Is it always God’s will to heal? Christians believe that (in a sense) complete healing will come in the resurrection when we are given a glorified immortal body, ‘like his glorious body’ (Philippians 3:21). But what about God healing people in this earthly life? Is it God’s will to heal? And if so, is that just sometimes, or all the time?

This is a particularly important question when it comes to the way in which we approach healing prayer. Is it always God’s will to heal? Can we confidently pray for anyone to be healed, or should we rather pray, “FATHER God, IF it’s your will, please heal this person”?

People may wonder about Paul’s thorn in the flesh (2 Corinthians 12:7-10) – a passage where Paul asks God to remove a ‘thorn’ or torment but is denied (to save him from arrogance). Could this be a case where it wasn’t God’s will to heal? Well, an honest answer is ‘we just don’t know‘ and where there is ambiguity in a certain passage we must always look to the many passages where we can be more certain.

So, in light of this, here are 5 major reasons from scripture why we can be confident that it is always God’s will to heal today.

1: JESUS REVEALS THE FATHER’S WILL TO HEAL

The Gospel accounts tell us over and over again that Jesus healed ALL who came to him:

“That evening they brought to him many who were oppressed by demons, and he cast out the spirits with a word and healed all who were sick.” Matthew 8:16

“Now when the sun was setting, all those who had any who were sick with various diseases brought them to him, and he laid his hands on every one of them and healed them.” Luke 4:40

“Great crowds came to him, bringing the lame, the blind, the crippled, the mute and many others, and laid them at his feet; and he healed them.” Matthew 15:30

The eye witnesses of these mass healing events were not exaggerating – they simply saw and reported that Jesus healed ALL who came to him. Furthermore, in the few accounts that individuals asked Jesus for healing his answer was always ‘Yes, I am willing’! (Matthew 8:2-3, Matthew 9:28, John 5:5-9).

A man with leprosy came and knelt before him and said, “Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean.” Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man. “I am willing,” he said. “Be clean!” Immediately he was cleansed of his leprosy. Matthew 8:2-3

No matter how much we would like there to a scriptural example of Jesus refusing to heal somebody that asked him for healing, sorry, but it just isn’t there. Some people are so desperate for an example of this that they even put it into the popular ‘The Chosen’ series – inserting an extra-Biblical scene where Jesus tells one of his disciples ‘No, sorry, I’m not going to heal you’! (The Chosen, Season 3 Episode 2).

No, in scripture Jesus healed ALL that came to him and taught us that these healings for all comers were categorically the works of our Father God:

“ The words I say to you I do not speak on my own authority. 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 works themselves.” John‬ ‭14‬:‭10-‭11‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Jesus declared the healing works that he did to be the works and will of God the Father. By the testimony of Jesus it was God the Father who healed all – the righteous and the unrighteous (the unclean, the undeserving, the confused, the doubters and the outcasts), because it is Gods will to heal all.

2: SICKNESS IS OF THE DEVIL

In the book of Acts we read,

“how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and power, and how he went around doing good and healing all who were under the power of the devil, because God was with him.” Acts 10:38

This verse says that Jesus healed ALL who were ‘under the power of the devil’ and designates sickness as part of the devils work. Now forgive me, but isn’t the whole point of the gospel to deliver all people from the power of the devil?:

“For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves,” Colossians‬ ‭1‬:‭13‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Jesus mission was to ‘destroy the works of the devil’ (1 John 3:8) and he did this by healing people under his power because God was with him. Why? Because this was the will of God – and still is!

3: THE NEW COVENANT IS GREATER THAN THE OLD

The fourth main section of Hebrews, from 8:1 to 10:39, tells us that the new covenant enacted by Christ is superior to the old. The new covenant is superior to the old because the old covenant of Moses was only a shadow or a type, while the new covenant of Jesus is the ‘real deal’, the reality, or fulfillment of the type.

Before the Israelites entered the promise land the Lord told them how they were to live there and how one of the consequences of living Gods way would be that:

“The Lord will keep you free from every disease.” Deuteronomy‬ ‭7‬:‭15‬ ‭NIV‬‬

This scripture explicitly states that part of the blessing of living under Gods covenant would be ‘freedom from every disease’ – not in the afterlife but in this life. If the old covenant was the shadow and the new covenant is superior in every way then health and healing must be (at least potentially – as it was in the Old Covenant) part of the blessing of the New Covenant (in this life). Otherwise it is blatantly inferior to the Old Covenant and we are denying the power of God to profess that Christ brings ‘a better promise’ but NOT expect that promise to include health and healing.

4: THE COMMAND OF HEALING – NOT THE REQUEST

In the Biblical record of life in the early church there is not one single instance of someone praying, ‘Father IF it be your will please heal this person’. Every single account of a miraculous healing is imparted by the confident command or act of healing – because they believed it is always Gods will to heal:

“Then Peter said, “Silver or gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk.”” Acts‬ ‭3‬:‭6‬ ‭NIV‬‬

““Aeneas,” Peter said to him, “Jesus Christ heals you. Get up and roll up your mat.” Immediately Aeneas got up.” Acts‬ ‭9‬:‭34‬ ‭NIV‬‬

“Paul looked directly at him, saw that he had faith to be healed and called out, “Stand up on your feet!” At that, the man jumped up and began to walk.” Acts‬ ‭14:9-10

It is evident that there was a certainty in the early church that it was God’s will to heal and that they had been given the authority to act on that will. Jesus words that ‘anyone who believed in him would do the miraculous works that he had been doing’ (John 14:12) was coming true and still is today!

5: TEACHING THEM TO OBEY ALL I HAVE COMMANDED YOU

And finally, an often overlooked aspect of the great commission is that Jesus told his disciples to ‘go make disciples – and teach them EVERYTHING I have commanded you’:

“Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.” Matthew 28:19-20

This means that as well as all the wonderful teachings of Jesus the disciples were to make disciples who ALSO DID THE THINGS that Jesus taught them to do – including ‘healing the sick’.

“Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received; freely give.” Matthew 10:8

When Jesus sent his disciples out to ‘heal the sick’ there were no caveats, no exclusions, no ‘heal them if its Gods will’ but simply – go and the heal the sick. So we can confidently conclude then that when the disciples made disciples that this mandate to ‘go heal the sick’ was passed on to all believers just as Jesus had commanded them to do.

CONCLUSION

There are many things that may impede or block the healing command or prayer but doubting that it is God’s will to heal should not be one of them. One of the ironic things about NOT believing it is always God’s will to heal is that one should also question then the legitimacy of seeking medical treatment at all! But this just reveals the inconsistency of such a pessimistic view of God’s intentions towards us.

The scriptures are clear that it is always Gods will to heal through us, and so we are to partner with him to ‘eagerly desire the gifts of the Spirit’ – including healing (1 Corinthians 12). So when we have the opportunity to release the power of healing in Jesus name, we should do so with faith and confidence that God has not changed his mind and is still desiring to heal today just as he did through Jesus and the Apostles.