by Dr. MaryAnn Diorio

January 31, 2025

Hello and Happy Day! This is Dr. MaryAnn Diorio, Novelist and Story Coach, welcoming you to another episode of Winning with the Word. Today is Friday, January 31, 2025, and this is episode #2 in Series 2025. This episode is titled “The Truth about Healing—Part 3.” It is the last episode in my three-part series on healing.

Are you sick today? If so, listen up because I’m going to share with you some principles about healing that will help you to receive the healing that Jesus Christ died to give you.

There has been much erroneous teaching about healing. Perhaps you have been taught some of it. For example, here are some common misconceptions about healing to which people cling:

1) God does not heal everyone.
2) It is not always God’s will to heal.
3) Healing is not for today because Jesus Christ is no longer on the earth.

I could include many more misconceptions, but let’s focus on these three.

1) God doesn’t heal everyone.

A close look at the Gospels shows that Jesus never turned away anyone who came to Him for healing. Repeatedly, we read the words, “And He healed them all.”

For example . . .

Matthew 4: 24 – “News about him spread as far as Syria, and people soon began bringing to him all who were sick. And whatever their sickness or disease, or if they were demon possessed or epileptic or paralyzed–he healed them all.”

Matthew 12: 15 – “And many followed him, and he healed them all.”

Matthew 15: 30 – “A vast crowd brought to him people who were lame, blind, crippled, those who couldn’t speak, and many others. They laid them before Jesus, and he healed them all.”

2) It is not always God’s will to heal. This is the second misconception. It is not always God’s will to heal.

During the Lord’s ministry on earth, a leper approached him, asking if Jesus was willing to heal him.

Let’s read this incident in Luke 5: 12-13 – “In one of the villages, Jesus met a man with an advanced case of leprosy. When the man saw Jesus, he bowed with his face to the ground, begging to be healed. ‘Lord,’ he said, ‘if you are willing, you can heal me and make me clean.‘ Jesus reached out and touched him. ‘I am willing,’ he said. ‘Be healed!’ And instantly the leprosy disappeared.”

You might object that just because Jesus was willing to heal the leper, He is willing to heal everyone. Well, let’s take a look at two more Scripture verses that will bring more clarity.

First, in Hebrews 13: 8, we read: “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.”
Second, in Romans 2: 11, we read: “For God does not show favoritism.”

So we see that Jesus Christ hasn’t changed and that He has no favorites. So if He is willing to heal one person, He is certainly willing to heal everyone.

3) Healing is not for today because Jesus is no longer on the earth.

Well, the truth is that Jesus is on the earth in us, His believers, His followers. We are called the Body of Christ. Moreover, Jesus commissioned those of us who follow Him to continue the work that He did while on earth. That work includes healing the sick.

Let’s take a look at Christ’s commission to us in Mark 16: 15-18:

“And then he told them, ‘Go into all the world and preach the Good News to everyone. Anyone who believes and is baptized will be saved. But anyone who refuses to believe will be condemned. These miraculous signs will accompany those who believe: They will cast out demons in my name, and they will speak in new languages. They will be able to handle snakes with safety, and if they drink anything poisonous, it won’t hurt them. They will be able to place their hands on the sick, and they will be healed.’”

In light of these Scripture verses, we can see the following:

1) God heals everyone who has faith to be healed.
2) It is always God’s will to heal.
3) Healing is for today because the Body of Christ is still on the earth and Jesus Christ never changes.

Jesus says what He means and He means what He says. When He says you were healed by His stripes, He means just that. You WERE healed. Past tense. He healed you when He took 39 lashes on His back in payment for your sickness, when He died on the Cross and shed His blood in payment for your sin, and rose from the dead for you to give you complete healing in your spirit, soul, and body.

But the only way to receive healing—or anything else from God—is through faith. You need to believe with your heart—not simply give mental assent with your mind—that God says what He means and He means what He says.

You see, my Friend, healing begins on the inside with a revelatIon of God’s infinite love for you. It is because of His love that He forgives your sin and heals your body. Healing and forgiveness have nothing to do with our good deeds. They have everything to do with our faith in the Lord’s finished work on our behalf.

So, if you need spiritual healing as well as physical healing today, pray this simple prayer with me now:

Lord Jesus, thank You for taking those 39 horrific lashes on Your back, for shedding Your Blood on the Cross, and for rising from the dead so that I can be forgiven of sin and healed of all sickness. I ask You now to come into my life, to heal my body, to forgive my sins. I acknowledge that I am a sinner in need of Your mercy and grace. So I receive You now as my personal Savior and as the Lord of my life. Make of me all that You created me to be. Amen.

If you sincerely prayed this prayer from your heart, you are now a born-again child of God. Write to me at drmaryannn@maryanndiorio.com, and I will send you a free PDF e-booklet titled After You’re Born Again.

In case you are not aware, I write heart-mending fiction that deals with the deepest issues of life. In my stories you will find characters just like you who struggle with what look like impossible problems and situations. Check out my books at my online bookstore at maryanndiorio.com. That’s maryanndiorio.com. And simply click on the tab marked “Bookstore.”

Winning with the Word is available on Apple Podcasts and other major podcast venues as well as on YouTube. Check out my YouTube channel at youtube.com/drmaryanndiorio.

Until next time, remember that God loves you just as you are and just where you are, and that He will help you to keep on winning with the Word.

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Copyright 2025 by MaryAnn Diorio, PhD. All Rights Reserved.