GIFTS OF HEALINGS
4th and 5th in
the two lists: 1 Corinthians 12:9 and 1 Corinthians 12:28.
2386 Strong, iama, ee'-am-ah, cures, healings
5486 Strong, charisma, khar'-is-mah, gift
[xarismata iama]
I have not had a ministry of healing, and I appreciate the obvious
reasons why this had to be so, having in mind the kind of evangelism I
was called to. Healings would have given me an unfair advantage in the
environment, given me a great responsibility to devote time to the
sick, and made my work impossible. We attended Bridge Street
Foursquare Gospel Church, a few years after Smith Wigglesworth’s
frequent visits. Members of his family were still in the congregation,
and there were many “recollections of his activities”. Indeed, the
large fellowship (500 on a Sunday evening) had been founded during the
heady days of healing revival in the 1920’s, which had been front-page
news in the Leeds papers. In 2003 the church had four Ministers and
two morning services. It had acquired an adjacent building for
offices. Later the city Centre property was sold, and a large disused secondary school and its land acquired in the vicinity of St James' Hospital. Obviously, I have known many people who have been
miraculously healed by God, and on at least three occasions have
experienced healing.
Note that there is no article and it is plural; some think
this implies gifts to heal certain kinds of illnesses: such as a person with a
gift to heal cancer, or blindness. I met a Pastor of the
Pentecostal Church at Caen, Normandy (1979-80) who was particularly blessed in
healing blindness. There is also the implication, that each healing
– within this gift of the Spirit – is especially dedicated for just one healing
at a time. It is not standing outside a hospital, and calling, “Everybody
out!” Miracle Working and Faith have a wider scope of course.
It is not praying for sick people in the hope that they
might suffer less, or recover “somehow”: it is bringing healing from God: "Be healed".
It should be clear that Christian Healing is the opposite of psychic, or pagan healing.
Great care must be taken to avoid the entrapment of such satanic
steams. For instance Reiki healers, who
practice in local premises; the Maranatha Community has published wise guidance
and details of such dangers.
There will often be an element of MYSTERY.
“There is no article with ‘gifts of
healing’ (nor with any other, Canon Professor Leon Morris writes in the Tyndale
Press Commentary: "The First Epistle of Paul to the Corinthians" - 1958). The effect is to fasten
attention on the quality of the gift, rather than its individuality.
‘Healing’ is plural in the Greek, which perhaps means there were ‘healings’ for
various kinds of sickness and disease.” (p. 171)
Details of the words used, and the background of healing in the Greco-Roman era
In the “iaomai” (ee am’ah) group of words there is a wide
range of associations: to wait on someone menially, to worship and adore God,
but especially to relieve of disease, cure, heal, make whole, save, deliver,
protect – there is an etymological link with “Iaso” (ee-aso), the healing
daughter of the god of healing in mythology: Therapeia (which gives us “therapeutic”).
Here there is the implication of attendance, healing, and a household domestic.
“Soterion” implies: uncorrupted health, deliverance, that which is beneficial,
a festive time, salvation, and a salvation offering.
Primitive man seems to have linked illness to some form of
spiritual attack. Before 2,000 BC there was an accumulation of
medical knowledge in both Greece and Egypt: leading to the later establishment
of the eminent medical schools. Luke, the Gospel writer, may have
studied in Alexandria (although his Alexandrian Greek may have come more
directly from a saturation in the Septuagint Greek of the translation of the
Old Testament, which was completed in the Alexandrian area, Third Century BC).
The period beginning 600 BC saw the recognition and organisation of doctors,
which crystallized in the famous “Hippocratic Oath” (Hippocrates c. 420 BC).
The god of healing, in Greek culture was Aesculapius (or
Asclepieios), which gave Aesculapieon (or Asclepieion) as the name of temple
complex dedicated to healing: the Medical Centre of the time. I
find the second spellings, of the guidebooks, easier to say.
Cast, or carved models of the poorly parts, were hung in the temple and are now
displayed in the archaeological museum in Ancient Corinth, for instance. (This excavated site
is three and a half miles from the modern city.) These are thought
to be “thank” offerings for healings that have taken place; but my own theory
is that they are prayer tokens to the god – for healing. On the map
of first century Korinthos, the Medical Centre can be seen next to the
Athletics Complex – the Gymnasium, with the distinctive shape of the Running
Track. Paul the apostle may have visited this area frequently with
leather goods – they were used in several sports: boxing - covering for the
hands and punch bags, javelin throwing – wrapped round the staff to assist the
throw, and armour in fighting. It is not surprising that he
illustrates his letters with several parallels between the spiritual life and
the Games. Indeed, the view from the Portico of the Medical Centre,
with the models of the dismembered parts, towards the athletes on the track,
may have contrasted for him, the living body of the balanced church, with the
dysfunctional divided congregation.
Surgical instruments and remedies were developed, but the
mystical ethos of the “Hospital” was utilised to the full. There
was the importance of the laying on of hands, and touching with spittle –
certainly of an eminence such as the Emperor Vespasian, or the Emperor Hadrian.
Testimonies could be read whilst waiting, and humour was recognised as having a
value, as in the Old Testament Book of Proverbs. There may be
similar material available in the waiting rooms today! There were
doctors in the ancient world who created a semi-divine mode (and no doubt
secretaries who saw themselves as demi-gods). (TDNT, Albrecht Oepke, wrote
the main definitions used here.)
“In Palestinian Judaism of the time there were no workers of
miracles, nor were there any who were honoured as such.” Schlatter, TDNT,
Vol. III, p. 129) In the following centuries there were surprisingly few
instances on record of healings – in answer to prayer – in the synagogues.
(ibid)
General observations
A friend returning from preaching in Ghana, observed: “It is
expected that the ill are healed there, whereas, here in Britain it is the
exception!”
A close friend, a fine evangelist, prayed for an elderly
lady – only to find, to his surprise, that her back was healed. In
the Book of Acts, healing was often part of the evangelist’s gift.
There is a beautiful verse in John’s Third Epistle:
“Beloved I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in
health, just as your soul prospers.” NKJV
“Dear friend, I pray that you may enjoy good health and that
all may go well with you, even as your soul is getting along well.” NIV
Muslims are allowed to ask Jesus (Isa) for their healing.
I suggest FIVE LEADING QUESTIONS:
1. Why do we suffer, initially?
2. Why are we healed?
3. How are we healed?
4. Why are we not healed, when we pray?
5. What about medical treatment?
It is impossible for a human to know all the answers about
suffering in this life: no list can be encyclopaedic. The old
illustration of the tapestry is applicable: all loose ends for those working at
the back, but finally we will see the finished work from the front.
No healing is forever; otherwise there would be people walking about 2,000
years old, who were healed in the Gospels.
The Scriptures, in particular the life of our Lord, abound
with guidance on the practice of healing, and it is here that the person with
the gift must learn to become skilled and informed. In a
congregation of a hundred, one would expect several to have the dedicated gift
of healing – in addition to the Elders, evangelists, those with Faith, and the
workers of miracles.
Why do we suffer?
Why are we ill in the first place?
I offer twenty-four possible reasons for illness – there are
others, no doubt.
1. Sickness and suffering are in the
World, because of the fall of humans into sinfulness. Atheistic
Evolutionists will ask, “Why is the World not perfect, if made by a perfect
God?” They need to read the small print: about the Fall of Man and
the Curse that followed. We see a “once perfect World”, now spoilt
by human sin. There is the popular illustration of a child’s set of
toy bricks. The mother has spelled the words of a sentence; but
later the child has carelessly walked across the floor and knocked a few
letters out of place. The damage was not sufficient to hide the
meaning of the original sentence, but it is no longer perfect. We
experience a damaged World.
John chapter 9, verses 1-3 read: “As He went along, He saw a
man blind from birth. His disciples asked Him, ‘Rabbi, who sinned,
this man or his parents, that he was born blind?’” Here are two
more reasons for illness: our own sin, and the sins of parents – the sins of
others. The first could not have applied to this man: he could not
have sinned before he was born.
2. Judgement on our own sin – perhaps our first
question should be: have I sinned?
When Jesus healed an invalid at the Pool of Bethesda, He
concluded the occasion with these words: “See, you are well again.
