- Jun 23, 2004
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I know I've posted this in SF/P-C in the past, but I thought it would be good for discussion here as well:
There are four different types of healing discussed in Scripture.
1. Physical healing-- this is pretty much self explanatory, healing of our physical bodies.
2. Inner (or emotional) healing-- Christ came to heal the broken hearted. There are far more who are wounded emotionally than there are those who need physical healing.
3. Spiritual healing-- this deals with sin (and our will). This arena deals with forgiveness of sin as well as breaking patterns of wrong/sinful behavior. Just because someone is forgiven doesn't automatically mean they know how to change.
4. Deliverance from evil spirits-- scripture gives several examples where sickness is a result of demonization.
Now, one of the most important things to remember regarding healing is that we are rarely dealing with just one of these four categories.
Doctors have proven that things such as anger/bitterness/stress are a direct cause of physical ailments such as heart disease. Someone who is obese
(gluttony) is susceptible to many different illness, including diabetes, heart disease, sleep apnea, etc. Those who "give up" on life--due to trajedy, the loss of
a loved one, etc.-- often become ill and die in a short period of time. There are numerous studies that show how one's emotional/mental/spiritual states have a
direct bearing on one's physical health.
A good example would be an alcoholic. An alcoholic frequently needs inner healing, since there is almost always emotional scars/pain that prompted the
person to drink in the first place. The person then entered into sinful behavior (getting drunk), and may have learned a pattern of sinful behavior in order to
deal with the emotional pain. This has continued to the point that the person now has a physical condition (addiction), as addictive substances actually change
how the human body works-- causing the body to need the alcohol to function properly-- and without the alcohol, the person will become ill (which is why
medical treatment is frequently needed to detox). There may be other physical problems as well, such as scirosis, etc. This addictive behavior may have continued to the point that some form of demonic bondage may be involved as well.
So many times, people come to Christ for healing-- but they are thinking only of physical healing. Scripture is clear that Christ wants to do more than just heal our
bodies. He wants to make us whole. That means healing in every part of who we are.
Many times, physical healing alone would be useless. If Christ were to heal a physical condition caused by an underlying emotional/spiritual issue-- and not heal the underlying issue-- then we would just wind up right back where we started off (or sometimes even worse). God, in His wisdom, knows that it is necessary to not only heal the person, but to make them whole.
In the case of the alcoholic above, the most important area of healing is not necessarily what may appear to be the most urgent. While on the surface, the most urgent symptom may be appear to be scirosis, the real issue is the original emotional wounds that need to be healed.
Sometimes we try to jump ahead of God and go straight for the physical (after all, that's what is the most dramatic), yet God wants to start at the root of the issue.
He wants to make us whole. He wants to heal our emotional wounds. He wants to teach us right behaviors and break off the patterns of sin. He wants to set us free from bondage. AND He wants to heal us physically.
With this in mind, we must always remember to create and maintain a healing environment in which people can be set free. Our ministry must be a "safe place" where those in bondage can expose the hurts and wounds that they have endured so that the healing grace of Christ can bring wholeness in every area.
There are four different types of healing discussed in Scripture.
1. Physical healing-- this is pretty much self explanatory, healing of our physical bodies.
2. Inner (or emotional) healing-- Christ came to heal the broken hearted. There are far more who are wounded emotionally than there are those who need physical healing.
3. Spiritual healing-- this deals with sin (and our will). This arena deals with forgiveness of sin as well as breaking patterns of wrong/sinful behavior. Just because someone is forgiven doesn't automatically mean they know how to change.
4. Deliverance from evil spirits-- scripture gives several examples where sickness is a result of demonization.
Now, one of the most important things to remember regarding healing is that we are rarely dealing with just one of these four categories.
Doctors have proven that things such as anger/bitterness/stress are a direct cause of physical ailments such as heart disease. Someone who is obese
(gluttony) is susceptible to many different illness, including diabetes, heart disease, sleep apnea, etc. Those who "give up" on life--due to trajedy, the loss of
a loved one, etc.-- often become ill and die in a short period of time. There are numerous studies that show how one's emotional/mental/spiritual states have a
direct bearing on one's physical health.
A good example would be an alcoholic. An alcoholic frequently needs inner healing, since there is almost always emotional scars/pain that prompted the
person to drink in the first place. The person then entered into sinful behavior (getting drunk), and may have learned a pattern of sinful behavior in order to
deal with the emotional pain. This has continued to the point that the person now has a physical condition (addiction), as addictive substances actually change
how the human body works-- causing the body to need the alcohol to function properly-- and without the alcohol, the person will become ill (which is why
medical treatment is frequently needed to detox). There may be other physical problems as well, such as scirosis, etc. This addictive behavior may have continued to the point that some form of demonic bondage may be involved as well.
So many times, people come to Christ for healing-- but they are thinking only of physical healing. Scripture is clear that Christ wants to do more than just heal our
bodies. He wants to make us whole. That means healing in every part of who we are.
Many times, physical healing alone would be useless. If Christ were to heal a physical condition caused by an underlying emotional/spiritual issue-- and not heal the underlying issue-- then we would just wind up right back where we started off (or sometimes even worse). God, in His wisdom, knows that it is necessary to not only heal the person, but to make them whole.
In the case of the alcoholic above, the most important area of healing is not necessarily what may appear to be the most urgent. While on the surface, the most urgent symptom may be appear to be scirosis, the real issue is the original emotional wounds that need to be healed.
Sometimes we try to jump ahead of God and go straight for the physical (after all, that's what is the most dramatic), yet God wants to start at the root of the issue.
He wants to make us whole. He wants to heal our emotional wounds. He wants to teach us right behaviors and break off the patterns of sin. He wants to set us free from bondage. AND He wants to heal us physically.
With this in mind, we must always remember to create and maintain a healing environment in which people can be set free. Our ministry must be a "safe place" where those in bondage can expose the hurts and wounds that they have endured so that the healing grace of Christ can bring wholeness in every area.
