Dr. Jack L. Arnold
WHAT IS THE
GIFT OF HEALING AND HOW IS IT TO BE USED?
Matthew 8:1-4 and John 5:1-8
THE SOVEREIGN
GOD OF THE BIBLE
The Bible clearly teaches God is sovereign and He
has control over all things, even sin and sickness. God did not create sin but He does have control over
it. God is sovereign over
nations. ÒAll the peoples of the earth are regarded as nothing. He does as He pleases with the powers
of heaven and the peoples of the earth.Ó(Dan. 4:35);
He is sovereign over kings. ÒThe kingÕs
heart is in the hand of the LORD; he directs it like a watercourse wherever he
pleasesÓ (Prov. 21:1). He is
sovereign over salvation. ÒFor he chose us in him before the creation
of the world . . . in accordance with his pleasure and willÓ (Eph. 1:4). He is sovereign over
disaster. ÒI am the LORD, and there is no other;
apart from me there is no God . . . I am the LORD, and there is no other. I form the light and create darkness, I
bring prosperity and create disaster; I, the LORD, do all these thingsÓ (Isa.
45:5-7). He is sovereign over
circumstances. ÒWhen times are good, be happy: but when times are bad
consider: God has made the one as well as the otherÓ (Eccl. 7:14). He is sovereign over the destinies of the non-elect. ÒThe LORD works out
everything for his own ends-even the wicked for a day of disasterÓ (Prov.
16:4.).
Whatever else the Bible may teach about God, it
definitely teaches His sovereignty.
There is no law of any kind or description anywhere in the universe that
can coerce or force God to do anything which He does not
please to do. ÒRemember the former things, those of long
ago; I am God, and there is no other.
I am God, and there is none like me. I make known the end from the beginning, from ancient times,
what is still to come. I say: My
purpose will stand, and I will do all that I pleaseÓ (Isa. 46:9-10). God always does what pleases Him ÒOur
God is in heaven; he does whatever pleases himÓ (Psa. 115:3).
Sovereignty Over Sickness and Death.
Since God is sovereign, He has control over
sickness. Whether that sickness is
brought directly from God or allowed in His permissive will, He still has
control over it and can remove it if He chooses to do so. God is sovereign over sickness. ÒThe Lord said to him, ÔWho gave man his
mouth? Who makes him deaf or
dumb? Who give him sight or makes
him blind? Is it not I, the LORD?Õ (Exodus 4:11). He is sovereign over death. ÒThe LORD brings death and makes alive; he brings down to the grave and
raises up. The LORD sends poverty
and wealth; he humbles and he exaltsÓ (I Sam. 2:6-7).
Even if some see Satan behind much of the sickness,
we know from the life of Job that Satan must work under the limitations of a
sovereign God. God allowed Satan
to touch the body of Job with horrible boils but he could not take his
life. ÒÔSkin for Skin!Õ Satan
replied. ÔA man will give all he
has for his own life. But
stretch out your hand and strike his flesh and bones, and he will surely curse
you to your face.Õ The LORD said to Satan, ÔVery well, then, he is in your
hands; but you must spare his lifeÓÔ (Job 2:4-5). Whether God brings sickness in His directive will or allows
for it in his permissive will, He always has control over it. Somehow, sickness is working for GodÕs
glory and the good of GodÕs elect.
Just exactly how we will not know completely until we get into
eternity. Yet, because He is
sovereign over sickness, God can remove it if He chooses to do so.
One of GodÕs names in the Old Testament is Jehovah-Rapha which means, ÒI am the Lord who heals youÓ, and it is
used in relation to IsraelÕs captivity in Egypt (Exo. 15:26). Jehovah
was the physician for His covenant people Israel. One of the great healings in the Old Testament was that of
the Gentile Naaman, commander of the army of the King of Aram (2 Kings
5:1-15). Naaman sought out Elisha
the prophet for healing for leprosy.
NaamanÕs first mistake was to try to buy healing from Elisha. Obviously, the prophet refused any
money to heal.
