Healing Series Part 2: What Is Our Role In Healing?
As we discussed in part 1, we as believers carry the responsibility to not only KNOW the will of God but also to be able to PROVE the will of God (Eph. 5:16-17; Rom. 12:2). We will be held accountable for this on our judgement day. It is NOT okay for us to say that we don’t know the will of God on a topic.So, the conclusion we came to last time, through the Scriptures, is that it is God’s will to heal 100% of the time.
Some then would logically ask: if this is so, then why doesn’t He just heal everybody right now? Or some may logically ask, then how come when we pray, we don’t see everyone get healed? Others may even ask, why do so many people die of sickness if it’s God’s will to heal 100% of the time? These are VALID questions and they deserve an answer.
I believe the answer to these questions lies in understanding God’s role in healing and our role in healing.
In the following, I will explain God’s role and our role in healing the sick according to the Scriptures, and I believe this will answer the previous questions. I will be proposing that we play an important role in healing the sick and that faith is what releases the will of God in heaven on earth.
As we begin to unpack God’s role and our role in healing, it’s important that we start with this understanding:
Jesus did not heal the sick, drive out demons, or do miracles as God; He did all of the supernatural as a man empowered by the Spirit of God in right relationship with the Father.
This is a very important point, because if Jesus did the healings, deliverances, and miracles as God, then we can’t do them, because we are not God. But, if He did these things as a man empowered by the Spirit of God, then we can do the same because we have the same Spirit!
So, we need to understand that Jesus, while being 100% God and 100% man, laid aside the glories attendant His deity, in order to: 1) walk the earth and fulfill the Old Covenant AS A MAN (Heb. 2:17-18); and 2) to be our example of what it looks like to walk the earth as a son of God (Jesus said “Follow Me”). He did NOT forsake His deity EVER. He remained God the entire time. However, He LAID ASIDE the glories attendant His deity during His time on the earth.
The primary source of Biblical backing for this, and perhaps one of the most foundational Scriptures in the entire Bible, is Philippians 2:5-8.
“Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross.”
??Philippians? ?2:5-8? ?NKJV??
Notice that phrase being in the form of God, this is referencing His deity. Yet now, take note of the phrase “did not consider it robbery to be equal with God”, this translates in other versions and in the Greek to say, “did not consider equality with God a thing to be held on to”. So, Jesus laid aside the glories attendant His deity in order to walk the earth in the likeness of man.
Another Scripture pointing to the fact that Jesus laid aside the glories attendant His deity is found in John 17:5.
“And now, O Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was.”
??John? ?17:5? ?NKJV??
There was glory that Jesus had before coming to earth that He laid aside during His time on earth.
If these passages are not enough proof, don’t worry, there are more. I will show you through other Scriptures that Jesus did not do any of the miracles Himself.
“how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power, who went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him.”
??Acts? ?10:38? ?NKJV??
Notice it says that God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. Why would Jesus need to be anointed with the Holy Spirit and with power if He could just do the miracles as God? He wouldn’t need to be anointed. He was anointed with the Holy Spirit and power because that is the means by which He moved in the supernatural. This is clear because of the context. That statement about His anointing is followed up with “who went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil.”
Note that it says that Jesus healed all, giving Him the credit, yet He always gave the Father the credit. Additionally, we will see in the next Scripture that it was God through Jesus healing people. Just keep note of this dynamic where Jesus is the One healing but it’s actually God in Him healing. This is important because similar language is used for His disciples, which we will discuss later on.
Okay, also note that this anointing of Jesus with the Holy Spirit and power happened when He was baptized by John the Baptist. Up until this point in time, Jesus had done no miracles, which further emphasizes that this anointing played a critical role in Jesus ability to walk in the supernatural, and it points out that we need a similar baptism of the Holy Spirit to walk in the same power.
Side note just for fun: always remember that God is never more pleased with you just because you walk in the supernatural. God declared over Jesus that He was well pleased with Him before Jesus ever performed a single miracle. So, all miracles flow from the place of God being pleased with us already. We are not trying to receive God’s approval by walking in miracles.
