When my kids were little—especially the oldest—they loved watching infomercials. You know the kind: a 30-minute commercial for some incredible product you never knew you needed. Then came the sales pitch: “How much would you pay?” But wait… there’s more!
Our favorite was Chef Tony and his Miracle Blades. These knives could cut through a brick, slice an aluminum can, and then somehow cut a tomato paper-thin. And if you ordered now, you got an extra slicer blade and steak knives too. Looking back, who really needs to cut bricks with kitchen knives? Yet somehow, we bought the whole set—and after more than a decade, they still they are still cutting those tomatoes.
There is something exciting about discovering there is more included in the package than you expected.
Life, however, has a way of giving us “extras” we never wanted. When Adam sinned in the Garden, humanity inherited more than separation from God. “But wait, there’s more.” Our bodies became frail. From the moment we are born, we begin to die. “But wait, there’s more.” Illness, suffering, anxiety, emotional pain, disease, and weakness all entered the human story because of sin’s curse.
But wait, there’s good news.
As we read through the book of Acts, we see thousands coming to Christ. People were forgiven, saved, and brought into a renewed relationship with God. They experienced grace, purpose, generosity, and community. But wait… there’s more!
Again and again, healing accompanied the message of salvation.
Throughout the book of Acts we read of crowds gathering, bringing their sick and tormented, “and all of them were healed.” The apostles preached the gospel, but they also ministered healing. Why? Because healing is a part of the salvation package.
Isaiah 53 reminds us that Jesus “Surely he took up our pain and bore our suffering, yet we considered him punished by God, stricken by him, and afflicted. 5 But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed.”
Through the cross, Jesus dealt not only with sin but with the immediate effects of the Fall. Salvation is about the healing of body, soul, and spirit. Divine healing is not simply positive thinking or “faith healing” where our faith somehow creates the miracle. God heals. Faith simply receives what grace provides.
James 5 instructs believers to call the elders, pray, and anoint with oil. Why? Because healing remains part of the ministry of the church today. God is still Jehovah-Rapha—“the Lord who heals you.”
That does not mean every sickness is removed instantly. Even Paul had a “thorn in the flesh” God chose not to remove. Healing is a provision of salvation, not a guaranteed timetable. Sometimes God is glorified through healing; sometimes He is glorified by sustaining us through suffering with His sufficient grace.
But as believers, we are never without hope.
The same Jesus who forgives sins still heals hearts, minds, and bodies. The same Holy Spirit who empowered the early church still works today. And the same God who revealed Himself as healer in Exodus has not changed.
The gospel declares that sins can be forgiven and eternal life secured. But wait… there’s more!
Healing is part of the salvation package. Where do you need healing today?
Ted Harris
Associate Pastor