Do You Believe in Miracles?
2 Kings 5:1-19
The World Book Dictionary defines a miracle as “A wonderful happening that is contrary to or independent of the known laws of nature.”
When it comes to believing in miracles we tend to be skeptical. We hear about someone being healed and we want to see the evidence and even after seeing the healing we have our doubts.
There is a mystery about healing. Why are some people healed and others not healed?
There are many hindrances and obstacles we have to overcome to believe in miracles.
I. Obstacles to Belief in Miracles
There are many obstacles to miracles. After Jesus rose from the dead and appeared to the eleven disciples with Thomas being absent Thomas said he would not believe unless he personally saw Jesus. Later Jesus appeared to Thomas and he believed.
Miracles are denied. The miracles in the Bible are denied as being stories to illustrate a truth. Some say the healing stories are fables to teach a spiritual truth, they did not actually happen.
The days of miracles had a beginning and ending point. Some say miracles did happen in Old Testament times and during the time of Jesus and the Apostles, but do not happen now.
Miracles are only occasional. Others say miracles do happen but they are rare. God does heal but only on rare occasions.
The Biblical view is that it is God’s will for people to be well. The opposite view is that it is God’s will for people to be sick. As parents, it is your desire for your children to be healthy. God is our heavenly Father and it’s His will for his children to be healthy.
If it’s God’s will for people to be healthy, why then are so many people sick? We’ll explore that question later.
2 Kings 5:1-19 we have the story of Naaman the mighty commander of the Aramean army. Naaman had leprosy, a contagious skin disease.
The Aramean army under the leadership of Naaman had invaded Israel and taken a number of captives. One of the young girls had been given to Naaman’s wife to serve as her maid. The young girl told Naaman’s wife that if Naaman would go see the prophet in Samaria he would be healed of his leprosy.
Naaman’s wife told Naaman what the young girl had said. With that information Naaman asked the king for permission to go visit the prophet. He took with him $20,000 in silver, $60,000 in gold and 10 suits of clothes as gifts.
The King of Aram sent a letter with Naaman to present to the King of Israel. The letter stated: “With this letter I present my servant Naaman, I want you to heal him of his leprosy.” 2 Kings 5:6
The King of Israel was all upset and tore his clothes in dismay. He probably wished he could heal Naaman when he saw the large bags of silver and gold and suits of clothing. The King of Israel cried out: “Am I God that I can kill and give life? He is only trying to find an excuse to invade us again.” 2 Kings 5:7
2 Kings 5:9-14 When the prophet Elisha heard of the king’s reaction he sent word to the king to have Naaman come to him and learn that “there is a true prophet in Israel.” The only god that Naaman knew about was the Syrian god, Baal-zebul. So Naaman went with his entourage of horses and chariots and waited at the door of Elisha’s house. The prophet, Elisha, sent out his messenger Gehazi to tell Naaman, “Go and wash your- self seven times in the Jordan River. Then your skin will be restored, and you will be healed of leprosy.” 2 Kings 5:10
Naaman was enraged at the idea of going into the Jordan River. He could have washed in the sacred rivers in Damascus. He thought that the prophet Elisha would come out and personally wave his hand over him and perform his healing by calling on the name of the Lord. Naaman was offended and rode off in a rage.
His officer reasoned with Naaman, “Sir, if the prophet told you to do some great thing, wouldn’t you have done it? So you should certainly obey him when he says simply to go and wash and be cured!” So, Naaman went down to the Jordan River and dipped himself seven times, as the man of God had instructed him. And his flesh became as healthy as a young child’s and he was healed!” 2 Kings 5:13-14
In Naaman we see a great hindrance to healing, lack of humility. Naaman saw himself as a person of importance. Dipping in the Jordan River was beneath his self pride. He reluctantly obeyed, and humbled himself and dipped seven times in the Jordan River and was healed. He then believed that the God of Israel, the God of creation was the only God.
Naaman’s humility and obedience coupled to faith in the prophet’s word resulted in his healing.
There are hindrances and obstacles to healing, but we know that throughout the Bible, miracles of healing took place.
II. Miracles of in the Bible
Someone has counted that Moses was involved in 32 miracles and Elisha was involved in 23 miracles in the Old Testament. In the New Testament there were 46 miracles by Jesus and a total of 226 by all the disciples.
Jesus often backed up his teachings with signs and wonders. He said he was and bread of life and fed 5,000 men plus women and children from a few loaves of bread and a few fish.
Jesus said he was the “Light of the World” and then gave sight to a man who had been born blind.
When Jesus healed the man born blind in John 9, he clarified a question the disciples had, “Why was this man born blind? Was it a result of his own sins or those of his parents?” Jesus said the his blindness was neither the result of his own sin or his parents.
