Tag: Salvation

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The Belt of Truth

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Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one; and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication.

Ephesians 6:13-18a

Having established that the armor of God is not a metaphor or inspirational idea, but is in fact a reality we must step into each day, we now turn our attention to putting on each piece of the armor of God, listed in Ephesians 6, beginning with the “belt of truth.”

The Belt of Truth

Belts are not made just for fashion. Though they definitely make an outfit look complete, and can add a little bit of bling with a shiny buckle, for many people like myself, our bodies are not exactly proportioned to most clothing. A belt is an absolute necessity. We need help. We rely on belts, daily, to keep our pants from slipping down and our shirts from bunching up or coming untucked.

The same is true for the belt of truth. Without it, our armor is incomplete. Without truth to hold it together, other parts of the armor will not be able to completely do their work, either. It is designed to hold everything together.

Surrounded with Truth

The symbolism of the belt is that it must surround us. While other pieces of the armor, as we will see in future posts, are tailored for individual body parts, such as the helmet, breastplate, or shoes, the idea of the belt is that truth is what encompasses you all the way around.

To put on the belt of truth, then, is to take on a personal commitment to live in the light of God’s truth, to stay safely within a hedge of protection that blocks and filters the lies and false realities of the enemy. 

What is Truth?

The Greek word used for truth in this passage is “aletheia.” Strongs concordance defines this truth in two ways. The first is objective truth as in “what is true in any matter under consideration…” That is truth “in reality.” 

The cultural impact of this definition cannot be overstated, as this word carries a connotation which our world is becoming extremely hostile toward: the idea that there is such a thing as universal truth that is not subject to human will or emotions, or to time and place. It is reality because God says it is reality, and it will never change.

The second way Strongs concordance defines “aletheia” is in terms of a subjective truth, as in “that candor of mind which is free from affection, pretense, simulation, falsehood and deceit.” “Subjective” here, then, cannot be taken to imply that this absolute truth is subject to our belief in it. Rather, it must be taken to mean that our will and emotions must become subject to this “truth in reality,” and thereby forsake all untruths that do not measure up.

I do not mean to get too technical with this understanding of the word, but we must be clear on what the Bible says, or else we will be vulnerable to the influence of culture and our spiritual enemy in how we understand “truth.”

Living in Reality

With this definition in mind, to put on the belt of truth is to understand that God has established an absolute truth to which all humanity will be held accountable. This is a tangible, experiential truth, which when held up against all other false realities, will prove itself true every time. Putting on this belt means that we will make the choice to live in this truth, no matter what our emotions, desires, or cultures tells us is “better” or “right.” 

Choosing to stand on a belief in absolute truth is a major claim to make. In fact, this claim to truth is as the heart of all opposition to Christianity (and all other religions that claim to be absolute). 

This claim to truth is the biggest target of attack by every enemy we have, in the world and in the spirit realm. Just look at how believers are portrayed in the media and in the entertainment industry. We are faced every day with the message that “what is true for you is true for you, and what is true for me is true for me,” and therefore “tolerance” must take precedence over any idea of “truth.”

However, believing that God’s truth is the only truth, is the foundation of our salvation and hope!

Truth Emancipates Us

Jesus made a bold statement in John 8:32, in which He not only claims that there is an absolute truth, but that when we come to live in that truth, it will set us free.

“…you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”

Once again, the Greek word used here is “aletheia.” It says that you will know THE truth – truth in reality – and THE truth will set you free from slavery to sin, death and the devil (see John 8:31-59).

What this means is that as believers we have an obligation not only to find out what God’s truth is, but we must also make the commitment to be conformed to that truth, and cast off every other false reality the devil or the world wants to build around us. Our freedom from the kingdom of darkness depends on it. But where do we find this “truth?”

Truth in the Word

Of course, the standard way believers come to understand truth is through the writings of scripture. However, in discussing the armor of God, I would argue that Bible study is not the intention of the writer. Paul already includes the Word of God in the armor, not as the truth that surrounds us like a belt, but rather as the sword we carry to attack our enemies (Ephesians 6:17).

