Settling the Question: The willing Healer

Many believers, when speaking to the Lord, use the phrase, Lord if you are willing . This statement, when spoken in the right context, is powerful. It reflects humility, reverence, and dependence on God. James speaks about this in James 4:13–15:

Now listen, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.” Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. Instead, you ought to say, If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.

Here, James teaches believers the posture of humility before the Lord. It is a reminder to acknowledge our dependence on Him in all things. We are not in control of tomorrow, and so we are to yield our plans to His will.

But there is one area where this statement Lord, if You are willing is often mis-judged is the area of physical healing.

The Misunderstanding About God’s Will to Heal

Most Christians believe that Jesus can heal. They acknowledge His power. Yet many doubt whether He wants to heal them personally. They believe in His ability, but question His willingness.

And here is where the enemy seizes an opportunity. If he can plant the thought, Yes, God can heal, but He won’t heal you, then faith is crippled before it even starts. Countless believers remain sick, and some even pass away prematurely, because of this lie.

The truth is, the phrase If it is Your will is correct when we genuinely do not know God’s direction in a matter. But when it comes to healing, God’s Word has already revealed His will. And His will is clear, He is willing.

Jesus Settles the Question

In Matthew 8:1–4, after delivering the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus comes down from the mountain and is approached by a man with leprosy. This man kneels before Him and says:

Lord, if You are willing, You can make me clean.

Notice the man’s thinking: He knew Jesus could heal, he just wasn’t sure if Jesus would heal him. And how did Jesus respond?

I am willing, He said. “Be clean!” Immediately he was cleansed of his leprosy.

This was not just a healing , it was a revelation of God’s heart. In that moment, Jesus settled the question for all time. His willingness to heal is not selective. His answer remains the same today: I am willing.

A Gospel Full of Healing

When we read the Gospels, we see this willingness again and again. Jesus was sometimes physically tired, like in John 4:6 when He rested at the well, yet the overwhelming picture Scripture paints is one of compassion and power.

He saw the sick as “sheep without a shepherd.” Crowds brought all their sick to Him, and He healed them all (Matthew 4:24, Matthew 12:15, Luke 6:19). Some received healing through their own faith, but others were healed even without demonstrating faith. Why? Because His compassion was not limited by human merit.

Sickness was never God’s design. It entered the world through the curse that came after Adam’s disobedience in the Garden of Eden. Jesus came to destroy the works of the devil (1 John 3:8)  and sickness is one of those works. At the Cross, He took the curse upon Himself so that we could walk in freedom, spirit, soul, and body.

Healing Belongs to God’s Children

In Matthew 15:26, Jesus refers to healing as “the children’s bread.” If you are a child of God, healing is not a rare gift for special occasions  it is part of your covenant inheritance.

Yet many Christians are waiting for “someday” to be healed. That “someday” never comes because healing is not meant to be postponed; it is meant to be received now by faith. The stripes Jesus took on His back (Isaiah 53:5, 1 Peter 2:24) already paid for every sickness and disease.

Our role is not to beg God to give what He has already provided, but to take it by faith , not from God, but from the enemy who tries to hold it back.

 The Real Battle: Identity

One of the biggest reasons believers lack confidence in God’s willingness to heal is identity crisis. If you see yourself primarily as a “sick person” hoping to be healed, the weight of the curse will keep pressing down on you. But if you see yourself as who you are in Christ, redeemed, whole, beloved, and seated with Him in heavenly places, then you begin to operate from victory instead of striving toward it.

You no longer define yourself by weakness or symptoms, but by the finished work of the Cross.

I am willing. Be healed.

The phrase “Lord, if You are willing” is a beautiful expression of humility when applied in areas where God’s will is unknown. But when it comes to healing, we are not left guessing. The Bible has already spoken: He is willing.

The leper’s question in Matthew 8 still echoes in the hearts of many believers today. And Jesus’ answer remains unchanged:

 “I am willing. Be healed.”

Healing belongs to the children of God. It is part of the covenant purchased by Jesus’ blood. Don’t wait for “someday.” Don’t let the enemy steal what Christ has already given. Receive it by faith today — and walk in the freedom your Savior paid for.