
It sounds so easy, doesn’t it?
The simplicity and straightforwardness in healings extended
also to the apostles of the early church.
James writes, “Is any one of you sick? He should call the
elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of
the Lord. And the prayer offered in faith will restore the one who is sick. The
Lord will raise him up” (James 5:14-15).
It sounds so straightforward. It seems like everyone who
sought healing from Jesus and even from the apostles was healed.
But despite what some “healer/evangelist” may tell you in
these days, it does not happen like that today. As a practical matter, we know
that receiving healing from God is not so uncomplicated today as it was in the
first century.
Why not?
What Has Changed?
As you read the history of the Bible, one of the things that becomes evident is that God does not work in the same manner all throughout time. There are certain aspects about each age that are unique to the generations of that particular era.
As you read the history of the Bible, one of the things that becomes evident is that God does not work in the same manner all throughout time. There are certain aspects about each age that are unique to the generations of that particular era.
The frequency of miracles is among those things. The
healings and the miracles that took place with Jesus and with the Apostles had
a specific purpose that was applicable for those years and which today does not
usually exist. This purpose for the healings was largely accomplished with that
first generations of believers. Once completed, healings done for this
particular reason are usually not necessary today.
This is the principle reason why we do not see miraculous
healings taking place today with the same apparent simplicity and frequency. There
was a special need for healings and other works of wonder in those days which
in these days does not exist.
I will get to that purpose in a moment, but first I would
like to speak of the nature of healings in our present day, and of our own
prayers for healings.
Compassion as a Motivation for
Prayer
When we pray for healings today, we usually have a single goal in mind—we are seeking the healing itself. We pray for someone with cancer because we want that person to get better. Our prayers are motivated principally by compassion. This is good and right. Compassion is an excellent motivation for prayer.
When we pray for healings today, we usually have a single goal in mind—we are seeking the healing itself. We pray for someone with cancer because we want that person to get better. Our prayers are motivated principally by compassion. This is good and right. Compassion is an excellent motivation for prayer.
Jesus was also motivated by compassion. We read of it time
and time again:
Jesus went through
all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the gospel
of the kingdom, and healing every disease and sickness. When He saw the crowds,
He was moved with compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless,
like sheep without a shepherd. (Matthew 9:35-36 BSB)
When Jesus stepped
ashore and saw a large crowd (the 5000), He had compassion on them, because
they were like sheep without a shepherd. And He began to teach them many
things. By now the hour was already late.
So the disciples came to Jesus and said, “This is a desolate place, and the hour is already late. Dismiss the crowd so they can go to the surrounding countryside and villages and buy themselves something to eat.” But Jesus told them, “You give them something to eat.” (Mark 6:34-36 BSB)
So the disciples came to Jesus and said, “This is a desolate place, and the hour is already late. Dismiss the crowd so they can go to the surrounding countryside and villages and buy themselves something to eat.” But Jesus told them, “You give them something to eat.” (Mark 6:34-36 BSB)
Jesus stopped and
called them (two blind men). “What do you want Me to do for you?” He asked.
“Lord,” they answered, “let our eyes be opened.”
Moved with compassion, Jesus touched their eyes, and at once they received their sight and followed Him. (Matthew 20:32-34 BSB)
“Lord,” they answered, “let our eyes be opened.”
Moved with compassion, Jesus touched their eyes, and at once they received their sight and followed Him. (Matthew 20:32-34 BSB)
Paul even calls God, “The Father of Compassion.”
Blessed be the God
and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of
all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those
in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God. (1
Corinthians 1:3-4 BSB)
Feeling compassion for someone is a God-given sentiment. It
is always an excellent motivation for our actions, and especially for our
prayers for the healing of others. Jesus had compassion for the state of
others, as did the Apostles.
An Additional Motivation for Healing
in the First Century
But God had an additional reason as well for the healings that occurred in the first century. This is the purpose that usually no longer applies today. This can be seen especially in the Apostle John’s concluding statement concerning the miracles that Jesus accomplished while on earth.
But God had an additional reason as well for the healings that occurred in the first century. This is the purpose that usually no longer applies today. This can be seen especially in the Apostle John’s concluding statement concerning the miracles that Jesus accomplished while on earth.
John says, “Jesus performed many other signs in the presence
of His disciples, which are not written in this book. But these are written so
that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by
believing you may have life in His name” (John 20:30-31 BSB).
Notice that John refers to the miracles of Jesus as “signs,”
and that these signs had a specific purpose. That purpose was so that the
people of the time could see that there was a basis to believe that this man
Jesus, the one who walked among them, who fed them and who healed them, was the
long promised Messiah of the prophecies spoken of by men and women of God
throughout the ages.
