How You Can Be Healed

In today’s prayer meeting, in light of a situation that we have a family member in the hospital with terminal cancer, we started to reread this booklet on healing and we want to introduce you to it. It really gives the clear answer as to where sickness and diseases come from, and how a person can receive their healing. We decided to put in the full chapter, and if you’d like your own copy, click on the website at Christ For The Nations and you’ll be able to download it for free. You'll be able to see which is of Gordon Lindsay and what we've added. What Gordon Lindsay has written is in "italics". Let the Word of God wash over your mind to be renewed and let faith arise to receive your healing as you read.

“How You Can Be Healed – by Gordon Lindsay

CHAPTER I

The General Cause of Sickness

In seeking a cure for sickness and disease which has so plagued mankind, it is important to learn something of the cause and origin of this scourge of the human race. Where do sickness and disease come from? Does God send them, or does the enemy of God, Satan? Let us make the question even broader. Just what is the reason for so much pain and misery in the world?

The great tide of sickness and its attendant misery, despite all our human efforts, still overwhelms mankind and indicates fundamentally that  the effective method of combating it, has not been discovered as far as the world is concerned. The fact is, as we shall see, the cause of sickness is of a spiritual nature; therefore, the best cure to organic and mental disease is spiritual.

When the first man and woman, Adam and Eve, were created and placed in the Garden of Eden, they possessed perfect, though mortal bodies. They did not have eternal life— only mortal life. In the midst of the Garden, God planted the Tree of Life which symbolized immortality. Had Adam and Eve not rebelled against God, it is probable that in time they would have been permitted to partake of the fruit of that tree and become immortal. Their disobedience brought sin into the world, and with sin, death came upon them and their posterity (Romans 5:12). The day that our first parents disobeyed God was the day they began to die.

Sin which came into the world, therefore, is directly or indirectly the cause of death and sickness. For example, the child of a drunkard suffers for the sin of his parent. A child of a mother with social disease may be born blind. Nevertheless, as Jesus said, many times the sickness may not be the result of the sin of either the afflicted person or his parents (John 9:3). The cause may still be further back. Obviously if Adam and Eve had not sinned, there would be no sickness in the world.

Our bodies are so made that normally they resist disease. If this were not so, the race would soon be destroyed. But if for any reason the natural defenses of the body are weakened, disease has a good chance to secure a foothold. Undue physical strain, failure to take care of the body properly, or just plain sin may weaken its natural resistance, so that disease may get the upper hand. There is always a cause. Proverbs 26:2 declares: "The curse causeless shall not come." The indirect cause of all sickness in the human race is sin. Although there may be other contributing factors. This is plain from the Holy Scriptures in Deuteronomy 28:15, 22, 27, 28; "But it shall come to pass, if thou wilt not hearken unto the voice of the Lord thy God, to observe to do all his commandments ... The Lord shall smite thee with a consumption, and with a fever, and with an inflamation, and with extreme burning, and with the sword, and with blasting, and with mildew ... The Lord will smite thee with the botch of Egypt, and with the emerods, and with the scab, and with the itch, whereof thou canst not be healed. The Lord shall smite thee with madness, and blindness, and astonishment of heart."

Jesus Christ the Son of God identified sickness with sin when He said to a man sick with the palsy, "Son, thy sins be forgiven thee" (Mark 2:5). The Early Church recognized the connection between sin and sickness. In James 5:13-15 the command is given for the elders to pray for the sick, and we are told that "the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him." James urged in the verse that follows to "confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed.

Satan, The Originator of Sickness

The question may arise as to where disease itself came from. The answer the Bible gives is that Satan, the evil one, is the author of disease. In the story of Job we are told that God built an invisible hedge around him so that the devil could not touch him. But for reasons we cannot go into here, one day God withdrew His protection, and permitted Satan to afflict him with painful boils. Notice that although God gave the permission, it was actually Satan who laid the boils on Job.

"So went Satan forth from the presence of the Lord, and smote Job with sore boils from the sole of his foot unto his crown"(Job 2:7).

It was God who answered Job's cry and healed him. There is also the case of the woman with the infirmity whom Jesus healed. This woman had been oppressed for eighteen years with a spirit of infirmity. Jesus revealed the cause of her sickness in His conversation with the religious rulers. It was Satan who had bound the woman.

"And ought not his woman, being a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan hath bound, lo, these eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the Sabbath day?" (Luke 13:16).

Note again when Peter was speaking of Christ, he connected the ministry of healing with deliverance from Satanic oppression: "How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him"(Acts 10:38).

Thus we see that healing was in effect, liberating people from the oppression of the devil. Nor is this just poetic language. As we witness and study the miracles of our Lord, we often find that evil spirits were involved in the cause of the sickness. These had to be cast out before the person could get well. The Bible speaks of deaf spirits, dumb spirits, insane spirits, infirm spirits, deceiving spirits, seducing spirits, lying spirits, familiar spirits, a spirit of divination, perverse spirits, wicked spirits, unclean spirits and foul spirits. All of these have different ways of afflicting or deceiving people.

Satan's power over people varies with the individual. In many cases he merely oppresses them. Thousands of Christians are oppressed by the enemy simply because they have not learned to take their authority in Christ and rebuke him. The devil cannot actually possess a true Christian, but he can oppress him. Believers must learn to rise up in the name of Jesus and take dominion over the oppressor.

On the other hand there are, unfortunately, more people than we like to believe who are actually demon-possessed. Some become completely controlled by Satan—one cause of insanity. Such persons have no power of their own to exercise faith for deliverance. They are as the demon possessed man whom Jesus met in the tombs (Mark 5:1-19); unless somebody exercises faith for them, they may never recover.

Some want deliverance from the sickness, but not from their sins. We must remember that the promise is a two-fold cure from a two-fold curse. "Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits. Who forgiveth all thine iniquities; who healeth all thy diseases" (Psalm 103:2, 3). The promise calls for deliverance from sin first then deliverance from sickness.

When Hezekiah, King of Israel, was sick unto death he turned his face to the wall and prayed. God heard his prayer and said, "I have heard thy prayer, I have seen thy tears: behold, I will heal thee: on the third day thou shalt go up to the house of the Lord" (II Kings 20:5). Some people in seeking healing have little thought of serving the Lord afterward, but not Hezekiah. On the third day after his deliverance, he went up to the house of the Lord and worshipped God for his great deliverance.

Jesus healed an impotent man who lay 38 years in an absolutely helpless condition at the pool of Bethesda. Afterwards, the Lord said to him, "Behold, thou art made whole: sin no more, lest a worse thing come unto thee" (John 5:14). Certainly Jesus made it plain that continuance in sin might lead to a worse condition (see Luke 11:24-26). Here is an intimation that this man's affliction was possibly caused by previous sin in his life.

