The God Who Heals, Pt. 5

Aside from healing physically, God heals emotionally,
mentally, morally, and spiritually as well.

The God Who Heals, Pt. 5

"For I am the LORD who heals you."

(Exodus 15:26)

God heals emotionally and mentally as well. Luke 8:35 states, "Then they went out to see what had happened, and came to Jesus, and found the man from whom the demons had departed, sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind. And they were afraid." For a modern-day example of God healing someone from depression, I recommend the biography of Graham Lacey entitled, Take My Life.

God heals morally: 2 Chronicles 7:14 says, "If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land." The word heal is rapha.

Most importantly, God heals spiritually. He rescues our souls from the bondage and enslavement of sin and sets us free. There are many biblical texts that speak of God saving. Here is one: 1 Peter 2:24: "Who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness—by whose stripes you were healed."

Kay Arthur's story is very compelling. When she was 29 years old and a single mom, she went to a party where a man named Jim confronted her and said, "Why don't you quit telling God what you want and tell Him that Jesus Christ is all you need?" She responded angrily, "Jesus Christ is not all I need. I need a husband. I need a..." She proceeded to make a list of all that she needed. Kay later says that at this time in her life, she knew she needed God and was lost. She says, "Although I had tried, I could not quit sinning... I had made resolution after resolution to be good, to stop being immoral. Yet I gave in again and again. I finally concluded that there was no way I could ever be set free... I knew I was sick—sick of soul. As a registered nurse I was an active participant in the healing of many bodies, but I didn't know of any doctor who could heal my soul. And heal myself? Well, it was impossible. I had tried."

On July 16, 1963, Kay called in sick to work. She went upstairs to her bedroom, threw herself on the floor next to her bed, and cried out to God in desperation for healing and for peace. She then states, "There beside my bed, I found that there is... a Great Physician. His name is Jehovah-Rapha. But I would first come to know Him as the Lord Jesus Christ, the Prince of Peace. On that day in my bedroom, He applied the cross to the bitter waters of my life, and I was healed of sin's mortal wounds (Galatians 3:13-14; 1 Peter 2:24)." (Arthur, Lord I Want to Know You, p. 85-86)

In Exodus 15:25, Moses threw the tree in the bitter waters, and they were made sweet. It was a miracle which points us to another tree that was cast into the bitterness of sin and made it sweet. The reference here is to the cross of Jesus, when He died for our sins to make us clean. When we believe, He saves us and turns our bitter cesspools into a sweet work of grace and peace, a river of living water. (See Stone, Names of God, p. 76, and Lockyer, p. 26.)

Augustine in his famous work, Confessions, refers to God as his sweetness; I love that, and indeed, He is sweet to the soul that turns to Him in belief and repentance.

May the Lord bless and heal you of every illness, whatever it may be in your life. He is Jehovah Rophe, and He has the power to heal you. Call out to Him in faith right now.

Let us at DFEA know if we can pray for you for any specific request you have. You can email us at: pray@dfea.com