Physical Healing
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“Is anyone among you sick? Let them call the elders of the church to pray over them and anoint them with oil in the name of the Lord.” James 5:14 (NIV)
Do you believe in divine physical healing today? In our age of modern science and medical advancement, many may be as skeptical as I am of those who claim to be “divine healers.” You may see them on TV or in huge public arenas. Often associated with their “miraculous power to heal” is a gimmick or pressure to give them money. These religious hucksters peddle the power of God to heal today for personal gain. Yet, the abuse of the miracle of healing shouldn’t cause us to deny that God still heals physically. In fact, I’ve found that even those who deny the gift of healing will pray earnestly for it when they get sick enough, and those who claim they have some magical formula for healing have to rethink their theology when it doesn’t come.
What does the Bible say about the miracle of physical healing? As with any other miracle, the miracle of healing comes from one true source – Jesus Christ. He alone is the Source of miracles. Luke, a physician and follower of Jesus, wrote “One day Jesus was teaching, and Pharisees and teachers of the law were sitting there. They had come from every village of Galilee and from Judea and Jerusalem. And the power of the Lord was with Jesus to heal the sick.” Luke 5:17 (NIV) As needed and gifted as doctors are today and as grateful as we are to live in a world with advanced medicine, if you are to experience the miracle of healing, you must look to the Source of healing, Jesus Christ.
The Bible speaks of a variety of ways in which God heals, as well as different kinds of healing for which we can pray. God uses physicians and medicine to heal and there is supernatural healing in direct answer to prayer. Jesus healed in this way on a number of occasions and still does today. I have personally witnessed many occasions where Jesus healed someone physically for whom we prayed, and there was no other medical explanation. At other times healing was delayed or didn’t come as we had prayed but God used the illness as His means to bring that person home to heaven for “ultimate” healing. It remains a mystery to me how some are healed immediately while others are not. Physical healing is a sovereign work of God done in His way and His time for His purpose.
In our passage today, the Bible gives us some instructions for praying for the sick. Let’s look at it in context from James 5:13-16 (NIV), “Is anyone among you in trouble? Let them pray. Is anyone happy? Let them sing songs of praise. Is anyone among you sick? Let them call the elders of the church to pray over them and anoint them with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise them up. If they have sinned, they will be forgiven. Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.”
I love the way James describes what I typically experience every time our church gathers for worship. Some who come are deeply troubled. They have been given heartbreaking news and are seeking God for help, comfort, and healing. At the same time, perhaps in the very next seat, are those who are celebrating some recent victory or blessing in their lives and have come to rejoice! Only God, by the Holy Spirit, can meet the needs of both as His Word is preached. That always amazes me how God personally meets us right where we are when we worship Him.
Given the reality that even those who are healed physically will eventually die, I do not think that James is giving us a blanket formula for healing the sick. There is no “magic formula” for healing. God is looking for our obedience. When we simply obey what He tells us to do we can leave the results to Him without dictating what He must or must not do. We trust God because we know that He is love and has a purpose in everything He does even when we may not understand it.
To those who are in trouble, the bible says, “Let them pray.” To those who are happy, “Let them sing songs of praise.” We are to weep with those who weep and rejoice with those who rejoice. But then, James adds this for those who are sick, “Let them call the elders of the church to pray over them and anoint them with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise them up. If they have sinned, they will be forgiven.” James 5:14 (NIV) The principle here is plain, if you’re sick enough to go to the doctor, you’re sick enough to call the elders of the church to pray for you. When we pray for one another, we are being obedient to God’s Word and demonstrating His love for each other. When the elders anoint with oil, this is a symbol of the Holy Spirit who is the healing agent. The Holy Spirit is symbolized in Scripture as Wind, Fire and Oil. It is not the oil that heals. In verse 15 he says, “And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise them up. If they have sinned, they will be forgiven.” There is power in prayer. The Bible says, “Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.” (Verse 16)