THE CHURCH IS THE ONLY HOSPITAL WHERE YOU CAN GO IN SICK AND COME OUT THE DOCTOR! JESUS DID NOT HEAL PEOPLE TO PROVE THAT HE WAS GOD. JESUS HEALED PEOPLE BECAUSE HE IS GOD!
WE, AS A CHURCH, HAVE A CRUCIAL NEED TO RETURN TO THE VISION OF THE GOD REVEALED IN AND BY JESUS CHRIST. PEOPLE NEED TO RETURN BACK TO THE TENDER, LOVING, MERCIFUL AND COMPASSIONATE GOD WHO CAN RAISE THEM UP AND MAKE THEM WHOLE WHEREVER THEY HAVE BEEN CAST DOWN BY A WORLD THAT IS FILLED WITH EVIL.
A GOD WHERE WE CAN ENTER INTO HIS PRESENCE KNOWING THAT REGARDLESS IF WE HAVE SINNED AND NEED FORGIVENESS, OR HAVE BECOME SICK AND NEED PHYSICAL HEALING WE CAN BOLDLY APPROACH HIS THRONE.
REJOICE TODAY KNOWING THAT EVEN NOW THE KINGDOM OF GOD IS AMONG US, SAVING AND HEALING US WHILE DESTROYING THE KINGDOM OF SATAN.
SO, IF JESUS COMES TO SAVE AND TO HEAL, WHAT IS IT THAT HE SAVES AND HEALS? SOME ONLY THINK OF JESUS AS AN EVANGELIST AND THAT HE ONLY CAME TO SAVE SOULS.
YES, THAT IS PARTIALLY TRUE BECAUSE HE DID COME TO SAVE SOULS AND TO ALSO TAKE AWAY SIN WHICH IS THE SICKNESS THAT PLAGUES OUR SOULS.
BUT, THAT WASN’T THE ONLY REASON HE CAME. I HAVE NEVER BEEN MORE CERTAIN THAN NOW THAT CHRIST HAD THE DESIRE TO HEAL THE SICKNESS OF THE BODY AS WELL.
EVERY TIME A PHYSICALLY SICK PERSON CAME TO JESUS IN FAITH, HE HEALED THAT PERSON. JESUS NEVER DIVIDED HUMAN BEINGS INTO A SOUL TO BE SAVED AND HEALED AND A BODY THAT, BECAUSE OF SIN, SHOULD SUFFER AND REMAIN UNHEALED UNTIL THEY REACH "PERFECTION" IN THE NEXT LIFE FOLLOWING THEIR RESURRECTION.
NOWHERE IN THE GOSPELS DO WE SEE JESUS ENCOURAGING THE SICK TO PATIENTLY ENDURE THEIR ILLNESS. INSTEAD, WE SEE JESUS TREATING SICKNESS AS A DISPLAY OF THE KINGDOM OF SATAN WHICH HE HAS COME TO DESTROY.
THIS IS WHY EVERYTIME JESUS CONFRONTED INFIRMITIES OF BOTH BODY AND SOUL HE TREATED THEM AS EVIL AND AS AN ENEMY TO HIS CREATION. POINT BLANK: JESUS CHRIST CAME TO SAVE HUMAN BEINGS - BODY AND SOUL.
JESUS HEALED THOSE WHOSE SPIRITS WERE SICK AND NEEDED DELIVERANCE OR FORGIVENESS. JESUS ALSO HEALED THOSE WHOSE BODIES WERE LAME, BLIND, AND LEPROUS.
IN FACT, THERE ARE MANY MORE ACCOUNTS OF HOW HE HEALED THE PHYSICALLY SICK THAN HOW HE FORGAVE SINS. JESUS CAME TO HELP THE SUFFERING IN WHATEVER WAY THEY WERE SUFFERING.
LET’S TAKE A LOOK AT OUR SCRIPTURE TEXT AND SEE WHAT WE CAN DO WHEN WE ARE SICK NOT ONLY PHYSICALLY, BUT SPIRITUALLY AND NEED HEALING.
ALL FORMS OF SICKNESSES ARE CIRCUMSTANCES WHERE PRAYER IS REQUIRED. JAMES GIVES DETAILED INSTRUCTIONS ON THESE PRAYERS BY FIRST ASKING IN VERSE 13, IS ANY ONE OF YOU SUFFERING? AGAIN IN VERSE 14 IT IS ASKED ARE ANY AMONG YOU SICK?
THE REASON I POINT THESE TWO PHRASES OUT IS DUE TO THEIR SIGNIFICANCE FOR US TODAY. THE GREEK WORD FOR SUFFERING IS "ASTHENEI" WHICH LITERALLY MEANS TO BE WEAK.
THE GREEK WORD FOR SICK IS "KAMNONTA" WHICH IS TRANSLATED AS TO BE WEARY. BOTH WORDS REFER TO BEING WEAK AND WEARY WHICH CAN MEAN FOR BODY OR SOUL.
