The Bible Promises of Healing Volume II

One, Twelve, Seventy-Two

“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.”

1 Jh 3:8 (NKJV)

“Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom, and healing every disease and sickness among the people. News about him spread all over Syria, and people brought to him all who were ill with various diseases, those suffering severe pain, the demon-possessed, those having seizures, and the paralyzed; and he healed them. Large crowds from Galilee, the Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea and the region across the Jordan followed him.”

*underlining added for emphasis

Mat 4:23-25 (NIV)

“At sunset, the people brought to Jesus all who had various kinds of sickness, and laying his hands on each one, he healed them. 41 Moreover, demons came out of many people, shouting, “You are the Son of God!” But he rebuked them and would not allow them to speak, because they knew he was the Messiah.”

*underlining added for emphasis

Luk 4:40-41 (NIV)

“How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power, and how He went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him.”

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Act 10:38

1 Jhn 3:8 says that Jesus was manifested, i.e., “made visible,” “made known,” or “exposed to view” (Strong’s Concordance) (Blue Letter Bible, n.d.) to destroy the works of the devil. If Jesus had a mission statement or a statement of purpose, part of it would be to destroy the works of the devil, the one who “sinned from the beginning.” In several places in Scripture, Jesus says He only did the will of the Father that sent Him.

“I can of mine own self do nothing: as I hear, I juge and my judgment is just; because I seek not mine own will, but the will of the Father which hath sent me.”

Jhn 5:30

“Jesus said to them, ‘My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me, and to finish His work.’”

Jhn 4:34 (NKJV)

“For I have come down from heaven not to do my will but to do the will of him who sent me. And this is the will of him who sent me, that I shall lose none of all those he has given me, but raise them up at the last day. For my Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day.”

Jhn 6:38-40 (NIV)

“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.”

Jhn 14:12

If we follow Jesus’ life in the gospels, we can see that healing was part of His mission and one of His priorities. One of the greatest proofs of the priority Jesus placed on healing is seen in what He told others to do. If we look at Jesus’ instructions to the apostles and the “seventy-two,” we see that healing was one of the highest priorities.

Sending Out the Twelve

“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. And He said to them, ‘Take nothing for the journey, neither staffs nor bag nor bread nor money; and do not have two tunics apiece. Whatever house you enter, stay there, and from there depart. And whoever will not receive you, when you go out of that city, shake off the very dust from your feet as a testimony against them.’ So they departed and went through the towns, preaching the gospel and healing everywhere.”

*underlining added for emphasis

Luk 9:1-6 (NKJV)

“And through the hands of the apostles many signs and wonders were done among the people. And they were all with one accord in Solomon’s Porch. Yet none of the rest dared join them, but the people esteemed them highly. And believers were increasingly added to the Lord, multitudes of both men and women, so that they brought the sick out into the streets and laid them on beds and couches, that at least the shadow of Peter passing by might fall on some of them. Also a multitude gathered from the surrounding cities to Jerusalem, bringing sick people and those who were tormented by unclean spirits, and they were all healed.”

Act 5:12-16 (NKJV)

Jesus Sends Out the Seventy-Two

“After this the Lord appointed seventy-two and sent them on ahead of him, two by two, into every town and place where he himself was about to go. And he said to them, ‘The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest. Go your way; behold, I am sending you out as lambs in the midst of wolves. Carry no moneybag, no knapsack, no sandals, and greet no one on the road. Whatever house you enter, first say, ‘Peace be to this house!’ And if a son of peace is there, your peace will rest upon him. But if not, it will return to you. And remain in the same house, eating and drinking what they provide, for the laborer deserves his wages. Do not go from house to house. Whenever you enter a town and they receive you, eat what is set before you. Heal the sick in it and say to them, ‘The kingdom of God has come near to you.’”

*underlining added for emphasis

Luk 10:1-9 (NKJV)

“Afterward he appeared unto the eleven as they sat at meat, and upbraided them with their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they believed not them which had seen him after he was risen. And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned. And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover. So then after the Lord had spoken unto them, he was received up into heaven, and sat on the right hand of God. And they went forth, and preached every where, the Lord working with them, and confirming the word with signs following. Amen.”

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Mar 16:14-20

2 Tim 3:16-17 says, “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works.” If we let Scripture inform our doctrine, we steer clear of error.

There are church traditions that limit God’s healing power to Jesus or His disciples. Jesus healed others as a man empowered by God. So did the apostles, and so did the seventy-two.

After He died on the cross, Jesus appeared and said that those who “believe” would also lay hands on the sick and that they’d recover. Those who believe are a far larger group than the twelve and the seventy-two. Further, it is implied that these believers would also make healing a priority.

Healing is part of the “greater works” Jesus promised we’d do because He was going to the Father (Jhn 14:12). This healing power manifests through Holy Spirit-enabled people who were to come after the twelve and the seventy-two. The work of the Holy Spirit to heal is the next chapter’s subject.