Healing 7 December 2, 2012
A Medical science already has established that much of our sickness begins in our mind.
1 Our mental state many times determines our level of physical health.
a Depression, anxiety, worry, stress.
b Add to that the operation of demonic spirits on one’s mental state, and it is clear that mental oppression is a great need in healing ministry.
2 Demonic spirits can plant thoughts, tempt, oppress, and depress believers.
a Also, bring physical infirmity upon believers.
b Jesus ministry to the those who were demonically affected was called healing.
aa 38 "You know of Jesus of Nazareth, how God anointed Him with the Holy Spirit and with power, and how He went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him. Acts 10:38 (NASB)
bb Jesus healed those who were suffering/oppressed by demonic powers.
B The N.T. is littered with people who battled oppression.
1 22 Then a demon-possessed man who was blind and mute was brought to Jesus , and He healed him, so that the mute man spoke and saw.23 All the crowds were amazed, and were saying, "This man cannot be the Son of David, can he?"24 But when the Pharisees heard this, they said, "This man casts out demons only by Beelzebul the ruler of the demons."25 And knowing their thoughts Jesus said to them, "Any kingdom divided against itself is laid waste; and any city or house divided against itself will not stand.26 "If Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself; how then will his kingdom stand?27 "If I by Beelzebul cast out demons, by whom do your sons cast them out? For this reason they will be your judges. Matt 12:22-27 (NASB)
(One had lost sight & speech)
a 14 When they came to the crowd, a man came up to Jesus, falling on his knees before Him and saying,15 "Lord , have mercy on my son, for he is a lunatic and is very ill; for he often falls into the fire and often into the water.16 "I brought him to Your disciples, and they could not cure him."17 And Jesus answered and said, "You unbelieving and perverted generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I put up with you? Bring him here to Me."18 And Jesus rebuked him, and the demon came out of him, and the boy was cured at once.19 Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, "Why could we not drive it out?"20 And He said* to them, "Because of the littleness of your faith; for truly I say to you, if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move; and nothing will be impossible to you.21 ["But this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting."] Matt 17:14-21 (NASB)
Suicidal young person.
b 10 And He was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sabbath.11 And there was a woman who for eighteen years had had a sickness caused by a spirit; and she was bent double, and could not straighten up at all.12 When Jesus saw her, He called her over and said to her, "Woman, you are freed from your sickness."13 And He laid His hands on her; and immediately she was made erect again and began glorifying God.14 But the synagogue official, indignant because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath, began saying to the crowd in response, "There are six days in which work should be done; so come during them and get healed, and not on the Sabbath day."15 But the Lord answered him and said, "You hypocrites, does not each of you on the Sabbath untie his ox or his donkey from the stall and lead him away to water him? 16 "And this woman, a daughter of Abraham as she is, whom Satan has bound for eighteen long years, should she not have been released from this bond on the Sabbath day?"17 As He said this, all His opponents were being humiliated; and the entire crowd was rejoicing over all the glorious things being done by Him. Luke 13:10-17 (NASB)
bowed back for decades. Cause? Demonic spirit.
2 They all received their healing by evicting the demon that was causing the sickness!
a 1 They came to the other side of the sea, into the country of the Gerasenes.2 When He got out of the boat, immediately a man from the tombs with an unclean spirit met Him,3 and he had his dwelling among the tombs. And no one was able to bind him anymore, even with a chain;4 because he had often been bound with shackles and chains, and the chains had been torn apart by him and the shackles broken in pieces, and no one was strong enough to subdue him.5 Constantly, night and day, he was screaming among the tombs and in the mountains, and gashing himself with stones.6 Seeing Jesus from a distance, he ran up and bowed down before Him;7 and shouting with a loud voice, he said* , "What business do we have with each other, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I implore You by God, do not torment me!"8 For He had been saying to him, "Come out of the man, you unclean spirit!"9 And He was asking him, "What is your name?" And he said* to Him, "My name is Legion; for we are many."10 And he began to implore Him earnestly not to send them out of the country.11 Now there was a large herd of swine feeding nearby on the mountain.12 The demons implored Him, saying, "Send us into the swine so that we may enter them."13 Jesus gave them permission. And coming out, the unclean spirits entered the swine; and the herd rushed down the steep bank into the sea, about two thousand of them; and they were drowned in the sea. 14 Their herdsmen ran away and reported it in the city and in the country. And the people came to see what it was that had happened.15 They came* to Jesus and observed* the man who had been demon-possessed sitting down, clothed and in his right mind, the very man who had had the "legion"; and they became frightened.16 Those who had seen it described to them how it had happened to the demon-possessed man, and all about the swine.17 And they began to implore Him to leave their region.18 As He was getting into the boat, the man who had been demon-possessed was imploring Him that he might accompany Him.19 And He did not let him, but He said* to him, "Go home to your people and report to them what great things the Lord has done for you, and how He had mercy on you."20 And he went away and began to proclaim in Decapolis what great things Jesus had done for him; and everyone was amazed. Mark 5:1-20 (NASB)
(We’d label him “insane”)
b The demons had made this man’s life unbearable, unlivable, sick.
aa He lost all self-control, lived in agony/rage.
bb Cuts himself (He doesn’t like himself)
cc Danger to himself & others (locked away from everyone else)
dd Lost all sense of decency (running around naked)
c We’ll raise our eyebrows at the man’s nakedness yet laugh at . . .
aa Young college women in a wet T-shirt contest?
bb The pornography industry is full of demonized people.
C What can be done to help those who are habitations of demonic activity?
1 They must meet Jesus!
a Healing for those who are demonically affected must begin with deliverance.
b You can counsel and counsel but you can not “counsel” out that which must be cast out.
aa These poor souls need others to help pray them through to freedom.
bb Need someone who isn’t afraid of spiritual warfare, getting their hands dirty.
2 When Jesus was finished with this man he was dressed, in his right mind, ready to go home!
a The church must embrace deliverance as a means of healing today.
b The devil still oppresses, depresses, posses.
aa Live in bondage, chains, shackles.
bb They could be living in freedom if we would walk them through this need of deliverance in their lives.
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