By Tom Shanklin

Many of our problems in life, whether they be physical, mental or social, are caused by being out of synch with God.

Today, perhaps you have a sickness in your body or troubles in your mind, or are out of sorts in your spiritual life. I want you to know that God’s Word has something to say about your condition.

In fact, the Bible tells us that His Word will bring healing to us. “He sent his word, and healed them, and delivered them from their destructions.” (Psalms 107:20, KJV). So, today, I want to encourage you to absorb God’s Word, which has the power to heal and restore your life.

I can attest to having seen many miracles of healing since I became a Christian in 1977 and especially since entering the ministry in 1983. Many people have been healed of sickness and disease. Tumors have dissolved, Aching joints have been healed. Results of medical tests have been radically altered, all through the power of prayer in Jesus name.

But divine healing (that is, healing brought about by the power of God) does not only happen in an evangelistic service or a church meeting. It will happen in your home, in your daily life. It will happen as your relationships change, and attitudes improve. It will happen as you allow Jesus to invade your total being with His total being.
Healing: spirit, soul and body

“And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (1 Thessalonians 5:23, KJV).

When God looks at you, He doesn’t just see a body, or a mind, or a spirit. He sees a total person in need of His love, power and reconciliation. The healing that God wants to bring about in you is for the total person.

Medical science knows that what is going on inside of a person effects was is happening on the outside. This is why doctors, more and more, are opening up to the ministry of prayer for their sick patients. Negative emotions, anxiety, fear, stress, frustration, guilt and anger, for example, can produce sickness and disease and hinder healing. In fact, a person may be healed through prayer and the laying on of hands under the anointing, but may later lose that healing because they are “out of sorts” with their environment, with other people, and with their Creator.

God’s healing in your life works from the inside out. His work of healing, first of all, brings us into harmony with Himself. This is the new birth experience. Our spirit, which was made to commune with God, is united and brought into harmony with Him. This takes place when we turn from sin and believe the Gospel of His Son.

Next, God’s work takes place in the realm of soul (our thought-life and our emotions). This is the psychological part of man. The word for soul the in the Greek New Testament is “psuche”. The same word is the root of our English word, “psychology” (the study of the mind, emotions and the related behaviors). We can have peace in our soul as we come to Jesus Christ and renew our minds to the truth of God’s Word. This healing of the soul is essential to enjoying a normal, healthy, balanced life in the love of God. Also, because of the relationship between the spirit, soul and body, healing for the soul is necessary for sustained healing for the body. The best therapy for the soul is meditation and confession of the scriptures. As Jesus said, “And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” (John 8:32, KJV).

The body is the part that God has given you to be able to live in this natural world. A healthy body is God’s will for your life. Sickness is part of the curse. Healing, health and wholeness are God’s will for you in the realm of the physical.
Healing is physical salvation

You cannot separate healing from the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Everywhere that Jesus went he healed the sick. He told His disciples when they entered a city to “heal the sick that are therein, and say unto them, The kingdom of God is come nigh unto you.” (Luke 10:8-9, KJV).

God identifies Himself as “the Lord that heals thee.” (Exodus 15.26, KJV). For some people, divine healing is a controversial subject, but it really shouldn’t be. Healing is simply the nature of God. God is a healing God. When we receive Him, He initiates a work of healing in our life.

In Isaiah, He speaks about Jesus Christ: “Surely our sicknesses he hath borne, And our pains-he hath carried them, And we-we have esteemed him plagued, Smitten of God, and afflicted. And he is pierced for our transgressions, Bruised for our iniquities, The chastisement of our peace is on him, And by his bruise there is healing to us.” (Isaiah 53:4-5, YLT).

When Jesus died on the cross, He took the total punishment for our sins. He suffered a spiritual separation from His Father as judgment was placed upon Him, so that we could be united to God spiritually. He suffered mental and emotional torment, so we could be restored to peace in our mind and emotions. He suffered pain in his body, so we could receive healing in our physical bodies.

In fact, the Lord makes very little distinction between salvation and physical healing. The Greek word translated “save” in the new Testament (sozo) is also translated “heal” or “make whole.” The Lord is concerned about healing and restoration of the total person (spirit, soul and body). Jesus told the woman that was healed of an issue of blood, “Daughter, thy faith hath made thee whole; go in peace, and be whole of thy plague.” (Mark 5:34, KJV). The word “whole” in the Greek is “sozo.”

As James tells us, “And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him. (James 5:15, KJV). The word “save” in the original Greek is again “sozo.” One of the definitions of “sozo” is to save one suffering from disease, to make well, heal, restore to health.” So we see that healing is physical salvation. (Thayers Lexicon)

My purpose here is not to win an argument about divine healing, but to help you open your heart to a part of the grace of God that you may not have received up until now.
God wants you well

The Bible tells us that “God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him.” (Acts 10:38, KJV). Clearly, then, if we believe the scriptures, sickness comes from the devil and healing comes from God. God anointed Jesus to heal those who were oppressed of the devil. The devil brought sickness. Jesus brought healing. Nothing has changed today, because Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever. (Hebrews 13:8, KJV). So please do not think that because you are sick, that is God’s will for your life.

It is true, however, that disobedience can open the door to sickness in your life. This does not mean that sickness is God’s will, any more than it would be a parent’s will for their child to be burned on a stove because of disodience to their warnings and instructions.

Now, the last thing anyone should do, as they are receiving this information, is to condemn themselves over being sick. No, the point is to let you know that God loves you and wants to heal and restore you-spirit, soul and body. Just receiving this truth will do wonders for your health. Just to realize that God loves you and wants to heal you is a powerful revelation that can totally change your life. If you add that revelation to the knowledge that God is able to heal you, you are in a position to receive a powerful healing.

A man came to Jesus one day with a revelation of Jesus’ ability to heal. “And behold, a leper came and worshiped Him, saying, ‘Lord, if You are willing, You can make me clean.'” (Matthew 8:2, NKJV).

Jesus didn’t have to debate in his mind the question of whether he wanted to heal this dear man. He didn’t have to pray and fast to get a revelation from the Father on the subject. No, he answered him clearly and distinctly and quickly. “Then Jesus put out His hand and touched him, saying, ‘I am willing; be cleansed.’ Immediately his leprosy was cleansed.” (Matthew 8:3, NKJV). Not only is God able to heal; he also is willing to heal. Are you willing to let Him heal you today, spirit soul and body?

Healing begins in our lives when we receive a clear revelation of both the ability and the willingness of God to heal us and as we allow Him to be Lord and Master of our lives. Uncertainty concerning the will of God to heal you will hinder your faith to receive. So I encourage you. Open your heart to God’s will. Let Him do His work of healing. Meditate on His healing Word. Receive what he has for you. Some healings are instant. Some are gradual. . . but if healings come from God, they are simply divine. Enjoy the goodness of God today!