Healing
Much is said in this day and age about healing, some have even went
as far as to claim that if one is sick then they are not right with
God. Others say that when a person is not healed that it is because
they just did not have enough faith. The question is now, is this right
or is it blatantly against the word of God? Do people who make these
accusations do so in accordance with the word of God and in righteous
judgment or have they manufactured a faith that is similar to Christianity
but lacks the real truth of Gods Holy Word?
My time here is short but I intend in the brief moments that I am given
to do my absolute best to show exactly what the Bible says and not give
you my opinion. So then let us begin by looking at what exactly does
the Bible say about healing?
1. What does the Bible say about Healing, and we will be looking mostly
at the New Testament because we are not under the Law as those in the
Old Covenant were.
James 5:14. Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the
church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name
of the Lord:
15. And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall
raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven
him.
16. Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that
ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth
much.
Here we see in the Book of James what one should do when they are sick.
Notice in verse 14 that one should call for the Church Elders(Elder
Christians in the Faith, they don’t necessarily have to hold the
title Elder) and have those Elders pray for them. And they should anoint
the sick person with oil. Now this anointing is not some far out crazy
way to get the Holy Spirit to work in you. The truth of this is that
this anointing oil had a medicinal purpose. So in other words, pray
and take your medicine. While God can heal you without the use of medicine
He certainly didn’t give us the medical knowledge we have as a
people for us to not use it. To say that a person that goes to the doctor
when they are sick doe not trust in God is absolutely preposterous and
absurd. Remember one thing brothers and sisters it is God that does
the healing, the surgeon may do the cutting and sewing but it is God
that heals you. Every healing doesn’t have to be miraculous, most
aren’t. Now I’m not saying that God can not nor will not
work a miracle healing, He is God and He does as He sees fit. But if
you go to the doctor and you get some medicine and take it and get better
it is because God is working in and around you. He gave someone somewhere
the knowledge that they needed to come up with that antibiotic. He designed
your body so that it would respond in a certain way to that antibiotic
and speed along your healing, God is the one that heals a person every
single time.
Now I could read countless verses that show the Lord and his Apostles
healing people when they were here on Earth but for the sake of time
I am not going to. A brief reading through the New Testament should
provide you with more than enough accounts of the Lord’s ability
to work miracles. Likewise the ability of the Apostles, with the power
of God, to heal the sick.
But lets look at one thing about this while we are on this subject.
Never was a persons healing dependant on their personal faith.
Mark 6:5. And he could there do no mighty work, save that he laid his
hands upon a few sick folk, and healed them.
6. And he marvelled because of their unbelief. And he went round about
the villages, teaching.
Notice that Jesus could do no mighty works, and also note that to God
healing is not a mighty work, it is not hard for our Creator to set
right what He created, but he laid his hands on a few sick folk and
healed them. Despite the unbelief of the people, which was so bad that
it caused the Lord to marvellle, Jesus healed people. But let’s
look at yet another example.
Mark 9:24. And straightway the father of the child cried out, and said
with tears, Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief.
25. When Jesus saw that the people came running together, he rebuked
the foul spirit, saying unto him, Thou dumb and deaf spirit, I charge
thee, come out of him, and enter no more into him.
26. And the spirit cried, and rent him sore, and came out of him: and
he was as one dead; insomuch that many said, He is dead.
27. But Jesus took him by the hand, and lifted him up; and he arose.
Here we see yet again, healing despite unbelief, and this time it was
admitted unbelief. Never ever ever ever ever was it because of a persons
own faith that they were healed. Despite a persons faith they were healed
in many cases.
Also it is important to note that everyone that Jesus healed, was healed
and never had to return to Him and asked to be Healed again. Jesus never
instructed anyone to “claim” there healing. People that
teach this sort of thing are either, completely ignorant of what the
Word of God teaches or they are twisting the scripture to there own
destruction. Every single person that the Lord touched was healed, every
person that the Apostles touched was healed, there was never any if
ands or buts about it.