JAMES WAS NOT JUST REFERRING TO THE BEDFAST, THE DISEASED, OR THE ILL. JAMES TOOK GREAT CARE IN CHOOSING HIS WORDS SO THAT THEY WOULD SPECIFICALLY INCLUDE THOSE WHO HAD GROWN WEARY, WHO HAD BECOME WEAK BOTH MORALLY AND SPIRITUALLY IN THEIR SUFFERING.
THESE ARE THE PEOPLE WHO WERE TO CALL FOR THE HELP OF THE ELDERS OF THE CHURCH. THE GREEK WORD FOR ELDER CAN BE INTERPRETED AS A DELEGATION OF CHURCH REPRESENTATIVES. ELDER DOES NOT REFER TO AGE BUT TO THOSE OF SPIRITUAL COMPETENCE.
ONCE THE ELDERS HAVE BEEN SUMMONED, JAMES SAYS THAT THEY SHOULD PRAY OVER THE PERSON AND ANOINT THEM WITH OIL. THIS ACT ALSO TAKES ON SIGNIFICANCE!
THE GREEK WORD ANOINT IS "ALEIPSANTES" (A-LAIP-SAN-TESS) WHICH MEANS RUB WITH OIL. SO WHAT’S THE BIG DEAL ABOUT THAT? WELL, MOST REFERENCES TO "ANOINT" USE A DIFFERENT GREEK WORD. THAT WORD IS "CHRIO" (CRY-O) WHICH MEANS "CEREMONIALLY ANOINT."
JAMES CHOSE TO USE THE WORD THAT MEANS "RUB WITH OIL" BECAUSE THE ANOINTING OF THE SICK WAS NOT TO BE AS A "CEREMONY" OR DONE AS A WAY TO FORCE GOD’S DIVINE HEALING TO TAKE PLACE.
INSTEAD, JAMES IS CHOSE THE WORD THAT REFERS TO THE COMMON PRACTICE OF USING OIL AS A MEANS OF BESTOWING HONOR, REFRESHMENT, AND GROOMING.
JAMES MAKES THE POINT THAT THE WEAK AND WEARY WOULD BE REFRESHED, ENCOURAGED AND UPLIFTED BY THE ELDERS OF THE CHURCH WHO WOULD PRAY FOR THEM AND RUB OIL ON THE HEADS OF ALL WHO WERE CAST DOWN AND BURDENED OR SICK.
BUT THERE IS STILL ONE THING WE CANNOT OVERLOOK IN THIS WHOLE PROCESS. WHEN THE ELDERS ANOINTED AND PRAYED OVER THE SICK THE WERE TO DO THESE THINGS IN THE NAME OF THE LORD.
THE IMPORTANCE OF PRAYING IN THE NAME OF THE LORD WAS TO SIGNIFY THAT GOD IS THE SOURCE FOR ANY HEALING THAT TAKES PLACE. IT IS ALSO A TESTIMONY OF FAITH THAT NOTHING IS BEING DONE BY HUMAN EFFORT.
THIS IS WHY WE MUST STOP TRYING TO DO THINGS OURSELVES. WHENEVER WE TRY TO DO THINGS OURSELVES WE EVENTUALLY PUSH GOD OUT OF THE PICTURE AND USE HIM EXCLUSIVELY FOR BAILING US OUT WHEN ALL ELSE FAILS.
ALLOWING JESUS CHRIST TO HEAL US PHYSICALLY AND SPIRITUALLY WE MUST REALIZE THAT HEALING IS THE MOST CONVINCING DEMONSTRATION TO UNSAVED PEOPLE THAT GOD IS STILL WITH US AND THAT HE IS NOT "OUT THERE" BEYOND THE REACH OF HUMAN COMPASSION.
THE KEY WORD IS "ALLOWING" JESUS CHRIST TO HEAL US! WE HAVE TO ASK OURSELVES A TOUGH QUESTION OF DO WE REALLY WANT TO BE HEALED?
DO WE WANT TO BE COMPLETELY HEALED PHYSICALLY OR DO WE JUST WANT GOD TAKE THE SYMPTOMS AWAY? DO WE WANT TO BE COMPLETELY HEALED SPIRITUALLY OR DO WE JUST WANT TO BE RELIEVED OF THE CONSEQUENCES AND THE GUILT OF OUR SINS?
ONE THING WE CAN KNOW FOR SURE TODAY IS THAT JESUS CHRIST WANTS YOU TO BE COMPLETELY MADE WHOLE AGAIN! WE SHOULD NEVER HESITATE TO ASK SUCH A REQUEST!
WHAT MATTERS IS THAT GOD LOVES US SO MUCH THAT HE WILL ALWAYS HEAR THIS PRAYER. HE WILL ALWAYS HEAR AND ANSWER THESE PRAYERS.