Stop sinning or something worse will happen to you.” (John 5:9)
Abimelech, King of Gerar, and his people were under threat
of death, because the King had taken Sarah, Abraham’s wife – albeit in
innocence. Here are the two reasons for illness again – personal
sin, and the evil of others. (Genesis 20:3, within the context of the
whole chapter)
Health as a blessing, and the contrast of cursing, were
promised to the Israelites, on the basis of their obedience to God’s Laws: “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 His decrees, I will not
bring on you any of the diseases I brought on the Egyptians….” (Exodus
15:26; Leviticus 26:14-16,39 ff; Deuteronomy 30:1 ff; Psalm 1)
Psalms 32, 38, 41:4, 51, 88 and 107:10-22 show the importance of confession of sin related to healing. Psalm 38 speaks of King David’s illnesses –
they are harsh and extreme indeed – we may think ourselves fortunate.
Psalm 41:3-4 The LORD will sustain him on his sickbed
and restore him from his bed of illness.
4 I said, “O LORD, have mercy on me;
heal me, for I have sinned against you.”
Mark 2:9 indicates how Jesus forgave a person’s sin, in
order to bring health. In the time of the Antichrist, those who
receive the mark, and worship his image, will receive “ugly and painful sores”
from a righteous God. (Revelation 16:2)
Practising male homosexuals are being advised by the British Medical Association, to have the human papilloma virus (HPV) vaccination to reduce the risk of anal cancer. In a letter from the BMA to the Health Minister: “The increasing incidence of HPV and development of anal lesions in gay men, particularly HIV positive gay men, is alarming.” (Viewed 24 January 2013, Christian Concern)
A Consultant in this field took early retirement, because he was so shocked by the situation with same sex practice in men.
A Consultant in this field took early retirement, because he was so shocked by the situation with same sex practice in men.
3. Illness can be the result of our parents’ or
ancestors’ sins: their responsibility; and ours to future generations.
Put another way: we are warned to live carefully, otherwise future generations
may suffer because of our waywardness. The Decalogue stipulates
that God will punish “the children for the sin of the fathers to the third and
fourth generation of those who hate me”. (Exodus 20:4) These
are the rules of hereditary, genetics, and life.
The sin might be general, or identifiable; and the suffering
may be widespread. King David saw the death of his young son,
because of his lawlessness: the slaying of Bathsheba’s child by him, because he had
committed adultery and murder. (2 Samuel 12:15-19)
Elijah heard these words from the Widow of Zarephath: “What do
you have against me, man of God? Did you come to remind me of my
sin and kill my son?” (1 Kings 17:18)
4. National, or Cultural Wickedness.
70,000 people died as a punishment for corporate evil: “Again the anger of the
LORD burned against Israel….” (2 Samuel 24:1-17) The Old
Testament abounds with examples: Numbers 21:4-9; 1 Chronicles 21:1 ff, to
mention just two more.
5. Jesus’s reply to the question mentioned earlier: “Neither
this man nor his parents sinned, but this happened so that the work of God
might be displayed in his life.”
These are the most beautiful words an ill person can hear:
God is going to be honoured in your healing!
6. To halt the unconverted in their tracks, and make
them think about God. C. S. Lewis called suffering “God’s megaphone”
– this could also be true for Believers, who are not paying attention.
An old-time evangelist used to say: “Some people never look
up, until they are laid flat on their backs.”
Cruel insanity came to King Nebuchadnezzar so that he would
strive for a higher sanity, and be converted. (Daniel 4:1 ff)
7. As part of God’s discipline to refine our
character: chastening and correcting (James 5:1 ff). Deuteronomy
8:5 reads: “Know then in your heart that as a man disciplines his son, so the
LORD your God disciplines you.” Suffering is a way to maturity. Isaiah 30:26 c "when the LORD binds up the bruises of his people and heals the wounds he inflicted." God may inflict illness, so that we turn to Him for restoration.
God
wants to hear us give thanks: even in the hard times!
Ephesians 5:20 Always giving thanks to God the Father for
everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Even being delivered to Satan for the destruction of our
flesh, that we might learn not to blaspheme, is ultimately for personal good
and, hopefully, restoration. (1 Corinthians 5:1-8; 2 Corinthians
2:5-11; 1 Timothy 1:20)
The aetiology of Job’s suffering is complex: God permitting
Satan to afflict him virtually with every kind of ill, in order to prove Job’s
integrity; but also to channel him into greater understanding and blessing.
The quality of Job’s godliness could still be developed.
Psalm 119 is the longest chapter in the Bible, may have been
written by Daniel, and mentions the word of God in almost every verse, and has
5 telling statements about ailments.
“Before I was afflicted I went astray,
but now I
obey your word.” verse 67
“It was good for me to be afflicted
so that I
might learn your decrees.” verse 71
“I know, O LORD, that your laws are righteous,
and in
faithfulness you have afflicted me.” verse 75
“If your law had not been my delight,
I would have
perished in my affliction.” verse 92
“I have suffered much:
preserve my
life, O LORD, according to your word.” verse 107
8. Here, with Job is a further use of hardship: to
demonstrate the grace of God in our lives and the loyalty of His people: to men
and to angels.
9. To mercifully prepare us, and friends and
relatives, for our death.
10. To take us home: we must all die (apart from those
alive at the Return of Christ). Paul had the hope that he would
die, perhaps as a martyr, so that he could experience the full power of the
Resurrection. In the Salvation Army it is called “Promoted to Glory”.
John Wesley used to hope that Believers would have "a good death". I used to sit next to a simple fellow at Church (so did he), and I explain Heaven
to him in these terms: “Death is like an all-expenses-paid holiday – the
holiday of a lifetime, which lasts for ever, and it becomes our home.
The company is the best. I’ll see you there!”
I am going to transfer my membership to the Church in Glory.
The process of dying will not be nice for most, but God
gives special grace. (1 Peter 1:13; Jude:21) Once, when I
was dangerously ill, and close to death, there was no grace to die, and I
was confident that I would recover, because of this teaching.
“Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of His
saints.” (Psalm 116:15) Paul prayed: “…that Christ will be
exalted in my body, whether by life or by death.” (Philippians 1:20)
It is not good for people to look for some judgemental reason for the death of
a Christian, and it shows disrespect for the dead, that even the world frowns
on. The prime reason is the Glory of God.
AN EMAIL SENT AT A TIME OF BEREAVEMENT
29th October, 2020
I apologise, if this note is in any way inappropriate, but I am trying to save time and effort at a difficult time for the family.
Florence has been failing in health for some time, but wonderfully cared for, and supported, by Family and Friends, Springhill Hospice at Home, District Nurses, Care4U, Routes, and our Village Medical Practice. At 14.05 hrs today (Tuesday, 29 October, 2020) she quietly slipped away.
I have so much to thank and praise God for, in bringing, and keeping us, together for these fifty-nine truly remarkable years.
Two Meaningful quotations:
Therefore we are always confident and know that …. We live by faith, not
by sight. We are confident, I say, and
would prefer to be away from the body and at home with the Lord. So we make it
our goal to please him. 2 Corinthians
5:6-9
Quite remarkably in my somewhat sequential reading of the Scriptures, in this morning’s devotions, I came to this passage:
“Son of man, with one blow I am
about to take away from you the delight of your eyes ….
my wife died.” Ezekiel 24:16 – 18
A BOOK REVIEW
“TALKING ABOUT DYING”, Help in facing death and dying, Philip Giddings, et al
Wilberforce Publications, a subsidiary of Christian Concern, London, 2017
Suffice to say that the four writers are eminently qualified: University Lecturer, member of the Church of England’s General Synod and Archbishops Council; Anglican Priest and Author; a medical Doctor treating children and adults suffering from cancer; Medical Director and CEO of a Christian Hospital, senior posts in the Macmillan Cancer Support, and Hospice establishments.
Recommended by Most Rev. Justin Welby, Archbishop of Canterbury, and others
We all have to face some of the many facets of the end of life and bereavement. This book of 182 pages covers virtually 99% of the bases: drawing from a wide spectrum of experience, and well-chosen sources, with tenderness and compassion. It will assist us in our own times of need, and to be there for others. Most people will find it a valuable source of information - things which we all should beware of, and there will be surprises, I think.
11. To warn everybody of the brevity of life.
12. Illness can be a means of guidance.
The classic example is Paul’s sickness requiring him to stay in Galatia: “As
you know, it was because of an illness that I first preached the gospel to you.
Even though my illness was a trial to you, you did not treat me with contempt
or scorn. Instead, you welcomed me as if I were an angel of God, as
if I were Christ Jesus Himself … if you could have done so, you would have torn
out your own eyes and given them to me.” (Galatians 4:12-15)
13. To help us in the struggle for humility.
Paul, following his remarkable visionary experiences, required just such
assistance – in the form of an illness.
