Healing Is Every Child’s Inheritance
Healing is the children’s bread. Just as bread was the basic sustenance in Jewish culture—a daily provision from God—so is healing meant to be a regular and expected part of our life as children of God. Imagine a parent setting the dinner table and the child refusing to eat what has been lovingly prepared. That is what we do when we ignore or doubt the healing made available to us through Christ. As believers, we should aim at reaping every ounce of the benefits that the Lord Jesus has secured for us. Beyond eternal redemption, healing is another gift that Jesus has made available to us. 1 Peter 2:24 says, “By His stripes we were healed.” Jesus’s body was subjected to horrific beatings so that He could purchase healing for us.
Let us now explicitly and deeply understand what Jesus went through to secure this healing.
The Cost of Our Healing
The method of punishment Jesus endured was the ancient Roman scourging, known for its cruelty. He was flogged using a brutal tool called a flagrum—a whip made of leather straps embedded with bits of bone, metal, and lead. As each lash struck His body, the sharp pieces would rip through His skin, tearing muscle and nerve tissue, often exposing bone and internal organs.
Historical sources and medical perspectives, such as those from Dr. C. Truman Davis, reveal that victims of such scourging were left so mutilated that even their entrails could become visible. Jesus was whipped so severely that His flesh hung like ribbons. His suffering was intense, deliberate, and full of purpose.
So now the question we must ask ourselves is: Are we going to allow what Jesus went through be ineffective in our lives? Or are we going to mint every bit of benefit that came with His suffering? When we look around and see the prevalence of disease, pain, and emotional affliction—even within the church—we must ask: Are we embracing what Christ paid for? Are we allowing doubt, fear, or misunderstanding to rob us of healing that has already been provided? The suffering of Jesus demands our full response—not one of passivity, but of faith-filled reception.
God’s Will for Our Wellness
It is God’s will for us to be well. When He created the world, it was perfect—there was no sickness, no pain, no death. That is why in our Lord’s prayer, Jesus taught us to pray, “May Your kingdom come and Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven” (Matthew 6:10). There is no sickness in heaven.
But because we live in a fallen world, we encounter sickness. However, through Jesus, we can still enjoy God’s perfect will for us by accepting the gifts He has offered. Healing is one of those gifts.
Knowing that it is God’s will for us to be well also answers the question many people—especially unbelievers—ask: “Why does a good God allow sickness?” Now we know that it is not God who allows sickness. If it were, Jesus would not have gone through so much pain to bring us healing.
Moreover, the Word tells us: “God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and power, and He went around doing good and healing all who were under the power of the devil, because God was with Him” (Acts 10:38). He also authorized those who believe in Him to heal the sick. If He were the one who brought sickness, then He would be opposing His own work. That would be a contradiction. And as Jesus said, “A kingdom divided against itself cannot stand” (Mark 3:24).
Healing is our bread. We should not settle for crumbs—we should receive the whole loaf.
Healing Is Every Child’s Inheritance
In Matthew 15:22–28, we see the encounter of the Canaanite woman who came to Jesus, begging Him to heal her demon-possessed daughter. Jesus responded that He was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel. When she persisted, He said, “It is not good to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.”
The woman, undeterred, answered, “Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs which fall from their masters’ table.” Jesus marveled at her faith and granted her request. Her daughter was healed that very hour.
This woman was a Gentile. At that time, Jesus had come only for the Jews—the covenant people. Healing was considered their right, their bread. Gentiles were viewed as outsiders, as “dogs.” But her faith pushed past the cultural and covenant boundaries.
Now, through Christ, we are no longer outsiders. We have been made children of God. The Holy Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are sons and daughters of God (Romans 8:16).
There is no longer Jew or Gentile, slave or free. We are all one in Christ Jesus. “If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise” (Galatians 3:28–29).
Therefore, healing is no longer for a select group. It is now for all who are in Christ. Healing belongs to us. We are no longer dogs begging for crumbs. We are children at the table, heirs of the promises.
The Love of God Revealed in Healing
God’s love for us is deeply revealed through the healing He provides. Even in the midst of our rebellion and the brokenness of a fallen world, God made provision for our wellness. In His omniscience, He foresaw humanity’s fall. And in that divine foreknowledge, He made a way—before we ever existed.
“The Lamb was slain from the foundation of the world” (Revelation 13:8). Long before we ever faced disease or pain, God had already offered a solution. Our healing was not an afterthought. It was part of the eternal plan of redemption.
This shows that God’s love transcends our performance. It is not dependent on our perfection, but on His unchanging goodness. He loves us so much that He wants us to be well—whole in body, mind, and spirit. He made healing available as a demonstration of His grace.
But to access this grace, we must come through the door—Jesus Christ. Just as in the natural you need a password to access a secure system, so in the spirit, the key is faith in Jesus. When we put our trust in Him and rest in all He has accomplished for us, the grace for healing becomes ours.
“For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God” (Ephesians 2:8). The same grace that saves us also heals us. Resting in His finished work is how we step into the fullness of what He’s provided.
Don’t Settle for Less
Jesus didn’t endure the whip for us to live beneath our inheritance. He suffered so that we could be whole—spirit, soul, and body. As Isaiah prophesied, “Surely He took up our pain and bore our suffering… by His wounds we are healed” (Isaiah 53:4–5).
So let us not live beneath what has been paid in full. Healing is the children’s bread, and we are God’s children.
A Prayer for Healing
Father, I thank You that healing is part of my inheritance as Your child. I believe that Jesus bore my sickness, pain, and suffering. By His wounds, I am healed. I receive Your healing now—in my body, in my mind, and in my soul. Let Your will be done in my life just as it is in heaven. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
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