us was broken. Our eternal relationship with God was ruptured, and the bruise of death and separation leaves us with a permanent mark on our soul. The Bible teaches that this bruise has left its mark on all human beings, ‘consequently, one trespass has resulted in condemnation for all people’ (Romans 5:18). Because of this, we are now restricted in our relationship with God who, once visible and easy to hear, now remains hidden from plain sight—but can be found again through faith in his son, Jesus Christ.

A p l A n t o h e A l o u r b r u i s e s

Spiritually speaking, we are all bruised by the impact of sin on our lives. And this is where the Easter story really takes off.

Jesus came to heal us of this bruise, he came to free us, to set us at liberty, so we can once again enjoy a relationship with God without restriction. He did this by receiving the bruise that was meant for us, taking it upon his body at the cross on Easter Friday. The Bible says in Isaiah, ‘But it was the Lord’s good plan to bruise him and cause him grief. Yet when his life is made an offering for sin, he will have many descendants. He will enjoy a long life, and the Lord’s good plan will prosper in his hands’ (Isaiah 53:10). Christ came to stand in front of the collision point of sin for humankind and take on the

bruise that was meant for us. This was God’s good plan, that a saviour would come and take on the sins of the world, and through his sacrifice many would receive everlasting life.

‘But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed’ (Isaiah 53:5 KJV). Christ’s vicarious death on the cross was the healing plan of God to restore our broken relationship with him, giving us his Spirit so we may have everlasting life and friendship with him. The very first promise of this plan can be found in Genesis: ‘…it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel’ (Genesis 3:15 KJV). Here we see that Christ will defeat the authority of sin ruling over our lives but at great cost to himself; through the nails of crucifixion bruising his heels.

h e A l i n g o u r b r u i s e s

The question remains however, if Christ has come to wear this bruise instead of us, why then do we still experience the pain of sin and a broken relationship with God? As we grow up we are still clearly affected by results of sin, namely pain, suffering and death. How then does healing in Christ occur?

n e w b r u i s e s

The Bible teaches that Jesus defeated the power of sin and death on the cross, and that now, through him, we too can reign in this life (1 Corinthians 15:56–7, Romans 5:17). Despite all of these wonderful truths we still experience the pain of living in a fallen world. One only needs to look at society to see

t h e f i r s t s t e p w e c A n t A k e i s

t o b r i n g o u r b r u i s e s t o c h r i s t . h e A l o n e h A s t h e u l t i m A t e p o w e r

t o c A r r y o u r p A i n , A n d h e A l u s o f o u r e t e r n A l s e p A r A t i o n

f r o m g o d .

6 C O V E R S T O R Y [ C O n T i n u E d ] 4 April 2015

that the whole world is bruised. In Australia alone, one in four adults experience the pain of bruised emotions and suffer from depression and anxiety, and the biggest killer among our young people is suicide.

Jesus addressed the issue of receiving new bruises in the Gospel of John. He taught us that the future age, the renewal of all things and the blessing of the Kingdom of God has already begun, but it is not yet fully realised, ‘Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshippers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshippers the Father seeks’ (John 4:23).

The Bible also reveals that although we have redemption in Christ we are still waiting for its full expression to be made manifest: ‘In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace’ (Ephesians 1:7) and ‘Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption’ (Ephesians 4:30).

How then does healing in Christ occur?

i m m e d i A t e h e A l i n g

The Bible uses many images to describe the nature of God such as a gardener, a fire, a husband, a shepherd and many more. One of the most prevalent images found in the New Testament is that of a physician. Some bruises, like hematomas, are so traumatic the human body cannot heal them by itself. You need a doctor to carefully operate on the bruised area. It is the same with our souls—we need Christ the physician’s help to remove the impact of sin from our lives.

On the cross, people mocked Jesus and said ‘He can’t even save himself’. But that’s the point; he wasn’t there to save himself, he died to save us. The meaning of the word salvation denotes welfare, prosperity, deliverance, safety; all are pictures of healing and cure for the pain of this world. When we make Jesus the Lord and Saviour of our lives, God pours out his forgiveness and Holy Spirit into our lives and heals our broken relationship with him.

p r o g r e s s i v e h e A l i n g

The ongoing work of the Holy Spirit in our lives also brings about healing in our lives. There have been many stories in War Cry of people being miraculously healed in Salvationist meetings—people being delivered from drunkenness, drug addictions, or receiving physical healing such as the immediate removal of incurable diseases and illnesses.

One of the most frequent forms of healing takes place when people join the Christian community and God begins to soothe the brokenness in their lives. We can testify to having seen the power of Christ’s love restoring people back into their families, employ-ment, and society, through the love, care and service of others.

u l t i m A t e h e A l i n g

The full expression of our healing will take place when we enter into heaven and we receive what the Bible calls ‘a glorified body’—one that cannot be bruised. As the Apostle Paul writes to the Corinthian Church, ‘So will it be with the resurrection of the

dead. The body that is sown is perishable, it is raised imperish-able; it is sown in dishonour, it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power; it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body’ (1 Corinthians 15:42–44).

The ultimate healing we will receive is when we get to be in God’s presence forever, ‘Never again will there be in it an infant who lives but a few days, or an old man who does not live out his years; the one who dies at a hundred will be thought a mere child; the one who fails to reach a hundred will be considered accursed’ (Isaiah 65: 20).

o n g o i n g h e A l i n g

Some will experience miraculous instantaneous healing in this life by the moving of the Holy Spirit. For others, healing will occur progressively as they engage in healing communities such as a local corps or make lifestyle choices that promote healthy clean living. And for those who persevere through this life without receiving any signs of actual healing, one thing can be sure, if they have put their trust in Jesus, they will enter into that place where ‘there is no more death, nor mourning, crying or pain’ (Revelation 21:4).

h o w n o w s h A l l w e l i v e ?

In light of these truths, how then shall we live in light of the Easter message? The first step we can take is to bring our bruises to Christ. He alone has the ultimate power to carry our pain, and heal us of our eternal separation from God. As we pray and seek God’s grace and mercy, his healing power will flow into our life. We may experience a fantastic healing in an area of our brokenness, or we may receive the strength to carry on through the pain, knowing that Christ is our healer and ultimately we will stand one day before him, whole in the kingdom of heaven.

The second step is to avoid bruising others. A life of holiness is to be Christlike. Jesus’ nature was one of a healer not a hurter. As we extend love and grace to others, we can prevent our sinful nature from bruising others. This of course is the work of the magnificent Holy Spirit, ‘For you have been called to live in freedom, my brothers and sisters. But don’t use your freedom to satisfy your sinful nature. Instead, use your freedom to serve one another in love. For the whole law can be summed up in this one command: “Love your neighbour as yourself”’ (Galatians 5:13–14).

As we step up to follow Jesus, may we step down to the lowliest of places and serve others this Easter with the love of Christ and the redeeming hope of the Gospel message.

Christopher Trodden is the mission resource production manager at THQ. He is an ordained Pastor in the Australian Christian Churches (AOG) and has been in ministry for more than 10 years. He and his wife Jennifer have been pastoring in Clyde North for the past four years, and Chris now serves as a member of the David McCracken Ministries team • www.davidmccracken.org