Yes and no...
it depends on what you mean by "healing."
Yes, God does heal the sick in response to prayers of faith...
"Is any sick among you? 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 shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him." -James 5:14,15
but...
No, Only Jesus was able to heal the lame, deaf, dumb, and blind
we can't decide who, where, when, or how, a person can be healed...
"...but Trophimus have I left at Miletum sick." -2nd Timothy 4:20
The Apostle Paul left Trophimus at Miletum, sick. Paul could not heal his friend. We also read about Timothy's "often infirmities" in 1st Timothy 5:23. Again, Paul was unable to claim God's power to heal his friend's often sickness. No doubt, Timothy asked God for healing, but there was NO healing. Even the Apostle Paul was unable to rid himself of the afflicting thorn in his flesh (2nd Corinthians 12:7). There is NO guarantee in the Bible, that just because we are Christians, that we can expect a life of ease, health, and prosperity. It is because of today's apostate ministers, who preach a false health, wealth, and prosperity gospel, that so many people have wrongfully come to view God as a sort of sugar daddy. God never promised us health, wealth, or prosperity in this sinful world.
In sharp contrast, James 2:5 states,
"...Hath not God chosen the poor of this world rich in faith, and
heirs of the kingdom which he hath promised to them that love him?"
In Luke 16, Lazarus (the beggar) was the man who went to Heaven. The
rich man went to Hellfire. The preachers today who are the most
financially successful are the imposters, the compromisers, the sellouts,
the liars and crooks. The truth has never been popular and has few
friends these days! Thank God for those who love the truth, have faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, and are willing to
suffer for the cause of Christianity.
Biblical Healing is Always in Response to Faith, Not the Whim of Greedy Televangelists
God still heals the sick today in response to prayers of faith; BUT, not at the whim of some Charismatic shyster like Benny Hinn. Benny Hinn holds crusades all across the world, where followers fall back on the floor when he touches them, and then afterwards claim divine healing. It is a scam! This is NOT God's plan for healing. James 5:14,15 makes clear what we are do to when sick... ask the elders of the church to pray over us, anointing us with oil in Jesus' name. It is the prayer of faith the Bible says that heals the sick, not the commands of some Charismatic nut case... "Come out! Come out! I command you... come out!" No minister today has the power of healing.
Only God is able to work divine miracles, not man.
If there is to be healing, it must be understood that ONLY God can work
miracles. God will not heal anyone through someone who exploits
the Gospel to get wealthy. Benny Hinn rakes in hundreds-of-millions of
dollars through his so-called ministry, because people are seeking healing the
Devil's way... with money. Simon the sorcerer learned this the hard way
in Acts 8:20... God's power is NOT for sale! The Bible says that
faith is the key to healing, not money. Benny Hinn has no
faith, except in himself. Benny Hinn has never healed anyone in God's
power, because Mr. Hinn is a false prophet, a lifetime Catholic, an unsaved
heretic, and a servant of darkness.
The Unsaved Have No Right to Expect Healing
Does God still heal today? Oh yes! But, if you are not a born-again, blood-washed, Christian, then you have NO right to God's throne of grace. God is angry with the wicked every day (Psalm 7:11). God's wrath abides on Christ-rejecters (John 3:36). There is no peace to the wicked (Isaiah 48:22). Every believer has a RIGHT to approach God's throne of grace by way of the blood of Jesus (Hebrews 4:15,16).
No Biblical Guarantee of Healing
Although there is NO guarantee of healing, we are certainly entitled to pray for our own healing. We must keep in mind that we are living in a fallen world, and that the wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23). Sin brings sickness, disease, and ultimately physical death. Thankfully, Jesus Christ paid our sin debt so we could escape the Second Death in the Lake of Fire; BUT, there is no guarantee that God will heal us of every illness in life. If God healed us of every illness, then we would never die. Sin brings death, which is why ALL mankind dies. It is ridiculous to teach people that God promises to heal them of every disease and illness, when the world is filled with sickly Christian people.
Some of the best Christians I have known
in my life had permanent health problems, that afflicted them. I myself,
survive from day-to-day with herniated disks in my neck (c5,c6,c7). The
gnawing toothache-like pain is unbearable at times. The tingling and
numbness in my right arm is aggravating. Surgery may help, but it's
almost a guarantee that I'll have permanent difficulty swallowing after the
surgery, still have pain in my neck, suffer lost motion-of-travel in my neck,
etc. It's a no-win situation.
Earthly Physical Healing Not Provided For At Calvary
Some groups claim that Jesus paid for our physical healing on the cross as well as our spiritual healing. They base this false doctrine on Isaiah 53:5... "But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed." However, the Bible does not teach any such doctrine. Christ died for our sins, so that God could offer us eternal life. Physical healing is not a Christian "right," and is not guaranteed Scripturally. Thankfully, God in His mercy DOES heal some people; BUT, we are not the one's to decide who, where, when, or how God does it.
