Category: Healing

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Ten Keys to Faith in Jesus (1)

Jesus said many crazy things, but this is right up there: I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father (John 14:12).

How could we possibly do what he did, never mind even greater things? Surely, he was exaggerating? No. He began with I tell you the truth. He meant it.

Like all his promises, it’s conditional upon faith in Jesus. When we set out to do what he did, we must trust (have faith) in these ten things.

Faith in his love

Jesus healed because he loved people and hated sickness. The Lord mourns over the suffering of his people. “Since my people are crushed, I am crushed,” he cries in Jeremiah 8:21.  When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them and healed their sick (Matthew 14:14).

Compassion was his motive and must be ours. We must know that he loves them and wants them whole. Any less is compromise.

Faith in his Sacrifice

The cross of Christ is the fulcrum of history. All healing, salvation, deliverance, and restoration are paid for on the cross. Evangelist Reinhard Bonnke called it the most righteous claim on earth—the will of God, paid for by the Son of God.

He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed (1 Peter 2:24).

Past tense. Do we believe it?

Faith in his Word

At a moment of crisis, the Lord told Bonnke that God’s word in Reinhard’s mouth was as powerful as God’s word in his own mouth.

When Jesus went to heal the centurion’s servant, the centurion said, “Just say the word.” When a royal official came to him, Jesus said, “Your son will live” (John 4:50). The official took Jesus at his word. That’s the key!

Faith in his power

God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and power, and … he went around doing good and healing all who were under the power of the devil, because God was with him (Acts 10:38).

The same power that raised Jesus from the dead lives in us. Jesus healed because he was anointed with the Holy Spirit. If we are filled with the Spirit, we have the SAME POWER available. If we believe.

Faith in his example

If we are his disciples, we should emulate his ministry, message, and methods. Jesus said, I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you (John 13:15). He is our pattern. He commanded us to follow him. To follow means:

  • Let him go first
  • Stay close
  • Watch and listen
  • Copy

The other five keys next week!

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The Four Spiritual Earplugs

Or why we sometimes don’t hear God.

We blame the donkey, but in the story of Balaam and the Ass (Numbers 22), it was Balaam who wasn’t listening. The donkey knew all along. God speaks even through donkeys, which gives me great comfort.

The Pride Earplug

Nineteen times the Lord calls his people stiff-necked. “Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as you did in the rebellion” (Hebrews 3:15). When we know best, we dismiss alternatives.

The Mindset Earplug

Jesus continually warned his disciples of his death. They couldn’t get it, because his words didn’t fit their image of a Savior. When I first witnessed a withered arm grow, in ten seconds, I thought it was a fake. Miracles trash people’s mindsets. I had to find another worldview.

The Distraction Earplug

Mary sat at Jesus’ feet while Martha got dinner. Her distraction wasn’t the meal, but her attitude—frustration at her sister’s behavior. Anger, judging others, and jealousy put fingers in our ears.

The Doubt Earplug

He who doubts. . . should not think he will receive anything from the Lord (James 1:6-7), including hearing. We doubt he wants to speak, we doubt he will speak, we doubt he will speak to us.

We doubt our ability to hear, or that we’ve heard correctly. I have found the Lord honors those who step out in faith, trusting him, even if we didn’t get it quite right. Faith pleases him.

Do an earplug test: Are these hindering you from hearing? Because the Lord is speaking, all the time (see my previous blog.)

“Earth’s crammed with heaven, and every common bush afire with God; but only he who sees takes off his shoes.” Elizabeth Barrett Browning

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You’re hearing from God all the time

“I haven’t heard from God for years.” “God only speaks to me through scripture.” I hear these comments regularly. But the Lord recently showed me something astonishing!

The Bible tells us we consist of spirit, soul, and body, and 1 Corinthians 2:11 says, “For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the man’s spirit within him.”

Thoughts come from our mind, which is part of our soul. So this verse explains there is a conversation going on between your soul and your spirit—those voices in your head talking to each other. All the time. Chill out, it’s not madness! It’s normal and Biblical.

