Ministry of Healing

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We will look at the early part, the opening of Jesus’s ministry and what He Himself said He was going to do.

Luke 4:14–17 KJV:
¹⁴And Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit into Galilee: and there went out a fame of him through all the region round about. ¹⁵And he taught in their synagogues, being glorified of all. ¹⁶And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up for to read. ¹⁷And there was delivered unto him the book [scroll] of the prophet Esaias. And when he had opened the book[scroll], he found the place where it was written,

They didn’t have books like we do; they had scrolls. Jesus had to unroll the scroll to find the section he was looking for—and there were no chapter or verse numbers to help. He had to be so familiar with the Scriptures that He could unroll the scroll and find the exact place he was looking for.

Luke 4:18–21:
¹⁸The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, ¹⁹To preach the acceptable year of the Lord. ²⁰And he closed the book [scroll], and he gave it again to the minister, and sat down. And the eyes of all them that were in the synagogue were fastened on him. ²¹And he began to say unto them, This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears.

He stopped reading at exactly the right place because what is written next is still future; it hasn’t yet come to pass.

The is the announcement of the beginning of Jesus Christ’s ministry. Immediately after this, He starts doing the very things He read about. As we read these records, keep in mind that He gave us the authority to use His name in the same ministry.

Everyone who is healed in any category, physically, mentally, or emotionally, goes through the process described in verse 18. Sometimes it’s quick. Sometimes, different steps or sections are so quick that you can’t analyze them. No healings are exactly the same but they all have these elements.

There’s a process and God has a purpose for each of the phrases in this verse. Let’s compare verse 18 to where it is quoted from in the Old Testament.

Isaiah 61:1 KJV:
The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound;

Luke 4:18 APNT:
The Spirit of the lord [is] on me and because of this, he has anointed me to preach to the poor and has sent me to heal the broken- hearted and to preach forgiveness to the captives and sight to the blind and to strengthen the broken with forgiveness

Condition	Meaning	Healing process	Steps
Afflicted, poor	Needy	Preaching of Word	Hope
Broken-hearted	Crushed, ripped, cut	Cleanse wound and wrap firmly	Bandage
Captive	Captured at spearpoint, held in bonds	Untie bonds, release the straps of the yoke	Release
Blind	Bound, in darkness	Lead out of prison, teach new habits of thinking	New understanding
Bruised, oppressed	Broken (like pottery), under a yoke	Strengthened by forgiveness – set at liberty	Walk in freedom

First Phrase:

Isaiah 61:1	Preach good tidings to the meek.
Luke 4:18	Preach to the poor.

Condition	Meaning	Healing process	Step
Afflicted, poor	Needy	Preaching of Word	Hope

In Hebrew, the word “poor” can mean financially poor, afflicted, or needy in some way. It can also mean “meek.” You can think of it as needy or afflicted in a specific way.

The problem is not the need. The problem is to be meek enough to hear the Word and put it in your heart.

What is the good news or good tidings?

Psalm 103:2–4:
²Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits: ³Who forgiveth all thine iniquities; who healeth all thy diseases; ⁴Who redeemeth thy life from destruction; who crowneth thee with lovingkindness and tender mercies;

Isaiah 53:3–4:
³He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.
⁴Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.

He carried our griefs and sorrows. God is loving and forgiving. He forgives all our iniquities and heals all our diseases We must remind ourselves of these truths over and over again

Sins and sicknesses are tied together here because even if there is no specific sin directly associated with a sickness, it is still a result of our sin nature.

The Aramaic word for “preach” comes from the root sevar , which can also mean hope. When you preach the good news, the gospel, it brings hope.

Second Phrase:

Isaiah 61:1	Bind up the broken hearted.
Luke 4:18	Heal the broken hearted.

Condition	Meaning	Healing process	Step
Broken-hearted	Crushed, ripped, cut	Cleanse wound and wrap firmly	Bandage

These phrases apply to every kind of healing, whether physical, mental, or emotional. “Broken hearted” applies not only to emotional pain. When you think about it, whenever you experience any kind of sickness it affects you and your outlook, it can bring a feeling of hopelessness or like being a victim, it breaks your heart.

The ministry of Jesus Christ and our ministry, how God heals, is that he binds up the broken hearted. What does binding mean? You can think of it like applying a bandage to the hurt. Imagine the “Love-of-God-Ointment” being applied to your wound. There’s a cleansing of the wound, which may or may not involve forgiveness. Then apply a bandage, or bind up the wound. Sometimes, this can take a while; other times, it’s very quick.

We need to stop being critical of things that take time. We rejoice in healing, whether it takes time or is instant (a miracle, another manifestation).

Let’s look at a record that shows a clear element of seeking. Not only the man seeking healing but also his friends seeking healing for him.

Matthew 9:2–8:
²And, behold, they brought to him a man sick of the palsy, lying on a bed: and Jesus seeing their faith [their faith, not just the man’s faith] said unto the sick of the palsy; Son, be of good cheer; thy sins be forgiven thee. ³And, behold, certain of the scribes said within themselves, This man blasphemeth. ⁴And Jesus knowing their thoughts said, Wherefore think ye evil in your hearts? ⁵For whether is easier, to say, Thy sins be forgiven thee; or to say, Arise, and walk? ⁶But that ye may know that the Son of man hath power on earth to forgive sins, (then saith he to the sick of the palsy,) Arise, take up thy bed, and go unto thine house. ⁷And he arose, and departed to his house. ⁸But when the multitudes saw it, they marvelled, and glorified God, which had given such power unto men.

When we erase all of our preconceived notions about how it’s supposed to be, then God can work.

