"The impotent man answered him, Sir, I have no man, when the water is troubled, to put me into the pool: but while I am coming, another steppeth down before me. Jesus saith unto him, Rise, take up thy bed, and walk" (John 5:7-8 ).

Healing is—on some occasions—God's calling card to the lost. There are two ways that healing power is manifest.

First, Christians use their faith, thereby initiating the healing process. The other way is with gifts of the spirit, gifts of healing; God initiates this process—it is as the Spirit wills. When man initiates the process, he's got to know who God is, but when God initiates the process for His purposes, the person may not even know anything about Jesus.

In John 5, there were five porches full of a great multitude (thousands) of all kinds of sick people. Jesus goes by all of these other sick people to minister to one man. This man didn't initiate it. In fact, the man didn't even know who Jesus was. God initiated it. Well, why would God do that?

I can't answer all of it, but I can tell you one example I've had in my life. I was ministering in Pakistan with Marilyn Hickey. The last night of the meeting between 15,000 and 18,000 Muslims attended; most of them had never heard of Jesus.

But they brought with them every kind of sick person you can imagine, including a woman on a stretcher who had a hemorrhaging of blood for years who had spent all her money and couldn't be healed.

The Spirit of God began to move. Blind eyes were opened. People come up healed from leg diseases that couldn't walk before. The woman with the hemorrhage was healed. There was a manifestation of the healing power of God through gifts of healing. Why? Healing is God's calling card to the lost.

See, in that situation it comes down to Mohammed and Jesus. The proof must be in the healing. If Mohammed can heal you, then let him heal you now.

But Jesus was boldly proclaimed and then the healing power was present and people were healed. Then altar call came and people who had never heard of Jesus, said that He must be Lord, and came to be saved. Healing is God's calling card to the world.

That's not to say that a Christian couldn't have gifts of healing. It does happen for some Christians sometimes, but you don't have to wait on operation of gifts of healing in order for you to be healed. You can initiate it with your faith by yourself.

Scripture References: John 5:1-9; 1 Corinthians 12:28; Acts 10:38