“To keep me from becoming conceited because of my
surpassingly great revelations, there was given me a thorn in the flesh, a
messenger of Satan (this could imply an angel of Satan), to torment me.
Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But He
said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in
weakness.’ Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my
weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for
Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, hardships, in persecutions,
in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.” (2
Corinthians 12:7-10; Paul mentions “weakness” three times in this short
passage)
Here are two reasons for illness in the life of Paul, an
apostle; a third would be the cost of discipleship – in persecution, or hard
work and concern for the churches. A Christian doctor has
identified the eye complain as a common condition of the time and place; it may
have caused his large handwriting, used in his signature of the Galatian Letter
(6:11).
14. The direct result of deep spiritual experiences:
Daniel suffered from the visions he was given – lack of strength, helplessness,
deathly paleness, and in a deep sleep with his face to the ground; his
companions did not see the vision, but were overwhelmed, fled in terror, and
hid. John, the apostle suffered similarly, when he saw Christ in
Glory: “I fell at his feet as though dead.” (Daniel 10:7-11; Revelation
1:17)
15. Suffering for the work of God: like Paul,
Epaphroditus “almost died for the work of Christ, risking his life to make up
for the help” the Philippians could not give through absence. (2:30)
“For it has been granted to you on the behalf of Christ not
only to believe on Him, but also to suffer for Him, since you are going through
the same struggle you saw I had, and now hear I still have. (Philippians
1:29, 30) Whatever the nature of this affliction, it would mean a
diminution of health.
16. Suffering comes as a direct result of persecution:
Paul experience stoning (Acts 14:19,20) and imprisonment; there are long
lists of suffering in 1 Corinthians 4:8-13 and 2 Corinthians 11:23-33.
“To this very hour we go hungry and thirsty, we are in rags,
we are brutally treated, we are homeless, we are cursed … persecuted …
slandered ….”
“… worked much harder, been in prison more
frequently, been flogged more severely, and been exposed to death again and
again. Five times I received from the Jews the forty lashes minus
one. Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned, three
times I was shipwrecked, I spent a night and a day in the open sea, I have been
constantly on the move. I have been in danger from rivers, in
danger from bandits, in danger from my own countrymen, in danger from Gentiles;
in danger in the city, in danger in the country, in danger at sea; and in
danger from false brothers. I have laboured and toiled and often
gone without sleep; I have known hunger and thirst and have often gone without
food; I have been cold and naked. Besides everything else, I face
daily the pressure of my concern for all the churches.” In Damascus
he escaped King Aretas by being lowered over the wall in a basket.
The Psalmist writes:
“Why must I go about mourning,
oppressed by
the enemy?
My bones suffer mortal agony
as my foes
taunt me,
saying to me all day long,
‘Where is
your God?’” (Psalm 42:9 a-10)
17. Lack of preparation for taking the Bread and the
Wine in the Communion Service can bring about illness and even death.
(1 Corinthians 11:27-32)
18. Our own carelessness, in not looking after
ourselves, may cause ill health. Two international experts writing
in “The Economist”, pointed out: “No single change would save more lives than
if people routinely washed their hands before touching food.” “Winter
may be the greatest public-health intervention in the world.” (The
Economist”, August 4th 1999, pp 11 and 17) Hygiene was
part of the loving Law given to Moses.
19. Poverty is sadly the cause of malnutrition and its
resultant illnesses, in an uncaring World. There are two
collections for the poor of other nations in the New Testament – Acts
11:27-30, and 2 Corinthians chapters 8 and 9. In the first, the
Charismatic Church in Antioch received a prophecy, which led them to help in
averting suffering, brought about by famine, in Judea. The second
was the collection that occupies the two chapters of Paul’s second letter to
Korinthos. The Early Church was egalitarian: Acts 6:1-4 – “the daily
distribution of food” to the poor, and Acts 4:32-37 – “No-one claimed that any
of his possessions was his own, but they shared everything they had…. There
were no needy persons among them. From time to time those who owned
lands or houses sold them, brought the money from the sales and put it at the
apostles’ feet, and it was distributed to anyone as he had need.”
Barnabas is a notable example.
20. Some refused to be healed – they enjoy it too
much. For morbid reasons, they revel in the attention, and rely on
Government support. Jesus often asked if people wanted to be
healed, He was not in the habit of thrusting a cure on them. In
1992, there was an orchestration against the London healing campaign of Maurice
Cerullo; here were disabled folk saying they did not want restoration.
What right did they have to speak for all invalids? There is trauma
in serious conditions, and also, to some extent, in miraculous deliverance.
True healing will cover the whole spectrum. There will be the
requirement to stop state invalidity pensions, and look for work!
21. There may be a public demonstration of God’s
judgement on evil.
Scripture abounds with examples:
Numbers 21:4-9 The plague of venomous snakes killed many of God’s people.
1 Corinthians refers to the Israelites, who died in the desert because of idolatry, pagan revelry, immorality, putting God to the test, or grumbling.
1 Kings 13:1 ff King Jeroboam’s hand was shrivelled
Acts 5:1-11, and 13:6-12 describes how Ananias and
Sapphira, and Elymas were public punished
Acts 12:19-25 King Herod Agrippa the Elder was struck by an
angel of God, so that he died eaten by worms. Josephus, the First
Century historian, tells of the events in even more detail – “Antiquities” Book
19, chapter 8, paragraph 2.
Acts 13:4 ff. The temporary blinding of Elymus, who
interrupted the preaching of the Gospel at Paphos, Cyprus
22. The action of Satan: “whom Satan has kept bound”, Jesus
“went about doing good, and healing all who were under the power of the Devil”.
(Luke 13:16, Acts 10:38)
23. The real need, to which we are being drawn, may be
that of exorcism.
24. One may further see the cause as the vicissitudes
of life, accident, natural disaster, and many other origins.
The answer for some is to seek repentance and forgiveness in
conversion to the Lord Jesus Christ, or even repentance within the Christian
life. It may be to seek the real will of God in our lives.
Church Leaders may be of assistance. It could be that we must have a term
of rest and recovery. Such was the case of Elijah, who found rest,
food, exercise, and finding a helper-successor.
How are people healed?
The remarkable quality of Human Tissue to self-heal; medical
skill; the miraculous
The wisdom and love of our Creator is shown in the natural
healing characteristics of human tissue – something often overlooked in modern
medicine. How delighted we would be if cars and televisions repaired
themselves in a similar way. God has also granted that we can find
medical cures. All this is summed up in the words of Psalm 103:3,
“He forgives all my sins
and heals all my diseases….”
A title of God in the Old Testament is “Yahweh Ropheca” –
the Lord who heals you. Exodus 15:26
Why is there miraculous healing in the Church, today?
The answer is that Jesus purchased healing for us in the Atonement.
The English word is At-one-ment; the Hebrew means covering, reconciliation.
Isaiah 53:5 gives the doctrinal statement of healing:
“But he was pierced for our transgressions,
he was crushed for our iniquities;
the punishment that brought us peace was upon
him,
and by his wounds we are healed.”
This passage is quoted in the New Testament as the basis for
our Lord’s healing authority. (Matthew 8:16 and 17)
There is considerable discord and disagreement in the Church
over this verse: sin is dealt with in legal terms: acquittal, justification,
forgiveness, and remission; once and for all time. But can healing be viewed in the same legal terms, as some
claim. The Newberry Bible indicates the
Hebrew short past tense: “was healed” for the above verse in Isaiah 53. The “New Living Translation”, which I respect as
a well-informed paraphrase, has: “He was whipped, and we were healed”. May I suggest: that as I view my past life,
my current measure of health is so, because by Jesus’s stripes, I have been
healed? I cannot claim that God has a
legal responsibility to heal me at all times.
Some Christians do teach along these lines; but such exegesis is never
found in the New Testament with Christ, or His apostles.
The past
tense is clearly seen in the quotation of this passage in 1 Peter 2:24: “by his wounds you have been
healed”.
The Messianic Promise contained the Gospel of wholeness, as
seen in the words:
“The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is on me,
because the LORD has anointed Me
to preach good news to the poor.
He has sent Me to bind up the broken-hearted,
to proclaim freedom to the captives
and release to the prisoners,
to proclaim the year of the LORD’S favour….”
