Matt 4:23 - And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all manner of sickness and all manner of disease among the people.
Jesus was a man anointed and sent on a mission by God. That mission was all about people and those people were what He referred to as, the lost sheep of the house of Israel. So, He went where the people were; He went to their gathering place and took advantage of every opportunity to teach. If we take note of how many times, in the Gospels, it is recorded that Jesus taught, we would come to the conclusion that He taught more than any other one thing. He was anointed to bring healing, to be sure, but He did not put the healing ministry ahead of His teaching ministry. People can be healed but then not necessarily have a change in their thinking and mindset and consequently, they will not have any lasting change and they may also lose what they have gained. If we want to help people we must teach the Word of God, thus we connect them directly to the source. It’s basically the same principle as the old saying, ‘Give a man a fish and feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and feed him for a lifetime’. And that is why we see Jesus instructing people first; He wanted to feed them for a lifetime.
Jesus’ ministry consisted of these three primary things: teaching, preaching, and healing. The language used in our verse could imply a sequence; that one led to the other. Teaching clears the ground of any obstacles and hindrances which are almost always present. Scripture speaks of the importance of the renewing of the mind, and when it comes to people being healed, the need to deal with misinformation and lies is paramount. We must get our thinking clear and in line with God’s Word, which is the truth. Jesus brought God’s truth to God’s people; He taught them first; He taught them often.
At the risk of being too simplistic and general, we could say it like this: teaching brings information, while preaching brings inspiration; teaching is explanation and preaching is proclamation. We need both of these elements of God’s work in our lives. The proclamation of God’s Word is similar to the old town crier who came announcing news; ‘Hear ye! Hear ye!’ In Jesus’ case, He didn’t come with just any news; He came proclaiming the Gospel of the kingdom and the Gospel is good news that the kingdom of God is here. The roots of the word translated kingdom give us the connotation of basic or basis, signifying, that it is always dealing with foundational things. Healing and health are basic to the kingdom because in God’s kingdom sickness and disease is outlawed; it is simply not the will of the King.
There is something about the teaching and preaching of God’s Word that creates an atmosphere of expectation and anticipation in people. The Holy Spirit works in an assembly when there is a certain type of mood or atmosphere. We know there were times in Jesus’ ministry when the Holy Spirit was hindered from healing people; a tone of unbelief actually restricted him from working. The opposite is also true; an environment of faith conducts a flow of power and releases healing from God. I believe it would do us well to follow the example of Jesus when it comes to the healing ministry of the church. We need to take time with people and patiently teach the Word, which will build their faith and position them to receive their healing.
There is no sickness or disease that can be considered incurable with God. Every type of sickness and disease was healed under the ministry of Jesus. It did not matter what it was; all manner of sickness; any kind of disease; whatever ailed people was completely healed. That would mean that what we might call small and insignificant ailments or large and life-threatening conditions were all taken care of by Jesus.
The good news of all this is that God is no respecter of persons; what He does for one He will do for all. He does not discriminate between us; all are equally valuable to Him. Jesus came to do the will of His Father and to demonstrate the heart of God toward suffering humanity. He exemplified the will of God completely; He healed people then and He continues to heal people now. He is the unchanging God; He is the God who heals and He is the God who heals you. I want to encourage you, regardless of past experiences, to continue to seek God for healing, but begin with His Word. Let the Word of God unveil to you the will of God. Let the Word of God instil in you the mind of God. Let the Word of God establish in you the heart of God and let the Word of God impart to you the power of God. The precedent has been set; this sequence can be trusted; Jesus is still teaching, preaching and healing. Amen!
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