If every Christian had a "right" to be physically healed, then Christian amputees would all be healed. The flesh is inherently sinful, and cannot enter into the Kingdom of Heaven--the flesh suffers, fights against the Spirit, and eventually dies because of sin. Charismatic Pentecostals would foolishly lead us to believe that physical earthly healing is guaranteed by Christ's work of atonement. The FACT of the matter is that not one Charismatic preacher has yet to empty a hospital of the sick. Clearly, Charismatics cannot practice what they preach.
The truth is
that the wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23). We are all
sinners, and we are all going to die. Life's sicknesses, diseases,
ailments, and medical sufferings are all brought upon us by the curse of
sin. Thankfully, our suffering can end at the grave, if we die in the
Lord (Revelation 14:13).
Only Jesus and His Apostles Were Able to Heal Amputees
In Luke 7:20 we find John the Baptist very discouraged, questioning whether Jesus was the Christ or not. I think most Christians can relate to John's dilemma. Even the greatest man born amongst women, John the Baptist (Matthew 11:11), faltered in his faith at times. Never forget that! John's disciples come to Jesus with a message from John... Art thou he that should come, or do we look for another? (Luke 7:20; Matthew 11:3). Jesus replies in Luke 7:22... "Go your way, and tell John what things ye have seen and heard; how that the blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, to the poor the gospel is preached."
No preacher today has power from God to perform such miracles. If men today could perform such miracles, then Christ would be discredited and forgotten. In fact, hellbound magician, David Blaine, has actually attempted to discredit Jesus Christ by performing some of the same miracles which Christ did while on earth. Such wickedness is preparing the way for the coming Antichrist, who will deceive the world with his DECEIT... "Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders, And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved" (2nd Thessalonians 2:9,10). But even still, the Antichrist will not be able to heal the lame, make the deaf to hear, heal the blind, or raise the dead. ONLY Jesus Christ was able to perform such miracles, and for a short time--His Apostles--to whom He granted such powers to validate their ministry.
Today, nearly 2000 years later, followers of Christ are still testifying to the sinful lost world of Jesus' miracles as recorded in the Scriptures. No man in the history of humanity has been able to perform the breath-taking, mind-boggling, scientifically impossible, miracles which the Lord Jesus Christ did, which is why Jesus stated in John 14:11... "Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me: or else believe me for the very works' sake."
In Acts 3:6-13, we read that Peter
healed a lame man. The people were astonished and began to worship the
Apostles. Peter responded in Acts 3:12,13... "And when Peter saw
it, he answered unto the people, Ye men of Israel, why marvel ye at this? or
why look ye so earnestly on us, as though by our own power or holiness we
had made this man to walk? The God of Abraham, and of Isaac, and of
Jacob, the God of our fathers, hath glorified his Son Jesus."
You see, the Apostles only had this power for a short time to GLORIFY THE
SON OF GOD. Once the Word of God was completed, there was no need for
these sign gifts anymore.
Life Itself is a Miracle of God, Clearly Revealing God's Power and Godhead
Oh listen my friend! You'd better stop demanding miracles from God; BUT rather, believe on Jesus Christ because of the miracles recorded in the Word of God! Only a deliberately blind fool would deny the existence of God, who is clearly seen in creation... "For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse" (Romans 1:20). To them that believe, no explanation is necessary; to them that believe not, no explanation is possible.
If you believe in God, then you'd be a fool not to believe that He authored the Bible. Mankind wouldn't write the Bible if he could, and couldn't if he would. There is NO other Book on earth compared to the Word of God. The discovery of over 5,000 scrolls and parchments of the Scriptures is overwhelming evidence that the Word of God wasn't written by a single man, or during a certain time. The Bible spans 1500 years, written by over 40 men, from various walks of life, most of whom never met one another; YET, the Bible perfectly cross-references in understandable meaning to the diligent Bible student.
If you want to see a miracle from
God, open your eyes. Life itself is proof of God's divine power and
Godhead. I pity the fool who refuses to believe in electricity because
he says he can't see it. God's presence is what holds the universe
together (Acts 17:25). One only needs to sit back and view creation to
KNOW that there is a God.
Conclusion
God is a prayer answering God, or else He wouldn't have asked us to pray (Philippians 4:6; 1st Thessalonians 5:17; 1st Peter 5:7). James 5:14,15 clearly tell us that God will heal the sick in response to the prayer of faith; BUT, James didn't say anything about healing for the lame, blind, or deaf. Many Christians today have wonderful testimonies of God's wondrous power that has healed them. However, it is abundantly clear that God doesn't heal amputees today, which would diminish the works which Christ did while upon the earth.
Jesus spoke like no other man, and performed miracles like no other man, because He is the Son of God. Fake healers, such as Benny Hinn, never heal an amputee! In fact, there are no legitimate healers today, they're all fake! It's always a woman with a headache, or a man with pain in his leg, i.e., something non-verifiable. It's a proven scam that's been going on for ages, and people continue to fall for it.
The ONLY "Great Physician" is Jesus Christ, and He performed His miracles to prove His deity (John 15:24,25). Biblical healing today comes through faith; BUT, we must realize that it is NOT God's will to heal everyone, and amputees shouldn't expect any healing until the Lord's return. Amen! Every Christian who is suffering pain today... the deaf, dumb, blind, and crippled... will be forever healed by Christ's omnipotent power when he returns at the Rapture!
