Tag: healing

Healing is in the Word

He sent His word and healed them, And delivered them from their destructions.

Psalm 107:20 (NKJV)

I’ve been thinking a lot about healing lately. I know it is a somewhat controversial subject for some, but it has long been a passion of mine to minister healing to the sick.

I know that not everyone believes the same thing that I do, and some believe healing died with the apostles or at least cannot be relied upon today. I struggle with this view, and in my studies feel there is a pretty strong case for healing in the Bible.

Of course there is no specific verse that says “God promises physical healing,” although that would certainly clear things up! But looking at the ministry of Jesus and taking the Bible as a whole, sickness is just not a good thing. We don’t see Jesus refusing to heal, or putting sickness on anyone, nor do we see anywhere sickness described as anything other than a curse.

I’m equally against those who say “you don’t have enough faith to be healed,” as it is not as simple as that. You can have faith for healing, and still not be healed. Having faith in it is not the only thing that counts, as our unbelief or doubt can hinder faith from working also.

I suppose my biggest struggle in this matter is not whether God’s Word does or does not say this or that, although it should be the primary issue. Instead I find myself debating our experiences. We don’t see healing, even when asking for it, as much as we would like and so we draw the conclusion that God does not heal today. Or that He chooses to heal some and not others.

I don’t want my faith to be driven by my circumstances or experiences. I want it governed by the Word of God. If the Bible says it, then it is true, no matter what my experience tells me.

An extreme view that may be, but I’m basing my life on what God has said in His Word.

As I’ve said before, I do not write this as someone who has it all figured out. I have a health issue that I have struggled with for years. But i’m not giving up…

I share the above verse today because I believe God spoke it to me just yesterday. I felt He was telling me that this verse is a life verse for me – and perhaps it is for you also?

God sent His Word and healed them. What a statement!

There is no bad way to get healed

God can heal us in a number of ways. He may very well use doctors and medicines, and thank Him that He does! Healing may come through what we would describe as a miracle; progressive or instantaneous. It may come through the laying on of hands, or the anointing with oil. As our verse for today tells us though, it may come through His Word. And there is no “bad way” to get healed!

For me personally, I’ve come to a place where I believe my healing will manifest through faith in His Word. Don’t get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with being healed through a spiritual gift (or indeed any other way), but my spirit witnesses that, for me at least, the Word is how it will come.

I’ve waited in prayer lines before and had people pray for me. Thank God for people like that. We need those with gifts of the Spirit to minister to those who do not know God’s Word sufficiently to put faith in it.

Imagine a scenario where a non-believer turns to God in the midst of a terminal illness. They may not have time to understand and meditate on the Word of God and so would need someone else to minister to them.

I praise God for those who minister to others, and we absolutely need them. The problem can be however, that we start to lean on them and put our faith in them and their gift, rather than the Giver.

Let’s say you are healed of some condition by the laying on of hands from an Elder at your church. What do you do the next time you fall ill? You can go back to that Elder and receive healing again, but what if they are away, or have moved on to a new church? Do you seek them out and track them down?

Sometimes we chase after the donkey, instead of Christ riding on the donkey’s back!

Reading this post back, I must admit it is not strictly Bible teaching… and I must hold up my hands and admit to pouring out my heart a little here. It is not my intention to convince you of my position, but rather to simply state it. Perhaps you agree, and perhaps you do not, but either way I hope this gives you something to think about.

I suppose these are things I have been pondering on for a few days, and setting them out in a blog post like this is helpful – to me if not anyone else!

I love God’s Word, and in many respects it is not possible to separate God from His Word. In recent days whenever I have asked God about healing (in my particular situation) He has repeatedly said, “Study My Word.” The answer, for me at least, can be found in the pages of the Bible. It may take me a long time to find them, but I will never stop looking.

If what I have written today has challenged you in any way, either because you totally disagree or because it resonates with some situation in your own life, then I’m glad I’ve shared it. I don’t seek to offend or upset, and I know many of you will be facing or have faced terribly difficult situations with regard to physical health.

When I have preached in recent times, I sometimes sit down afterwards and get a sense that I held back. I did not say all that was in my heart to say – and often because of the “fear of man”. I would worry what people would think, or that I would not articulate things correctly. I want to put that right. Both here in the written word and in the spoken.

Something changed in me this week, and a new determination or “grit” for want of a better term rose up in me.

I’m not putting up with sickness anymore. Not in my life, and not in the lives of my family and friends.

I do not promise miracles or instant healing, but I do promise to dig deep into God’s Word and believe it with all of my heart.

I can’t promise miracles, but I can expect them.

I will not be moved any longer by circumstances or experience. When I pray, I expect results. Because I’m so great? Hardly! But because God is! He is so great, so amazing, so wonderful that even my imperfect prayers (presented in the name of Jesus) will bring tremendous results.

Since making this commitment, I’ve felt a definite increase in resistance from the enemy. The devil is real, and will try to hinder us from making progress with God. As much as I know this, I was not prepared for the opposition I felt and did not deal with it as I should have. I’m aware of it now though, and set my mind on Christ.

