Following His forty-day temptation by Satan, Jesus traveled to Nazareth and went to the synagogue. He read from the prophet Isaiah.
“The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He has anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed; to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord” (Luke 4:18-19, NKJV).
Speaking of himself, He declared, “Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing” (Luke 4:21, NKJV).
In the synagogue that day, Jesus spoke who He was into being. He had come in the power of God’s Spirit to preach the Gospel to those poor with no hope—to set the captives of sin and sickness free—to heal those brokenhearted and oppressed. The time of the Lord’s favor had come.
The Gospel is God’s good news for you. It is the power of God to save everyone (Romans 1:16), and that salvation is more than just the promise of heaven. The Gospel forgives, heals, delivers, and brings wholeness to your life.
You can’t separate healing from the Gospel. Jesus was healing personified. He healed everyone who came to Him with great compassion. Jesus never denied anyone healing or asked what they had done or what might have caused their sickness. He just loved and healed them. “By His stripes, you are healed,” Isaiah prophesied about Jesus (Isaiah 53:5). Jesus healed then, and He heals today.
The Gospel has life-changing power, and it stirs faith in those who hear it (Romans 10:17). When you hear the Gospel in your heart, it draws you into a relationship with Jesus. It encourages you with the goodness of the love of God. The Gospel defeats the lies of the enemy. It breaks through all the bondage of sin, sickness, fear, torment, oppression, and shame. The Gospel sets you free.
In Romans 10:13, Paul declared that anyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. The Greek word for salvation in this verse is “Soteria.” Its meaning includes salvation, health, and deliverance. Whenever Jesus preached the Word, miracles of healing and deliverance followed. It is the same today. When the Gospel is preached, salvation in all its fullness is received. Miracles of healing and deliverance follow. When you call on the name of the Lord, you are saved with all the power of the Gospel.
Forgiveness and healing and deliverance all are parts of the goodness of God. They are bound together in God’s Grace. When you hear the pure, unmodified Gospel of God’s Grace, you know it. Its power changes you. Forgiven, healed, delivered, and lacking nothing—you are whole in the love of God.
When you received salvation, you didn’t understand everything about it. You hadn’t read the whole Bible before you prayed to receive Christ. You heard that God forgave your sins and loved you. He wanted to be a part of your life. You received the Gospel with child-like faith. You receive healing in the same way that you responded to the Gospel. You accept it without having to understand everything about it.
Do you want to receive the wholeness the Gospel has for you? Respond in the same way that you asked Jesus into your heart—by faith. Healing begins by hearing the Word and allowing it to renew your perception of God’s love. The Word and faith work together to build confident hope.
“He sent His word and healed them, and delivered them from their destructions” (Psalm 107:20, NKJV). Jesus is your Savior from sin and all its destruction. He is your Healer—your Deliverer—your Provider.
“All things are possible to him who believes,” Jesus told the father of the demon-tormented boy, and then delivered him.
The time of the Lord's favor has come. You receive by believing. The Good News is yours in all of its fullness and power.
©2021 Lynn Lacher
www.lynnlacher.com/2021/02/the-power-of-his-good-news.html
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