Question 1

From what do we need to be healed?

Accepted Answer

Mark 1:40A man with leprosy came and knelt in front of Jesus, begging to be healed. “If you are willing, you can heal me and make me clean,” he said.Luke 8:42-43His only daughter, who was twelve years old, was dying. As Jesus went with him, he was surrounded by the crowds. A woman in the crowd had suffered for twelve years with constant bleeding, and she could find no cure.We may long for healing from a sickness or disease.Isaiah 61:1“The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is upon me, . . . He has sent me to comfort the brokenhearted.”We may need healing and restoration for a broken heart.Psalm 30:11You have turned my mourning into joyful dancing. You have taken away my clothes of mourning and clothed me with joy.We may need healing from sorrow.Psalm 55:20As for my companion, he betrayed his friends; he broke his promises.We may need healing from the pain of betrayal.Psalm 103:3-4He forgives all my sins and heals all my diseases. He redeems me from death and crowns me with love and tender mercies.Romans 6:23The wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord.We all need to be healed from sin.Proverbs 17:22A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a broken spirit saps a person’s strength.At times we need healing from depression and sadness.

Question 2

Will God heal me?

Accepted Answer

Exodus 15:26He said, “If you will listen carefully to the voice of the Lord your God and do what is right in his sight, obeying his commands and keeping all his decrees, then I will not make you suffer any of the diseases I sent on the Egyptians; for I am the Lord who heals you.”God is not bound by the limitations of this world. He can intervene to overcome any threat to our lives, including illness and disease—physical, emotional, or spiritual.Luke 5:12-13In one of the villages, Jesus met a man with an advanced case of leprosy. When the man saw Jesus, he bowed with his face to the ground, begging to be healed. “Lord,” he said, “if you are willing, you can heal me and make me clean.” Jesus reached out and touched him. “I am willing,” he said. “Be healed!” And instantly the leprosy disappeared.Jesus has the ability and the willingness to heal us. We are not bothering God when we pray for healing; we are expressing our faith and trust in him. For reasons we may not understand, Jesus doesn’t heal all of our illnesses, but he does perform great acts of healing in us every day, healing us from sin, grief, sickness, and weariness of soul.Psalm 147:3He heals the brokenhearted and bandages their wounds.Malachi 4:2“But for you who fear my name, the Sun of Righteousness will rise with healing in his wings. And you will go free, leaping with joy like calves let out to pasture.”God’s healing can reach every level of our lives. His healing brings a joy and freedom that cannot be fully described.

Question 3

How does God heal us?

Accepted Answer

2 Kings 20:7Then Isaiah said, “Make an ointment from figs.” So Hezekiah’s servants spread the ointment over the boil, and Hezekiah recovered!God heals through physicians and medicine.Psalm 119:93I will never forget your commandments, for by them you give me life.Mark 3:5He [Jesus] looked around at them angrily and was deeply saddened by their hard hearts. Then he said to the man, “Hold out your hand.” So the man held out his hand, and it was restored!God heals through his words and commands.Luke 5:12-13In one of the villages, Jesus met a man with an advanced case of leprosy. When the man saw Jesus, he bowed with his face to the ground, begging to be healed. “Lord,” he said, “if you are willing, you can heal me and make me clean.” Jesus reached out and touched him. “I am willing,” he said. “Be healed!” And instantly the leprosy disappeared.God heals through miracles.Mark 2:1-5When Jesus returned to Capernaum several days later, the news spread quickly that he was back home. Soon the house where he was staying was so packed with visitors that there was no more room, even outside the door. While he was preaching God’s word to them, four men arrived carrying a paralyzed man on a mat. They couldn’t bring him to Jesus because of the crowd, so they dug a hole through the roof above his head. Then they lowered the man on his mat, right down in front of Jesus. Seeing their faith, Jesus said to the paralyzed man, “My child, your sins are forgiven.”God heals through faith in him.Psalm 6:2Have compassion on me, Lord, for I am weak. Heal me, Lord, for my bones are in agony.James 5:14Are any of you sick? You should call for the elders of the church to come and pray over you.God heals through prayer.Isaiah 38:16Lord, your discipline is good, for it leads to life and health. You restore my health and allow me to live!God heals through discipline.Genesis 27:41; 33:4From that time on, Esau hated Jacob because their father had given Jacob the blessing. And Esau began to scheme: “I will soon be mourning my father’s death. Then I will kill my brother, Jacob.” . . . Then Esau ran to meet him and embraced him, threw his arms around his neck, and kissed him. And they both wept.God heals through time.Isaiah 53:5He [the Messiah] was pierced for our rebellion, crushed for our sins. He was beaten so we could be whole. He was whipped so we could be healed.God heals through Jesus the Messiah. His death brought us life; his wounds brought us healing. By taking upon himself the punishment we deserved for our sin, he forgives us and sets us free.Revelation 21:4“He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. All these things are gone forever.”God heals through his promise of heaven, for there we will receive complete and final healing.

Question 4

Does God still heal today?

Accepted Answer

Mark 1:40-45A man with leprosy came and knelt in front of Jesus, begging to be healed. “If you are willing, you can heal me and make me clean,” he said. Moved with compassion, Jesus reached out and touched him. “I am willing,” he said. “Be healed!” Instantly the leprosy disappeared, and the man was healed.James 5:13-16Are any of you sick? You should call for the elders of the church to come and pray over you, anointing you with oil in the name of the Lord. Such a prayer offered in faith will heal the sick, and the Lord will make you well. And if you have committed any sins, you will be forgiven. Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results.Jesus’ healing of the leper shows that God loves those who are sick or have deformities as much as he loves those who are healthy. In Jesus’ day, leprosy was seen as a disease that made a person unacceptable to God. When Jesus touched the leper, he revealed both God’s power and compassion for the entire person—physical and spiritual. God can and does heal today—through the body’s natural processes, through medical science, and even through miraculous means. But the greatest disease is sin, which disfigures the soul. Jesus heals the disease of sin by his forgiveness and grace. Have you allowed him to touch that part of your life?