A heathen woman came to Christ for the deliverance of her daughter who was possessed of a devil. The Lord pitied the poor woman and indeed had compassion on her. But He realized that she was not yet ready. There are some who would have the minister pray at once for everybody and anybody who want healing. But Jesus did not always grant healing at the same moment in which it was asked.

The Lord did not answer the woman at once. She plead for His help, "but he answered not a word." Why? She had addressed Him as "thou son of David." As the "son of David," He could not help her. Being recognized only as a man He could do nothing for her. Nevertheless, she tried again. "Lord help me," she cried. This time Jesus spoke to her. Yet His answer seemed a denial of her request. He said, "It is not meet to take the children’s bread, and to cast it to dogs" (Matt. 15:26). Could she bear such a test? She could and did. She determined that her daughter would be healed. She would not take no for an answer. In deep humility she accepted the Lord's words and actually made it an argument for the deliverance of her daughter! She said, "Truth, Lord: yet the dogs eat of the crumbs which fall from their masters’ table." The Lord, marveling at her faith then answered her prayer. He told her to go her way, that her daughter was healed. Salvation had come to that home.” ~ By Gordon Lindsay

It’s important to highlight what was said; “Some want deliverance from the sickness, but not from their sins.” The Lord is very concerned about a persons salvation as Jesus says this about Himself in John 3:18-21; “ 18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son. 19 This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. 20 Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that their deeds will be exposed. 21 But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what they have done has been done in the sight of God.”

Come into the light of Jesus Christ, be saved and be healed. Amen.  

In today’s church prayer meeting, we continue with the booklet entitled, ‘How You Can Be Healed’, by Gordon Lindsay, reading Chapter 2 which is entitled, ‘Why Does God Heal?’ We’re putting in the full chapter, and if you’d like your own PDF copy, click on the website at Christ For The Nations and you’ll be able to download it for free. You'll be able to see which is of Gordon Lindsay and what we've added. What Gordon Lindsay has written is in "italics".  Let the Word of God wash over your mind to be renewed and let faith arise to receive your healing as you read.

Before we start reviewing it though, we spent the day in prayer, praying for various people and situations. As mentioned last week, we have a family member with terminal cancer, so we focused a lot on praying for him and at the end of this overview, we’ll share what happened at the end of the day in which we saw a wonderful answer to prayer. So church started with a time or worship as we always do because we know that worship opens our hearts to receive all that God has for us as we focus totally on the Lord, and as Psalm 145:3says, “Great is the Lord and most worthy of praise; His greatness no one can fathom.”

We sense that this teaching is timely, as there are so many Christians suffering with sickness and teaching on healing is scarce in churches. So we’re taking a bit of a break from The Holy War series to focus on healing.

“CHAPTER II

Why Does God Heal?

Christ Heals Because of Compassion

If Christ heals the sick today, why does He heal, and on what terms does He do it? He heals because of His compassion. Matthew 14:14 declares that when the multitude brought their sick to Him, He "was moved with compassion toward them, and he healed their sick." When the two blind men came to Him crying out for mercy, the Lord "had compassion on them, and touched their eyes: and immediately their eyes received sight, and they followed him" (Matt. 20:34).

Healing Is the Children's Bread

Notice again the words that Christ spoke to the heathen lady. He said, "Let the children first be filled: for it is not meet to take the children's bread, and cast it to the dogs" (Mark 7:27). The point to be made is that when one becomes a child of God, he does not have to beg for deliverance, for healing is "the children's bread."

Are you a child of God? Then you have the right to receive healing. If you are not, then you can become one this moment by asking Jesus Christ to come into your heart. Divine healing is not a luxury to be enjoyed by the favored few, but all the children of the Lord by virtue of their position in Christ, have the right to receive this blessing.”

If you’re not a born again Christian and Jesus is not Lord of your life, you’re nota child of God and are still in the kingdom of darkness, regardless of how good of a person you are and that you may even believe in God, but haven’t repented of your sins and received Jesus as Lord of your life. What makes you a child of God is being born of His Spirit. That is what makes you entitled to or have a right to healing and His covenant, and that healing is your bread. Many people ‘believe’ in Jesus but haven’t ‘received’ Him to make Him Lord of their lives. When Jesus said that healing is the children’s bread, He was referring to Himself, as He is the bread of life, and as we partake in communion, we break the bread and eat it which symbolizes His body that was broken for us. Jesus also said that He was the bread that came down from heaven.

“Healing Was Prophesied in the Atonement of Christ

Why does Christ heal the sick and the afflicted? Because healing is in the Atonement. Isaiah the prophet, looking forward to the coming of the Messiah, declared, "Surely he hath borne our griefs and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted" (Isaiah 53:4). The Spirit of prophecy interprets this Scripture in a remarkable way. Jesus had healed Peter's mother-in-law to the wonder of the people. Then as evening came and the Sabbath was over, a multitude brought their sick to be delivered; Jesus healed them all for the reason given in the following passage of Scripture:

"When the even was come, they brought unto him many that were possessed with devils: and he cast out the spirits with his word, and healed all that were sick: That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias the prophet, saying, Himself took our infirmities, and bare our sickness" (Matt. 8:16, 17).”

Even though this scripture does not say the mentally ill, we know that many who are mentally ill are possessed with the devil who need Christians to cast the devil out so they can be set free and healed.

“Thus we are clearly told that Christ healed because He, at Calvary, bore the sicknesses as well as the sins of the human race. This is not a human interpretation of Isaiah's prophecy, but one given by the Spirit of God. The following verse in Isaiah carries out the thought even more fully. It says, "With his stripes we are healed" (Isaiah 53:5).”

Isaiah 53:1-5 says; “Who has believed our report? And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed? 2 For He shall grow up before Him as a tender plant, And as a root out of dry ground. He has no [a]form or [b]comeliness; And when we see Him, There is no [c]beauty that we should desire Him. 3 He is despised and [d]rejected by men, A Man of [e]sorrows and acquainted with [f]grief. And we hid, as it were, our faces from Him; He was despised, and we did not esteem Him. 4 Surely He has borne our [g]griefs And carried our [h]sorrows; Yet we [i]esteemed Him stricken, [j]Smitten by God, and afflicted. 5 But He was wounded[k] for our transgressions, He was [l]bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, And by His stripes[m] we are healed.”

“Since divine healing is, therefore, in the Atonement, it is as much a part of our inheritance as is pardon from sin. Indeed all spiritual blessings we receive, whether salvation, healing, or whatever, are obtained through the Atonement of Christ and not through our personal merits.”

Again, you have to be born again to be able to enter into the atonement part of God’s healing for your life. That doesn’t mean though that He doesn’t heal those who are not born again, but what we’re saying that as a true Christian, you have a right to healing. What many don’t acknowledge and realize, is that just as salvation is theirs, so is healing. It’s the same part and parcel, it goes hand in hand. Just as He forgives sin, He heals our bodies. The crucifixion, death, burial and resurrection of Jesus redeemed everything the devil stole when sin entered the world. All we have to do is receive it by faith as Ephesians 2:8says; “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God.”