For instance the prophet Isaiah writes concerning the
Messiah:
Say to those with
anxious heart, “take courage, fear not. Behold, your God will come with
vengeance; the recompense of God will come, but He will save you.”
Then the eyes of the blind will be opened and the ears of the deaf will be unstopped.Then the lame will leap like a deer, and the tongue of the mute will shout for joy.(Isaiah 35:4-6 NAS)
Then the eyes of the blind will be opened and the ears of the deaf will be unstopped.Then the lame will leap like a deer, and the tongue of the mute will shout for joy.(Isaiah 35:4-6 NAS)
The prophecies are numerous, and if the people of that day
cared to look, they could have seen that these prophecies were being fulfilled
right before their eyes through the person of Jesus. But it was difficult for
many to accept. The message of Jesus was revolutionary in those days. It was a
message of grace instead of law. It was a message of faith instead of works. It
was a message of eternal life.
“God loved the world so much that he sent his only Son, that
whoever believes in him will never perish, but have everlasting life.”
As common as it is for us to hear these words today, they
were world-shattering to the people of the days of Jesus and the early church.
Words like these needed to be backed-up with evidence that they were true. They
needed authentication. They needed “signs.”
Jesus told some unbelieving Jews of his day, “If I am not
doing the works of My Father, then do not believe Me. But if I am doing them,
even though you do not believe Me, believe the works themselves, so that you
may know and understand that the Father is in Me, and I am in the Father” (John
10:37-38 BSB).
The works of Jesus were to be “signs” of his authenticity. John
said that he wrote about these signs so that his readers could believe that
Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God. They were given as evidence that what
Jesus said, and who he was claiming to be, were reliable.
Signs Continued in the Early Church
Many of these same signs extended also to the early church after Jesus ascended into heaven. These gifts were given to the church as a confirmation that Jesus had commissioned and ordained the church to continue his message. By demonstrating these signs in the early church, the world was to see that the words of Jesus were not to stop after his departure and after the death of the earliest disciples.
Many of these same signs extended also to the early church after Jesus ascended into heaven. These gifts were given to the church as a confirmation that Jesus had commissioned and ordained the church to continue his message. By demonstrating these signs in the early church, the world was to see that the words of Jesus were not to stop after his departure and after the death of the earliest disciples.
Soon before his
parting, Jesus said, “These signs will accompany those who have believed in My
name. They will cast out demons, they will speak with new tongues; they will
pick up serpents, and if they drink any deadly poison, it will not hurt them. They
will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover” (Mark 16:17-18 NAS).
Because of these words of Jesus, there are some churches
that teach that these things are still an indication of who is and who is not a
believer. But people who teach this are missing the true purpose of these signs.
They were not intended to be a “proof” that the person who picks up a snake is
a believer, and the one who does not, isn’t.
Motivation of the Signs in the
Church
Rather, these signs were given especially to the first generation of believers as indicators that the works and message that Jesus brought to earth were then passed on to the Apostles and to the churches. With the departure of Jesus, although Jesus was no longer physically with the people, his work continued on through his church.
Rather, these signs were given especially to the first generation of believers as indicators that the works and message that Jesus brought to earth were then passed on to the Apostles and to the churches. With the departure of Jesus, although Jesus was no longer physically with the people, his work continued on through his church.
Many of the ways that the signs were fulfilled in the early
church have been recorded for us in the book of The Acts of the Apostles. There
is even a specific example of picking up a serpent by the Apostle Paul. It is
one of the stories told to us in the book of Acts.
Paul was among the passengers of a ship that was shipwrecked
on the island of Malta in the Mediterranean, a place where the news of Jesus
had not yet reached. The islanders received the shipwrecked sailors and
passengers all on shore and made a fire on the beach so that they could dry off
and warm themselves.
While everyone was drying themselves, Paul thought that he
would help out a bit. He gathered a bundle of sticks to lay on the fire. As he
was about to put them into the blaze, a viper that had been in the bundle came
out and fastened itself to Paul’s hand.
When the island
people saw the creature hanging from his hand, they said to one another,
“Surely this man is a murderer. Although he was saved from the sea, Justice has not allowed him to live.”
The islanders had not heard about the message of Jesus and
did not worship God, but they did have their own standard of beliefs. They
thought that although Paul had been saved from the sea, he must have done some
great wrong, even being a murderer. Thus, they believed that “Justice,” as they
referred to their own beliefs, would still make him pay for his wrongdoing.