(Isaiah 61:1 ff)
The German sixteenth century artist, Grunewald only painted
religious subjects; over a third of his extant works depict the Passion.
In his commission for the Antonites, known as the Isenheim Altarpiece, now in
Colmar, the work of this order influenced the depiction of Christ on the Cross,
in both painting and film. Their hospital cared for sufferers from
St Anthony's Fire, a skin disease related to the plague and reckoned incurable.
"Those disfigured worshippers would find consolation in a God whose
torture had robbed Him also of all beauty and seemliness. ... this ... is
common to all Grunewald's Crucifixions...; a reference to Isaiah[53].”
Here Christ is seen bearing our sicknesses: He is on the Cross, and covered
with the ugly and fatal skin disease. (Anthony Bertram, “Grunewald”, The
World Masters – New Series, The Studio Publications, 1950)
The atonement sacrifices of the Tabernacle were a protection
against illnesses. (Numbers 8:19)
The plague of venomous snakes required that the sick and
dying looked to the Bronze Snake: a model placed on a pole. Our
Lord Jesus referred to it in these words: “Just as Moses lifted up the snake in
the desert, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes in
Him may have eternal life.” (Numbers 21:4-9; John 3:4) In
the holistic sense, the fullness of salvation and healing are linked to the
Crucifixion, and its type – the Bronze Serpent on its pole.
Here is a striking statement, which needs some
qualification: Jesus did not pray publicly for the sick – He brought healings
to people with authority, I would suggest, from a secret life of prayer.
We might consider these words of King David:
“Morning by morning, O LORD,
you hear my voice;
morning by morning I lay
my requests before you
and wait in expectation.”
(Psalm 5:3)
At the raising of Lazarus, our Lord made a special point of
praying before the crowd:
“Father I thank you that you have heard me. I
knew that you always hear me, but I said this for the benefit of the people
standing here, that they may believe that you sent me.” (John 11:42)
Even on this special occasion, the prayer is actually
thanksgiving, and not an intercession. Jesus had already taught
that supplication before a secular-public was unacceptable. (John 11:41
and 42; Matthew 6:5-8) Incidentally, we should always be ready to
hear God telling us He has answered; and turn to thanksgiving and worship.
Oepke writes: The most common means of healing is Jesus’s word of power, his
command.”
Similarly, there is only one recorded occasion of Paul
praying for a sick person, and then in relative privacy: Publius’s father on
the island of Malta – tradition says that the main church in Mdina is on the
site of the Chief Magistrate’s house. (Acts 28:8) True the “prayer
of faith”, on the part of the Elders, will save the sick. Here we
imagine a formal ceremony of confession of sins, anointing with oil, and
prayer. Notice the initiation of the event by the sickly person,
and the corporate gift of specifically the Elders – plural. (James
5:13-16)
Most churches fail to provide this facility. It urgently needs to be attended to.
Most churches fail to provide this facility. It urgently needs to be attended to.
Ananias came to Saul of Tarsus, in Damascus, with a clear
gift – even a command – of healing: “Placing his hands on Saul … ‘so that you
may see again …Brother Saul, receive your sight!’” (Acts 9:17 and 18)
I am well aware that some Christians embarrass the
poorly, by public demonstrations of praying, without true permission –
even in hospital wards! The tactful, quiet prayers of an official
hospital visitor can, however, be most beneficial to a wide circle.
The contrast is obvious: our Master, well prepared in prayer and revelation,
beforehand; the current Christian practice of “hedging our bets”, by praying in
vague hope of healing. The true spiritual gift of healing has a
greater certainty than this.
So the cure may come through the Gifts of Faith, Working of
Miracles, a Gift of Healing, as part of the Evangelist’s work, or the Elders
using the authority of their office.
Restoration may also be ours through the Scriptures being
specially illuminated to us by the Holy Spirit. The preacher quotes
the passage:
“Strengthen
the weak hands,
And make firm the feeble knees.” (Isaiah 35:3)
This was my experience, when rheumatism made walking difficult.
Perhaps we read: “How long will you lie there you sluggard?
When will you get up from your
sleep?” (Proverbs 6:9)
The Spirit of God impresses this word upon us – this word is
for us now!
Psalm 107:20: “He sent forth his word and healed them;
He rescued them from the grave.”
This suggests more than the written word, it implies the
sovereignty of God.
“My comfort
in my suffering is this:
Your promise renews my life.” (Psalm 119:50)
“I have
suffered much;
renew my life, O LORD,
according to your word.” (Psalm 119:107)
Psalm 6 is a prayer of King David, at a time of illness.
Psalm 30:2: “O LORD my God, I called to you for help
and you healed me.”
Jeremiah 17:14: “Heal me, O LORD, and I shall be healed;
save me and I shall be saved,
for you are the one I praise.”
The private prayers of Elijah brought life to the Widow of
Zarephath’s son, and validated the prophet’s service for God: “Now I know that
you are a man of God and that the word of the LORD from your mouth is true.”
(1 Kings 17:17-24)
Elisha brought the woman of Shunem’s son back to life.
(2 Kings 4:8-37)
In an Old Testament example, obedience is a condition:
Naaman, the Aramite Army Commander in Chief, had to wash symbolically seven
times in the River Jordan. (2 Kings 5:1 ff)
The Book of Proverbs encourages a wise philosophy of life,
which will protect us from several inroads of illness.
“Do not be wise in your own eyes;
fear the
LORD and shun evil.
This will bring health to your body
and
nourishment to your bones.” 3:7
“An anxious heart weighs a man down.
But a kind
word cheers him up.” 12:27
“Hope deferred makes the heat sick,
but a
longing fulfilled is a tree of life.” 13:12
“A cheerful heart is a good medicine,
but a
crushed spirit dries up the bones.” 17:22
Albrecht Oepke, of Leipzig University, also wrote, firstly
about the Gospels: “Many of the accounts authenticate themselves by their
vividness and simplicity (Mark 1:29 ff, 10:46 ff, etc).” He also
observes that “The Gospel of Thomas”, and an apocryphal “Book of Acts”,
illustrate the entrance of literary imagination into these pseudo-Christian
inventions. John the Baptist required no such signs of attestation,
and the first Believers did not have an avid and uncritical desire for the
miraculous. (Mark 9:38; Acts 19:13) The fact that the
miracles and the accounts of them, are intended to lead to faith in Jesus as
Lord and Saviour, is a conscious antithesis to the Greek healing cults, such as
those of Aesculapius and Dionysus. Oepke compares the miracles of
Jesus with the records and accounts of the Epidauros healing sanctuary, where
egotism, selfishness and fiscal gain, were the ethos – it was more of a luxury
sanatorium. Apropos the Aesculapieion (the hospital) at Cos: “In
comparison, the mode of healing practised by Jesus is infinitely simple,
externally unimpressive, but inwardly so much the more powerful.” (pp
206-209, “Theological Dictionary of the New Testament”, vol. 3)
From his knowledge of contemporary attempts at healing,
Oepke sees the ministry of Jesus as being on a totally higher plateau, in every
sense. Further, there was no dependence on location, as Jesus
rarely offered grace in the Temple or synagogue: more often than not, it was in
a home or in the open air.
There is such a thing, I think, as the pre-grace, mercy of
God (as at the pool of Bethesda, where an angel stirred the waters, but only
the first person to fall in the water was healed. (John 5:1-15)
There will be other examples of this in the world: but full information and
discernment are vitally important: such as Acupuncture, and possible links with
the occult.
For the Lord Jesus it was often a simple word of command, even a face-to-face command - sometimes at a distance. With the man who had been blind from birth – up to this point
– Jesus anointed his eyes with mud, made up of dust and spittle. (John
9:1 ff) Spittle alone was sometimes used; it may have been that the
traditional olive oil was not to hand. (Mark 7:33, 8:23, 6:13)
Saliva is amazingly, “miraculously”, active in oral hygiene, according to a
poster seen in Dentists’ waiting rooms. Within the Empire, the spit
of the Caesar was credited with healing properties. The laying-on
of hands is the most common physical display of contact, in healing.
There are other, quite often remarkable, cases of powerful grace: the mere
touching of Jesus’s cloak, Peter’s shadow passing over the sick, articles of
Paul’s clothing being taken to the suffering, and compassion at a distance.