Also notice in this Scripture how it ends, “for God with with Him.” Wait, I thought He is God? He is. But He laid aside the glories attendant His deity and walked the earth as a man, filled with Holy Spirit, and empowered by the Spirit upon Him.
Okay, another Scripture to show that Jesus did not do the miracles as God is Acts 2:22.
““Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a Man attested by God to you by miracles, wonders, and signs which God did through Him in your midst, as you yourselves also know—”
Acts 2:22 NKJV
Notice the wording here. One of the founders of the faith, Peter, declares Jesus of Nazareth to be “a MAN attested by God”. He then goes on to say that the miracles, wonders, and signs we saw in the life of Jesus were done BY GOD THROUGH Him. So, who did the miracles? God. How? Through Jesus. This is what I mean when I said to make note of the interesting dynamic on healing. Acts 10:38 says that Jesus healed people, for God was with Him. So it says that Jesus did the healing, but it was because God was with Him. Here, it’s emphasized that God through Jesus is doing the miracles. This is important because later when we talk about the disciples, you will see that Jesus commands them to, “heal the sick.” And the Scriptures will say that they went out preaching and healing everywhere. It makes it sound like they are the ones healing. Are they the ones healing? Yes and no. Yes they are, because the Scriptures say so, but upon further evaluation of other Scriptures, we see that it’s actually God that is healing THROUGH THEM. We have no power in and of ourselves. All power comes from God. However, we steward and administer this power.
Here is another Scripture to really solidify that Jesus did not do the miracles as God, but as a Man in right relationship with God empowered by the Holy Spirit.
“Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you so long, and yet you have not known Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father; so how can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me? The words that I speak to you I do not speak on My own authority; but the Father who dwells in Me does the works. Believe Me that I am in the Father and the Father in Me, or else believe Me for the sake of the works themselves.”
??John? ?14:9-11? ?NKJV??
These are red letters, meaning Jesus is the one saying them. So tell me this: who does Jesus say does the works? Is it Him? No, He says it’s “the Father who dwells in Me” who does the works.
So, based on the Scriptures, it is safe to conclude that Jesus did not heal from a place of deity — He healed as a Man empowered by the Spirit of God in right relationship with the Father.
This is a good transitioning point for us because of the next verses that comes after verse 11 in John 14.
So, here is the next point: It is God’s design that we would be the conduit for God’s supernatural power in the exact same way that Jesus was a conduit for God’s supernatural power.
Let’s look at John 14:12-14.
““Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father. And whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask anything in My name, I will do it.”
??John? ?14:12-14? ?NKJV??
That word ‘most assuredly’, do you remember what it means? It means ‘amen, amen’. In other words, truly truly. Jesus is making sure that we understand that the following statement can be taken for a fact. Jesus then says, the works that He does (or that His Father does in Him — there’s that dynamic again), those who believe in Him will do the same and even greater works.
Side note: some may argue that this is not referring to the supernatural works, but that would not be doing the text justice. Verses 9-11, particularly verse 11 makes it abundantly clear that Jesus is saying that His supernatural works testify to His relationship with the Father and the Father’s indwelling presence.
We are going to return to John 14 for another point, but before we go there, I want to nail this one down further. So, some other Scriptures that speak to it being God’s design that we be a conduit for His supernatural power to touch people are the commissionings found in Matthew 10, Luke 9 and 10, and Mark 16. We talked about these in the last blog/vlog, but let’s look at them again from this new angle of God wanting to use us as a conduit for Him to touch people in the same way as He uses Jesus.
“And when He had called His twelve disciples to Him, He gave them power over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all kinds of sickness and all kinds of disease.”
Matthew 10:1 NKJV
Note that this was God’s choice to give the disciples this power, meaning that it’s God’s design for us to move with power like Jesus.
We see this expanded upon a few verses later with a COMMAND from Jesus. This is NOT optional. This is God’s will.
“These twelve Jesus sent out and commanded them, saying: “Do not go into the way of the Gentiles, and do not enter a city of the Samaritans. But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. And as you go, preach, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand.’ Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out demons. Freely you have received, freely give.”
