Servants in Disguise

The Scripture makes plain Jesus had miraculous power to heal in every case.  We read in Luke 6:17-19:  "And He came down with them and stood on a level place with a crowd of His disciples and a great multitude of people from all Judea and Jerusalem, and from the seacoast of Tyre and Sidon, who came to hear Him and be healed of their diseases, ¹⁸ as well as those who were tormented with unclean spirits. And they were healed. ¹⁹ And the whole multitude sought to touch Him, for power went out from Him and healed them all."  When God put on human flesh and dwelt among His people as Jesus, this aligned with what the psalmist sang of the LORD God in Psalm 103:2-5:  "Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits: ³ who forgives all your iniquities, who heals all your diseases, ⁴ who redeems your life from destruction, who crowns you with lovingkindness and tender mercies, ⁵ who satisfies your mouth with good things, so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's."

Jesus forgave sins (much to the chagrin of the Jewish rulers), healed the sick, provided redemption with His shed blood, walked in love and fed those who followed Him when their strength flagged.  There was no illness too advanced, no condition too severe, or unclean spirit too powerful for Jesus to easily heal, cleanse and deliver.  There is no question God's will is to heal, even as He desires all people repent and be saved.  However, the believing child of God can be left wondering when people are sick, suffer from painful conditions and are not healed even after much prayer.  From our limited vantage point, we struggle to understand how a God who desires and is able to heal does not always do so.  Jesus even allowed His friend Lazarus to die rather than heal Him--to fulfill His glorious purposes in raising him from the dead.  John 11:14-15 says, "Then Jesus said to them plainly, "Lazarus is dead. ¹⁵ And I am glad for your sakes that I was not there, that you may believe. Nevertheless let us go to him."  Illness and death can be employed by God as His servants.

Those who acknowledge God's power to heal also ought to realise He can prevent healing for His good purposes.  Through the prophet He addressed His people in Jeremiah 46:11:  "Go up to Gilead and take balm, O virgin, the daughter of Egypt; in vain you will use many medicines; you shall not be cured."  God would see to it every remedy His people employed would be useless so they would return to Him.  In the New Testament we read of a woman who suffered a flow of blood for 12 years.  She had spent all her money on going to doctors and her condition only deteriorated.  Her prolonged and severe illness prompted her to go to Jesus who was able to heal and save her body and soul (Mark 5:25-27).  If a medical treatment had already done wonders, why would she seek Him whose name is Wonderful?  What Jesus said concerning the man born blind shows God has purposes and plans we cannot see in conditions we would never allow (if we had God's power at our disposal) in John 9:2-3:  "And His disciples asked Him, saying, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?" ³ Jesus answered, "Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but that the works of God should be revealed in him."

The disciples saw a blind man and assumed he was being punished for sins he or his parents were guilty of, yet God formed him so God's works should be revealed in him (Exodus 4:11).  The woman bent by a spirit of infirmity for 18 years (Luke 13:11), the man who suffered an infirmity 38 years who lay by the pool of Bethesda (John 5:5), the man who suffered demonic possession for a long time (Mark 5), or the man "full of leprosy" who approached Jesus (Luke 5:12), were only able to be healed, delivered and cleansed by Jesus Christ because they were unable to healed by any human methods, medicine or treatment.  God's grace was shown in making healing impossible so they would be led to Jesus who loved them, could heal them and was able to redeem them from death.  Physical healing of the body is temporary and we desire it for our own benefit or out of pity for the sake of others, but God's  compassion at times is revealed by allowing people to suffer long so it would be evident to the diseased and everyone else we might believe Jesus is God:  He is willing and able to heal, forgive sins, saves and grants eternal life to all who trust in Him.