SOMETIMES IN UNEXPECTED WAYS THROUGH MIRACLES, SOMETIMES BY DEFERRING AN ANSWER, OR EVEN THROUGH DEATH. WHATEVER WAY GOD CHOOSES TO ANSWER THE FACT OF THE MATTER IS GOD ALWAYS ANSWERS! GOD LOVES US THAT MUCH.
OUR FIRST STEP WE CAN TAKE IN RE-THINKING THE REALM OF HEALING IS TO SIMPLY CONCENTRATE ON THIS DEPTH OF LOVE THAT GOD HAS FOR US.
SPEND TIME THIS WEEK CONCENTRATING ON THE LOVE OF GOD MADE VISIBLE IN JESUS CHRIST FROM WHICH FLOWS GOD’S HEALING POWER.
THE MORE WE ARE CENTERED ON JESUS CHRIST, THE LESS DESIRE WE WILL HAVE TO STRIVE FOR HUMAN RESULTS AND THE LESS ANXIOUS WE WILL BE AND THE MORE PEACEFUL WE WILL BECOME.
YOU WILL FIND IT EVEN EASIER TO BE YOURSELF WHEN YOU THINK ABOUT GOD’S LOVE FOR YOU THROUGH CHRIST. YOU WILL FIND THAT YOU DON’T HAVE TO RAISE YOUR VOICE WITH GOD OR WORRY IF HE EVEN HEARS YOU.
TO PUT IT IN PLAIN, SIMPLE ENGLISH: I CAN BE MYSELF IN APPROACHING GOD FOR HEALING BECAUSE HEALING IS NOT SO MUCH A TEST OF MY FAITH AS IT IS THE NATURAL RESPONSE TO GOD’S GENEROUS LOVE!
IN OTHER WORDS, IT IS IMPORTANT FOR US TO TAKE GOD SERIOUSLY AND TO TAKE OURSELVES LESS SERIOUSLY WHEN IT COMES TO HEALING!
OUR SECOND STEP WE CAN TAKE IN RE-THINKING THE REALM OF HEALING IS TO CLAIM YOUR HEALING TODAY WHETHER IT BE OF BODY OR OF SPIRIT. REMEMBER THAT JESUS CAME TO SAVE OUR SOULS AND TO HEAL OUR BODIES.
THEREFORE, WE SHOULD ACCEPT THE FACT THAT GOD WANTS US HEALED. EVERY TIME JESUS MET WITH ANYTHING FROM THE SPIRITUAL OR PHYSICAL REALMS OF EVIL, HE TREATED IT AS THE ENEMY.
WE NEED TO TREAT OUR INFIRMITIES THIS WAY TOO! IT’S TIME FOR CHRISTIANS TO STOP THINKING THAT SOMEHOW THEIR SICKNESSES OF BODY AND SOUL IS THE CROSS GOD GAVE THEM TO BEAR IN LIFE AS A WAY TO HELP THEM GROW SPIRITUALLY. THIS IS NOT ONLY BARBARIC, BUT WRONG!
LET US LEAVE HERE TODAY WITH THE GOOD NEWS THAT GOD NEVER CALLED YOU TO CARRY ANY SUCH CROSS. THE ONLY CROSS YOU MUST CARRY IS THAT OF JESUS CHRIST!
THE CROSS THAT JESUS CARRIED WAS THE CROSS OF PERSECUTION, THE KIND OF SUFFERING THAT COMES FROM OUTSIDE THE BODY BECAUSE OF THE WICKEDNESS OF OTHERS WHO ARE EVIL AND BENT ON DESTRUCTION.
JESUS SUFFERED DEEPLY WITHIN HIMSELF, BUT THE SOURCE OF HIS ANGUISH WAS OUTSIDE HIMSELF. JESUS WEPT OVER JERUSALEM; HE WAS REVILED AND MOCKED; HE WAS NAILED TO THE CROSS AND DIED. OUTER SUFFERINGS!
THE SUFFERING JESUS WANTS US TO ASK HIM TO TAKE AWAY WAS THAT OF SICKNESS, SUFFERINGS, AND INFIRMITIES THAT TEAR US APART INTERNALLY. THOSE THINGS THAT ARE WITHIN US PHYSICALLY, EMOTIONALLY AND MORALLY.
JESUS DID NOT HEAL PEOPLE TO PROVE THAT HE WAS GOD. JESUS HEALED PEOPLE BECAUSE HE IS GOD! RETURN TO THE VISION OF THE GOD REVEALED IN AND BY JESUS CHRIST.
RETURN BACK TO THE TENDER, LOVING, MERCIFUL AND COMPASSIONATE GOD WHO CAN RAISE YOU UP AND MAKE YOU WHOLE WHEREVER YOU HAVE BEEN CAST DOWN BY A WORLD THAT IS FILLED WITH EVIL. WHOLENESS IS HOLINESS!