“Christ Heals to Reveal the Father’s Glory  

It has been supposed by many that God sends sickness on His children to reveal His glory. Just the contrary is true. Sickness and disease have caused many to question the providence of God. On the other hand, when healing took place, the people glorified God:

"... and he healed them: Insomuch that the multitude wondered, when they saw the dumb to speak, the maimed to be whole, the lame to walk, and the blind to see: and they glorified the God of Israel" (Matthew 15:30-31).”

This also shows God’s love and mercy to the unsaved, that as they are healed, they will glorify Him and even give their lives over to Him. We also know that people can get healed by God’s mercy and grace that He’s shown them, but they don’t turn their lives over to Him and be born again.  

“Christ Heals to Prove His Mission

Christ also heals that He might prove His mission to the world. He said to the Jews, "If I do not the works of my Father, believe me not. But if I do, though ye believe not me, believe the works: that ye may know, and believe, that the Father is in me, and I in Him" (John 10:37-38).  

A widow in the town of Zarephath was persuaded that the prophet Elijah was a true man of God when he revived and healed her child (I Kings 17:24).

In the Great Commission, the healing of the sick in the name of Jesus was to be one of the signs of true believers (Mark 16:17). Some have inferred that Christ's deity has been so fully proved that miracles are no longer needed today. As if the whole world now believed in Christ! The sad fact is that there are hundreds of millions of people living today who do not know Jesus as their Saviour. The power of the

supernatural to confirm the claims of Christ is needed more now than ever before.

Why does Christ heal today? He heals because it is His nature to heal. He heals because it is His purpose to destroy the works of the devil (Acts 10:38 and I John 3:8). He heals so that the sick one, made well, can serve Him in the joy of salvation. He heals that the well one made whole may go out in the harvest field and work for Him.”

Acts 10:38 says; “how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power, who went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him.”

1 John 3:8 says; “He who sins is of the devil, for the devil has sinned from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil.”

Mark 16:15-18 NASB says;“15 And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation. 16 The one who has believed and has been baptized will be saved; but the one who has not believed will be condemned. 17 These signs will accompany those who have believed: in My name they will cast out demons, they will speak with new tongues; 18 they will pick up serpents, and if they drink any deadly poison, it will not harm them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.”

You could read this scripture by saying; true believers will cast out demons, true believers will speak with new tongues, true believers will take up serpents (if they have to because of dangerous situations, like Paul when the viper jumped out of the fire and latched on to him and he shook it off), true believers if they happen to drink anything poisonous it will not harm them, true believers will lay hands on the sick. What Jesus is saying here is that there are signs that will follow the preaching of the gospel by true believers. Some may be really offended with this, and maybe that’s why when the great commission is preached, preachers won’t use this passage from Mark, but will preach from Matthew only.

So when you hear Christians say that they believe, you can then look for fruit in their lives which Mark says. According to the Bible then and what Jesus said, signs, wonders, tongues, healings should all follow the preaching of the gospel in the life of every Christian. Many could be offended with that. If so, then their offended with what Jesus clearly said. We’ve said this before, true believers go to church, true believers walk in forgiveness, true believers will have the manifestations of the Holy Spirit operating in their lives. We know this is a tough scripture because it confronts the non-Spirit filled churches and people, that claim to be born again believers yet no signs or wonders follow the preaching of the gospel. Remember, what Jesus is saying in Mark 16 is even before the day of Pentecost.

You might ask then, why aren’t people healed when you pray for them? We’ll talk about that in the following chapters but two things might be a reason why; 1) unforgiveness and 2) unrepented sin. Remember that God is holy and healing is not a wand that is waved for whatever reason. As a matter of fact Jesus rebuked the Pharisees because they were always looking for a sign, yet when they saw the signs, they still didn’t believe in Him as Messiah.

Some people don’t believe enough to repent of their sins and receive Jesus as Lord of their lives and then receive His healing into their bodies. You might ask then, who’s fault is it if someone isn’t healed? There are a lot of dynamics there, but we’ll look into that in the next weeks. What we do know for sure from today’s reading is that as a true born again Christian, healing is fully available for you and was purchased for you at the cross as 1 Peter 2:24 says; “who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness – by whose stripes you were healed.”

Even if there is no one to lay hands on you to pray the prayer of faith, you can lay hands on yourself and declare the Word of God regarding healing over your body. Countless Christians throughout the last 2000 years have done that, it’s our privileged and it is our bread. Even if it’s mental illness where the devil is trying to attack you with depression or oppression, you have the authority to break his assignments and be delivered and healed.

During our church prayer time, we prayed for those who are true believers, according to what we read, that they would start walking in what Jesus commanded them to walk in regarding what Mark 16 says. We took authority over the demonic that has blinded the minds of even those who say they’re Christians, yet they deny and won’t walk in the supernatural.

After church, Marjorie visited the family member that has terminal cancer who was not a true believer in Jesus. Upon seeing them in the hospital, it was apparent that fear and confusion had gripped their heart due to the doctors report. Again, Marjorie spoke about the need of salvation more than anything else in their life. We had been praying for decades for their salvation and they finally saw that they truly needed to be born again. They went from a ‘believer’ to a ‘receiver’ of the Holy Spirit. What a praise report and beautiful thing to see Jesus fill their life with eternal life! We continue to speak the word of healing over them, because with God, nothing is impossible, amen.  

In today’s church prayer meeting, we continued with the booklet entitled, ‘How You Can Be Healed’, by Gordon Lindsay, reading Chapter 3 which is entitled, ‘Is It God’s Will To Heal You?’ We’re putting in the full chapter, and if you’d like your own PDF copy, click on the website at Christ For The Nations and you’ll be able to download it for free. Together with the text from the booklet, we'll also be adding our thoughts to it. You'll be able to see which is of Gordon Lindsay and what we've added. What Gordon Lindsay has written is in "italics". Let the Word of God wash over your mind to be renewed and let faith arise to receive your healing as you read.  

“CHAPTER 3 ~ ls it God's Will to Heal You?

The question that many people ask is not, "Can God heal?" If one believes that God created the human body, he must believe He is surely able to heal it. But the question so many ask is, "Will He heal?" If so, what are the conditions upon which He does it? In answering this question, let us look to the Bible, for only the Scriptures can provide the true answer. We believe that it does give the answer, so clearly that no one should misunderstand it.”

You often hear the term when people aren’t healed that it wasn’t God’s will to heal. But according to scripture, it is always God’s will to heal. If this is not clear in the heart of a Christian, it shows that there is a double-mindedness in them, because according to the Bible, it is His will to heal all.

