05/03/2026
As a Christian, are we meant to be sick? What does the Bible tell us about what we should do if we are ill? Well, it isn’t a mystery and is spelled out very clearly. We are meant to be healed. Yet so many of us think that although Jesus and the disciples healed, that this is a dead practice today... well it isn’t. The gift of healing is just as alive today as it was in the time of Jesus, and it continues to happen in the Church today.
“Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working.”
James 5:14-16 ESV
Anointing with oil, gathering elders together, confessing our sins, praying, this all sounds so mystical to a great many Christians. How is it that Jesus healing, Angels appearing, and God speaking while performing miracles can be universally accepted and believed, but the thought of a present-day healing or miracle can seem so out of the question or unbelievable?
Let‘s take a quick look at healing today. The first thing that the Bible tells us to do in James 5 is to call the elders. Who are these people? In today’s society elders are simply considered to be old people, but in the context of these verses, that might not necessarily have been the case. Age in years of life is not the preeminent judge, but rather, a person’s age and maturity in faith is the measure. There are some very specific qualifications that an elder must possess, and physical age is really not one of them; let’s read them in 1 Timothy 3, and as we read, let’s remember that the term overseer and elder are synonymous…
“The saying is trustworthy: If anyone aspires to the office of overseer, he desires a noble task. Therefore an overseer must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, sober-minded, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, not a drunkard, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, not a lover of money. He must manage his own household well, with all dignity keeping his children submissive, for if someone does not know how to manage his own household, how will he care for God's church? He must not be a recent convert, or he may become puffed up with conceit and fall into the condemnation of the devil. Moreover, he must be well thought of by outsiders, so that he may not fall into disgrace, into a snare of the devil.”
1 Timothy 3:1-7 ESV
So, we are told that this is a position within the church, to choose our elders very carefully, and how interesting that it isn’t just based on the way the church perceives these men, but how outsiders see them as well. When you look about our church at those we have placed in leadership roles are they aspiring to these guiding principles? If we think so, have we ever gone to them and asked for healing prayer? If not then why not? The Bible isn’t wishy washy on this point, but very clear... we are to do this! Some churches have a group of elders specifically for this purpose. I have served on a three-person team that did this routinely, and we even prayed for those who didn’t have intercessory prayers offered at their own church. People came from across the country for us to pray for them.
Then there is the anointing of oil. Many churches today talk about anointing, but then seldom do it. They might anoint the altar, or a new Pastor, but is that enough? Are we encouraged to go further than that? Scripture, as we have read, tells us unequivocally to anoint the sick, so when we are ill, and seeking out healing prayer... we should ask to be anointed if this isn’t done as a matter of course.
I was on a flight home from Washington D.C. and had a God moment. By chance, I was seated next to the Pastor of a large church, comprised of Ethiopian immigrants, who was returning from a mission trip to the Middle East. From the moment we met one another the air was charged with the Holy Spirit, and we talked all the way to Nashville of our faith. We had the excitement of two young boys talking of Santa Clause on Christmas Eve. As we were approaching the end of our flight, I was moved to ask him how his health was. Now this isn’t something I have ever asked someone on an airplane before, but the Spirit moved me. He told me about a couple of ailments he had, and after listening to him I asked him if it would be alright to anoint him with oil and pray for him... he said emphatically “yes!” So, I reached in my pocket, pulled out a small vial of oil that I carry, and anointed him in the name of Jesus Christ, and began to pray for his healing. It was a holy moment. I was being allowed to minister to an incredible man of God, and the blessings were flowing powerfully between us as the Holy Spirit swirled around us… all this at 35,000 feet in the air.
God heals through us today! He heals us in hospital rooms, prayer closets, in our churches, and even on airplanes high above the earth. To not participate in this blessing is to miss out on one of God’s greatest gifts to us. But it doesn’t end there, the scripture pertaining to healing goes a step further... it promises something beyond our physical healing... forgiveness.
Elders can anoint, and they can heal in the name of Jesus, but along with that healing comes something more... forgiveness of sin. This takes the healing of the body, and extends it to the spirit, and soul. Jesus would say “go and sin no more” after healing someone... are we ready to receive that same gift as well? Are we ready to be healed in body, and soul?
Don’t discount the life of healing prayer today! We live in a time of continued healing and miracles that is very strong! The Holy Spirit is just as alive today as he was in the day of the apostles, so, seek out the elders, and partake of the blessing! Because, unless it is part and parcel of God’s will or plan for us, sickness is not something we are meant to be confined to. You see, our illness and righteous suffering are not the same thing. Much like Jesus believed that suffering His crucifixion could be God’s will, the apostle Paul knew his suffering could be too, and that we should rejoice in them…
“So to keep me from becoming conceited because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, a thorn was given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to harass me, to keep me from becoming conceited. Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me. But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.
2 Corinthians 12:7-10
“ I want you to know, brothers, that what has happened to me has really served to advance the gospel, so that it has become known throughout the whole imperial guard and to all the rest that my imprisonment is for Christ.”
Philippians 1:12-13 ESV
So, let’s pray…
Prayer:
Father, thank you for the miracle of healing that remains with your children and church today. Thank you for your grace that leads to that ministering, and the forgiveness which accompanies it. Teach us to have faith in your Word Father, and lead us to believe in the power of the healing oil and prayer of your saints. Let none of us hurt or experience the pain of illness needlessly Holy Lord, but open our eyes, our hearts, and our faith to your love and mending attention. Care for us in our times of sickness through a dispensation of your mercy and goodness as you minister to our infirmities. Encourage us to lean on one another for anointing and prayer during our times of greatest sickness and need, Father, because this is your Word and blessing. So, hear us as we pray for your will to be done through the healing touch and miracles we ask of you. Praised be your name, and greatly are you to be worshipped as your will is done.
Amen! Amen! Amen!
Rich Forbes