The basis of God’s provision for healing

???????????God has provided healing for us just as he provided our salvation through the death and resurrection of Jesus. All Christians are widely familiar with the simple and common theology that Jesus gave his life as a sacrifice on the cross and paid the price for our salvation, taking upon himself the punishment for our sins, and that by faith in him, we can be saved from the punishment of our sins and freed from death to eternal life.

For God so loved the world that he gave His only begotten son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. (John 3:16-17)

Inspired by the Holy Spirit, the apostle Paul revealed the practical manifestation of the Father’s love for us:

But God demonstrates His love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. (Romans 5:8)

Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? For you were bought at a price: therefore glorify God in your body and your spirit, which are God’s. (1 Corinthians 6:19-20)

Perhaps the theology that Jesus, by way of the cross, also paid the price for the healing of both physical and emotional sicknesses is a little less familiar than that of salvation of the soul but, the Scriptures indicate that it is exactly this that Isaiah prophesied:

Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed Him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement for our peace was upon him, and by His stripes we are healed. (Isaiah 53:4-5)

The word “expiation” means, “to bring into unity”. Expiation is the process of bringing together those who are separate from the body. Here the term “expiation” refers to Christ’s suffering at the hands of Pilate and his crucifixion. Matthew cites this passage, saying:

When evening had come, they brought to Him many who were demon possessed. And He cast out the spirits with a word, and healed all who were sick, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying: “he himself took our infirmities and bore our sicknesses.” (Matthew 8:16-17)

Peter commented about the suffering of Jesus:

Who himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness – by whose stripes you are healed. (1 Peter 2:24)

Through the death of Christ, God provided many blessings for the world he loves so much. The death and resurrection of Jesus were a complete triumph over Satan and his kingdom. The expiation of the cross is sufficient to free us from all types of satanic slavery, from slavery to sin, guilt and shame, from demonic oppression, from any and all curses, from any and all satanic activities, from the slavery of sickness, diseases and emotional sickness.

However, the blessings of the cross are not automatic; and I will discuss the principles that determine the element of human responsibility in future posts. For now, I want to stress that God releases his healing in the same manner that he releases the other blessings of the cross, through the prayers and actions of his ministers. In the case of healing, this means through expectant prayer for healing of the sick.