“A leper came to Jesus not knowing for certain whether it was His will to cleanse him of his leprosy. In his ignorance he said, "Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean" (Matthew 8:2). At once Jesus proved for all time that it was His will by reaching His hand out and touching the poor leper, saying, "I will; be thou clean."”

“Some people argue that God healed in days of old, but that it is not His will to heal today. Yet those same persons, the moment they become ill, will call the doctor and ask him to cure them. They never say, "Doctor, I think it may not be the Lord's will for me to be well; just let me suffer." You see that although with their lips they say it is not God's will to heal, in their heart they know it is. Otherwise would one not be a hypocrite, claiming to be a Christian, and at the same time trying to get out of the will of God? The Scriptures teach from the beginning that it is God's will to heal. No sooner had God redeemed His people from Egypt than He gave them the covenant of healing. He actually made healing a law! "There he made for them a statute and an ordinance and there he proved them" (Exodus 15:25). He even went further than that. He told them that if they obeyed His statutes and His commandments, they would not get sick: "And said. If thou wilt diligently hearken to the voice of the Lord thy Gad. and wilt do that which is right in his sight, and wilt give ear to his commandments, and keep all his statutes, I will put none of these diseases upon thee, which I have brought upon the Egyptians: for I am the Lord that healeth thee" (Exodus 15:26).”

The book of the Psalms is the great inspirational book of the Bible. It tells us not to forget all God's benefits: "Bless the Lord, 0 my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name. Bless the Lord, 0 my soul, and forget not all his benefits: Who forgiveth all thine iniquities; who healeth all thy diseases." (Psalm 103:1-3).

Many people remember the benefit of salvation, but they overlook that of healing. As a result they may suffer sickness and pain, all because they have not known this great benefit. Another promise has been given to us in the Old Testament, saying of those who put their trust in God, "... neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling" (Psalm 91:10).

Centuries later when Jesus began His ministry, He preached one of His first sermons in His home city of Nazareth, and this was the text He used: "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering the sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, To preach the acceptable year of the Lord"(Luke 4:18-19).

Jesus not only healed the sick, but committed that same ministry to His disciples. "And they went out, and preached that men should repent. And they cast out many devils, and anointed with oil many that were sick, and healed them" (Mark 6:12-13).

And later when He gave them the Great Commission, He included the promise of healing to all believers in Mark 16:16-18: "He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned. And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; 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."

The Great Commission in the Gospel of Mark is less quoted by those who do not believe in healing, tongues, signs and wonders but will instead use the Gospel of Matthew which only mentions to go into the world and preach the gospel, but doesn’t reference signs, wonders etc.

The promise was not only for the apostles, but it is still valid today for them that believe. Notice the words of Christ in Matthew 28:19-20:"Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever l have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world."

The Ordinance of Divine Healing Given to the Church

Just as God gave a statute and an ordinance of healing to the church in the wilderness, so God gave a command authorizing the ministry of healing in the church of the New Testament. "Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord: And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him. Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much" (James 5:14-16).

The remarkable thing is that in no place in the Scriptures is there the slightest hint that God's command for praying for the sick has ever been revoked. And in the fulfillment of His Word and promise, He is just the same today as in the days of yore.

But what about doctors? We would not reflect in any way against the medical profession, which has done a great work in alleviating the ills of humanity. After God gave Israel the covenant of healing, He also taught them health laws and appointed certain ones to administer those laws. The world needs specially trained men to teach people the proper care of their bodies. Christ did not criticize those who cared for the sick and wounded (Luke 10:34). He said that those who are sick have need of a physician (Matthew 9:12). Mothers for example need special care at the time of the birth of their children.

All thoughtful persons appreciate the value of help that trained personnel can give to the sick. But doctors can go only so far. Even they will confess they can only assist nature.

In His graciousness God has given us the assurance of a well body if we accept His Word. An assurance no less definite than the promise He has given us of health for our soul.

It’s conclusive then, that it is God’s will to heal and if a person doesn’t get healed, it’s not that it wasn’t God’s will. That’s not who He is. There are unique situations where people grieve the Holy Spirit and even then, it was their sin that opened the door to receive the sentence of death. It wasn’t God’s will, it was their disobedience that opened the door.

There are things that cause people to not receive healing, and we’ll get into that in Chapter 4. It’s very important that we get this message of healing deep into our heart because it will be challenged. What father or mother would not want to see their child healed? How much more our heavenly Father wants to see you healed. Matthew 20:8-11says; “8 For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. 9 Or what man is there among you who, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? 10 Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent? 11 If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!” Healing is a good gift.

We read again what was said at the beginning; ““Some people argue that God healed in days of old, but that it is not His will to heal today. Yet those same persons, the moment they become ill, will call the doctor and ask him to cure them. They never say, "Doctor, I think it may not be the Lord's will for me to be well; just let me suffer." You see that although with their lips they say it is not God's will to heal, in their heart they know it is.”  

Everybody wants to be healthy and live long, that’s how God ordained it. If we’re really honest with ourselves, a person who is not healed is making decisions in some way, shape or form, that are going contrary to God’s will in their lives, and the door is opened then for the devil to come in and kill, steal and destroy. And that action may be hidden in the heart and not seen or heard of by man, but because God knows the motives and intents of the heart, He sees what doors have been opened.

Why is it so important that it is settled in our hearts that it is God’s will to heal? Because that is truth and it’s the number one tactic of the devil to lie about the very character and nature of God that it isn’t His will. If the devil can discredit and lie about the truth of the Word of God and what Jesus did on the cross, he gains access to their minds and people are ensnared by unbelief regarding healing.

John 10:10 says; “The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.”

We all know Revelation 1:8, where it says; “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End,” says the Lord, “who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.”

So since He was – and He healed all who were afflicted by the devil -  and who is, that means He still is doing the same as He did, and He is to come, it shows that He hasn’t changed regarding what He purchased on the cross where 1 Peter 2:24 says; “by whose stripes you were healed”.

What causes Christians to not believe in healing? What benefit is there to believe like that? It might be because of their personal image – they might look foolish to pray for someone and then they’re not healed. It may be pride, thinking that you look ridiculous to outsiders that you’re walking by faith and not by sight. The reality is, it has nothing to do with our image, how we look or what people may even say about us. It has everything to do with what the Bible says. We’ve often said that we’d rather see someone die trying to get healed by Jesus and believing in His word, than not.

To summarize then, if someone is not getting healed does that change what God said in His word? No. As was said earlier from Mark 16:16-18 where it says: "He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned. And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; 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."

It always has been God’s will to heal and still is His will. Regardless of not seeing the manifestation of healing does not negate what Jesus did on the cross. As good of, or righteous or nice and benevolent the person is who doesn’t get healed, doesn’t change the Bible. It’s interesting that the same ones who say that healing stopped with the apostles, still believe that salvation is for all who are lost. It’s contradictory that one stopped and the other didn’t.  

