HOPE and HEALING

Back to the beginning... When God was creating, He saw His creation as good. When He was done, He saw everything that He made as very good. The Hebrew meaning for 'very' is 'mighty' or 'powerful'. Mighty and powerful God - mighty and powerful good!! There is nothing recorded that says He created sickness, disease, or death - or that He called it good - ever - for any reason.

In the garden, He told Adam that he could freely eat from any tree - but he should not eat from the tree of the 'knowledge of good and evil' - or he would surely die. Adam and Eve were tempted and deceived by the devil and ate from the tree. Their physical bodies did not die right then but their spirits died to God. In His infinite mercy, He put them out of the garden - so they wouldn't eat of the tree of life and live forever in their dead spirit condition. He really is good isn't He?!

Life going forward was cursed - and painful. All the while, God was preparing a way to rescue those who would believe. We know that God's plans for us are good. There is nothing good or prosperous about sickness and disease. There is no hope or future in an incurable illness. God is not torturing His children to teach them. He is a good Father - He is love.

The devil on the other hand is into stealing, killing, and destroying. He is the one who puts sickness on people. He is the one who is binding people up with lies, fear, pain, guilt, shame, condemnation, depression, all sickness and disease, and death.

All through scripture, sickness and disease is called evil. God is not evil - there is no evil in Him. The devil is evil - there is no good in him. Sickness is evil - it is oppression from the devil. It is also a result of sin. Sin is of the devil. It was never God's will for us to sin in the first place - and He made a way for us to be redeemed. We have been bought and paid for by the blood of His Son, Jesus Christ! Before Jesus bore the stripes and hung as a curse on the cross, defeating death and bringing back the keys; He walked on this earth doing good and healing all who were oppressed of the devil. That verifies that sickness is oppression from the devil. He told people their sins were forgiven and to go and sin no more after He healed them. That verifies that sin and sickness are related - that we need to repent of our sin and turn away from it - receiving forgiveness and healing. He asked people if they believed to be healed - and He couldn't do many miracles in His own town due to unbelief. He told people that their faith made them whole. That verifies that we need to believe and exercise our faith!!

Jesus came to destroy the works of the devil. He came to save us, heal us, and deliver us - to set the captives FREE! He came as man. He was tempted and tested and He showed us the way to walk and live victoriously. He had free will as a man - and He chose to only do His Father's will. He had a mind - and He chose to only meditate on His Father's will. He had a mouth - and He chose to only speak what His Father spoke. He walked in the Spirit - every single moment. Then, He bore the stripes and hung on the cross to take our sins, sickness, disease, and pain on Himself. He became our sin - and experienced the ultimate separation from Father God - so that we never have to. The finished work of the cross is not only for salvation - it is for our healing and deliverance the same. He redeemed us - paid the price for us - in full. He defeated death so that we could have eternal life.

Where did death come in? With sin. The wages of sin is death. Though believers live under the GRACE of GOD, the payment for sin remains the same. That is why Jesus came - to pay it! When we repent of our sin (turn away from it), and ask Jesus to be Lord of our lives; we are forgiven - past, present, and future. If it is true that we are forgiven - and it is - then it is also true that we are healed and delivered as well. God will not change. He loves us and it is not His will that any should perish. It is not God's will for us to be sick or suffer either. That is not part of His good plan for us. His plan is to prosper us - not to harm us! We do have some responsibility - to trust and obey Him.

Not one of us can say that we have never sinned or fallen short. Not one of us can escape sin that has been passed down from our fathers before us. Not one of us can protect our children from the effects of sin in this world. Not one of us can rely on being good and observing the law for protection. Bad things happen to good people - every day.

BUT, in JESUS, there is HOPE! SALVATION - HEALING - DELIVERANCE - FREEDOM - ALL BELONG TO US - IN CHRIST!

God performed all kinds of miracles through Moses and Pharoah was still stubborn and hard hearted. God supernaturally took care of the Israelites, His chosen ones, and they kept forgetting; murmuring and complaining - even with supernatural provision. Jesus performed miracles - as did His disciples - but they still had trouble with their own faith. These problems are still prevalent today - that is scary!

In today's world, many have received miracles! Some think it's neat - but many do not believe it is for them. Some get upset that they haven't seen a miracle and don't want anything to do with people who have. Some have seen what they KNOW is a miracle but refuse to give glory to God. MIRACLES should always bring GLORY to GOD! MIRACLES are still for today! GOD IS STILL ON HIS THRONE - and JESUS IS STILL SEATED AT HIS RIGHT HAND - and WE ARE STILL SEATED WITH HIM IN THE HEAVENLIES!!! BELIEVE.

AND RECEIVE!

As for praying for miracles to happen; we are to confess our sins (to each other and pray for each other) to be healed and forgive (others) to be forgiven (by God). The kids and I had read scripture medicine hundreds of times and I knew that it was important to forgive - but one day, the Lord made that truth come alive - and from that day forward, we stop to forgive and be forgiven every time we take God's medicine for ourselves - or pray for others to be healed.

Just tonight, the Lord reminded me that it is not His will that we carry worldly cares on our shoulders. He did not design us to do that. He wants us to cast all of our cares, anxiety, and stress on Him - because He cares for us. We MUST do that in order to have HIS PEACE! And there is nothing like the peace of God. I am so very thankful that He sees - He knows - and He delivers. Every time.