On This Half of Page:
Reasons Why Miracles are Important, and Why God Heals
God heals because of His Compassion:
Matt 9:35-10:1 (It is because of His love and compassion that He healed the multitudes, and commissioned the disciples to go out and likewise cast out demons and heal.)
35 And Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and every disease among the people.
36 But when he saw the multitudes, he was moved with compassion on them, because they fainted, and were scattered abroad, as sheep having no shepherd.
37 Then saith he unto his disciples, The harvest truly is plenteous, but the labourers are few;
38 Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he will send forth labourers into his harvest.
Matthew 10
10:1 And when he had called unto him his twelve disciples, he gave them power against unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all manner of sickness and all manner of disease.
Matt 14:14 (Again Jesus healed the multitude through compassion)
14 And Jesus went forth, and saw a great multitude, and was moved with compassion toward them, and he healed their sick.
Matt 20:34 (Jesus healed the blind because of His compassion)
34 So Jesus had compassion on them, and touched their eyes: and immediately their eyes received sight, and they followed him.
Mark 1:41 (Compassion healing the leper)
41 And Jesus, moved with compassion , put forth his hand, and touched him, and saith unto him, I will; be thou clean.
Mark 5:19 (Compassion for the man delivered of demons, [Legion])
19 Howbeit Jesus suffered him not, but saith unto him, Go home to thy friends, and tell them how great things the Lord hath done for thee, and hath had compassion on thee.
Luke 7:13-16 (Jesus had compassion for the dead man’s mother)
13 And when the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her, and said unto her, Weep not.
14 And he came and touched the bier: and they that bare him stood still. And he said, Young man, I say unto thee, Arise.
15 And he that was dead sat up, and began to speak. And he delivered him to his mother.
Luke 7:16 (The raising of this dead man brought glory to God)
16 And there came a fear on all: and they glorified God, saying, That a great prophet is risen up among us; and, That God hath visited his people.
To Witness of Jesus and/or Bring God Glory:
Matt 9:8 (The healing of the paralytic brought glory to God)
8 But when the multitudes saw it, they marvelled, and glorified God, which had given such power unto men.
Matt 15:30-31 (Miracles bring glory to God)
30 And great multitudes came unto him, having with them those that were lame, blind, dumb, maimed, and many others, and cast them down at Jesus' feet; and he healed them:
31 Insomuch that the multitude wondered, when they saw the dumb to speak, the maimed to be whole, the lame to walk, and the blind to see: and they glorified the God of Israel.
Luke 5:26 (When the paralytic was healed, they glorified God. Parallel to Matt 9:8 )
26 And they were all amazed, and they glorified God, and were filled with fear, saying, We have seen strange things to day.
Luke 13:12-13 (Woman was healed and glorified God)
12 And when Jesus saw her, he called her to him, and said unto her, Woman, thou art loosed from thine infirmity.
13 And he laid his hands on her: and immediately she was made straight, and glorified God.
Luke 17:15 (One leper gave glory to God after being healed)
15 And one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, and with a loud voice glorified God,
John 14:13-14 (Jesus is still glorified through miracles today)
13 And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.
14 If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it.
15 If ye love me, keep my commandments.
Acts 4:21 (All men glorified God because of the miracle of the lame man at Gate Beautiful)
21 So when they had further threatened them, they let them go, finding nothing how they might punish them, because of the people: for all men glorified God for that which was done.
Acts 4:33 (The power gives witness to the resurrection power and to Jesus)
33 And with great power gave the apostles witness of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus: and great grace was upon them all.
Luke 4:14 (The fame should ultimately point to Jesus and glorify Him only)
14 And Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit into Galilee: and there went out a fame of him through all the region round about.
Miracles Bring People to Jesus, to Believe, and to Salvation:
John 2:23 (Many believed because of the miracles)
23 Now when he was in Jerusalem at the passover, in the feast day, many believed in his name, when they saw the miracles which he did.
John 4:48 (Signs and wonders help people to believe)
48 Then said Jesus unto him, Except ye see signs and wonders, ye will not believe.
John 6:2 (Miracles caused people to follow Jesus)
2 And a great multitude followed him, because they saw his miracles which he did on them that were diseased.
John 9:16 (Miracles softened some of even the hardest of hearts)
16 Therefore said some of the Pharisees, This man is not of God, because he keepeth not the sabbath day. Others said, How can a man that is a sinner do such miracles ? And there was a division among them.
John 11:15 (So even the disciples would believe, speaking of Lazerus’s resurrection)
15 And I am glad for your sakes that I was not there, to the intent ye may believe ; nevertheless let us go unto him.
John 11:42 ( Lazarus is raised, that they may believe who Jesus is)
42 And I knew that thou hearest me always: but because of the people which stand by I said it, that they may believe that thou hast sent me.
John 11:45 (Lazarus is raised, and many Jews believed)
45 Then many of the Jews which came to Mary, and had seen the things which Jesus did, believed on him.
John 11:47-48 (Pharisees fear that all men will believe because of the mircles)
47 Then gathered the chief priests and the Pharisees a council, and said, What do we? for this man doeth many miracles.
48 If we let him thus alone, all men will believe on him: and the Romans shall come and take away both our place and nation.
John 14:10-15 (Believe because of the works, and that the Father may be glorified)
10 Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? the words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works.
11 Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me: or else believe me for the very works' sake.
12 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father.
1 Cor 14:22 (Spiritual gifts are signs)
22 Wherefore tongues are for a sign, not to them that believe , but to them that believe not: but prophesying serveth not for them that believe not, but for them which believe .
Acts 3:11 (One miracle, and the people gather, and about five thousand get saved in Acts 4:4)
11 And as the lame man which was healed held Peter and John, all the people ran together unto them in the porch that is called Solomon's, greatly wondering.
Acts 4:4 (Through the miracles, many believed and were saved)
4 Howbeit many of them which heard the word believed; and the number of the men was about five thousand.
Acts 5:12-16 (Miracles caused the people to magnify the Lord, and multitudes were saved)
12 And by the hands of the apostles were many signs and wonders wrought among the people; (and they were all with one accord in Solomon's porch.
13 And of the rest durst no man join himself to them: but the people magnified them.
14 And believers were the more added to the Lord, multitudes both of men and women.)
15 Insomuch that they brought forth the sick into the streets, and laid them on beds and couches, that at the least the shadow of Peter passing by might overshadow some of them.
16 There came also a multitude out of the cities round about unto Jerusalem, bringing sick folks, and them which were vexed with unclean spirits: and they were healed every one.
John 4:29-30 (Prophetic gifts can draw people to Jesus)
29 Come, see a man, which told me all things that ever I did: is not this the Christ?
30 Then they went out of the city, and came unto him.
Acts 15:12 (Testimonies of miracles gets the attention of the audience)
12 Then all the multitude kept silence, and gave audience to Barnabas and Paul, declaring what miracles and wonders God had wrought among the Gentiles by them.
Heb 2:3-4 (Signs and wonders are a witness to receive salvation)
3 How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation; which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed unto us by them that heard him;
4 God also bearing them witness, both with signs and wonders, and with divers miracles, and gifts of the Holy Ghost, according to his own will?
To Show Who Jesus is:
John 10:37-38 (To confirm who Jesus was and show the approval of God)
37 If I do not the works of my Father, believe me not.
38 But if I do, though ye believe not me, believe the works: that ye may know, and believe, that the Father is in me, and I in him.
Acts 2:22 (Miracles show the approval of God)
22 Ye men of Israel, hear these words; Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved of God among you by miracles and wonders and signs , which God did by him in the midst of you, as ye yourselves also know:
John 3:2 (Miracles are a sign of God’s favor)
2 The same came to Jesus by night, and said unto him, Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him.
Miracles Confirm the preaching of the Word, or Fulfill the Scripture:
Matt 8:16-17 (To confirm the Word, or fulfill scripture)
16 When the even was come, they brought unto him many that were possessed with devils: and he cast out the spirits with his word, and healed all that were sick:
17 That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias the prophet, saying, Himself took our infirmities, and bare our sicknesses. (‘Infirmities’ and ‘sicknesses’ reads ‘sicknesses’ and ‘pains’ in my Spanish Bible. Likewise, in Isaiah 53:4 our English reads 'griefs' and 'sorrows', but the correct interpretation is 'sicknesses' and 'pains'.)
Mark 16:20 (The Word and Signs go Together. Notice that the word ‘them’ is italicized in most bibles. This is an added word that was not in the original text. The Lord works with the WORD. The Lord confirms His WORD. He is not working with the disciples, but working with the Word they speak. Jesus is the Word. The Word is confirmed with signs following.)
20 And they went forth, and preached everywhere, the Lord working with (them), and confirming the word with signs following. Amen.
