Sunday, December 4, 2011

IS HEALING GUARANTEED


Here is a repost from this blog: WHERES GOD IN ALL OF THIS. that I thought was an exceptional answer to if healing is for all of us if we have enough faith.  



One of the Faith movement’s favorite proof texts is the wonderfully true Isaish 53:5, which says, “He was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed.” Contrary to Faith teachings, the Hebrew word raphah more often than not refers to spiritual as oposed to physical healing. As such, when the prophet Jeremiah says, “Return, O faithless sons; I will heal [raphah] your faithlessness, “ he is obviously not referring to physical healing (Jeremiah 3:22 NASB).
Isaiah could hardly make it clearer that he has spiriutal healing in mind when he communicates that Messiah (Christ) was to be pierced for our transgressions and crushed for our iniquities (Isaiah 53:5).
Peter builds on this understanding by writing , “He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed. For you were like sheep going astray, but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.” (1 Peter 2:24-25, emphasis added)
Peter’s theme here could not be stated more clearly. He says that Christ “bore our sins,” not “our sicknesses.” As such, Peter makes it plain that the healing referred to in Isaiah 53:5 is spiritual, not physical.
But let us suppose, for the sake of argument, that Isaiah 53:5 did refer to physical healing. Even so, it wouldn’t teach the panacea the Faith teachers claim it does, for such an interpretation carries an unwelcome corollary.
If healing is in the atonement and is accessed by faith, then those who die due to lack of faith must likewise die in their sins. Why? Because if both healing and salvation are included in this passage, they must be accessed in the same way. And if one does not have enough faith to make oneself well, it follows that he cannot have enough faith to be saved. Therefore those who die physically due to lack of faith must also wind up in hell for the same reason. But, I doubt you will hear Faith teachers proclaim this point any time soon. Relatives and friends of the deceased are not likely to applaud teachers of such a melancholy doctrine.
No, it is clear that Isaiah 53:5 does not have physical healing in view. Interestingly, however, the verse immediately preceding it does speak of healing for the body. Here Isaiah writes, “Surely he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows, yet we considered him stricken by God, smitten by him, and afflicted.” Not only is physical healing crystal clear here in this context, but it is also affirmed by the Gospels, where it is given an important qualification. Matthew writes, “When evening came, many who were demon-possessed were brought to him, and he drove out the spirits with a word and healed all the sick. This was to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah: ‘He took up our infirmities and carried our diseases’” (8:16-17, emphasis added).
Thus the healing mentioned in Isaiah 53:4 was fulfilled during the healing ministry of Christ and consequently does not guarantee our healing today.
—Hank Hanegraaff
Christianity in Crisis 21st Century

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