Proverbs 4 tells us that God’s Word is “medicine”. I’ve never liked taking pills or medication, but I make an exception this time! A good dose, at least three times a day, and with every meal! No harmful side effects, but I reckon can be addictive!

Don’t forget to take the Gos-pill! (Terrible gag, I know!)

I remember the first time I preached the Gospel, waving my Bible at the crowd and encouraging them to read the Word. My message has not changed in all of these years. Read the Bible! Study it! It was meant for you!

God sends forth His Word and heals them – and I believe Him.

All the Benefits of Believing

All the Benefits of Believing (ATBOB) #11

Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless his holy name!

Psalm 103:1 (ESV)

 

Read the entirety of this Psalm here.

 

This is the concluding part of our “All the Benefits of Believing” series, and I really hope you have enjoyed it and learned something.

Last week we reached the end of the psalm, and in this post I just want to summarise some of the things we’ve covered along the way.

Beginning and End

David launched into his song of praise by instructing himself to “Bless the Lord, O my soul!” Praise is not always automatic, and sometimes we need to encourage ourselves to bless God. We are human and subject to many trials, and this can sometimes mean we just don’t feel like it. We must go beyond our feelings however, not only because God deserves our worship, but because it is better for us.

Likewise, David concludes his psalm with the very same phrase – “Bless the Lord, O my soul!” These phrases act as bookends, always bringing us back to our created purpose of worshipping God. We would do well to pray in like manner, beginning and ending with words of praise and thanksgiving.

But what comes in between? David’s list of reasons to worship the Lord – the benefits of believing.

These include:

  • Forgiveness
  • Healing
  • Rescue
  • Redemption
  • Satisfaction
  • Crowning with love
  • Justice
  • Mercy
  • Grace
  • Compassion
  • Steadfast love

And the list goes on and on!

There is no shortage of things to thank and praise God for here, and I encourage you to spend some time going over the list and the psalm, and truly worshipping God. Even if you just pick one item a day and spend that day giving thanks, I’m sure you will be uplifted.

What might your list look like?

While David’s list here is extensive, your own personal list may be somewhat different. That is ok, and again, I encourage you to write one of your own. What are you especially thankful for? Perhaps a particular relationship? Perhaps your church?

What characteristics of God do you see displayed in the life of Jesus? Are there particular ones which you are especially grateful for? Read through the Gospels and find a few, then let them be opportunities to bless the Lord this week.

All the Benefits of Believing

The word “all” appears nine times in this one psalm (ESV). To me, it’s an important biblical word and not one to skim over lightly. Often we read the word, but exclude ourselves from the promise. All usually means all, which includes you. Don’t misunderstand me, I’m not suggesting you force every Scripture into a promise or command for yourself, but equally don’t automatically disqualify yourself.

We do that when we feel unworthy of one of the promises of God. As I stated in this series more than once, you are qualified not because of your behaviour, but because of Christ.

It is interesting to me that David, who wrote this psalm, was not born again and could only look ahead to the promise of Christ. Yet his words of praise are so amazing. We, who live and abide in Jesus, should not only be able to enjoy David’s words, but lift up our own words of thanks.

David could only look forward to Jesus; we can know Him personally.

I’m conscious of those of you who may be reading this and thinking, “That’s all well and good for you Andy, but look what’s happening to me!” I hear you. These are wonderful things, but for some of us, they seem like a distant hope and not for the here and now.

For things such as forgiveness or being crowned with love, it is hard to prove these in our lives. What does forgiveness look like? The crown of love isn’t a physical one, so how do we know it is there? The simple answer (but not easy one) is faith. We believe these things because they are true, irrespective of how we feel about them.

Other benefits such as being satisfied with good things may require some adjustment on our part. You may be looking at a pile of bills covered in red and thinking, “so much for being satisfied with good things…” As I said in an earlier post, we have to choose between two opposing views. Do we believe God’s Word, or our circumstances?

It is the same choice that Adam and Eve faced; do they believe what God said, or do they believe the serpent?

When we encounter a promise in the Bible that is seemingly unfulfilled in our lives, there could be a number of reasons for this. Firstly, check the promise is for you. The context will help here. Is it a promise made to the church, or to a specific person, or to the nation of Israel? Is it applicable to you?

Secondly, if it is for you, then we need to ensure we have understood it correctly. In our example above, being satisfied with good things is not necessarily a promise that you will have everything you want whenever you want it. Similarly, it may have nothing to do with your circumstances, but rather your attitude. Are you dissatisfied because you are in lack, or because you covet things that others have?

Thirdly, is the promise for now, or for the future? Some things spoken of in the Bible are not for the here and now, but for heaven perhaps or another time.

Finally, if we have properly established the promise is for us, that it is for the here and now, and that we have not misinterpreted it, the only thing left to consider is ourselves. God always keeps His promises. He will always uphold His end of the bargain. If we are not receiving, then the problem is always with us and not with the promise, and certainly not with God.

The real benefit of believing

I want to conclude the series by repeating something I’ve said more than once – but it bears saying again.

All of the benefits we have examined over the last few months are truly wonderful. There are many things to thank and praise God for, but they pale in comparison to the real benefit of believing.