(Mark 5:25-34; Luke 6:19; Acts 5:15; 19:12; Matthew 8:5 ff, 15:21-28;
Luke 7:10; John 4:46-54)
We must notice the deep feeling of our Lord Jesus’s “sighs” –
in healing, compassion, and prayer. Our Saviour, in His humility,
healed because God was with Him. (Acts 10:38) Luke tells us
that “the people all tried to touch Him, because power was coming from Him and
healing them all”: implying that this was not always the case. (6:19)
There is the need now for a digression. The
danger exists of counterfeit healing by the arch-confidence trickster himself -
Satan. The healing in Christ is real, and in love. There are,
unfortunately, perilous fringe healers, such as Reiki practitioners (see the Maranatha Community publications), who are
knowingly or unwittingly, pawns of the Evil One, and who use occult forces.
They present a most confusing issue to all of us, and prayer, discernment, and
sound teaching, are the order of the day. Balaam is such a case, in
the Jewish Bible. (Numbers 22 and following chapters, Deuteronomy 23:4; Joshua 13:22; 2 Peter 2:15-16; Revelation 2:14 ff)
Another hazard is that of committing a crime in the name of
curing: making false, unsubstantiated claims in advertising; or abusing
children or the grievously sick, by neglect; or using physical displays which
result in harm to the sufferer – such as hitting or jumping on a person, or
upsetting the mental state. Occult New Age practitioners, and
Christians have been taken to court – particularly where children have been put
at risk. On the other hand, there is the too common neglect of
withholding the possibility of miraculous healing from adults, as well as
children. This is so widespread as to be overlooked by even the
Church, and constitutes a more serious neglect.
One may also meet the common false exegesis of 2 Chronicles
16, which tells of King Asa’s gestures of keeping God out of his military and
medical affairs. The real warning is against seeking healing
totally apart from God – in fact from those forces which are indirect
opposition to God: as an act of rebellion.
“Chambers Dictionary” notes that in Hebrew, Asa means “Healer”.
In the early part of this reign he had led a reforming revival.
250 years later Jeremiah wrote:
“Cursed is the one who trusts in man,
who depends
on the flesh for his strength
and whose
heart turns away from the LORD.” (17:5)
Because Satan is often behind our suffering, it is often appropriate to say: "The Lord rebuke you Satan!"
AN EXAMPLE OF DANGER
This is a true story – written as a book, and then produced
as a film, and shown during the early hours, in the UK. Larry
Parker wrote this cautionary tale about his wife, little girl, and his son
Wesley. Wesley required regular doses of insulin. The
Minister of their Pentecostal Church had invited a healing evangelist to
conduct key meetings that raised expectation of healings. A house
group persuaded the parents to demonstrate their faith for the healing of
Wesley, by discarding his insulin – into the dustbin. Although
tests indicated that there was no cure, they persisted, and Wesley died within
a short time (in 1973).
The Pastor had wisely advised seeing a Doctor at the crucial
time. Their faith for a resurrection was unanswered.
Neighbours trashed the home; the daughter was placed into social care, and the
parents were taken to court: charged with Criminal Neglect. The
Barristers were gentle, the Jury included people with experience of healing in
the Church, and the atmosphere of the Court was sympathetic. The
United States Supreme Court ruled that children should not be denied essential
medical care because of the guardians’ religious beliefs.
Sentencing was withheld, and the two parents were placed on five years’
probation.
The words and concepts, pressures and encouragements, to
demonstrate faith, offered in the House Group, were of the kind heard in
thousands of church groups worldwide (I recently saw a lady Minister almost cause a death by this kind of false sinful confidence). Why were they wrong?
It was tempting God – trying to force His Sovereign Will – it was sinful.
When Satan tempted our Lord to jump from the Temple parapet, the rebuttal was: “Do
not put the Lord your God to the test.” (Matthew 4:7, quoting Deuteronomy
6:16) The latter verse added: “As you did at Massah”.
This refers to the time when Moses brought water from the rock at Horeb by
striking it, because the people had tested God by saying, “Is the LORD among us
or not?” (Exodus 17:1 ff) Questioning, or trying to place God
in an untenable position, giving no option, asking God to prove Himself, is not
for Humans. It is setting an examination for God to sit, in an
unsubmissive and rebellious spirit. God may test us: but we must
never sin by trying to test Him. In the House Group one could hear
the challenge: “If you really trust God, throw the medication away!”
Christ Jesus never forced people to place themselves at
risk, before he would heal them. He did ask for verification after
the miracle.
(“Promised a Miracle”, and “We let our son die” – the book
and the film)
Philip Yancey's father had a similar
disastrous experience. As an athletic and talented young man, he had
3,000 supporters for his plans to be a missionary; but at the age of 24
he was struck with polio, and placed in an iron lung to take over his
breathing. The Christians around him, said they should act their faith
and take him out of the medical equipment. He died shortly afterwards.
Philip was one year old and never really knew his father.
(An interview at HTB, 25 May 2014)
Another danger is that of Satanic Occult healing. There is a Blog on the subject of Reiki healing, to name just one such danger, at www.evxp119.wordpress.com - using the November 2018 Archive.
In our Lord's Temptations, He was directed by Satan to put his life in danger by leaping off the Pinnacle of the Temple - trusting the Father to honour His promise in Scripture. Jesus refused because this was tempting God - forcing Him to act. We should head this warning.
Why are people not healed? Why is healing withheld?
John Wimber offered five points to be borne in mind in
healing:
1. Interview the sufferer, but always listen to God’s voice on the
illness
2. Look for reasons behind the sickness
3. Select an appropriate prayer approach
4. The act of faith: the laying-on of hands
5. After care: protection from the Devil’s lies that
healing is not actual, the need to stop
disability pensions, etc
We notice that Paul of Tarsus had a serious eye disorder.
Mrs Salter, wife of the famous missionary, and daughter of Smith Wigglesworth, was stone deaf, but greatly used in
Bible teaching to ladies; Joni was massively disabled yet wonderfully gifted; one of our
greatest hymn writers, Fanny J. Crosby was blind from an early age – there are many such
examples.
1. As mentioned, 2 Chronicles 16 describes the sin of
King Asa of relying exclusively on human power, instead of God's.
We should be prayerful and respectful, about medical treatment. A
doctor friend pointed out that excessive use of a particularly strong
pain-killer could lead to blindness; the excellent Registrar in hospital, who
had helped to save my life, forgot, for the moment, that it would be
inadvisable to pinch my nose and blow hard – my eardrum was in the process of
healing.
2. It is not God's time, in His sovereign will.
Perhaps we need to be disciplined by His love, first. Jennifer Rees
Larcomb was interviewed on television regarding her serious disabilities.
Months later, she was introduced in the same programme, at the identical
location, totally healed. What a wonderful testimony to the nation!
3. There may be unbelief on the part of the ill
person; or even more seriously, unbelief on the part of the community – Church
or secular, where we need to see both compassion and faith. In
Jesus’s miracles there was often His own compassion, and a compassionate community. It should be a key element in the Church's ministry.
4. Sin, not repented of, and therefore unforgiven, can
hinder healing. Psalm 32 takes us through the steps of repentance.
Psalm 103:3: “…Who forgives all your sins
and heals
all your diseases….” See also, Psalm 107:17-22
Psalms 38 and 41 show that even a man of King David’s
importance could be sick as a punishment for sin, and again, that healing comes
through confession. This theme of healing through confession is a
major in the Jewish Bible, seen again James 5:16, in the New Testament.
5. There is a price to pay for Christian service, and
for the effects of suffering for Christ: from the enemies of Christ, both
inside and outside the Church. Once more to Psalms: enemies caused King
David’s distress (Psalm 6). There can be no victories without
enemies and battles: no healing and grace, without sickness coming first.
(Psalm 30:2)
6. There is an illness for most, which is the one to
take us home to Heaven. There are several graces: the preparation
of friends and relations, for the parting, which will soon take place, the
special help we need in order to die. (1 Peter 1:13)
7. Suffering may be required to help us with humility,
or to take us somewhere in terms of guidance; as discussed elsewhere.
8. The Church - ourselves, needs to repent of not fully offering the benefits of Christ's Atonement.
One of the hardest aspects of illness, is the victory of giving thanks. God may occasionally wait for you to reach this point. 1 Thessalonians 5:18 give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.
What about Doctors and Hospitals?
We have already looked at 2 Chronicles 16, which tells of
King Asa's gesture in keeping God out of his military and medical affairs -
something we should never be guilty of!
Jeremiah was to say later:
“Is there no balm in Gilead?
Is there no
physician there?