The principle is one canÕt buy healing and those who
heal should never accept money for their practice. Just
as tragic in todayÕs world it the opulent lifestyles of men and women who are
getting rich by healing people in the name of Jesus. Naaman made a second mistake by assuming
Elisha should pray for him a certain way. ÒBut Naaman went away angry and
said, ÔI thought that he would surely come out to me and stand and call on the
name of the LORD his God, wave his hand over the spot and cure me of my
leprosy.ÓÕ (15:11). Elisha
told him to go wash himself seven times in the Jordan. Naaman was offended and thought the
rivers Abana and Pharpar in Damascus were better than any waters of Israel.
The issue was not the water but God. Would Naaman swallow his pride and obey Elisha who represented God? Finally, Naaman humbled himself and washed himself in the Jordan seven times. He was miraculously healed of leprosy ÒSo he went down and dipped himself in the Jordan seven times as the man of God had told him, and his flesh was restored and became clean like that of a young boy.Ó (15:14). What Naaman had to learn was it was not the prophet or the water which healed him but it was God, and it was to this God Naaman gave all the glory ÒNaaman said, ÔNow I know that there is no God in all the world except in IsraelÓÔ (15:15).
The New Testament is filled with supernatural
healings of the sick by Christ, the Apostles and the Elders. One particular healing to show the sovereignty
of Christ is the healing of the invalid who had been in that condition for 38
years at the Pool of Bethesda (John 5:1-8). Those with all kinds of sickness would come to this pool for
supposed healing - the blind, the lame, the paralyzed. There were surely hundreds that day
around the pool seeking healing but this one man who had been an invalid for 38
years could not get to the water.
Then Jesus said to this man, ÒGet up! Pick up your mat and walk.Ó At once, this man was cured. A supernatural work was done.
Christ healed only one person out of the hundreds
who were around the pool. The
invalid was chosen out of many as needy as he was to be healed. Why God chose one and passed by others
is a mystery, which must be placed in the sovereign purposes of God. God did not choose this man because of
his faith because Jesus had to ask him, ÒDo you want to get well?Ó The invalid was healed that day because
Jesus chose to heal him, and that was pure grace.
There are a lot of things being said and done in the
modern day healing movements that need to be examined closely. What is being said is (and this may be
an over simplification): ÒGod
loves everyone and desires to heal everyone. Sickness is sin and an enemy to the Christian. It is really GodÕs desire to heal all
who come to Him by faith because Christ died for all sickness. If we come and are not healed, then the
fault is not with God but the person who did not exercise enough faith or the
right kind of faith.Ó
Behind this kind of thinking is a theology - a well
thought out theology - which has some truth but just enough error to make it
very dangerous. At the bottom of
this theology is a misunderstanding of God, namely His sovereignty. It is freewill oriented and man
centered which always plays down God and exalts.
Because most of us are not theologically oriented,
we never challenge the presuppositions (assumptions) of the many faith healers
of our day. Yet, we need to do
this if we are going to have a sane and biblical approach to divine healing.
God
Can Be Coaxed To Change His Plan by ManÕs Freewill
The modern healing movement says God has given man a
freewill and by this freewill can exercise faith in such a way that God must
give us our desires: Ò
If I just have enough faith, I will be healed. I must believe IÕm healed even though I see no signs that I
am.Ó
This movement says we must not only believe God is
able to heal us but that He can, wants to and will. Some say He must heal to be faithful to His promises to
heal. Anyone who wishes to be
healed must have absolute certainty that he will be healed and it is GodÕs
purpose to do so. Therefore,
one must rid his or her mind of all doubt and apprehension concerning GodÕs desire
to restore health. If God does not
heal, it is not because He is not willing but due to some failure in oneÕs
faith.
True faith is faith in God, who does all things
right and well, not faith in ourselves, faith in our
hopes or faith in our faith.
Merely because we believe or are convinced in ourselves that God wants
to heal does not mean He will. He
may heal but not because we coaxed Him into it by our faith. God is sovereign and free to do what He
pleases and is not dependent on the moods, whims and demands of His creatures.
We must never wield our faith as if it were a whip
by which we compel God to respond.
We do not force His will into submission to our wills simply by
banishing doubt from our hearts.
What about those who have faithfully believed and
were not healed? Often these
people get great guilt, wonder what is wrong with their faith and then get
angry with God. Many abandon the
faith because they feel God didnÕt keep His promise.
