I believe that too often we allow our upbringing, society in general, or education to determine what we believe about things that only God, in His Word, can reveal. If we were raised in a home that believed the Bible is the inspired word of God and its’ promises can be taken literally, then we are more likely to trust God for healing as we did for the forgiveness of our sins (Psalm 103:1-5).
Before the Fall, Adam & Eve were perfect in every way, in relationship with God, body, mind, emotions, and environment were all perfect. But when they disobeyed God, they lost their relationship with God, sickness became a possibility, they were removed from the Garden of Eden and plunged the whole creation into sin.
But God was not caught off guard, He had a plan of redemption already set in motion (John 17:24, Ephesians 1:4, 1 Peter 1:20). The prophet Isaiah, some 700 years before Messiah came, prophesied that He would “…bear our griefs, carry our sorrows…be wounded for our transgressions, bruised for our iniquities…and by His stripes, we were healed” Isaiah 53:4-6. At the same place, time, and moment that He provided a sacrifice for our sins, He also took stripes for our physical healing!
This is illustrated for us in Jesus’ earthly ministry as mentioned by Matthew in chapter 8:16-17, “When evening had come, they brought to Him many who were demon-possessed. And He cast out the spirits with a word, and healed all who were sick, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying: ‘He himself took our infirmities and bore our sicknesses.'” (See also 1 Peter 2:24)
We have examples where Jesus healed everyone present at the time who was in need of healing (Matthew 4:24, Matthew 12:15). We also have an example where He only healed one person (John 5:8-9), even though there were others present who needed healing.
I would suggest that we each do an intensive study of the four Gospels to get a clear picture of how Jesus ministered healing to the sick. We will discover He always knew the mind of the Father and followed His directives when and how He ministered to those in need (John 5:19-23). This is illustrated also in the early church by the Apostle Peter when he encountered a believer, Dorcas, who had recently died (Acts 9:36-43). He prayed, discovered the will of God about it, ministered to her and she was restored to life.
I suggest that healing is a part of the atonement and is available to all who will make Jesus their personal Lord & Savior. Other Scriptures that solidifies this to me are:
The ministry of the early church in the book of Acts. (Acts 2:43, Acts 3:1-10, Acts 4:30, Acts 8:4-8,Acts 9:32-35, Acts 9:36-43, Acts 10:38).
Anointing with oil by the elders. James 5:13-15
The gifts of healings that have been placed in the church. 1 Corinthians 12:9.
Statements like: John 9:23 “If you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes.”
I suggest that we can serve God better with a healthy body than a sick one. While it is possible to be joyful, happy, peaceful, and content in any circumstance, I believe it is best to be all these things with a right relationship with the Lord AND with a healthy body to serve Him and live out all our days until we have finished the course given to us by God! 2 Timothy 4:7-8