Healing and the Kingdom!

Wednesday, September 23, 2026

Prov 30: 5-9; Lk 9: 1-6

Today’s Gospel invites us to reflect on the inmost relation between Kingdom proclamation and healing mission.

In the text, we find the connection underlined twice. It reads, ‘[Jesus] sent them to proclaim the Kingdom of God and to heal the sick.’ Again it reads, ‘Then they set out and went from village to village proclaiming the Good News and curing diseases everywhere.’ Now, we are to ask why Jesus puts the Kingdom proclamation and healing mission together. 

Firstly, Jesus establishes the strong connection between the two to show that the Kingdom is not merely an appealing idea but a deeply transforming reality. If the Kingdom of God is understood as liberation and restoration, it takes the concrete form of healing. In this sense, the healing itself is a proclamation. For Jesus, healing is the obvious sign of the Kingdom. 

Secondly, Jesus insists upon the disciples travelling light because, for the Kingdom proclamation and healing mission, what we need is not material goods or the security they bring about, but the willingness of one to enter into another person’s misery. In this sense, a willing heart is all we need, and it symbolizes all we have. Imitating Jesus’ compassion is everything here. 

Thirdly, for Jesus, physical healing is a sign of spiritual healing. For this reason, Jesus’ disciples are called to ask ourselves if people experience any healing from us (through our listening, forgiveness, humility, love, prayer, encouragement, etc.). If we fail to radiate the healing presence of Christ, we fail in our proclamation as well. 

Finally, Jesus also shows that rejecting the Kingdom agents is akin to rejecting the Kingdom itself and all that it stands for. The Kingdom symbolizes a reformed way of life. Hence, those who are against it are against what it seeks to establish as well. Those who embody the Kingdom message must be treated with the hospitality they deserve. 

Let us pray that, as Christians, we may be the healing presence in the world as Jesus expects us to be.

Fr. Dhinakaran Savariyar