It’s cruel to tell a person who is sick or afflicted with a disease that their sin caused their problem. In many cases a person who is living a godly life gets sick. In other cases a person’s lifestyle does contribute to that person’s physical problems.
It’s also a false assumption to believe the reason you are sick is because God wants to teach you a lesson. To believe that way is to think that everything bad that happens to you is from the hand of God.
The Bible teaches that sickness is the result of the fall of humanity. Disease and destruction are the work of the devil, and Jesus came to destroy the devil’s work. The devil, not God, is responsible for making people sick.
Acts 10:38 “And no doubt you know that God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. Then Jesus went around doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him.”
The result of the fall of humanity in Genesis is the fact that eventually we all will die. As long as we have life Jesus wants us to be well. Jesus continues to go about doing good and healing all who are sick and oppressed by the devil.
On one occasion Jesus healed after first forgiving the sins of the person. When the four men carried a paralyzed man to Jesus in Mark 2:5, Jesus said to the paralyzed man, “My son, yours sins are forgiven.” The teachers of the law complained that what Jesus did was blasphemy. “Who but God can forgive sins!” verse 7.
Jesus said, “I will prove that I, the Son of Man, have the authority on earth to forgive sins.” Then Jesus turned to the paralyzed man and said, “Stand up, take your mat, and go on home, because you are healed!” The man jumped up, took the mat, and pushed his way through the stunned onlookers.” Mark 2:10-12 Jesus put the highest priority on spiritual healing and second priority on physical healing.
It’s helpful to understand the difference between faith and presumption. Faith is the confidence God will do what He said He will do. Faith is the attitude that God still heals today. Presumption is the view that God will do what we want Him to do.
Presumption is claiming God’s promise of healing in the face of our own repeated poor choices or unhealthy lifestyles. It’s presumptuous to abuse our bodies and then claim healing from the Lord. When you honor God with your body, then it is not presumptuous to claim healing power over disease.
The Bible also warns against seeking healing from the wrong sources. The Bible warns against fortune telling, witchcraft, divination (foretelling the future with signs and omens) mediums, (those who try to contact the dead) communicating with spirits, astrology (horoscopes) as a guide for life. Deuteronomy 18:10-12.
Miracles are under God’s control and affirm the Lordship of Christ. Magic and fortune telling are under man’s control seeking guidance from evil spirits.
In Psalm 103:1-5 David sings out in praise to God’s healing power. “He forgives all my sins and heals all my diseases.”
Matthew 9:35, “Jesus traveled through all the cities and villages of that area, teaching in the synagogues and announcing the Good News about the Kingdom. And wherever he went, he healed people of every sort of disease and illness.” 10:1 “Jesus called his twelve disciples to him and gave them authority to cast out evil spirits and to heal every kind of disease and illness.”
Miracles of healing were a vital part of both the ministry of Jesus and his disciples.
The fact that healing happened in Biblical times brings us to the question:
III. Are Miracles Possible Today?
James Garlow, pastor of the Skyline Wesleyan Church in San Diego tells of his experience of praying for the sick in his book, “God Still Heals.”
Before going to San Diego as pastor James Garlow served a church in the Dallas-Ft. Worth area. As he studied the scriptures he came to believe that Jesus wanted to heal the sick so he began praying for the sick on a regular basis. For a span of six months he said nearly every person he prayed for got sicker. He began to think sick people started running away from him.
One person said, “Jim, so-and-so is in the hospital, but please don’t come—we know you’ll pray them straight through the Pearly Gates.
One day a lady in the church asked Pastor Jim to come to the hospital and visit her dad. He went to the hospital and saw her dad. He was in his nineties. His teeth were gone, his body was shriveled, and tubes were attached to his body. The man had not spoken for several days. The Pastor thought, this man doesn’t stand a chance with me in this room and my prayer for healing.
He turned to the daughter and asked: “How do you want me to pray?” She said, “Just pray that he will go on home to be with the Lord.”
Pastor Jim thought, “Yes! This is my specialty, my gift to the body of Christ!” He prayed, “Oh Lord, take this brother home!” He thought that at that exact moment the man would die. He looked at the man and the man looked right back at the Pastor. He was still very much alive. As he left he asked the daughter to give him a call when something happens.
The next morning at 7:00 a.m. the phone rang and it was the daughter. When the pastor heard her voice he began thinking about funeral arrangements. She said, “You won’t believe what happened. My dad sat up in bed and called me by name!”
Many of you may have experienced God’s healing and you can testify that God continues to heal today. Diane Dobbins experienced God’s miracle of healing in her life. Diane is not here today so her husband Rick is going to tell about how God worked a miracle in her life.