If not scripture, then, what is this truth we are supposed to be surrounded with, which holds all the rest of our spiritual armor together? The answer isn’t in the book, but in God Himself!

“Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.’”

John 14:6

Truth is a Person

When we put on the belt of truth, the implication is that we are literally putting on Christ, who is the Truth. We are not just opening our minds to what is true, but we are asking Him to cover us, and conform every part of our lives to His image. This is commanded of us elsewhere in scripture:

“But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires.”

Romans 13:14

Yes, this “putting on” happens at the moment of salvation (see Galatians 3:27), but it is also a continual command to the believer. When Paul tells the Romans to “put on” it literally means “clothe yourself with,” and is an imperative command in an active, ongoing sense. It is not something you did in the past, or something you are commanded to do in the future. It is an ongoing all-the-time command.

Put on the Belt of Truth

To put on the belt of truth, then, means that we are first born again in Jesus Christ, and have put our full faith in Him as Savior, and give Him our full allegiance as Lord.

It is then something we continue to do every day – every moment – as we look to Him as our source of truth in all things. This requires relationship with Him. It requires learning to hear His voice. It requires conditioning our mindset to filter everything through His reality (again, see 2 Corinthians 10:5).

For the believer, Jesus alone is Truth. We do not look to political parties. We do not look to our favorite news stations. We do not look to pundits or podcasts or teachers or celebrities. We do not even rely on our pastors and spiritual leaders. Although any and all of these voices may speak truth to us, we cannot stake our lives on it. We must first submit it all to His testing.

Jesus said “I Am the Truth” and we are called to surround ourselves completely with Him! If we will do that, then every other piece of our armor will be held fast, and we will be able to “stand firm” against the enemy.

What about You?

The starting place to put on the belt of truth is to be saved by the One who is The Truth, Jesus Christ. If you have never been saved and want to find out what that means, I would love nothing more than to talk to you. Please, reach out to me to find a time to chat!

If you have been saved, though, the question is are you living in relationship with The Truth, or is your life being guided by the daily news cycle or your Facebook feed? Some of us have neglected the ongoing practice of “putting on” the belt of truth each day, and it has left us vulnerable. Maybe it’s time to repent, and return to The Truth, so that we can then wear all the armor correctly, and find our victory in this battle.

Continue reading in the next post, as we look at the Breastplate of Righteousness. With it, we will seek to take our life in the Truth to another level, protecting our hearts from sinful passions and temptations of the enemy.

Let’s Connect

I would love to hear your thoughts, questions, or testimonies in the comment section. 

If you want to keep up with the blog and all my other #ChristianLife and #GospelLeadership content, I would be honored to have you sign up for my weekly roundup newsletter, below. I promise not to spam you!

You can also join me on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Parler, to continue the discussion on this post and more!

Photo by Henry Hustava on Unsplash

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.”

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How to Pray for the Sick

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We have come a long way in this blog series on Christian Healing! We began with the biblical basis for healing, then discussed if healing should be expected today. We looked at the authority of all believers to heal the sick, and talked practically about “healing by command.” Shifting directions from authority to anointing, we looked at the Holy Spirit’s power for healing, and in the last post we discussed the biblical “gifts of healing.”

Now, finally, with the foundations having been laid, I hope you are ready to go after healing and begin praying for the sick, yourself! In this post, I want to share with you the most effective prayer model for healing I have ever seen. It is the one I have used when praying for the sick for almost a decade, and it is the one we teach to all of our churches  and ministry partners in Sozo Ministries.

Are Prayer Models Biblical?

Before I give you the steps for praying for the sick, I first want to deal with the objection that prayer should be a spontaneous conversation with God, rather than a structured format to follow.

I do agree with that sentiment, completely. However, in the New Testament, as the disciples walked with Jesus and saw him doing public ministry, as well as observing His private life of prayer with the Father, they knew something was missing in their own prayer life. They asked Him, “teach us to pray,” at which point Jesus gave them what we now call “The Lord’s Prayer” (Luke 11:1-4).

