Sozo – What Is It?
The Word “Sozo” — A small word with HUGE implications! We want to thank our dear friend, Janet, for her contribution in this short study. We believe that studying this small word will bring incredible results.
The word ‘sozo’, or one of its grammatical forms, is used over 100 times in the New Testament. Wow! We see this little word whenever Jesus heals someone spiritually, emotionally, or physically. And this little word sozo carries with it the full package deal of salvation, healing, and deliverance that Jesus came to give!
… wholeness in spirit … wholeness in soul (mind, will, and emotions) … wholeness in body. It is complete healing for our spirit, soul, and body (1 Thess. 5:23). The sacrifice of Jesus secured salvation for our spirit, peace for our soul (a sound mind), and healing for our physical bodies. Isaiah prophesied it, Jesus accomplished it, and the New Testament authors wrote about it. Oh, that the modern-day Church would proclaim the entirety of the salvation message. Jesus wants us whole…spirit, soul, and body!
What is the Meaning of Sozo?
According to Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible, the Greek word Sozo is defined as follows: To save, deliver, protect, heal, preserve, do well, be (make) whole. Read on to find out why it’s so important for you to know and get into your spirit:
Sozo in the Bible
Many Christians ask, “Where is Sozo in the bible?” That’s a great question. But remember, Sozo is a Greek word, so you will not find it in the English bible translations. You can only read it in a Greek bible. So where is Sozo found in the Greek Bibles? Well, you’re likely familiar with those wonderful and familiar “salvation” verses in the bible, right? You know, the ones we love and frequently quote when leading someone to salvation. We’re referring to scriptures like Romans 10:9-10, Romans 10:13, Ephesians 2:8-9, and 1 Timothy 2:4.
But there’s so much more than meets the eye in those verses. Here’s a little bible exercise for you…
Get out your bible, and read the four salvation scriptures mentioned above. Now re-read them with the full meaning of the word Sozo. After all, that’s the word the writers of the New Testament used. Remember, Sozo means to save, heal, deliver, to be made whole. The word Sozo supercharges those scriptures! It kicks up the meaning about a gazillion times. Sozo is kinda like the word “saved” on steroids! The original Greek manuscript uses a word that is so much more complete to describe God’s will for humanity than our English translations convey.
In English, 1 Timothy 2:4 reads, “God desires all men to be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth.”
In the original bible language (Greek), when the Apostle Paul under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit wrote 1 Timothy 2:4, here how it reads, “God desires all men to be sozo [saved, healed, delivered, to be whole] and come to the knowledge of the truth.”
That’s a powerful bible truth! It should totally change the way you minister to people. In other words, God doesn’t just want His creation saved, He desires them to be saved, healed, delivered, and whole!
Think about this: Why would God want you to be saved, but riddled with sickness and disease in your body? That’s not the character of a loving God. Why would God want you saved, but under the influence of demonic oppression and mentally unstable? No, He wants you delivered from that junk. He wants you whole in your spirit, soul, and body! Wholeness glorifies God. Anything less than that needs work.
A Biblical Lesson in Sozo
Let’s take our Sozo study a step further. We’ve already seen that every time the word “saved” (or its derivatives like “save” or “saving”) is used in the New Testament, it’s the Greek word Sozo. But there’s more…
When you see the words “healed,” “made well,” and “made whole,” in the New Testament, those words or phrases are also translated from the Greek word Sozo. They’re used at least 120 times, and in every case, the original Greek manuscript uses the word Sozo. Do you see the connection here? In other words, regardless of whether our English translators used the word saved, healed, or made whole, it was always the word Sozo in the original language of the bible. Amazing!
See for Yourself
Don’t take our word for it. Do your own biblical word study. Grab your bible and whatever bible concordance you use. Look up the following verses and make a notation or underline the word or phrase given beside each scripture.
- Mark 5:23 healed
- Mark 16:16 saved
- Luke 8:36 healed
- Acts 2:21 saved
- Acts 14:9 healed
- Luke 18:42 saved
- James 5:15 save
- Mark 5:34 made well (whole)
- Mark 5:28 made well (whole)
- Luke 17:19 well (whole)
- Acts 4:9 made well (whole)
- Acts 4:12 saved
- Mark 6:56 made well (whole)
Time and time again, we can confirm that whenever we see the words saved, healed, or made whole in the bible, it was derived from the Greek word Sozo. Whether those words were spoken by Jesus Himself, the Apostle Paul, or any other New Testament author, in every case it was the word Sozo.
Sozo… to be made whole!
The conclusion is that God, speaking through the New Testament authors, did not separate salvation and healing. He could have easily used two different words, one to convey healing and another to convey salvation. But He always used the same word — Sozo!
Don’t ever doubt whether healing is God’s will for you. God’s will is that mankind be totally whole… Sozo (saved, healed, delivered, made whole). Salvation is available for all. Healing is available for all. Deliverance is available for all. Isn’t that what Jesus went to the Cross for? Calvary was as much for our healing and physical well-being as it was for our salvation. The best-known prophecy of the crucifixion is in Isaiah 53:4-5: “He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities, the chastisement of our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed.”
QUESTION: Have you been settling for something less than Sozo in your life? Perhaps you’re saved, but struggling with sickness in your body. Perhaps Jesus has healed you, but you’ve never asked Him to be your Savior. Perhaps your spirit is saved, and your body is well, but you’re suffering emotional turmoil and agony in your mind. God desires that you be whole. He’s already provided the power! We simply need to adjust our receivers so we can tune in better to what He’s already done for us!
We invite you to check out the Discipleship System and download the FREE brochures. You can find them here https://www.newidinme.com/discipleshipsystem You will be blessed!