Welcome to the fifth and final episode in the Healing School series! I hope this series has encouraged and affected you deeply as we sought the Scriptures carefully to see what God says about physical healing. I pray you have experienced the revelation of the Holy Spirit as we have worked through the Hebrew and Greek text and immersed ourselves in the Bible, allowing the Word of God to wash over our minds and hearts. When I first heard that God wanted me well, I almost couldn’t believe it. It wasn’t until I had seen unrefutable evidence in the Bible that Jesus indeed died on the cross–for our sicknessess as well as for our sins–that I fully embraced the concept of God’s ideas towards divine healing. But, as we have seen, it is indisputable: God desires health and wholeness, not sickness and a stunted life, for all of His precious creation.
You and I were created for a purpose, and it is our supreme goal in life to 1) know God intimately and personally, and 2) find, follow, and fulfill the purpose He created us to accomplish. Ephesians 2:10 (AMPC) says,
For we are God’s [own] handiwork (His workmanship), recreated in Christ Jesus, [born anew] that we may do those good works which God predestined (planned beforehand) for us [taking paths which He prepared ahead of time], that we should walk in them [living the good life which He prearranged and made ready for us to live].
I have met many people who, although they love God and study His Word, persistently believe that it is somehow God’s will for them to be sick. “Otherwise,” they argue, “He would have healed me if it was His will to do so. He must have a purpose for me in this season of sickness; it must be a trial in which I am supposed to grow closer to Him.” While this sounds pious, this position is ultimately undefendable from both a logical standpoint and a Biblical one.
First, we see that “we are God’s own handiwork…born anew that we may do those good works which God predestined for us, that we should walk in them…” God’s handiwork is excellent and not sickly. If we are to reach a lost and hurting world, doing so will require a tremendous amount of time, energy, and effort. Satan would have God’s children resting on a sickbed, spending all their time in hospital and doctor visits, and investing huge sums of their money into medical treatment instead of proliferating the Word of God to the people who desperately need Him. I am not saying that the medical profession is evil, nor am I suggesting that a Christian does not seek medical attention when he or she needs it. But I am saying that the Bible does not describe a weak, sickly Body of Christ, but rather a strong, vigorous, active, energized, and effective one!
If you are sick, I have good news for you! Jesus is our Healer! God Himself declares His identity in Exodus 15:26:
…I am the Lord Who heals you.
Guess what? God is no different today. He is still the Lord Who heals us.
So why isn’t everyone healed?
“Why am I not healed?” many Christians ask. “I prayed and asked for healing. It didn’t happen. So it must be God’s will that I am sick.” The prevailing idea is that God is in control of everything and absolutely nothing happens that is not His will. Unfortunately, this is one of the most pervasive doctrines in the Body of Christ today. And it is totally wrong!
Notice that God’s will does NOT happen on the earth today:
The Lord does not delay and is not tardy or slow about what He promises, according to some people’s conception of slowness, but He is long-suffering (extraordinarily patient) toward you, not desiring that any should perish, but that all should turn to repentance. 2 Peter 2:9, AMPC
For God so greatly loved and dearly prized the world that He [even] gave up His only begotten (unique) Son, so that whoever believes in (trusts in, clings to, relies on) Him shall not perish (come to destruction, be lost) but have eternal (everlasting) life. John 3:16, AMPC
These verses clearly illuminate God’s plan for mankind: that He desires every person to be saved by the one-time and all-encompassing sacrifice of Jesus! But aren’t there many people who are not saved today? Aren’t there people who die without making the decision to accept Jesus’ sacrifice as their own, so they can join God’s family? Unfortunately, the answer is yes. So we see that, in this simple but sobering example, that God’s express will does NOT automatically come to pass.
Is it that God just didn’t give everyone a fair shot? Let’s see:
For the grace of God (His unmerited favor and blessing) has come forward (appeared) for the deliverance from sin and the eternal salvation for all mankind. Titus 2:11, AMPC
For all mankind. That means everyone has an equal chance to get right with God before he or she dies. If it is true, then, that God’s will doesn’t automatically come to pass, it means He is not in control of everything in the world. This is a huge relief, since one of the big arguments atheists use against Christians is that the God we preach cannot be good like He says and in control like we (many if not most Christians) say, otherwise He simply would not allow all the pain and suffering to continue unabated on the earth today. This is correct logic. The truth is, He is perfectly good, kind, and just–and He is not in control. But if He is not, who is? Let’s let Paul tell us:
For the god of this world has blinded the unbelievers’ minds [that they should not discern the truth], preventing them from seeing the illuminating light of the Gospel of the glory of Christ (the Messiah), Who is the Image and Likeness of God. 2 Corinthians 4:4, AMPC
So Satan, who the Bible calls the god of this world, is really the one calling the shots. It isn’t God’s fault that the world is in such a mess. When Adam sinned against God in the beginning, he willingly and knowingly gave up all his rights to ruling and reigning on the earth to Satan who showed up as a crafty serpent in the Garden of Eden. The whole redemption story of God Himself coming to earth as a man, carrying all the sin of mankind before being killed and subsequently resurrected is a result of Adam selling off his God-given inheritance to Satan those many years ago.