Matthew 10:5-8 NKJV
We are COMMANDED to heal the sick and to deliver people from demons.
And again, we see the same thing in the gospel of Luke:
“Then He called His twelve disciples together and gave them power and authority over all demons, and to cure diseases. He sent them to preach the kingdom of God and to heal the sick.
So they departed and went through the towns, preaching the gospel and healing everywhere.”
Luke 9:1-2, 6 NKJV
Once again, this is God’s idea, not mine or anyone else’s. He set it up this way to use us.
Note that dynamic I told you to pay attention to. It says that the disciples went through the towns healing everywhere. Were they healing? Yes. Was God healing through them? Yes. These words trip people up sometimes because they are afraid people are taking credit for healing when only God heals. But the reality is, if I say “blank person” healed someone, technically I am not being unbiblical. We know that it’s God doing it, but He’s doing it through them. Healing, along with everything in the kingdom is about co-laboring with God. Is it wrong for me to say I preached? No? Then why can’t I say I healed? Did you know that no one can preach Jesus is the Christ apart from the Spirit of Christ? Therefore, preaching that Jesus is the Christ and came in the flesh is JUST AS supernatural as healing. Yet, I can say I preached and no one is stumbled by this, but if I say I healed someone, people are stumbled. Let’s settle once and for all that this is about co-laboring with God to His glory, and it’s always His power no matter what the wording.
Here is another Scripture showing God’s design:
“Whatever city you enter, and they receive you, eat such things as are set before you. And heal the sick there, and say to them, ‘The kingdom of God has come near to you.’”
Luke 10:8-9 NKJV
Note that in this passage, He is commissioning 70 people (according to vs. 1), so clearly this was not just for the 12 disciples.
And here is more confirmation in the Great Commission in the gospel of Mark:
“And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned. And these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues; they will take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.””
Mark 16:15-18 NKJV
So, based on the Scriptures, it is safe to conclude that it is God’s design that we be a conduit for the supernatural power of God in the same way that Jesus was.
Okay, so briefly I want to touch on why God designed things this way. The Scriptures speak to this. Let’s head back over to John 14:12-14 to discuss: Why does God co-labor with us in the supernatural and heal through us?
““Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father. And whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask anything in My name, I will do it.”
??John? ?14:12-14? ?NKJV??
Note why Jesus said that those who believe in Him will do the same works and even greater works. Is it so that we can make some great name for ourselves? NO. There are two reasons: 1) because He’s going to the Father, and 2) that the Father may be glorified in the Son. We will hit on both of these. Let’s start with the first though.
Because He’s going to the Father:
In other words, what I’ve been doing, you’re going to keep on doing so that My work can continue even when I’m gone.
Jesus had a plan for His work to be continued and for His name to be glorified through the disciples who would follow after Him. See how He says it in John 17.
“And all Mine are Yours, and Yours are Mine, and I am glorified in them.”
??John? ?17:10? ?NKJV??
Note the wording here. Jesus is glorified IN US. Miracles, signs, and wonders flow through us SO THAT JESUS is glorified in us.
So, once again, we are going to continue Jesus works because He is going to the Father.
Jesus elaborates on this in John 16 and said it was better for Him to leave than to stay here, why? So that He could send us the Holy Spirit. Jesus is saying that the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit in many believers is better than Him being here in the flesh because He can only be in one place at one time, but if the Spirit is in all who believe, then the works of Christ can be multiplied.
“Nevertheless I tell you the truth. It is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I depart, I will send Him to you.”
??John? ?16:7? ?NKJV??
Jesus confirms this design and this reasoning even further one chapter later when He says this:
“As You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world.”
??John? ?17:18? ?NKJV??
And in John 20.
“So Jesus said to them again, “Peace to you! As the Father has sent Me, I also send you.” And when He had said this, He breathed on them, and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit.”
??John? ?20:21-22? ?NKJV??
Jesus is filling us with the Holy Spirit and sending us in the same way that He was sent by the Father, to continue His works.
What are Jesus works? Why did the Father send Jesus? We need to know this if we are going to continue His works and understand why Jesus is sending us.
1 John answers this question.
“He who sins is of the devil, for the devil has sinned from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil.”