Unfortunately our society has become very dependent only on the medical system and pharmaceuticals that they’ll turn to them first instead of to the one who made them and knows them intricately. We see that Jesus didn’t go to Lazarus while he was still sick, and when He did arrive, Lazarus had already been in the tomb four days. Jesus was not late but right on time and His healing and deliverance came right on time.

As we said earlier, in the next chapter we’ll look at some of the reasons why people aren’t healed.

In our prayer meeting today, we continued to pray for the family member in the hospital. Interestingly though, as we were going in to see him in the morning, we met two others who were leaving after their visit and they encouraged us to turn around and not to see him because he was resting. Our faith was being tested; do we listen to their report or the Lord’s report. We went in and sat there reading the Word of God to him, even while he was sleeping, because the Word is still alive even if a person is sleeping! Even as we were reading the word over him regarding healing, the spirit of unbelief and doubt had to leave the room.

As always in church services, we closed by taking communion, acknowledging the power of the blood of Jesus and the bread which symbolizes His body.

In today’s church prayer meeting, we continued with the booklet entitled, ‘How You Can Be Healed’, by Gordon Lindsay, reading Chapter 4 which is entitled, ‘How You Can Be Healed’ We’re putting in the full chapter, and if you’d like your own PDF copy, click on the website at Christ For The Nations and you’ll be able to download it for free. Together with the text from the booklet, we'll also be adding our thoughts to it. You'll be able to see which is of Gordon Lindsay and what we've added. What Gordon Lindsay has written is in "italics". Let the Word of God wash over your mind to be renewed and let faith arise to receive your healing as you read.  

CHAPTER 4—How You Can Be Healed

We all know that there are those who hear the message of the gospel and are saved, while others go away without salvation. Likewise, there are those who hear the glorious truths of divine healing and deliverance, but they fail to get healed. Why is this?

Most of us know that we receive the gift not because we merit it, but because Christ purchased it on Calvary. Nevertheless, we can do things, or fail to do things that can hinder our faith. Let us notice a few of the more important steps to healing.

Prepare Your Heart

A very common reason why people fail to receive deliverance is because they do not take time to get the Word of God in their hearts, but insist on being prayed for before they know what it is all about. "Faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God (Romans 10:17).  

Christ went to His home city Nazareth to teach and heal the sick. But the people looked upon Him with skepticism and unbelief. To them He was only a carpenter. Consequently, there were few healed in Nazareth. "And he could there do no mighty work, save that he laid his hands upon a few sick folk, and healed them (Mark 6:5).

If you would be healed, take time to read and listen to the Word of God, that your heart may be prepared to understand and to know the conditions by which deliverance is given.

It’s good for a Christian to not only rely on prayer, but to see what God’s word says about healing. To meditate on healing scriptures day and night. Like Psalm 1 says that you’ll be like a tree planted by the rivers of living water which yield it’s fruit in season. The ground of the heart has to be dug up and broken up, this is the hardness in the heart of men and women who say their Christians, but they’ve hardened their heart to healing. They’ve received salvation, yet for whatever reason they’ve hardened their heart to healing, not wanting to understand that Jesus already healed them at the cross. When the seed of the word goes into the heart of man that has been dug and broken up, it will bear fruit, they’ll come into maturity of what God’s word says.

Be Sure That You Know It Is the Will of God for You to Be Healed

Of course, one cannot receive healing if he has doubts as to whether it is God's will to heal. Indeed if God had not already revealed His will in the matter, none of us would have cause for faith. But since He has made it so plain, that it is His will, how can we by our attitude say, "Lord, I do not know whether you really mean what you have promised"? God does not trifle with the sufferings and misfortunes of His people. His word is Yea and Amen. Jesus said to the leper, "I will, be thou clean." So today is the promise still true. Jesus said, "They shall lay hands on the sick and they shall recover" (Mark 16:18). If you believe, then you shall surely recover and be healed from your sickness.

Just as important as it is for a father or mother to want to see their sick child be made well of whatever may be ailing them; whether it’s a cold, the flu or something more serious, so our Heavenly Father desires to see us healed.  

Confess All Sin in Your Life

With the promise of healing in James 5:13-16, there is an often overlooked clause which reads, "Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another that ye may be healed."  

Sickness may be the result of some sin, and we must be willing to confess and forsake it. David said in the Psalms, "If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me" (Psalm 66:18). If you have committed wrong against someone, go to them and confess your wrongdoing and be healed. Are you defiling your body with tobacco, or are you overweight? Ask the Lord to help you with these problems that cause sickness and even death to so many.  

An Unforgiving Spirit Can Hinder Healing

We well recall the case of a woman who, because of a stubborn spirit and bitterness in her heart, almost broke up a certain assembly that was struggling to survive. Then sickness came upon her in the form of a serious oppression from the enemy. Because of the severity of the attack, it could well have meant death. However, she cried to the Lord for mercy, and then called every member of the church to her bedside asking their forgiveness. The Lord raised her up and after that she manifested a spirit that, as long as we knew her, was characterized by sweetness and humility. She was healed because she was willing to confess her sin and forsake it.  

Could it be that many are not healed because they’re walking in unforgiveness? It’s part of the Lord’s prayer, to forgive your enemies and those that trespass against you.

Set a Time

Others never set a time for deliverance, but continually place it in the indefinite future. They always say God is going to heal me instead of God has healed me. Jesus said, "When ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them" (Mark 11:24). There comes a time when we must take our stand believing that God has done the work. The results may not be visibly manifest in that moment, but that does not matter. On one occasion Christ saw a fig tree that was bearing no fruit. Symbolizing what would happen to lives that bear no "fruit" He cursed it. The roots of the fig tree died the moment that Jesus cursed the tree, but the results did not show until later. One receives the answer to his prayer the moment he truly believes that the work is done, although the visible results may not be manifest until later. As long as the physical symptoms last, we must not doubt, but rather rebuke Satan. Just as a sinner must set a time in which he believes God for salvation, so the sick person must set a time when he receives his healing.  

Do Not Be Spiritually Lukewarm

Some do not have sufficient desire to get an answer from God. Jesus said, "What things soever ye desire when ye pray ... " In the early days of King Asa's reign in Judah, he served the Lord with all of his heart. In those days all Judah entered into a covenant to seek the Lord with their whole heart (II Chr. 15:12-13). The 15th verse declares that they "sought him with their whole desire; and he was found of them."  

Although there are people who let hindrances and difficulties discourage them from getting deliverance, there are others who are determined that they will not be denied.  

Yield yourself completely to God so that He can show you and lead you in His perfect will. Put God first in your life and He will take care of your needs. It is all important to remember that the Scriptures say "Seek ye first the Kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you" (Matt. 6:33).

