Acts 5: 12 “The apostles performed many signs and wonders among the people, and with one accord the believers gathered together in Solomon’s Colonnade. 13 Although the people regarded them highly, no one else dared to join them. 14 Yet more and more believers were brought to the Lord—large numbers of bo”th men and women.
15 As a result, people brought the sick into the streets and laid them on cots and mats, so that at least Peter’s shadow might fall on some of them as he passed by. 16 Crowds also gathered from the towns around Jerusalem, bringing the sick and those tormented by unclean spirits, and all of them were healed.
When God is handling a situation, there is a divine balance in everything. Peter denied Jesus three times and for awhile was away from Jesus and had to be reconciled. Then Peter underwent questioning by Jesus. Jesus already knew Peter’s heart but Jesus wanted to make sure that Peter was aware of his own motives. In Matthew 23:12 Jesus told his disciples,”For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.” Peter had to be humbled sufficiently that when the Holy Spirit descended and began working through him, Peter would never again exalt himself.
The Holy Spirit has descended twice and Peter and John have been arrested and then released. Ananias and Sapphira have paid for their greed and their lies with their lives. And now something new is happening, something Peter never anticipated.
Old Asher was the first one to experience a healing. It was late afternoon and Asher was sitting in his doorway feeling the warmth of the sun. That’s all Asher had been able to do for years, ever since the stroke withered his right arm and leg. Asher’s house just happened to be on one of the streets leading to the temple, and Peter was passing by. Asher was a boyhood friend of Peter’s father, so Peter naturally stopped to greet him. As Peter bent over to take Asher’s hand, Peter’s shadow fell on Asher. Suddenly, Asher hopped up and embraced Peter! “My friend!” Asher exclaimed, “I have no idea what just happened, but my legs and arms are as strong as they were when I used to help your father pull in the nets!” “Praise God!” replied Peter, shocked at what had just taken place. Puzzled, Peter proceeded down the street. As Peter turned the corner, he saw Ishmael, the thirteen year old son of the local fruit seller Miriam. Everybody knew about Ishmael and everybody felt sorry for Miriam. From early childhood, Ishmael had been demonically tormented. If Miriam didn’t watch Ishnael closely, he would throw himself into a cooking fire or fall on the ground in fits.
When Ishmael saw Peter, he threw himself on the ground, rolling and foaming at the mouth and crying out in a deep unnatural voice. As Peter approached Ishmael, his shadow fell on the boy. Suddenly, the street became deathly quiet. Ishmael picked himself up off the ground and dusted himself off. Looking at Miriam, Ishmael asked,” Mama, what just happened? Who is that man?” “Son,” Peter replied, “I am Simon Peter, a disciple of Jesus and a servant of the one true living God.” “Master,” Ishmael replied, “you have delivered me! I felt as if I was at the bottom of a deep dark hole. When your shadow fell on me, suddenly a brilliant light appeared and a giant hand grabbed mine and lifted me out of the hole. Then the hole completely disappeared.” “Son,” replied Peter, “give God glory! This is not my doing but God’s. The Lord Jesus Christ working through me has delivered you. Come with me to the temple and we will worship together.”
We read about these miracles and wonder if anything of the sort still happens today. There are several important things to notice: First, Peter was not attempting to do anything. God sovereignly moved. Second, there were no particular requirements for these healings. The sick came, and God healed them. Third, everyone was healed.
The short answer to that question is: yes, God still heals.
The story began when I was a third year surgery resident in Charleston, WV. One poor woman had had uterine cancer and had had all the drugs and radiation treatments her body could stand. She had huge masses of tumor causing her abdomen to protrude. Her right leg was three times the size of the left and she had to have a filter put into her inferior vena cava to stop blood clots from going to her lungs. After that, she ruptured her appendix and required an appendectomy. When I visited her during my rounds and prayed for her, all either of us thought we were doing was just begging God to take away the pain in her right leg. She went home, and I forgot about her. Two years later, I was making preoperative rounds and entered the room of a patient scheduled for an incisional hernia repair the following day. When the lady on the bed saw me, she said,” You don’t know me, do you?” “No, Ma’am,” I answered. This patient scheduled for a relatively minor procedure was that cancer patient. She had gone home to die, but God had other ideas. The tumor melted away; , and her legs became equal size. The only reason this lady was returning was for the repair of a small hernia at the site of her appendectomy. Both of us agreed that God had done a miracle!
Does God always heal miraculously? No. Sometimes God gives us the grace to go through the suffering. But in every situation the grace of God will be sufficient.
PRAYER: Heavenly Father, thank you that your grace is sufficient. Thank you that we can freely ask you for healing and that you may grant immediate healing, delayed healing, or the grace to bear whatever suffering is involved. We thank you that you are sovereign and that your mighty power still works. Help us to accept your will, whether it is for instant healings or for something else. Help us to continue to praise and glorify your holy Name. Amen.
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