Divine Healing

[Amanda]

I both do and do not find the Pentecostal case for healing the atonement persuasive, which I know is not the best answer, but it is my honest answer. I do not subscribe to the belief that healing (on this side of Heaven) is available for all, but not because of our unbelief, rather simply because God might not have it in His plan. I think it implies that we have control when we rely so heavily on the belief that anyone and everyone will be healed if only they believe strongly enough. There is a sort of quiet condemnation of those who are ill that does not sit right with me, as well, when in reality, it is the world that is condemned. Yes, Jesus’ death on the cross marked the loss of sin's power over us in this world, but unfortunately, pain and sickness and death are all still a reality. That being said, I also do believe in divine healing. I believe in the power of prayer and faith's ability to move mountains. I believe that by His stripes, we will be healed… it just might not look like what we think it will. Sometimes it means passing on to be with Jesus, where there is no suffering. I think this lecture touched on striking balance very well.

I personally find the skepticism towards medical professionals/science among early Pentecostals (and many present-day Pentecostals as well) to be a sort of middle ground between a logical outworking of their beliefs around healing and a misguided assumption based on the related doctrine. I do not believe that their skepticism is or was necessarily malicious – I think it typically comes from a place of good intention, but to me, it is just a case of a lack of nuance in their theology. It almost feels legalistic to me, to hold so true to a particular doctrine that a person can easily lose sight of what it truly means, or warp it over time. Similarly, I think it is a case of people putting a limit on the Lord. There are physicians in the Bible, after all, and God works through all of His children. So is it not entirely possible that one of His children is a doctor or nurse or medical scientist, and that they are carrying out His work? I believe it is, absolutely. Leaning on the Lord is important, and divine healing is real. Natural remedies can be excellent for some medical issues, but others may require modern medicine. All of these things can be true at once. We see an example of God directing healing through Isaiah, prescribing a poultice in Isaiah 38:21. We also see clear examples of Jesus supporting physicians/medical treatments. One verse in particular I would like to bring up is Luke 5:31. Yes, some of the references found to doctors and medical treatment in the Bible are spiritual metaphors, but I do not believe that God would speak of these things favourably if he did not truly believe in using medicine to accomplish His healing.