The brand of gospel that has become popular in our day focuses much on grace with very little emphasis on obedience to the laws and principles of God, and because of this, the power of God to save, and heal is to a large extent discounted. What God does for the physical body, He can also do for the soul, and therefore, He desires that we understand that true salvation is holistic in nature.
If at the outset, we believe that there are certain types of healing which cannot occur because of the limitations of finite science, then what we believe stymies the possibility of such healing ever taking place in our lives, except there is a radical change in our views. On the other hand, a belief that God can do anything, opens up the door to a million and one possibilities.
This is the main reason why the power of God is not manifest in our day as it used to be in days of yore, because a spirit of doubt, skepticism, and unbelief has taken hold on the minds of many, replacing that simple, childlike faith that was manifested in many of God’s people in ages past. Limiting God in issues temporal and spiritual, puts a cap on what He can do for us in our minds, and corresponding actions, and expectations will reflect the limits we have thus embraced.
The existence of spurious miracles of healing should not cause us to be skeptical about the genuine, for in doing so we may be in danger of throwing out the baby with the bath water, as it were. Just because it is written in the Bible, that in the last days there will be a proliferation of miracles by false prophets does not mean that God’s hand is tied in working for the well-being of His people.
As a general rule of thumb, the genuine can readily be distinguished from the false in many cases, just by following closely the ways, and means in which God has worked in times past. Healing en masse, where health reform is warranted and possible, but where necessary change in one’s habits and lifestyle is not required or encouraged is false.
Again, wherever people are taught to disregard the commandments of God, but are called to scheduled healing meetings, there we may be certain that the Spirit of God is absent, because God never blesses deliberate disobedience. That said, the miraculous healing power of God will not be as prominent as it was in years gone by.
Question: Why? Because God has now caused an abundance of light and knowledge to be shed upon our pathway, as it pertains to root cause and effect, so that we may make wise choices, and avoid many of the afflictions with which we are now saddled.
Again, the Lord teaches us that prevention is much better than cure, and thus, His supernatural power is reserved for cases where no better can be done.
In other words, available, and current knowledge on the human physiology should be exhausted and also practiced wherever possible, using proven, natural remedies, proper diet and foods, exercise, sufficient rest, and faith in God as our primary source of good healthcare, with miracles from God as a last resort. Let’s read:
John 5: 5 And a certain man was there, which had an infirmity thirty and eight years.
6 When Jesus saw him lie, he saith unto him, Wilt thou be made whole?
7 The impotent man answered him, Sir, I have no man, when the water is troubled, to put me into the pool: but while I am coming, another steps down before me.
8 Jesus saith unto him, Rise, take up thy bed, and walk.
9 And immediately the man was made whole.
14 Afterward Jesus findeth him in the temple, and said unto him, Behold, thou art made whole: sin no more, lest a worse thing come upon thee.
If we believe that there are certain diseases which cannot be cured through the power of God, we will also believe that there are certain sinful habits that are impossible to overcome by His power, because the tendency to limit God in one area, will inevitably spread to other areas in our modes of thought; and deliverance that is well within reach, will seem quite impossible to occur.
Thus, as we review the history of the Hebrews and their experiences with God, we would observe one recurring theme, that they stumbled time and time again because of their tendency to place limits on what God can do. And as we study their history, we should take a different route, if we are to be healed of both physical, and spiritual diseases in our day. We will examine several instances where the same problem surfaced over and over again. Let’s read:
Psalms 78:40 How oft did they provoke him in the wilderness and grieve him in the desert!
41 Yea, they turned back and tempted God, and limited the Holy One of Israel.
42 They remembered not his hand, nor the day when he delivered them from the enemy.
43 How he had wrought his signs in Egypt, and his wonders in the field of Zoan.
Exodus 14:10 And when Pharaoh drew nigh, the children of Israel lifted up their eyes, and, behold, the Egyptians marched after them; and they were sore afraid: and the children of Israel cried out unto the Lord.
