In this session, we look at the places where Jesus healed groups of people or commissioned others to do so. We said last week that Jesus’ life and ministry demonstrated the will of God. He said of Himself, “I only do what I see the Father do,” (John 5:19) and “I have come to do Your will, O God,” (Hebrews 10:7) and “If you have seen me you have seen the Father.” (John 14:9) Today we’re going to look at places in the Gospel where Jesus, the express image of the Father, “healed them all.”
Before we start, let’s call to remembrance our core truth from Proverbs 4.
My son, give attention to my words; Incline your ear to my sayings. Do not let them depart from your sight; Keep them in the midst of your heart. For they are life to those who find them And health to all their body. – Proverbs 4:20-22 NASB
Or as it says in the message:
Dear friend, listen well to my words;
tune your ears to my voice.
Keep my message in plain view at all times.
Concentrate! Learn it by heart!
Those who discover these words live, really live;
body and soul, they’re bursting with health.
I found about twenty-two times in the gospels where groups of people were healed, or Jesus commissioned men to go out and heal the sick. Some of them are the same event recorded by more than one writer, but still, God chose to record about thirteen different times in twenty-two separate accounts. Many Christians base a theology of God willing sickness on His children on one or two scriptures, but He gave us twenty-two times just in the gospels where we can see Him healing groups, sometimes great multitudes of people.
We’ll read some of these short passages this evening and see if we can get a feel for God’s heart toward sickness, and His heart toward those who are sick.
As we go we want to think about two questions.
1) What kinds of people does Jesus heal? What is there status, the level of their faith, their relative goodness, their knowledge of religion, their relationship with Jesus, or with God?
2) What kind of sicknesses or ailments does Jesus heal? Might I suggest keeping a list of the types of things specifically called out in these scriptures? The scripture gets specific on some things, and some are repeated over and over.
Description of Christ’s ministry
Matthew’s gospel starts with Jesus’ birth and one glimpse of at His childhood. Then it jumps to His baptism and temptation. Chapter four ends with a summary of His early ministry in the three verses we are about to read.
Matthew 4:23-25 Jesus’ ministry described
Jesus was going throughout all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every kind of disease and every kind of sickness among the people.
The news about Him spread throughout all Syria; and they brought to Him all who were ill, those suffering with various diseases and pains, demoniacs, epileptics, paralytics; and He healed them. Large crowds followed Him from Galilee and [the] Decapolis and Jerusalem and Judea and [from] beyond the Jordan. – Matthew 4:23-25 NASB
Did you catch that – All Syria brought all their sick, and He healed them! Amazing!
This is followed by three chapters containing the longest of Jesus’ discoures that most folks call the Sermon on the Mount. Chapters eight and nine where the narrative is healing after healing after healing. These two chapters contain nine individual healing stories out of the nineteen contained in all the gospels. So in a way the verses that follow lay out the full course of Jesus’ ministry and may or may not a telling of a specific event or mass healing. In any case, it’s clear that it was not uncommon for Jesus to heal multitudes, as we’ll see just walking through the accounts in Matthew.
Next, we start in earnest going through the ministry of Jesus. In chapter after chapter, we see Jesus healing crowds.
Matthew 8:16-17, Mark 1:32-34, Luke 4:40-44 Healing outside Peter’s house
When evening came, they brought to Him many who were demon-possessed; and He cast out the spirits with a word, and healed all who were ill. [This was] to fulfill what was spoken through Isaiah the prophet: “HE HIMSELF TOOK OUR INFIRMITIES AND CARRIED AWAY OUR DISEASES.” – Matthew 8:16-17 NASB
When evening came, after the sun had set, they [began] bringing to Him all who were ill and those who were demon-possessed. And the whole city had gathered at the door. And He healed many who were ill with various diseases, and cast out many demons; and He was not permitting the demons to speak, because they knew who He was. – Mark 1:32-34 NASB
While the sun was setting, all those who had any [who were] sick with various diseases brought them to Him; and laying His hands on each one of them, He was healing them. Demons also were coming out of many, shouting, “You are the Son of God!” But rebuking them, He would not allow them to speak, because they knew Him to be the Christ. – Luke 4:40-41 NASB
Notice, He took time to lay hands on each one. He didn’t just wave His hand, heal them all, and move on. He stops at each person and ministered to them as a person.