Acts 4:29-30 (Boldness to speak the Word through the miracles)
29 And now, Lord, behold their threatenings: and grant unto thy servants, that with all boldness they may speak thy word,
30 By stretching forth thine hand to heal; and that signs and wonders may be done by the name of thy holy child Jesus.
Acts 14:3 (Signs and wonders accompany the speaking of the Word)
3 Long time therefore abode they speaking boldly in the Lord, which gave testimony unto the word of his grace, and granted signs and wonders to be done by their hands.
Rom 15:18-19 (To bring obedience to the faith, & the word is preached fully with signs and wonders)
18 For I will not dare to speak of any of those things which Christ hath not wrought by me, to make the Gentiles obedient, by word and deed,
19 Through mighty signs and wonders, by the power of the Spirit of God; so that from Jerusalem, and round about unto Illyricum, I have fully preached the gospel of Christ.
1 Thess 1:5 (The gospel should come with power, and not in word only)
5 For our gospel came not unto you in word only, but also in power, and in the Holy Ghost, and in much assurance; as ye know what manner of men we were among you for your sake.
Luke 4:32 (Word with Power)
32 And they were astonished at his doctrine: for his word was with power .
Luke 4:36-37 (Power necessary for deliverance comes through spoken words)
36 And they were all amazed, and spake among themselves, saying, What a word is this! for with authority and power he commandeth the unclean spirits, and they come out.
37 And the fame of him went out into every place of the country round about.
1 Cor 2:4-5 (Demonstrations accompany the preaching and bring faith)
4 And my speech and my preaching was not with enticing words of man's wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power :
5 That your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God.
1 Cor 2:2-4 (The important thing is Jesus Christ and him crucified. This is good apostolic doctrine. Notice that Paul preaches the Word with demonstrations of the power.)
2 For I determined not to know any thing among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified.
3 And I was with you in weakness, and in fear, and in much trembling.
4 And my speech and my preaching was not with enticing words of man's wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power:
1 Cor 4:19-20 (The kingdom is not in word only, but in power)
19 But I will come to you shortly, if the Lord will, and will know, not the speech of them which are puffed up, but the power .
20 For the kingdom of God is not in word, but in power .
1 Thess 1:5 (The gospel is to be preached with accompanying signs)
5 For our gospel came not unto you in word only, but also in power , and in the Holy Ghost, and in much assurance; as ye know what manner of men we were among you for your sake.
Acts 8:6 (Miracles gave credence to the things Philip spoke)
6 And the people with one accord gave heed unto those things which Philip spake, hearing and seeing the miracles which he did.
Signs are for Apostles, Believers, & Ministers
Cor 12:12 (Signs of an apostle are: signs, wonders, and mighty deeds)
12 Truly the signs of an apostle were wrought among you in all patience, in signs , and wonders, and mighty deeds.
Mark 16:17-18 (Signs accompany believers)
17 And these signs shall follow them that believe ; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues;
18.They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.
Gal 3:5 (‘Ministering’ and ‘miracles’ are mentioned side by side. [The working of miracles is by the hearing of faith. Jesus commanded us saying, ‘be careful how you hear’].)
5 He therefore that ministereth to you the Spirit, and worketh miracles among you, doeth he it by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?
Eph 3:7 (The power to minister)
7 Whereof I was made a minister, according to the gift of the grace of God given unto me by the effectual working of his power
We Are Encouraged to Walk In and/or Believe for Signs
Mark 9:23 (All things possible, if you believe)
23 Jesus said unto him, If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth.
Mark 11:23-24 (Whosoever can have whatsoever he saith, if he believes.)
23 For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith.
24 Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.
Eph 1:17-20 (Paul prays that we would know the exceeding greatness of His power)
17 That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him:
18 The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints,
19 And what is the exceeding greatness of his power to usward who believe , according to the working of his mighty power,
20 Which he wrought in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places,
Heb 11:6 (God desires faith)
6 But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.
Matt 6:13 (We are to pray for God’s kingdom to come, with the power and the glory)
13 And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power , and the glory, for ever. Amen.
1 Cor 12:7-11 (Spiritual manifestations [gifts] are for ‘every man’)
7 But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal.
8 For to one is given by the Spirit the word of wisdom; to another the word of knowledge by the same Spirit;
9 To another faith by the same Spirit; to another the gifts of healing by the same Spirit;
10 To another the working of miracles ; to another prophecy; to another discerning of spirits; to another divers kinds of tongues; to another the interpretation of tongues:
11 But all these worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit, dividing to every man severally as he will.
1 Cor 12:28-31 (We are commanded to earnestly covet the best gifts)
28 And God hath set some in the church, first apostles, secondarily prophets, thirdly teachers, after that miracles , then gifts of healings, helps, governments, diversities of tongues.
29 Are all apostles? are all prophets? are all teachers? are all workers of miracles ?
30 Have all the gifts of healing? do all speak with tongues? do all interpret?
31 But covet earnestly the best gifts: and yet shew I unto you a more excellent way.
1 Cor 14:1 (Paul says it again so it must be important, , ‘desire gifts, especially prophecy’.)
14:1 Follow after charity, and desire spiritual gifts, but rather that ye may prophesy.
Eph 6:10 (We are encouraged to be strong in HIS power)
10 Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might.
2 Thess 1:11-12 (Paul prays for our faith to work with power, to glorify Jesus)
11 Wherefore also we pray always for you, that our God would count you worthy of this calling, and fulfil all the good pleasure of his goodness, and the work of faith with power :
12 That the name of our Lord Jesus Christ may be glorified in you, and ye in him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.
2 Tim 1:7 (Even though ‘power’ is mentioned first, it is my experience that these three work hand in hand.) [‘Sound mind’ interprets ‘self discipline’.]
7 For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power , and of love, and of a sound mind.
2 Tim 3:5 (Godliness comes with power. Turn from those that deny the power.)
5 Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.
Rom 8:30-32 (The called are glorified. God gives us all things through Christ)
30 Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified .
31 What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us?
32 He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things?
The Disciples are Commissioned with Power
Matt 9:6 (Healings confirm power to forgive sins, which Christ delegates to the apostles in John 20:23 [see below] )
6 But that ye may know that the Son of man hath power on earth to forgive sins, (then saith he to the sick of the palsy,) Arise, take up thy bed, and go unto thine house.
John 20:22-23 (The disciples are commissioned with power to forgive sins also)
22 And when he had said this, he breathed on them, and saith unto them, Receive ye the Holy Ghost:
23 Whose soever sins ye remit, they are remitted unto them; and whose soever sins ye retain , they are retained.
Matt 10:1 (The 12 disciples commissioned to walk in power)
10:1 And when he had called unto him his twelve disciples, he gave them power against unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all manner of sickness and all manner of disease.
Luke 10:5 (The 70 disciples are commissioned, and work miracles, not just the 12)
9 And heal the sick that are therein, and say unto them, The kingdom of God is come nigh unto you.
Matt 28:18-20 (Christ delegates all power to the disciples)
18 And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.
19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:
20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.
The Holy Ghost is Power:
(The Greek word for ‘power’ that is always associated with the Holy Ghost is the word where we get ‘dynamite’. It is an awesome, mountain-moving power like dynamite.)
Luke 24:49 (The Holy Ghost is power)
49 And, behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you: but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high.
Acts 1:8 (The Holy Ghost is power)
8 But ye shall receive power , after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.
Eph 3:20 (That power that works in us is the HOLY GHOST)
20 Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us,
To Destroy the Works of the Devil
Acts 10:38 (This verse makes it simple: Jesus healed all. Sickness and oppression is from the devil.)
38 How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power : who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him.
1 John 3:8 (To Destroy the Works of the Devil)
8 He that committeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil.
Other Various Reasons:
It is a covenant promise
It is God’s nature
It is God’s will
It is in His word
Jesus healed all that asked in faith
Healing Teaching
Bad Doctrine verses Good Doctrine
Hi. I believe the Word on this page will increase your faith. This page sheds the true light on many areas of bad doctrine. (Sources of bad doctrine are written in "BROWN".) If you need a healing in your body, you can even receive your healing as you read the healing scriptures herein.
Jesus healed all. Take for instance, Matt 4:23-24 "And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all manner of sickness and all manner of disease among the people. And His fame went throughout all Syria, and they brought unto Him all sick people that were taken with divers diseases and torments, and those which were possessed with devils, and those which were lunatic, and those that had the palsy, and He healed them."
Likewise, we can find many similar scriptures that Jesus healed all, such as: Matt. 8:16-17, 9:35, 12:14-15, 14:35-36, and Luke 4:40. Not only did Jesus heal all, but we can find where the 12 disciples healed all in Matt. 10:1 & 7, Luke 9:1 & 6, and not just the 12 disciples, but the 72. Luke 10:1 & 17-18 (These scriptures are written herein at the end of this page for your convenience.)
"But wait, Karl", one preacher told me. "God doesn't heal everybody, or at least not right away. God always has His timing. Look at the lame man at Gate Beautiful. Jesus must have walked by him many times."
