Jesus is Our Master Surgeon

By Sabrina Rhodes (and the Holy Spirit)

“Great love takes great risk.” “You have to hurt to heal.” These are the words that keep coming to my mind in adoration over the last few days, over and over, the Lord is placing these thoughts on my heart, interweaving them in my subconscious, ensuring that I GET IT. Love is not fear, worrying about rejection, walking on eggshells, self-seeking in hopes that expectations, hopes, or dreams are met.  Love is so much more than that. It runs free.

Think of God’s love for us. Unconditional. Boundaryless. Eternal. This is the love we are called to. How we should receive and how we should give. I should not love because I expect something or want something from the other. I should love because it’s who I am.  It’s who I’m called to be.

So many things can get in the way. Past experiences. Trauma. Fear. The evil one. Feelings of unworthiness. Not understanding our identity in Christ. Lack of faith or trust. Lack of role models. The list is endless. We are broken. Imperfect. Sinners.

But there is One who can fix us so we can receive the love we seek and give love the way it was intended. The One who can transform us back to our original design. The One who can make us new.

As I pondered this in adoration, I was sent an amazing vision and inspired to capture this message. I saw a bleeding wound, on a knee, and was led to think about how this injury might hurt during the healing process. It may scab up and sometimes the scab may crack and cause pain or start to bleed again. The wound might cause a limp or a hobble and walking on it might cause pain. But eventually the skin regrows and the old, dried blood flakes away. There may be a scar, but it no longer hurts and you can walk perfectly again, without pain.

Jesus is our master surgeon. He knows just what incisions to make, just what wounds to touch, and which sore spots to look after and tend to (but not jab!), because those spots need more time, patience, and tender care. He knows the diagnosis and what we need to do to aid our healing, guided by His divine direction. He prescribes to us medicine in soft, gentle whispers, in the stillness of silence when we come to Him. He writes the prescription on our heart, in case we forget or refuse to ask. He might even send the Holy Spirit to speak words, through others, so we hear if we are too busy, or too stubborn, to break away from the noise of the world.

Jesus is our doctor, our nurse, our surgeon, and the loving family member that sits by our bedside as we recuperate. Watching us sleep. Hoping to catch us as we drift in and out. Holding our hand. Whispering words of affection. He coddles us, cradles us, and rocks us to sleep. Everything He does is in love. Nothing forced. Nothing overriding our own exertion of will. He works best when we completely surrender to Him, open up and say, “Yes, Lord. Take my life, my will, do what YOU WILL.” Through this surrender, the Lord performs His miracles on us. Fixes things we didn’t know were broken. Works in spots we didn’t know existed. If we flinch from the pain and turn away from Him, He waits. Soothes us. Tells us it’s going to be OK. Reminds us of His love, so we feel safe to turn back towards Him again and He can continue His work.

Sometimes it’s just a Band-Aid and a kiss. Or He might have to reset something that’s broken. Sometimes it's even more drastic, like a heart or brain transplant. But all along, He does it with perfect love, perfect care, using a method that is flawlessly suited, and producing an outcome that has been heavenly designed for each of us.