When Jesus walked on this earth, He healed the sick. He healed everyone who came for healing to Him: “they brought him all the sick… and He healed them” (Matthew 4:24). Later, we read of healing miracles performed by the apostles.
They seem to happen less often than in the ministry of Jesus, and on a smaller scale. Paul performed mass healing in Ephesus: “And God was doing extraordinary miracles by the hands of Paul, so that even handkerchiefs or aprons that had touched his skin were carried away to the sick, and their diseases left them and the evil spirits came out of them” (Acts 19:11-12). However, there were also many instances when Paul could not heal. He could not heal Timothy (1 Timothy 5:23), Trophimus (2 Timothy 4:20); Epaphroditus (Philippians 2:27); and himself (2 Corinthians 12:7-10).
The gift of healing
In James, we read about how a prayer of faith by the elders of the church saves the sick (James 5:14-16). When Paul writes to the Corinthians he seems to imply that some of the members of the church have a gift of healing (1 Corinthians 12:9). An important question is whether the gift of healing is still in operation today. The answer to that is not easy. To start with, it is not so clear how this gift functioned even in the New Testament period. Some people teach that the miraculous gifts ended with the time of the apostles. While there might be some truth in that – miracles at least became much less common in later times – the biblical foundation for it is not convincing. But on the other hand, people who now claim to have the gift of healing are very unconvincing. That a gift of the Holy Spirit existed in the New Testament period, is not yet proof that it has to exist today. Apostleship is a gift of the Spirit (1 Corinthians 12:28) that was clearly temporary.
A balanced biblical view on healing
The following considerations are helpful to have in mind in order to have a balanced biblical stance on healing:
- God does the healing. Usually, He fights illness and medical professionals’ efforts through the mechanisms He established in our bodies. We thank the Lord for these healings as well, which we get from Him.
- God does the healing. Any Christian would naturally pray to God for healing, and God may answer these prayers by miraculous healing, natural recovery, or [by the efforts of doctors]. It might not always be possible for us to tell them apart.
- Contrary to what the majority of faith healers preach, having faith in God does not guarantee miraculous healing. Of the thirty-five miracles reported in the gospels, only ten involved the individual experiencing the miracle exercising faith.
- The Bible offers no support for the notion that God desires for all of His children’s illnesses to be cured. Furthermore, it defies experience. It casts doubt on the faith of Christians who suffer from severe illnesses or disabilities. Consequently, it is a doctrine of the devil, luring us to believe that we will live in a paradise before the Lord Jesus returns. However, we will have to wait for the new earth to save our bodies.
- God may want you to be sick. God is in charge of all He created, including our physical well-being. He might use illness to strengthen our faith. God values our sound faith more than our physical well-being.
- Meetings for healing on a large scale should be avoided. Usually, the doctrine is not supported by the Bible, making excessive promises, and blaming the ill for not being healed if they do not receive healing. Research virtually always exposes the healing claims made at these meetings as being false.
God may and will heal in response to our prayers, but we must never lose sight of the fact that healing is but a fleeting, earthly benefit. Eternal and spiritual blessings are the most valuable kind. It’s possible that our hardships—even our illnesses—have prepared us for these spiritual gifts.
