If you’ve followed our ministry for any length of time, the name B.B. Hankins is no stranger to you. You’ve heard me quote my Pastor in sermons and conferences and read his powerful thoughts in this blog throughout the years. This is one that you’ve perhaps heard or read this quote before.
“Jesus never commissioned anyone to preach a gospel that didn’t include healing the sick.”
Taken from teachings compiled by Bob Hankins in “Success in Ministry: Lessons from a Spiritual Father” (available on Amazon)
At the beginning of this year, I decided to do an intense study on divine healing based solely on what is available in the four gospels. I am determined to treat this study with the same diligence that I take when I eat pork chops. (Forewarning – the following isn’t for you prim and proper, pinky finger pointing out as you hold a fork eaters!) As I eat a pork chop, I pick up the pork chop with my hands, eat the meat, and then gnaw on the bone to get every morsel of meat off of the bone. (Fess up. You, too, are a gnawer, aren’t you!) In reading the gospels, I have determined that I won’t hurry because I want to get everything possible as I read about how Jesus brought healing.
How am I gnawing on this subject? As I began my study, I decided to document my findings by creating Excel spreadsheets (plural) to detail my discoveries. Why did I create more than one spreadsheet? I am simple. When wanting to study and build my faith, I want to focus on just one aspect and not lose the purpose of my pursuit.
Here are what I call my four gnawer files.
- Spreadsheet #1- This spreadsheet lists every time that Jesus healed a person or persons from what would categorized as an incurable or impossible sickness or infirmity. When the details are available, I also include information about the length of time that the person endured this sickness or infirmity. This one spreadsheet alone is worth the gnawing process because it shows that nothing is impossible with Jesus.
- Spreadsheet #2 – Tjos spreadsheet lists the after-effects that followed healing. In a day when ministers and whole denominations avoid the divine healing ministry because of fear of chasing away non-believers in their services, these biblical accounts prove the opposite to be true. Those seeing the miracles and healings followed Jesus.
- Spreadsheet #3 – This spreadsheet lists the “alls” and “thems” of Jesus’ healing ministry. This, too, is a big faith builder because I wanted to document that Jesus didn’t heal just the “easies” and pass by the “toughies”. The first scripture in this sheet says “And his fame went throughout all Syria: and they brought unto him all sick people that were taken with divers diseases and torments, and those which were possessed with devils, and those which were lunatick, and those that had the palsy; and he healed them.” Matthew 4:24
- Spreadsheet #4 – This spreadsheet shares the “hows” of His healing ministry. Were the sick and infirmed healed by Jesus touching them or by them touching Jesus or was it by Him speaking the Word?
I trust that you, too, will take up this gnawing study. I guarantee that in doing so, a bold, tenacious faith WILL arise within you. Healings WILL take place as Jesus once again confirms the Word with signs following (Mark 16:20).
