Fixing the Root Cause of the Soul - Acts 3

In Acts 3, Peter and John were on their way into the Temple when a lame man asked them for money. The text says he had been lame since he was born, and he was at that time more than 40 years old (Acts 4:22).

After 40 years, the lame man had probably given up hope of ever walking and had likely resigned himself to his fate. He went through the same routine every day: someone laid him down at the gate of the Temple, he sat and asked people for money as they past, he collected enough to survive, but only with the expectation of waking up the next day just as lame as the day before.

When Peter and John walked by he did what he always did, asked for money. He asked for money because he didn’t know they had something better to offer. He didn’t know they had a solution, a fix for his perpetual problem.

Peter told the lame man he wasn’t going to give him cash to ease his temporary suffering, rather he would heal his body with the power of Jesus.

My wife specializes in root cause medicine. She works with clients, not just to ease symptoms, but to heal the body on a deeper level. Many of her clients come to her wanting relief from pain, discomfort, and the little things that make everyday life difficult. Many of them are shocked to learn that, not only can they find temporary relief from symptoms, but they can experience long-term healing by addressing underlying causes they never considered.

Like the lame man and some of my wife’s clients, many people are going through life looking for some relief just to get them through the day. Many have given up on ever finding true joy and peace. Some are depressed by the unfairness of life. Some, like the lame man, have endured 40+ years of the difficulties and have abandoned hope of finding healing. Some walk through the day empty, devoid of purpose and meaning. In response, they turn to whatever will fill them up enough today to ignore the hopelessness of their tomorrows: possessions, alcohol, hobbies, work, drugs, imagined purpose in things they pursue, money, relationships, etc…

But we all know these things don’t fix the underlying problems in our world, they may take our minds off the struggle of life for a while, but when our money runs out, or our relationships fail, or when the high wears off, the real sickness will still be there. The reality is, the world is sick and dying, and we are all headed for the grave. How depressing that no matter how many ways we find to mask that reality with daily distractions, it is still our inescapable fate.

So how do we fix the root cause? Can we fix the root cause? The answer is NO!

BUT, notice what happened when the power of Jesus entered the lame man’s life. Jesus didn’t just give the rich man some money for his daily needs, in an act of creation and restoration, Jesus fixed what was broken. He reversed some of the chaos sin brought into the world. He restored something sin had touched. He helped the man on a deeper level.

In the case of my wife’s clients, sometimes all they needed was a little knowledge. Many struggled for years, tried many remedies, yet failed to find relief. They needed a guide to show them healing was possible, that there was a better life available to them.They needed someone to introduce them to root cause solutions.

Only Jesus can fix the problem at the root of human suffering and emptiness. Only Jesus can reverse the effects of sin. Jesus is the only one who defeated death and can save us from a hopeless future in the grave. How many remedies have you tried to heal the symptoms of sin in your life? How many days have you masked the pain knowing it would return the next day? How many days have you woken up with hopelessness and lack of purpose? How much sickness has touched your life? How many days have you distracted yourself from having to think about death? How many days have you been anxious about your future because the world can be a terrible place?

Don’t you think its time to stop scrounging around trying to find ways to cope with the hardships of life? It’s time to look for root cause solutions so you can live in peace, knowing your future is secure in life and in death. It’s time to go to the Physician so He can prepare you to be a new creation, a product of His restoration, rather than a victim of sin’s decay.

And for those of us who have been deeply healed by Jesus’ power, we need to be spreading the news that healing is available. Many are struggling and some just need to be pointed in the right direction. They need someone to introduce them to Jesus.