Becoming His Healing Hands

Richard L. Wilson

BECOMING HIS HEALING HANDS

Unless otherwise indicated,

Scripture taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION,

Used by permission of International Bible Society.

Becoming His Healing Hands

The Healing/Miracle-Line of History

Jesus’ ministry of miracles and healing was crucial to the advancement of history. As He was mending lives, surely some who were present at the time realized they were witnessing a resumption, a renewal of the historic line of God’s miraculous works spanning Creation, the Flood, the Patriarchs, Egypt, the prophets and all of National Israel down through the eight-day miracle of Hanukah. After Hanukah, miracles had been rare for almost 200 years.

Then Jesus came and miracles suddenly reappeared, demonstrating that Jehovah of Israel was now channeling His message, His activity and His redemptive work through His Son, Jesus. Directing miracles and healing into the ministry of Jesus and then on into the Church traced the ancient channel and flow of the development and completion of the redemptive plan of God. It made the statement, “God is going this way. If you want to go with God—if you want to get into the mainstream of His salvation and power, you will go this way—there’s no other way.” The miracles, the healings, marked the trail. They still do today. One of the strongest means by which our local churches can be affirmed as authentic outlets of the Lord’s redeeming grace is to maintain a powerful ministry of healing evangelism.

Spiritual Gifts and the Harvest

Churches that accept Spirit Baptism, and begin moving in the Baptism and the gifts, can become much more productive in harvest, in bringing people in their district to salvation. Jesus’ technique has proven to be amazingly effective for enhanced outreach. Hopefully there are those in your church body with gifts of healing—encourage them to follow His lead by combining an authentic healing ministry with evangelism.

Unfortunately, a few have stooped to deceptive practices and brought reproach on healing evangelism. When detected, we must immediately expose and renounce such activity. If legal authorities press charges, that’s the least of worries for the perpetrators. Without deep repentance, they will eventually face Judge Jesus for staining His holy work.

At the same time, don’t overreact and ban all healing—that‘s like burning the wheat with the chaff. Healing ministries can and are being carried out in a responsible, orderly way, resulting in thousands coming to faith in Jesus. If you avoid healing evangelism, there will likely be people in your area you could have led to eternal life—they may miss Heaven.

Ideally, the Gospel message alone should be enough to lead people to repentance (and praise God for those who do believe—just by hearing). However, because of sin-hardened hearts, the Good News fails to claim the attention of many others, but significantly more respond when the message is boosted with God’s visible touch. Healing evangelism has ably demonstrated its validity. We’ll survey how it worked powerfully with Jesus and with those in Acts—and multitudes are still being won today through a healing-authenticated Gospel presentation.

The Basis for Healing Evangelism

Healing evangelism is the ministerial outworking of the relationship between the healing of sickness and the forgiveness of sins. Let’s touch on that relationship: Every kind of physical disease is ultimately an effect of our fallen condition, the injection of sin into humanity. Our sicknesses are a manifestation of that sin-curse, and therefore Jesus’ atoning death is needed to deal with them. Whenever anyone recovers from an illness by whatever means, it is a display of the grace and mercy of God based on the sin-forgiving death of the Lamb of God.

Sin is a disease of the soul. Our sins directly require Jesus’ atoning death for forgiveness—that’s what evangelism is all about, the forgiveness of sins. Our sins and our sicknesses are kindred issues—Jesus’ atonement is the remedy for both. Healing evangelism, based on His atonement, is God powerfully meeting both needs at once.

Isaiah, in the text of his prophecy about Jesus’ atonement, acknowledged the linkage between healing and forgiveness of sins (see Isaiah 53:4–6). Now, the “healing” and the “infirmities” of Isaiah 53 can be interpreted in the sense that Jesus’ dying heals us from the sickness of our sins—that’s entirely true. But Matthew also saw the infirmities as literal sickness and disease. He credited Jesus’ healing ministry as fulfilling Isaiah’s prophecy (see Matthew 8:16–17). When Jesus healed the paralytic, He demonstrated that in Himself—in Jesus—is the fulfillment of that prophecy. With His surprising and unexpected statements, He included forgiveness of sins in the healing process. He pointedly laid out the equation between, “Your sins are forgiven” and “Get up, take your mat and walk” (see Mark 2:1–12). Later, James again echoed the linkage between healing and sins forgiven—prayerfully based in faith on Jesus’ atonement (see James 5:14–16).

