“Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creation,” Jesus told His disciples before He left this earth. (Mark 16:15) What is the gospel? The word literally means “good news.” What good news did Jesus want us to tell the world?
The same good news that Jesus told while He was on the earth: Your sins can be forgiven and you can be healed. The story of the paralytic who was brought to Jesus captures this idea precisely. Jesus was preaching the word to a houseful of people, including the religious scribes and Pharisees. “And the power of the Lord was present to heal them.” (Luke 5:17) Note that when Jesus preached the word, healing power was made available. When Jesus preached the gospel, it must have included God’s power to heal people physically, because whatever aspect is preached concerning God’s word, He shows up to confirm that aspect with signs following. (Mark 16:20)
The crippled man was carried on a stretcher to Jesus, but they could not get near the door because of the crowds, so they made a hole in the rooftop of the house and let the man down in the midst of everyone, right in front of Jesus.
When Jesus saw their faith, He told the man his sins were forgiven. That really disturbed the religious people! They thought Jesus was being blasphemous because only God could forgive sins. So Jesus demonstrated that He did have the power to forgive sins by saying, “Which is easier to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven you? or ‘Rise up and walk?’” (Luke 5:23)
Jesus linked together the forgiveness of sins and our physical healing. They are intertwined because sickness came to the earth as a result of sin, and the remedy for sickness comes through our forgiveness. Immediately he rose up before them, took up what he had been lying on, and departed to his own house, glorifying God. (Luke 5:25)
We see healing contained in the gospel in Paul’s ministry in Acts 14:7-10. Paul was preaching in a town called Lystra. As a crippled man listened, Paul looked at him and perceived that he had faith to be healed. Remember, faith for healing can only come if the word about healing is preached and heard. The man could only have had faith to be healed if Paul was proclaiming God’s power and willingness to heal. The Bible says that Paul preached the gospel. It was this good news that caused the man in Lystra who had never walked to stand up and leap for the first time in his life! It is indeed good news that God wants to heal our bodies as well as forgive our sins.
Confession: I believe the good news – forgiveness for our sins and healing for our bodies – and I proclaim it to others.
Scriptures for meditation: Mark 16:14-20; Luke 5:17-25; Acts 14:7-10
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Copyright © 2007 by David Hagni. All rights reserved.