Article April 29, 2013 ISSUE

The deeper lessons of healing

Lois Degler

During the course of his ministry, Jesus healed blindness and leprosy, raised the dead, fed the hungry, and saved sinners. His healing acts brought hope to many in his time, and also to those of us reading the Bible record now.

But why did Jesus heal? One reason is certainly because of his love and compassion for those in need. His healings seem to say: “There is nothing that cannot be healed. No one that cannot be saved.” Yet, renewing health and restoring life, while certainly very important, were not the only reasons for Jesus’ healing work. The healings were also, in a way, attention-getters, authority for his messages about God and about divine reality. As the Bible points out, the healings performed by Jesus and the disciples “confirm[ed] the word with signs following” (Mark 16:20).