At some point, everyone will face sickness with a loved one or in his/her own body. When that time comes for you, will you know how to overcome the sickness yourself or have to rely on others? Divine healing is available for all through the finished work of Jesus on the cross. With God’s promises, the power of the Holy Spirit, and fundamental spiritual principles, you can overcome every sickness. In this study you will discover how to appropriate God’s promises to heal the sick.
Introducing God’s Healing Promises
God made provision for divine healing by cutting covenant with Jesus through his work on the cross. Under this New Covenant, those who come to God through Jesus Christ can receive the free gifts of salvation and all the blessings which God promised (Ephesians 2:8-9). Their responsibility is to exercise faith in Jesus Christ who redeemed them with his precious blood. Through the Holy Spirit, believers can fellowship with God and share in the inheritance of Christ (Hebrews 9:15). Healing is provided in the New Covenant for all of God’s people. The name of Jesus and power of the Holy Spirit are given to his people to heal all those who are sick, whether they are saints or sinners.
The healing promises of God have already been spoken into existence. They are written in the past tense and exist in the supernatural realm. The supernatural realm where the promises already exist does not automatically overlap with the present and natural realm where God’s people reside. It takes the Holy Spirit to bridge the gap between the two realms and help believers appropriate the healing promises by faith.
Here are two important healing promises related to Jesus that were written in the past tense. “He himself took our infirmities and carried away our diseases” (Matthew 8:17). “By his wounds you were healed” (1 Peter 2:24). There are many other similar promises. God sent his Son, Jesus, to the cross to purchase salvation, healing, and many other blessings. God has done all he plans to do for healing. He will never send Jesus back to the cross for further punishment because someone thinks Jesus has not done enough for him/her. Many people are looking to the future for divine healing, but they are looking for healing in the wrong places. Looking to the future involves hope, not faith. Those operating in faith believe they already have received healing.
Recently, a woman contacted us about prayer, but she confused hope with faith. She wanted God to heal her in the next three days before her scheduled doctor’s appointment to avoid surgery for a pre-existing condition. She hoped God would heal her body in the next three days, without receiving the healing promise which he had already provided. Hope puts off healing to the future, even though the future may be close at hand. Faith believes God’s report and focuses on his promises. With faith, the woman would believe that she had already received her healing. Then she would be giving God thanks for healing her body rather than hoping he would heal her before surgery. Rather than praying according to the woman’s preconceived ideas, Sherry instructed her about how to believe and pray.
It is the Holy Spirit who leads believers into the healing promises of God. When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth (John 16:13). God’s promises are the truth written in his word.
Prayer of Faith
In sending Jesus to the cross and raising him from the dead, God did everything he needed to do for healing. Many people pray about healing without getting the desired results, so they rely on the medical profession. Often, their prayers about healing are hindered by doubt and unbelief. Do not ask God to heal someone for he purchased healing for all. Also, do not ask God to do something he expects you to do. He gave you authority to cast out unclean spirits and to heal every kind of disease and every kind of sickness (Matthew 10:1). He gave you authority to lay hands on the sick to make them well (Mark 16:18).
There is a true prayer of faith that appropriates healing. “The prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well” (James 5:15 NIV). This prayer is consistent with God’s will (1 John 5:14-15). More specifically, the prayer of faith connects with God’s promises in the past tense. “All things for which you pray and ask, believe that you have received them, and they will be granted you” (Mark 11:24).
When you know that you have received healing, what are you supposed to do? Give God thanks for healing. “In everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus” (1 Thessalonians 5:18).
Personal Story on Receiving God’s Healing Promises
The first divine healing that Sherry and I experienced related to our baby daughter, Amy Elizabeth. We had been married 14 years before she was born, but then the doctors said she was going to die. Man offered us no hope for her, but we would not accept her death. Sherry and I turned our attention to God and found healing in his word. Our faith in God’s healing promises came alive and began to grow strong as we studied his word. One night when she was sick with a high temperature, we laid her on the couch and turned our attention to Jesus. His healing provision was a supernatural truth that superseded the natural fact that she was sick. We thanked him that he had already healed her in the supernatural realm, even though she was running a high temperature in the natural realm. At that point, the supernatural realm became more real to us than what we saw in the natural realm. As we were praising Jesus for already having healed her, the healing was manifested. A light from heaven shined over her, and her body was made whole. She became peaceful and went to sleep, and that infirmity never came back on her. She carries healing wherever she goes and has been ministering to sick people for more than 16 years as a registered nurse.
Conclusions
Any sickness can be healed by following the Holy Spirit to appropriate God’s healing promises by faith. Every person is unique, so a unique solution is required for different people and different sicknesses. Neither standard formulas nor standard prayers heal the sick. Only the Holy Spirit knows which promises and which principles need to be applied in order to heal the sick.
If you want to be healed or used of God n healing others, study God’s word, particularly his promises for healing. The promises are the basis for faith. Believe that God wants to heal every sickness, and follow the Holy Spirit to find how each sickness can be healed.