Why then is there no healing for the wound
of my
people?” (8:22)
Our bodies have many remarkable capabilities of
self-healing. Human medical skill will always have its limitations,
but we should prayerfully show respect, whilst walking within the Holy Spirit’s
guidance. Because we are a physical and mental unity, there are the
effects of each on the other – we are a psychosomatic unit.
Miraculous healing is quite apart from all these.
Mark 5:26 notes: “She had suffered a great deal under the
care of many doctors and had spent all she had, yet instead of getting better
she grew worse.” Luke, perhaps because he was a doctor (Colossians
4:14), omits this detail, along with Matthew.
a. We need an accredited diagnosis and
assessment of cure, if we are to glorify God intelligently.
b. God may choose to employ medicine - just as
we eat necessary foods, for health. Here is a continuum which is
well worth thinking about: firstly food of a good standard, with protection
against allergies, nutrients, special foods, mild medicinal intake, serious
medicine, hospital treatment, and even amputation. Most of us have
had dental surgery. Luke is sympathetic to Jesus’s implications in
The Parable of the Good Samaritan: oil, wine, bandages, expense, care and
convalescence. Paul advises the medical use of wine, in the case of
Timothy’s “stomach and frequent illnesses” (1 Timothy 5:23).
Amusingly, an abstinence pamphlet in Liverpool suggested that the wine was for
rubbing on his body! Various Christians will draw the line in
different places: Smith Wigglesworth refused all forms of surgery, whilst Derek
Prince had several severe forms of treatment. Many great healers of
the recent centuries have respected doctors and nurses as God’s gift.
Kathryn Kuhlman had medics in attendance at her healing services, in order to
observe integrity.
c. When treatment fails - that is the time for
a miracle.
d. Remember, we must not put God to the test -
as if Jesus had jumped from the Temple Pinnacle, as apposed to an accident.
e. We must not be seen to have caused death by
withholding treatment - as Jehovah's Witnesses, wrongly named, often do by
refusing blood transfusions. “How many people has your religion
killed today?”
f. It is easy for some, in the euphoria
of a healing meeting, to decry medical treatment, but not quite as easy, when a
loved one is dying in front of you! “I will acknowledge God’s
healing, only when I know it!” should be our maxim; not, “I will throw my life
supporting medicines away – to prove my faith.” The latter is the
sin of tempting God – as observed earlier. The Bible is bereft of
examples of this dangerous procedure – Jesus never did it. He did
send people home to find their loved ones healed, or to visit the Levitical
priest for confirmation – like going to the medical consultant for
corroboration. To ignore medical advice and help may often be
tempting God.
h. King Hezekiah’s heath returned by the grace
of God, he was instructed to apply a poultice first, as a sensible means.
(Isaiah 38:21; 2 Kings 20:7)
Chart of degrees of faith in the NT
Faith is crucial, and increases with the reading of the
Scriptures.
GREAT FAITH
LITTLE OR NONE
IIII II I I I I I I I
I I I
I I
I I
I
Resurrections.
The Widow of Nain's son, the whole village came out.
Nazareth -
Healing and Exorcisms at a distance
few helped.
Aids to faith: oil, saliva, etc
Laying-on of hands
Touching clothing
Sweatbands and aprons from
Paul: healings AND exorcisms
(Acts 19:11, 12; but included in healings
Acts 5:16; cf. Luke 8:2, 6:18)
If healing does not take place, the cause may be an unclean
spirit - requiring an exorcism. The spiritual gift of discernment
is most useful in such cases.
A most valuable book, probably now out of print: “Demon Possession”,
edited by John Warwick Montgomery, Bethany Fellowship, Inc, Minnesota, USA,
1976 This is a collection and discussion
of academic presentations on the subject, with case studies – Christian Medical
Society
FAILURE TO HEAL IS RARE IN THE NEW TESTAMENT
Mark 6:4-6, Jesus in Nazareth.
Paul's thorn in the flesh: 2 Corinthians 12:1-10, Galatians
4:13-16 - his illness guided him to Galatia! 6v 11, "See what large
letters I use as I write to you with my own hand!"
2 Timothy 4v, "I left Trophimus sick in Miletus."
Philippians 2:25-30 Epaphroditus: " because he almost died for the work of Christ, risking his life to make up for the help you could not give me." When Paul wrote this he had recovered.
Here is a question!
Your church has a lively healing ministry, including the
several streams of healing mentioned below.
Paul the apostle arrives with you, and he is cursed with his disfiguring
eye infection; so you offer to pray for him.
What will he say?
Three times I pleaded with
the Lord to take it away from me.
9 But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is
made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my
weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. 2Co 12:8-9
David faced a bear and a lion, before facing the giant
warrior, Goliath - God may prepare us in a similar way to use any of our gifts.
A FEW EXAMPLES OF HEALING IN THE OLD TESTAMENT
Moses and Miriam's leprosy, Exodus 4:6, 7; Numbers 12:10-15
Healing by looking at the serpent made of brass, Numbers
21:6-9
King Jeroboam's hand restored, 1 Kings 13:3-6
Elijah raises the widow's son, 1 Kings 17:17-24
Elisha raises a child, 2 Kings 4:18-37
Naaman cured of leprosy by Elisha, in a most casual way,
with the refusal of any reward, 2 Kings 5:1-19
The list can be added to at your leisure.
HEALING IS A MAJOR AND CONSTANT THEME IN THE NEW TESTAMENT
Repentance, forgiveness, and willingness, must all be part
of our preparation. A waiter taking an order, going to the
Chef and bringing back the order - Jean Darnall, a most gifted healer, used
this analogy. Quiet often there is humour in healing grace, and a
special beauty, when God is at work.
John Wesley's Journals are full of testimonies of healings,
and there are hundreds in the history of the Pentecostal Movement.
Marvellous present-day testimonies can be found in books and recordings about:
Kathryn Kuhlman, Ian Andrews (resurrection by mistake), Jean Darnall; and
locally to where I live in the UK.
As with all the gifts, healing makes demands on our own
strength, Mark 5:30.
It is worth mentioning again: there are legal and criminal
dangers of withholding medical inspection, diagnosis, and treatment, in false
triumphalist attitudes of “faith-at-all-cost”. We are unfortunately
reminded of this, from time-to-time, by cases coming before the courts -
relating to Church as well as New Age practices. Scientific honesty
about healing is crucial; God is a Scientist, and certainly honest.
Divine healing will always be indisputable. If there is an absence
of healing, and we are certain the aetiology is not specifically demonic, then
we should be open to what else God has in mind, and not be sadly blinkered.
There should be a sincere seeking to know God’s will.
By way of summary: In “going to the doctor”, we must always
walk in the Spirit, and be aware of three important factors: we will need a
careful diagnosis first, before we can be certain of a healing from God; we
must take all reasonable care before seeking a miracle (some healing comes through
watching our eating habits, and discipline), and, thirdly, not all medicines
and hospital treatments are safe – we must proceed prayerfully and wisely.
Doctors are human, and therefore prone to make mistakes sometimes -
occasionally we can help.
Albrecht Oepke (Up’kai) wrote, within his comprehensive word
study on healing: “But the true and only doctor is Yahweh. To
define the relationship between His creative power and human skill is more
difficult than in the non-biblical world. Yet the tendency is
towards a both-and rather than an either-or, with the accent on the ultimately
omni causal power of Yahweh.” (p 201, vol. III. TDNT)
The old Anglican matrix for Intercession has a time for
remembering the sick "in body. MIND, and spirit”; which admits to the
special problems of mental or emotional illness. There will be
those with a special gift for healing in this area. Counselling is
often done with the advantage of professional training; dabbling in
pseudo-techniques is extremely dangerous, and can bring disastrous consequences.
At one level, depression can be treated like any other illness: it may take its
course and cure naturally, but we may need to see the doctor, and even have a
referral to a specialist. Always, this kind of illness should be
treated seriously. Some conditions relate to a nutritional lack in
our metabolism (which is hardly surprising, having in mind our chemical complexity).
Medical practitioners, being human (in spite of what some receptionists seem to
think), approach their calling with some agenda. On occasions this
can mean an anti-Christian disposition, on others, a sympathetic attitude.
For several years I suffered from a particular source of
depression; until the revelation came, that only Satan, and some of my other
enemies, wanted me to suffer: God wished me to know joy in large amounts; and,
fortunately indeed, that was an end the unpleasant experiences! So
here the cure was a spiritual one, aided by knowledge of the Scriptures.
