THE CONNECTION BETWEEN HEALING, SIN, AND DISEASE

Matthew 9:2, 6, 12-13 They brought to Him a man who was paralyzed, lying on a stretcher. Seeing their [active] faith [springing from confidence in Him], Jesus said to the paralytic, “Do not be afraid, son; your sins are forgiven [the penalty is paid, the guilt removed, and you are declared to be in right standing with God].” But so that you may know that the Son of Man has authority and the power on earth to forgive sins”—then He said to the paralytic, “Get up, pick up your stretcher and go home.” But when Jesus heard this, He said, “Those who are healthy have no need for a physician, but [only] those who are sick. Go and learn what this [Scripture] means: ‘I desire compassion [for those in distress], and not [animal] sacrifice,’ for I did not come to call [to repentance] the [self-proclaimed] righteous [who see no need to change], but sinners [those who recognize their sin and actively seek forgiveness].” (AMP)
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The seventh component of healing is the forgiveness of one's sins. Our sinful nature exerts such a powerful influence over our lives that it traps us in a vicious cycle of unhealthy behaviors. These behaviors remain unbreakable until someone comes along and sets us free.

The forgiveness of our sins and the offenses we commit are crucial for our liberation from sin and death. Sometimes, these sins are directly linked to our sicknesses and diseases. Consider the case of Miriam, Moses' sister. While in the wilderness, an incident occurred between Miriam, Aaron, and Moses, as described in Numbers chapter 12. Miriam and Aaron spoke badly about Moses because of his Kushite wife. This was a serious offense in God's eyes and counted as a sin against both of them. Consequently, God called the three siblings to the Tent of Meeting. From God's perspective, Moses was a unique prophet, and He made an exception for Moses regarding his wife. Therefore, their actions against Moses were unjustifiable. As a result, God judged Miriam for gossiping by striking her with leprosy. Miriam’s sinful nature was the cause of her illness.

This brings us to Matthew 9:2, where a paralytic man encounters Jesus. Having heard about Jesus and His miraculous healing ministry, the man sought freedom from his predicament. Notably, when Jesus meets the paralytic, He says, "… son, your sins are forgiven…." Why would Jesus say, "Your sins are forgiven" to this man? Before this encounter, there is no record of Jesus saying these words to anyone else He had healed. So, why did He choose these words for this particular man?
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​FORGIVENESS IS SOMETIMES NECESSARY

To obtain our healing, the forgiveness of our sins or offenses is essential to be set free from sickness, illness, or disease. It's crucial to understand why the forgiveness of sins is such a vital part of the healing process. The Amplified Bible clarifies this for us: “They brought to Him a man who was paralyzed, lying on a stretcher. Seeing their (active) faith (springing from confidence in Him), Jesus said to the paralytic, ‘Do not be afraid, son; your sins are forgiven. [The penalty is paid, the guilt removed, and you are declared to be in right standing with God.]’”

Although Jesus admired the paralyzed man’s faith and confidence in His ability to heal, He recognized that something greater was needed for the man to obtain his healing. The man needed to be set free first from his sinful nature and the guilt he felt about his past lifestyle. Thus, Jesus addressed his sinful condition before dealing directly with his paralysis.

From our Bible reading, we realize that it does not specify the cause of the man's paralysis or the exact sin that prompted Jesus to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven.’ However, we can safely assume there was a sin issue since Jesus mentioned his ‘sins’. Therefore, before Jesus could heal the man, He had to address the man’s sinful nature first. His sin played a role in holding him captive, contributing to his health problem. Jesus needed to deal with the man’s sin before addressing his health condition because:

1. Sin is the root from which all evil stems.
2. This establishes the importance and precedence of forgiveness in connection to our bodies being healed.
3. It shows Jesus’ number one priority was to deal directly with our sinful nature. Once He deals with our sinful nature, everything else will naturally fall into alignment.

​Resolving our sinful nature is more important than our faith in Jesus’ ability to heal. Our faith does not affect Jesus’ ability to heal, but our sinful nature and lifestyle choices can. Therefore, correcting one’s sinful nature is the primary key to obtaining healing – we must be in the right standing with God. 
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​LET’S SUMMARIZE 

Ways to Obtain Healing:

1. Worship (Matthew 8:2).
2. The faith of other servants (Matthew 8:7-13).
3. Administrators feel genuinely merciful and compassionate toward the sick (Matthew 8:14-17).
4. A simple sincere gesture (Matthew 8:15).
5. All that is required is a Word from Jesus (Matthew 8:16).
6. Know who you are in Christ – as He is so are we (Matthew 8:28-31; 1 John 4:17)
7. The forgiveness of one’s sins (Matthew 9:2, 6).