The Precedents for Healing Evangelism

No evangelism technique is more solidly scriptural. After Jesus’ anointing at the Jordan, He used healing evangelism throughout His ministry (see John 4:46–54; 11:45–47). As the disciples watched and assisted Jesus, they were being trained in healing evangelism. He even sent them out on two occasions (they ministered with the Old Testament-style special anointing which was still available for them) to personally practice the healing evangelism that He would expect of them when they launched into ministry after Pentecost (with their new Jesus-style Spirit Baptism). Jesus’ expectation for healing evangelism was reflected in His strong words to them in John 14:12–14, “I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father. You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.” Jesus’ directive to them was to ask, heal, bring souls to redemption and thus glorify the Father.

After Pentecost, Acts 5:12–16 tells of the disciples’ involvement in healing evangelism; verse fifteen cites the results, “…more and more men and women believed in the Lord and were added to their number.” In Samaria, Philip combined miracles and healing with his evangelism. Results: Acts 8:12–17 tells of many Samaritans who believed, were baptized, and then brought into Spirit Baptism. In Lydda, Peter found Aeneas, a paralyzed man, and the Lord healed him. That led to all the people in two towns coming to salvation (see Acts 9:32–35). God used Peter to raise Dorcas from the dead (see Acts 9:36–42) and we read, “This became known all over Joppa, and many people believed in the Lord.”

As for Paul, the record in Acts tells of several occasions when he was instrumental in healing people while on his missionary journeys. Acts 19:11–12 tells of his ministry in Ephesus: “God did extraordinary miracles through Paul, so that even handkerchiefs and aprons that had touched him were taken to the sick, and their sicknesses were cured and the evil spirits left them.” It’s clear that healing evangelism was a prominent mode of operation of the local churches in the Book of Acts—it was the pattern set by Jesus and the Apostles. It was a significant contributor to their rapid growth and spread.

Healing Evangelism Ministries Can Vary in Size

Now, the Lord does indeed call some and gift them for large-scale healing evangelism. But we should not regard healing evangelism as viable only in large meetings. There are lost people all over that need to be saved—like those around your local church. The Lord is not willing that they perish. They may not be willing to travel a long distance as a seeker in a major crusade, but they might venture out to your church if they or someone in their family were sick and they knew of people who had been healed in your midst by the power of God.

Healing evangelism was effective in the first century, it still is today—maybe more so because of evolving technology in transportation, communication, translation, audio-visual presentation, etc. For example, some Jesus Film teams are combining healing evangelism with their ministry and seeing astounding results—many are coming to salvation, sometimes virtually whole villages. The Lord honors healing evangelism and He makes it effective. Healing evangelism can make a profound difference; it can change your church and your community. Sincerely pray about this.

Preparing for Healing Evangelism

If you decide to pursue a ministry of healing evangelism, some preparation may be necessary. People must be walking in victory and abiding in Jesus, a united, praying church. Worship will be characterized by Spirit-controlled liberty, by intense praise and the radiant joy of the Lord. But more challenging adjustments may also be needed. Two factors deeply grieve and quench the Spirit, stifling His freedom to work: (1) Harbored unforgiveness (see Matthew 18:21–35). The Lord may lead your church into a season of reconciliation when offences on many levels are acknowledged, mutually forgiven, and permanently abandoned. (2) Resistant unbelief (see Matthew 13:58; Mark 6:5–6).

Now, we should always be striving to keep our doctrine scripturally balanced and on track—right doctrine is foundational to averting divisions in the body over the long term; it promotes retention of the power of God as the church continues to minister. Yes, we need doctrinal integrity. Still, observation leads us to conclude that even doctrinal digressions do not seem to be as deadly to the Spirit’s powerful moving as unbelief and unforgiven offences.

