How to Know GOD Wants to Heal YOU

by Richard Roberts

Have you ever been sick in your life? Have you had loved ones who faced, and struggled through, illnesses? If so, I think you would agree that sickness can be a terrible thing.

But there is something worse than just being sick. And that is to be sick and wonder if it's God's will for you to be well. Because when you are sick, questions like these begin pounding in your mind: Why has this happened to me? Doesn't God care whether or not I'm sick? Is it God's will for me to be healed?

My friend, let it be established once and for all that God wants you to be healed. He wants you to prosper and be whole in your mind, spirit, body and your finances (3 John 21). And there is another verse of Scripture I want to share with you that can help settle the issue once and for all. In Matthew 14:14 we read:

And Jesus went forth and saw a great multitude, and was moved with compassion toward them and he healed their sick.

This is a picture of the real Jesus. Because the only Jesus I know is a healing Jesus, the same Jesus the Bible talks about. But for some people the picture is not nearly so clear. For in the back of their mind, the question remains, "How can I know Jesus really wants to heal me?"

Perhaps they have not heard the preaching of the Word by a minister of God who preaches about faith and the miracles God has for those who will believe. Or, perhaps, they have not accepted and received the message of faith inside their souls and then acted upon the message by releasing their faith to God. Whatever the case may be, we sometimes need to ask questions and search God's Word until we see clearly the answers to these questions. For the answers can ultimately be found in only one place—the life and healing ministry of Jesus Christ of Nazareth.

Will the REAL Jesus Christ please stand up?

You may recall during the 1960's there was a television program called "To Tell the Truth." On each program three people would come out and say, "My name is _" and they would give the name. Two of them were impostors. One was the actual person.

The substance of the show was that through a series of questions, a group of panelists would try to discover who the real person was. At the end of the question and answer session, the moderator would say these words, "Will the real_" (he would give the person's name) "please stand up."

There would always be a dramatic pause. And sometimes one, or both, of the impostors would move as if they were going to stand. But, finally, the real person would stand up and the guessing would be over. For when the real person stood up, the questions about identity were all answered.

This is the way it is with Jesus Christ. When we read and study the Bible our questions about His identity can be answered. For there can be no mistake about who Jesus really is if we pay close attention to what God's Word has to say about Him. And God's Word indicates that the life and ministry of J esus was devoted to seeing people healed and made completely whole.

Let's take a closer look at Matthew 14:14, because in that verse lies the key to your knowing beyond any doubt that God wants to heal you!

"Jesus went forth ..."

This is the very first thing we are told in this verse—"Jesus went forth ..." It is said that Jesus spent some two-thirds of His time healing the sick. As you read about His ministry, it seems that Jesus was always either on His way to heal somebody, or He was there in the process of healing them, or He was on the way to heal somebody else.

This is the nature of Jesus—to heal! Just as you and I have our own "natures," it is the nature of Jesus to heal. That's just the way He is.

I'm reminded of the story about the scorpion and the turtle. The scorpion wanted to cross the creek, but he couldn't swim. So he asked the turtle for a ride. But the turtle said, "Oh, no. I can't take you on my back because if I do, you'll sting me."

And the scorpion replied, "Oh, no, I give you my word. I won't sting you."

The turtle, with some persuasion, finally agreed and let the scorpion get on his back. They set out across the creek together and when they had reached about the middle of the stream, the scorpion could resist no longer. He reached underneath the shell and stung the turtle.

As they began to slowly sink to the bottom of the creek, the turtle cried to the scorpion, "But you promised. You promised you wouldn't sting me."

The scorpion replied, 'Yes, I know I promised. But I couldn't resist. You see, it's my nature to sting."

Yes, just as with the scorpion, each of us has our own nature—things which we do because of who we are. For the scorpion, it was his nature to sting.

But with Jesus, it is His nature to heal. It's almost as if He cannot resist. He ' 'goes forth," moved and filled with compassion to heal the sick, because it is his nature to heal. This is why I say, "The only Jesus I know is a healing Jesus. ” And once this truth saturates your mind and spirit you will be on your way to knowing that this same Jesus wants to heal you.

There are other scriptures which can help you understand what I'm telling you.

Exodus 15:26 says, "I am the Lord that healeth thee."

I Peter 2:24 says, "By (His) stripes (the marks of the lashings on Jesus' back) ye were healed."