??I John? ?3:8? ?NKJV??
We have the same call on our life, to continue the work of Jesus in destroying the works of the devil.
Okay, secondly. We will do the same works as Jesus so that the Father may be glorified in the Son.
I feel as if healing and the supernatural gets a bad rap sometimes because certain people have used it to draw people to themselves. However, the true purpose of healing and the supernatural is so that God may be glorified in the Son and in us.
As sons of God and followers of Christ, we follow Jesus example. EVERYTHING that Jesus did, He did for the glory of God the Father. This is supposed to be the same for us. Our goal is to bring glory to God because He is worthy and because His will is amazing. When He is glorified, His kingdom comes and we get to reap the benefits. He is so good!
With this in mind, this helps us understand why God wills that we bear much fruit (John 15) — it brings Him glory and He wants His glory to encounter people.
“If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you. By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples.”
??John? ?15:7-8? ?NKJV??
It is God’s will that we bear much fruit, to His glory! This is what it means to be a disciple.
So, it is safe to conclude through the Scriptures that the reason that God uses us to heal people and be conduits for His supernatural power is because we are a continuation of Jesus’ work on earth and because God receives glory from this.
Now, I want to briefly move into the next point that provides more insight about our role and God’s role in healing.
We are ONE with Christ.
Note the beginning of this Scripture in John 15, how it talks about abiding.
If we abide in Jesus (which you do), and His words abide in you (which they do), then from that place of oneness, you will ask what you desire (they will be the same desires as His), and it shall be done for you. And this brings glory to the Father!
We are NOT Jesus. But we DO have THE SAME purpose as Him. We have been anointed with THE SAME power as Him. We are co-heirs with Him. And we are most definitely one with Him.
The Bible says that we have been made alive TOGETHER with Christ and have sat down TOGETHER with Him in heavenly places (Ephesians 2).
“But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.”
??Ephesians? ?2:4-7? ?NKJV??
Galatians 2:20 says:
“I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.”
??Galatians? ?2:20? ?NKJV??
I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. It is Christ’s life that is shining and flowing through me. I have become one with Him in life and Spirit. We now have the same identity, will, purpose, motivation, power, and love.
He has become our life.
“For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is our life appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory.”
??Colossians? ?3:3-4? ?NKJV??
This is not about being Jesus, but it is absolutely about being ONE with Him.
The way that we flow in healing is by understanding that we have become one with Him. This keeps it healthy on both ends of the spectrum. We never lower ourselves lower than God has positioned us and we never raise ourselves higher than God has raised us. Rather, we become emerged in Christ and He fills us. And as One, we build the kingdom of God for His glory and for His name’s sake.
Okay, so it is safe to conclude from the Scriptures that we are one with Christ.
One final point I want to make on our role and God’s role in healing pertains to who does the healing.
It is God’s power and our faith in the name of Jesus that causes people to be healed.
Let’s jump back to John 14:12.
““Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father.”
??John? ?14:12? ?NKJV??
Notice the wording in the second half of the Scripture. Anything we ask in Jesus’ name, HE will do it. Who is going to do it? JESUS. Who has to ask and believe? US. Who is going to do it? Jesus. Who is going to ask and believe? Us.
And why is Jesus going to do it? SO THAT the Father may be glorified in the Son.
Here is the best example in my opinion from after Jesus left the earth that provides us with a good understanding of this dynamic. The disciples are good examples for us.