Third Phrase:

Isaiah 61:1	Proclaim liberty to the captives
Luke 4:18	Preach deliverance to the captives.

Condition	Meaning	Healing process	Step
Afflicted, poor	Needy	Preaching of Word	Hope

The word translated as “captive” means prisoners of war who are captured at spearpoint or held in shackles or bonds like a slave. This wording has elements to do with the Year of Jubilee. The year that Jesus Christ was performing his ministry was a Jubilee year. One of the reasons he was able to draw such large crowds is because there didn’t have to be at home taking care of their fields.

The Jubilee year was a year (every 50 years) when you were freed from your accumulated debts and obligations. Proclaiming liberty to the captives includes the idea of being released from every debt or handwriting of sin that was against you.

Colossians 2:13–15:
¹³And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses; ¹⁴Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross; ¹⁵And having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it.

Image of the constellation Perseus (the Breaker) — Constellation Perseus (the Breaker)

This is a common way to describe what I think is the process of healing. The bonds are broken.

Psalm 116:16:
O LORD, truly I am thy servant; I am thy servant, and the son of thine handmaid: thou hast loosed my bonds.

Philippians 2:8–11:
⁸And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. ⁹Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: ¹⁰That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; ¹¹And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Ephesians 1:20–21:
⁸And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. ⁹Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name [including the name of a disease]: ¹⁰That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; ¹¹And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Sin has been dealt with by the blood of Jesus. Healing is in the life, the resurrection.

Fourth Phrase:

Isaiah 61:1	Opening of the prison to them that are bound.
Luke 4:18	Recovering of sight to the blind.

Condition	Meaning	Healing process	Step
Blind	Bound, in darkness	Lead out of prison, teach new habits of thinking	New understanding

On the surface, the phrases in Isaiah and Luke don’t look the same. But if you think about what blindness is and what it does, then you’ll begin to understand.

Biblically, eyes (to see with the eyes) has a lot to do with understanding. Lack of understanding is also called blindness. You can be bound by physical blindness and you can be bound by spiritual blindness (lack of understanding).

You need understanding when you are blinded or bound by not understanding. You need light to overcome the darkness.

Isaiah 42:6–7 KJV:
⁶I the LORD have called thee in righteousness, and will hold thine hand, and will keep thee, and give thee for a covenant of the people, for a light of the Gentiles; ⁷To open the blind eyes, to bring out the prisoners from the prison, and them that sit in darkness out of the prison house.

Isaiah 42:7 ESV:
to open the eyes that are blind, to bring out the prisoners from the dungeon, from the prison those who sit in darkness.

When you remove the shackles, you still need to leave the prison house. When blind eyes open, they can get out of the darkness of the prison house.

To get out of the prison house, we need new thoughts and patterns to replace those old thoughts and patterns. We need a renewed mind. We need new understanding. Have a new vision. Change your life.

Remember when Paul and Silas were in prison singing praises?

Acts 16:25–28:
²⁵ And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God: and the prisoners heard them. ²⁶ And suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken: and immediately all the doors were opened, and every one’s bands were loosed. ²⁷ And the keeper of the prison awaking out of his sleep, and seeing the prison doors open, he drew out his sword, and would have killed himself, supposing that the prisoners had been fled. ²⁸ But Paul cried with a loud voice, saying, Do thyself no harm: for we are all here.

After the doors were opened and the bands were loosed, they were still in the prison.

Fifth Phrase:

Isaiah 61:1	There’s no answering phrase in Isaiah 61:1 to the one that’s in Luke.
Luke 4:18	Set at liberty them that are bruised.

Condition	Meaning	Healing process	Step
Bruised, oppressed	Broken (like pottery), under a yoke	Strengthened by forgiveness, set at liberty	Walk in freedom

That last phrase in Luke 4:18 is not quoted from Isaiah 61:1, it’s from Isaiah 58:6. It’s not uncommon for a quotation in the New Testament to put together two or more prophecies from the Old Testament.

Isaiah 58:6 KJV:
Is not this the fast that I have chosen? to loose the bands of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, and to let the oppressed go free, and that ye break every yoke?

Isaiah 58:6 ESV:
Is not this the fast that I choose: to loose the bonds of wickedness, to undo the straps of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free, and to break every yoke?

In Aramaic, the word broken is the same as “broken hearted.” Putting back together what has been broken takes more than simply saying, “Renew your mind.” Jesus Christ was saying that the next step is, “Go free!” The purpose is for the person to be freed and have a new life and outlook.

In Aramaic the last phrase is quite unique. It is, literally, “to strengthen the heart with forgiveness.”

You know how common it is for condemnation (from others or from yourself) to enter into situations. If only you hadn’t done that. If only you’d have done this. We need our hearts strengthened by forgiveness.

We’re healed from all the consequences and repercussions of the sickness. We must stand fast in the healing and not revert. There needs to be something to enable us to stand in the freedom and not go back to the symptoms.

John 8:36:
If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.

That’s what we need hold onto and remind each other. When God heals you, you are demonstrating that freedom in a way that others can see. And they’ll want it too.

See these five phrases as a process, not necessarily as a series of steps.

We preach the Word and it brings hope.
We bind up the wound, and it cleanses.
- Healing is allowed to happen from the inside out.
Untie the shackles that bind.
Open their eyes so they can understand; we all need more understanding, including understanding with each other.
Strengthen each other with forgiveness.

Jeremiah 17:14 ESV:
Heal me, O Lord, and I shall be healed; save me, and I shall be saved, for you are my praise.

It’s not about feeling; if God heals you, you’re healed.

We need to have compassion for one another.

We can continue that ministry of healing. We can say, “Heal me, and I will be healed.”

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