The real benefit of believing is Jesus Christ Himself.

I don’t think I can say it any better than Paul did when he said:

Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ

Philippians 3:8 (ESV)

All the benefits of believing are benefits of believing in Christ. If you are without Him, then you are without any and all of these blessings.

I encourage you not just to thank God for all of these wonderful things, but to thank God for the One Who made it all possible – Jesus Christ Himself.

Jesus embodies these benefits. His made the way for our forgiveness, He is the One who redeems us, and through Him ours sins are removed.

Praise the Lord, O my soul, for all the benefits of believing in Him. Bless the Lord, O my soul, for the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord! Amen!

Trusting the Unseen

All the Benefits of Believing (ATBOB) #3

Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless his holy name!
Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits,
who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases,

Psalm 103:1-3 (ESV)

I’ve included the text from verses one to three here, but our focus today is just on verse three. So far in this Psalm we have thought a little about praise and worship, and also about using our minds and memories. The psalmist – David – begins to list out some of the benefits of believing, and he starts with two of the most amazing ones.

Who forgives all of your sins

From the very moment Adam and Eve fell in the Garden of Eden, God put into action His plan of salvation. So many times in the Old Testament do we see imagery or typology of the future Christ Who would come to die for the sins of the world. Indeed in that very garden, God clothed Adam and Eve with the skins/furs of animals. Blood had to have been shed for those animals to give up theirs skins, and the principle of the shedding of blood to “cover” sins was begun.

David knew as he praised God with these words, that He is a forgiving God. Of all the characteristics of God David could have pointed to, he chose first to highlight His forgiveness. Even in Old Testament times, before Christ came to deal with sin, we see God’s patience with His people lengthened time and time again.

And how many of our sins does God forgive? All of them!

So Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him.

Hebrews 9:28 (ESV)

God, through His Son, dealt with every single one of our sins now and forever. The idea that God has forgiven all of our sins sometimes makes my head spin. When I think back over my life, I can recall the times when I’ve let God down. Sometimes it was out of ignorance, but if I’m honest, there have also been times when I’ve done or said something which I knew I shouldn’t – but did anyway. I feel unworthy and even now I can barely comprehend that I can walk right up to God as my loving heavenly Father and know that I’ll be welcomed!

It’s almost too good to be true! I just don’t deserve it – and that’s what makes it so good! That’s grace!

I hope you are still with me up to this point, and that you too are humbled and full of praise to God for forgiving you of all of your sins. But the third verse doesn’t end there…

Who heals all of your diseases

This is where it may get more difficult. If I asked a typical church if God had forgiven their sins, I’d get at least 99% of the hands in the room go up. If I then asked if God had also healed all of their diseases, I’m not sure I’d get more than one or two hands if any.

I’ve never met a Christian who didn’t believe the first part of verse three, about being forgiven. But I’ve met many who don’t believe the second part.

Why is that? The same God who forgives our sins, also heals our diseases right? If He forgives all of our sins, then it follows (according to this verse) that He also heals all of our diseases. We cannot separate the two. If we accept the former, then we have to accept the latter also.

The difference is that we cannot see the evidence of forgiveness, and have no option but to trust that God has done it. You can’t see a sin, forgiven or otherwise, so we have to operate out of faith.

When it comes to our bodies, we look and see, and if we still see sickness, then we wrongly conclude that this verse isn’t true. Perhaps we wouldn’t admit that we think it isn’t true, and instead look for other interpretations of the Scripture.

Jesus faced a similar problem with the paralysed man in Mark 2. His faithful friends lowered him down on a mat before Jesus, but instead of healing the man, Jesus told him his “sins were forgiven”. This probably wasn’t what he wanted to hear! It certainly wasn’t what the teachers of the law were expecting. In fact, they thought it was a blasphemous thing to say – who is He to forgive sins! – they thought.

That was Jesus’ point. He essentially proved that He could forgive sins by healing the man. He proved the thing that could not be seen (the forgiveness) by doing the thing that could be seen (the healing).

When we see symptoms in our bodies, it is easy to conclude that we’re still sick. Yet this verse clearly states that God heals all of our diseases. So which is true? We have the same choice that Adam and Eve had. We can choose to believe what God says, or listen to an alternative voice. In this case, our symptoms.

To be honest with you, I have a problem with my eyesight. It is a long-standing issue, and one I have prayed about many times. I have yet to receive my healing. With a sight problem, the symptoms are always before you. And I’ve “trained” myself to believe in the symptom more than in the Word of God. So I am not writing this from the perspective of someone who has it all figured out! I have much to learn myself. And we are all on a journey.

Healing is not a straightforward issue, and there are many reasons why we might not be healed when we ask for it. But we have to start from the premise that this verse is true. God is a healer. Jesus, the perfect representation of God, spent the majority of His ministry healing people. God is the same today, yesterday and forever. If He was a healer in Jesus’s day, He is a healer now.

This post is long already, so I don’t want to spend too much more time on this subject. Perhaps it is a subject for a future series. For now though, if you accept that God forgives all of your sins (something unseen), at least consider that He also heals all of your diseases. Pray over this verse, talk to God about it, and begin to trust the unseen more than the seen.