It is generally understood that Jesus went about doing good – but what exactly is meant by “doing good”?
Paul wrote:
And you know that God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. Then Jesus went around doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him. (Acts 10:38 NLT).
So Jesus’ “doing good” was linked to healing people. Jesus’ entire ministry is an example of goodness toward mankind. Was “doing good” just healing people of their diseases?
In the context of sending the 70 disciples out Jesus told them, “Whatever house you enter, first say, Peace be to this household! [Freedom from all the distresses that result from sin be with this family].(Luke 10:5 AMP) and “And heal the sick in it and say to them, The kingdom of God has come close to you” (Luke 10:9 AMP). So Jesus commissioned his disciples to be “doing good” by healing people of diseases.
Shortly after stating this Jesus was asked what the greatest commandment was. He answered: "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind," before adding: "'You shall love your neighbour as yourself.”
A lawyer attempted to trip Him up and wanted to know who the ‘neighbour’ was that he was meant to be helping. Jesus then told the story of the Good Samaritan and got the lawyer to admit that the one who showed mercy to the beaten and wounded man was the neighbour. Jesus told the lawyer to “Go, and you be doing likewise” (Luke 10:37).
“Doing good” involves showing mercy to people who are afflicted and broken – healing the sick. Since Jesus demonstrated such goodness to His neighbour by “freeing all those who were oppressed by the devil and healing them”, Jesus requires us to do likewise.
We have no power in and of ourselves to heal the sick but when the Holy Spirit resides in us, we are in a different position to see healing. From the record of Jesus we know that sometimes the healing will be instantaneous, sometimes it will happen as we go on our way (as in the lepers going to show themselves to the priest), sometimes we will need to ask more than once (as in Jesus’ healing of the blind man), and sometimes it won’t happen at all. Not even Jesus could heal in Galilee where there was a spirit of unbelief. On at least one occasion the disciples couldn’t bring about the healing of a boy with epilepsy.
The bottom line is we are to eagerly seek opportunities to pray for people to be healed and proclaim that the Kingdom of God has come to them.