Remember that Healing May Come Gradually

Though many healings are instantaneous, some of the greatest deliverances from affliction have not taken place immediately, as far as the eye could see. It is true that most of the miracles of Christ occurred as He spoke the word. Yet not all. When Jesus healed the ten lepers, He told them to go and show themselves to the priests. Apparently there was no immediate evidence of healing. However, they obeyed the Lord's command, and when they were some distance on their journey, they saw that they were cleansed of their leprosy. Their faith to accept the Word of the Lord brought deliverance, although at first they could see no change. The only disappointing thing about the miracle as will be noted in another chapter, was that only one of them returned to the Lord to give thanks (Luke 17:15- 18).

In the first miracle of healing that Christ performed, He taught the people a fundamental lesson on faith. Because of the unique anointing that rested upon Christ, most of the healings which took place in His ministry were instantaneous. But Christ did not want the people to get the impression that this was the only way that they could be healed. The Lord wanted faith built upon something stronger than "signs and wonders" that could be seen with the physical eye. He desired to establish in the hearts of His disciples faith that rested upon the Word of God. He wanted to impress this on them right at the beginning of His ministry when the very first healing took place. To the nobleman who had come to Him for the healing of his desperately ill child, He said, "Except ye see signs and wonders, ye will not believe." Paraphrased it meant, "Will you believe, even if your boy is not instantly made whole?" The nobleman first hesitated but apparently he accepted the lesson, for when the Lord said, "Go thy way; thy son liveth," he went his way trusting in the word that had been spoken.  

The nobleman understood from the words of Jesus that no spectacular manifestation might take place, but that the child would get well. When he arrived home, he asked when the child "began to amend. " They told him that at the same hour Jesus spoke the word the fever left him. Notice, too, although the healing to the outward eye was gradual, the Scripture speaks of the healing as a miracle (John 4:54).

These are all excellent insights into the Bible as to how to receive healing; prepare your heart, know that it is the will of God to heal you, confess all sin in your life, that unforgiveness can hinder healing, set a time, do not be spiritually lukewarm, and that healing may come gradually. Setting a time is interesting. It means that you’re not going to be denied your healing, you’re not going to allow fear, doubt and unbelief deny you and you won’t be denied by naysayers that would speak negatively into your life. This is why it’s important to surround yourself with people of faith and sometimes you have to hunker down by yourself to understand the truth of healing until it’s a reality in your mind and heart. 

To many, this sounds extreme, but it’s not, you’re just agreeing with what Jesus already did. We see on a few occasions in the New Testament where Jesus and the apostles had to clear the room of people because they were only looking at the natural circumstances. It’s hard praying the prayer of faith when a room is filled with doubt and unbelief.  

As was said above, “Although there are people who let hindrances and difficulties discourage them from getting deliverance, there are others who are determined that they will not be denied. Yield yourself completely to God so that He can show you and lead you in His perfect will.”

We have to be willing to humble ourselves, repent of our sins, flee from the sins of the flesh and seek His perfect will. We’re reminded of the woman who touched the hem of Jesus’ garment in Mark 5:25-34; “25 Now a certain woman had a flow of blood for twelve years, 26 and had suffered many things from many physicians. She had spent all that she had and was no better, but rather grew worse. 27 When she heard about Jesus, she came behind Him in the crowd and touched His garment. 28 For she said, “If only I may touch His clothes, I shall be made well.” 29 Immediately the fountain of her blood was dried up, and she felt in her body that she was healed of the [f]affliction. 30 And Jesus, immediately knowing in Himself that power had gone out of Him, turned around in the crowd and said, “Who touched My clothes?” 31 But His disciples said to Him, “You see the multitude thronging You, and You say, ‘Who touched Me?’ ” 32 And He looked around to see her who had done this thing. 33 But the woman, fearing and trembling, knowing what had happened to her, came and fell down before Him and told Him the whole truth. 34 And He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well. Go in peace, and be healed of your affliction.”

Although many touched Jesus, only one touched Him in faith. We live in a society where everyone runs to the medical professionals first and may not even run to Jesus. But today, we want to bring light that as Christians, we should run to Jesus first in faith. We know doctors have their place, but Jesus should be in first place.

As we’ve been sharing over the past few weeks, we’ve had a family member in the hospital who had been diagnosed with cancer. He did pass away this past week due to that. Although he wasn’t healed and we prayed for him many times, he wasn’t. In light of that though, the Bible is still true, what we’ve talked about in today’s write-up is still true, Jesus is still our healer and wants to heal all. We’ve also studied today and over the past few Sunday’s that there are hindrances to healing and it’s possible there were still hindrances to full healing in his body. We praise God for his salvation and we know God’s word does not change and his word is not subject to sickness and disease. His word is the same.

Today we prayed for the coming week and all the details regarding the funeral, prayed for the preparation of a video tribute and also the message to be given at the funeral, and for all video work that will be done at the funeral. We prayed for those who are going to be coming and travelling from far away. Above all, we desire to see Jesus glorified in everything and that His perfect will would be done. The Bible says that when we’re weak in the natural, then He is strong in us, His grace is sufficient for us. We ended in communion as we do every church service, remembering what Jesus purchased at the cross for us, our salvation; spirit, soul and body.

In today’s church prayer meeting, we continued with the booklet entitled, ‘How You Can Be Healed’, by Gordon Lindsay, reading Chapter 5 which is entitled, ‘How To Keep Your Healing.’ We’re putting in the full chapter, and if you’d like your own PDF copy, click on the website at Christ For The Nations and you’ll be able to download it for free. Together with the text from the booklet, we'll also be adding our thoughts to it. You'll be able to see which is of Gordon Lindsay and what we've added. What Gordon Lindsay has written is in "italics". Let the Word of God wash over your mind to be renewed and let faith arise to receive your healing as you read.  

CHAPTER 5

How to Keep Your Healing

From what has been written in the previous chapters, it will be seen that the Christian's walk in this world is a warfare against Satan's forces who would attack us in many areas, spiritual, mental, and physical. Never can the child of God relax his watchfulness and take for granted that all will go well, for there is an unseen foe who contests his progress at every step. The weapons of our warfare are mighty, however, and through them we are more than victors. In Christ Jesus we can do all things, even to the breaking down of the strongholds of the enemy. Nonetheless until Jesus comes, the price of continued victory is that of eternal vigilance. As the Lord, Himself, said, "Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man" (Luke 21:36).

Victory over an enemy depends in some measure upon the knowledge of the wiles and cunning of the adversary. Forewarned is forearmed. We  should know and realize that sin or carelessness will break down the hedge that God has placed about us. We have seen in Acts 10:38 and Luke 11:24-26 that sickness in general is caused by satanic oppression of one form or another, and that once the devil is cast out of a man, "he walketh through dry places, seeking rest; and finding none, he saith, I will return." If the man continues his careless life and has not filled it with spiritual things, the devil will come back with reinforcements, inviting other demons to share the abode with him, and making his control over the man sevenfold stronger. Hence instruction in the Word of God and faithful obedience to it is imperative to those who have been delivered.

