“Now when the sun was setting, all those who had any who were sick with various diseases brought them to him, and he laid his hands on every one of them and healed them. And demons also came out of many, crying, ‘You are the Son of God!’ But he rebuked them and would not allow them to speak, because they knew that he was the Christ.” (Matthew 4:40-41)
Touch is a basic human need. We don’t realize how important it is until we are without it for a time. In the Old Testament, sickness was considered a result of sin in your life. The sick were often quarantined and considered unclean. I would imagine the sick being brought to Jesus with various diseases did not receive a lot of touch due to their “unclean state”. The simple act of touching them would have accomplished two things. First, the person would have received human contact, an act of compassion and love. Touching showed acceptance. Touching showed “I am not afraid of what you have”. Second, through touch, the power of the Holy Spirit flowed through Jesus to heal. Touch was a conduit of power.
When we look at the woman with the issue of blood, Jesus didn’t touch her. Rather she reached out to touch Jesus’ robe. “For she said, ‘If I touch even his garments, I will be made well.’ And immediately the flow of blood dried up, and she felt in her body that she was healed of her disease.”(Mark 5:28-29). The act of touching the source of power, combined with her faith, brought her the healing she so desperately needed. What a creative miracle!
We, too, get to be conduits of God’s power. We can ask the Holy Spirit to fill us with power and anoint our hands to heal. With Jesus as our example, when we pray, we can respectfully lay hands on those who need healing as a connection point for the Holy Spirit to move. We extend love, value, and acceptance by extending the simple act of touch. And who knows, maybe someone will reach out to touch you, and the Holy Spirit will move just because he’s in you!
Listening Prayer:
Ask the Holy Spirit to bring to mind people in your life who need healing. Ask the Holy Spirit to teach you and guide you as you pray and lay hands on them.
Prayer:
Holy Spirit, I humbly submit and dedicate my hands to you. Anoint my hands to heal. I offer myself to you to be a conduit through which you flow. I want to see people healed and set free. Help me to grow in faith and to be bold as I pray for others. Teach me how to move in power and authority. Direct me to the people you want me to pray for. Help me to grow in love and compassion for those who need a touch from you. In Jesus’ mighty name, Amen.
Resource: Bible Verses on Laying on of Hands
“Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (1 Thessalonians 5:23)
“It happened that the father of Publius lay sick with fever and dysentery. And Paul visited him and prayed, and putting his hands on him, healed him. And when this had taken place, the rest of the people on the island who had diseases also came and were cured.” (Acts 28:8-9)
“And these signs will accompany those who believe: in my name they will cast out demons; they will speak in new tongues; they will pick up serpents with their hands; and if they drink any deadly poison, it will not hurt them; they will lay their hands on the sick, and they will recover.” (Mark 16:17-18)
“And behold, there was a woman who had had a disabling spirit for eighteen years. She was bent over and could not fully straighten herself. When Jesus saw her, he called her over and said to her, ‘Woman, you are freed from your disability.’ And he laid his hands on her, and immediately she was made straight, and she glorified God.” (Luke 13:11-13)
Worship Song:
“Healing Is In Your Hands” by Christy Nockels