In Acts 19:12, people are described as taking handkerchiefs and aprons that have been used by Paul to the sick and the demon possessed with the result that they were healed. Presumably this refers to work clothes from his trade as a tentmaker including cloths used to wipe sweat away from his face (rather than the kind of dainty silk cloths used to blow your nose today).
In some quarters this has led to a practice where TV evangelist or churches and those with a healing ministry sending out handkerchiefs that they have blessed, with the promise of healing, often with expectation that a financial offering will be made. Now, I am always cautious in any case about development practices on the basis of one Bible verse. I also think that the basis in this verse is flimsy. How do we get from people picking up incidental things that have been in contact with Paul, effectively the throw aways to a racket where people sending in their money and receive a specially blessed piece of cloth?
The incident of the woman who comes to Jesus whilst he is on route to heal Lazarus’ daughter links to what happens with Paul and I would suggest offers help as we seek to understand itt. In Luke 8, the woman thinks that if she can just reach out and touch even the outer extremities of Jesus’ clothes, she will be healed. And so it proves. Jesus says that power to heal has gone out from him. Like the cloths and aprons, the point is that just the most incidental of brushes with Jesus has power to heal.
Here’s another clue. In Hebrews 6:4-6 we are told:
“4 It is impossible for those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, who have shared in the Holy Spirit, 5 who have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the coming age 6 and who have fallen[c] away, to be brought back to repentance. To their loss they are crucifying the Son of God all over again and subjecting him to public disgrace.
Sometimes, it is assumed that these are Christians who fall away from their faith. However, these people are distinguished from true believers. The writer later says:
“9 Even though we speak like this, dear friends, we are convinced of better things in your case—the things that have to do with salvation. “[1]
It seems that is possible to have a powerful encounter with God., to know something of the truth and experience something of the Holy Spirit’s power and not be saved. I think this gives us a sense of what was happening in churches them and something even of what we see today.
Jesus was full of power because he was fully God. So, in Christ, God was present with people. Even the most incidental and briefest of touches, a brushing against, a coming into contact with him was going to affect your life. You can’t come into contact with Jesus in some way and go away unaffected, unchanged. Paul had met the risen Jesus and received the Holy spirit. The result was that even incidental, indirect contact at a distance with him had life changing implications.
And this will be/should be true of us too. Now, I am part of a church tradition where we expect healing to happen today. I think this means we can expect people to experience healing from the most incidental and briefest of contact, especially with those who have a gift of healing. We don’t need to engineer it, we don’t need to force it. This will happen and we may never know that it has.
However, I’m also aware that some of my readers will come from a more cessationist position and this will not be your expectation. Whilst I would encourage you not to write off the possibility of seeing these types of gifts at work (or even not seeing them but them to be happening as described above), my purpose here is not to convince you of a charismatic type position. Rather, I want to suggest that this should apply to more than just healing. Our presence as those who have God with us through the Holy Spirit should make a difference in our communities and to the lives of others. In fact, it can make a difference even at a distance, just through reputation. Something of Jesus should be rubbing off onto those we meet and if not, perhaps we should ask “why not?”
[1] Hebrews 6:9.
Faithroots 