Many people today claim to have the Biblical gift of healing, mentioned
in 1Corinthians. I will say this to those people, as a TRUE prophet
of God never prophesies anything that does not come to pass, a TRUE
healer of God never touches anyone and they are not healed. It doesn’t
matter if its a staunch atheist, if you claim to have the gift of healing
and someone you touch or pray for is not healed then YOU DO NOT POSSES
THE GIFT OF HEALING PERIOD! The discussion is over, Paul never had to
go back and re-heal someone, nor did the Lord. The prayer of faith mentioned
in James five has nothing to do with the person being prayed for it
has to do with the faith of the people doing the praying.
Also remember that when we pray that it is not a given that God will
answer that particular prayer the way we want it. All prayer should
be for the will of God whether we like it or not. God knows what we
need best, many times more so and better than we know ourselves.
1John 5:14. And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if
we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us:
Now notice in 1John 5:14 that it says if we ask anything according
to His will, Gods will. Not according to our own but according to the
will of God. Now some people are going to jump up and down and scream
that it cant be Gods will for one of His children to be sick. Oh really,
I say to those people.
2Corinthians 12:7. And lest I should be exalted above measure through
the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the
flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted
above measure.
8. For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from
me.
9. And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength
is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory
in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.
Now I’m going to come back to this particular passage of scripture
later on but I want you all to notice that God allowed Paul to have
this thorn in His flesh, why? Because Gods strength was made perfect
in Paul’s weakness. It could very well be that God has a purpose
for you in your weakness, it might be that because of the particular
infirmity that you have that God has seen fit to use you with that sickness
to help others. Let me relate a story I once heard about a young Christian
woman.
She was a beautiful young lady a virgin, a woman that feared God and
sought to do His will, and she was espoused to be married when it was
found out that she had leprosy. Now I don’t know how many of you
are familiar with this disease but there is no cure known by men. Having
been found a leper she was removed from her people and sent to live
in a leper colony. She found the living conditions there almost inhumane.
The other women there were poor and downtrodden having no hope at all.
She was very sorrowful for what had happened to her as well. One day
a missionary came to the Colony and knowing that she was a Christian
he asked her if she would like to help him reaching the other women
in the colony. She agreed and soon began to work with the women, not
only telling them about the Lord and the wonderful things He had done
for them but she also began to teach some of them to read and write.
She helped those women find something to be proud of and helped them
find a saving relationship with Jesus Christ. She remarked once that
had she never gotten leprosy she would have never found out where it
was that God wanted her to be. You see it doesn’t matter where
it is that you are, God can use you if you will only let Him. Glory
in your infirmities, but I’m getting ahead of myself.
Next lets move on to what the Bible does not say about healing.
2. Misconceptions and lies abound in this day and age and unfortunately
many people have had their faith almost completely destroyed by these
gold-digging charlatans. Men and women who claim that everyone should
be healed and if your sick then it means you have sinned against God
and your not right in His eyes, need to, and pardon me if I sound harsh,
but they need to sit down and shut up. They obviously don’t know
or don’t care what the word of God teaches. Never anywhere does
the Bible say that everyone who is sick will be healed. We saw earlier
that Paul had a thorn in his flesh, which from a reading of Galatians
4 most people believe that he had something wrong with his eyesight,
and God never healed him of it. Also we see Timothy, one of Paul’s
personal converts and students, had an ailment of his stomach. 1Timothy
5:23. God never healed Timothy of this. So you mean to tell me that
these modern day so called “Faith healers” are more in touch
and in better standing with God than Paul the Apostle and Timothy were?
I would laugh at them friends but personally they make to angry to do
so.
Some of the greatest Christians that ever lived have been through more
than those Italian suit wearing, jewelry decked phonies could ever imagine.
If they went through a hundredth of what some of our brothers and sisters
have been through they would run away so fast that you wouldn’t
see anything but smoke and fire. I’ve said it before and I will
do so again, the prosperity, everybody will be rich and healed Gospel
is a product of western ideas. Because it certainly isn’t a product
of reality. Take a little trip down to Sudan sometime and see exactly
what the Christians are going through there. Rarely do they have enough
food, they are beaten and tortured for their faith in Christ. Health,
they count themselves lucky to be alive I’m sure, let alone being
healthy by our western standards.
