A lot of people in the religious world claim to possess miraculous healing powers. Thousands throng to assemblies where these “healers” perform their “works.” Testimonies are offered of the healing hand of many who claim to be empowered with the Holy Spirit. When the healers are challenged and evidence is presented that no one has been healed, their explanation is that the one with the infirmity lacked faith. Personal faith is magnified as a prerequisite or condition upon the person being healed. If no healing takes place, the blame is leveled against the person’s faith. By examining the healings performed by Jesus, we can see a pattern of healing and faith. The healings attributed to Jesus were often accompanied by a clear demonstration of compassion and understanding, rather than a conditional demand for faith. This contrasts sharply with modern claims, where the emphasis on personal belief can overshadow the genuine miraculous nature of healing. Additionally, the phenomenon of ‘speaking in tongues explained‘ in the context of early Christian practices further illustrates the diverse ways in which spiritual experiences were understood and validated during that time.
The only instance in the 31 cases of the Lord’s healings where personal faith was positively required was the two blind men in Matthew 9:27-31. In other cases, faith was present but not always required to be healed. This was true of the two blind men in Matthew 20:29-34, the leper (Matthew 8:1-4; Mark 1:40-45; Luke 5:12-16), the man blind from birth (John 9:1-7), the man with a withered hand (Matthew 12:10-13; Mark 3:1-5; Luke 6:6-11), many in Gennesaret (Matthew 14:34-36; Mark 6:55-56), the infirm man (John 5:1-9), and the woman with an issue of blood (Matthew 9:20-22; Mark 5:25-34; Luke 8:43-48). There are five recorded healings where the sick person was healed upon the faith of others: the Canaanite woman’s daughter (Matthew 15:21-28), the demoniac child (Matthew 17:14-21; Mark 9:17-29; Luke 9:37-43), the Nobleman’s son (John 4:46-54), the palsied man (Matthew 9:1-8; Mark 2:1-12; Luke 5:17-26) and the Centurion’s servant (Matthew 8:5-13; Luke 7:1-10). Eight cases had no evidence of faith at all upon the ones healed: two demoniacs at Gadara (Matthew 8:28-34; Mark 5:1-20; Luke 8:26-40), many near Galilee (Matthew 15:29-31), the deaf and dumb man (Mark 7:31-37), the blind man at Bethsaida (Mark 8:22-26), many at Galilee (Matthew 4:23,24; Mark 3:7-12; Luke 6:17-29), many at Capernaum (Matthew 8:16,17; Mark 1:32-34; Luke 4:40,41), the demoniac in Capernaum synagogue (Mark 1:21-28; Luke 4:33-37), and the servant of Malchus (Matthew 26:47-56; Mark 14:43-53; Luke 22:47-53; John 18:2-12). Four times Jesus healed those where faith was impossible upon the one being healed: the son of the widow of Nain (Luke 7:11-17), the impotent man at the pool of Bethsaida (John 5:2-13), Lazarus (John 11:1-46), and the daughter of Jairus (Matthew 9:18-26; Mark 5:35-43; Luke 8:49-56).
The next time a so-called “faith healer” tries to convince you that due to lack of faith on your part you aren’t healed, remind them of these passages and then offer them 1 John 2:22.
Kyle Campbell