And in Acts 10:38 we are told that "God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all who were oppressed of the devil."

This is what happened when the healing Jesus of the Bible "went forth." It says that He went about healing all.

I want you to notice that the Bible doesn't say Jesus went about healing _ most. Nor does it say healing almost all or nearly all. l t says "Healing all who were oppressed of the devil."

Because of this scripture, you and I can understand what sickness really is. Sickness is an oppression of the devil. Sickness is not your friend. Sickness is not anybody's friend. For sickness comes from the oppressing hand of the devil.

There are some people who are confused about this matter and believe that sickness comes from God ... that God is trying to punish them.

But think about what this would mean. If God puts sickness on people, then why did He send Jesus to heal? Wouldn't God and Jesus be working against each other when Jesus himself said: "The Son can do nothing of himself, but what he seeth the Father do: for what things soever he doeth, these also doeth the Son likewise" (John 5:19)?

My friend, there is absolutely no reason for you and me to be deceived about this matter. In John 10:10 Jesus said, "The thief (the devil) cometh not but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy." That's what the devil's job is. That's what he's all about. His whole nature and purpose is to wreck your life. He wants to destroy you. He wants to take away your salvation. He wants to steal your health, your family, your finances, and destroy your emotions.

But Jesus also said in the second part of John 10:10, "I have come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly." Jesus didn't come that you might be sick. He came that you might have life, and have it more abundantly. I like to sum it up this way.

. Jesus came To take off you what the devil put on.

To take out of you what the devil put in.

To put back on you what the devil took off.

And to put back in you what the devil took out!

I think we've had enough of the negative type of thinking, where we wrongfully blame God for our sicknesses when He is really the One who wants to heal us.

A man said to me recently, "Richard, I'm suffering for the Lord through my sickness."

I looked him in the eye and said, "Well, if you're suffering for the Lord through your sickness then why don't you ask him to double your sickness so you can really suffer for him!"

He sort of shook his head and said, "I never thought of it like that before."

I said to him, "Don't think for a moment God caused you to be sick. That's the devil's business. God wants to heal you. He's not getting any glory out of your sickness or affliction. Sickness is the devil's oppression."

These are the same words I would say to you right now. Let's begin to know thal God wants to heal you by accepting the fact that it's His nature to heal . Healing is the nature of Jesus.

And after Jesus "went forth," Matthew 14:14 says:

Jesus "saw a great multitude ..."

When Jesus looked at the crowd which followed Him, He saw more than just a great multitude of people. Because Jesus doesn't look at a crowd in the same way you or I do. He sees much more than a thronging mass. Jesus sees them as individuals. And He sees that everybody is sick in some way—spiritually, physically, emotionally, financially or in broken homes or family relationships.

Jesus sees you as an individual also. He knows who you are. Jesus knows what your name is and He knows where you live. He knows what you're going through, right now, in this moment of your life.

As God has raised me up into a healing ministry of my own, I am learning more and more to see what Jesus saw when He looked upon the multitudes. I can sense in my spirit when something is wrong. I am beginning to understand that we are all sick in some way and that we all need God's healing power to touch some area of our lives.

I know I cannot minister effectively until I look upon you as God sees you. To Him, you are unique and irreplaceable. You are unique in that there's only one of you. You are irreplaceable in that nobody can take your place. Nobody! As someone has said, "Your life is God's gift to you, and what you make of your life is your gift back to God."

Jesus sees the potential in your life. And He also sees that the devil would like to steal that potential away through sickness. To the devil you are just another nameless soul. But to Jesus, you are the crowning masterpiece of God's creation and He will go to the uttermost bounds to see you saved and healed when you yield your life to Him.

This is what happened when Jesus went forth and saw the multitude. And this is what happens when Jesus looks at us today. H is power is unlimited ... excepl by our faith and willingness to receive. Yes, He wants to heal you. The question is, will you accept His healing power not just as something to be read about in the Bible, but something to be received on a personal and individual level?

"He was moved with compassion toward them... "

After Jesus "went forth and saw the great multitude" we are told that "he was moved with compassion toward them." Now Jesus did not simply offer His sympathy; He was moved with compassion toward them. When you are confronted with someone who is sick, one of two things will usually happen. You'll either be moved toward the sick person or you'll be drawn away.