There is only one guarantee friends and that is if we pray according
to the Will of God, He hears us. What His answer will be we do not know.
Or as Matthew Henry put it:
“Though God accepts the prayer of faith, yet he does not always
answer it in the letter, as he sometimes grants in wrath, so he sometimes
denies in love.”
God knows better than we do brothers and sisters, remember that. Don’t
ever let anyone tell you otherwise. Salvation for the repentant sinner
that calls on the Lord is guaranteed, physical health for the rest of
his or her life is not. You see many quote Isaiah 53:5 and 1Peter 2:24
as proof that a Christian should always be healed. Well lets look at
those verses and see what they say. As always don’t take my opinion
listen to what the Bible has to say.
Isaiah 53:5. But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised
for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and
with his stripes we are healed.
1Peter 2: 24. Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the
tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by
whose stripes ye were healed.
Now in both verses we see the phrase, “by his stripes we are
healed.” now the question is does this mean that we are guaranteed
to be physically healed because of Jesus’ death and sacrifice
on the cross or does it mean something else? Well as always one must
compare scripture with scripture.
2Corinthians 4:16. For which cause we faint not; but though our outward
man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day.
Notice here that Paul says that the outward man perishes, but the inward
man(our soul) is renewed day by day. Our flesh is just as corrupt as
it has been since Adam sinned and will remain so until we are changed
to be like the Lord.
Hebrews 9:27. And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after
this the judgment:
In Hebrews 9:27 we see that it is appointed unto men once to die, if
our healing was guaranteed by Calvary, in a physical sense, then the
sinner that calls upon Jesus would cease to die after doing so. The
flesh can be healed by God but it is not what He is concerned with.
What he is concerned about is our inward man, the part of us that will
live forever, the soul.
Psalm 41:4. I said, Lord, be merciful unto me: heal my soul; for I
have sinned against thee.
We see in Psalm 41 the writer asking God to heal his soul, because
he had sinned against God. Sin is the real problem, sin is the reason
why death and sickness are now among us. God never wanted them to be
here but because of our own rebellion against our Creator sickness and
death have passed among us. You see our body is not yet redeemed it
will be one day as we see in:
1John 3:2. Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet
appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we
shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.
Notice that when the Lord returns we shall be like Him. When He comes
back to earth then we will have our glorified bodies that will be eternally
free from sickness and death. But for right now we have a body that
is as God said it is:
Genesis 3:19b..........till thou return unto the ground; for out of
it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.
Our bodies are no different than Adams. In order for our bodies to
be redeemed first our soul must be so. Then we must wait on God to see
fit to return for us in His time. Now let me go back to 2Corinthians
12 again and lets look at Paul one more time.
2Corinthians 12:7. And lest I should be exalted above measure through
the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the
flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted
above measure.
8. For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from
me.
9. And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength
is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory
in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.
Now we see Paul asking the Lord three times to take away the thorn
in his flesh and the Lord refused to do so. Then we see God explaining
to Paul exactly why He wasn’t going to heal him of it. First off
Gods grace is sufficient. I’ll admit that this isn’t the
easiest thing in the world to deal with but it is important. No matter
what our circumstances may be, Gods grace is sufficient. You see it
is when we feel our weakest that we depend on God the most. So in order
for Paul not to be lifted up and turn away from God, the Lord allowed
him to have this thorn in the flesh in order to keep him close to the
Lord, trusting in His grace and not his own strength, which Paul knew
full well would and probably was already leaving him. God allows these
things to come on us not because He enjoys seeing us suffer but because
they are a reminder to us that we are to depend 100% on God to meet
our needs and not trust in our own strength, but the strength of the
Lord.
This body is only temporary and the Lord knows that better than we
do, and as the Bible says in Psalm 118:8
Psalm 118:8. It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence
in man.