That prayer was not intended to be used for repetitive, ritual recitations. Nor was it supposed to be a formula to get God to move on their behalf. It was simply given to them as a model to follow, as they began to pray to the Lord for themselves.

In the same way, the prayer model I will share is not a “repeat these words” kind of prayer, nor is it a “principle” to get God to do what you want. Instead, it is a method of thinking about praying for the sick, which enables a person to minister effectively.

I learned this prayer model in 2012 from Dr. Randy Clark, and it has forever changed my fruitfulness in the healing ministry. 

How to Pray for the Sick

As you enter into a time of ministry to the sick, it is important to check your motivations from the outset. Although we do desire to see miracles for healing take place, our primary goal is that the person would experience the love of God working through us. It is never our goal to glorify ourselves or to “show off” with God’s power.

We must also understand that for healing to take place, we must be praying with faith that God wants to heal. We should never offer a quick prayer, saying “God, if it is your will, please heal this person.” That is not loving to the person, and it shows little faith. 

Praying for the sick should be an earnest pursuit, seeking that God would touch this person and free them from the bondage of sickness and disease. These five steps will help you to do that. 

Step 1: Interview

When a person was brought to Jesus for healing, He usually took time to question them, before jumping into pray. His question, often, was “what do you want me to do for you?” (see Luke 18:41). 

We too must take time to interview the person needing healing, in order to find out what is going on and how they want us to pray. Begin by asking questions like:

  • How can I pray for you today?
  • What sicknesses or injuries do you have? 
  • How long have you had this issue? 
  • On a scale of 1-10, where is you pain level to begin with?
  • What is/was the cause? 
  • What are the doctors telling you about this condition? 
  • Do you take any medications for this?

The basic goal of this step is to try and understand what they want prayer for. We must join our prayer with their desires, and not our own. 

Recently I was leading a healing crusade in a rural district in Uganda. A man came forward for prayer, who was walking with a cane, and had one foot twisted sideways by polio. A chair was brought for him, and I automatically assumed that this was what he wanted prayer for, so I knelt down to place my hands on his leg. Thankfully, I caught myself and as I knelt, I asked him, “how can I pray for you today.” He told me that he has suffered greatly with constant ringing in his ears, and was going deaf in one of them. He wanted me to pray for his hearing!

It took some time, and multiple prayers, but we did see this man’s hearing healed. Afterwards I asked if he wanted prayer for his twisted leg as well. Unfortunately, he wasn’t interested at that time. The thing I wanted to pray for was not his priority.

Listening to the person, rather than jumping to conclusions, is loving them. That is our first priority in any time of prayer!

As much as you are listening to what the person has to say in the interview time, you should also be listening to the Holy Spirit for His insight into the problem. For instance, some sicknesses may have roots in spiritual issues such as sin, bitterness, unforgiveness, emotional wounds, or even the effects of a curse or a demonic affliction.  The Lord may give you words of knowledge or words of wisdom in how to deal with these issues.

Step 2: Prayer Selection

When we see Jesus and the disciples pray, there are two ways that they demonstrate for us. The first is a petitioning prayer. This is when we ask the Lord to heal the person. For example, “God, right now I ask in Jesus Name, that you would take this pain from my brother…”

The second way we see Jesus and the disciples heal is through the use of command, which we have already discussed in depth. This is when, rather than petitioning God to do something, we speak to the disease or injury in the name of Jesus, and command it to leave. For example, “In the name of Jesus, I command this pain to leave…”

Dr. Clark says, “A command is appropriate as your initial step unless you are led otherwise by the Holy Spirit…” This is especially true when there has been a word of knowledge given for their specific issue.

You would also use a command when there is evidence of a demonic power causing the affliction or in breaking a curse over the person. For example, “In Jesus name, I break the curse over this person, and command this afflicting spirit to leave…”

After you have interviewed the person and discerned what the Holy Spirit is saying, you should decide which prayer to begin your ministry time with. Don’t worry about making a wrong choice as you will likely be praying more than one time, and can change your approach as the Spirit and situation lead you.

