Today’s Scripture: This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun! (2 Corinthians 5:17)
Confession: I am a new person in Christ Jesus. I am different than I was before. I have the life of God in me, the very nature of God, and the ability of God. Darkness has no place in me. I am a child of the light.
The Lord’s Prayer: Our Father, who art in Heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy Kingdom come, thy will be done, on Earth as it is in Heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And don’t let us yield to temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever and ever. Amen.
Jesus still heals today in order to fulfil his covenant.
No, I will not break my covenant; I will not take back a single word I said (Psalm 89:34).
As the sun went down that evening, people throughout the village brought sick family members to Jesus. No matter what their diseases were, the touch of his hand healed every one (Luke 4:40).
Healing was for all in those days, and Christ the healer has never changed.
When people don’t know God wants them well, they have a tendency to accept sicknesses and diseases.. This is why the New Testament demonstrates for us the importance of preaching healing.
Crowds listened intently to Philip because they were eager to hear his message and see the miraculous signs he did. Many evil spirits were cast out, screaming as they left their victims. And many who had been paralyzed or lame were healed. So there was great joy in that city(Acts 8:6-8).
Peter preached Christ to the cripple (Acts 3:6), to the multitudes (Acts 5:14-16), and to Aeneas (Acts 9:34). All were healed.
While they were at Lystra, Paul and Barnabas came upon a man with crippled feet. He had been born that way from birth, so he had never walked. He was sitting and listening as Paul preached. Looking straight at him, Paul realized he had faith to be healed. So Paul called to him in a loud voice, ‘Stand up!’ And the man jumped to his feet and started walking (Acts 14:8-10).
I am the Lord who heals you (Exodus 15:26b).
And then he (Jesus) told them, ‘Go into all the world and preach the Good News to everyone. Anyone who believes and is baptized will be saved. But anyone who refuses to believe will be condemned’ (Mark 16:15).
Jesus came and told his disciples, ‘I have been given all authoirty in heaven and on earth, Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the command I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age (Matthew 28:18-20).
The fact that God wants us well is part of the good news of the gospel. That is why we preach this throughout the world. Physical healing is part of the gospel, and healing is for all. A careful study of the Scriptures will show that God has declared that his will includes healing for his children. He has declared himself to be the healer of his people.
Many believe in devine healing, but have no personal knowledge of Jesus as the healer of our bodies. They see that others are divinely healed, but question whether God will heal them in answer to prayer or not. God need not give any special revelation of his will when he has plainly given his revealed will in the Bible.
The Scriptures are clear: God wants us well. And the evidence is clear, sometimes God heals instantly, other times he heals over time, sometimes he uses natural law, and other times he works through the care of a doctor or nurse. All of these methods reveal that God wants us well, even while we are here on the Earth. We in the West tend to rely more on medical science than on divine healing, yet regardless of the delivery mechanism for healing, the fact is, God wants us well. Thus we have a responsibility to take care of our emotions, minds, and bodies, and to care for others, praying and serving, so others can be better off as well.
He (God) said, ‘If you will listen carefully to the voice of the Lord your God and do what is right in his sight, obeying his commands and keeping all his decrees, then I will not make you suffer any of the diseases I sent on the Egyptiuans; for I am the Lord who heals you (Exodus 15:26).
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Pastor Ted Haggard, DD, CHBC, is a Bible teacher with an emphasis on New Testament solutions to the human condition. His Bible teaching is informed by biblical scholarship, Choice Theory (Glasser), Attachment Theory (Johnson), and Behavioral Studies using DISC (Rohm).
This and other blogs by Pastor Ted Haggard are available at http://www.tedhaggardblog.com as a ministry of St. James Church. If you would like to strengthen the ministry of St. James Church and Pastor Ted Haggard by giving, please use the “give” tab at http://www.saintjameschurch.com.