Are
You Willing to Be Healed?
By
Troy J. Edwards
And a certain man was there, which had an infirmity
thirty and eight years. When Jesus saw him lie, and knew that he had been
now a long time in that case, he saith unto him, Wilt thou be made whole? (John
5:5-6)
When it comes to
supernatural healing of bodily ailments, one of the main points of contention
among believers is God’s will. The following is a summary of the debate:
- It is never God’s will to heal in this dispensation.
- It is God’s will to heal some but not all.
- It is always God’s will to heal.
Those who are familiar
with our ministry know that I support the third viewpoint, and I have ample
teaching in the form of books
and videos
to support my position. Jesus confirmed it. In my opinion, Jesus answered the
question once and for all in His interaction with a leper:
And there came a leper to him, beseeching him, and
kneeling down to him, and saying unto him, If thou wilt, thou canst make me
clean. And Jesus, moved with compassion, put forth his hand, and
touched him, and saith unto him, I will; be thou clean. (Mark
1:40-41)
Jesus was the “will of
God” in action (John 5:19; 8:38; 14:7-11; Acts 10:38). He said, “…. I seek
not mine own will, but the will of the Father which hath sent me” (John
5:30b). The life, words, and actions of Jesus sufficiently demonstrate that it
is God’s will to heal today and it is His will to heal all (Matt.
4:24; 8:16; 12:15; Acts 10:34, 35, 38).
The true question to be
asked is not about God’s willingness, but about our own willingness.
It’s no longer a question of whether or not it’s God’s will for you to
be healed: instead, God wants to know if it’s your will to be healed. We
can see how Jesus had to incorporate this man's will in the process in John
5:5-6.
Regardless of what God
was willing to do, the man had to accept it. God is willing to accomplish a lot
of things, but He will not do them against our will. Jesus clarifies once more:
O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the
prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have
gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her
wings, and ye would not! (Matt. 23:37)
Jesus offered to
safeguard Jerusalem from the threats they were facing, but they turned Him down.
God may want to intervene in our lives, but He will not kick down our closed
doors or try to force His will through clinched teeth (Rev. 3:20; Psalm
81:10-16). As a result, the issue with divine healing is not one of God’s will;
rather, it is one of ours.
God will not intervene if
we want to hold on to concepts about miracles vanishing or Calvinistically
influenced ideas about God’s sovereignty in which God is believed to play
favorites (and save your breath with the standard assertion that “he just
doesn't understand Calvinism”). He respects our right to make our own decisions
far too much to do so (Deut. 30:15, 19; Isa. 1:18-20). As a result, the first
step in receiving healing is to comprehend both God's willingness to heal and
your willingness to be healed.
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