The Lord, Your Physician

Exodus 15:26 - And said, If you will diligently hearken to the voice of the LORD your God, and will do that which is right in his sight, and will give ear to his commandments, and keep all his statutes, I will put none of these diseases upon you, which I have brought upon the Egyptians: for I am the LORD that heals you. 

This verse is one of the first in the Bible that deals directly with the matter of God’s will concerning health, and it has been regarded by many as a key part of the foundation underpinning the truth of what has been called divine healing. The subject of divine healing is controversial, and many people have a distorted view of what is meant by it, which is why it is vital to seek out balanced and well-adjusted teaching on the subject. Those who preach divine healing may also be judged guilty by association with some, who by their message and methods, have not represented the heart of God well, in this regard. When we use the term divine healing, we are simply saying that it is the nature of God to heal, and He has many avenues and means for bringing it about. We should also note that every field of study, this one included, has its unique laws and processes which govern its outcomes; many issues come to bear; truly, one size does not fit all. When we delve into this topic, we must do so carefully, for we are dealing with the lives of God’s precious people, and we all have limited knowledge. Indeed, there are a variety of factors that need to be considered when it comes to the healing of the body.  

In every Bible promise, there is a God-side and a man-side, and both are necessary. God is saying to us in this verse, that if we do our part, then He will do His part. We cannot fulfil His part, and He cannot fulfil our part. In seeking God for healing, this is the place where many of us have trouble; we tend to focus solely on ourselves. We begin to think of our shortcomings and of all that we may have failed to do and how much we need to change, and then we fall prey to the nagging voice of condemnation, thus ensuring our continued defeat. There is a part for us to play, and there are responsibilities laid on us to meet certain conditions. All the promises of God are conditional, and we only qualify when we fulfil those conditions. However, the good news is that God gives us the power to fulfil those conditions. Our Father God is so good. He gives us His Name, His Word, His Spirit, His Grace, His Strength, and His Joy through which He enables us to do what He asks and then He rewards us for doing what we could never have done without Him, to begin with. 

When the Israelites left their prolonged slavery in Egypt and journeyed through the wilderness, God began to give them a combination of laws, principles, and guidelines to build an orderly, civil, and productive society. Some of those laws had to do with maintaining their relationship with God and man, and others had to do with hygiene and health. If they were to follow those laws, which was the man-side of the promise, God would ensure their health and longevity, which was the God-side of the promise. There are natural laws which govern the health of the body, and long before modern science discovered these laws, God gave Moses a glimpse into them. *Move this? [ By ignoring these laws, humanity has suffered untold and unnecessary affliction and death.] Someone has once said that we need to put the emphasis on God’s side of the promise first and man’s side later, because doing so makes man’s side easier. In other words, we are not to focus on ourselves but on God and what He has promised and what He is capable of; we must emphasize His love and power first.  

God says to His people that none of the diseases that the Egyptians experienced will come upon them. A surface reading of this verse gives the impression that God is the one who brings disease on people. There is much that we need to say about the language of the Old Testament and the ancient Hebrew way of making God the cause of everything, both good and bad. However, to keep it short and simple here, we should point out that there is no personal pronoun for God in the original writings. It simply says that none of the diseases that came upon Egypt will come upon them. The Clear Word Bible says, ‘I will not let any of you come down with the diseases of the Egyptians.’ 

This phrase, ‘the Lord that heals’, in the original writings, gives us one of several redemptive names of God; Jehovah-Rapha. In the Biblical view, a name is not simply a title or a way to address someone. A name represents the nature of the person; it embodies who they are at the core and essence of their being. How gripping this is when we consider this name of God; Jehovah-Rapha. Jehovah is the name of God that reveals His self-existent, covenantal nature; He is uncreated and is incapable of need; hence, All-Powerful. Rapha is the Hebrew word that encompasses all aspects of healing and health, including one’s ongoing relationship with the physician. So, we could say that He is the Great Physician; He is all-powerful and is inherently committed to bringing the solution to us for any affliction or disease. The will of God flows out of the nature of God and everything in His nature is healing and health; it is life, not death; it is strength, not weakness. 

Be encouraged, friends, Jehovah-Rapha is not a distant, malicious God, hurling affliction upon you; No!, that would be a dreadful distortion of His very name and nature. He is your very own Father, and like a good father, He is present with you, watching over His promise to bring it to pass in your life. Thank you, Abba, Father, the Lord, my Healer!