Matthew 9:35 Further description of Jesus’ ministry
Jesus was going through all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every kind of disease and every kind of sickness. – Matthew 9:35 NASB
Matthew 10, Mark 6:7-13, and Luke 9:1-6 – Jesus sends out the 12
Jesus selected the disciples and sent them out to preach, and heal and cast out demons
Jesus summoned His twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal every kind of disease and every kind of sickness. – Matthew 10:1 NASB
And He summoned the twelve and began to send them out in pairs, and gave them authority over the unclean spirits; – Mark 6:7 NASB
And He called the twelve together, and gave them power and authority over all the demons and to heal diseases. And He sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to perform healing. – Luke 9:1-2 NASB
Matthew 11:4-6, Luke 7:21 He comforted John the baptist with the news of His healing ministry
Jesus answered and said to them, “Go and report to John what you hear and see: [the] BLIND RECEIVE SIGHT and [the] lame walk, [the] lepers are cleansed and [the] deaf hear, [the] dead are raised up, and [the] POOR HAVE THE GOSPEL PREACHED TO THEM. – Matthew 11:4-5 NASB
At that very time He cured many [people] of diseases and afflictions and evil spirits; and He gave sight to many [who were] blind. And He answered and said to them, “Go and report to John what you have seen and heard: [the] BLIND RECEIVE SIGHT, [the] lame walk, [the] lepers are cleansed, and [the] deaf hear, [the] dead are raised up, [the] POOR HAVE THE GOSPEL PREACHED TO THEM. “Blessed is he who does not take offense at Me.” – Luke 7:21-23 NASB
Matthew 14:14, Luke 9:10-11, Matthew 14:35 A look at the heart of Jesus in the feeding of the 5,000
When He went ashore, He saw a large crowd, and felt compassion for them and healed their sick. – Matthew 14:14 NASB
Here I want to take a moment and walk us through Matthew 14. I want to and take a look at one of Jesus’ most vulnerable moments. We know the enemy tempted Him in the wilderness, and in the garden, but check out this day in the life of our Lord.
– He hears of John the Baptist’s beheading
– He goes to be alone
– The crowds surround Him
– He heals their sick
– Oh – look -it’s 5,000 men plus women and children
– He feeds them
– He sends the boys across the lake
– He finally gets off to be alone with His Father
– He walks across the lake to catch up to the guys.
– He calms the sea
– On the other side of the sea, He heals the multitude
Matthew 14:35
And when the men of that place recognized Him, they sent word into all that surrounding district and brought to Him all who were sick; – Matthew 14:35 NASB
Matthew 15:30 – the Feeding of the 4,000
And large crowds came to Him, bringing with them those who were lame, crippled, blind, mute, and many others, and they laid them down at His feet; and He healed them. So the crowd marveled as they saw the mute speaking, the crippled restored, and the lame walking, and the blind seeing; and they glorified the God of Israel. – Matthew 15:30-31 NASB
Check out 15:30 in the KJV
And great multitudes came unto 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: – Matthew 15:30 KJV
Matthew 19:1-2 Healing in Judea
When Jesus had finished these words, He departed from Galilee and came into the region of Judea beyond the Jordan; and large crowds followed Him, and He healed them there. – Matthew 19:1-2 NASB
Mark 3:7-12, Luke 6:17-19 Crowds follow Him from all over
Jesus withdrew to the sea with His disciples; and a great multitude from Galilee followed; and [also] from Judea, and from Jerusalem, and from Idumea, and beyond the Jordan, and the vicinity of Tyre and Sidon, a great number of people heard of all that He was doing and came to Him. And He told His disciples that a boat should stand ready for Him because of the crowd, so that they would not crowd Him; for He had healed many, with the result that all those who had afflictions pressed around Him in order to touch Him. Whenever the unclean spirits saw Him, they would fall down before Him and shout, “You are the Son of God!” And He earnestly warned them not to tell who He was. – Mark 3:7-12 NASB
Jesus came down with them and stood on a level place; and there was a large crowd of His disciples, and a great throng of people from all Judea and Jerusalem and the coastal region of Tyre and Sidon, who had come to hear Him and to be healed of their diseases; and those who were troubled with unclean spirits were being cured. And all the people were trying to touch Him, for power was coming from Him and healing them all. – Luke 6:17-19 NASB
Mark 3:14-15 When He chose the twelve, He gave them authority