Also, the church must be united in their desire for a ministry of healing evangelism. There must be firm belief—not only that God can heal in this way, but that if we prayerfully move in full accordance with His plan and His purposes, He will do so if asked and not hindered. This may call for other seasons—of concerted emphasis on faith-building, of focusing on sensitivity to the heart of God and having the mind of Christ as you launch into healing evangelism and begin to carry it out.

Healing Evangelism as a Continuing Ministry

Healing evangelism in your church need not be limited to a time of special emphasis with a high profile multi-gifted evangelist. Gleaning from Acts and the Epistles, it’s evident that miracles and healings were an expected, regular occurrence in the assemblies and outreach of the Early Church. When Paul wrote to the Galatians he was aware that miracles were being worked among them (see Galatians 3:5). He was elsewhere at the time—the miracles had to be their own ministry. According to James 5:4–5, if believers are too sick to come to the meeting, the meeting should come to them. Now, healing within the body is a slightly different (and currently more common) application of the church’s healing ministry, but it’s instructive to note that James was assuming that elders of any local body would be able to conduct a healing ministry at any time.

This carries over to healing evangelism. In a given local church, there may not be anyone who alone has all the gifts needed for healing evangelism. But if the church sincerely prays, the Lord will distribute the necessary array of gifts among them, raising up an empowered team that can minister with anointing. Again, openness and integrity must never be the least bit compromised as they minister. Again, maintain balance. It is not ideal for healing evangelism—or any other operation of gifts—to become a signature doctrine in a church setting. Jesus, our Lord and Savior, Head of the Body, must retain preeminence. (Those who are called and specifically gifted to conduct healing evangelism campaigns are in a different setting—healing will be a major emphasis; still, the Person of Jesus must always be above all.)

Healing Seems to Have No Pattern

Some might wonder what a healing ministry in operation might look like. First, people are needed—victorious, prayed up, anointed, and appropriately gifted people. What exactly should they do when approached by one who is sick and desires healing? Reading the New Testament, there seems to be no set way. James said to anoint with oil and pray—in a home. But there are cases in the New Testament where that formula was not strictly adhered to. And out in public, it seems that, particularly with Jesus, every situation was handled a little differently—sometimes vastly different. He touched people; they touched Him. He rebuked a fever; He spoke to demons and they left.

One man was let down through the roof; Jesus commended the faith of those who carried him. With others who sought healing, He commended their own faith. Others seemed to express no faith at all. He applied saliva to blind eyes; He made mud with saliva and applied it to eyes. He had one go and wash; He had lepers show themselves to the priest. He healed those who could come, and He spoke away the diseases of others who could not come. There seemed to be no pattern except that, one way or another, the power of Spirit Anointing through Him always met the need.

After Pentecost, God healed the sick as Peter’s shadow fell on them. People were healed from handkerchiefs that Paul had touched. The bottom line: Those in a healing ministry need to be keenly sensitive to the Spirit’s directives in every case presented to them.

What God Does through Healing

God accomplishes several things as He heals people: He reveals Himself and He is glorified (see Mark 2:4–12; Acts 4:21–22). In healing, God displays His loving compassion (see Matthew 14:14; 20:34). As God heals in our midst, it sparks joy and praise to Him. Occasionally, there is instantaneous and complete physical restoration apart from or superseding medical procedure—like we see in the Jesus-years—and joy explodes (see Acts 8:4–8). Through healing, many are won into the Kingdom of God (see Acts 9:32–42).

Healing-Every-Time

Now, with Jesus, there was an element that does not apply to us: He chose to use healing evangelism to verify that He was the Messiah in fulfillment of prophecy (see Matthew 8:16–17; Isaiah 53:4–5). A major point of Jesus’ identity as Messiah was His deity, as Isaiah 9:6 prophesied, “And he will be called… Mighty God…” In Psalm 103:3, Jehovah of Israel is described by David as the God “who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases.” So, when Jesus (Jehovah Savior) came, He established that He was part of the Godhead through a ministry of healing-every-time. It was obvious and inescapable—right there among them was the One who was forgiving sins and healing all their diseases.