If it were God’s will to have you sick and not healed, the best thing for you to do would be to let the sickness run its course, not take any medication, and let it do its full job on you. Of course, I am kidding! But do you see how it doesn’t make sense for a person to believe that God is keeping them sick, but then literally fight against God by taking medicine to reverse the condition? Furthermore, this kind of weird doctrine has absolutely zero foundation in the Bible!
So what does this mean for my healing?
In short, it means that it is not God’s fault you are not healed. It could be many things, but the good news is, you can do something to change the situation. This ought to be tremendously encouraging, because you and I do not need to approach healing as a mysterious thing with God that depends wholly upon His mood or secretive will. No! We have seen how it is emphatically, clearly, and indisputably God’s will for His children to walk in healing.
We saw in the Healing School episodes how Jesus healed every person who ever came to Him for healing. Jesus is the express (or perfect and exact) image of God, so we can tell God is in the business of healing everyone who comes to Him. We saw from the original Hebrew text in Isaiah 53 that Jesus took our physical healing upon His body and paid for all sickness for all mankind for all time just as He took all our sins upon Himself for all mankind for all time. Heaven, where God’s perfect will always comes to pass, is void of sickness–there is not a single sickness in Heaven! The Bible teaches that it is emphatically, without a shred of evidence to the contrary, that God desires His children to be well.
So, what can we do when we feel sickness in our bodies? Of course, I could write on this quite a bit more, and I encourage you to check out the whole Healing School series to learn more, but for now, I will crystallize the answer to this question as simply as I can:
- Get to where you know the will of God concerning healing. Get in the Word for yourself and let the Holy Spirit breathe the reality of this truth into your spirit. Agreement on a mental level will not get the job done. You must truly believe deep in your heart (Mark 11:23) for faith to work.
- Be single-minded about what you expect from God. Leave no room for doubt (which battles against your faith). Despite what the world would recommend, do not saturate and fill your mind with all the natural information concerning your illness. It might be tempting to do all the research you can, but be careful what you allow to take up space in your mind and continual meditation. Follow Abraham’s example (see Romans 4:17-21) and do not allow your external circumstances to dominate your inner reality.
- Use your mouth. This is usually the hardest part, but it goes along with point #2. This goes far beyond a simple (and usually fruitless) “name-it-and-claim-it” exercise. There is power released through your words (Proverbs 18:21). Ensure you are speaking in line with God’s Word concerning healing, rather than what your mind or others want to say about you.
- Use your authority as a believer in Jesus. Speak to your circumstance (as Jesus commanded us to) using the Name of Jesus as a blood-bought child of God. Read Ephesians until it boggles your mind when you see how much authority you actually possess as a Christ-follower.
- Continue practicing intimacy with the Lord. This is the most important one of all. No matter what, spend time with God reading and meditating the Word and in prayer. Talk to Him about how you feel. Share your questions and inhibitions with Him. It is always from a place of intimacy with Jesus that fruit begins to grow. Eventually that fruit will show in your life with enough nourishment and care.
Some of you are already complaining, “What a load of baloney! A five-step program? You’ve got to be kidding.” This isn’t intended to be a “Five Steps Toward Your Healing” list, but you know how I like to make practical, usable applications wherever I can! If I sat here and typed all day, I bet I could come up with many more things that you and I can do to see our healing come to pass. There is no secret formula. But there is real, effective power available to you and I because of what Jesus did. It is vital that we align ourselves with God’s plan in every area of our lives.
This list is supposed to help get your juices flowing and get you moving in the right direction, that’s all!
Only God is the Healer.
We are only responding in faith to what God has provided (healing) through grace.
Our faith will never make God move. God isn’t stuck!
Our actions will never make God do something He already isn’t (or already is) inclined to do.
Faith is just like a light switch: it only activates the power that is already there. It just makes the grace of God effectual in your life. The grace for healing is right in front of you, just like the grace to receive Jesus as your Savior is right in front of any unsaved person continually. Your ability to receive from God is what determines your future. Praise God!
That means if His mind is made up concerning healing, then there is nothing you can do or say to change Him. Thank God, His mind is made up about healing: God wants you well!