Serious physical illness, stress and tiredness, can bring a
feeling of being "cast down” along with an unrealistic loss assurance.
King David, for all of his warrior prowess, is most honest, and therefore helpful,
in several of his Psalms. The King, like many creative geniuses,
was somewhat vulnerable.
The learning and constant repetition of helpful Scriptures
is invaluable:
Psalm 147:3
“He heals the broken-hearted
and binds
up their wounds."
As Pilgrim nears the Holy City, in John Bunyan’s
"Pilgrim 's Progress", he suffers a lack of assurance, and
experiences depression. It may be that Bunyan is portraying
something he had observed in human experience.
In closing: it is our personal and congregational
duty to be filled with the Holy Spirit of God, the Scriptures, love,
compassion, and faith; so that the ministry of healing in the Church, may have
free course.
After listening to all this information on healing, perhaps
the time has come for you to hear God say these words to you: “Be
healed." And for you to prepare yourself, in prayer and Bible
study, to bring healing to others: in Jesus's name.
If you have the gift of healing, it is a terrible
thing not to use and develop it:
- people will suffer, and you will answer for it
- an aspect of Christ’s suffering in the Atonement is not implemented (Isaiah 53).
ILLUSTRATIONS
I was suffering from a severe chill in my gum following a
multiple dental extraction - an operation under a full anaesthetic: the
Treasurer of the Wiston Street AOG church, in Derby, laid hands on me, and
prayed. God did what aspirin could not do.
Trigeminal neuralgia: the facial nerve of this name has
three branches covering the nose, eye, throat, and scalp. My GP
warned of the dire pain: “Most of my patients with this commit suicide.”
At work I was allowed to report sick, and immediately a substitute would be
found, and a taxi called to take me home. Between seeing the
Consultant, and being called for the operation, I recollected on what should
have been my stand on healing. I phoned a local Baptist Minister
with a ministry of healing, and asked if he would come with an Elder of the Church
to anoint and pray for me. The issue of Elders was a bone of
contention between us, but he agreed to “find” one. Two days after
their visit, the pain left for good. The Consultant said I could
contact him, anywhere in the country, and he would operate. The
pain had been occurring with breaks of a month – so a wait was necessary to be
assured of restoration. The operation would require drilling at the
rear of my cranium, halving the nerve, and severing one half – hopefully the
correct one. Some said it left the face sagging at one side.
I said on the first visit to the consultant that he could take my ear off: the
pain was so bad. That was thirty years ago.
Rheumatism in my knees: healed in a morning service, when a
Psalm was read (as mentioned earlier).
Smith Wigglesworth and the man with two broken legs: Bridge
Street Elim Church can hold about seven hundred, and has two aisles running
from the foyer to a space fronting the platform. Typical of
Wigglesworth, he asked for the sickest person in the morning service.
This produced a man with two broken legs. The preacher was a strong man,
and had the man stand, before pushing him forward, with the command, “In the
name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk!” The man fell on his face.
This happened twice, and the congregation were murmuring. The third
time the man was healed, and ran round the auditorium, via the foyer.
Wigglesworth did the same in a meeting in Bradford, and
having refused two people with common colds, he found a lady with a painful eye condition. She was wonderfully and totally healed when
he prayed for her.
In his home he had the habit of punctuating his day by
saying: “Let’s see what Father has to say!”
The 1920’s Revival in Leeds: Mr Harry Gregson was a
notable cripple; he had fallen from the roofing girders of Kirkstall Forge,
into the gears of a slewing crane – his body was so mangled that his colleagues
were afraid to look at it. He walked with crutches. In
the Healing Meetings, Principle George Jeffries, the evangelist liked the large
Congregational Church at the bottom of Dewsbury Road (long since demolished)
cleared of all but ushers, between services. This group of helpers
allowed Mr Gregson to stay, whilst they ate their sandwiches. They
were so enthused with the miracles they had seen, that they offered to pray for
him. He firstly staggered, and then walked “as straight as a
soldier”. As the people returned for the evening meeting, he was
standing in the pulpit – crutches held aloft. Miracles like these
were front-page news in the city’s press and testimony books. In ten weeks, 2000 people were converted.
Miss Scarth suffered from tuberculosis of the spine; she
like others Miss Scarth suffered from tuberculosis of the spine; she like others was raised from a spinal carriage, and served our church as a Deaconess for decades; we knew her well. When she was away, my wife, Florence, would take her Ladies Bible Studies. Such testimonies, along with a detailed study of Divine Healing, are included in “Healing Rays”, by George Jeffreys, Kessinger Legacy Reprints [Internet booksellers].
Harry Toft was an international Rugby player, playing for
Wales, Swansea, and Hunslet. He was healed of cancer, and toured
Britain, testifying, and pointing many to Christ.
George Jeffries held meetings in London, which led to the formation of the present day Kensington Temple, a large influential Elim fellowship, which still sees miracles. In later years, when clearing the basement, wheel chairs and crutches left behind after the old healing services, were found.
Margaret Simpson: I first met her at a Shared Prayer
Meeting, in the William Street Convent – in a Roman Catholic charismatic group.
She wore trousers and slippers, to hide her condition, which made walking
difficult. As a Social Worker, and a lapsed Catholic, she had been
invited back to Church to “hear the music”, by a nun who belonged to a local
order founded by Alice Ingham – she had argued cruelly with this nun.
Her congenital lymphatic ailment caused swelling of her
legs: giving a calf measurement of 34 inches. She had suffered
three thromboses, and when I met her in Rochdale Infirmary, waiting to see Mr
Higham, an eminent Rochdale surgeon, she told me she had been healed!
Actually the appointment was to arrange to have a leg amputated; she was only
26, and the other leg would probably have to go, later. Half her
life was previously spent in a wheel chair or on crutches: she danced in to see
Mr Higham. “I’ve been healed at a charismatic prayer meeting,” she
told him. “How do you spell ‘charismatic’?” he asked, as he wrote
his report. A three-inch ulcer creator had completely vanished:
there was not even scar tissue. Her GP wrote: “This is a miracle,”
in her records, underlined in red ink. The healing had taken place
at a large charismatic rally in Dublin. Remarkably, the visitors
from Rochdale came together in a street, and sang hymns. It was
then that Margaret felt the change to her legs taking place. She
went into a nearby bar (an easy thing to do in Dublin), to remove the
bandages. Back outside she could jump and dance in worship and
perfect health.
Kathryn Khulman had a mighty healing gift, during the latter
half of the twentieth century. I have a great regard for her, but
no doubt there are critics of her work. The numerous books,
recordings and archive film give insights; she often had doctors, apparently,
to examine sick folk both before, and after, the laying-on of hands; there was
often humour associated with God’s work, through her.
An elderly man, who had been a professional clown, was
confined to a chair, and racked with rheumatism. A friendly family,
the husband was a teacher of particularly talented children, offered to take
him to a large healing service, to be held in a theatre. They left
the crippled man with the stage-door attendant, and took their seats in the
auditorium. To their disappointment, their friend never made it to
the stage. They returned, promising themselves to repeat the offer
later. The next day they called to comfort him, and found him
languishing in his chair. The truth was, however, he had been
healed sitting by the stage door, but had wished to be certain of his
experience. He was sitting exhausted in his house; after a day of
gardening!
Alex Tee conducted an evangelistic and healing campaign in
Rochdale in about 1975: a lady who lived in Rooley Moor Road suffered from a
heart condition that limited her mobility. At the evangelistic
services, she was healed, and the front page of the local paper recorded her new-found ability to run up stairs and do the “Highland Fling” – in honour of
Alex.
Jean Darnall recounted several miracles from her own
experience, in recorded sermons.
In her personal healing, as a child, she was suffering from
a most serious kidney disorder. A healing-evangelist said he could
not do anything for her, but he would go to his Lord: like a waiter going to
the chef with an order. She understood this because of family
connexions with restaurants, and she was miraculously healed, much to the
disbelief of the medical experts.
Her first miracle was the healing of a tall country boy who
was deaf. To her surprise, this first case in the healing line was
hurt by the noise of the piano – which had to be silenced. Rather
like a miracle which Cliff Allen, a personal acquaintance, was witness to, in
Papua New Guinea: a deaf man who left a meeting unhealed; was suddenly
overwhelmed by the songs of birds as he passed by a tree.
