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Becoming
A Christian
Deliverance / Counseling
Holy Spirit
Baptism,
Speaking in
Tongues
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Spiritual Gifts in
the Corporate Assembly
The Role of Worship
Divine Health & Healing
Women in Ministry
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Many of us have come from
religious traditions that do not believe that God is still in the
business of healing people in supernatural ways.
Fewer of us still have
been taught that it is God's very best for us to walk in victory
over sickness. The following Bible study is a fairly comprehensive
look at what the Bible says about this subject. As always, I
encourage you to lay aside predjudices and experiences (or lack
thereof) and have your heart and mind open to receive the truth of
God's Word.
1) God always was and always will be a healer!
God revealed Himself by the Name Jehovah (meaning "the self existent
One who reveals Himself; the great I AM" - Exodus 3:14-15). This was
to be His Name forever.
This name, Jehovah, was
afterwards attached to other words, which forever describe the
revelation of His character to man.
The first such combination mentioned in The Bible was Jehovah-Rapha (the
LORD our Healer - Exodus 15:26). Healing therefore is not just
something God does, but it is one of His character qualities - Healer
is who He is!
The Great Physician and Healer is a character trait of God that
will remain the same "yesterday, today, and forever." (Hebrews 13:8)
2) The promise of health is part of our salvation "package."
Salvation - implies our eternal security; forgiveness of
sins; deliverance from the powers of darkness; and restored health
for body, soul, and spirit. Forms of the Greek word "sozo" (saved)
are used in the New Testament for both physical and spiritual
healing (compare Romans 10:9 with Acts 14:9).
Salvation was needed because sin had separated man from God (Isaiah
59:1-2; Romans 3:23).
Man was reconciled to God through Jesus (2 Corinthians 5:18).
In Christ, we have restored access to all God's promises and
benefits. Salvation is the point where man re-establishes connection
to God and, potentially, to all of His blessings (2 Corinthians
1:20; Romans 5:17; 2 Peter 1:3-4).
"Praise the Lord, O my soul,
and forget not all his benefits --
who forgives all your sins and heals
all your diseases,
who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love
and compassion...
so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's." - Psalm 103:2-5
Atonement - God sent Jesus to the
cross "as a sacrifice of atonement" (Romans 3:25; 1 John 2:2). This
indicated that Jesus would be the One who would turn aside God's
wrath, taking away sin. The atonement of Christ was foreshadowed in
the Old Testament. Atonement was made for the people of Israel
because of sin (Leviticus16) but also for disease (Leviticus 14:18).
Aaron made atonement for people to stop plagues from overtaking them
(Numbers 8:19; 16:46-50).
Snake in the desert - A bronze snake was put on a pole, and anyone
who had been bitten by a viper looked to the snake and was
healed. This act, according to Jesus, not only brought healing to
those under the curse then, but actually symbolized his atoning
sacrifice on the cross (John 3:14-15).
These types of atonement in the Old Testament included physical as
well as spiritual healing. They foreshadowed the sacrifice of Jesus.
If these types, under the Old Covenant, provided physical healing
for the people, how much more would Christ, the fulfillment of these
shadows, bring a promise of physical healing as well. Remember the
New Covenant we are under is based on "better promises" (Hebrews
8:6). If New Testament believers cannot receive physical health
from Jesus, then these types are placed on higher ground than Christ
Himself, and therefore become false prophecy. But praise God they
are not!! Jesus fulfilled these types ("I have not come to ablolish
them, but to fulfill them." Matthew 5:17).
That is why it was said that He
took up our
infirmities, as well as our
sorrows and transgressions
of sin on the cross (Isaiah 53:4-5; 11-12). Jesus' earthly ministry
of physical healing literally fulfilled the prophecy from Isaiah:
“He took up our infirmities and carried our diseases...” (Matthew
8:17).
3) God wants His people healed and healthy.
Physical healing is a part of the "full gospel" to be
preached to every creature (Mark 16:16).
Physical healing was part of the "gospel" presentation given by
Jesus' followers (Luke 9&10; Acts 14:8-10; Romans 15:18-19).
NEVER in The New Testament did Jesus send out his followers to only
preach the gospel, but he also instructed them to heal the sick!
Primary Implications:
1) We know that sickness was a curse that Jesus overcame at the
cross. We therefore have authority over sickness through what Jesus
did at the cross (Isaiah 53; Matthew 8:17; 10:1-2; John 14:12;
Luke 10:19).
2) Just as it is Jesus' will for us to be forgiven of sin, so it is
His will for us to be healed of disease. Just as it is the Lord's
will for us to walk without sin, so it is His perfect will for us to
walk without sickness (Psalms 103:2-3; James 5:14-16).
3) The prayer of faith vs. the prayer of hope, or uncertainty -
("...if we ask anything according to his will..." 1 John 5:14-15).
The reason we can pray a prayer of faith about health and healing is
because we can know God's will in this regard!
"Is any one of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to
pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord. And
the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord
will raise him up. If he has sinned, he will be forgiven. Therefore
confess your sins to each other and pray for each other that you may
be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective."
(James 5:14-16)
Why then do some Christians struggle with sickness?
1) Sin -
(individual -James 5:16, John 5:14; or corporate- John 9).
2) Ignorance -
(Hosea 4:6; John 8:32; 2 Pet. 1:3-4) "His divine power has given us
everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of
Him" - 2 Peter 1:3-4.
3) Unbelief -
A lack of belief in Jesus' abiliity and/or willingness to heal often
prevents the release of healing (only Jesus could heal the epilectic
boy, and rebuked the
disciples for their lack of faith -Matthew
17:14-21; a corporate lack of faith resulted in the lack of the
miraculous in a region, even when Jesus was physically present -
Matthew 13:58).