How do these healers explain to Joni Eareckson Tada? Who is crippled for life, that she does
not have enough faith? Joni sought
healing for a long time. Did not
get it and became very guilty and angry with God until she finally submitted to
GodÕs will for her.
We never know the sovereign will of God for us until
it happens. It
may be that we are sick and this is GodÕs will for us, but it also may be His
will to heal us through supernatural means or through medical means. We should fight sickness as long as we
can but when healing does not occur, then we must submit to the sovereign God
who has higher purposes for us.
Sickness is not in the will of God for man because
pain, suffering and death are all the works of Satan. Peter Wagner says, ÒIf sickness is not GodÕs will, but many
people are in fact sick, what is the cause? The answer is clearly SatanÓ (How To Have A Healing
Ministry). Those
in the healing movement try to disconnect God from pain, suffering and sickness
because these are equated with sin and Satanically inspired.
In the Old Testament, God is presented as the one
who has ultimate control over sickness.
ÒWho gave man his mouth? Who makes him deaf or dumb? Who gives him sight or makes him blind? Is it not I, the LORD?Ó (Exo. 4:11). This is clearly illustrated in
JobÕs illness, which was allowed by God for Satan to inflict but always with
limits.
How God has control over sickness is somewhat of a mystery but He does. What is the alternative? The alternative is a God who does not have control over sickness, and we are the creatures of chance and a cosmic joke. What we must do is let God be God even though we donÕt understand everything.
Those in the modern healing movement say, ÒGod wants
everybody to be healed because God wants everybody to be happy.Ó They claim God is good and loves us;
therefore He will alleviate whatever diminishes our joy. We are the ÒKingÕs KidsÓ and He wants
what is best for us and sickness is never His best for us under any
circumstances.
Answer
This kind of reasoning says we have to be healed to be happy, but the Bible teaches we must learn contentment in whatever state we find ourselves. Joy does not necessarily mean the absence of physical pain and adversity. Joy is inner contentment, which is unaffected and not disturbed by worldly turmoil or bodily pain.
If a person cannot be happy until he is healthy,
there is something woefully deficient in his or her understanding of God and
His grace. The Apostle Paul prayed
three times for God to remove his thorn in the flesh (probably an eye disease)
and God refused. He said to Paul
ÒMy grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weaknessÓ (2
Cor. 12:9). The Apostle Paul had
to learn joy in the midst of sickness.
Surely, we cannot say Paul had a defective, weak and misguided faith and
this is the reason he didnÕt get healed.
The Christian will probably never be happy about
being sick but he can have the joy of Christ in that sickness. We should seek divine healing and
healing from medical doctors to alleviate our sickness. But if in the providence of God we are
not healed, then we must submit to our God in our circumstances, looking
forward to our future, new, resurrected bodies.
God
Desires To Heal Everybody
Those in the healing movement say ÒGod desires all men to be savedÓ and He is not willing that any should perish,Ó indicating God desires to save everybody but canÕt because of their unbelief.
So also God desires all men to be healed and if they
are not it is because they do not believe.
If we are talking about some kind of an emotional
will of God based on His compassion which is separate from
His sovereign will which includes all things. I can accept that.
However, it is not GodÕs sovereign will to save all men and it is not
GodÕs sovereign will to heal all men.
But it is GodÕs sovereign will to save some and to physically heal
some. On that basis, we seek to
offer healing to whomever wants it, trusting God to do His will whatever it may
be.
Matthew 8:1-4. ÒWhen
he came down from the mountainside large crowds followed him. A man with leprosy came and knelt
before him and said, ÔLord, if you are willing, you can make me clean.Õ Jesus reached out his hand and touched
the man. ÔI am willing,Õ he
said. ÔBe clean!Õ Immediately
he was cured of his leprosy.Ó When
the leper came and knelt before Jesus, he rightly evaluated JesusÕ power. The leper knew Christ was able to heal
and wanted to know whether He was willing. He said, ÒLord if you
are willing, you can make me clean.Ó
Jesus touched the man and said, ÒI
am willing. Be clean.Ó In this particular case, Christ was
willing. The leper was appealing
to ChristÕs compassion, mercy and grace to heal from this horrible
disease. He did not demand healing
but asked for a healing and Christ gave it, not because He had to but because
He wanted to do it.