But it gets better. The Bible also says when we become Christians, the Holy Spirit comes and lives in our spirit. We’re his temples. So now who’s voice is coming from our spirit? The Holy Spirit’s!

Therefore, for Christians, this conversation in our head is between us and God. He’s talking to us all the time! And why wouldn’t he? He’s our Father. John 8:47: “He who belongs to God hears what God says.” His sheep know his voice.

Prayer is Broadband

Jesus promised, “And surely I am with you always.” Always! He never left. Prayer is not dial-up, where we have to perform certain rituals before God shows up. He’s always online.

Doesn’t the devil also speak? Of course, but only to our minds. He can’t access our spirits.

How do we know which is which? Well, how do you recognize any voice? Familiarity! You get to know the Lord through worship, prayer, and scripture. Spend time there, and you’ll know. He always speaks in character, and in line with his Word and purposes.

Then, John, why don’t I hear from God? Because of earplugs, my next blog.

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What is church?

Photo: Jeremy Bishop, Unsplash

When we come together, what do we do? Sing, pray, preach, offering, notices, communion and coffee. That’s church, surely? Actually, the Scriptures suggest otherwise.

The Apostle Paul has a very different picture in mind. When you come together, he writes in 1 Corinthians 14:26, Everyone has a hymn, or a word of instruction, a revelation, a tongue of an interpretation. Everyone? John, that would be chaos.

What about this then: And if a revelation comes to someone who is sitting down, the first speaker should stop (1 Corinthians 14:30). Have you ever seen it?

If that describes church, what we mostly do is celebration. That’s fine but allows little scope for the body of Christ to function in the gifts of the Spirit, for the common good.

Come with, not for

Jesus said he came to serve, not to be served. We call our meetings services. If so, we should bring something to serve others. In our entertainment age, have we forgotten? The Lord says, No one is to appear before me empty-handed (Exodus 34:20). Instead of coming for, we should come with.

It requires training, participation and faith. It’s also hard in large meetings. Perhaps we should redefine “church” to be a body of participating members.

Three levels

“Celebrations” could be less frequent gatherings of these churches, enjoying the buzz and encouragement of the larger group. This way several churches could even share the same facilities, structures, or staff.

“Churches” would be the regular mid-sized group where participation was both possible, taught and expected. Finally, members could still “do life together” in our homes – sharing meals, stories, prayer and support.

That would challenge our sense of unity! Which was precisely the problem in Corinth. For more, see my new book, The Seven Seals of the Holy Spirit.

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The Prayer of Faith

Is anyone of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord.  And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise him up. If he has sinned, he will be forgiven (James 5:14-15).

But when Jesus healed the sick, he didn’t pray to the Father. He didn’t tell us to either.

In the book of Acts, the disciples heal many, but they didn’t pray. Peter commanded the crippled beggar to “Walk.” He commanded Aeneas, “Get up and take care of your mat.” He told the dead Dorcas, “Tabitha, get up.” Paul told the crippled man in Lystra, “Stand up on your feet.”

So what is the prayer of faith James is referring to?

The fig tree clue

In Mark 11, Jesus cursed the fig tree and it died. Peter was amazed, “Look Rabbi!”

“Have faith in God,” Jesus answered.  “I tell you the truth, if anyone says to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart but believes that what he says will happen, it will be done for him” (Mark 11:22-23).

Jesus goes on to describe the prayer of faith: “Whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.”

Reading this verse in isolation, I always assumed the prayer of faith was petition or intercession. But the context of this passage was a curse. Jesus said to speak TO the mountain, not pray ABOUT it. Therefore the prayer of faith is a command.

That is the pattern of the Lord’s ministry, and of the disciples too. We should follow their example. Using our God-given authority.

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Don’t do what Jesus didn’t!

It came as a shock to realize Jesus didn’t pray. I don’t mean he didn’t pray to the Father―of course he did. I mean he didn’t pray when healing the sick. Really?

At the Last Supper, Jesus took a towel and bowl, knelt before his disciples and washed their feet, the job of the lowest slave. They were horrified. Peter argued, but finally agreed. Afterwards, Jesus said, “I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you” (John 13:15).