As we read in Luke 11:24-26, when one is healed of whatever sickness because the devil was kicked out, you then continue in sanctification and fill your life with spiritual things. If you don’t fill your life with spiritual things, ie: the Word of God regarding healing, you let your guard down and when the devil comes back to see you haven’t filled your life with the Word of God, he can come back and the last state is worse than the first. This is what Jesus Himself said, it’s not our opinion.

You Will Face Temptation

Every Christian will testify that after he is saved, the devil comes back to tempt him on the reality of his experience. That is to be expected. Even to Christ, the devil said, "If thou be the Son of God." If Satan called in question Christ's Sonship, we may be sure that he will not spare us. Christ put the devil to flight by using the Word of God, as we also are instructed to do. But the point we wish to make is this: just as Satan tempts men and casts doubt on the reality of their salvation and the healing of their souls, even so, he tries to bring into question the reality of the healing of their bodies. He will seek to produce symptoms in the body of the person who has been healed. If the individual accepts the evil suggestion, the way will be opened through doubt, for the affliction to return. However, if he rejects the devil's advances and  stands upon God's Word of deliverance to him, he will banish both doubt and the symptoms. Let us now consider some of the things that cause people to lose their healing.

Do Not Continue in Sin

As we have noted in earlier chapters, sin is the direct cause of sickness in many cases. It is assumed, therefore, that the person who comes to God for healing, has repented and turned from sin. There is no use in treating a man for arsenic poisoning, if he continues knowingly to take arsenic into his body. There is no purpose in trying to bring deliverance to a person who willfully continues to live a life of sin.  

After you have received the answer to your prayer, continue to live for God. It is a sad thing that some people come to God only when they have an emergency, but after it is over, they forget God. The law of sin and its penalty has never been revoked. One cannot expect to keep his healing if he does not live for Him.

I sometimes wonder if that’s why when someone becomes a Christian and they don’t get healed, it’s because they continue in sin.

Testify of Your Deliverance

Many, after they have received a glorious healing, have failed to give God glory. The individual is under obligation, first of all, to tell others he was healed and give thanks to God. The nine lepers who were healed as they went, failed to return and give glory to God. Christ mentioned that only one of the ten lepers who was healed came back and gave thanks. The proportion is not much greater today. Many people we find who have been healed never bother to give their testimony, though they have solemnly promised to do so. The next time that they are heard from is when they are sick again. Few people realize God's attitude toward ingratitude. It is the sin of the age. Man's first step in world apostasy is described in Romans 1:21, "Because that, when they knew God, they glorified Him not as God, neither were thankful." If an affliction should return after one has experienced a deliverance, let him ask himself the question: "Did I give thanks to God?"  

When the visible part of the disease has gone, public testimony should be made. To the man who was healed of lunacy, Jesus said, "Go home to thy friends, and tell them how great things the Lord hath done for thee, and hath had compassion on thee" (Mark 5:19).

Fill Your Life With the Things Spiritual

Jesus in speaking of the man from whom the devil was cast out, noted that the demon eventually decided to return to the "house" from whence he was cast. Upon returning, he found the "house swept and garnished." In other words, the works of Satan had been cast out, but no effort had been made to replace them with the things of God. A spiritual vacuum was left in that part of his nature which must worship something, either God or the god of this world. The devil, seeing his advantage, made his entry secure by taking seven other spirits more wicked than himself, so that the last state of man was worse than the first.

There are those who, instead of coveting spiritual things, give way to a gratification of their carnal nature. Feeding on the things of the world excites appetites that crowd out the spiritual life. What misery awaits that person, when Satan finds reentrance into his life and the individual discovers that his deliverance is gone and he is once more in the toils of the enemy!

How can you fill yourself with spiritual things? Meditate on healing scriptures, continually give thanks, continue in worship, flee temptations of the flesh, resist sin.

Do Not Overdo

When healed, one has a new-found strength. But this is not to be used in vain show. We have witnessed those who after they have been gloriously healed, have used so little wisdom. Remember that even a well man, if he exhausts his strength, may succumb before an affliction which takes advantage of his weakness. How much more a person whose strength has not been built up needs to take good care of his body? This does not mean however, that one should pamper or baby himself. Indeed, day by day he should take new ground from the enemy, and as he praises and serves God, his deliverance will be a marvelous testimony of the power of God to heal and to deliver. But we cannot over-emphasize the fact that some lose their healing simply because they do not take proper care of their bodies, once deliverance comes.

Failure to Recognize Healing

Some do not recognize their healing. For example a cancer which has been killed must pass from the body. Sometimes pain accompanies this. If  the individual becomes afraid or fearful, it is possible for Satan to take advantage of that fear. One woman, after she had been prayed for, became so frightened that she decided to have an operation. The operation showed that the cancer was dead and was passing from the body. Sometimes after prayer, the diseased part will throw off the waste, and in so doing, the affliction may appear temporarily to be worse than ever. If the individual is calm in his faith, the poison will pass and the person will find that deliverance has come. The immediate visible manifestation of healing is not necessary. Indeed, some people put their faith in that, and then when the slightest unfavorable symptoms develop, they lose all confidence. But if faith is based upon the Word of God, symptoms may come and go, but the deliverance will be wrought, for God's Word, when it is trusted, cannot fail.  

Keep Your Eyes on Christ, Not Your Symptoms

Above all, keep your eyes on the promise, not your symptoms. Watching and nursing your complaint will result in a wavering faith. Our prayer must be made in unwavering faith. "But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed. For let not that man think that he shall receive anything of the Lord" (James 1:6-7). Peter's walking on the water is an example of the manner in which a man may receive the benefit of a mighty miracle one moment, and then be in jeopardy the next. He walked on the waves and as long as his eyes were upon Christ, he defied the laws of the sea. But the moment his eyes left Christ and he considered the winds and the waves, he began to sink. Our security in God whether for body, soul, or spirit, is not in past experiences but in a continued trust in God. We may note in passing that Peter had at least the presence of mind to call on Christ to save him when he was sinking. And he was saved, not by his own faith but by the faith of Jesus.

Many times after Jesus healed people, He told them to not continue in sin. Why? Because sin opens the door to the adversary. It is interesting that there are many things that can hinder your healing and many things that can rob you of it. We see how the devil only wants to steal, kill and destroy. God’s ultimate plan is to deliver us because many are the afflictions of the righteous but the Lord delivers him out of them all, Psalm 34:19.

2 Corinthians 10:3-5says; “3 For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. 4 For the weapons of our warfare are not [a]carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, 5 casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ,”

This is how you keep your healing; taking your thoughts captive when they come up about your healing that would cause you to doubt. Stand on what the Bible says about your healing and continue to speak it.