Francis McNutt tells the story of praying in a group, for a
young person who suffered a shortened leg, the result of stepping on a rusty
spike in a pond. The group kept seeing some growth, but kept
breaking-off for coffee, before the legs were of equal length.
Sir Harry Seycombe witnessed a dramatic miracle, whilst
filming his Sunday evening religious programme: “Highway”. He
introduced Jennifer Rees Larcombe, sitting in a wheelchair, and showing great
bravery in adversity. A year later, she walked, perfectly well,
from the same patch of woodland – having been healed by a fairly new, and
rather nervous Christian convert. Thousands of television viewers
saw this transformation. (mentioned earlier)
T. L. Osborne saw many incredible miracles in his healing
crusades in the 1940’s, and 1950’s.
In his remarkable, and influential book, detailing missionary
evangelism in the Caribbean, there is the story of Juan Santos: a man crippled
in several ways – unable to use his deformed legs, spinal injury and a constant
shaking. He was unable to sit at table, but was confined to moving
with a small stool and a short crutch. He was desperate to die.
T. L. Osborn came to preach in his town, but the large crowds required that the
services were constantly moved to larger venues. In the process,
Juan heard some of the messages coming through the night air.
Eventually, four relatives took him by car to the baseball stadium, where he
was carried to a terrace and placed beside a blind lady, who leaned on him
thinking he was a hummock of grass. At the crucial moment of
prayer for the sick, both were dramatically restored to full health.
When his daughter heard of his healing, and came to see for herself, she
fainted – never having seen her father standing upright on his own feet.
He went home and quietly retired to bed. In the morning there was
not the usual thump of him tumbling out of bed; instead he walked into the
kitchen. His wife fainted: thinking he was an intruder.
When the maid arrived, she also passed out. There were photographs
and ample testimonies to the truth of this miracle.
Rev Dr Mark Stibbe recounted two remarkable miracles in his
published recorded sermons. An African lady requested four friends
to carry her, on a two day journey, to a Christian healing meeting.
En route she died; but they thought it only right to continue.
The main doors were locked, but they found a rear entrance open, and walked
onto the stage; the speaker did not take in the situation fully, and casually
waved his hand and said, “Be healed.” The woman slowly rose from
the stretcher, and amazement fired the meeting.
A word of knowledge indicated a man with an injured ankle,
but no one came forward. After persistence, a sound engineer, who
thought he was not included in the congregation, came for healing.
He was an athlete, and hospital treatment for an injury had been very damaging –
he could hardly walk. After prayer, he took to running again.
Daniel Ekechukwu, a young Nigerian Pastor had been killed
when the brakes failed on his car, at the bottom of a hill near his home.
In the detailed video the full story is told, with film of some of the events
included. The doctor who pronounced him dead, the mortician who
prepared his body for burial, the wife who claimed a Scripture promise
prophetically, family members, and the ministers who prayed for him and
massaged his hands, all offer their stories. Although associated
with a Reinhard Bonnke conference, a general prayer in the large auditorium
upstairs was the evangelist’s only connexion.
Daniel also describes his after death experiences of
Paradise and Hell.
From Canon David MacInnes we have this verbatim account.
A young lad in his congregation worked in a Birmingham Asda supermarket.
The fellow had often taken a stand against Management duplicity – for instance,
trying to catch store-thieves; and yet substituting old groceries for new
deliveries, and sending them back to the growers as supposed rejects.
For his stand, the Managers had threatened him with the sack.
One day, he was helping to keep his sense of the love
of Christ alive - whilst working alone in a storage room - by singing in the
Spirit at the top of his voice. Suddenly he realized that one of
his mates had come in, and was listening to him. His voice trailed
off. He remembered that this chap had a painful chest infection of
some kind, which he could not get rid of. The Lord moved him to go
straight over and place his hand on his shoulder, with the words: “In the name
of Jesus, may this sickness be expelled from your body - may you be healed by
His power.” The chap looked slightly bewildered, but he
straightened up and said, “You know, it’s funny - I feel better.
No, it can’t be ... well let me test it out.” He ran up and down
some steps: “I'm not even out of breath!"
News went round the store, and, the following day, another
fellow came into the storage area for healing from acne. But the
Lord gave the Christian a word for him: "Don't think that God is there
just to sort out your little personal problems: he is Lord.
But I would like to pray for you... if you will allow me. I want to
pray that Jesus will show you that He is Lord.” The acne went, but
he said, he 'could not' accept Jesus as Lord. The Christian
replied: “Never again say can’t: say wont!”
Canon David White tells of walking down a corridor with John
Wimber. Their path crossed and passed that of a blind gentleman.
Suddenly Wimber turned round and shouted: “Be healed!” The man was
cured, and they walked on.
The wife of a church leader working in Beirut among
refugees – both Christian and Muslim – fleeing from the IS cruelties in
Syria: met a Muslim lady whose child
was at the point of death. They had not
enough money to take him to hospital.
“Money we don’t have, but what we have we’ll give you.” She anointed the baby with oil in Jesus’s
Name, and prayed to the Father – crying and broken. Instantly the baby was healed and started crying for food. The mother was shouting loudly: because it
was a miracle. Open Doors Prayer News
249 – June/July 2015
“The Jean Neil’s Miracle” Standing the
test of time (30 minute video VHS) Christ for all Nations, Reinhard Bonnke Ministries, 1993
A charming story of Healing
A young man whose life had presented him with many
hard times, eventually found a church which encouraged him to believe the Good
News and be saved. However, he suffered
from serious insomnia – fell asleep during his A-level exams, and failed; and
was often bad tempered. He was one of
the back row chaps at the church. One
morning service the Junior Church children came in, to the announcement, by the
leader, that they had been learning about Jesus healing, and they would like to
pray for anyone who was poorly. No-one
went forward. The lips of one of the
kids started to tremble in disappointment, so the young man went to the
front. At first he could not think of
anything – and then remembered his sleepless nights. “Please give him sweet dreams.” “Give him comfy sleep.” Since that morning he has not had insomnia!
EXORCISM
I am uncertain as to whether Exorcism is included in Healing. On several occasions it is separate, and therefore, perhaps should be included under Miracles. You may find me discussing it under both headings.
FINAL NOTES
The Temple was not normally a place for healing in Jesus’s
time, but Matthew 21:14 records one time of grace.
Healing can come through the gifts of: faith, miracles,
healings, evangelist, and the calling of Elders.
John Wimber’s “Five Points”, again:
1. Interview – hear the sufferer, and hear God
2. The Reason – find the cause or purpose of the
illness
3. Select the appropriate prayer approach
4. Faith – the actual laying on of hands
5. After care – beyond the healing.
Royalty healed of illnesses: Hezekiah, Nebuchadnezzar, and David.
Church Discipline
A final resort is to deliver to Satan, for the destruction
of the body, that people might learn not to blaspheme.
Showing to the Priests for confirmation of healing:
Leviticus 13; 14
Matthew 8:2-4
Mark 1:44
Luke 5:12-16
b) it would be better to be dead, death would be release from life - that is apart from the Christian understanding. [Actually a Christian would do well to reconsider this:
It is wise to point to Elijah's experience of being downcast: God gave him food, exercise, and sleep.
MENTAL ILLNESSES
I would like to have ducked out of this difficult
area, which perplexes many of us. The
great and the good are not immune: King David, Paul and Elijah, Martin Luther, Charles
Haddon Spurgeon, and many of our acquaintances, no doubt.
Bi-polar condition is a kinder name.
b) it would be better to be dead, death would be release from life - that is apart from the Christian understanding. [Actually a Christian would do well to reconsider this:
It is wise to point to Elijah's experience of being downcast: God gave him food, exercise, and sleep.
Joshua 1:9 “Have I not commanded you? Be
strong and courageous. Do not be terrified;
THE HEALING SERVICE
Although the order of any service must be under the
direction of the Holy Spirit, some observations can be made.
Special healing ministry could be advertised, or
held at a regular time on the calendar.
Possible elements in such a service:
Scripture
readings taken from the above selection – I was healed during such a time
(Isaiah 35:3; Hebrews 12:12 Strengthen the feeble
hands,
steady the knees that give way.)
Testimonies of healing – individuals or read
Suitable hymns and choruses
Explanation of doctrine
Laying on of hands, anointing with oil, even at a distance
Elders, or those with gifts of Healing, Faith, Miracles, or Evangelism
Jesus gave a simple command to be healed
The other gifts may be used
At the taking of Bread and Wine in the Communion Service
May you know God's Richest Blessings!
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