Miracles of Healing

 Miracles of Healing

“So the disciples went out, telling everyone they met to repent of their sins and turn to God. And they cast out many demons and healed many sick people, anointing them with olive oil.” Mark 6:12-‬13 NLT

In our small group reflection on Mark Chapter 6:1-29, we saw how Jesus sent out his twelve disciples to call the people to turn back to God in repentance with the ministry of deliverance and healing. As I was clearing my bookshelves recently, I found the booklet, Any Miracle God Wants To Give, written by Danny Morris in 1974. He shared how he had not been faithful in interpreting the healing ministry:

“Jesus healed, the disciples healed, and (according to my understanding) the Holy Spirit gives in this day the power to heal. The church as I have known it has not been as faithful as it might have been in interpreting the healing ministry. Nor have I!”

Danny Morris shared the five miracles of healing that he learned from Dr. J.C. Pheeters. I had been inspired by his insights but had not been faithful in sharing them. Firstly, there is the miracle of the instant cure which most people are fascinated with. Years ago, a mother came to see me with her toddler son who had put a bead into his nostril. After trying unsuccessfully to remove it, I told the mother that we need to send him to hospital. She decided to pray and to my utter surprise, the bead dropped out as I was writing the referral letter!

Secondly, there is the miracle of God’s undertaking. This is the manifestation of the natural healing capacities of the body for we are fearfully and wonderfully made (Psalm 139:14). We give doctors the credit for the cure and forget that it is God who heals - the doctor only collects the bill!

Thirdly, there is the miracle of God’s guidance to a remedy. A biblical example is found in 2 Kings 20:3 when King Hezekiah was dying and the prophet Isaiah was led to make a poultice of figs to cure the king’s boil. This is a miracle that I have seen many times in my medical career as the Lord led me to prescribe the right medications for my patients time and time again. So often we make our decisions and then commit them to God in prayer instead of seeking God in prayer before we make our decisions. In so doing we miss the opportunity to experience the wonder of God’s guidance and providence in our daily lives.

Fourthly, there is the miracle of the sufficiency of God’s grace. Again, I have witnessed how God’s amazing grace is made perfect in times of great suffering as I cared for patients dying from cancer. Although they were not cured, their lives and deaths reflected the truth that God’s power is greatest in our weakness when they experienced the joy of the fellowship of suffering with Christ and the resurrection power of Jesus Christ (Philippians 3:10-11).

Finally, there is the miracle of the triumphant crossing from death to eternal life. Although death is an enemy, Jesus has won for us the victory over death and has transformed it into the miracle of the triumphant crossing -  our resurrection from death. The miracle of tears of sorrow turning into tears of joy in the face of death is one that  I have seen countless times in the hospice ministry and especially in the past few months, in the deaths of an aunt, a couple of friends and a few patients.

Death may be the end of our personal story but it is only the beginning of God’s story of love when our deaths bear fruit in the lives of those we leave behind. There are also spiritual lessons to be learnt from even tragic and apparently meaningless deaths. The story of the senseless and horrific execution of John the Baptist opened my eyes to the hell that King Herod was in. He was a slave to his pride that was founded on the fickle praise of men and he had to face the torment of guilt of executing a prophet of God because of his unthinking promise to his daughter. It was a reminder to me of the danger of pride and the folly of seeking men’s praise.

The miracles of healing are the wheat we harvest when our heart is fertile soil. Miracles are not supernatural events but are the normal spiritual experiences of life in the kingdom of God. The weeds are our sins and the evil that keep us from experiencing the miracles of God:

"The seed that fell among the thorns represents others who hear God’s word,  but all too quickly the message is crowded out by the worries of this life, the lure of wealth, and the desire for other things, so no fruit is produced.” Mark 4:18‭-‬19 NLT

The  weeds represent the battle for our faith, our minds and our wills in the spiritual dimension of life:

“For the world offers only a craving for physical pleasure, a craving for everything we see, and pride in our achievements and possessions. These are not from the Father, but are from this world.” 1 John 2:16 NLT

Healing, and not suffering, is the will of God. But it is the condition of our hearts that are the blockages to the current of God’s healing power. Jesus found that his healing powers were limited in his hometown because of pride and prejudice:

“Then they scoffed, “He’s just a carpenter, the son of Mary and the brother of James, Joseph, Judas, and Simon. And his sisters live right here among us.” They were deeply offended and refused to believe in him. Then Jesus told them, “A prophet is honored everywhere except in his own hometown and among his relatives and his own family.” And because of their unbelief, he couldn’t do any miracles among them except to place his hands on a few sick people and heal them.” (Mark 6:3-5 NLT).

We need to be careful that we are not distracted by the miracles of healing. Satan tempts us to test God by seeking miracles instead of resting in God and making God our refuge and fortress. It is only when we live in the shelter of the Most High and rest in the shadow of the Almighty and declaring that the Lord alone is our refuge and place of safety that we will find angels protecting us wherever we go (Psalm 91). Unfortunately, we spend more time on social media which encourages the growth of the weeds of pride, greed and lust instead of taking time to rest in God in contemplative prayer. We test God and treat Him as an ATM for miracles. Jesus invites us to go to God as our loving Heavenly Father so that our faith will be revealed in the miracles that God is doing in our lives.

Jesus sent out the twelve disciples to preach the gospel of repentance and to demonstrate the power of the gospel through their healing and deliverance ministry. When we are living in the embrace of God’s love, we will not seek miracles for we will be living a life of miracles. May our eyes be opened not only to the miracles of healing but the miracle of God’s loving Presence in our daily lives as we surrender our hearts and minds to the Holy Spirit through the disciplines of prayer and meditation.