This line of thought does not line up. Please read on:
The account of the lame man at the gate Beautiful in Acts 3 is a beautiful testament to God’s healing nature through His name. When I look at this scripture, this is what I see: Here is a man that did not even ask for a healing, but he got one. The evidence points to the fact that he did not know Jesus to ask for a healing before. The scripture says that Jesus went to Jerusalem in secret (John 7:10), and while at the feast, the Jews there sought Him, but they did not know who He was (v.11). Even after teaching at the temple both times, He was not received in that they did not recognize Him for who He was and they either sought to take Him (7:30) or tried to stone Him (8:59). How would the lame man know to ask? "How then shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher? And how shall they preach except they be sent? As it is written, ‘How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things!’ But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Isaiah saith, ‘Lord, who hath believed our report?’ So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God." (Ro 10:14-17)
Jesus healed everybody that asked sincerely!!!
"And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive." (Matt 21:22) (Other good ‘ask’ scriptures are listed as follows: Matt 7:7-11, 18:19, Luke 11:9-10(pertaining to the Holy Spirit), John 14:13-14, 15:7&16, 16:23-24, 1 John 3:22, and 5:14-16. (These scriptures are quoted at end of page.)
There was a preacher that told me that God doesn't heal everybody. He used the crippled man at the pool of Bethesda for an excuse, saying that there were many others there that were not healed. My reply was sort of like this:
I see the account of the man at the pool of Bethesda (John 5) as another example of the nature of God who in compassion healed a man that did not even ask. Like the man at the Gate Beautiful, this man did not know who Jesus was, nor did he ask. Even after being healed, he did not know who it was that healed him, but called Him "the man that healed me. . " We find that the nature of God is to heal, evidenced in that God sometimes even heals them that do not even know Him or know to ask Him. How much more when we know Him and call upon Him? God is willing to go beyond that which is required of Him by His word, or beyond what is asked of Him. All we need is a little faith. We can’t find anywhere in the Word where anyone asked Jesus to be healed and He did not do it.
"But Karl," one preacher once said to me, "God has His time for everything. What about the account of Lazareth? When Jesus heard that he was sick, Jesus stayed two more days where He was. God doesn’t always heal everybody right away, but in His own timing."
Let faith arise as we examine this teaching:
This is the account of Lazarus from John 11: Lazarus’ sisters sent to Jesus saying, "Lord, behold, he whom Thou lovest is sick." (v. 3) It is recorded in v. 6-7 that "When He heard therefore that he was sick, He abode two days still in the same place where He was. Then after that He saith to His disciples, ‘Let us go into Judea again.’"
The bad doctrine is that God only moves when He wants to and in His timing. This may be partly true in that God may sometimes only move as a gentleman when He is invited, or when our faith has risen due to the hearing of the Word first, or to confirm His Word, etc., but we have to be careful of the poison interlaced with this doctrine. Verse 4 holds a clue: "When Jesus heard that, He said, ‘This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God might be glorified thereby.’" Notice that Jesus knew that Lazarus was already dead at this time. How do I know that? By the word Jesus spoke, ‘This sickness is not unto death.’ What is meant by 'death'? Is Jesus speaking as ". . . God, who quickeneth the dead and calleth those things that are not as though they were." according to Ro 4:17? Technically there is no contradiction, in that ‘death’ here in the Greek means a permanent leaving of this world because of sin. In this regard, Lazarus did not die. Notice that Jesus did not speak a healing word like He did for the centurion in Matt. 8:13, but mentioned ‘death’. What other clues are there? Verse 17 says, "Then when Jesus came, He found the he had lain in the grave four days already." Jesus waited two days and then went, and when He got there, Lazarus had been dead for four days already. Jesus was only one day’s journey away in Bethabara, about 30 miles from where Lazarus was in Judea, (see John 1:28 and 10:40), so this means that Lazarus must have died shortly after the messengers left to tell Jesus, and when Jesus heard it, he was dead for one day already. You see, God was not letting Lazarus suffer. Lazarus might have been having a good ole time in the spirit realm for all we know. Maybe he was in Abraham’s bosom. (Luke 16:22) According to the words of Jesus, "Our friend Lazarus sleepeth; . . " (John 11:11). Jesus used similar language to describe 'death' when he went to raise the girl from the dead at the ruler's house: Luke 8:52 And all wept, and bewailed her: but he said, Weep not; she is not dead, but sleepeth . (Parallel "sleepeth" scriptures are: Mark 5:39 and Luke 8:52.)
Verse 4 of John 11 has also been twisted: "This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God might be glorified thereby." The scripture has been twisted to say that God either put this sickness and death on Lazarus or allowed it to happen so that He could receive the glory from his healing/resurrection. A study of the Greek here would clarify the word ‘but’ as Strong's Concordance word # NT235, neuter plural of NT:243; properly, other things, i.e. (adverbially) contrariwise (in many relations). In the KJV it is always interpreted as one of these following words: and, but (even), howbeit, indeed, nay, nevertheless, no, notwithstanding, save, therefore, yea, yet. The word ‘for’ can mean ‘abundantly’ or 'instead' from the Strong's #5228. You see, God’s glory comes from the healing, not the sickness. The scripture could read thus, "This sickness is not unto death, nay, instead the glory of God." In a similar way the devil has tried to twist other scriptures such as John 9:3 below.
One more note about Lazarus that you may not have thought of: We have a covenant promise for healing, but I can not find anywhere where God guarantees He will raise everyone from the first natural death as we know it, although the commandment is given to the disciples to raise the dead. Once again, we find another scripture that shows that God in His nature sometimes goes beyond what is required of Him by His word, and even today, through His name, the dead are still sometimes raised.
John 9:3 has also been twisted. Who Sinned? Many have used these verses from John 9 in a vain attempt to prove that God sometimes allows sickness. If that is the case, then the 'gospel' is not 'good news'. This scripture deserves some needed attention and Holy Ghost insight. Please read on: John 9:2 And his disciples asked him, saying, Master, who did sin, this man, or his parents, that he was born blind ? 3 Jesus answered, Neither hath this man sinned, nor his parents: but that the works of God should be made manifest in him. The bad doctrine is that God allowed this man to be born blind so that the works of God could later be made manifest in him. This is a silly as saying, "God makes you sick so He can be glorified through the healing". This is obviously wrong. Some of the confusion comes from the word 'but' (Strongs #235, as defined a few paragraphs earlier, which can mean 'nay', 'notwithstanding' or 'nevertheless'). Also, there were no punctuation marks at all in the original Greek, in which case the sentence could be made into two sentences maybe. Our english version becomes much more clear now, if written like this: Neither hath this man sinned, nor his parents. Notwithstanding, that the works of God should be made manifest in him.. However, most of the confusion comes from the humanistic conclusion that if the blindness was not caused by sin, then God must have caused it or allowed it. I would rather blame the devil, whom the Bible names as a liar, the thief that comes to steal, kill & destroy, the roaring lion seeking who he may devour, the prince & power of the air, the god of this world, the deceiver of nations, the accuser of the brethren and he is the enemy of the Kingdom of God. Far be it from me to blame the Way, Truth & the Life & the One who came to give us life more abundantly, who was manifested to destroy the works of the devil. However, if you insist on disagreeing with me on this and say that God allowed this blindness so that He could be glorified through the healing, then at least think of it in this way: God allowed Adam and Eve their choice to eat of the forbidden fruit, and for sin and death to enter the world, and for satan to crawl on his belly and eat the dust of the earth. Therefore it is Satan's job description to eat man, for God said to Adam in Genesis 3 ("for dust thou art, and unto dust thou shalt return"). Our redemption only comes through Jesus Christ. God's desire is to save, heal, deliver and set free, and if we do not receive, the problem is somewhere on our end or maybe inbetween. (By 'inbetween' I mean such as when the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood the angel of God delaying the answer to Daniel's prayer in Daniel chapter 10.) If you believe different than this, well, then, the Word is alive and powerful, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intentions of your heart. I say to the church, 'Arise, and take your dominion and authority in the name of Jesus Christ. Let us all repent of our murmuring and complaining. Let us be filled with the Holy Ghost and power and let us speak as the oracles of God, and take the land of promises in the name of Jesus.'
The BAD DOCTRINE of "GOD ALLOWS SICKNESS": One Baptist preacher said to me, "But Karl, God is all powerful. To say that God does not allow sickness is to say that God is not all powerful."
