The following is an excerpt from a conversation I am having with a friend of mine about miraculous healing, I thought it was worth sharing:
My overall sense from what I have heard you say so far (and I might be way off here) is that you place a high importance on supernatural healing, both physical and psychological. And I guess I wonder where that comes from. I mean, I see the importance of healing and exorcisms in the gospels, and I believe that the healing that Christ manifested is still available to us now, and I believe that the future Kingdom of God is something at hand, now. But, I guess, for me, instead of wanting to say that the future Kingdom is breaking into the current Kingdom particularly in things like supernatural healing. I would argue that the current world is infused with the in-breaking Kingdom of God and that every time there is a healing in this world (be it supernatural or aspirin) it is a sign of that in-breaking kingdom. I can’t say exactly why I feel like the difference is important, but I do.
Their Reply:
QUICKLY, from Genesis to Revelations there is a pattern where God reveals his nature through teaching and demonstration. Has this changed because of Western philosophical materialism/and the influence of Greco/Roman dualism on the church culture?
My Response:
I think what has (potentially) changed is the way we understand and speak about God’s “demonstration”.
So, in a world of competing deities (Egypt) we see and tell the story of locusts and plagues.
In a world of traveling healers (Jesus) we see and tell the story of healing and exorcisms.
In a world of science and governments (ours) we see and tell the story of Mother Teresa and doctors without borders.
I am not saying that plagues and locusts and healing and exorcisms don’t still happen. I am only saying that God is active in all things that work for life and freedom and He always has been. And only looking for it in the same ways as we see it in the stories in scripture is to miss out on a lot of what God is doing in the world today.