“Now Peter and John went up together to the temple at the hour of prayer, the ninth hour. And a certain man lame from his mother’s womb was carried, whom they laid daily at the gate of the temple which is called Beautiful, to ask alms from those who entered the temple; who, seeing Peter and John about to go into the temple, asked for alms. And fixing his eyes on him, with John, Peter said, “Look at us.” So he gave them his attention, expecting to receive something from them. Then Peter said, “Silver and gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk.” And he took him by the right hand and lifted him up, and immediately his feet and ankle bones received strength. So he, leaping up, stood and walked and entered the temple with them—walking, leaping, and praising God. And all the people saw him walking and praising God. Then they knew that it was he who sat begging alms at the Beautiful Gate of the temple; and they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him. Now as the lame man who was healed held on to Peter and John, all the people ran together to them in the porch which is called Solomon’s, greatly amazed. So when Peter saw it, he responded to the people: “Men of Israel, why do you marvel at this? Or why look so intently at us, as though by our own power or godliness we had made this man walk? The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God of our fathers, glorified His Servant Jesus, whom you delivered up and denied in the presence of Pilate, when he was determined to let Him go. But you denied the Holy One and the Just, and asked for a murderer to be granted to you, and killed the Prince of life, whom God raised from the dead, of which we are witnesses. And His name, through faith in His name, has made this man strong, whom you see and know. Yes, the faith which comes through Him has given him this perfect soundness in the presence of you all. “Yet now, brethren, I know that you did it in ignorance, as did also your rulers. But those things which God foretold by the mouth of all His prophets, that the Christ would suffer, He has thus fulfilled. Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord, and that He may send Jesus Christ, who was preached to you before, whom heaven must receive until the times of restoration of all things, which God has spoken by the mouth of all His holy prophets since the world began.”
??Acts? ?3:1-21? ?NKJV??
Notice this phrase — “And His name, through faith in His name, has made this man strong, whom you see and know. Yes, the faith which comes through Him has given him this perfect soundness in the presence of you all.”
It is THE NAME OF JESUS, THROUGH FAITH IN HIS NAME, that heals people.
Our faith comes through Jesus and our faith is in Jesus. Our job is to simply have faith.Let me give you two scriptures to solidify this point before we wrap up.
“Then they said to Him, “What shall we do, that we may work the works of God?” Jesus answered and said to them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent.””
??John? ?6:28-29? ?NKJV??
How can we work the works of God? What does Jesus say?
BELIEVE IN JESUS.
What does this mean? It means believe everything that He said, did, represented, and what He purchased for us. A name represents the fullness of who someone is in Hebrew culture. Jesus is not just a name, it represents everything about Him. It embodies His entire being.
Here is another scripture to show that our job is to simply believe.
“Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, “Why could we not cast it out?” So Jesus said to them, “Because of your unbelief; for assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you. However, this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting.””
??Matthew? ?17:19-21? ?NKJV??
How do we move mountains? We speak to them IN FAITH. This whole thing is about believing.
So, wrapping up. Why doesn’t everyone get healed that we pray for? Why do some people die of sickness? What is the answer to all of our questions about why we don’t see the supernatural power of God?
Because of our unbelief.
Don’t be offended by this. These are Jesus’ red letters. We already discussed in the last vlog that it is always God’s will to heal, and we were reminded that we need to be careful to not say things that Jesus didn’t say.
This is meant to be an encouragement. Look how simple it is to see the miraculous: BELIEVE.
BELIEVE BELIEVE BELIEVE BELIEVE BELIEVE.
Jesus says that nothing will be impossible for him that believes. This is HUGE!!
We have been given the privilege and honor to believe God on others’ behalf and administer the power of God to them from a place of oneness with Christ to the glory of God the Father!
Don’t get discouraged by what your not seeing. Press into what’s possible.
Christians are called to be answer driven people. We are not people with a problem. We are people with a great answer and a great hope! Keep pressing into the answer and don’t fret over the things you haven’t seen.
We have one go round at this life. Don’t waste your time dwelling on problems. Dwell on answers that will set people free!
You are created to be the conduit for God’s power to flow through to His glory. Rejoice in this!
In the next vlog I’m going to get into some practicality. We need to know what it looks like practically to be the conduit for God’s power. In talking about this, I will share a bit of my experience and what my growth process has look like in the realm of healing.
Until then, I challenge you to check the Scriptures and make sure what I’m telling you is true. Also, I challenge you, if you believe God is a healer, stop and pray for some people. Swing the bat! God is excited about the opportunity to flow through you when you step out in faith!
I love y’all! I pray that this message brings clarity and furthers your walk with Jesus.
In Christ,
Ryan O’Keefe
#asyougochristianity #loveasyougo #yaygod #healing #biblicaltruth
