Is God willing to heal anyone?  Is it God’s will that everyone be healed?  Does that include me, my family, and my friends?  The answer to those questions is a resounding YES!  God is ready, willing, and able to heal anyone, anywhere, anytime, of anything.  Fortunately for you, you do not have to take my word for it, but instead I encourage you to take God’s word for it!  Will you do that?  Will you believe what God says?  In this study on healing we examine the narrative passages of scripture; not specific instances of healing but rather the general statements regarding the healing ministry of Jesus and the disciples.  There will be more studies on other questions about healing which we will post as soon as they are completed.  

Matthew 
Matthew 4:23,24 And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all manner of sickness and all manner of disease among the people. And his fame went throughout all Syria: and they brought to him all who were ill with various diseases and torments, those who were oppressed and possessed by demons, and lunatics, and paralytics; and he healed them.

Matthew 8:16 When evening came, they brought to him many that were possessed with demons: and he cast out the spirits with a word, and healed all that were sick:

Matthew 9:35 And Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and every disease among the people.

Matthew 10:1-8 And when he had called to him his twelve disciples, he gave them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all manner of sickness and all manner of disease. Now the names of the twelve apostles are these; The first, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother; James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother; Philip, and Bartholomew; Thomas, and Matthew the publican; James the son of Alphaeus, and Lebbaeus, whose surname was Thaddaeus; Simon the Canaanite, and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed him. These twelve Jesus sent forth, and commanded them, saying, Go not into the way of the Gentiles, and do not enter into any 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 devils: freely you have received, freely give.

Matthew 14:14 And Jesus went forth, and saw a great multitude, and was moved with compassion toward them, and he healed their sick.

Matthew 14:35 And when the men of that place had knowledge of him, they sent out into all that country round about, and brought to him all that were diseased; And besought him that they might only touch the hem of his garment: and as many as touched were made perfectly whole.

Matthew 15:30,31 And great multitudes came to him, having with them those that were lame, blind, dumb, maimed, and many others, and cast them down at Jesus' feet; and he healed them: Insomuch that the multitude wondered, when they saw the dumb to speak, the maimed to be whole, the lame to walk, and the blind to see: and they glorified the God of Israel.

Matthew 19:2 And great multitudes followed him; and he healed them there.

Matthew 21:14 And the blind and the lame came to him in the temple; and he healed them.

So in Matthew we read that Jesus healed all who came to him not just some, and he healed every kind of disease. The disciples also healed people. There are no limits on who and what can be healed.

Mark
Mark 1:32-34 And in the evening, when the sun did set, they brought to him all that were diseased, and those who were possessed with demons. And all the city was gathered together at the door. And he healed many that were sick of various diseases, and cast out many demons; and he did not allow the demons to speak, because they knew him.

Mark 3:14,15 And he ordained twelve, that they should be with him, and that he might send them forth to preach, And to have authority to heal sicknesses, and to cast out demons:

Mark 6:54,55,56 And when they were come out of the ship, immediately they recognized him, And ran through that whole region round about, and began to carry about on beds those that were sick, where they heard he was. And wherever he entered, into villages, or cities, or country, in the marketplaces, they laid the sick in the streets, and besought him that they might touch if it were but the border of his garment: and as many as touched him were made whole.

So in Mark we read the same thing. Jesus and the disciples were going around healing anyone and everyone who wanted to be healed.

Luke
Luke 4:40,41 Now when the sun was setting, all they that had any sick with various diseases brought them to him; and he laid his hands on every one of them, and healed them. And demons also came out of many, crying out, and saying, You are the Christ the Son of God. And he rebuking them did not allow them to speak: for they knew that he was the Christ.

Luke 5:15,17 But the report about him was spreading even farther: and great multitudes came together to hear, and to be healed by him of their infirmities…And it came to pass on a certain day, as he was teaching, that there 
were Pharisees and doctors of the law sitting by, which were come out of every town of Galilee, and Judaea, and Jerusalem: and the power of the Lord was present to heal them.

Luke 6:17-19 And he came down with them, and stood in the plain, and the company of his disciples, and a great multitude of people out of all Judaea and Jerusalem, and from the sea coast of Tyre and Sidon, which came to hear him, and to be healed of their diseases; And they that were vexed with unclean spirits: and they were healed. And the whole multitude sought to touch him: for there went virtue out of him, and healed them all.