Step 3: Pray

This step is pretty straight forward. Pray for the person using the style of prayer you chose following the interview.

Some tips for praying:

  • Instruct the person not to pray. Instead, they should be resting and positioned to receive from the Lord. They should also be paying attention to their body for any changes in their condition or other manifestations of the Spirit.
  • Keep your eyes opened during your prayer. Watch for any physical activity that may tell you if the Spirit is doing something.
    • Sometimes in a prayer people will feel extreme temperature changes, especially in the pray-er’s hands. They may also be moved to laughing or crying. They may begin to shake. They may fall down. All of these have been viewed through Christian history as potential signs that God is working. Let it build your faith in your praying. 
  • Always pray in Jesus’ name. That is where our authority to heal lies. By praying in His name, we are speaking with the authority He gives to us as His church.
  • If you are praying for someone with an unseen disease where an immediate healing would not be detectable, such as cancer or diabetes, you might opt to pray with a petitioning prayer, rather than using a command. Since there may be no manifestations taking place, and they will not know if they are healed immediately, your prayer time should be long enough that the person feels encouraged and loved through the time of ministry. Let them know your faith is with them for their healing.
  • If you are praying for a very evident affliction like one leg being shorter than the other or a visible tumor, you should begin by praying with commanding prayers, and watching for any change in the condition.
  • If you are praying for an unseen affliction, but where healing would be evident to that person, such as back pain or TMJ (popping in the jaw), you should pray shorter prayers and re-interview often to find out what they are feeling, if anything.

Step 4: Re-Interview

After praying for a short period of time, especially when commanding sicknesses to leave, you should stop often and re-interveiw that person. In this step you are trying to discern, if possible, whether healing is occurring. You want to ask questions like, “how is your pain level now?” “Are you feeling anything?” “Can you move it any more than before?”

If it is a physical affliction, where healing would be evident immediately, ask them to try and do something they couldn’t do before. They shouldn’t do something that will injure them worse, but sometimes the simple act of faith to make an attempt at something they couldn’t do before is the catalyst for their immediate healing.

It is important to understand that most often healing is not an instantaneous process. You may be ministering to one person for a good amount of time seeing a progressive healing take place a little more each time you pray. Be encouraged by this. Jesus, Himself, prayed for one blind man multiple times before he was healed (see Mark 8:22-25)!

During the re-interviewing process, you may need to ask further questions intended on probing at a deeper cause for a stubborn illness where no healing is taking place. For instance, if the person was injured in a motorcycle accident years before, perhaps they need to forgive the person who hit them before healing will come. People will not always be forthcoming with heart issues, so these things may take time to uncover.

One other thing to be aware of is that the demonic can play a role in sickness without the person realizing it. This would become apparent in cases such as the illness increasing in intensity or pain moving from one location to another. When this is the case, you should begin praying to cast out the spirit rather than praying about the condition.

When to Stop Praying

After you re-interview them, return to steps 2 through 4 again, as necessary. You may pray and re-interview many times during one ministry session. 

I once prayed for a woman with pain in her neck, shoulders, and upper back, which she had carried for a few years. She began by telling me her pain was a 9. After three prayers, it finally moved down to an 8. Then a 7. Then a 5. Then a 4.5 and a 4. All in all, I ministered to this lady for more than half an hour before the pain had completely left (as well as a spirit of affliction, which became evident during the prayer). She walked away totally healed. I just kept telling myself, “Jesus prayed again, so can I.”

You should stop praying when:

  • The person is completely healed.
  • The Holy Spirit leads you to stop.
  • There has been no further healing taking place for some time, and you don’t feel led to pray any other way.
  • The person asks you to stop.

Step 5: Post-Prayer Suggestions

If the person has been healed, then all that is left to do is praise God together for this gift. Celebrate with that person, and reflect with them on God’s faithfulness and love for them.