Washing feet symbolizes both servanthood and forgiveness. But the principle of example applies to his whole ministry, for Jesus also said (Luke 6:40), “Everyone who is fully trained will be like his teacher.”

To be like Jesus, we should do what he did and not what he didn’t!

Five things Jesus didn’t do

  • He didn’t pray when he healed the sick – he just healed them.
  • He never told us to pray for them. He told us to heal them: “Heal the sick who are there and tell them, ‘The kingdom of God is near you’” (Luke 10:9).
  • He never told anyone they were too sinful to be healed. There must have been some ratbags in the crowds, but he healed those who needed healing (Luke 9:11).
  • He never said any disease was too hard. He cleansed lepers and raised the dead.
  • He never set conditions before healing.

 Therefore we shouldn’t expect people to become Christians before they’re healed. We should be willing to minister healing to the cases we consider hard. They’re not hard for God! We should welcome the ruffians, the outcasts and the ratbags.

And when we minister healing, we shouldn’t pray to the Father. The disciples didn’t. But aren’t we told to pray in James 5? True, but that’s a special case, and the subject of a future blog.

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The Power of the Son

He healed the sick, stilled the storm, walked on water, and fed thousands with a boy’s lunch. The disciples shook their heads in wonder. How did he do it?

What is supernatural to us is natural to God; he made the whole thing in the first place!

God’s not hiding in heaven with his arms folded. Like a potter with a stubborn lump of clay, his earnest fingers penetrate every corner of creation, working his masterpiece with a vision in his heart. Miracles are merely a window into his world.

The Greater Things Problem

But then Jesus said, “I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things…” (John 14:12). Ridiculous? I used to think so, convinced Jesus performed his miracles because he’s the Son: of course he could walk on water and multiply lunch. He’s God.

Jesus also said, “I tell you the truth, the Son can do nothing by himself,” and “By myself I can do nothing.” (John 5:19, 30). Why not? Because “He stripped himself of all privilege.” (Philippians 2:7, PHILLIPS). While he never surrendered his divinity, he became a man with no more or less power than a man, though without sin.

So how did he do it?

Jesus didn’t begin ministry until he was baptised in the Holy Spirit. After the temptations, he returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit (Luke 4:14), saying, “The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me…” (Luke 4:18a). Anointed. That’s how he could do the miracles.

When Jesus walked on the earth, he laid aside his divine power to demonstrate how we, filled with the Holy Spirit, can do even greater things. Anointed by the same Spirit.

For more, get my latest book, The Seven Seals of the Holy Spirit.

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How set is your mind?

I stood surrounded by thirty thousand others, watching the impossible. The biggest tent in the world soared seventy feet above me. Outside, Soweto, South Africa. Inside, holy chaos. People danced. People jumped and sang and praised God, their faces alight. No one praises God like Africans. Too reserved to join in, I merely grinned.

Then I heard these words. “Now put your hand in the air.” In the row in front of me, a girl of about twelve raised her right arm. An older African man stood facing her, smiling. “No, not that one, the other one,” he told her.

The girl’s left arm was twisted and withered. She turned to look at it. A frown clouded her face. She held her breath and her mouth tightened. Her left arm quivered, the fingers straightened and the arm grew. Her eyes opened in astonishment. Within ten seconds the arm appeared normal.

The tears that changed my life

I was a scientist. Miracles had explanations. Arms don’t grow. She must have a real arm underneath, and the crippled one is a toy. She must have a balloon in the shape of an arm. She must have, she must have . . . my set mind scavenged for plausible solutions.

Standing beside the girl, a lady stared at her, a picture of radiant joy. Tears cascaded down her cheeks and dripped off her chin. She wrapped the girl in a wild hug.

Those tears nailed me.

How hard it is to change our minds! “Be transformed by the renewing of your minds,” the Lord tells us. “Set your minds on things above,” he says. God is bigger than our imaginations. He created the universe. He knows how to grow an arm―and recast the concrete of our minds.