In this historically unique setting, the purposes of God and the will of the Father included Jesus’ commissioning to heal every time. Healing-every-time occurs when, in a given ministry setting, everyone who wants to be healed is completely healed. This does not mean that Jesus’ healing ministry was unlimited. His healing ministry was at times restrained by human reticence and/or unbelief. He did not wave His hand and release the entire nation from every infirmity. No, the healing He performed was tied to the authentication of His Person and the advancement of His redemptive mission. So, acknowledging that there were limitations, healing-every-time was a hallmark of Jesus’ ministry.

The Healing at Bethesda Pool

Again, everyone who wanted to be healed by Jesus was completely healed. But some were healed who didn’t request it, like the man who had been lying for thirty-eight years at the pool called Bethesda (see John 5:1–16). Jesus asked him, “Do you want to get well?” That probing question was in order because it’s likely that the invalids gathered there were using their pitiful disabilities as appeals for begging. They had adjusted to begging for their livelihood—if they were healed they would effectively lose their ‘begging license’ and be forced to restart their lives. So, “Do you want to get well?” was an essential question. The man responded with his well-rehearsed explanation for his hopeless situation: He had no help, thus he was never first into the pool. To me, that response sounds a bit wobbly and off point, but Jesus was eager to express His compassion so He took that for a ‘yes’ and promptly healed the man.

Now, was this man the only one by the pool who tugged at the compassion of Jesus and His Father? I don’t think so. In that special era of healing-every-time, Jesus was free to demonstrate His love and grant healing to all who desired it. Around that pool there was “…a great number of disabled people” (John 5:3). I believe Jesus was primed and ready to ‘empty out the hospital,’ but He wanted them to want healing and simply ask for it. It’s likely He offered healing to that particular man because he was the worst case present. The message was obvious: If Jesus could heal ‘Old 38,’ He could heal anybody. Jesus was hoping that all the others would be clamoring for healing. It didn’t happen. Nobody moved. Nobody really wanted to be healed. I suspect that Jesus was keenly disappointed as He walked away. Not long after, the one who was healed expressed his thanks by reporting Jesus to the Jewish leaders, who then launched a campaign of persecution against Him. Unless you really desire to be healed, you are not likely to be grateful or give God the glory.

Unbelief at Nazareth

There may be another instance where lack of desire for healing surfaced, although the primary stated issue was unbelief. Jesus was teaching in the synagogue in Nazareth where He had grown up. Instead of His neighbors appreciating that this was one of their own, “…they took offence at him…He could not do any miracles there, except lay his hands on a few sick people and heal them. And he was amazed at their lack of faith” (Mark 6:3, 5–6).

Now, if we don’t trust someone—that’s unbelief. We become suspicious of them and their motives, and we don’t want their services if it entails submitting ourselves to them. Jesus healed just a few because they were the only ones who wanted healing from Him—the only ones who could bring themselves to trust Him. In this case it was unbelief, at Bethesda Pool it was probably livelihood, but whatever the issue, if people don’t want Jesus’ healing and don’t ask for it, most often they don’t get it. God prefers not to override human will.

Through the Roof for Healing

So, God looks for the person’s desire for healing—and, as well, Scripture often speaks clearly about faith being a factor. At the healing of the paralytic lowered through the roof, we read in Luke 5:20, “When Jesus saw their faith, he said, ‘Friend, your sins are forgiven.’” But the force of faith shows itself in an unusual way earlier in this account. Luke notes, “And the power of the Lord was present for him to heal the sick.” Luke’s observation may indicate his surprise at the healing Jesus did on that occasion because he also points out that there were many Pharisees and teachers of the Law surrounding Jesus. They were raising a judgmental cloud of suspicion and unbelief—like at Nazareth—that could have blighted Jesus’ healing ministry.

