09/02/11

Healing of the sick

Mark 1:32-34 - 32 And at even, when the sun did set, they brought unto him all that were sick, and them that were possessed with demons.
33 And all the city was gathered together at the door.
34 And he healed many that were sick with divers diseases, and cast out many demons; and he suffered not the demons to speak, because they knew him.


Before I start I like to apologize for not sending yesterday's mail. It wasn't that I had not got a message to send; I did get a message (Jer 38:20) but feared to send it.

Just in the morning I was reading a sms from a friend who sends smses to many on very regular basis and the sms are prayer requests for people with problem and sicknesses (mostly critical). The number of requests in per sms and the frequency of her smses made me think how do they expect people to pray for each one of them. Knowing that not praying for a person who has asked for prayers is serious matter I needed to find an answer to it, so I started meditating on it through my morning routines. I started to look at the life of Jesus our perfect example and when I sat to write I got this message.

We complain of many various Churches but we do not realize the Lord had designed the Church to be small units working among the people. Where we fail is in the Truth part, because God designed them to be one in understanding of the Truth and in purpose, this is what is not happening.

We see in today's message the whole city had gathered unto Jesus with their sick and demonic victims, but we read Jesus healed many and delivered many but not all. There are cases where Jesus did heal all and delivered them all, so why did Jesus not do the same here?

You will see the cases where Jesus healed all were when they were in small groups or in the cases of large groups it was when they came out of their cities and followed Him into the desert.

Today we live in an age of electronic communication; any person can communicate with another person across the globe instantly, thus enabling people to reach out for help or prayer requests across the world in seconds.

Praying / healing for the sick is a important part of Christian life but is not the only thing. A Christian is also called to make disciples for Jesus by preaching the Gospel, baptizing them and building them in the Lord. We are supposed to form local units and pray and heal the sick among these local units. It makes a difference when a person sends a sms or mail for healing and when a person goes to a local Church to be prayed over and healed. One will find more successes in the later cases.

When people think that man does the healing they will not do the later and will look out for the special Men of God to do this job. It is only people who know that God does the healing and had commissioned every believer to do this job, will go to the local Church group.

Unless we do not come out of the city mentality we will not see cases wherein all are healed. The city and the Church are separate worlds. Church is defined as group of people separated from the world unto God.

I encourage each one to remember the power to heal is given to each and every believer, they are suppose to just lay their hands and it is God who does the job. It is in only very serious cases you need to approach a Man in Authority to do the job.


[ Prayer Starter ]
Lord, You have made man as part of the Body of Christ. The Body has a system and process which You have given in your Word. Lord help us realize it is You Who works through man and man is a mere tool of your great deals. Open the eyes of your people and let them trusting in You function as You defined and receive all that You have already set for them...

This prayer we make in Jesus' Name, Amen.


[ Reference Scripture ]
Matthew 12:15-23
15 But when Jesus knew it, he withdrew himself from thence: and great multitudes followed him, and he healed them all; 16 And charged them that they should not make him known:
17 That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias the prophet, saying,
18 Behold my servant, whom I have chosen; my beloved, in whom my soul is well pleased: I will put my spirit upon him, and he shall shew judgment to the Gentiles.
19 He shall not strive, nor cry; neither shall any man hear his voice in the streets.
20 A bruised reed shall he not break, and smoking flax shall he not quench, till he send forth judgment unto victory.
21 And in his name shall the Gentiles trust.
22 Then was brought unto him one possessed with a devil, blind, and dumb: and he healed him, insomuch that the blind and dumb both spake and saw.
23 And all the people were amazed, and said, Is not this the son of David?

Luke 4:38-44
38 And he arose out of the synagogue, and entered into Simon's house. And Simon痴 wife痴 mother was taken with a great fever; and they besought him for her.
39 And he stood over her, and rebuked the fever; and it left her: and immediately she arose and ministered unto them.
40 Now when the sun was setting, all they that had any sick with divers diseases brought them unto him; and he laid his hands on every one of them, and healed them.
41 And devils also came out of many, crying out, and saying, Thou art Christ the Son of God. And he rebuking them suffered them not to speak: for they knew that he was Christ.
42 And when it was day, he departed and went into a desert place: and the people sought him, and came unto him, and stayed him, that he should not depart from them.
43 And he said unto them, I must preach the kingdom of God to other cities also: for therefore am I sent.
44 And he preached in the synagogues of Galilee.

Luke 6:17-19
17 And he came down with them, and stood in the plain, and the company of his disciples, and a great multitude of people out of all Judaea and Jerusalem, and from the sea coast of Tyre and Sidon, which came to hear him, and to be healed of their diseases;
18 And they that were vexed with unclean spirits: and they were healed.
19 And the whole multitude sought to touch him: for there went virtue out of him, and healed them all.

Mark 16:15-18
15 And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.
16 He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.
17 And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues;
18 They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.

Matthew 28:18-20
18 And Jesus came to them and spake unto them, saying, All authority hath been given unto me in heaven and on earth.
19 Go ye therefore, and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them into the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit:
20 teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I commanded you: and lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world.

Jeremiah 38:20
20 But Jeremiah said, They shall not deliver thee. Obey, I beseech thee, the voice of the LORD, which I speak unto thee: so it shall be well unto thee, and thy soul shall live.

The Word of God was given free to us, therefore we should also share it freely with others. (All rights are with God)