By His Wounds We Were Healed
"Surely he took up our pain and bore our suffering, yet we considered him punished by God, stricken by him, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed." — Isaiah 53:4-5
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Introduction
There is a question that has echoed through centuries of Christian faith and continues to resound in the hearts of countless believers: Does God still heal today? It's an honest question — one that is often born out of pain, out of long waiting, out of a hospital bed or a difficult diagnosis. And the answer is not found in our experiences — whether experiences of healing or of its absence — but in the Word of God.
Today we begin a five-part series on divine healing. We will not approach this with empty enthusiasm or easy promises, but with our feet firmly planted in Scripture. And our starting point is a text written seven hundred years before Christ was born: Isaiah 53. A chapter so precise, so surgical in its description of the suffering Messiah, that the rabbis themselves called it "the forbidden chapter" — because it makes it far too obvious that Jesus is the Messiah.
In this first message, we want to establish the biblical foundation of divine healing. Before we talk about how to receive, how to pray, or how to persevere in faith — we need to know what God has promised, and where that promise is found.
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1. The Servant's Suffering Was Real — and It Was Substitutionary
The prophet Isaiah uses extraordinarily physical language: pain, suffering, pierced, crushed, wounds. These are not vague poetic metaphors. They are concrete Hebrew words — choli (infirmity, sickness) and makob (physical pain) — that describe real, bodily suffering.
The Servant — whom we recognize as Jesus — did not merely sympathize with our suffering. He took that suffering upon himself. The Hebrew verb nasa means "to lift, to carry, to bear." It is the same verb used when someone shoulders a heavy burden. Christ did not simply understand us — He carried the weight of our sicknesses the way a man carries a real, physical load.
This has an immense pastoral implication: when you are sick, you are not alone. Christ knows the pain of the body because He lived it on the cross. Your illness is not invisible to God — it was, in fact, foreseen and borne by His Son before you were ever born.
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2. Matthew Interprets Isaiah as a Promise of Physical Healing
One might argue that Isaiah 53 speaks only of spiritual healing — of the forgiveness of sins. But the New Testament Scriptures leave us no room for that doubt. Matthew 8:16-17 describes Jesus healing the sick and casting out demons, and then directly applies this very passage from Isaiah: "This was to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah: 'He took up our infirmities and bore our diseases.'"
Notice: Matthew applies Isaiah 53:4 to Jesus' healing ministry — not only to the cross. This means that healing is part of the Messiah's mission. It is not an add-on, not an optional bonus. It is an integral part of what Christ came to do.
This does not mean that everyone will be healed at every moment in exactly the way they hope. But it does mean that divine healing has a solid scriptural foundation — it is not superstition, it is not emotional manipulation. It is a real dimension of the redemptive work of Christ.
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3. "We Are Healed" — A Statement of Fact, Not of Hope
Verse 5 closes with a declaration that should stop us in our tracks: "by his wounds we are healed." In Hebrew, this verb is in the perfect tense — it indicates a completed action, an already-established fact. It does not say "we will be healed" as an uncertain future promise. It says we are healed as a reality already accomplished.
Peter, in the New Testament, quotes this same verse in 1 Peter 2:24 using the same verb form: "by his wounds you have been healed." The work has been done. The price has been paid. His wound was opened so that ours might be closed.
This does not dissolve the mystery of faith — some healings come quickly, others are long in coming, and others we will only see at the resurrection. But it establishes an unshakable truth: healing is not something God might do if He feels so inclined. It is something Christ has already purchased on the cross.
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Conclusion
Dear brother, dear sister: divine healing does not rest on feelings, on charismatic preachers, or on magic formulas. It rests on the perfect and finished sacrifice of Jesus Christ. Isaiah saw it seven hundred years in advance. Matthew confirmed it. Peter reaffirmed it.
This week, I invite you to a simple but profound decision: anchor your faith once again in the Word, not merely in your experiences. If you have already been healed, give glory to God for His fulfilled promise. If you are still waiting, stand firm — not because you feel it, but because the Word declares it.
In the next message in this series, we will explore how Jesus carried out this healing ministry during His earthly life. Until then, keep this verse close to your heart: "by his wounds we are healed."
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Closing Prayer
Lord Jesus, thank You that Your cross was sufficient not only for our sin, but also for our sicknesses. Help us to anchor our faith in Your Word and not merely in our circumstances. May every person who heard this message today find in You the healer that both soul and body so desperately need. Amen.
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