11 And they said unto Moses, because there were no graves in Egypt, hast thou taken us away to die in the wilderness? wherefore hast thou dealt thus with us, to carry us forth out of Egypt?
12 Is not this the word that we did tell thee in Egypt, saying, let us alone, that we may serve the Egyptians? For it had been better for us to serve the Egyptians, than that we should die in the wilderness.
Exodus 16:3 And the children of Israel said unto them, Would to God we had died by the hand of the Lord in the land of Egypt, when we did eat bread to the full; for ye have brought us forth into this wilderness, to kill this whole assembly with hunger.
16 This is the thing which the Lord hath commanded, Gather of it every man according to his eating, an omer for every man, according to the number of your persons; take ye every man for them which are in his tents.
19 And Moses said, Let no man leave of it till the morning.
20 Notwithstanding they hearkened not unto Moses; but some of them left of it until the morning, and it bred worms, and stank: and Moses was wroth with them.
Numbers 13:25 And they returned from searching of the land after forty days.
27 And they told him, and said, We came unto the land whither thou sentest us, and surely it floweth with milk and honey; and this is the fruit of it.
28 Nevertheless the people be strong that dwell in the land, and the cities are walled, and very great: and moreover we saw the children of Anak there.
30 And Caleb stilled the people before Moses, and said, Let us go up at once, and possess it; for we are well able to overcome it.
31 But the men that went up with him said, We be not able to go up against the people; for they are stronger than we.
32 And all the people that we saw in it are men of a great stature.
33 And there we saw the giants, the sons of Anak, which come of the giants: and we were in our own sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight.
Numbers 11:21 And Moses said, The people, among whom I am, are six hundred thousand footmen;
22 Shall the flocks and the herds be slain for them, to suffice them? or shall all the fish of the sea be gathered together for them, to suffice them?
23 And the Lord said unto Moses, Is the Lord's hand waxed short? thou shalt see now whether my word shall come to pass unto thee or not.
1st Samuel 17:32 And David said to Saul, Let no man's heart fail because of him; thy servant will go and fight with this Philistine.
33 And Saul said to David, Thou art not able to go against this Philistine to fight with him: for thou art but a youth, and he a man of war from his youth.
Luke 8:49 While he yet spake, there cometh one from the ruler of the synagogue's house, saying to him, Thy daughter is dead; trouble not the Master.
50 But when Jesus heard it, he answered him, saying, Fear not: believe only, and she shall be made whole.
53 And they laughed him to scorn, knowing that she was dead.
54 And he put them all out, and took her by the hand, and called, saying, Maid, arise.
55 And she arose straightway: and he commanded to give her food.
John 6:5 When Jesus then lifted up his eyes, and saw a great company come unto him, he saith unto Philip, Whence shall we buy bread, that these may eat?
6 And this he said to prove him: for he himself knew what he would do.
7 Philip answered him, Two hundred pennyworth of bread is not sufficient for them, that every one of them may take a little.
Hebrews 3:17 But with whom was he grieved forty years? was it not with them that had sinned?
18 And to whom sware he that they should not enter into his rest, but to them that believed not?
19 So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief.
Thus, it was, by limiting the power of God to deliver, to provide, to heal, and to forgive, and cleanse, the Hebrews to a large extent forfeited the blessings of salvation which were right within their reach. Many were rubbing shoulders with Jesus as the multitude thronged Him, but it was the woman who touched the hem of His garment in faith, who was healed.
This leads us to our main case study, in which we’ll address the issue of so-called incurable diseases or issues, which, according to man’s finite knowledge, cannot be resolved. As we study, we will observe that there is also a spiritual counterpart to the same issue, because the same God who heals diseases, is the one who heals us from all our sins.
Whether our situation be hereditary, or cultivated, or whether persons were born with such and such a situation, the power of God should never be limited because He specializes in what we perceive as being impossible. Let’s read:
John 9:1 And as Jesus passed by, he saw a man which was blind from his birth.
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.