And He went up on the mountain and summoned those whom He Himself wanted, and they came to Him. And He appointed twelve, so that they would be with Him and that He [could] send them out to preach, and to have authority to cast out the demons. – Mark 3:13-15 NASB
Mark 6:53-55 Healings in Gannesaret
When they had crossed over they came to land at Gennesaret, and moored to the shore. When they got out of the boat, immediately [the people] recognized Him, and ran about that whole country and began to carry here and there on their pallets those who were sick, to the place they heard He was. – Mark 6:53-55 NASB
Mark 6:56, Luke 5:15 Mark and Luke describe Jesus’ ministry
Wherever He entered villages, or cities, or countryside, they were laying the sick in the market places, and imploring Him that they might just touch the fringe of His cloak; and as many as touched it were being cured. – Mark 6:56 NASB
But the news about Him was spreading even farther, and large crowds were gathering to hear Him and to be healed of their sicknesses. – Luke 5:15 NASB
Luke 10:1-16 Jesus sends out 70 disciples with power to heal
Now after this the Lord appointed seventy others, and sent them in pairs ahead of Him to every city and place where He Himself was going to come. … and heal those in it who are sick, and say to them, ‘The kingdom of God has come near to you.’ – Luke 10:1, 9 NASB
Acts 10:38 Peter, preaching to the house of Cornelius sums up Jesus’ ministry like this:
This final verse is not from the gospel account, but I include it here because it again describes Jesus’ ministry in terms of His healing the sick.
You know of Jesus of Nazareth, how God anointed Him with the Holy Spirit and with power, and how He went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him. – Acts 10:38 NASB
This is a significant statement in many ways. For one, we see that those who were healed were oppressed of the devil. We normally would speak of casting out demons and healing the sick as slightly different areas, and we would be right. Many times they are spoken of as separate acts. But Peter speaks about healing those oppressed by the devil, bringing all sickness into the realm, not of demonic possession, but indicates that it is a work of our enemy, oppressing the Church of the living God.
So, what have we learned?
What kind of people did Jesus heal? Was there anything that stands out about the crowds?
What about our second question? What types of sickness and disease did Jesus heal?
Has anything changed? – Jesus? God’s will? God’s ability? Jesus’ compassion?
We finish with three verses:
Jesus Christ [is] the same yesterday and today and forever. – Hebrews 13:8 NASB
“For I, the LORD, do not change; therefore you, O sons of Jacob, are not consumed. – Malachi 3:6 NASB
Jesus said to him, “Have I been so long with you, and [yet] you have not come to know Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father; how [can] you say, ‘Show us the Father’? – John 14:9 NASB
Jesus’ ministry consisted of preaching, teaching, and healing. They went together in Him ministry from start to finish.
During the class, we mentioned the healing of Malchus’ ear.
When those who were around Him saw what was going to happen, they said, “Lord, shall we strike with the sword?” And one of them struck the slave of the high priest and cut off his right ear. But Jesus answered and said, “Stop! No more of this.” And He touched his ear and healed him. – Luke 22:49-51 NASB
During the question and answer section, Jason, one of the participants asked a question about some Old Testament wording where it sounds like God may have made Saul sick. Some discussion ensued, and reference was made to a Keith Moore sermon called Does God Cause Sickness. This is one in a series where Keith Moore tackles the hard questions about healing.
You can go to the MooreLife.org website and download or watch the sermon mentioned, “Does God make People Sick?” or the whole series, “Questions about Healing.”
If you would like to join us, we’re meeting via Zoom on Sunday evenings starting at 7:30. The classes run until about 8:30, and then there is time for some Q&A. We’d love to have you join us. Here’s the meeting info. Note, you can’t join the meeting until about 7:20 or so, but there will be plenty of front row seats available.
Here’s the meeting info:
Ben’s Healing School
Time: 7:30 PM every Sunday evening
Join Zoom Meeting
Meeting ID: 827 3836 9564
Thanks for coming by. If you have questions or comments, please feel free to join the conversation below. It would be a blessing if you would “Like” the video so others can find it.
See you again soon
Blessings,
Ben