Messianic Jewish Counseling Devotional for Couples on Parashat Tazria-Metzora
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Title: Healing Together
Scripture Focus:
"If someone has a defiling disease, they must be brought to the priest." (Leviticus 13:9)
Messianic Jewish Reflection:
In Parashat Tazria-Metzora, we read about physical conditions (like tzara'at, often translated as "leprosy") that required examination by a cohen (priest). These were not merely illnesses; they often symbolized spiritual or relational brokenness too. Healing involved both body and soul, and importantly, community and restoration.
Through Yeshua (Jesus) the Messiah, we see the ultimate healer, not shunning the afflicted, but reaching out to touch, cleanse, and restore.
Application for Couples:
In marriage, there are times when emotional "wounds" or "blemishes" appear. Hurt feelings, misunderstandings, harsh words, these can create emotional distance, like tzara'at creating separation from the camp. Yet just as the Torah provides a path for healing through the cohen, Yeshua offers couples a path of compassionate truth, forgiveness, and restoration.
Key Counseling Points:
- Gently naming pain is like being a priest who listens and understands without judgment. Couples must learn to lovingly name what hurts them, without accusations or shame. You can do this by starting your sentences with: "I feel..." followed by a word that clearly describes your feeling, for example: "I feel rejected" or "I feel abandoned". Then, describe the behavior that triggered this emotion, using simple and clear words, such as: "when you leave home without saying goodbye after an argument". In this way, you communicate your feelings in an authentic and respectful way, creating a space for mutual understanding and listening.
- Seek healing, not blame: the goal is not to find blame, but to heal the relationship.
Activity: "Priestly Check-In"
Tonight, sit together and gently ask:
- "Is there anything on your heart that feels wounded?"
- "How can I help bring healing to you?"
- After sharing, pray together, inviting Yeshua into the places of hurt. Speak words of blessing and love over each other, just as the priests spoke words of blessing over Israel.
Closing Prayer:
Abba, our loving Father, thank You for Yeshua, our High Priest who never turns away from our wounds. Help us, as husband and wife, to be agents of healing for one another. Teach us to speak truth in love, to offer forgiveness freely, and to walk together in wholeness. Cleanse us, heal us, and make our home a dwelling place for Your glory. B'shem Yeshua, Amen.
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