When God required Moses to lead the children of Israel out of Egypt, He gave him two signs: Moses' rod was turned into a serpent and then back again into a rod; then his hand was made to appear leprous and forthwith was restored to its normal condition. He was told that if the Hebrews would not believe the former sign, they would believe the latter sign—the sign of healing.
Many years later, when Elijah raised from death the son of the widow, she recognized in that sign of healing the presence of God and declared (I Kings 17:24), "Now by this I know that thou art a man of God, and that the word of the Lord in thy mouth is truth."
Our beloved Master, Christ Jesus, who understood God as divine Love, used the sign of healing as proof of the truth of his teaching. When John the Baptist sent two of his disciples to Jesus, asking him if he were the promised Messiah, he said (Luke 7:22), "Tell John what things ye have seen and heard; how that the blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, to the poor the gospel is preached."