There is a simple explanation: God has given authority to the church (the believers) in His name. This answers all the questions, such as: if God is all powerful, and therefore, all sickness must be allowed by God, then what about all the scriptures that say that the devil comes to steal, kill, and destroy (John 10:10), or that he comes as a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour (1 Pet 5:8), and why are evil spirits associated with diseases? Is not this what the Pharisees said to Jesus, that He casts out devils by the prince of devils? There are way too many scriptures to contradict the doctrine that God allows sickness. If that were true, then why pray for the sick? If God allowes sickness, then wouldn't you would be praying against God's will? Doesn't this doctrine produce doubt instead of faith, and isn't it contrary to God's nature to save, heal, deliver and set free? However, some would argue that if God does not allow sickness, then God is not all powerful, since people sometimes get sick. Are not there many scriptures that say that God is all powerful? Yes, God is all powerful, and created all things. (many scriptures) Jesus 'spoiled all principalities and powers, He made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it'. (Col 2:15) So what then? The answer is simple: God gave the church authority over the devil. Luke 10:18-19 says, "I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven. Behold, I give you power to tread on serpents and scorpians, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you." There are numerous scriptures that speak of the power we have through the Holy Ghost and the name of Jesus, such as the Great Commission. Furthermore, I would also say that the Lord gave dominion over the earth to man, as we find in Genesis 1:26 which says, "And God said, 'Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.'" (The Bible repeats this theme in verses 28 through 30.) Although this dominion is compromised somewhat through the fall of Adam's sin, it is reinstated after the flood, in Genesis 9:1-3: "And God blessed Noah and his sons, and said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth. 2 And the fear of you and the dread of you shall be upon every beast of the earth, and upon every fowl of the air, upon all that moveth upon the earth, and upon all the fishes of the sea; into your hand are they delivered. Every moving thing that liveth shall be meat for you; even as the green herb have I given you all things." However, there was also a warning against sin, continuing to Gen 9:5-6, "And surely your blood of your lives will I require; at the hand of every beast will I require it, and at the hand of man; at the hand of every man's brother will I require the life of man. Whoso sheddeth man's blood, by man shall his blood be shed: for in the image of God made he man." Many people blame God for the death of a loved one, but this scripture seems to indicate that He requires the life of man at his brother's hand, or fellow man. This idea becomes more clear in Ps 115:16 "The heaven, even the heavens, are the LORD's: but the earth hath he given to the children of men." Likewise, Amos 3:7 says, "Surely the Lord God will do nothing, but He revealeth His secret unto His servants the prophets." Even the Lord will do nothing unless He at least reveals it first unto man. Man has dominion, although in the New Testament, satan is referred to as 'the god of this world', and 'the prince and power of the air', therefore satan is obviously allowed some sort of authority, but James 4:7 says, "Submit yourself to God, resist the devil, and he will flee from you." Through Jesus, we now have authority in both Heaven AND Earth. Jesus gave us, the church, (or disciples if you will), this authority, as written in Matt 28:18-19, "All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, . . " So you see, Satan has been cast out of heaven to the earth, as found in Rev 12:9-11, "And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him. And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night. And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death." Likewise, in Luke 10:18-19 as quoted earlier, and again here, "And he said unto them, 'I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven. Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you.'" Matt 16:18 says that the gates of hell shall not prevail against the church. Jesus even gave the disciples power to forgive or not forgive sin, as seen in John 20:23.
So, in summation, does God allow sickness? Hey, maybe He lets the devil go hog wild on this earth, but He has given authority over the devil to the believers in the name of Jesus. God is all powerful. He has the power to heal your body, but He has given me the authority to command it to be done through the name of Jesus. This is sound doctrine because it takes the blame off of God for sickness, and puts it on man where it belongs. 'I say to the church, 'Arise, and take your dominion in the name of Jesus.'
So why isn't everybody healed, some ask? I believe that everybody can be healed because I know that God can't lie, and that He is true to His word. Unfortunately, there are bad doctrines in the church that hinder healing, and that is why I'm writing this teaching. Also, I know that if a person is gifted with healing and faith and if God's power works in him with enough strength, it can cut through the bad doctrine and doubt. When the anointing is not strong enough to firmly bring healing, then things can hinder healing. Unfortunately, some preachers and people make up doctrines based on their experiences, rather than getting their experiences to line up with the Word of God. Let us discuss some of these 'seemingly scriptural' bad doctrines:
Another bad doctrine that I've heard recently is that God sometimes allows sickness because he is true to His Word. In an attempt to get the Word to line up with their unbelief, they quote scriptues such as Gal 6:7-8: '. . whatsoever a man soweth, that also shall he reap, for he that soweth to the flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption'. This scripture is easily taken out of context, and I will not deal with it here, however Joseph Prince has a good teaching on it. Please consider this scripture: Is. 10:27 ". . the yoke shall be destroyed because of the anointing." When the anointing is strong enough, yokes of rebellion and unforgiveness can be broken instantly, at the same time they receive their healing. I prayed for a man to be healed at a gas station where I was working as a painter. I asked the man if he had pain, and I prayed for his knee and shoulder. He felt the Holy Spirit come on him when I prayed, and we talked as he repented. He had actually been on his way to do great harm to another young man that had stolen his CD/tape player from his car. He had been full of bitterness and unforgiveness and rebellion, but the anointing broke all those yokes.
This is another scripture that some use as an excuse as to why people are not healed: Mark 11:26, 'but if ye do not forgive, neither will your Father which is in heaven forgive your trespasses'. I would ask, "Is healing and unforgiveness the same"? Unforgiveness can be a valid hinderance to healing, but it won't stop healing if the anointing is strong enough. I believe that this scripture is superceded by the scripture of the covenant promise, as stated in Is. 53:5 and 1 Pet 2:24, " . . by whose stripes we were (are) healed.", I am NOT saying that there is no need to repent. We should repent of everything and anything that is not Godly. I believe we can receive healing and still split hell wide open. I'm merely saying that the goodness of God leads people to repentence (Ro 2:4). Healing is an evangelistic tool. When Jesus healed the multitudes, I'm sure that there were some present that had sin or unforgiveness. Likewise, the Bible says in Acts 5:14-16 that a multitude came from the surrounding towns to be healed, "insomuch that they brought forth the sick into the streets, and laid them on beds and couches, that at least the shadow of Peter passing by might overshadow some of them." Verse 16 goes on to say, "and they were healed every one." Some of these people must have had sin or unforgiveness, but it did not stop their healing. Likewise, in Central America, almost everybody gets healed, and I'm sure there is every type of sin present that you can imagine. In the United States, I often find that sinnners on the street receive their healing quicker and easier than some church folk. I believe that this is because the street person knows that he is a sinner, but some Christians in the U.S. believe that they earn their healing due to their own self-righteousness. The only reason that we are healed is because of what Jesus did. It is only by His righteousness, and not by our own good works of repentance. What? Am I saying that there is no need to repent before praying for healing? Not necessarily, because if I said that then I would be placing a restriction on the Holy Spirit, in that I would be making 'boxy' doctrine. There is enough scripture to allow the Holy Spirit to work any way that He wants to, and still be 'scriptural'. Take for example: James 5:16 Confess your faults one to another and pray one for another that you may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much. Also please consider James 4:7 Submit yourselves therefore to God, resist the devil and he will flee from you. God just wants to heal, and will often meet us at our faith level. A clear conscience toward God is a good thing. Let us all kick out the walls of our 'boxy' doctrines, and be sensitive to the Holy Spirit, and let God be God. Amen? However, telling people that they are not healed because they have sin in their life is WRONG. Jesus never did that, nor did Peter's 'shadow'. Consider Job's friends. They blamed Job's sickness on sin. In the last chapter of Job we find that God was angry with Job's friends. How much more angry would God be today with the bony-fingered, sin-pointing, pharisees now that we have what Job did not have: the Son of God as Mediator, who took the stripes for our healing and died for our sins, who lives forever to make intercession for us? However, there is a 'sin unto death'. A bitterness toward God and/or rejecting Jesus can keep healing from manifesting. On the other hand, if a person is not sure whether or not Jesus is the Christ, but he is open to the fact that maybe Jesus is the Christ, and is open for prayer, then often this person can receive his miracle, at least from my experience.
Another scripture that is often twisted is found in Matt 13:58, which reads: "And He did not many works there because of their unbelief." Unbelief is not necessarily the same as lack of faith. Unbelief is not believing that Jesus is the risen Christ. Many use this scripture to say that people are not healed because of lack of faith. However, usually in context, we find that the people in Jesus's hometown did not believe that He was the Christ. They merely saw Jesus as "the carpenter's son." They said, (Mark 6;3)"Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary, the brother of James, and Joses, and Juda, and Simon? and are not His sisters here with us? And they were offended at Him" As far as the ones that are RECEIVING prayer, lack of faith should not be used as an excuse in the church, because we in the church all should know that Jesus is the Christ and that He rose from the dead. There is no reason why everyone in the church should not be healed. The only time lack of faith can be a hinderance is when somebody does not believe in divine healing, and even worse, they impose their unbelief on others by quoting many of the scriptures addressed herein with their twisted views. In other words, people with a dis-respect for the Holy Ghost and the gifts of the Holy Ghost will be the same ones that have the hardest time receiving their healing. They offend the Holy Spirit as if the stripes that Jesus took on His back were not good enough. A little bit of unbelief is not near as bad as jealousy and offense. We cannot find anywhere in the Bible where Jesus said, 'I'm sorry, you need to repent (or forgive) first before I can heal you.' Nor did He turn anyone down for any reason that sincerely asked. No, rather, we find in Matt 8:16 that ". . He cast out spirits with His word, and healed all that were sick." The only ones in the Bible that Jesus didn't heal were the ones that did not believe that He was the Christ, AND, they were offended at Him. When I'm preaching in Central America where the churches receive me well, they all (or almost all) get healed! WWJD? What Would Jesus Do? What does He want us to do? Matt 10:7-8 "And as ye go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand. Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead , cast out devils: freely ye have received, freely give."