Luke 7:21,22 And in that same hour he cured many of their infirmities and plagues, and of evil spirits; and he gave sight to many that were blind. Then Jesus answering said to them, Go your way, and tell John what things you have seen and heard; how that the blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the gospel is preached to the poor.

And again we read the same thing in Luke – anyone who wanted to be healed and came to Jesus for healing was healed and it did not matter what was wrong with them. Jesus heals anyone of anything!  After Jesus rose from the dead and ascended into heaven he sent the Holy Spirit to dwell in those who are his and they too went out saying what Jesus said and doing what Jesus did.

Acts
Acts 5:16 Also the multitude out of the cities in the vicinity of Jerusalem came together bringing sick folks, and those afflicted with unclean spirits: and they were all healed.

Acts 8:7 For unclean spirits, crying with a loud voice, came out of many that were possessed with them: and many having been paralyzed and lame, were healed.

Acts 10:38 How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him.

Acts 28:9 So when this was done, others also, which had diseases in the island, came, and were healed:

Even David recognized that one of the benefits of correctly believing and following God was healing!

Psalm 103:1-5 A Psalm of David. Bless the LORD, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name. Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits: Who forgives all your iniquities; Who heals all your diseases; Who redeems your life from destruction; Who crowns you with lovingkindness and tender mercies; Who satisfies your mouth with good things; so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's.

Summary
After reading these scriptures do you believe God is ready, willing, and able to heal anyone, in anyplace, of anything, at anytime.  Do you see that Jesus did not pick and choose certain people to be healed and certain others not to be healed?  No, rather all who came to him for healing were healed!  Do you understand that Jesus and the disciples were not limited to heal only certain illnesses or diseases, but rather all illnesses, diseases, birth defects, and yes even injuries were healed?  If you had been there and came to Jesus for healing, would he have healed you?  Of course he would have just as he healed everyone else.  So today if you come to Jesus for healing will he heal you?  Of course he will.  The healing power, grace and mercy of God is available to everyone through Jesus and through those who are his.  Yes God is ready, willing, and able to heal anyone (even you), in anyplace (home, office, work, mall, city, or country; land, sea, or air), of anything (sickness, disease, defect, injury, whether from sin, accident, or war), at anytime (morning, noon, or night, even right now).

Are you still having doubts after reading these scriptures?  Are you willing to believe what God says rather than your traditions?  Jesus said "the traditions of man and ignorance of the scriptures prevent the power of God from working." (Matthew 22).  Notice that healing was ministered to people through Jesus and through his disciples; that is a very important key in our next study on healing.  There are other issues about healing that we have not studied in this article.  Such as: Just because it is God's will to heal does not mean everyone will be healed;  There are conditions and hindrances to healing.  There will be future articles to deal with those issues.  This article was written to address only one thing and that is - healing is for you!  

How Jesus was able to heal.
Have you ever thought about that?  A lot of people have and they say that he healed people because he was God in the flesh, the son of God.  That is sort of correct and sort of incorrect.  Remember healing and miracles took place through the prophets thousands of years before Jesus came and they were not God in the flesh. Remember too that the apostles could heal people and perform miracles and they were not God in the flesh (or were they?  more on that later, and that is the key as you will see.)  Stephen was not an apostle and yet he too was able to heal and perform miracles.  Many others through the centuries also learned to heal and perform miracles.  I could tell you of Madam Guyon a french woman who in the 16th century was healing people and of course many others in the 1800's up to this very day.  The answer is quite simple, but a lot of people don't want to believe it.

Jesus was able to heal; perform signs, wonders and miracles because he was a man whose spirit was one with God whom God used to send his power through whenever he exercised his faith and authority to do so.  In other words God the Father worked through Jesus because Jesus was a physical man completely surrendered to His Father in faith and obedience. That's how Moses did it  That's how Elijah and Elisha did it. That's how David did it and other prophets in the Bible. That's how Jesus did it  That's how Paul, Peter, Stephen did it. That's how you do it.