#Diane Dobbins testimony – immobilized by rheumatoid arthritis and received divine healing when anointed with oil and prayed for by elders in the church according to James 5:13-16.
Others of you have recently experienced God healing touch: Linda Ramarez experienced healing of colon cancer. Steve DeTata experienced healing of stomach cancer.
All healing is from the Lord. God uses medicine, chemotherapy, radiation, diet and many ways to heal. E. Stanley Jones, a missionary statesman gives 7 ways God heals:
1. God heals through surgeons and operations.
2. God heals through physicians and medicine.
3. God heals through climate.
4. God heals through delivering a person from fear, loneliness, self-centeredness, purposelessness, resentments, and guilt that may produce sickness.
5. God can heal through a transformation of a person’s mental attitude. Proverbs 23:7 says, “As a person thinks in his heart so he becomes.”
6. God heals through the direct operation of the Spirit of God upon the body. There is no nerve or tissue beyond the healing touch of the Master.
7. God heals through the final cure – the resurrection of the Body.
Several years ago my daughter Annette told me that she had received healing from words that a school teacher had said to her in the fifth grade. The teacher told her that she was dumb and could not learn anything. That putdown had eaten away at her for many years. She prayed specifically for that hurtful memory and received healing from the Lord.
Un-confessed sin and not willing to forgive build up a wall to healing. Forgiveness is like a wrecking ball. Forgiveness breaks down the barrier so the Holy Spirit can work. There are two steps in finding forgiveness: the first is to receive forgiveness and the second is to give forgiveness. Inner healing often precedes physical healing.
## Several years ago the Guideposts magazine told the testimony of Marion Burgio, a mother forty years old with three children and a newly adopted two-year-old baby.
One morning her husband had to leave early for work. When she got out of bed to stand on her legs they gave way. She fell to the floor and her legs and arms were partially paralyzed. Marion and her newly adopted two-year old were the only ones left in the house.
A friend stopped by five hours later and called Marion’s husband. Her husband took her to the doctor and in the doctor’s office heard the shocking news: “Multiple Sclerosis.” For 13 years Marion had to be cared for by her husband and family.
A friend encouraged her to go to a healing service with her. Marion said she didn’t believe in that sort of thing, but consented to have her friend pray for her. As her friend prayed for her Marion said she could hear choir music in her head. The music was beautiful through she didn’t know the name of the song.
Marion was in and out of the hospital. She prayed to die because the pain was so intense. In desperation her husband pleaded with her to go to the healing service. Marion finally consented to go but doubted anything would happen.
Her husband wheeled her into the healing service and Marion noticed one thing present on faces of all the people present, HOPE.
The choir began to sing and Marion turned to her husband and said, “That’s the song I heard before – what’s the name of it?” He turned and asked the woman standing next to him, and she said, “How Great Thou Art.” At that moment Marion’s body was touched with the healing hand of God and in a matter of seconds her crippled body was made whole. Jesus touched her and she rose up out of her wheel chair and walked.
Later that week her doctor of 13 years examined her and couldn’t believe his eyes- her x-ray revealed no damage, she was fine.
We are going to have a time of prayer for healing. Before we do I want to review several healing steps:
1. We need to focus on the Lord and the goodness of God. Psalm 46:10, “Be still and know that I am God.” Isaiah 30:15, “For thus says the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel: ‘In returning and rest you shall be saved; in quietness and confidence shall be your strength.”
2. Make confession and forgiveness.
a. I John 1:9
b. Matthew 5:8 “Blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God.”
3. Make your prayer specific. State what the great need is.
4. Pray with expectant faith. Hebrews 11:1-2 “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.”
5. Pray in the name of Jesus and surrender totally to the Lord. Affirm that God wants you to be healthy.
6. Act in faith by praying, “Lord, I thank You for hearing my prayer.”
Often our healing is not instantaneous but happens over a period of time.
This morning we are going to claim James 5:13-16, “Are any among you suffering? They should keep on praying about it. And those who have reason to be thankful should continually sing praises to the Lord. Are any among you sick? They should call for the elders of the church and have them pray over them, anointing them with oil in the name of the Lord. And their prayer offered in faith will heal the sick, and the Lord will make them well. And anyone who has committed sins will be forgiven.”
I’m going to ask the Lay Ministers and any other ordained ministers to come and join me in laying hands on any that want specific healing prayer. I’ll ask you to quietly tell me what you want healing prayer for and then I will anoint you with oil and pray for the healing touch of Christ to give you healing.
Those who want special prayers for healing come forward and kneel at the altar.
