Some of the most amazing stories we read in the Bible are about when Jesus healed people. He healed the blind, He healed people who couldn’t walk, people with leprosy. He even raised some people from the dead.
The thing I find most fascinating about these stories is that Jesus didn’t heal people in the same way. One blind man named Bartimaeus was healed just by Jesus’ words (Mark 10:46–52). For another blind man, Jesus spit on the ground and made mud to put on his eyes. Then Jesus told the man to wash in the Pool of Siloam and he would be healed (John 9:1–8). The lepers were told to go show themselves to the priests and “as they went, they were cleansed” (Luke 17:11-14).
Now, we know the God Who spoke creation into existence can absolutely heal His creation in an instant, so then why did Jesus use all these different ways to heal people?
It wasn’t because different types of ailments called for different types of healing. It was about faith. Were they willing to do what Jesus asked them to do to be healed?
Do we have faith enough to believe God can heal us? Not just from our physical ailments, but from everything that keeps us from being who we are called to be. Are we willing to “wash in the pool” or “show ourselves to the priests” to be healed?
Mark 6:1–6 talks about Jesus going back to His hometown to teach in the synagogue and perform miracles. However, He wasn’t able to heal many because of their lack of faith. This verse shows we have a role to play in our own healing.
Can God heal us? Of course. The all-powerful God who created the universe can do anything. But sometimes His love in our lives doesn’t always look like healing. Sometimes what is actually better for us and for the sake of the gospel — even though it may not seem like it — is for us not to be healed in the way we believe we should be healed.
Nowhere in Scripture is our healing promised on this earth. Paul suffered from a “thorn in his flesh” and pleaded with God for it to be removed. God’s response? “My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is made perfect in weakness”(2 Cor. 12:7–9).
Should we pray for healing for ourselves and others? Absolutely. But do we still trust and love our sovereign God even when those prayers aren’t answered the way we want? Absolutely. The Christian life isn’t a free pass from suffering. Once again, look to Paul who had been beaten, shipwrecked, hungry, naked … the list goes on (2 Cor. 11). If Paul’s faith didn’t prevent him from suffering, what chance do we have?
While belief in God doesn’t mean we will never suffer, it does mean that Christ will carry us through every trial. So have faith in that. Have faith in the Christ who suffered and died for our sins and know that even if healing doesn’t come in this life, we will be healed forever when we enter into the kingdom of heaven.
