Extreme views and the truth

Unfortunately, it is often the extreme points of view which make 'good press' that are reported, and to arrive at a balanced opinion we must be aware of all the issues involved. This is often difficult, as the subject is so vast, and a number of those who debate this subject often approach it from their own point of view attempting to 'prove' their own theories by selective reporting and ignoring what doesn't fit. Indeed anybody discussing this issue can only approach it from their own background and point of view, and so put their own slant on it. The only non-disputed guide that we have on the issue is the Bible, and to a large extent I have tried to base what I have to say on the Bible, with my interpretation based on commentaries, study guides and my experience/knowledge (or lack of it). In this article I have tried to present a balanced picture, and to make you think but don't expect to get all the answers! Read what I , and others, have to say, then come to your own conclusions. In a few day's time, as I write this, there is a day conference in London, 'Healing - the Rift'. Those taking part will probably bring up other areas of the debate that I have not touched on; compare what they have to say with what I have written, and, again, make up your own mind.

The main concern which has to be addressed has to be that of the truth, be that specifically with healing, or in any issue which the church faces. There are many Christians (if not churches) whose lives do not match what they are teaching. Also bear in mind that this is not a central issue to Christianity; the truth of the Gospel and our relationships with God are more important than this interesting, but contentious, side issue (see Titus 3:9).

Healing by Jesus

Now the first person to turn to when talking about healing is, of course, Jesus Christ himself.

All of the gospels include accounts of Jesus' healings - one fifth of the gospels is concerned with Jesus' healing ministry and his teaching about it. In Luke's Gospel, Jesus' first reported healings start in chapter four. In the following five chapters he heals 10 people, plus 7 lots of 'many' - including some who had demons or evil spirits.

A quick look through any of the gospels will reveal an impressive list of healings and miracles. Let me make some observations; if you do look up the references (and there are plenty of others which I have not included) - look at the context as well.

• Almost all of those Jesus healed, were immediately and completely healed with a touch, a word or command - he didn't even have to be there (Mk 8:22-25, Lk 6:10, Jn 9:6-7)
• Jesus never failed (Mk 9:23)
• Healings caused the news about Jesus to spread (Mt 9:26, Lk 4:37)
• Healings constituted a sort of 'proof' about who Jesus was, yet he seemed to want people to find out for themselves (Mt 12:15-16, Lk 4:41, Jn 4:48, Jn 20:31)
• Despite the evidence of Jesus' healings and other miracles, not everyone believed in him (Mt 11:20, Mt 13:14-15, Jn 12:37, Jn 15:24)
• He did not appear to heal everyone who needed it (Jn 5:3-9)
• Healing seemed to be an integral part of Jesus' ministry (Mt 11:5)
• This was not Jesus, the man healing people, but Jesus the Son of God (Lk 5:17, Jn 5:19)
• Healing was a part of Jesus' fight against the work of Satan (Mt 12:28, Lk 10:18-19)
• Sin appeared to be linked with illness - and therefore forgiveness with healing (Lk 5:24, Jn 5:14)
• Faith was associated with healings (Mt 13:58, Mt 17:20 Mk 2:5 Lk 7:9)

Healing by the disciples and the apostles

He was not the only one able to perform miracles, the Pharisees themselves were reported to drive out demons. Jesus sent out his disciples to heal the sick and preach the gospel, and he also sent another 72 people out with a similar brief. Note that, as for Jesus, it was not men who were healing and driving out demons, but the power and authority of God working through them. At other times Jesus' disciples appeared to be healing people (or trying to in at least one case). Others also tried to heal in Jesus' name, although the disciples were not too sympathetic! (see Mt 12:27, Mk 9:18, Mk 9:38, Lk 9:1-2, Lk 10:9, Lk 10:19)

When Jesus returned to heaven, did the healings and miracles stop? Definitely not! Let's take a quick look at Acts. First of all, nothing happened until the arrival of the Holy Spirit, as promised by Jesus (Acts 1:8). Then after an explanation by Peter, 'many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the Apostles' (2:43). Then we get the detail of a cripple at the temple gate who got more than he bargained for when he spoke to Peter and John (3:1-10). Look at 5:12-16; the apostles were still performing 'many miraculous signs and wonders', and people were brought into the street so that Peter's shadow might pass over them - did we hear that with Jesus? (see 19:11-12). 5:16 reads '...all of them were healed.' Let's look back to 4:33. 'With great power the apostles continued to testify to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and much grace was upon them all.' At the centre of all of their actions was Jesus (see4:30), and the miracles gave them many opportunities to tell people about him, including the Sanhedrin. Look back at Jesus' promise: 'you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses'. They certainly fulfilled that!

Healing by others

So far it has only been the apostles who did the miracles. Was that it? Did it stop with them? No! Look at chapter 6: Stephen, 'a man full of God's grace and power, did great wonders and miraculous signs among the people' (6:8). A little later Philip was also seen performing miracles and thus gaining the attention of those around him (8:6). Paul also performed many miracles. For all of them, the purpose of their actions was the spread of the gospel. Another common thread is the Holy Spirit (see Jn 14:26). Another group who were driving out evil spirits found that 'the name of Jesus' was not enough; without Jesus, they did not have the authority to succeed (Acts 19:13-16).