Now this verse speaks volumes doesn’t it, trust in the Lord and
do not put confidence in men. Now some of you may ask why I make that
such a focus right now, well I’m going to explain it to you. Many
who seek to fill there own pockets parade around and claim to be sent
of God. But God did not send them, and we know this by there actions
or as I heard a preacher say once you can tell a wolf by its diet, a
wolf eats sheep, or as the Lord put it “By their fruits ye shall
know them.” The point is men and women parade around and claim
to be sent of God and claim to have the power to heal the sick, but
all they are doing is robbing the weak and filling there own pockets.
Now that statement may anger you but frankly I don’t care, its
time that we stop rolling over and letting every nut case who can fill
a stadium say they are something special. Let me tell you something
brothers and sisters the devil is no fool, he is very subtle when it
comes to deception and he will use every means he can in order to draw
you away from Jesus Christ and that includes getting you to lift up
some so called “faith healer.” Just because a man is charismatic
and has a world wide following does not make him God’s man. Frankly
I think some people who claim to be Christians have just put their Bible
away and forgotten all about what it says about false prophets. But
for the sake of this message I am going to read you some verses that
do.
2 Corinthians 11:14. And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed
into an angel of light.
15. Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed
as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their
works.
Ok now let me stop, did you catch that, Satan can make himself appear
to be an Angel of light, and Satan’s ministers can appear to be
ministers of righteousness. This is not something I made up friends
this is what the Bible says, I’m not here to fill you full of
opinion, I’m here to speak the truth, now let me continue.
Matthew 24:11. And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive
many.
Matthew 24: 24. For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets,
and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible,
they shall deceive the very elect.
Mark 13:22. For false Christs and false prophets shall rise, and shall
shew signs and wonders, to seduce, if it were possible, even the elect.
2 Corinthians 11:13. For such are false apostles, deceitful workers,
transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ.
2 Peter 2:1. But there were false prophets also among the people, even
as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring
in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring
upon themselves swift destruction.
2. And many shall follow their pernicious ways; by reason of whom the
way of truth shall be evil spoken of.
3. And through covetousness shall they with feigned words make merchandise
of you: whose judgment now of a long time lingereth not, and their damnation
slumbereth not.
1John 4:1. Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether
they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world.
Revelation 19:20. And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet
that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had
received the mark of the beast, and them that worshipped his image.
These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone.
2Thessalonians 2:8. And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the
Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with
the brightness of his coming:
9. Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power
and signs and lying wonders,
Now I gave you almost a page of scripture so I don't want to hear anyone
say that I am giving you my opinion. That is not what you’re hearing
here. Satan has men and women all over this planet who can work signs
and wonders. I mean come on people, the Lord even said it was going
to happen this should not come as some great shock to you. Some of you
may be asking how this relates to the subject of healing and I am about
to get to that.
You see the gift of healing was a sign, just like Elijah calling fire
down from the sky was a sign. Now lets look at a few things, first off
see this:
1Corinthians 1: 22. For the Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek
after wisdom:
Now we see that the Jews, require a sign, why because their nation
was founded upon signs. Just read the book of Exodus you’ll see
plenty of them. But notice what the Bible says after that the Greeks
(this applies to Gentiles in general) seek after wisdom not signs. Now
the point here is this, the Gift of healing was a sign to the Jews,
not to the Church. You see the Apostle Paul whom the bible says worked
many special miracle, notice the word special (Acts 19:11) but we also
see Paul at the end of his life sick and telling one of his most prominent
students that he should take some wine for his stomachs sake, in other
take your medicine. Now would it shock you if I could also show you
where the Apostle Paul who healed countless people with the power of
God in him was not able to heal someone? Well prepare to be shocked
then.
2Timothy 4:20. Erastus abode at Corinth: but Trophimus have I left
at Miletum sick.
There it is friends Paul left a man sick, now why would he do that?
Why would an Apostle of Christ leave a man sick, when he could heal
him with a touch? Maybe because the signs for the Jews had passed and
the Church age had come full in and Paul no longer had the gift of healing.
Notice one other thing we see of Paul just before his death,
2Timothy 4:11a. Only Luke is with me.
