“Who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness- by whose stripes you were healed.” I Peter 2:24
The salvation that Jesus provided on the cross brought us wholeness in spirit, in soul, and in body. The Greek word for salvation is “sozo.” A study of that word shows that salvation not only included freedom from the bondage of sin and spiritual death, but also freedom from physical sickness, deliverance from danger, suffering, mental illness, poverty, and any other effect that sin has had on the human race.
Romans 5:12 tells us that because of sin, death entered into the world. Death is the opposite of life, and life includes the blessings of God, including healing. Deuteronomy 28 shows us that there are consequences for unrighteousness that includes sickness. Before sin, there was no sickness or physical deformity. Sickness is directly related to sin.
When Jesus died for our sins, His salvation freed us from death and the effects of sin. Galatians 3:13 tells us that Jesus released us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us.
Part of Jesus’ death on the cross involved punishment, which included being struck with a whip. Isaiah 53:5 says that it is “by His stripes we are healed.” Peter quotes this in I Peter 2:24 stating that the work has been done and completed through Christ’s suffering. In Isaiah 53:4 it says, “Surely He has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows…” In Matthew 8:17 the translation is “He Himself took our infirmities and bore our sicknesses” and is used in reference to the physical healings that were being performed through the ministry of Christ.
In the same way that God offers us eternal life because of what Jesus did at the cross, God offers us salvation from disease and deformity. Jesus paid for our healing. Healing belongs to us.
Application: The Bible makes it clear that Jesus died to bring us eternal life. The Bible also makes it clear that salvation includes physical healing. Don’t suffer with something that Christ paid for. If you need healing in your body, ask God for it, knowing that the same Christ who made the way for your eternal life also made the way for your physical healing.