Jesus’ miracles often include immediate and dazzling evidence of their occurrence: He exorcises a man and sends the unclean spirits into 2,000 swine, who rush headlong into the sea (Mk 5:13); Lazarus, four days dead, stands at Jesus’ word (Jn 11:43-44); earlier in Luke, Jesus heals a leper “immediately” with his touch (Lk 5:13). Here, however, the miracle takes place outside Jesus’ presence and with no eyewitnesses but ourselves, the readers: “As they were going, they were cleansed.”

This small detail contains a mystery: Healing comes through obedience, the measure of our faith. According to Mosaic law, those who recovered from skin diseases had to approach the priest to be declared clean. Jesus requires these men to act as though they are healed before they are, or have any certainty that they will be. Yet they run without hesitation, and are cleansed on the way.

Are we willing to be obedient to Christ? To trust that, as we walk in his commands, we will be healed? If I am honest, my longing for instant and complete transformation says less about my belief in God’s power and more about my need for control. But when we call on Jesus as “Master,” we lay aside our right to set terms on the mercy he shows us. We begin to live by faith in the Son of God, who loved us and gave himself for us.

The desire for healing pervades our culture. This desire is undoubtedly good, but we must test it against the gospel. Today, Luke shows us that true healing is found in surrender to the master; it is given so that we can freely sing God’s praise. If we entrust our misery to God with an active faith, we can be sure that our voices will soon grow loud with the joy of thanksgiving.