Most people in the modern healing movement believe
healing has been provided for in the atonement (death of Christ). Their primary text is Isaiah 53:4-5. ÒSurely he took up our infirmities and carried out
sorrows, yet we considered him stricken by God, smitten by him, and
afflicted. But he was pierced for
our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that
brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed.Ó. They claim Christ bore our
ÒinfirmitiesÓ (sicknesses) and ÒsorrowsÓ (pains).
These
folks believe that since Christ bore our sicknesses, then no one who comes to
Christ by faith will be refused.
The modern healing movement also appeals to Matthew
to show healing is in the atonement.
ÒWhen evening came, many who were demon-possessed were brought to him, and
he drove out the spirits with a word and healed all the sick. This
was to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah: ÔHe took up our infirmities and carried
our diseases.ÕÓ (Matt.
8:16-17). Isaiah 53 is
obviously quoted to show that the casting out of demons and the healing of the
sick was definitely related to ChristÕs work on the cross, concluding Christ
died in a substitutionary sense for sickness in the same way He died for sin.
Those in the healing movement must equate sin and sickness. It is true that sickness is the result
of sin in the same way that pain, accidents, tornadoes and weeds are the result
of sin, but sickness is not sin in itself. There is no guilt in sickness. The Bible tells us to pray for forgiveness for our sins and
to confess our sins, but it does not say.
ÒForgive my arthritisÓ or ÒI confess I have the flu.Ó We do not repent of having kidney
stones, nor do we come under conviction for having a cold. Jesus was punished for our sins not our
sicknesses. He bore the wrath of
our sins not our diseases.
When reading the context of Isaiah 53, it is obvious
this passage is filled with figurative language to express the point that
Christ died for our sins, and this has an impact on those things which sin
effects such as sickness and disease.
Through His death for sin, Christ laid down the foundation for the
overthrow and ultimate annihilation of all physical disease, which will occur
at the second coming of Christ.
While healing is not in the atonement per se, any blessing we receive in
life now, comes as a result of Christ having died for sins
which affects matters such as sickness, disease, suffering tragedy and
so forth. Is healing in the
atonement? No! Is healing related to blessing which
flow from the atonement? Yes! All blessings to both the saved and
unsaved come through the death of Christ.
While healing is not in the atonement, healing does come to us through
or on the basis of the atonement.
I believe that when it says Òby his wounds we are
healed,Ó it is referring to the spiritual healing of the soul, or the blessings
of healing which come to us through or on the basis of the atonement.
In Matthew 8:16,17, when it says Christ Òhealed all
the sickÓ and then quotes Isaiah 53:4: ÒHe took our infirmities and carried our
diseases.Ó Obviously
when this was quoted, the death of Christ had not occurred yet so it is
referring to His earthly ministry.
Furthermore, any blessing including healing comes to man on the basis of
the atonement and healing is just one of the blessings both saved and unsaved
receive on the basis or through the atonement.
If healing is in the atonement, then all should be
immediately healed who come to Christ for healing because all who trust Christ
for sin are immediately saved.
If healing is in the atonement, then no Christian
should ever be sick. For if Christ
forgives sin completely, then He must be able to heal completely or His death
would be ineffective.
THE SOVEREIGN GOD HEALS
TODAY
We who believe so strongly in
the sovereignty of God, ought to be seeking God for healing and directing
others to God for healing. Yet,
when healing does not take place, we know it is not a mistake, a lack of faith
or an inscrutable mystery. We know
it was not GodÕs will. With that
Divine decision, we can live, knowing that in our suffering there is genuine
redemptive value which can bring glory to God.
God
Is To Be Approached As A Sovereign.
When we go to God for a healing, we approach Him as
a Sovereign, a king who has the power to heal or not to heal. We approach Him with awe and
respect. We do not tell Him He has
to heal: we do not demand He heals; we do not command Him to heal. We humbly throw ourselves on Him, who
is a loving, compassionate God, asking Him to be merciful and heal for His own
glory.
God, the Sovereign, may or may not decide to heal, depending upon His infinite
wisdom as to whether this healing would be best for His glory and for the good
of His child. But, you know
what? You will never know if God
wants to heal you until you go to Him by faith, asking Him to do so. ÒYou
have not because you ask not.Ó