4 I must work the works of him that sent me, while it is day: the night cometh, when no man can work.
5 As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.
6 When he had thus spoken, he spat on the ground, and made clay of the spittle, and he anointed the eyes of the blind man with the clay,
7 And said unto him, Go, wash in the pool of Siloam, (which is by interpretation, Sent.) He went his way therefore, and washed, and came seeing. [Go wash represents all manner of cooperation with God in the restoration of mind and body.]
8 The neighbors therefore, and they which before had seen him that he was blind, said, Is not this he that sat and begged?
9 Some said, This is he: others said, He is like him: but he said, I am he.
10 Therefore said they unto him, How were thine eyes opened?
11 He answered and said, A man that is called Jesus made clay, and anointed mine eyes, and said unto me, Go to the pool of Siloam, and wash: and I went and washed, and I received sight.
12 Then said they unto him, Where is he? He said, I know not.
13 They brought to the Pharisees him that aforetime was blind.
15 Then again the Pharisees also asked him how he had received his sight. He said unto them, He put clay upon mine eyes, and I washed, and do see.
18 But the Jews did not believe concerning him, that he had been blind, and received his sight, until they called the parents of him that had received his sight.
20 His parents answered them and said, We know that this is our son, and that he was born blind:
21 But by what means he now seeth, we know not; or who hath opened his eyes, we know not: he is of age; ask him: he shall speak for himself.
24 Then again called they the man that was blind, and said unto him, Give God the praise: we know that this man is a sinner.
25 He answered and said, Whether he be a sinner or no, I know not: one thing I know, that, whereas I was blind, now I see.
This is not the only instance in which Christ made it manifest that He can deal with so-called incurable diseases. With the ten lepers, He demonstrated that it does not have to be an isolated incident, but that He can heal en-masse, diseases for which there is no known cure. What science deems to be incurable cancers, can, in many cases be overcome or avoided through the power of God. Let’s read:
Luke 17:12 And as he entered into a certain village, there met him ten men that were lepers, which stood afar off:
13 And they lifted up their voices, and said, Jesus, Master, have mercy on us.
14 And when he saw them, he said unto them, Go shew yourselves unto the priests. And it came to pass, that, as they went, they were cleansed.
Some people have been born with homosexual tendencies, a condition which, to all intents and purposes may seem irreversible, and instead of us focusing on God’s power to save, and cleanse, we have made provision for the flesh, by making laws that accommodate the issue, instead of availing ourselves of the cure that is just within reach. Like the blind man being born blind is not a sin, and if a person is born with such tendencies, that is not a sin either.
The problem comes when the tendency is indulged, very much the same as when offspring of parents who were addicted to alcohol, take up the strain, by indulging in those tendencies they might have been born with. Some people have tremendous difficulty with certain tendencies, whilst others may not be fazed at all by the same problem.
But the grace of God, which bringeth salvation has appeared to all men, and therefore, there is nothing too hard for God to accomplish, in the physical or spiritual realm. The Bible is abundantly clear on the issue of salvation from sin, for whatsoever might be the problem, God can heal, if we would believe. The Bible also states unequivocally that God’s salvation is holistic in nature, and therefore, the restoration of mind, and body must be inextricably linked as a complete and harmonious whole. Let’s read:
1st Thessalonians 5:23 And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.
3rd John 1:2 Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospers.
1st Corinthians 6:19 What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?
20 For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's.
Psalms 103: 2 Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits:
3 Who forgiveth all thine iniquities; who healeth all thy diseases;
4 Who redeemeth thy life from destruction; who crowneth thee with lovingkindness and tender mercies;
5 Who satisfieth thy mouth with good things; so that thy youth is renewed like the eagle's.
In closing, let us never repeat the errors ancient Israel made, that of limiting God to the confines of modern science, for His knowledge and power to heal and save, far surpasses anything mortal man can ever imagine. Let us therefore, with a childlike faith, and willing obedience, take hold on eternal life through Jesus, for He has called us to live on a much higher and nobler plain, than what science and conventional wisdom deems possible.
We therefore close with the blessed assurance that comes with knowing God. Let’s read:
1st John 5:4 For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith.
God bless!