Sickness is often not a result of sin. Often the devil just attacks, like a serpent, he strikes, and he does not need a reason. I hope this clarifies things for you. We could go on with this, but hopefully the point is made. Far be it from me to accuse God. God is the answer, not the problem. Through faith the promises of God are obtained (Heb 11:33) Let the faith of God rise up in those that are reading this, in the name of the Christ, Jesus.
It is God’s will to heal: It is in the Word. Actually, Jesus was the Word ‘made flesh’. (John 1:14) Jesus went about healing all, "and His name is called the Word of God."(Rev 19:13) The Word and Jesus are inseparable. "The Word was with God, and the Word was God."(John 1:1) "For the Word of God is alive and powerful . ."(Heb 4:12) (some translations say ‘quick’ and powerful, but the correct meaning is ‘alive’.) Jesus healed all and Jesus did " . nothing of Himself, but what He seeth the Father do: for what things soever He doeth, these also doeth the Son likewise."(John 5:19) Jesus healed everyone that asked. The Father and the Son are practically inseparable. Jesus is the ‘express image’ of God the Father. (Hebrews 1:3) God’s Word is His will. God’s will is His Word. Jesus, the living Word, said, "he that hath seen me hath seen the Father . ."(John 14:9) Jesus went about healing all. That is the will of the Father as well. God’s will today is to heal. "Christ Jesus, the same yesterday, and today, and forever."(Heb 13:8)
These 3 scriputres: Matthew 8:2, Mark 1:40 and Luke 5:12 all have the account of the leper that says to Jesus, ". . if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean." Significantly, by all three witnesses Jesus says to the leper in the following verse, "I will; be thou clean."
Isaiah 53, in the heart of the Bible, reveals God’s will for healing: "Surely He hath borne our sicknesses, and carried our pains: yet we did esteem Him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted."(Is. 53:4) The word ‘surely’ means positively, absolutely, and certainly. If you have an English bible, the words ‘sicknesses’ and ‘pains’ are unfortunately misinterpreted as ‘griefs’ and ‘sorrows’. In my Spanish bibles, the words are correctly written in both of my versions (Antigua Version and the modern Spanish NIV version). I don’t know why these words are mistranslated in the English. The English translator did a fine job on the rest of the Bible. Sometimes man’s theologies get in the way. Let us get our faith to line up with the Word of God, and not to try to get the Word of God to line up with our theologies. The Hebrew word Strong’s number 2483 is mistranslated as ‘griefs’ here in Isaiah 53, verses 3 and 4, but in the other 27 out of 29 places in the bible it is correctly translated as sickness (es) or disease. The word for ‘sorrows’ , Strong’s #4341 means grief, pain, sorrow, and seems to imply mostly mental pains, but includes physical as well. It is translated as sorrow most of the time but sometimes is translated as ‘pain’. I would like to point out the Holy Ghost translation in Matthew 8:17 where this scripture is quoted: "That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying, Himself took our infirmities and bare our sicknesses." (my spanish bible says 'sicknesses' and 'pains' here in 8:17 as well as in Is 53).
Back to Isaiah: "But He was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon Him; and with His stripes we are healed."(Is 53:5) Although we esteemed Him smitten of God, it was "for the transgression of my people was He stricken."(Is 53:8) And a little farther down yet in Isaiah, we see God’s will for our healing: "Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise Him; He hath put Him to grief: when thou shalt make His soul an offering for sin, He shall see His seed, He shall prolong His days, and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in His hand. He shall see of the travail of His soul, and shall be satisfied: by His knowledge shall my righteous Servant justify many; for He shall bear their iniquities."(Is 53:10-11) Herein lies some of the undisputable good news that it is the Father’s will for our healing.
We are part of the body of Christ. Would Jesus want His body to be sick? NO! Jesus prayed that we would be as one with Him even as He and the Father are one. (see John 17:11,21-22) Would not it be God’s desire for health? This is just common sense. As a child of Abraham, you have a right to health, so how much more as a child of God? (See the scriptures at the end.) However, God heals sinners just as well, as evidenced throughout scripture. In the book of Acts we find that that after a miracle, thousands were then added to the church. The Lord desires to work the same way today; He has not changed. We have seen people in sin healed right out on the street. God's heart reaches out to the lost and strayed.
The way we believe can be a hinderance. One Catholic man once said to me, "But Karl, I just don’t believe that way. My church teaches that miracles and healings started passing away in the 3rd century." This man belonged to a big Catholic church in Indiana.
Now I don’t mean to pick on Catholics, and I know that all Catholics don’t believe that healings and miracles passed away. However, briefly, without writing a book, we know that the Catholics have adopted some traditions and teachings that are unscriptural, as have other denominations.. However, "The words of the Lord are pure words: as silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times." Psalms 12:6.
The way we believe is important. In the account of the Centurion and his servant, Jesus said, "Go thy way, and as thou hast believed, so be it done unto thee. And his servant was healed in the selfsame hour"(Matt 8:13) Likewise, in the account of the nobleman & his son Jesus said, "Go thy way, thy son liveth." And the man believed the word that Jesus had spoken to him and went his way."(John 4:50)
Jesus often spoke a spoke a phrase like, " . . thy faith hath made thee whole.", such as He spoke to the woman that touched the hem, (Matt 9:22, Mark 5:34 & Luke 8:48), or the blind man, (Mark 10:52 ), or the leper, (Luke 17;19), or another similar phrase such as "According to your faith be it unto you."(the two blind men in Matt 9:29), or "Thy faith hath saved thee."(the woman that anointed His feet in Luke 7:50 & the blind man in Luke 18:42) Please notice, however, that we cannot find where Jesus said a word like this and the person was NOT healed. This leads me to believe that if a person has enough faith to go and ask for a healing, they have enough faith to receive.
Did you ever notice?: The man that says he does not believe in miracles seldom if ever walks in that resurrection power when praying for others, (except in rare circumstances when God is showing him different and calling him and anointing him. We cannot put God in a box). The Christian that does not believe in the falling over and sleeping in the Spirit through the laying on of hands will rarely if ever have people fall over when he prays and lays on hands, although God knows the heart and He can make exceptions. However, it does not take a whole bunch of faith to merely receive a healing, especially when the one doing the praying has the gift for it. Generally, if you believe that Jesus is the Christ who died for you and rose again, that is generally enough faith to receive your healing, in that it is the resurrection power of our Lord that dwells in us by the Holy Spirit, and the same Spirit is doing the work. A strong healing gift in the one doing the praying (the pray-er), will overcome a little doubt in the pray-ee.
What are the biggest hinderences to Healing? From my experience of praying for thousands, I've found that unforgiveness or lack of faith are not the biggest hindrances when the anointing is strong for healing. The main hindrance I've found is a lack of respect for the man of God and/or the Holy Spirit.. Scriptures such as Mark 6:11 verify this: "And whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear you, when ye depart thence, shake off the dust under your feet for a testimony against them. Verily I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for Sodom and Gomorrha in the day of judgment, than for that city". (Parallel scriputures are found in Matt 10:14, Luke 9:5 and Luke 10:10.) Also there are scriptures such as Luke 10:16. "He that heareth you heareth me; and he that despiseth you despiseth me; and he that despiseth me despiseth him that sent me". (Other similar scriptures are: Matt 10:40, Mark 9:37, and John 13:20.) What kind of sin can send a person to Hell? Basically, rejecting Jesus is the biggest sin anyone can commit. Consider Matt 22:37-39 "Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. 38 This is the first and great commandment. 39 And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself." Why is the 'second like unto' the first commandment? I believe it is because we are made in the image of God. Whoever can obey one of these commandments will have an easier time learning the other one also.