It takes a person who has the Holy Spirit living inside them.
A lot of people pray to be healed, but would you be shocked to know that healing does not take place through prayer alone.  No one in scripture was healed simply by praying - no one.  In every instance in the Bible where healing occurred there was a person involved through whom the healing power of God was ministered to another. That person whom God uses must meet God's qualifications to do so, but anyone can if they are willing.  There must be a physical person on the earth through whom God can work.  It is the spiritual law of earthly authority.  It goes all the way back to Adam and Eve when God gave them authority over everything on earth. God created the Earth placed man on it and said, "You are in charge here."  That has not changed, it is still true today. That is also the reason why Jesus had to be born of a woman and enter the world as a physical man. He was not created he was clothed in flesh.  The eternal Word of God became a man in the flesh.  It was necessary to accomplish his death (blood of a sinless man), burial, resurrection and ascension into heaven to send the Holy Spirit to dwell in those who believe thus making us "sons of God".  (John 1:12). Remember in Hebrews Jesus is called the second Adam.  He came in the flesh to accomplish what the first Adam failed to do.  So in order for healing to take place there must be a physical person involved through whom God can deliver His healing power.  The involvement of another person can be done in various ways.  People are healed while watching Christian television programs, while holding something the other person prayed over, while reading a book, over the phone or internet, or of course in person.  There must be a point of contact with a person whom God will use to bring his power through them to you and of course there must be faith on your part to believe God and receive healing.  A lot of you can do this today, but you don't know that you can because you have never believed nor tried.

A boy who was healed on his own.
I read the personal story of a seventeen year old boy who was healed while alone in his room. At first this seems to contradict the teaching above but then I examined his story in detail.  He was nearly bedridden with a disease for about two years.  He read the Bible and was very interested in the scriptures about healing.  He asked for his mom to call a certain minister to come visit him.  The minister never came.  He asked his mom to call another minister. That minister came.  When the boy tried to get him to enter into a serious discussion regarding the scriptures about healing the minister put him off and told him he should just prepare himself for the end.  Many times he tried to get someone, a minister, or a church member to talk with him about healing and no one would.  When he was so desperate because he was dying he finally took the Bible in his hand and read a verse on healing then called out to God saying that this is either true or not then he said God I believe its true.  With that he pulled himself to the edge of the bed, swung his legs out feet hitting the floor.  Then he grabbed the bed post and supported himself as he tried to stand, all the while saying to God that he believed what God says. Suddenly he felt a severe pain shooting through his legs.  He said it was like thousands of needles piercing him.  The pain was unbearable!  But then he took a step and dragging his other leg out he took another. He got far enough out that now he had to let go of the bedpost. He did and was able to stand.  After some time he was walking and within a few months he was completely healed and out playing with the other boys.

It seems to me that this boy tried to reach out for healing - in fact he did, but no one helped him so when God saw his sincere effort to be healed and his faith in what God says, God rewarded him as he says in Hebrews 11:6 "Without faith it is impossible to please him; for he that comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek him."

A Church Transformed
For about a year I visited a church about an hours' drive from my home.  It was a spirit filled church where the gifts of the Spirit were believed in and accepted (it's in the Bible right?).  Here is how it came to be that way...  It was a traditional Southern Baptist church until one day the pastor tired of the traditions started believing God for healing, signs, and miracles.  Finally he got up his courage and made an announcement to his congregation.  He said that beginning the next Sunday he was going to teach on faith and healing for three Sundays and at the end of the service on the third Sunday he would invite people to be healed.  Well God has a sense of humor and God honors faith so on the first Sunday at the end of the service someone was healed!  God wasn't going to wait three weeks to honor his truth.  If my memory is correct I believe a person simply stood up during the invitation and believed the teaching they heard and received healing by faith and so they were healed.  Well that caused quite a stir among the people.  They were excited to receive the truth about healing and began believing what God says.  Now the sad part...Over the next several months the church began to change being full of faith and the Holy Spirit (sounds Biblical don't it!)  One at a time a few families came and met with the pastor and said they were leaving the church because (and I quote), "We don't want to be part of a healing church."  Three of those families were deacons.