If the person who has been healed had to walk through the process of repentance of sin or forgiveness of a past wound in order to receive salvation, remind them that God has set them free from that as well. They no longer have the right to return to their bitterness or sin. To do so, may in fact undo the healing they have just received.

Encourage the person to share their testimony of this experience. If possible, do so immediately in the meeting you are a part of, but if not, they should at least share with their family and friends what has taken place. As a ministry we make it a priority to record  video testimonies of every major healing which takes place, if at all possible. When we cannot get the recording, we will try to get the basics of the testimony in writing.

If the person is not healed, remember that we must leave them feeling loved by God and by us. Encourage them that sometimes healing is not immediate and may still come following this time of prayer. They should keep praying and seeking God to grant them this miracle. Encourage them to seek prayer from others, and to continue to press in to God in intimacy. 

If the person is holding on to some sin, unforgiveness or other issue that you feel is holding back their healing experience, then encourage them in the gospel and push them to seek repentance in that situation.

Never blame the person for their not being healed. While it is true that sometimes a lack of faith is the reason we don’t see healing occur, it is never our place to judge the level of faith in others. In fact, in Matthew 17, when the disciples were unable to heal an epileptic child, Jesus blames the disciples’ lack of faith, rather than that of the boy or his family.

Give them a scripture they can hold to, if one comes to mind, looking to the full promise of God for their life and eternity.

It’s Your Time

I hope that through this post, and all those leading up to it, you have had your questions answered and that you are feeling more equipped to pray for the sick. My final word of advice is “try.” As I shared in my own journey into healing ministry, I was praying for people every week for months before God brought the breakthrough moment and people began getting healed. 

After Heidi Baker received the Word of the Lord that she would see the blind see, the deaf hear, and the dead raised, she prayed for the blind and deaf in her area of Mozambique daily for over a year, before any of them began to be healed.

I believe it was John Wimber who first said, “Faith is spelled R-I-S-K.” The only way you will begin to see people get healed is to take the risk and pray for them.

A note to pastors: The church should be a safe place for people to try out their spiritual gifts, be able to fail and make mistakes without condemnation, and to grow into all they are called to be in the Lord. It is your job to be equipping the saints to do the work of ministry (Ephesians 4:11-12). I highly encourage you that if you are functioning in the healing ministry, to also be equipping your church members to do the same. 

Lets Connect

I would love to hear your thoughts or questions in the comments below. You can also join me on social media to continue the conversation there. You can find me on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn.

It would also be an honor to have you sign up for my weekly email, below. Each Sunday you will get a message in your inbox with my new content, as well as occasional bonus #ChristianLife and #GospelLeadership insights.

Finally, I am available for training. If you are a ministry or church leader, I would love to discuss coming to your church to help equip your people for ministry in healing (as well as evangelism, discipleship, and/or deliverance.) You can email me or submit a booking request, here.

If you’re enjoying the content I produce, a little caffeine to keep me going would be appreciated!



© Anthony Scott Ingram 2020. All Rights Reserved.

Photo by Aaron Burden on Unsplash

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.”

Please note that I do get a small kickback from Amazon for any purchases made using the links on this post. Should you choose to purchase from them, I just want to say thank you for further supporting my work in ministry!

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Christian Healing: Authority and Anointing

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Over the course of the last two posts I have discussed how we as believers have the authority from Christ to heal the sick, and looked at how to practice that authority through ‘command’. While there is an indispensable need for the body of Christ to understand that authority as foundational to healing, we will now begin to turn our attention to the multiplied fruit of healing which comes through the anointing of the Holy Spirit.

In order to understand how the authority of the believer is compounded to accomplish more in the here and now, than we could ever have thought possible, let’s first recap where we have been so far.

Healing was Anticipated in the Promise of Messiah

It could be argued that the promise of healing began in the Old Testament, as soon as sin entered the world. Through the protoevangelion (first gospel) in Genesis 3:16, God promises a redeemer who would undo all of the works of sin and destroy the devil. As sickness was introduced in the fall of man, healing is a necessary part of the restoration God would bring through His coming Savior.