A RELIGIOUS SPIRIT can keep you from receiving your miracle. Let me give you a very common example: First, I ask someone if they have any aches or pains in their body, or any physical problems. They say, "Yes, in my back," (or knees or wherever). Then I say, "Well let's get rid of it in the name of the Christ, Jesus, and it will only take 30 seconds and I won't even have to touch you." Then they say something like, "No thanks, I go to church, I have faith, I pray." Do you see what they just said? First of all, they admitted that they had pain, so obviously their own church, faith and prayer did not heal them. . . and what they were really telling me was that it was not going to work, because it did not work through their church, faith or prayer, and that they believed that their own faith and prayers were superior to mine. This is usually a religious, self-righteous, proud spirit. I may still be able to talk them into receiving prayer, but I have to be careful and diplomatic how I do it, and their chances of actually receiving their healing has gone down substantially. I may just say "OK, have a nice day," and walk away. In summation, without writing a book, a lack of respect for either God, the Holy Spirit or God's anointed is the biggest hinderance to healing, as evidenced thru scripture, from Cain, Miriam, Korah, the youngsters that taunted Elisha, etc, etc, all the way to the new testament with Anninias & Saphira, Herod and Elymus the sorcerer, and many other less obvious examples.
What about Job? There was a well-meaning older brother in the Lord that once said to me, "But Karl, what about Job? God allowed him to suffer for a long time. God does not always heal right away, after all, you know, God is sovereign."
The word 'sovereign' means ‘all powerful’. When you say, ‘God is sovereign’, that does not mean that God does what He wants to do whenever He feels like doing it, but it means that God is all powerful. God is true to His word.
What about Job? Job had no mediator, or no way to mediate with God. We have what Job never had, the living Son of God who "ever liveth to make intercession".(Hebrews 7:25) In Job's day, Satan was allowed to come before God, as it is written in the first two chapters of Job, and Satan accused righteous Job before God's face. However, now, Satan has been cast down (Is 14:12 and Ez 28:16-17) as we find written in Revelation 12:10: "Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of the brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night." Jesus said to the seventy disciples in Luke 10:18-20, "I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven. Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing by any means shall hurt you. Notwithstanding in this rejoice not, that the spirits are subject unto you, but rather rejoice, that your names are written in heaven." So now, you see, instead of Satan before God's face day and night accusing the brethren, we now have Jesus instead, who forever sits at the right hand of the Father to make intercession for us. (Note: Notice that Satan is named 'the accuser of the brethren'. If you speak evil of others, or put down a pastor or any saved person, you probably are guilty of playing the devil's role, not God's. This can be a hindrance to the gift of healing working in you, and especially through you. If you want God to flow through you to heal others, I suggest getting rid of wrong beliefs, wrong thinking, unforgiveness, sin, hatred, the works of the flesh, and all gossip and slander, etc. However, thank God for the blood of Jesus!!!)
I’ve heard many preachers preach on Job. There has been many a sermon preached that God restored double to Job. That is good and dandy. I’ve also heard many preachers preach from Job 3:25 about how the thing that Job feared came upon him, which is supposed to be a faith message, but seems to produce doubt. The most important thing about the book of Job is that we have the Christ Jesus as our mediator, whom Job never had. It is all about JESUS. Everything points to Him. When preachers preach on Job and never once mention the fact that our mediator Jesus took our sins, pains and sicknesses on the cross, they unknowingly interject a small amount of poison into the message, because it is the devil’s desire to obscure what Jesus did at Calvery. As the anti-christ, the devil’s job is to take the focus off of the Christ, Jesus, the living sacrificial Lamb of God. It’s all about JESUS. There is only one little scripture (Job 3:25) about the fear factor of Job, and we hear many long sermons on that. However, there are many scriptures where Job said that he had no way to mediate with God.
Job basically says, ‘Hey, where’s my mediator?’ The following scriptures verify this fact: "Behold, He taketh away, who can hinder Him? Who will say unto Him, What doest thou?(9:12) How much less shall I answer Him, and choose out my words to reason with Him? Whom though I were righteous, yet would I not answer, but I would make supplication to my judge.(9:14-15) If I speak of strength, lo He is strong: and if of judgment, who shall set me a time to plead?(9:19) For He is not a man, as I am, that I should answer Him, and we should come together in judgment. Neither is there any daysman betwixt us, that might lay His hand upon us both.(9:32-33) Hast Thou eyes of flesh? Or seest Thou as man seeth? Are thy days as the days of man? Are thy years as man’s days, . ?(10:4-5) Surely I would speak to the Almighty, and I desire to reason with God, as a man pleadeth for his neighbour!(16:21) Behold, I cry out of wrong, but I am not heard: I cry aloud, but there is no judgment.(19:7) Oh that my words were written! Oh that they were printed in a book! That they were graven with an iron pen and lead in the rock for ever! For I know that my redeemer liveth, and that He shall stand at the latter day upon the earth: And though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God:(19:23-26) Oh that I knew where I might find Him! That I might come even to His seat! I would order my cause before Him, and fill my mouth with arguments. I would know the words which He would answer me, and understand what He would say unto me. Will He plead against me with His great power? No; but He would put strength in me. There the righteous might dispute with Him, so should I be delivered for ever from my judge. Behold, I go forward, but He is not there, and backward, but I cannot perceive Him On the left hand, where He doth work, but I cannot behold Him: He hideth Himself on the right hand, that I cannot see Him: But He knoweth the way that I take: when He hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold.(23:3-10) I cry unto Thee, and Thou dost not hear me: I stand up, and Thou regardest me not.(30:20) Oh that One would hear me! Behold, my desire is that the Almighty would answer me, and that mine adversary had written a book. Surely I would take it upon my shoulder, and bind it as a crown to me. I would declare unto Him the number of my steps, as a prince would I go near unto Him."(31:35-37)
Elihu confirms the mediator issue in Job 33:23-28: "If there be a messenger with Him, and Interpreter, One among a thousand, to shew unto man his uprightness: Then He is gracious unto him, and saith, Deliver him from going down to the pit: I have found a ransom. His flesh shall be fresher that a child’s: he shall return to the days of his youth: He shall pray unto God, and He will be favourable unto him; and he shall see His face with joy: for He will render unto man his righteousness. He looketh upon men, and if any say, I have sinned, and perverted that which was right, and it profited me not, He will deliver his soul from going into the pit, and his life shall see the light."
God confirms the mediator issue as well in Job 42:7: "And it was so, that after the Lord had spoken these words unto Job, the Lord said to Eliphaz the Temanite, My wrath is kindled against thee, and against thy two friends: for ye have not spoken of me right, as my servant Job hath."
God addressed the things that Job said that were not right, such as Job’s self-righteous attitude and multiplying words without knowledge in chapters 38-41. Elihu also addressed the same issues as can easily be seen in the first and last verse of chapter 35, (and elsewhere). This leads me to assume that all the other things that Job spoke about, such as the mediator issue were correct. The words of Elihu must have been right also, because the Lord did not say anything about him, but only that Eliphaz and his two friends, Bildad the Shuhite and Zophar the Naamanthite had not spoken what was right.
We now have a Mediator. Our Mediator, Jesus, has now come, the veil to the Holy of Holies was rent (Mat. 27:51, Mark 15:38, Luke 23:45), the veil being the flesh of Jesus (Heb 10:20), we can now "boldly come to the throne of grace to obtain mercy and find grace to help in the time of need" (Heb 4:16), in that we now have a mediator who is "at the right hand of the throne of God"(Heb 12:2), "who also maketh intercession for us"(Ro 8:34), and "ever liveth to make intercession" (Heb 7:25).
Salvation includes healing. The basic word for ‘save’ is defined by Strong’s concordance word number 4982 as ‘heal, preserve, save (self), do well, be (make) whole’.
It is hard to separate ‘sin’ and ‘sickness’. Sin and sickness were both atoned for, thanks to Jesus. That is why we find it written in Psalms 103:3 "Who forgiveth all thine iniquities; (and) who healeth all thy diseases;" Likewise, we find it written in James 5:14-15 "Is any sick among you? Let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord: And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him." Likewise we find the account of the paralytic in Matthew 9 as well as Mark 2, where Jesus said to the paralytic, "Son, thy sins be forgiven thee." And, just a few verses farther down we find that Jesus, in showing the Pharisees that He had power on earth to forgive sins, said "to the sick of the palsy, Arise, take up thy bed, and go unto thine house." We find it written in John 3:14, "And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up:" What happened when Moses lifted up the bronze serpent in the wilderness. The book of Numbers chapter 21 tells us that the children of Israel were forgiven for their sins of murmering and complaining and they were healed of their snakebites, entering from a sentence of death into life. We also quoted earlier from Isaiah 53:4, how "He hath borne our ‘sicknesses’ and carried our ‘pains’:" (talking about sicknesses here) And, Isaiah 53:5 "but He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him, (referring to sins) and with his stripes we are healed." (talking about sickness again) These scriptures clearly show that sickness and sins were both atoned for at Calvery and the whipping post.
What about Paul and the Thorn?
