The Healing Promise, A Charismatic Response
Cessationists will often argue that when Jesus and the Apostles healed it was at will and such healing was not only immediate, but it was total and irreversible. We have already seen the account of the man born blind from birth. Unless theological commitments intervene, that is evidence enough that Jesus’ healings were not necessarily total. Here we should note that we would expect the gospel writers to include those healings which were most dramatic, but we know nothing about the many healings merely covered by summaries such as, “Jesus healed many.” Yet, their integrity leads them to include cases like Mark 6:5-6, where Jesus could not heal. Contrary to popular opinion, Jesus could not heal at will as he had willingly emptied himself of such divine prerogatives and could only do what the Father showed him to do.14 This explains why modern-day healers do not go and empty the hospitals as they are often chided by cessationists to do.15 The incident at the pool of Bethesda reveals that even Jesus did not—or could not—do this. As we have already seen, God is sovereign over who and how he heals.16
We do not know if the healings of Jesus were irreversible. The gospel writers did not conduct the kind of follow-up that is often practised today. Moreover, we would hardly expect them to include cases where the sickness returned, but we may be able to detect a few clues. Jesus’ warnings in Matthew 12:43-45 and John 5:14 suggest that a healing can be lost. It is only logical that if a sickness was the result of some sin or other contributing factor, then a healing may not last if the root of the problem is not dealt with. As an example, a man suffering from chronic back-pain as a result of stress may find momentary relief in a healing, but should not expect this to be sustained if he does not deal with the tension in his life or develop healthier mental habits.
What we have found is that according to the criteria set up by Mayhue and others, even Jesus and the Apostles would not be accepted as genuine!17 Let us take a closer look at healing in the early church.
Apostolic healing
When he proceeds to discuss the healing ministry of the Apostles, Mayhue repeats the tactic used while discussing Old Testament healings. He tells us that, contrary to what we may think, there are only 16 incidents of healing recorded in the 30-year span of the book of Acts. Again, this gives a completely unsatisfactory picture of what was actually taking place. To develop a more accurate portrait we would need to bear in mind passages such as the following:
Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles (Acts 2:43).
With great power the apostles continued to testify to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and much grace was upon them all (4:33).
The apostles performed many miraculous signs and wonders among the people. And all the believers used to meet together in Solomon’s Colonnade. No one else dared join them, even though they were highly regarded by the people. Nevertheless, more and more men and women believed in the Lord and were added to their number. As a result, people brought the sick into the streets and laid them on beds and mats so that at least Peter’s shadow might fall on some of them as he passed by. Crowds gathered also from the towns around Jerusalem, bringing their sick and those tormented by evil spirits, and all of them were healed (5:12-16).
Now Stephen, a man full of God’s grace and power, did great wonders and miraculous signs among the people (6:8).
When the crowds heard Philip and saw the miraculous signs he did, they all paid close attention to what he said. With shrieks, evil spirits came out of many, and many paralytics and cripples were healed. So there was great joy in that city (8:8).
So Paul and Barnabas spent considerable time there, speaking boldly for the Lord, who confirmed the message of his grace by enabling them to do miraculous signs and wonders (14:3).
God did extraordinary miracles through Paul, so that even handkerchiefs and aprons that had touched him were taken to the sick, and their illnesses were cured and the evil spirits left them (19:11-12).
There was an estate nearby that belonged to Publius, the chief official of the island. He welcomed us to his home and for three days entertained us hospitably. 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. When this had happened, the rest of the sick on the island came and were cured (28:7-9).
Though Mayhue points to a few of these references, he fails to mention that they are all examples of numerous healings. These are not merely “incidents of healing,”18 but summaries of the many healings that characterized apostolic ministry and the spread of the early Church.19 It seems to me that Mayhue’s methodology is not only inaccurate, but it actually lacks integrity.20
Category: Spirit, Winter 2005
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