But Paul shook the viper off into the fire and sat down to
continue to warm himself. He suffered no ill effects at all from the bite of
the viper. The islanders, after waiting a long time and expecting Paul to swell
up or suddenly drop dead, then changed their minds about Paul and decided that
instead of being a murderer, was some sort of “god.” (from Acts 28:3-6)
Knowing the Voice of God
All of the miracles of the New Testament were in one way or another intended to be “signs” of the authenticity of the message of Jesus Christ. Once that purpose was initially fulfilled, works of wonder for the purpose of the affirmation of the church were no longer necessary. It was then established that the ministry of Jesus was being carried out by his church.
Knowing the Voice of God
All of the miracles of the New Testament were in one way or another intended to be “signs” of the authenticity of the message of Jesus Christ. Once that purpose was initially fulfilled, works of wonder for the purpose of the affirmation of the church were no longer necessary. It was then established that the ministry of Jesus was being carried out by his church.
The question of the reality of the words and works of Jesus
having become settled, we are now called to accept the teaching of Jesus not
only because we see marvelous things, but especially because of his testimony
that was handed down to us first through the Apostles, and then through the
church.
We are to walk by faith, not be sight. If our basis for
believing in Jesus is based only upon what benefit we can derive from it today,
it is a selfish and shallow basis indeed. And self-centeredness is the exact opposite of
the teachings of Jesus.
Jesus said, “the Son of Man did not come to be served, but
to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many” (Matthew 20:28).
In the end, beliefs based only upon what benefits one today
are not beliefs that will encourage a life of faith. In contrast to those
unbelieving Jews, whom Jesus said were to accept him because of his works, we
are to accept him purely because he is God and because he loves us. He wants us
to grow in our faith. It is our faith that will enable us to hear his voice, not his works.
He told those same Jews:
Because you are not
My sheep, you refuse to believe. My sheep listen to My voice; I know them, and
they follow Me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish. No one can
snatch them out of My hand. My Father who has given them to Me is greater than
all. No one can snatch them out of My Father’s hand. I and the Father are one.”
(John 10:26-30 BSB)
We Walk by Faith
It is for all of these reasons that being healed by miraculous means is not as straightforward as it was in the first century. In this present age, we are called to follow Jesus not based upon miracles that we see, but we are called to walk by faith.
It is for all of these reasons that being healed by miraculous means is not as straightforward as it was in the first century. In this present age, we are called to follow Jesus not based upon miracles that we see, but we are called to walk by faith.
Needing constant “proofs” is not conducive to our faith. Indeed,
even the Apostles were trying to teach this to the churches, especially toward
the end of their ministries.
Paul told the Corinthians,
We do not lose
heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, yet our inner self is being
renewed day by day. For our light and momentary affliction is producing for us
an eternal glory that is far beyond comparison. So we fix our eyes not on what
is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is
unseen is eternal… For we walk by faith, not by sight. (2 Corinthians 4:16-18;
5:7 BSB)
Present Day Miracles
But all of this does not mean that the miraculous for the sake of a confirmation of the message of the Gospel has completely ceased. In some remote areas of our world, where the message of Jesus was first being taught, missionaries have brought stories of miracles that seem unbelievable. Once these miracles occurred, so they say, the people began to believe in the need for salvation in the name of Jesus. The miracles were “signs” to confirm the message of the gospel.
But all of this does not mean that the miraculous for the sake of a confirmation of the message of the Gospel has completely ceased. In some remote areas of our world, where the message of Jesus was first being taught, missionaries have brought stories of miracles that seem unbelievable. Once these miracles occurred, so they say, the people began to believe in the need for salvation in the name of Jesus. The miracles were “signs” to confirm the message of the gospel.
I will also say however, that some people throw around the
definition of “miracle” quite loosely. For some, any occurrence that seems
highly unlikely is a “miracle of God.” I will agree that God often acts with
grace and goodwill toward his workers, but I myself place a slightly higher definition
to the word. A miracle is more than what others may call “a fortunate
turnabout,” or even “a stroke of good luck.” When people call finding a lost
ring a “miracle,” it cheapens the word.
To qualify as a miracle, it must be something that defies
any rational explanation. It is something that supersedes the natural order of
things.
But I will not deny that God sometimes does something
miraculous in order to confirm his word in some way. He has done it in my own
life, and it has determined paths for me that I otherwise would not have
chosen. I share a recent one below:
A Personal Experience
After serving overseas for many years, my wife Vivian and I were glad to come to the time in our careers when we could lay that task down, and once again move home to our little farm in Wisconsin. It is not that we did not enjoy our years overseas. It was a very personally fulfilling time. We grew to have many friends who live in several places in the world, and our time overseas included many extraordinarily interesting experiences.