For Luke it was remarkable, indeed a tribute to God’s grace and power that Jesus was ministering with healing despite being surrounded by skepticism. Mark’s account may hold the answer: This incident occurred in Capernaum, Jesus’ adopted home base, and He was loved, trusted, and hugely popular (see Mark 2:1–5). Many present at this ministry session were common folks, brimming with confidence that Jesus could do anything. Their strong faith seems to have overwhelmed the cynicism and unbelief of the Jewish leaders. Now, the dramatic case of the paralytic is the only healing we are specifically told about, but there may have been a sizable number of people healed that day—in spite of the unbelieving element in their midst.

Healing-Every-Time Extended

Recapping, Jesus’ trademark of healing-every-time constituted a brief era of evangelistic outreach that related to His identity as Messiah. It lasted throughout His ministry and for a limited period beyond Jesus’ departure—into the early years of the Church Age (see Acts 5:12–16). Healing-every-time was extended so that the ministry of the new and expanding Church could be recognized as a continuation of Jesus’ ministry, operating with His full power and authority (see Acts 4:13–14). God wanted the world to know that even if they could no longer see and touch Jesus (and rage against Him, and crucify Him), He was not gone; He was still very much among them and at work through those who loved and served Him.

The extension of healing-every-time after Pentecost established the linkage and continuity between the King and the Spiritual Kingdom—between the new Church and Jesus’ Headship of the Church through the unseen Person of the Spirit of Jesus. After Pentecost, people witnessed the apostles ministering with Jesus’ trademark healing-every-time. It was quickly evident that Jesus’ ministry—and what He had set in motion with His finished work—was being continued by the Church.

Healing-Every-Time Largely Withdrawn

When the Lord’s objectives were achieved to His satisfaction, it appears that the every-time aspect of the Church’s healing ministry was largely withdrawn—we are not told when that happened. However, there may be evidence that it receded unevenly, possibly around twenty years after Pentecost. But I don’t sense surprise among the Apostles at its being withdrawn. (Indeed, the Apostles themselves may have been the first to lose access to it.) The surprise may have been that healing-every-time was extended at all beyond the death of Jesus, and even more surprise that it continued as long as it did. By the close of New Testament writing, we glean that the frequency of miraculous healings had settled out to about what we see today.

The Problem of Our Fallen Condition

But, (as can happen yet today) healing-every-time may have reappeared for brief periods in new ministry areas, such as on the island of Malta, about AD 60 (See Acts 28:7–9. I’m convinced that the response to the healing on this occasion is what Jesus had wanted at the Pool of Bethesda.) Again, healing-every-time is one means God uses to strongly affirm Jesus’ Deity and Messiahship. But when an area becomes evangelized, the need declines for continuing that affirmation at the initial level. Most people will have accepted Jesus’ credentials.

Now, if we had constant assurance of healing-every-time, wouldn’t that be great? We all know well that even non-fatal disorders can range from being uncomfortable to being unbearable. If every physical problem could be completely corrected, some of the Early Church saints might still be with us. Barring an obliterating accident, martyrdom, murder, war casualty, or such like, we might live hundreds, maybe thousands of years—maybe we could totally beat death and live forever!

But, whoa…living forever in the fallen condition is precisely the scenario that the Lord God would not allow in the Garden of Eden (see Genesis 3:22; Hebrews 9:27). That would create exceptions to His declaration that sin leads to death. So, after an area has been evangelized, the situation does change over time, and when we think about it, the reasons are evident. Still, the Lord can and may indeed grant a limited period of healing-every-time to establish a powerful witness in a new area, particularly where there is intense spiritual challenge. But it is not realistic to expect that healing-every-time will be continued indefinitely beyond that setting.

Mixed Experiences with Healing

Apparently Paul’s own team was not always granted the very healing they were ministering to others. We have noted Paul’s dramatic healing ministry at Ephesus (see Acts 19:11–12). Yet he himself had a “thorn in the flesh” (see 2 Corinthians 12:7–9) that some think may have been an eye disease, because he wrote with large letters (see Galatians 6:11). Paul was in Galatia (about AD 45, 46) because of his own illness (see Galatians 4:14–16). Although at this juncture there were churches that were still receiving healing-every-time (see James 5:14–16), Paul’s illness may indicate that it was already withdrawn from some church leaders like apostles and their teams. The text is clear that Paul was conducting a healing-evangelism ministry that was benefiting many others, yet God declined to heal Paul’s own physical difficulties.