It is sad that even Christians sometimes reject the truth.  But isn't that what Jesus said, "the traditions of men make the power of God of none effect."  If you do not believe and submit to the truth then you do not have the benefits of that truth. John 8:32 "If you continue in my word then are you truly disciples of mine and you shall know (experience) the truth and the truth (that truth that you now know) will set you free."  Now why is it that before that church never had any healings even though they were a good church, worshiping, preaching, teaching, and praying. It was because they had never heard the truth about healing, so they doubted instead of believed.  It was because there was not a man before who would step out in faith to believe and act.  But when the pastor stepped out in faith then God could work and so it is with you, God says so!

I Kings 5:1-14
Now Naaman, commander of the army of the king of Syria, was a great and honorable man in the eyes of his master, because by him the Lord had given victory to Syria. He was also a mighty man of valor, but a leper. And the Syrians had gone out on raids, and had brought back captive a young girl from the land of Israel. She waited on Naaman’s wife. Then she said to her mistress, “If only my master were with the prophet who is in Samaria! For he would heal him of his leprosy.”And Naaman went in and told his master, saying, “Thus and thus said the girl who is from the land of Israel.” Then the king of Syria said, “Go now, and I will send a letter to the king of Israel.”
So he departed and took with him ten talents of silver, six thousand shekels of gold, and ten changes of clothing. Then he brought the letter to the king of Israel, which said, Now be advised, when this letter comes to you, that I have sent Naaman my servant to you, that you may heal him of his leprosy.

And it happened, when the king of Israel read the letter, that he tore his clothes and said, “Am I God, to kill and make alive, that this man sends a man to me to heal him of his leprosy? Therefore please consider, and see how he seeks a quarrel with me.” So it was, when Elisha the man of God heard that the king of Israel had torn his clothes, that he sent to the king, saying, “Why have you torn your clothes? Please let him come to me, and he shall know that there is a prophet in Israel.”

Then Naaman went with his horses and chariot, and he stood at the door of Elisha’s house. And Elisha sent a messenger to him, saying, “Go and wash in the Jordan seven times, and your flesh shall be restored to you, and you shall be clean.”  But Naaman became furious, and went away and said, “Indeed, I said to myself, ‘He will surely come out to me, and stand and call on the name of the Lord his God, and wave his hand over the place, and heal the leprosy.’ Are not the Abanah and the Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel? Could I not wash in them and be clean?” So he turned and went away in a rage.  And his servants came near and spoke to him, and said, “My father, if the prophet had told you to do something great, would you not have done it? How much more then, when he says to you, ‘Wash, and be clean’?”  So he went down and dipped seven times in the Jordan, according to the saying of the man of God; and his flesh was restored like the flesh of a little child, and he was clean.

First Naaman listened and believed the servant girl.  Second he sought to be healed by going to his king for permission to go and then he went on a trip to seek his healing.  Then unbelief took over because of his own ideas about how he would be healed,  He spoke against the prophets orders, and refusing to obey he started to leave. Then again a servant convinced him to obey and he was healed.  So we see that many things are involved in a persons healing.  

Listening and believing in the possibility of being healed. (having faith)
Seeking to be healed.  (Take initiative and make arrangements/appointments)
Going to a person to be healed. (someone whom God uses).
Willing to do whatever is necessary to be healed. (Receptive and obedient).

Of course the opposite of these would have prevented Naaman from being healed.  He could have dismissed the servant girl instead of listening.  He could have refused to believe the servant girl.  Even if he had listened and believed he could have done nothing to see about going.  He could have put off going:  too much to do, not the right time, maybe later, I don't know anyone, etc. Any excuse will do.  Finally when he did get there he almost missed out on being healed because he wasn't willing at first to do what he was told.  Instead he had his own ideas about how his healing would take place.  We have to be willing to lay aside what we think and submit ourselves to what God says.

• Romans 10:17 "So then, faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God."
• Hebrews 11:6  "For without faith it is impossible to please God.  For he that comes to God must believe that he is and that he is a rewarder of those who seek him."
• James 5:13-16  "Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing psalms. Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord.  And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.
• I Kings 5:1-14  "So he went down and dipped seven times in the Jordan, according to the saying of the man of God; and his flesh was restored like the flesh of a little child, and he was clean."