All throughout the Old Testament, then, this promise of healing is repeatedly tied to the Messiah who would save the world from sin, heal their sicknesses and disease, and deliver mankind from bondage to the devil and his kingdom of darkness. In previous posts we have already looked at God’s revealed name of Jehovah Rapha, and the promise of healing in passages like Psalm 103 and Isaiah 53. We won’t take time to do that again here.

Healing Starts in The Atonement

The realization of all of God’s promises came through the sinless life, sacrificial death, and resurrection of Jesus. This is stated explicitly in 2 Corinthians 1:19-20.

For the Son of God, Jesus Christ, whom we proclaimed among you… was not Yes and No, but in him it is always Yes. For all the promises of God find their Yes in him. That is why it is through him that we utter our Amen to God for his glory.

Therefore, it comes as no surprise that Jesus stood in the synagogue at Nazareth and declared, in Luke 4:16-21, that He was the fulfillment of all Messianic prophecy, and specifically those listed in Isaiah 61. We have looked at those verses already in the previous posts. I won’t dig into them again.

Sozo – Complete Salvation

Even the greek word for “saved” in the New Testament — “sozo” — is an all encompassing term for the fulfillment of the promises found in Jesus’ atonement!  (What a great name for a ministry…)

The Concise Greek-English Dictionary of the New Testament defines sozo this way:

σῴζω – save (of Christian salvation); save, rescue, deliver; keep safe, preserve; cure, make well.

Newman, B.M., Jr., 1993. A Concise Greek-English dictionary of the New Testament.

To make it as simple as possible: the atonement of Jesus Christ offers ‘complete salvation’ to those who come to Him by faith. That is salvation from sin, healing in their physical bodies, and deliverance from the power of their enemy, the Devil. To remove any one of these fulfilled promises is to remove power from the cross!

Healing Authority is Your Inheritance

Knowing that Jesus purchased our healing, we then turned our attention to the fact that He passed the authority to heal on to His first apostles, other disciples, and then to the whole church.

He did not just talk about healing as something which was available through Him. He commanded believers to put that authority into action by healing the sick. Just as He spoke to diseases to leave and ordered bodies to be restored, He commanded His followers to do the same. This command was clearly one which the New Testament expected to continue throughout the church age (Mark 16:15-18).

All believers have not only been promised healing in our own bodies, but have received the authority to extend Christ’s healing to others who come by faith and receive! It is a universal promise within the body of Christ!

Healing Anointing Multiplies the Fruit

The authority of all believers to heal in Jesus’ name is amazing enough, but that is not the full extent of Christian healing in the New Testament! As my spiritual father, Dr. Randy Clark always says, “there is more!”

As I have sought the Lord to understand the healing gift, the Holy Spirit spoke to me recently and said: 

“While all believer’s have the authority to command healing, and all believers carry the inheritance of My atonement – salvation, healing, and deliverance – the ‘charis’ gift of healing, and the anointing to heal is reserved for those who are hungry and pursuing.”

He explained to me that although the authority to heal is there for all people, it is through the anointing of the Holy Spirit that He amplifies everything His blood purchased, “on earth as it is in heaven.” Yet it is up to us to seek Him for the more of His anointing. 

Remember, before Jesus left the earth He had already given the disciples authority, yet he told them to wait for the Holy Spirit to empower them before they began to minister:

And while staying with them he ordered them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father, which, he said, “you heard from me; for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.”

Acts 1:4-5

It is through the empowering of the Holy Spirit which God releases His special grace-gifts into His church. As we seek Him for His anointing to heal, there is a compounding effect on producing fruit. 

Simply put, while all can heal the sick, even more people will be healed as we pursue — and receive — the power of God in the Holy Spirit, and receive the “gifts of healing” He distributes to His church!

This is what I discovered early on, in my journey into the healing ministry. There is a common grace for healing in the church (authority), yet the easiest way to see fruit is to partner our authority with His anointing. After the prayer of impartation from Dr. Clark, I received a Holy Spirit anointing to heal the sick and immediately blind eyes were opened, the lame walked, and since then, the healing miracles have continued to increase in my ministry, more and more.

