Evidence of the Gift of Holy Spirit: A Way of Life, Part 4
Estimated reading time: 8 minutes
How Healing and Prophecy Work Together
1 Corinthians 12:7 KJV:
But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal.
This is something that we must continually recall to our minds.
Isaiah 61:1–2 KJV:
1 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; 2 To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn;
This is what Jesus quoted (Luke 4:18–21). This is what Jesus was sent to do. This is what we are also sent to do.
See also the teaching on the Ministry of Healing for more details. [LINK]
Gifts of Healing
In the Hebrew way of thinking, there’s not a hard and fast past tense or hard and fast future tense. Consider the phrase, “You were redeemed.” In the Hebrew way of thinking, this means you were redeemed, you are being redeemed, and you will be redeemed. We know that we’ve been redeemed, but there is more to redemption (such as the new body) that is still future.
Every time we think about healing, it is the same understanding to Hebrew thought. We have been healed; we have it; it’s part of what we have in Him. But we are also being healed, and we will be healed completely. It’s a continuous, ongoing thing. This same concept applies to all of the manifestations. It’s never finished; we live it out every day.
Rapha
The Hebrew word rapha is one of the main words for “to heal.” Remember, Jehovah Rapha, I am the Lord that heals you. The basic meaning of the word rapha is “to sew together a torn garment.” When someone has a wound—of any kind, even emotional—it has to be sewn up.
Look at the importance of words in this process.
Proverbs 16:24 KJV:
Pleasant words are as an honeycomb, sweet to the soul, and health [rapha] to the bones.
The Word of God is like that. But also, the spoken words of prophecy are like that.
Every time there is an ongoing need for healing, “I am the Lord that healeth thee” (Exodus 15:26b). Sew up the wound. Bind up the brokenhearted (Psalm 147:3; Isaiah 61:1). “By his stripes we are healed” (Isaiah 53:5 NKJV). “By his stripes you were healed” (1 Peter 2:24 NKJV). The basic meaning of the word for “stripes” is “wound.” Healing is to bind together the wound.
The next part of healing is a complete restoration.
Jeremiah 33:6 KJV:
Behold, I will bring it health [new flesh growing at the wounded spot] and cure [sew it all together], and I will cure them, and will reveal unto them the abundance of peace [shalom] and truth.
The ultimate result of the healing, the restoration, is shalom, peace. This process applies to any kind of healing, physical or emotional.
How does prophecy work together with healing? Prophecy has to do with breath because it has to do with words and speaking. God spoke the world into being.
Isaiah 46:9–11 KJV:
9 Remember the former things of old: for I am God, and there is none else; I am God, and there is none like me, 10 Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure: 11 Calling a ravenous bird from the east, the man that executeth my counsel from a far country: yea, I have spoken it, I will also bring it to pass; I have purposed it, I will also do it.
God’s power is behind His words. God can speak words He knows will come to pass. That’s why prophecy is so great.
Think about breathing: breathe in, breathe out. You breathe in oxygen and breathe out carbon dioxide. Prophecy is like that. You can breathe in edification and comfort, and you can breathe out a warning: get rid of this; don’t go there. Prophecy can be either one of those or a combination.
Luke 8:40 APNT:
And when Jesus returned, a large crowd received him, for all were looking for him.
Whenever you have a large crowd, you have a profiting opportunity.
Luke 8:41–42 APNT:
41 And a certain man whose name [was] Jairus, a chief of the synagogue, fell before the feet of Jesus and begged him to enter his house,
42 for he had an only daughter about twelve years old and she was about to die. And while Jesus went with him, a large crowd thronged him.
Jesus was looking to God for guidance. Even though we have been given authority, we should look to God for guidance because proper use of our authority depends upon trusting God.
Luke 8:43 APNT:
And a certain woman, whose blood had been flowing [for] twelve years, who had spent all her wealth among the doctors, but was not able to be healed by man,
Under the law, this woman would have been declared “unclean.” According to the law, if anyone touched this woman who had an issue of blood, they would have become unclean too. This was devastating for this woman because for twelve years, she couldn’t fellowship with anyone, not even her family, and couldn’t enter the synagogue. She was completely isolated.
For her to push her way through the crowd, anyone she touched would be unclean.
Luke 8:44 APNT:
approached from behind him and touched the outer edge of his garment. And immediately the flow of her blood stopped.
The edge of the garment had little blue threads or tassels, called tzitzit (Deuteronomy 22:12; Numbers 15:37–41) or “wings.” There was a common belief that if you touched the tassels of a holy man, you could be healed.
Malachi 4:2a KJV:
But unto you that fear my name shall the Sun of righteousness arise with healing in his wings [tassels]; and ye shall go forth, and grow up as calves of the stall.
The woman would have known about that.
Luke 8:45–46 APNT:
45 And Jesus said, “Who touched me?” And while all were denying [it], Simon Peter and those with him said to him, “Our Master, the crowds are pressing and thronging you, yet you say, ‘Who touched me?’”
46 And he said, “Someone touched me, for I know that power went out of me.”
Remember that there are spiritual senses corresponding to our physical senses. Jesus Christ felt a touch (with his spiritual senses).
Luke 9:47–48 APNT:
47 Now when that woman saw that she had not escaped his notice, she came trembling and fell down [and] worshipped him. And she declared before all the people for what reason she had touched [him] and how she was immediately healed.
48 And Jesus said to her, “Be encouraged, my daughter. Your faith has given you life. Go in peace.”
She had to go against every cultural norm to receive her healing. Jesus’s statement, “Go in peace,” is the “prophecy.” Many times, prophecy works together with healing because the person needs to hear something in order to believe to receive or to help them keep their healing going forward.
The audio includes a testimony of a woman who had been healed of a cancer that had not responded to chemotherapy.
Prophecy can come in any situation—teaching, counseling, prayer—any situation. When you open your mouth to speak, you don’t know how God might energize it. It’s not something you can determine. This is a way of life.
While prophecy can be either foretelling or forth-telling, some people teach that only the ministry of a prophet can do forth-telling (about the future), but that’s not true.
1 Corinthians 12:7 AMPCE:
But to each one is given the manifestation of the [Holy] Spirit [the evidence, the spiritual illumination of the Spirit] for good and profit.
Every believer is given the manifestation of the Spirit for a profiting situation.
Scripture References
Scripture quotations marked (AMPCE) taken from the Amplified Bible, Copyright © 1954, 1958, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1987 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. (www.Lockman.org)
Scriptures marked (NKJV) are taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Bookstore Suggestions:
