He Chose the Whip
Isaiah 53:5
But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed.
1 Peter 2:24
Who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness - by whose stripes you were healed
If the forgiveness of our sins was sufficient for God, then Jesus would have simply died on the cross. As horrific as that was, it was preceded by a brutal beating and scourging at the hands of evil men. This was not just the venom of the serpent unleashed upon the Son of God; it was the procuring of our healing and is the source of our health. He was beaten so we could be whole. The stripes that were laid upon Him refute the claim of sickness to mar our lives and be the just reward for our sin.
The rebellion of Adam brought sin and death, while Christ’s obedience brought life and health – life for our sickened bodies and troubled minds. No demon in hell has the right to inflict the terror of darkness on the children of light. We are saved, delivered, and made whole because our substitute was beaten, crushed, and afflicted. No one was marred like Him (Isaiah 52:14). His countenance was unrecognisable, and His flesh mutilated and torn, even before the nails were driven through His hands.
Jesus was not content to just have us forgiven for sin. He wanted us fully redeemed, spirit, soul and body. He chose the whip. He was not subjected to it by force, for no one took His life from Him (John. 10:15). He laid down His life as a willing sacrifice. He chose to drink the cup the Father gave Him, that He might destroy the works of the devil (1 John. 3:8) and redeem us from sin and all of its consequences.
It is a hideous doctrine of demons that says God punishes us with sickness or teaches us through disease. Jesus chose the whip because He wants us healed. The same sacrifice that paid for our sin, paid for our healing. Our battle with temptation and sin does not negate the work of the cross, nor does any battle with sickness, infirmity, or disease undermine the redemption that has been freely given. We live on a fallen planet and inhabit a war zone. There are battles to face and casualties to mourn. However, our fight is for a victory that has already been won.
Jesus endured the whip so that we could be healed. Death was the atonement for sin, and the price of our healing, wholeness, and deliverance was the pain, disfigurement, scourging, and tearing of His flesh. Jesus paid for more than just the promise of heaven when we die; He paid for heaven to invade our circumstances and heal our bodies in this life. Jesus would not have been whipped if He did not want us well. Why endure such a beating if it wasn’t to defeat the works of darkness and provide the children of light with a sure foundation to stand on?
Your healing has been paid for and is yours to claim. Jesus was scourged because He wants you healed and whole. His flesh was torn, His bones exposed, His body abused, and face disfigured, so that every pain, disease, infirmity, and affliction could be annulled. He wants every chain of oppression and every torment of hell broken off your life. This is the promise of His love and the provision of His sacrifice. He chose the whip because He chose to give to you what is His – His life, and life abundantly to overflowing so there is nothing missing, nothing broken, nothing afflicted, tormented or diseased.
Psalm 103 declares, “Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits: who forgives all your iniquities, who heals all your diseases” (v.2,3). Let’s not forget all of the benefits He died to provide. He not only forgives, but He also heals. He chose the whip as well as the cross because He wants you whole, healed, and free.