What About You?

As we have laid this foundation for healing already, and have discussed the authority of all believers for healing, in the next post we will dig deeper into this anointing and the Holy Spirit’s “gifts of healing.”

I do hope that through these posts you are already growing in your faith for healing. I believe that as we all come into an understanding of the role of the Holy Spirit to fully empower us in this work, that it will be the first step in launching you into the healing ministry. Stay tuned…

For now, I would love to hear your thoughts and questions in the comments below. If you are enjoying what you’re reading, I would be honored if you would subscribe to my weekly newsletter below! You can also join me on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram to stay up to date what everything the Lord is doing in my ministry. I would love to connect with you there.

If you’re enjoying the content I produce, a little caffeine to keep me going would be appreciated!



© Anthony Scott Ingram 2020. All Rights Reserved.

Photo by Aaron Burden on Unsplash

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.”

Please note that I do get a small kickback from Amazon for any purchases made using the links on this post. Should you choose to purchase from them, I just want to say thank you for further supporting my work in ministry!

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Christian Healing: Biblical Foundations

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The topic of healing is one I tend to avoid discussing in theological debate settings. I have seen the power of God to heal on thousands of occasions, both in my own body, through my prayers for others, and through the many believers we have equipped to pray for the sick. To say that God still heals today is a foregone conclusion in my mind, and is therefore not a controversy I feel the need to engage in. My mind is settled, so I tend to leave it to more intellectual, “professional” theologians to debate over.

However, as I believe another healing revival is coming and begin discussing the topic on the blog, it is necessary to lay the biblical foundations for God’s healing work and to know from scripture if we can trust that God wants to heal today.

The Theological Divide

The major problem is that the bible holds God’s divine healing of human sicknesses in the tension of the “already but not yet” reality of the Kingdom of God. This is the idea that when Jesus was on earth He initiated God’s Kingdom with all it’s gifts and promises now (the already), and yet there is still more to come in the final consummation of all things at His second coming (the not yet).

This tension has too often created a dividing line between those believers who hold that God’s promise of healing is for today, and those who say that the promise of healing cannot be claimed for now;  that we must wait for eternity when “He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away” (Revelation 21:4). 

As each point of view digs in its heels, both sides, then, position themselves to make theological arguments to prove that God heals within their position’s time period. As I see it, the problem with taking sides on “when” God heals – now or in eternity – is that the Bible itself refuses to make either conclusion. The answer, biblically is “yes.”

Yes, God heals now AND Yes, God will heal everyone at His second coming. To lay this foundation, we must go back to the beginning of God’s redemptive work in humanity.

Jehovah Rapha

From the outset of God’s personal revelation of himself to the people of Israel, He has declared Himself to be Jehovah Rapha, meaning “I AM Healer” or “God Your Healer.” The Hebrew word “rapha” and it’s derivatives means “heal, cure, and restore.” It is used 86 times throughout the Old Testament, commonly used to describe God’s restorative work in Israel throughout the Old Testament, whether in directly healing His people from disease and afflictions, or in a larger sense of the rebuilding of the nation and cities at various points in their history.

Although space will not allow me to give a thorough overview of God’s restorative practices in the Old Testament and the surrounding requirements which are often attached (repentance, humility, etc.), the point I want us to grasp is that from the beginning, God has revealed Himself as Healer. It is part of His identity. 

It is undeniably part of God’s nature to heal and restore, and history has proven that He is not waiting for the future. He has already been doing so throughout the world, in every generation, and we know that He does not change! He is the same yesterday, today, and forever!” (See Malachi 3:6 and Hebrews 13:8.)

If God has revealed Himself as Jehovah Rapha, then to disbelieve that He will heal His people is to break the Third Commandment given to Moses: “You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain…” To do so is to hear His revealed name — God Your Healer — and yet to empty it of it’s power and therefore sin by our disbelief.