I know a pastor that used to preach from the NIV bible. He used to think that my faith on healing was heretical. Thanks to the Holy Spirit, he has come to believe and teach on healing. Before that, however, he attempted to prove to me that it was not always God’s will to heal. He tried to convince me by using some of the bad doctrines that I addressed earlier in this letter. He also mentioned 2nd Corinthians 12, verses 7 through 10 about Paul and the thorn. Concerning this scripture, he said to me, "You know Karl, sometimes God allows sickness to keep us humble." He then proceeded to read 2nd Cor 12:7 to me from his NIV bible, "To keep me from becoming conceited because of these surpassingly great revelations, there was given me a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me."
Paul and the thorn: First, lets quote 2nd Cor 12:7 from the King James version: "And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan, to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure." There has been many a sermon preached, I’m sure, that the thorn was a sickness allowed by God to keep Paul humble. Often they admit that they don’t really know for sure what the thorn was, but yet they will go ahead and give their opinion from the pulpit. Let’s line our faith up with God’s word, and not vice versa. (Also, 'conceited' (in the NIV) is the wrong word, however 'exalted above measure ' (from the KJV) is correct. Let us see what can be determined about this from the highest authority, God’s own word:
What was the thorn? Paul often alluded to the old testament when teaching. In the old testament a thorn in the flesh or barb in the eye was symbolic of the hindrance of the Caanites in the promised land if they were not completely driven out. Walls of thorns and hedges of thorns were symbolic of a wall to keep the enemy out, or a wall the enemy would have to keep you from getting in. However, digging a little deeper into the Greek in 2nd Cor 12:7, the ‘thorn’ is a wooden stake used for impaling, being withered at one end, (coming from the word 'skelops') and seems to hint to a little bit of a deeper meaning concerning persecution, especially in that the Latin root word is 'cruz' which means 'cross'. Jesus told Paul that he would show him the things he would suffer for His name’s sake. Jesus told the disciples that they would be 'persecuted', and that in this world they would have 'tribulation', but I can’t find anywhere that sickness is included in any of these word definitions (persecuted or tribulation).
Furthermore, the Greek for ‘buffet’ (2nd Cor 12:7) means ‘repeated blows with the fists’, confirming that the thorn is persecution and not sickness. This thing is clarified with Weymouth's translation: "Satan's angel, dealing blow after blow." When taken in context, I would also add that there is a theme of persecution throughout the whole book of 2nd Corinthians, starting out even in chapter 1 as Paul defends himself against things the false apostles have said about him, explaining why he did not come earlier as planned. Reading between the lines, you see this theme continue as Paul defends himself. In almost every chapter, this theme of persecution becomes more and more obvious, until he speaks of it plainly in chapter 11, and continues on with the persecution theme after the ‘thorn’ in chapter 12. Now you can see that in the middle of writing about persecution, he does not stop and mention a sickness; no, that would be way out of context, in that sickness is not mentioned once in the whole book, however, there is an underlying theme of persecution throughout the whole book, as Paul is on the defense concerning things the false apostles have said about him. The bad doctrine is sometimes even taught that God allowed this so-called sickness to come on him to keep him humble. However the scripture plainly says that the thorn in the flesh was "the messenger of satan, to buffet me, ." , (plainly stating it did not come from God). A lot of the confusion comes from the phrase ‘exalted above measure’. The NIV wrongly interprets this as ‘becoming conceited’. The NIV interpretation of this word is wrong for the following reasons: The Strong’s definition for this word 'exalted' is #5229, middle voice from #5228 and 142; ‘ to raise oneself over, i.e. (figuratively) to become haughty.’ I suggest that the definition of 'to raise oneself over is correct, but the figurative definition implying haughtiness has no support, in that this word only appears one other time in the Bible, and that is in 2 Thess. 2:4, which speaks of the devil "Who opposeth and exalteth himself over all that is called God, or that is worshipped, so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God." This verse shows by the Bible's own authority that the word does not mean ‘becomes conceited’, but rather the KJV of 'exalteth' is correct. This is also confirmed by secular Greek writings from that same era where the word is used to mean 'a higher level of success'. This leads me to believe that the messenger (angel) of satan came to Paul in an effort to keep Paul from reaching a higher realm of authority in the Spirit because of the great revelations Paul had.
Going on with the next verse, 2 Cor 12:8, "For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me. Weymouth's translation says it like this: "As for this, three times I besought the Lord to rid me of him." Rotherham's translation also uses a pronoun, speaking of the angel of satan, clarifying that it is not a sickness. Let's continue with veses 9-10. "And He said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ’s sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong." In the Greek, the phrase "And He said unto me" implies sureness. Notice also that the Lord said, "My grace is sufficient for thee". He did not say ‘insufficient’. The word ‘grace’ means unmerited favor with God, to be able to accomplish what you could not ordinarily accomplish on your own power. Basically, God is sort of saying, ‘Hey, I already gave you the power." Also, the word ‘infirmities’ is defined by Strong’s word #769 as ‘feebleness (of mind or body); by implication, malady, morally, frailty’. The way the word is used in 2nd Corinthians means ‘the inability to produce results’ as confirmed by the rest of the sentence, rather than a sickness. This meaning fits in with ‘reproaches, necessities, persecutions, and distresses for Christ’s sake. This fits with both the ongoing persecution theme as well as the theme in this sentence of ‘weakness’ (feebleness), in contrast to the strength of Christ. If you see this differently, I challenge you to really study this out with an open mind. To "rightly divide the word of truth" means ‘to draw a straight line through’. 2 Tim 2:15 "Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth." Let us not draw a crooked line thru God's word. God heals, period. When you say, "Yes, God heals, but, . . . .", be careful lest you draw a crooked line, in which case I would ask that you consider the severity of the beating Jesus took for our healing. Would Jesus take that beating and then turn around and allow sickness. No! Those stripes were taken for a reason. Let there be no double-mindedness in you concerning this, in the name of the Christ, Jesus.
We could go on with this, but hopefully the point is made.
Sickness and oppression comes from the devil. Acts 10:38 sums it up: "How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with Him." This verse makes it clear: Jesus went about doing good & healing all. Sickness and oppression comes from the devil. Consider the following scriptures:
Luke 9:56 "For the Son of man is not come to destroy men’s lives, but to save them. "
John 10:10 "The thief (Satan) cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly."
1 Peter 5:8 "Be sober, be vigilant, because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour. "
Jesus Destroys the Works of the Devil
1 John 3:8 "For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil."
Sin and death entered by the first Adam when he sinned in the garden. "Therefore, by the offence of one, judgement came upon all men to condemnation" (Ro 5:18) "Wherefore as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, . . ". (Ro 5:12) I believe that with sin and death came sickness. "even so by the righeousness of One (Jesus, the 2nd Adam) the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life." (Ro 5:18) (and healing), who rose from the tomb in the garden, (it is through the testimony of John that we learn the tomb was in the garden, further proof of undoing Adam's sin which was also in the garden), "having spoiled principalities and powers, He made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it",(Col 2:15) "making us "free from the law of sin and death." (Ro 8:2) (See Ro 8 and 1 Cor 15)
For your convenience I’ve quoted below many of the scriptures that are mentioned but not quoted above: Hope you enjoyed this. I would like to come and minister in your church or event. I can preach and teach and do music ministry/worship. I guarantee that there will be miracles if allowed to minister. I can be contacted at (618) 985-2204 (Karl Stein).
Love ya, Karl Stein
Jesus Healed All
Scriptures:
Matt 4:23-24 "And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all manner of sickness and all manner of disease among the people. And His fame went throughout all Syria: and they brought unto Him all sick people that were taken with divers diseases and torments, and those which were possessed with devils, and those which were lunatic, and those that had the palsy; and he healed them."
Matt 8:16-17 "When the even was come, they brought unto Him many that were possessed with devils: and He cast out the spirits with His word, and healed all that were sick: That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias the prophet, saying, Himself took our infirmities, and bare our sicknesses."
Matt 9:35 "And Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and every disease among the people."
Matt 12:14-15 "Then the Pharisees went out, and held a council against Him, how they might destroy Him. But when Jesus knew it, He withdrew Himself from thence: and great multitudes followed Him, and He healed them all;"
Matt 14:35-36 "And when the men of that place had knowledge of Him, they sent out into all that country round about, and brought unto Him all that were diseased; And besought Him that they might only touch the hem of His garment: and as many as touched were made perfectly whole."
Luke 4:40 "Now when the sun was setting, all they that had any sick with divers diseases brought them unto Him; and He laid His hands on every one of them, and healed them."
Acts 10:38 "How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with Him."
Disciples Healed All (the 12)
Matt 10:1 "And when He had called unto Him His twelve disciples, He gave them power against unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all manner of sickness and all manner of disease: (10:7) And as you go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand. (8) Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils: freely ye have received, freely give."