Now for those of you that don't know, Luke is referred to as the beloved
physician, because he was apparently a medical doctor. Now why would
Paul have a doctor with him, maybe because he was sick himself. Of course
we already know that he was, he himself testified of his infirmities.
Never once did Paul say that people should seek after healing, never
once did Jesus stress this either. As a matter of fact lets take a look
at this, we have already established the fact that the gift of healing
was a sign now lets see what Jesus had to say about signs.
Matthew 12:38. Then certain of the scribes and of the Pharisees answered,
saying, Master, we would see a sign from thee.
39. But he answered and said unto them, An evil and adulterous generation
seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given to it, but the
sign of the prophet Jonas:
Wow rather strong words from the Lord isn't it, an evil and an adulterous
generation seeks after signs. And look I'm not beating a dead horse
here I have seen and heard numerous men and women say that God is working
great signs and wonders. I even heard one on TV stand up and say “God
where are our signs where are our miracles?” Apparently this fella
was a little to busy to read Matthew 12, because if he had he wouldn't
have needed to ask that question.
Now I want to quote a man who should know a little about healing and
who also happens to be a Christian Brother on top of that. He’s
the former Surgeon General of the United States, Dr. C. Everett Koop
“The proper response of Christians to affliction is not to demand
healing but rather to witness to the world that through the grace of
God a Christian is able to accept affliction, trusting in the sovereignty,
grace, and mercy of God in time, knowing that all of these things will
be removed in eternity.”
I do believe the Brother nailed it down rather succinctly don’t
you. You see what really angers me in this day and age is that certain
men and women claim to be sent from God and claim to have the gift of
healing yet, there gifts only seem to work on TV or in a packed stadium.
Seems to me that simple logic would convince most folks that they are
a bunch of phonies. Jesus never had to wait until He was in front of
a camera for His gift of healing to start working. As a matter of fact
neither did the Apostles, more so everyone that Jesus and the Apostles
touched was healed, period, no question of that persons faith, no “well
you didn't get healed because you don't have enough faith.” nonsense.
Everyone period, I challenge anyone to show me one time in the Bible
when Jesus or one of the Apostles laid there hands on someone and they
were not healed, you wont find it. But these faith healers struggle
to come up with any real evidence of miraculous healings. You see no
one could question Jesus, His miracles were walking around the street
and could talk to you and testify of what the Lord had done, as could
those that the Apostles healed. So why is it that when a medical doctor
or a concerned Christian approaches one of these faith healers that
they cant do likewise, they are sent of God according to them. These
are the false prophets spoken of by the Lord friends make no mistake
about it.
What is even more scary though is that the devil will have some ministers
that can actually miraculously heal a person. Most of these people are
just putting on a show in order to gain fame and fortune nothing more,
some may even still love the Lord and be allowing themselves to be subverted,
but those that are real Christians will repent of it and turn away from
it as many have. But the time is coming when the devils ministers will
fill a packed stadium and heal everyone inside, and lead the whole lot
of them away from the Lord.
Don't seek after a sign friends, trust in the Lord and His holy word,
not the good words and fair speeches spoken of in Romans 16:18 nor the
signs and lying wonders of 2Thessalonians 2:9.
God can heal you if you are sick, nothing I have said anywhere in this
study is meant to say anything to the contrary. But understand if God
heals you it is in His time and according to His will and no other.
Let close with what I started with last week,
James 5:14. Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the
church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name
of the Lord:
15. And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall
raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven
him.
16. Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that
ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth
much.
If your sick that is what you need to do, pray and take your medicine
and above all else TRUST IN THE LORD. Don't run to some supposed faith
healer who can only mimic Christ’s power, Trust in Christ alone.
And always always always remember what the writer of Psalm 41 said.
Psalm 41:4. I said, Lord, be merciful unto me: heal my soul; for I
have sinned against thee.
Pray most earnestly for the Lord to heal your soul, this body is only
a shell and it will return to the dust one day, make sure your eternal
soul is ready to meet your Almighty Creator.