Jesus was moved with compassion toward the multitudes. Whereas sympathy allows a person to stand idly by and say, "I'm sorry." compassion demands that you do something. Compassion fills you with an irresistible urge to reach out to the sick person—to do something by releasing your faith—to help rid the person of what is wrong. It is Christ in you identifying with the person in need.

This kind of compassion goes hand in hand with the way Jesus looks upon the individual. What He sees creates the desire to do something. And the compassion He feels locks in with His faith and moves Him into action.

As you begin to understand what compassion is all about you may discover it is the missing link in your own life to knowing that God wants to heal you. Because even when everything else seems right, it still takes divine compassion for you to have a point of contact to receive your miracle from the Lord .

Let me share with you a personal experience of how compassion has worked in my own ministry. Recently I was preaching overseas and the crowds were astounding. People were hungry to hear about Jesus Christ the healer. They wanted more than anything else in the world to know what His compassion is all about.

One evening we had filled a large auditorium and had an overflow crowd watching the service by closed-circuit television. The doors had to be locked, also, because of the crowd. That night we had a tremendous service with many miraculous healings reported.

Among those people who were not able to get into the service was a young boy whose name was Jimmy. Jimmy had come to the crusade, traveling alone by bus at night. He brought with him a Bible in one hand and a songbook in the other.

When he arrived at the service the doors were already locked. But Jimmy refused to be discouraged and leave. By his faith he knew of Jesus' compassion and he had come to be healed of stuttering. He stuttered so badly that all his friends made fun of him, yet he felt the call of God on his young life to preach the gospel.

As I was on my way out of the building after the service, someone pointed me toward Jimmy and explained to me that he had not been able to get into the meeting. I walked over to where he was sitting and said, "What's your name?"

Jimmy looked up and tried to speak, but not a word would come out. He couldn't even say his name. And I saw in his young face the face of my own father ... who had stuttered so badly as a young man that when it was said he would one day preach, people would scoff and laugh.

I was exhausted from the healing service which had just taken place. But the compassion of Jesus began to come up from deep within me. It was a compassion that moved me toward Jimmy. I reached out and prayed for him and I could tell that by faith he received my prayer for his healing to begin. Then I said, "Now, Jimmy, repeat after me. My name is Jimmy."

He said, "My name is Jimmy."

I said, "I'm going to talk and I'm not going to stutter anymore."

He repeated it perfectly and I wish you could have seen the look in his eyes. Through a miracle of healing, Jimmy's tongue was loosed and he was free to speak clearly. Someday that young boy may change his country for Jesus Christ.

Now that's what compassion is all about. When you believe and receive by faith the understanding that Jesus has compassion toward you, right now can be the moment for a healing miracle to begin .

The final words of Matthew 14:14 tell us:

"And He Healed Their Sick"

This is the real Jesus. This is the healing Jesus doing what He was called to do and being what He was called to be. This is the real Jesus who said:

The 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 (Luke 4:18).

Above everything else, I want you to know this real Jesus in a personal way, on an intimate level. He gave His life for your salvation. His body was lashed and beaten that you might be healed.

Let the issue be settled. And let it be established in your heart, mind, and soul, today— GOD WANTS TO HEAL YOU!

Right now I feel the compassion of Jesus and...

I Want to Pray for You:

Heavenly Father, I come to You in the name of Jesus of Nazareth, whose life and ministry brings Your healing power to all who are sick and oppressed by the devil. I pray that we would feel that healing power this very moment!

And, dear friend, I pray that through this message from God's Word your faith will be released and you will know God wants to heal you. From the crown of your head to the soles of your feet, may you begin to receive your healing ... right now! In Jesus' name. Amen and amen.

Evangelist Richard Roberts’ first love is the healing ministry^7 of Jesus Christ.

For more than twenty years he has conducted healing crusades throughout America and around the world. Through his daily television program The Hour of Healing, tens of thousands of miracle testimonies have poured into the Oral Roberts Ministries from people who have experienced God’s saving,healing, delivering power.

In addition to his calling to pray for the needs of people, Richard is President and Chief Executive Officer of Oral Roberts University. He holds a Doctor of Ministry degree and has written such faith-inspiring books as He’s the God of a Second Chance, The Joy of the Lord, and Claim Your Inheritance. Richard and his wife, Lindsay, often minister together and are a powerful healing team for God.