After serving overseas for many years, my wife Vivian and I were glad to come to the time in our careers when we could lay that task down, and once again move home to our little farm in Wisconsin. It is not that we did not enjoy our years overseas. It was a very personally fulfilling time. We grew to have many friends who live in several places in the world, and our time overseas included many extraordinarily interesting experiences.
But despite how we ourselves had benefited in our lives, we
had not done this work for any sense of personal fulfillment or gain. We did it
in obedience to what God had given us to do. This was the greatest of rewards
for us.
Nevertheless, after being called to several tasks in different
countries, I had grown weary. I was ready to return home to our peaceful little
farm. The sign that I placed next to our driveway when we came home stresses
the words for which I was seeking, “Peace and Rest.”
It says, “May the Peace
of God Rest upon all who enter here.”

He began to put within me a calling to become involved with
a church and orphanage in Kenya with whom I had become acquainted. It is a long
story of how this all came about, but it was a calling I did not want to hear.
I fought against it. I gave every excuse that I could think of.
“I did my bit overseas.”
“I’m too old.”
“I have never worked in Africa.”
“I am serving here at home.”
“I’m too old.”
“I have never worked in Africa.”
“I am serving here at home.”
The list continued. I actually had quite an impressive
catalogue of reasons why I could not do this. But none of them gave me peace. I could not rest in any of them.
Then the Lord gave me a spot of cancer on the skin of my
left forearm. It began small, of course, but in two or three weeks it had grown
to an ugly swollen spot about three inches across. It actually made sense to me
that I should develop a cancer on that arm, since that is the arm that I had
sticking out of my car window as I drove many thousands of miles in the tropical
sun in my previous ministries.
The doctor made an appointment for me to visit a
dermatologist, but the earliest that they could see me would be in two or three
months. At the time, the swelling was progressing so rapidly that I was
concerned that in two months, it would be all over my forearm.
I felt an overwhelming need for prayer. Seldom before had I
felt this need so strongly. But my sense of urgency was also in a different
manner this time. This was not a need that I wanted to share with everyone and
post on social media. It was as if God had appointed a particular group of
people who were to pray for this.
“Ask the church in Kenya to pray,” the Lord seemed to be
saying to me.
It all happened like this: On Saturday, I sent a text
message to my pastor friend in Kenya. I got right to the point:
“I have a cancer on my arm,” I wrote to him. “Would you ask
the church to pray for it?”
The following day, Sunday, the church in Kenya prayed for me
during their worship service.
On the next day Monday, the blotch on my arm was not gone,
but it had a noticeable change in appearance. It looked to me to be shriveling
instead of growing.
On Tuesday, one would barely notice that there was anything
at all on my arm. Only if someone knew of the previous mark and was looking for
it, would he or she notice.
On Wednesday, it was completely normal in appearance.
For a few days following that, I saved the appointment at
the doctor that was to take place in a couple of months. I did not cancel it.
My thought was that I should still go and have my arm looked at – “just to be
sure.”
But one morning I awoke with a new sense of direction. I
told Vivian, “I have to go to Kenya. I cannot continue my life and pretend that
God is not directing me to do this.”
I had had enough of trying to give excuses to God. I could
not deny this calling in my life. I canceled my doctor appointment.
“What would she say to me?” I said to Vivian about the
doctor. “She would only say to me, ‘You have nothing on your arm. Go home and
stop wasting my time.’”
So I canceled the appointment. I used the money I would have
spent getting medical treatment to buy a plane ticket to Kenya, and probably
saved money in the process.
There is more to the story—much more. But that is enough for
what I want to say next.
For me personally, this healing was miraculous in nature. It
should not have happened as it did. But it was more than simply a healing from
a disease, it was also a confirmation
to me of the word of God.
I hesitate to refer to it as a “sign” in the same sense that
it is used in the New Testament, but in several ways, the miracle that occurred
in my life served the same purpose as those signs. It was God confirming his
word to me: I was to become involved with the church and orphanage in Kenya.
And that is also why, no matter how discouraging the work
there sometimes becomes, and no matter what disparaging words I hear from some people
about what I am doing, I cannot abandon this calling—not until God tells me
that I am done.
Also, in addition to all of what I have said, it is why I
say that God still may do a miracle for the sake of a sign. It is important
that we do not go to the extreme and look at everything as if it must be a sign from God, but it is important to
listen to the Lord. If you are listening, he will tell you.
The Lord will give
you the bread of adversity and the water of affliction, but your Teacher will
no longer hide Himself—with your own eyes you will see Him.
And whether you
turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear this command behind you:
“This is the way. Walk in it.” (Isaiah 30:20-21 BSB).
If we walk with God, he will give us signs along the way to
direct us to the right path.
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