The second half of Acts, which follows Paul's travels, is relatively quiet about the miraculous signs and wonders seen previously, although still, 'God did extraordinary miracles through Paul' (19:11). Notice 'God...through Paul', not Paul himself, doing the miracles. In his letter to the Romans, Paul later describes his work like this: 'Therefore I glory in Christ Jesus in my service to God. I will not venture to speak of anything except what Christ has accomplished through me in leading the Gentiles to obey God by what l have said and done - by the power of signs and miracles, through the power of the Spirit. So. . . I have fully proclaimed the gospel of Christ.' (Rom 15:17-19). The full proclamation of the Gospel included both the words and the works. (How many churches do we see today 'fully' proclaiming the Gospel, if this is the way to do it?)

Have miracles ceased?

So what has happened to all of this miraculous activity? Should we still be seeing it today, or have we lost it? Is God still capable of healing people?

What else can we find in the New Testament? Well, we can start off with what Jesus had to say. Jesus did not actually say very much about healing and miracles after he had gone, he was more concerned with his own work. However, there are one or two things in the gospels that we could consider.

As mentioned above, Jesus talks about faith - 'I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you' (Mt 17:20-21). Does that principle apply to us today, including healing? (see also Mt 21:21-22, Mk 11:22-24 and Lk 17:6)

In the well-known 'Great Commission' in Mt 28:19-20, Jesus spoke about teaching people to obey everything that he had commanded the disciples to do. Does that involve healing, an integral part of both Jesus' and his disciples' work?

Mark 16:15-18 is often quoted by those who believe in miraculous healing. Those who disagree immediately pounce on the fact that this part of Mark is not part of the original, but a later addition. According to my commentary, this ending to Mark's gospel is accepted as an authentic part of Scripture by all scholars. Certainly, it does not contradict any other part of the Bible - and would it have been written if it was totally outside of the writer's experience?

'The words I say to you are not just my own. Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work. Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; or at least believe on the evidence of the miracles themselves. I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father . . You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.'  (Jn 14:10-14)

To me this would seem to be a fairly clear statement that if we have faith in Christ, we should be able to do similar works, if not better, than Jesus did. I can think of a number of people who vigorously object to the idea that we could do anything greater than Jesus - especially in the field of the miraculous - despite what he said. It does not sound as though miracles, including healing, are excluded from this. I think that here 'greater things' could be related to the wider opportunities which the believers would have when Jesus returned to the Father. However, we cannot act as a 'substitute Jesus'; as the Son of God, he had a special role that we cannot repeat.

Beyond the gospels there is quite a bit more that we can look at. I have already mentioned Jesus' promise about power and the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:8). Today we still have the same Holy Spirit - do we still receive power when filled by the Spirit, or have we lost that aspect of him?

In 1 Corinthians 12, we find two lists of spiritual gifts that include 'gifts of healing' (vs 9 & 28). Is the Holy Spirit still giving these gifts to the church today, or have they been lost? Unless we want to pick and choose which pieces of the Bible we want to believe, I would say that 'gifts of healing' are available for use today, as and when the Spirit determines, just as with the other gifts.

The next piece of advice we receive is in James 5:14-16, 'Is any one of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise him up. If he has sinned, he will be forgiven. Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.' James brings together two ideas already encountered; those of faith and sin. In addition, there is no doubt here that prayer in faith will be effective.

So where does this leave us today?

Still with lots of questions!

Miracles today?

My conclusion from reading the Bible is that miraculous healing is available to us today. However, as you have probably noticed, it is not very common in our churches. There are many claims being made today about miraculous healings, both here and abroad. A good number of those claims that have been investigated have been shown to be either false, or at best mis-reported, but there are still many people who claim to have been healed, or who have prayed for, and seen others being healed. What actually constitutes a miraculous healing is also hotly debated for example should it be instantaneous or over a period of time?

So why is it that we do not see very many people being healed? Is it due to a lack of faith or sin - as individuals or as a church? In many Third World countries there are reports of healings and even of people being raised from the dead. Of course it is difficult to substantiate these claims, but I have heard some from friends whom I would trust, who have seen them first hand. Is there a reason miracles might be more common in these countries? Certainly their churches seem to be more vibrant and alive than many of ours. Many of them also have a much greater need than we do - they do not all have health care on demand, or they cannot afford what is available.

Many illnesses that are apparently cured are dismissed as being psychosomatic. But pause for a moment: is a psychosomatic illness any less 'real' than an organic one? If someone is healed from such an illness is it still a healing, although perhaps not as 'miraculous' as some would want?

What is the role of demons in illness today? In biblical times there seemed to be quite a few of them around, but today they are all but ignored by many people. Obviously we need to get the balance right and not be looking for demons as the cause of all illness, but is it not an aspect of illness that we perhaps need to be aware of?

If both healing the sick and preaching the Gospel were an integral part of the work of the early church, should we be following their example?

I have raised a lot of questions in this article. I may have one or two answers, but I don't have them all. I leave it to you to come to your own conclusions.