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(A Theology of Suffering Relating to The Statement Of Faith
“Divine Healing Provided For All In The Atonement”)
By Bishop John Bridges
During forty years of ministry I have observed Pentecostals struggle with the hope for and many times the absence of physical healing for themselves and their families. The expectations of most Pentecostals are not being met. There is a bilbical reason for this.
Like you, my Pastoral care is directly affected by my theology of suffering. At the same time my theology of suffering is greatly informed by my views on the doctrine of Divine healing.
I realize that we (Pentecostals) all have a common statement of faith (“Divine Healing provided for in the Atonement”) which is being interpreted in various ways and causing much confusion, false teaching and debate.

Some teach that divine healing is a guaranteed benefit of the atonement along with salvation.

Others teach that divine healing is provided for (not guaranteed) in the
Atonement, dependent on individual faith and/or the will of God.
 Others believe that our statement “Divine Healing provided for in the Atonement” needs to be restated carefully so that we can distance ourselves from false doctrine i.e. the “Name it and Claim it Crowd”.

Some (like me) have often struggled with this statement “Divine Healing provided for in the Atonement.” It is my opinion that after an examination of the texts presented for proof; this particular doctrine does not stand up to sound interpretive (hermeneutical) principles. I want to make something perfectly clear,
“I believe that God can and does heal today. The days of miracles are not over! I am however convinced that the statement “Divine Healing provided for all in the
Atonement” is an unsubstantiated presupposition and that salvation and continued forgiveness are the sole benefits of the atonement. I believe that we have caused our own confusion by attaching the doctrine of physical healing to the
Substitutionary Atonement of Christ. The following is my apology.
The Questions Which I Bring to the Table Are:

Is physical healing a guaranteed benefit of the atonement?

Are we implying (intentionally or unintentionally) that divine (physical) healing is equally guaranteed, as is salvation to those who believe in the atonement?

What are the results (in the local church) of our teaching and preaching that physical healing is guaranteed in the atonement?

Was there healing in the Old Testament through atonement?

What was meant by "The Prayer offered in Faith" in James 5:14-18?
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"That's an important question!" Let's examine it, beginning with the definition of
Atonement.
Atonement Defined :
1
OT: 3722 kaphar (kaw-far'); a primitive root; to cover (specifically with bitumen); figuratively, to expiate or condone, to placate or cancel: KJV - appease, make (an atonement, cleanse, disannul, forgive, be merciful, pacify, pardon, purge (away), put off,
(make) reconcile (-liation).
NT:2433 hilaskomai (hil-as'-kom-ahee); middle voice from the same as NT:2436; to conciliate, i.e. (transitively) to atone for (sin), or (intransitively) be propitious: KJV - be merciful, make reconciliation for.
In Matthew 8: 16-17 (see table page 6) Matthew said that Jesus fulfilled the prediction of
(Isaiah 53:4 a) “He took up our infirmities and carried our diseases.” Therefore Isaiah
53:4 was already fulfilled long before Christ's atoning sacrifice?
Isaiah 53:5 foretold the reconciliation which would come about by the sacrificial atonement. 1 Peter 2:24 quoted Isaiah 53:5 and 1
Peter 2:25 positively interprets the nature of “said healing” to be spiritual reconciliation rather than physical healing. As illustrated below, the writer simply restated the truth in different words.
Jewish Literature Many Times Uses Repetition and Variation of Words to
Restate A Given Thought.

Psalms 78:46 "He gave their crops to the grasshopper, their produce
to the locust."

Ps 78:61 "He sent [the ark of] his might
into captivity, his splendor into the hands of the enemy."

1 Pet 2:24 "By his stripes you were healed 2
". (1 Peter 2:25) "For you were like sheep going astray, but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls."Verse 25 " restates the theme of reconciliation through the atonement and specifically explains verse 24.
In Jewish literature many times the words "Healed and Healing" Are to be taken figuratively. (Isa 6: 8 - 10)
Table 1 Divine Healing; Toward A More Biblical View "Isaiah 53: 4 - 5 Fulfilled"
1 (Biblesoft's New Exhaustive Stong's Numbers and Concordance with Expanded Greek-Hebrew Dictionary.)
2 2390 iaomai (ee-ah'-om-ahee); middle voice of apparently a primary verb; to cure (literally or figuratively) : KJV-- heal, make whole. (Biblesoft's New Exhaustive Stong's Numbers and Concordance with Expanded Greek-Hebrew Dictionary.)
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Chart 1
The substitutionary sacrifice of Christ was for the propitiation (appeasement of divine wrath) of our sins and
Isaiah 53:4a
“Surely he took up our brought about: infirmities and carried our sorrows, yet we considered him stricken by God, smitten by him, and afflicted.”*
Matthew 8: 16-17
“When evening came, many who were demon-possessed were brought to him, and he drove out the spirits with a word and healed all the sick. 17 This was to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah : ‘He took up our infirmities and carried our diseases.’”
Isaiah 53:5
“But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed.”
*Emphasis mine.
By John Bridges
1 Peter 2:24-25 “He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed .
25 For you were like sheep going astray, but now you have returned to the
Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.”
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Salvation is further defined by the terms which inform us of "What Christ has provided for us"
Justification
He made us not guilty
Rom. 4:25
Regeneration
He made us alive again
Tit. 3:5
He gave us a New birth
Jn. 3:3
He set us
apart
1 Cor.1:30
Redemption
He
Purchased
us
1 Pe. 1:18-
19
Reconciliation
He brought us back to the
Father
Rom. 5:9-10
Adoption
He made
Us
Family
Rom.
8:15
Glorification
He sees us
as we shall be
Rom. 8: 30
Chart by John Bridges
We are claiming intentionally and or unintentionally, but surely (in the minds of many we teach) by implication that two benefits are equally guaranteed to those who trust in
Christ's sacrifice (1) forgiveness of sin. (2) Divine (physical) healing. The nature of the atonement however refutes such positioning because such juxtapositioning would demand a guaranteed equal access of both salvation and healing for the believer . What would be the logical result of this?
If physical healing were also provided for in the atonement along with salvation:

Healing could be appropriated, (guaranteed) to Christians on the same basis and authority as forgiveness, as part of the New Testament covenant, and by sincerely asking.

We would be continually healed and kept in good health.

All the infirm, at conversion would be physically healed.

Among the saints, there would be no blind, lame, or deaf.

No Christian would ever die of disease.
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
It produces false hope , i.e. "If I can only believe enough I will be healed"!

It causes confusion . Many that are chronically ill may wonder why they are not good enough to be healed.

It promotes false guilt because it assumes that unhealed sickness is a result of doubt, hidden sin or divine punishment.

It is the root cause of the "Name it and claim it philosophy." There are no examples in scriptures of preachers (sanctioned by the church) building a ministry around healing, prosperity or any gift of the Spirit! Biblical preachers and teachers focused on preaching the gospel.

It shifts our focus away from Christ, discipleship and evangelism, while overemphasizing our physical needs e.g. our bodies, our emotions and our finances.

It causes some believers to live in denial.
Although they still have their sickness, they must profess healing! Their pastors and teachers have taught them that healing has been promised to them by the atonement along with salvation, both
(healing and forgiveness) being equally accessible, guaranteed by faith. They know that something is wrong. Desperately they cling to a promise that God has not given.

It causes some when healing is not received to question their salvation, for salvation is also promised by faith in the atonement.

It causes rationalization .
Some of us, after seeing a believer suffering and dying say, " Death is a form of healing !" But If death is a form of healing :

We should instruct those requesting prayer; "God may kill
you, when we anoint you with oil in the name of the
Lord!"

Jack Kavorkian isn't the villain we thought him to be!
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
It causes some to defy the laws of sound Bible interpretation .

Some of us read the salutation given to "The beloved
Gaius" from the Apostle John in (3 John 1 - 2) and claim that it is a promise of healing from God to the church.

When the Apostle Matthew said that Jesus fulfilled the scriptures concerning Matthew 2:15,
17, 23; 13:14, 35; and 27:9, we do not disagree and say, "These prophecies were fulfilled at a later date." Do we however want to argue with the timing of the fulfillment of Matthew 8: 16-
17 because we want said prophecy to be fulfilled at the death of Christ, providing physical healing as a guaranteed atonement benefit, equal to and as assessable as salvation?
Was healing a guaranteed benefit of the covenant people in the Old Testament via the sacrificial system?
The following is an answer to the claims presented by G. P. Duffield and N. M. Van Cleave 3
(a textbook used by many Pentecostal Bible Colleges)
Claim: Healing (in the atonement) for those who had leprosy. (Leviticus 14:1 - 32)
Answer: The people for whom these sacrifices were offered had already recovered from skin disease. The atonement was for their sins and ceremonial cleansing.
Claim: The plague of judgment was stopped by an atonement. (Numbers 16:46 - 50)
Answer: The issue here was death because of rebellion. The death only stopped after the atonement was made. No precedent was set for future healing in atonement. In fact
God dealt with each rebellion differently.
Claim: The brass snake, which Moses lifted up in the wilderness, showed that Jesus would heal us physically when we look to him.
Answer: The brass snake later became an Idol. Jesus used the illustration only to teach the born again experience (all who look to Christ in faith and repentance are saved) through faith in the atonement. (John 3: 1 - 15) It cannot honestly be said, "All believers who look to Christ for physical healing receive it."
Claim: That in (Job 33: 24, 25) healing was a promise of God.
Answer: This referrance is an accusation by Elihu, who had been babbling and accusing
Job from (Job 32) until God shut him up at (Job 38). In context, "Elihu is saying that if Job confesses his sin he will be healed. That was not what was keeping Job from being healed! Please Read (Job 33: 19 - 28).
3 Duffield & Van Cleave, Foundations of Pentecostal Theology (L.I.F.E. Bible College, Los Angeles 1987), p. 388 (Al quotes in this section are from pages 388- 389)
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Claim: That the following is a healing covenant. (Ex 15:26) He said, "If you listen
carefully to the voice of the LORD your God and do what is right in his eyes, if you
pay attention to his commands and keep all his decrees, I will not bring on you any
of the diseases I brought on the Egyptians, for I am the LORD, who heals you."
Duffield goes on to say, ".Thus, healing and health were based on obedience to the
Lord. However, this was exactly the basis for the forgiveness of sin, under the Mosaic economy. So healing and the forgiveness of sins were on the same basis in the Old Testament."
Answer:

Continuing in the covenant provided a preventative maintenance health program, which was promised to the obedient. This was part of the Jewish covenant and not our new covenant.

Forgiveness was based on atonement.
James 5:14-18 " Is any one of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord."
The elders are the spiritual male leaders of the local church.
The context links James 5: 14-18 to 1 Kings 17 - 18 clearly teaching that James was speaking of
"The Gift of Faith" in operation.
James 5: 15 "And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise him up.
If he has sinned, he will be forgiven. 16 Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective." NIV
We are compared to whom?
James 5:17 "Elijah was a man just like us. He prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years."
What was the background for Elijah's rain prayers?

Israel was backslid.

God was going to use Elijah to announce judgment (chastisement) upon the Northern Kingdom under the control of Ahab and Jezebel.
Elijah's prayer to withhold rain was recorded as a prophetic announcement to king Ahab in first Kings
17:1 "As the LORD, the God of Israel lives, whom I serve, there will be neither dew nor rain in the next few years accept at my word."
James 5: 18 "Again he prayed, and the heavens gave rain, and the earth produced its crops."
Both prayers (one for the rain to stop and the other for it to start) did not originate from
Elijah's mind or will. The Sovereign God directed a righteous man in prayer! We call this the gift of faith, which is closely associated with the word of knowledge.
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James was telling the church:

He (God) is in control.

We are called to live righteously. In doing so, the will of God will be accomplished through our lives.
The prayer offered in faith is "The gift of faith" in operation. If there is no unconfessed sin and it is
God's will, the Holy Spirit will enable "The prayer offered in faith" to be prayed and bring about the healing of the sick. The gift of faith resides in the Holy Spirit. He alone has the mind of God.
Summation
The effectiveness of our pastoral care to family members and patients in crisis situations is directly affected by our understanding of this (sensitive) issue which I have laid on your table. The pastoral question being, “What has God clearly promised us?”

The atonement brought about the spiritual redemption we now experience . (Eph. 1:7)
7 In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace; KJV.

Our physical bodies however are not yet redeemed and won’t be until the resurrection. Rom 8:22-
23 22 For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now. 23
And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body . KJV
4

The forgiveness of sin requires personal faith in the atonement while physical healing sometimes is brought about by someone else's faith.

Matthew 8:16 - 17 teaches that when Jesus healed the demonics and others at Capernaum, he fulfilled Isaiah 53: 4a long before the atonement.

The sacrificial work of Christ ( 1 Peter 2; 24 - 25 ) only guarantees “salvation” spiritual healing to those who believe, because verse 24 must be interpreted in light of verse 25.

Other scriptures presented as proof text of healing in the atonement ( Psalm 103:3; James 5:14-16 ) have nothing to do with the subject of atonement!

Historical Systematic Theology (prior to the late 1800’s and outside Pentecostalism) does not place physical healing as a guaranteed benefit of the atonement of Christ.

Since (Isaiah 53:4) is undeniably fulfilled in (Matthew 8: 16 - 17) and some of us are unable to accept that (1 Peter 2:25) interprets (1 Peter 2:24); what are we going to do? Does reason, or sound interpretive principles allow us to teach or imply that, "Physical healing is provided for all in the atonement?" If so, are we baseing this conclusion on one (disputable) proof text (1 Peter 2:24)?
4 Emphasis mine.
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
Therefore I believe that physical healing is dependent (along with other factors listed below) upon the sovereignty of God? "God's rule and authority over all things."
"This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us." 1 John 5:14
God can and does heal today!
The healing which was provided (guaranteed) in the atonement is (spiritual) salvation !
Physical healing therefore cannot be claimed as one of our "New-birth" rights. The expectations of most Pentecostals are not being met, because we have expected more than God has promised.
The Christian seeking physical healing from God should remember several things:

He should examine his heart for unconfessed sin, or rebellion against God’s will.

He should realize that God is concerned about all needs and should call for the Elders of the
Church for prayer.

He should understand that God sees the bigger picture and we don't.

He should know that we have no biblical guarantee that we will be healed.

He should trust the sovereign Lord to do what is best for him in his particular circumstance.
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