Luke 9:1 "Then He called His twelve disciples together, and gave them power and authority over all devils, and to cure diseases. And He sent them to preach the kingdom of God, and to heal the sick. (6) And they departed, and went through the towns, preaching the gospel, and healing every where."
the Seventy Sent Out to Heal also
Luke 10:1 "After these things the Lord appointed other seventy also, and sent them two and two before His face into every city and place, whither He himself would come. (9) And heal the sick that are therein, and say unto them, The kingdom of God is come nigh unto you. (17) And the seventy returned again with joy, saying, Lord even the devils are subject unto us through Thy name. (18) And He said unto them. I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven. (19) Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you."
Ask scriptures
Matt 7:11 "If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?"
Matt 18:19 "Again I say unto you, That if two of you shall agree on earth as touching any thing that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven."
Luke 11:9-10 "And I say unto you, Ask, and it shall be ginven you, seek, and ye shall find, knock, and it shall be opened unto you. For every one that asketh receiveth, and he that seeketh findeth, and to him that knocketh it shall be opened. If a son shall ask bread of any of you that is a father, will he give him a stone? or if he ask a fish, will he for a fish give him a serpent? Or if he shall ask an egg, will he offer him a scorpion? If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto you children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?
John 14:13-14 "And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it."
John 15:7 "If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you. (16) Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, He may give it you."
John 16:23-24 "And it that day ye shall ask me nothing. Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, He will give it you. Hitherto have ye asked nothing in my name: as, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full."
1 John 3:22 "And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep His commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in His sight."
1 John 5:14-16 "And this is the confidence that we have in Him, that, if we ask any thing according to His will, He heareth us: And if we know that He hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of Him. If any man see his brogher sin a sin which is not unto death, he shall ask, and he shall give him life for them that sin not unto death. There is a sin unto death: I do not say that he shall pray for it."
All Things Possible / Believing is Important
Matt 21:21-22 "Verily I say unto you, if ye have faith, and doubt not, ye shall not only do this which is done to the fig tree, but also if ye shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea, it shall be done. And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive."
Mark 9:23 "Jesus said unto him, If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth."
Mark 11:24 "Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them."
Signs Follow Believers
Mark 16:15-20) "And He said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved, but he that believeth not shall be damned. And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick and they shall recover. So then after the Lord had spoken unto them, He was received up into heaven, and sat on the right hand of God. And they went forth, and preached every where, the Lord working with them, and confirming the word with signs following. Amen."
Promise of Abraham
Luke 13:11 "And, behold, there was a woman which had a spirit of infirmity eighteen years, and was bowed together, and could in no wise lift up herself. Luke 13:16 And ought not this woman, being a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan hath bound, lo, these eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the sabbath day?"
Redeemed from the Curse of the Law:
Gal 3:13-14 "Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree: That the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ. (Now, verse 29) And if ye be Christ’s then are ye Abraham’s seed. (Now look at verse 7) Know ye therefore that they which are of faith, the same are the children of Abraham." (What is ‘Curse of the Law’? These are extreme cursings for disobedience found in Duet 28: 15 through the rest of the chapter. These cursings include poverty, war, famine and EVERY SICKNERSS and DISEASE (Verse 61) This is what Jesus redeemed us from! All glory and praise to Jesus!)
You Do Not have to Die with Sickness or Disease
Exodus 23:25-26 "And ye shall serve the Lord your God, and He shall bless thy bread, and thy water; and I will take sickness away from the midst of thee. There shall nothing cast their young, nor be barren, in thy land: the number of thy days I will fulfil."
(Deut 30:19) "I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live."
(Other good teachings are available upon request.)
I hope you have enjoyed this! Thanks for reading! God Bless You !!! Karl Stein
Why Bad Things Happen, from Luke 13 This explains why it is not God's fault when bad things happen. Jesus is the answer, not the problem.
Luk 13:1 There were present at that season some that told him of the Galilaeans, whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices.
It seems that some might have been looking for an answer as to why this might have happened. They were probably asking that age-old question in their minds "Why did God allow this to happen?"
Luk 13:2 And Jesus answering said unto them, Suppose ye that these Galilaeans were sinners above all the Galilaeans, because they suffered such things?
Although the wording is different, essentially Jesus was answering a common question: Did God allow this to happen because these Galilaeans were worse sinners?
Luk 13:3 I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.
The answer is no. In other words, sometimes people can die because of false religion, persecution and martyrdom. The Bible says that Satan is the God of this world. Unless we repent, we shall ALL perish in like manner, in that we are all sinners, as written in the Bible in Romans chapters 3 and chapters 5 and elsewhere.
Luk 13:4 Or those eighteen, upon whom the tower in Siloam fell, and slew them, think ye that they were sinners above all men that dwelt in Jerusalem?
Again, in different words, Jesus is answering the same old question, 'Why did God allow this to happen? Were these men worse sinners than other men?' Please also notice the word 'eighteen'. This word is seldom seen in the New Testament, but it appears thrice in this chapter. Eighteen is the number of bondage, being made up of three sixes. More on this later.
Luk 13:5 I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.
The answer is no. This is another reason why bad things can happen. We live in a fallen world. Things in heaven are eternal, but things in earth are temporal. Things like buildings that are built by man can get old and collapse, tires may blow out, car companies may have to re-call certain kinds of automobiles, but that is not God's fault. The bottom line is that we are all born into sin, and all will "perish" unless we repent and receive Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour. The word "perish" implies full destruction, and is related to a word that is also used to describe Satan, the Destroyer.
Luk 13:6 He spake also this parable; A certain man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard; and he came and sought fruit thereon, and found none.
Luk 13:7 Then said he unto the dresser of his vineyard, Behold, these three years I come seeking fruit on this fig tree, and find none: cut it down; why cumbereth it the ground?
Luk 13:8 And he answering said unto him, Lord, let it alone this year also, till I shall dig about it, and dung it:
Luk 13:9 And if it bear fruit, well: and if not, then after that thou shalt cut it down.
This is another reason why bad things can happen. The dresser of the vineyard was not doing his job and the owner of the vineyard was going to cut the tree down. Prophetically, the fig tree sometimes represents the nation of Israel in the Bible. A tree can also represent a man, such as in Psalms 1:3 "And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water.", or maybe like Isaiah 61:3 ". . that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the Lord." Men, or even whole nations may perish because the church is not doing its job. Likewise, if an airplane mechanic is smoking crack while trying to fix the airplane engine, and the airplane does not get fixed right and crashes because the airplane mechanic did not do his job, that is not God's fault.
Luk 13:10 And he was teaching in one of the synagogues on the sabbath.
Luk 13:11 And, behold, there was a woman which had a spirit of infirmity eighteen years, and was bowed together, and could in no wise lift up herself.
Luk 13:12 And when Jesus saw her, he called her to him, and said unto her, Woman, thou art loosed from thine infirmity.
Luk 13:13 And he laid his hands on her: and immediately she was made straight, and glorified God.
Luk 13:14 And the ruler of the synagogue answered with indignation, because that Jesus had healed on the sabbath day, and said unto the people, There are six days in which men ought to work: in them therefore come and be healed, and not on the sabbath day.
Here in verse 14 is another reason why bad things can happen: There are evil religious principalities that influence members of the church to inhibit the work of the Holy Spirit to work miracles and change lives. These are the same powers that sought to crucify the Lord and Christ, Jesus. Miracles are important, as discussed in the teaching right above this one.
Luk 13:15 The Lord then answered him, and said, Thou hypocrite, doth not each one of you on the sabbath loose his ox or his ass from the stall, and lead him away to watering?
Luk 13:16 And ought not this woman, being a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan hath bound, lo, these eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the sabbath day?
Please notice the word 'eighteen' in verses 11 and 16, and even verse 4. This is an obvious reason why bad things sometimes happen: It is merely Satan. Eighteen is the number of bondage. Unfortunately, we are in bondage to sin, but Jesus came to set us free.
Even Jesus knows what it is like to suffer loss. Many children died when He was born. (Matt 2:16) His friend John the Baptist was beheaded in prison. (Matt 14) The disciple Stephen was stoned. (Acts 7:59)
Acts 10:38 sums it up: Act 10:38 How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him.
Jesus went about doing good, and He healed all. Sickness and opression comes from the devil. If you have questions about this subject, please read the teaching on the left of this page: "Healing Teaching".
Perry Stone has a teaching on Luke 13 very similar to this teaching which was gleaned in part from him. World Evangelist Perry Stone is a teacher of teachers, and I highly recommend Perry to anyone who has a hunger for a deeper understanding of the Bible. You may link to his website here:
On This Side of Page:
The Truth about Healing from the Scriptures:
Bad Doctrine is brought to Light by the Scripture thru this
Healing Teaching
Another excellent teaching can be found on the bottom of the left side of the Missions page:
See God heal individuals and whole churches, and hear of testimonies and unusual miracles at my YouTube site:
