“And he came down with them and stood on a level place, with a great crowd of his disciples and a great multitude of people from all Judea and Jerusalem and the seacoast of Tyre and Sidon, who came to hear him and to be healed of their diseases; and those who were troubled with unclean spirits were cured. And all the crowd sought to touch him, for power came forth from him and healed them all.” (Lk 6: 17-19)
This is what our church-existence still looks like: We are still this troubled “crowd,” seeking to touch Him, because we know that “power comes forth” from Him and heals us all. Christ still “comes down with us,” to the “level place” that is the sacramental reality of the Church, both within and beyond its walls. In this reality, we gather “to hear Him and to be healed,” whenever we reach out and touch Him, Who offers Himself to us in His word and in other sacraments.
Today let me come down to hear Him, Who touches my heart with His grace-filled word, and also allows me to touch Him, in the physical reality of my little Gospel-book. Let me “come down” with Christ, at least for a while, from the exhausting chaos of merely-human concerns and issues, to the “level place” of communion with Him. Thank You, Lord, for letting us touch You, and be healed, again and again, as You continue to speak in our midst.
