Sermon Tone Analysis

Biblical Divine Healing

Versus Other Types Of Healing

by Sandy Simpson, 1/25/02

There are basically five types of healing in the world today.

Biblical Divine Healing, Natural Healing, Medicinal/Medical Healing, Psychological Healing, and Paranormal/Demonic Healing.

This paper is an attempt to study these various types of healings, to identify their characteristics, to show their biblical support, and then to make comparisons with some of the healing claims of televangelists like Benny Hinn and others.

We will be using mainly references from the New Testament for our examples on healing, even though there are many excellent ones in the Old Testament as well.

To study the various kinds of healing, I am going to start with Biblical Divine Healing first to give us something to compare with all other forms of healing.

(1) Biblical Divine Healing

True Biblical Divine Healing is immediate, lasting, verifiable and all the glory goes to Jesus Christ.

I will add to this description after proving some additional points.

(a) Immediate

All the examples of Biblical Divine Healing in the New Testament (hereafter NT) were accomplished by the power of God instantaneously.

They were not done by the person (with the exception of Jesus Christ Himself) but were done through the person by the Holy Spirit.

God is the only One who can do a creative healing.

All other healings are natural or lying wonders, but only God can create.

Healings in the NT never took a long time.

They were always accomplished the same day, and in most cases were instantaneous.

(b) Lasting

All Biblical Divine Healings were lasting.

They lasted for the rest of the person's natural life.

They did not wear off.

The person that was healed did not have to come back for repeated treatments or healings.

The only case where there might be an exemption to this fact would be in the case of a conditional healing, where a person is exhorted to obey the Lord or the healing will be nullified.

But, though there are hints of this in the story of the adulterous woman in (which story is not present in the majority of early manuscripts and papyri) and in the healing of Hezekiah in , am hard pressed to absolutely prove that assumption by Scripture.

Perhaps someone else can dig out an example of this.

(c) Verifiable

All Biblical Divine Healings were verifiable.

The NT healings were obvious healings.

The most obvious were recorded as proof.

Nearly half the incidents of healings in the NT that are descriptively recorded are of the most obvious kind, completely verifiable, beyond question.

The people who were healed were well known in the community, in fact they were known by their ailment.

Following are the NT incidents of obvious healings that were used as proof, as a sign verifying who Jesus Christ was and the validity of the ministry and the authority of the Apostles.

1. 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.

- obvious illnesses

2. Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man.

"I am willing," he said.

"Be clean!" Immediately he was cured of his leprosy.

3. , The centurion replied, "Lord, I do not deserve to have you come under my roof.

But just say the word, and my servant will be healed.

Then Jesus said to the centurion, "Go!

It will be done just as you believed it would."

And his servant was healed at that very hour.

- paralyzed

4. When Jesus came into Peter’s house, he saw Peter’s mother-in-law lying in bed with a fever.

He touched her hand and the fever left her, and she got up and began to wait on him.

5.

She said to herself, "If I only touch his cloak, I will be healed."

Jesus turned and saw her.

"Take heart, daughter," he said, "your faith has healed you."

And the woman was healed from that moment.

- 12 years bleeding

6.

The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is preached to the poor.

7. and a man with a shriveled hand was there.

Looking for a reason to accuse Jesus, they asked him, "Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?"

8. 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.

9.

The blind and the lame came to him at the temple, and he healed them.

10.

Immediately the leprosy left him and he was cured.

11. and pleaded earnestly with him, "My little daughter is dying.

Please come and put your hands on her so that she will be healed and live." - dying daughter

12. "Go," said Jesus, "your faith has healed you."

Immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus along the road.

- public figure known to be blind

13.

That is why I did not even consider myself worthy to come to you.

But say the word, and my servant will be healed.

- dead son

14.

At that very time Jesus cured many who had diseases, sicknesses and evil spirits, and gave sight to many who were blind.

15.

So he replied to the messengers, "Go back and report to John what you have seen and heard: The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is preached to the poor.

16.

Hearing this, Jesus said to Jairus, "Don’t be afraid; just believe, and she will be healed."

- daughter dead

17.

On a Sabbath Jesus was teaching in one of the synagogues, and a woman was there who had been crippled by a spirit for eighteen years.

She was bent over and could not straighten up at all.

When Jesus saw her, he called her forward and said to her, "Woman, you are set free from your infirmity."

Then he put his hands on her, and immediately she straightened up and praised God.

18.

But they remained silent.

So taking hold of the man, he healed him and sent him away.

- man with dropsy

19.

One of them, when he saw he was healed, came back, praising God in a loud voice.

- 10 lepers

20.

But Jesus answered, "No more of this!"

And he touched the man’s ear and healed him.

- servant of the high priest's cut off ear

21.

When this man heard that Jesus had arrived in Galilee from Judea, he went to him and begged him to come and heal his son, who was close to death.

22.

At once the man was cured; he picked up his mat and walked.

The day on which this took place was a Sabbath, and so the Jews said to the man who had been healed, "It is the Sabbath; the law forbids you to carry your mat." - an invalid for thirty-eight years

23.

Now a man named Lazarus was sick.

He was from Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha.

- Lazarus raised from the dead

24.

By faith in the name of Jesus, this man whom you see and know was made strong.

It is Jesus’ name and the faith that comes through him that has given this complete healing to him, as you can all see.

- crippled from birth

25.

If we are being called to account today for an act of kindness shown to a cripple and are asked how he was healed, - crippled from birth

26.

With shrieks, evil spirits came out of many, and many paralytics and cripples were healed.

27.

Peter sent them all out of the room; then he got down on his knees and prayed.

Turning toward the dead woman, he said, "Tabitha, get up."

She opened her eyes, and seeing Peter she sat up.

28.

He listened to Paul as he was speaking.

Paul looked directly at him, saw that he had faith to be healed - a man crippled in his feet, who was lame from birth and had never walked.

29.

His father was sick in bed, suffering from fever and dysentery.

Paul went in to see him and, after prayer, placed his hands on him and healed him.

Furthermore ALL the diseases listed as proof were incurable at that time of history.