Question 5

How should I seek God’s healing?

Accepted Answer

James 5:13-16Are any of you sick? You should call for the elders of the church to come and pray over you, anointing you with oil in the name of the Lord. Such a prayer offered in faith will heal the sick, and the Lord will make you well. And if you have committed any sins, you will be forgiven.God often uses others to give us his gifts, including healing. He has given authority to church leaders to be vessels for this special work. While we may not feel worthy or capable, we should pray for one another in obedience to God. Our prayers invite God to show us his power.Psalm 32:3-5When I refused to confess my sin, my body wasted away, and I groaned all day long. Day and night your hand of discipline was heavy on me. My strength evaporated like water in the summer heat. Interlude Finally, I confessed all my sins to you and stopped trying to hide my guilt. I said to myself, “I will confess my rebellion to the Lord.” And you forgave me! All my guilt is gone.Psalm 103:3He forgives all my sins and heals all my diseases.Sin can make us sick—literally. In this case, healing can come if we repent of our sins and receive God’s forgiveness.Psalm 119:93I will never forget your commandments, for by them you give me life.Following God’s direction can bring healing in our lives. God’s Word shows us how to break free from the stress, pressure, and unhealthy practices that undermine our health.

Question 6

Why doesn’t God heal people in every case?

Accepted Answer

Psalm 103:2-3Let all that I am praise the Lord; may I never forget the good things he does for me. He forgives all my sins and heals all my diseases.Matthew 4:23-24Jesus traveled throughout the region of Galilee, teaching in the synagogues and announcing the Good News about the Kingdom. And he healed every kind of disease and illness. News about him spread as far as Syria, and people soon began bringing to him all who were sick. And whatever their sickness or disease, or if they were demon possessed or epileptic or paralyzed—he healed them all.Revelation 22:1-2Then the angel showed me a river with the water of life, clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb. It flowed down the center of the main street. On each side of the river grew a tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, with a fresh crop each month. The leaves were used for medicine to heal the nations.Revelation 21:4“He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. All these things are gone forever.”God has full authority over all sickness. He can heal whomever he chooses. But why he heals some and not others is not always clear to us. Sometimes his will is to release a person from his or her suffering and sickness through death. Eventually, he will remove all sickness and suffering from all his children for eternity. We will live in God’s presence forever, where no sickness or disease will exist (Revelation 21:4).2 Corinthians 12:8-9Three different times I begged the Lord to take it away. Each time he said, “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me.We do not know why God heals some and not others. But we do know that God’s power is magnified through our weaknesses if we allow him to work within us. If we have been praying to be healed or praying for a loved one to be healed and God has not done it, we should trust that he has something even greater that he wants to accomplish through the illness.

Question 7

How can I find peace if I’m not healed?

Accepted Answer

2 Corinthians 12:8-10Three different times I begged the Lord to take it away. Each time he said, “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me. That’s why I take pleasure in my weaknesses, and in the insults, hardships, persecutions, and troubles that I suffer for Christ. For when I am weak, then I am strong.We can take comfort in relying on God in our weaknesses. God often works through weaknesses to demonstrate his love and power in unique ways. The apostle Paul begged God to take away a specific weakness on three specific occasions; but each time, God chose not to remove it. Through this weakness, Paul learned humility and reliance on God’s perfect power. Who knows how Paul’s life and ministry might have turned out differently if he had not learned to depend on God so deeply. Through God, our weaknesses can also become a powerful witness to the world.Psalm 73:24-26You guide me with your counsel, leading me to a glorious destiny. Whom have I in heaven but you? I desire you more than anything on earth. My health may fail, and my spirit may grow weak, but God remains the strength of my heart; he is mine forever.Whether or not God chooses to heal us physically, we can have the unspeakable gift of knowing him personally. The promise of eternal life with him and our ultimate healing are our greatest sources of comfort and hope.

Question 8

If I am not healed, does this mean I do not have enough faith?

Accepted Answer

Matthew 13:57-58They [the people of Nazareth] were deeply offended and refused to believe in him. Then Jesus told them, “A prophet is honored everywhere except in his own hometown and among his own family.” And so he did only a few miracles there because of their unbelief.Matthew 17:14-20A man came and knelt before Jesus and said, “Lord, have mercy on my son. He has seizures and suffers terribly. . . . I brought him to your disciples, but they couldn’t heal him.” Jesus said, “You faithless and corrupt people! How long must I be with you? How long must I put up with you? Bring the boy here to me.” Then Jesus rebuked the demon in the boy, and it left him. From that moment the boy was well. Afterward the disciples asked Jesus privately, “Why couldn’t we cast out that demon?” “You don’t have enough faith,” Jesus told them. “I tell you the truth, if you had faith even as small as a mustard seed, you could say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it would move. Nothing would be impossible.”When Jesus healed, faith was always a part of the equation. Though the disciples’ faith was great enough for normal cases (Luke 10:17), it apparently was too weak in this instance. However, assuming lack of healing means lack of faith is a dangerous trap that can lead to feeling guilty or judging others. Faith is not fuel for some miracle machine. Faith is giving control of your situation to God. God sovereignly chooses whom to heal and when to do so. Some he heals quickly, others he heals over time, others he heals in eternity. Our responsibility is to believe that he is able to heal us and trust him fully to make the timing decision for our healing, even if he waits to heal us until we reach our eternal home.

Healing