Following Jesus: How Do We Walk With Him?
30 min read
Jesus sent his disciples to heal the sick and cast out demons. The question is not whether that mandate still stands — it is whether we are living it.
"Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse lepers, cast out demons. You received without paying; give without pay." — Matthew 10:8
1. Jesus sent ordinary people to do extraordinary things.
In Matthew 10, Jesus sends the twelve with specific instructions: preach the Kingdom, heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse lepers, cast out demons. In Luke 10, he sends seventy-two with similar authority. These were not apostolic specialists with unique qualifications. They were fishermen, tax collectors, ordinary people — sent with Jesus' delegated authority to do what he had been doing.
2. The continuation is explicit.
John 14:12 — "Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do; and greater works than these will he do, because I am going to the Father." "Whoever believes" is not limited to the twelve or to the apostolic era. Jesus is describing the ongoing ministry of the church empowered by the Spirit he will send. The phrase "greater works" likely refers to the geographic and numerical scope of what the Spirit-empowered church will accomplish — not to individual miracles that surpass what Jesus did.
3. The healing ministry is a sign of the Kingdom, not a guarantee of comfort.
Not everyone the disciples prayed for was healed in the New Testament. The same Spirit who raised Dorcas from the dead Acts 9:40 did not prevent James from being executed Acts 12:2. Paul was not healed of his "thorn in the flesh" despite earnest prayer 2 Corinthians 12:7-9. The healing ministry is a sign that the Kingdom has come — not a system that guarantees physical comfort to all who have sufficient faith.
4. The healing ministry requires courage, not technique.
The disciples who succeeded in healing and those who failed Mark 9:14-29 were not distinguished primarily by technique. The disciples who failed were distinguished by their failure to pray. Jesus' instruction — "This kind cannot be driven out by anything but prayer" (v. 29) — points to dependence on God, not to mastery of method. The healing ministry begins with the same posture as all Kingdom participation: "Apart from me you can do nothing" John 15:5.
5. The mandate to pray for healing is part of ordinary discipleship.
James 5:14-15 — "Is anyone among you sick? 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 will save the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up." This is written to ordinary churches, not to miracle specialists. The practice of praying for the sick is not optional for those who take Jesus' mandate seriously.
Pray for healing for someone this week — in person if possible. Write a paragraph: what happened? What was your experience?
Submit your paragraph about the healing prayer experience and your journal answer about your hesitation.
A: Yes — both the twelve (Matt. 10) and the seventy-two (Luke 10) were sent with healing authority.
A: No — "greater works" refers to the scope and reach of the Spirit-empowered church's ministry, not to individual miracles surpassing Jesus'.
A: No. It is a sign of the Kingdom's presence — not a formula. Paul was not healed despite earnest prayer. The outcome belongs to God; the obedience belongs to us.
Lord, I am willing to pray for the sick. Give me the courage to ask, the faith to believe you can, and the wisdom to hold the results with open hands. Amen.