Miracle Healing in the Early Church

In the fourth century, the church’s growth was accelerating. Its members grew from five to thirty million, with the conversion of Constantine in 312. The Edict of Milan decreed toleration for Christianity, which marked a transition from persecution to state sponsorship. Though the number of members was increasing, many of the new converts were nominal Christians, who had been attracted by gifts or higher status jobs rather than by their faith.

The Bible is clear that God is the source of healing. Jesus healed people of all sorts during His ministry in Galilee. He did this through the ministry of his original Apostles, as well as the ministry of the “seventy others.” The Apostle Paul was called to take the gospel to the Gentiles, and he frequently healed people. He even healed a crippled man by faith, as recounted in Acts 14.

In the early church, Christ was known for his healing abilities, and people from Galilee flocked to him to seek his help. They had heard about the Galilean healer, and he was able to cure them of any disease. In those times, life expectancy was low, and medicine was primitive. Even the best doctors could only do so much. A few days’ journey to a healer could cure an incurable illness.

The early church was scattered throughout Palestine after Christi’s resurrection, and the apostles travelled the country preaching the gospel. They were also famous for their miracles and healed people. Several of them were even able to cast out demons. Many of these people became Christians after receiving healing.