Timothy had digestive troubles because Paul suggested that he “…use a little wine because of your stomach and your frequent illnesses” (1 Timothy 5:23). Epaphroditus became sick and almost died while serving Paul (see Philippians 2:25–27). The text leads us to assume that the Lord did grant recovery over time. Paul wrote in 2 Timothy 4:20 that he had to leave Trophimus sick in Miletus. Paul would not have wanted to do that—and we aren’t told how that turned out. But in all these cases, it’s evident that miraculous healing was not forthcoming.

The Outreach-Priority View of Healing

What should we learn from Paul’s experience? Consider: We ourselves may not receive miraculous resolution for all of our physical problems. As with Paul, God may grant us grace to learn to live with our own infirmities—even while He—through us—is granting grace to effect complete and instantaneous healing in others. They are healed that they might be won to Jesus, and through their joyful witness, many others brought into the Kingdom of God. Think about it: What is more important—our comfortable good health, or souls snatched from the lake of fire? That’s the issue here.

Paul, and those working with him, held an outreach-priority view of healing. That’s why they could watch God heal others and not themselves, and not be envious of them, or charge God with being unfair. They were totally committed to winning the world—and they saw themselves as expendable in the process. They saw their own physical integrity, personal comfort, and longevity as decidedly secondary. The condition of their own health and even life itself was all relinquished to the discretion of Jesus, their Commander in this Kingdom warfare.

In healing, as in all other areas, God will move in the way that brings Him the most glory. Seldom are we given the insight to know what shape that might take in any given situation. His ways and His thoughts are infinitely higher than ours. Our part is not to understand it all, but to trust Him, worship Him, praise Him, acknowledge that He is always good, and give Him glory.

Be Cautious about Guarantees of Healing

Acknowledging reality, it’s usually not prudent to make guarantees about healing. The Church no longer has blanket assurance of healing-every-time. Healing is not an area with neat predictability. If we are honest, we must concede that we are left with more questions than answers. We haven’t yet captured all the truth that allows us to completely reconcile Jesus’ strong words in Mark 11:22 and John 14:11–14 with the reality we see lived out even by those in the New Testament after the early years.

But we can’t wait around until we have all the answers sorted out and our doctrinal uncertainties all settled—we may never arrive at that point. The love of Christ and the lost world constrains us to go in the light we have—to be Jesus’ compassionate heart, seeking the lost and powerfully drawing them to salvation through healing evangelism. I am impressed that, rather than striving at length to understand and reconcile everything, we need to simply accept that the Lord has offered to us who are His Church much more potential for mighty works than any of us has put to use. Yes, it may appear to us that there is some disparity, but I suspect that we ought not to be quick to take comfort in that. Instead of looking for ways to water down Jesus’ strong promises, let them stand as a rebuke to us—our faith is so fleeting and our abiding in Jesus so tenuous. His promises still beckon us to boldly go where no one since He Himself has gone before.

The Greatest Miracle of Healing: Our Salvation

Finally, we ought to be cautious about clamoring for the drama of the miracles we have discussed here. We need to bear in mind that the greatest miracle a human being can experience has already taken place in the life of every believer—that’s the New Birth. Think about it: The power of God has transformed each one of us from a slave of Satan destined for the Lake of Fire into a child of God headed for Heaven! God has miraculously and instantly healed us from the ultimate terminal condition of sin. This is the crowning miracle of healing that we ought to eagerly reproduce as often as possible in people who don’t know Jesus as Lord and Savior. An incredible aspect of this miraculous healing is that we ourselves can have considerable input into creating the favorable conditions under which God will continue to work New Birth miracles. We can commit ourselves to being a faithful personal witness, supporting prayer-soaked outreach, and engaging in Spirit-led healing evangelism.