Restoration is Possible
I will restore health to you and heal you of all thy wounds saith the Lord.
Jeremiah 30:17
People think damage is final but restoration is possible. “If thou canst believe, all things are possible” (Mark 9:23). Jesus asked many people this question in one way or another. Do you believe that I can do it or you even believe? Jesus wanted the people to know that their current situation was not the final report. The lepers probably thought nothing could be done about their situation. The woman with an issue of blood had tried one thing after another, and it was no better. The man by the pool of Bethesda had lived with his disability for 38 years and couldn’t move fast enough to get into the water when the angel troubled the water. Someone always jumped in ahead of him and he missed out time after time. People had a variety of sicknesses and diseases that they were living with and needed a touch of restoration from the One who had the power to do it. Jesus continually reassured these desperate people, “if thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth.” Was that too big a jump of faith? Some walked away with the leprosy perfectly gone and others probably didn’t. IT IS JUST LIKE TODAY. All things are possible to him that can believe. If thou [you] can believe, all things are possible. What is beyond your wildest dream? Do you think the time limit has expired on your healing? Are you too old for that career that you should have prepared for years ago? Is it too late to get married? Many things may have sidetracked you for a long time, not just that you haven’t seen the healing you need. Back in the Old Testament times the farmers saw their crops shredded by a variety of bugs. Joel 2:25 says, “I will restore what the cankerworm has eaten.” To them it probably looked like nothing could be salvaged from the destruction on their fields. How could it be?
We look at things differently from what God sees things. Scripture says, “For man looketh at the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart” (I Samuel 16:7). Although this scripture referred to a person’s outward appearance and God was looking at a person’s heart, often times we focus on the outward circumstance and say that no way can anything be done about that now. Maybe we think it is too damaged, too sever, too much time has already gone by. When Jesus told people, “Only believe” He was telling them, “Expect Results.” Was that too much to ask? Have confidence in God’s ability to restore whatever needs restoring. Claim restoration and make a demand on the promises of God. First you have to know what the promises of God are. Take a look back at today’s text. Is that a promise you can claim and write your name on? Let’s review it again. “I will restore health unto you and I will heal you of all your wounds” (Jeremiah 30:17). Is this something you need and can claim for yourself? If so, this is a promise for you. Take it and say it out loud.
If you are not in the best of health today say, “I will restore health to you and I will heal you of all your wounds.” Make a demand on that promise and write your name in the margin your Bible. Nail it down as for you today. Don’t say, “Maybe he won’t do it for me or what if he doesn’t do it for me?” “Jesus is the same yesterday, today, nd forever,” (Hebrews 12:8). If Jesus was the same yesterday, what did he do for some very desperate people? If he is the same today, what can He can and will do for 21st century people. That means you and for me. Can he and will he restore us to health? We can take it at that. Grab on to the promises that are there waiting. Don’t let them be wasted. We waste too many of God’s promises by coming up with a lot of reasons why they are not for us.
Start to believe that life can and will get better for you. Psalm 91:16 says, “With long life I will satisfy him and show him my salvation.”
Another scripture tells us that we can be productive in even old age. Psalm 92:12-14 says, “But the godly will flourish like palm trees and grow strong like the cedars of Lebanon. For they are transplanted to the Lord’s own house. They flourish in the courts of our God. Even in old age they will sill produce fruit, and they will remain vital and green. They will declare, “The lord is just! He is my rock! There is no evil in Him!”
The restoration that the Lord brings us may happen all at once or gradually over a period of time. One time I was on vacation and stepped out of the motor home and twisted my ankle. It hurt for weeks and finally I went to have it x-rayed but nothing showed up even though it continued to hurt. One day when working t the Christian school the other teachers laid hands on me and prayed for my ankle. It still hurt the rest of the day as if nothing had changed, but about 10:00 that night I realized that my ankle was no longer hurting and to this day it still does not hurt.
On the other hand my shoulder was hurting so bad that I had a very difficult time putting my coat on. I went to therapy, and doctors to no avail. Months went by and nothing improved in spite of prayer and doing everything I knew to do. One day the doctor asked, “What is your pain level” and I said a 3. He couldn’t believe it was that low, but in a short time later it had dropped to zero. Why did the restoration take so long? I don’t know but it did and to this day the pain in my shoulder has not returned. The power of God is working in us to drive out sickness and disease. Maybe it is imparted to us through the laying on of hands by the people who prayed for my ankle or by some other means. The working of His power is not always visible to our eyes but he said “I will restore health to thee and heal all thy wounds/”
A scripture in Habakkuk 2:3 says, “for the vision is yet for an appointed time; but it hastens to the end, and shall not lie; though it tarry, wait for it: for it will surely come, and will not tarry.”
The restoration of the Lord is worth waiting on for we know His promises are true.