"But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who
doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That
man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord..."
(James 1:6-7)
4) Some do not have a lifestyle of prayer and fasting
"He replied, 'This kind (of demonic sickness) can come out
only by prayer and fasting. " (Mark 9:29)
5) Discipline of
God/ Judgment of God
"A man may be chastened on a bed of pain with constant distress in
his bones..."(Job 33:19)
"For anyone who eats and drinks without recognizing the body of the
Lord eats and drinks judgment on himself. That is why many among you
are weak and sick, and a number of you have fallen asleep. But if we
judged ourselves, we would not come under judgment..." (1
Corinthians 11:29-31)
One must note, however, that this does not imply that the sickness
comes from God. He simply allows it to come to his people on
occasion (usually when he has not been able to get their attention
any other way) to get them to repent and turn towards Him for
healing (cf Hebrews 5:8, 12:1-13; Revelation 3:19).
6) Demonic attack
"On a Sabbath Jesus was teaching in one of the synagogues, and a
woman was there who had been crippled
by a spirit* for eighteen years. She was bent over and could
not straighten up at all. When Jesus saw her, he called her forward
and said to her, 'Woman, you are set free from your infirmity."
(Luke 13:10-12)
*(Greek - pnuema - the word is used in the New Testament for
angels or demons).
7) Remember,
there is an appointed time to die (Ecclesiastes.3:2)
Sickness in these cases becomes a mere transition to receiving the
resurrection body (1 Corinthians 15:42-44). For Christians, physical
death is a complete healing!
How do we access divine health?
1) By faith
"When he (Jesus) had gone indoors, the blind men came to him, and he
asked them, "Do you believe that I am able to do this?" "Yes,
Lord," they replied. Then he touched their eyes and said, "According
to your faith will it be done to you..." and their sight was
restored." (Matthew 9:28-29)
Mark 11:24 "Whatever you ask for
in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours."
James 1:6-7 "When he asks, he
must believe and not doubt...that man should not think he will
receive anything from the Lord."
2) We
build up our faith by meditating on and confessing God's Word.
"Faith comes by hearing the message, and the message is heard
through the word of Christ." (Romans 10:17)
"He sent forth His Word and healed them..." (Psalms 107:20)
"My son, pay attention to what I say; listen closely to my words. Do
not let them out of your sight, keep them within your heart; for
they are life to those who find them and health to a man's whole
body..." (Proverbs 4:20-22)
"...if you have faith as a mustard seed you can say to this
mountain, 'Move from here to there’ and it will move. Nothing will
be impossible for you." (Matthew 17:20)
3) We can access
health through acknowledging and confessing any place of
unforgiveness, bitterness or sin which could possibly be a
hindrance:
"...confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that
you may be healed." (James 5:16)
"The Lord will sustain him on his sickbed and restore him for his
bed of illness. I said, ‘O Lord, have mercy on me; heal me, for I
have sinned against you.’ " (Psalms 41:3-4)
4) By resisting
the devil and breaking his power
"God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and power...He
went around doing good and healing all who were under the power of
the devil, because God was with Him." (Acts 10:38)
"Resist the devil and he will flee" (James 4:7)
5) By praying and
fasting in faith
"Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains
of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed
free and break every yoke? Is it not to share your food with the
hungry ...then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your
healing will quickly appear..." (Isaiah 58:6-7a, 8b)
"He (Jesus) replied, 'this kind (of sickness demon) can come out
only by
prayer and fasting’." (Mark 9:29)
6) By
asking others to agree in prayer
Believers should lay hands on one another and leaders should anoint
with oil.
"...they (believers) will place their hands on sick people and they
will get well.” (Mark 16:18)
Leaders anoint with oil - James 5:14
7) By
standing firmly and persistently on God's Word regardless
of circumstances or what others may say (Luke 11:5-13 18:1-8).
"We do not want you to become lazy, but to imitate those who through
faith and patience inherit what has been promised." (Hebrews 6:12)
"Against all hope, Abraham in hope believed and so became the father
of many nations, just as it had been said to him, 'So shall your
offspring be.’ Without weakening in his faith, he faced the fact
that his body was as good as dead - since he was about a hundred
years old - and that Sarah's womb was also dead. Yet he did not
waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but was
strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God, being fully
persuaded that God has power to do what he had promised.” (Romans
4:18-21)
8) By taking care
of our bodies, submitting to medical guidelines, and obeying the
Lord
"Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who
is in you, whom you have received for God. You are not your own,
you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body.” (1
Corinthians 6:19-20)
"Stop drinking only water, and use a little wine because of your
stomach and your frequent illnesses.” (1 Timothy 5:23)
"If you listen
carefully to the voice of the Lord your God and do what is right in
His eyes, if you pay attention to His commands and keep all His
decrees,
I will not bring on you any of the diseases I brought on the
Egyptians,
for I am the Lord, who heals you." (Exodus
15:26)
In completing this study, my prayer for you is that you will talk
with the Lord about this, and ask Him to develop faith in your heart
regarding this part of your inheritance as His child. If sickness
has been a major struggle in your life, do not feel condemned or
subpar - just be encouraged that as you continue to grow in Christ,
you will see more and more victory over sin, sickness and disease.
Remember "The thief comes to
steal, kill, and destroy, but Jesus has come to give us life, and to
give it more abundantly." (cf: John 10:10)
Also, it is important to underscore the fact that we should not
judge one another or compare ourselves one to another in this
matter. We are all at different places in different areas of our
faith journey, and issues regarding both sin and sickness are often
complex and multifaceted. We should not assume that we know all the
reasons why some Christians struggle with either sin or sickness,
and others do not. Ultimately, these issues can only be settled
between each individual Christian and his/her Lord. |