The Source Of Healing

The Source Of Healing

Moses made a snake out of bronze and attached it to a pole. Then anyone who was bitten by a snake could look at the bronze snake and be healed! Numbers 21:9

The Caduceus and the rod of Asclepius are both ancient symbols that represent the healing arts. The Caduceus depicts two serpents coiled around a winged staff; the rod of Asclepius has a single snake wrapped around a rustic staff. On their own, these symbols have no healing powers; rather, they were used as beacons to pointing the way to places where health care was available.

In today’s verse, the bronze snake that Moses fashioned is a symbol of the ultimate Healer—God. But problems arose when the people began worshipping the symbol rather than the source. When they left God out of the equation, the idol failed them.

Do we do the same thing today?

Have our great, modern hospitals become sanctuaries where we go to worship the Caduceus idol in the form of a great surgeon, a cutting-edge treatment, or a stellar medical reputation? Do we believe in the power of the physician and the hospital more than the power of God? Are we placing our faith in modern medicine and leaving God out of the equation?

In America, many of our hospitals were founded by Jewish or Christian organizations. When they first started, they looked to God as the source of healing. But over the years, many of our most prestigious medical schools and hospitals have lost touch with their faith-filled roots. That’s unfortunate for the patients who are there because medical science works best in conjunction with God’s healing.

Recently, I’ve seen research in the medical literature supporting the conclusion that prayer and faith have a positive effect on physical health and healing. These studies suggest that the disciplines of our faith should be a part of our modern medical treatment plan. Though our medical institutions may not be the faith-filled sanctuaries of healing that they once were, we can still pack a prayer and bring our faith with us to the hospital. When we do, it will be a witness to all that God is the source of our healing, not just a symbol on a pole.

TODAY’S RX

In everything you do, look to the source (God) and not the symbol.

On my roughest days, God, help me to remember that you are almighty and sovereign—that you are the source that makes a way for my healing. Grow my faith in you so that I may always seek you and depend on you first as I walk the road to recovery.