Saved and Healed at the Cross of Christ
On this Healing & Wholeness Sunday we gather in faith to delve deep into a powerful message: "Saved and Healed at the Cross of Christ."
This is a message of hope and redemption.
I want to remind you today that the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross paid the price for our salvation and healing.
Listen to the words of 1 Peter 2:24:
1 Peter 2:24 (NLT): "Jesus personally carried our sins in His body on the cross so that we can be dead to sin and live for what is right. By His wounds you are healed."
Friends, at the Cross of Christ, there is salvation and there is healing.
If we have accepted Jesus as our Lord and Saviour we have the certain hope, the assurance, God has forgiven us of all our sins because of what Jesus has done on the Cross.
Let’s explore this profound truth.
Point 1: The Cross: A Place of Redemption
The first point emphasizes the Cross as the place of redemption. Jesus, the sinless Lamb of God, carried our sins upon Himself at the Cross.
Through His selfless sacrifice, we find forgiveness and salvation.
The message of the Cross is one of restoration and reconciliation.
Ephesians 1:7: "God is so rich in kindness and grace that He purchased our freedom with the blood of His Son and forgave our sins."
The Cross is not just a symbol; it's a place of divine exchange.
Jesus took our sins upon Himself, and in return, we received forgiveness and a new life in Him.
This truth is beautifully summed up by Charles Spurgeon: "Every link of that chain of sorrows which was flung around His shoulders should have been a bolt to the gates of hell. Christ must die to put away sin."
Point 2: The Cross: A Place of Healing
Moving on, we explore the Cross as a place of healing.
700 years before Christ went to the cross, God revealed to the prophet Isaiah the suffering and death Jesus would endure.
Isaiah 53:3-6, He was despised and rejected — a man of sorrows, acquainted with deepest grief. We turned our backs on him and looked the other way. He was despised, and we did not care. 4 Yet it was our weaknesses He carried; it was our sorrows that weighed Him down. And we thought His troubles were a punishment from God, a punishment for His own sins! 5 But He was pierced for our rebellion, crushed for our sins. He was beaten so we could be whole. He was whipped so we could be healed. 6 All of us, like sheep, have strayed away. We have left God’s paths to follow our own. Yet the LORD laid on Him the sins of us all.
Isaiah's prophecy in Isaiah 53:3-6 reveals the depth of suffering Jesus endured for our healing. His wounds, His stripes, were for our physical, emotional, and spiritual well-being.
The price has been paid; the sacrifice of Christ on the Cross is sufficient for all who place their trust in Him.
When we repent, when we turn away from our sin and turn to Jesus as Lord and Saviour, all of our sins, past present and future are dealt with.
By trusting in Jesus, the power of God cleanses and changes us, we are born-again.
Jesus has paid the price for our redemption and our healing at the Cross.
At the Cross, Jesus bore our sicknesses and diseases.
In New Testament times when Jesus walked upon this earth He spoke and people were healed.
Jesus never turned anyone away.
In Matthew 8:2-3: "A man with leprosy came and knelt before Jesus and said, 'Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean.' Jesus reached out His hand and touched the man. 'I am willing,' He said. 'Be clean!' And immediately the leprosy left him."
Throughout the Gospel narratives, there are examples of people who came from far and wide and spoke to Jesus and He healed them.
He healed the sick, the blind, the deaf, the disabled, the leper, He even raised the dead back to life.
Matthew 9:35 records how Jesus travelled through all the towns and villages of that area, teaching in the synagogues and announcing the Good News about the Kingdom. And he healed every kind of disease and illness.
He healed every kind of disease and illness.
That means that if you or I had been there, He would have healed us as well.
The Cross isn't just about forgiveness; it's about restoration.
It's where God's healing touch is extended to those who believe.
The words of Charles Spurgeon echo this truth: "The Lord did not place His child upon the surgeon's table without providing an anaesthetic. He knew what they would do to Him."
Jesus endured the suffering for our healing.
Point 3: The Cross: A Place of Unchanging Promises
Lastly, we look at the Cross as a place of unchanging promises.
Hebrews 13:8 reminds us that Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.
In both Old and New Testament times God was often called Jehovah Rapha.
This is a name that refers to God as the healer or the God who heals.
It is derived from the Hebrew language and is used to emphasize God's role in healing and restoring both physical and spiritual ailments.
The name "Jehovah" is one of the many titles used to describe God in the Bible, and "Rapha" means "healer" or "to heal" in Hebrew.
The concept of Jehovah Rapha is rooted in various passages in the Bible that highlight God's ability and willingness to heal those who are afflicted with illnesses, both physical and spiritual.
One of the key verses associated with Jehovah Rapha is Exodus 15:26.
For context, listen to Exodus 15:22-27, Then Moses led the people of Israel away from the Red Sea, and they moved out into the desert of Shur. They travelled in this desert for three days without finding any water. 23 When they came to the oasis of Marah, the water was too bitter to drink. So they called the place Marah (which means “bitter”).
24 Then the people complained and turned against Moses. “What are we going to drink?” they demanded. 25 So Moses cried out to the Lord for help, and the Lord showed him a piece of wood. Moses threw it into the water, and this made the water good to drink.
It was there at Marah that the Lord set before them the following decree as a standard to test their faithfulness to him. 26 He said, “If you will listen carefully to the voice of the Lord your God and do what is right in his sight, obeying his commands and keeping all his decrees, then I will not make you suffer any of the diseases I sent on the Egyptians; for I am the Lord (Jehovah Rapha) who heals you.”
27 After leaving Marah, the Israelites traveled on to the oasis of Elim, where they found twelve springs and seventy palm trees. They camped there beside the water.
In Exodus 15:26, God reveals Himself to the Israelites as Jehovah Rapha, the one who heals them, God emphasises His role as God and healer.
Today we will turn to Jehovah Rapha in prayer, seeking His healing and restoration, and trusting in His ability to bring about physical, emotional, and spiritual healing in our lives.
Jehovah Rapha is the Lord who heals. He is the only One who heals and saves.
The Psalmist proclaimed in Psalm 103:2-4: "Let all that I am praise the Lord; may I never forget the good things He does for me. He forgives all my sins and heals all my diseases."
God's promises remain consistent throughout history.
He is the God of miracles, capable of healing and saving.
The words of A.W. Tozer emphasize this: "Our Lord is a man of compassion. His heart is full of tender mercy. No one will be able to approach Him and say, 'Jesus, you didn't really mean it when you said…'"
In conclusion, the Cross is a place of redemption, healing, and unchanging promises.
It's where our sins were forgiven and our bodies and souls were healed. We are not alone in this journey; God's faithfulness is unwavering.
In the book of Acts there are many accounts of God healing people.
Over the last 2000 years, there have been many men, women and children who have prayed and been healed, physically, spiritually, emotionally, miraculously.
As we prepare to pray, let us remember that God's Word is powerful, and His promises are true. He is the God of miracles.
Let's approach Him in faith, believing that He is willing and able to heal and save.
Let us declare, "We believe God is the same Yesterday, today and forever, in the mighty name of Jesus bring healing and wholeness"
The God of the Cross, the God of miracles, is with us today.
Let us pray and expect the healing touch of Jesus in our lives, knowing that by His wounds, we are healed.
God’s Word is true, and He will faithfully to do what He has said He will do.
