Two Truths About Healing

Is anyone among you sick? Then he must call for the elders of the church and they are to pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord.
–James 5:14

In Acts 3, Peter healed a beggar at the temple gate. When a crowd gathered, amazed by the miracle, Peter shared the gospel with them. Today, I want to share two timeless truths from this passage.

First of all, the primary mission of the church is not to heal, feed, and clothe everybody; it is to meet their spiritual needs. A lot of people view the church as a sanctified social agency. But when Jesus gave the Great Commission in Matthew 28:19–20, He didn’t say, “Go therefore and meet the physical needs of all the nations, feeding the hungry and healing the sick.” He said, “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them . . . [and] teaching them to observe all that I commanded you.” After healing the beggar, Peter preached the gospel to provide the spiritual healing the crowd needed. That’s the mission of the church.

Second, all healing ultimately comes from God. Sometimes God heals people directly; other times He uses doctors and medicine to bring about healing. In Isaiah 38, King Hezekiah became gravely ill, and he received a message from the Lord that he would die soon. So he cried out to God for healing, and God granted him an extra fifteen years. How did God provide that healing? In verse 21, Isaiah said, “Let them take a cake of figs and apply it to the boil, that he may recover.” God used the best medicine available at the time to extend Hezekiah’s life. Similarly, in the New Testament, James wrote, “Is anyone among you sick? Then he must call for the elders of the church and they are to pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord.” In James’s day, oil was a medicinal agent. James was saying, “If somebody is sick, use whatever medicine you can. But the most important thing you can do is to pray.”

When you or a loved one faces illness, the Bible says you ought to pray and take advantage of the medical resources God has provided. Then leave the results to Him. Boldly pray but quietly rest in God’s answer. God hears you, He loves you, and He knows what’s best for you. That’s the assurance every Christian can rest in.

Today’s devotion is adapted from “Purpose-Driven Healing,” by Dr. Robert Jeffress, 2021.

Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. www.lockman.org.