Healing in Christ’s Atonement

As the Bible begins to point us to God’s promise of a Savior, who would, both, fully reveal and fully accomplish God’s redemptive plan, we learn that this coming Messiah would not only bring the forgiveness of sins, but would also pay the price to earn our healing. We see this in the prophetic revelation God gives concerning the Messiah, as well as in the expectation of those people who walked in relationship with God throughout the ages. Again, due to space, I will simply give two examples of this here, although many more could be listed:

The Prophetic Revelation from God

In Isaiah 53 we get what is, by many, considered to be the clearest picture of the Gospel in the Old Testament. Though I would encourage you to read the entire passage, I will simply share verse 5 for our purposes here:

But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed.

Although many people try to spiritualize this as a metaphor for our brokenness and sinful nature, we will see shortly that this is not how the New Testament writers interpreted it.

The Expectation of God’s Human Friends

Not only did the prophets prophesy that healing would be in the atonement of Christ, but the expectation of those who knew God personally, viewed God’s promise of the healing of sickness and disease to be equal with His promise to forgive sin! 

As King David writes in Psalm 103:2-3:

Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits, who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases…

It is clear from these (and many other passages) that the Messiah would bring about God’s promise of healing, just as He would fulfill God’s promise to forgive sin and restore the creation!

Jesus Claims to Be The Fulfillment of God’s Messianic Promises!

In the New Testament, Jesus is baptized and then goes into the wilderness to fast and pray, and to be tempted by the devil. When He returns from the wilderness, we see the beginning of His public ministry, and in Luke 4:16-21, the first thing Jesus does is stand in the Synagoge in Nazareth and declare Himself to be the long-anticipated Messiah! He read from the prophet Isaiah, where it says,

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” 

Then, as He finished and people were waiting on Him to teach, He says:

 “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.”

Included in this fulfillment declaration was the promise of healing, pictured in this passage as “the recovering of sight to the blind.” (This again is something some modern scholars try to spiritualize as being blind in our sin, yet the New Testament points to Jesus’ healing of blind eyes as validation of His Messiahship.)

It should be clear from the most basic reading of the Old Testament prophecies that healing was  part of the atonement of the Messiah, because as sin is dealt with, so are its effects.

The Healing Ministry of Jesus

As we move to the New Testament, it is safe to say that Jesus’ healing ministry cannot be contained in a couple of short paragraphs. It spanned the entirety of His earthly ministry, and the gospel writers share many stories of physical healing. However, to give one highlight of His practice, in Matthew 8:16-17, we read this:

That evening they brought to him many who were oppressed by demons, and he cast out the spirits with a word and healed all who were sick. This was to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet Isaiah: “He took our illnesses and bore our diseases.”

It seems that Jesus, in His earthly ministry never left a sick person unhealed. He never prayed, “God if it is Your will, heal this person.” Instead, He took the promise of Isaiah 53 as a literal promise, that He would have authority over all sicknesses, and so he healed everyone who came to Him.

Just as the Old Testament prophesied and hoped that the Messiah would bring healing, Jesus became the fulfillment of that promise. While He was on earth, Jesus did not simply promise healing at the consummation of His Kingdom. He brought healing immediately! 

From the beginning of God’s self-revelation as Jehovah Rapha to Jesus’ revelation as Emmanuel the Messiah, God has declared and proven Himself to be a healing God in the present tense! Physical healing was expected to be in the atonement of the Messiah, and Jesus proved the expectation to be true! We must begin to put our faith in who He says He is, and who He has proven Himself to be over and over again!

I believe there is a biblical basis (not just anecdotal) to believe that healing is not limited to the second coming of Jesus. However, there is still the issue of how healing would be carried on from Jesus’ earthly ministry to the modern day, and there are some objections we must face if we are to claim that Jesus is still healing now.

In This Series

In this series on Christian Healing, we will look at:

Continue Reading in Part 2

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© Anthony Scott Ingram 2020. All Rights Reserved.

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Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.”

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