It’s interesting that most Christians have renewed their minds with medicine and natural healing techniques, they know what to take for each ailment yet they don’t know what the Bible says about healing and how to appropriate it in their lives.

Jesus is the bread of life and also living water that we can spiritually drink. Jesus not only purchased our spiritual salvation, but the salvation of our bodies from sickness and disease that entered humanity as a result of sin. We must understand that salvation is for our spirit, soul and body.  

Isaiah 40:31 says; “but those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.”

As you spend time daily in the Word of God, eating of the bread of life, He will renew you, strengthen you, but you must wait on Him first. The Word says that God’s grace is sufficient for us in our weakness. 2 Corinthians 12:9 says; “And He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.”  In living by this verse, it gives no room for you to glory in yourself or in doctors or the medical sphere. If it’s only by God’s grace then He receives all the praise. We exchange our strength for His strength.   

With the advancement of the pharmaceutical industry worldwide, and so many drugs available over the counter, it has become easier and more convenient to seek that treatment than to grow and exercise faith to believe and receive healing in our bodies and ultimately to live in divine health. We’ll cover that topic in the next chapter.

As we read at the beginning of this chapter where it says; “From what has been written in the previous chapters, it will be seen that the Christian's walk in this world is a warfare against Satan's forces who would attack us in many areas, spiritual, mental, and physical. Never can the child of God relax his watchfulness and take for granted that all will go well, for there is an unseen foe who contests his progress at every step.”

The devil will fight the Christian at every turn in their life, spirit, soul and body  and his only goal is to  rob, kill and destroy, because that is who he is. We must daily put on the full armour of God, spend time reading and listening to the Bible and pray. Our faith is always being tested, but it’s for our good, so that we grow. We don’t want Jesus to say to us, oh ye of little faith.

In today’s prayer meeting we prayed for a number of personal needs and also for salvation for our families, siblings, nieces and nephews. 2 Peter 3:9 says; “The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.” This we pray for you also, that if you have not asked Jesus to come into your life, to repent of your sins and be born again, you can do that right now. It is not the Lord’s will that you spend eternity separated from Him in hell.  If you’re sick, really read what has been written in today’s message, meditate on the Word of God and believe that it is God’s will to heal you.

We ended the church service by taking communion as we always do. Mark 14:22-26 says; “22 And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them and said, “Take, [f]eat; this is My body.” 23 Then He took the cup, and when He had given thanks He gave it to them, and they all drank from it. 24 And He said to them, “This is My blood of the [g]new covenant, which is shed for many. 25 Assuredly, I say to you, I will no longer drink of the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God.” 26 And when they had sung [h]a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.” Amen.

In today’s church prayer meeting, we continued with the booklet entitled, ‘How You Can Be Healed’, by Gordon Lindsay, reading Chapter 6 which is entitled, ‘How to Turn Your Faith Loose and Receive Your Healing by Kenneth Hagin.’We’re putting in the full chapter, and if you’d like your own PDF copy, click on the website at Christ For The Nations and you’ll be able to download it for free. This last chapter of the book is written by Kenneth Hagin. Together with the text from the booklet, we'll also be adding our thoughts to it. What Kenneth Hagin has written is in "italics", and our thoughts are added at the end. Let the Word of God wash over your mind to be renewed and let faith arise to receive your healing as you read.  

CHAPTER 6 - How to Turn Your Faith Loose and Receive Your Healing By Kenneth Hagin

When a child of God needs healing or deliverance, it is necessary that faith be released in order to receive, but many do not understand just how to do this. If you will follow faithfully and prayerfully the steps shown below, you can be sure of complete healing.

Be Born Again

1. The first thing is to know that you are born again and that you are living in all the light that He has put in your pathway. In order to be converted and become a child of God, you must believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. Then ask Him to come and dwell in your heart so that He may direct and guide you and be Lord of your life. If you ask Him to come in, Christ will surely dwell within you. For He has said, "Behold I stand at the door and knock; if any man hear my voice and open the door, I will come in to him and will sup with him and he with me" (Rev. 3:20).

Use the Word of God

2. From the Scriptures listed in this booklet, pick out two or three and memorize them thoroughly, saying them over and over again. In the same manner that Christ did when Satan tempted him, you will be able to protect yourself from the enemy who will come with doubts and unbelief. You must know and fully realize the integrity of the Word of God and know that this Word is actually what it declares itself to be.

It is a revelation from God to us. We should know that it is God speaking to us NOW. It is not only a book of the past and a book of the future; it is a book of NOW. The Holy Bible is God-breathed and God-indwelled and a God-inspired message. Hebrews 4:12says, "For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart." Quick means it is alive, living. Therefore, the Word of God is a living thing. But it will only come alive to you as you accept it and act upon it. Thus, an important step is to settle on the integrity of God's Word. Remember, that the Word is of foremost importance. It is God speaking to us. Always maintain that attitude and act upon the Word in that way. It is as though the Lord Jesus Christ Himself were with you in person, speaking to you.

Set a Time

3. Set a time to claim your healing. You may come to God alone, or you may agree with someone else, an elder, your pastor, or another believer. Now you are ready to place your petition before Him. Ask God the Father in the name of His Son Jesus, who died to save you from your sins and heal your body and mind from all sickness and disease, to heal you NOW. Then tell God that you have accepted what He is doing for you. Rebuke Satan and tell him to leave your body alone. Do this in the name of Jesus. Tell Satan that you have authority over him according to Mark 16:17, and Luke 10:19.

Praise God

4. Praise the Father for healing you. Continue to praise Him daily and even hourly, for healing you, even if you do not feel any differently. Some healings come instantly. Others come gradually. Pay no attention to the symptoms. You are not healed because you feel better, but because the Word of God says you are healed. Let every man be a liar, but let God be true. (As we stated, some have been known to get violently sick even though they were being healed—for example the dead tissues of a cancer when passing from the body.)

Confess Your Healing

5. Tell others that you accepted your healing. If they ask you how you are, tell them you are healed according to the Word of God. Never confess to them that you feel badly or that nothing has happened. That is actually testifying to the works of Satan. Remember you are seeing through the eye of faith. You believe and say it because God said so. This bold confession will further strengthen your faith. A negative confession will weaken your faith and serve to neutralize your prayers.

This is the crucial time for your healing through Jesus Christ. If you will believe what Christ said, and not what you feel, there can be no failure. If you continue to believe God, Satan will see that he has to take his hold off your body.

Meditate on the Promises of God

6. Meanwhile meditate constantly on the promises upon which you base your healing. See yourself with what you have asked for, and make plans accordingly, as if it were already a reality. Let every thought and desire affirm that you have what you asked. "Never permit a mental picture of a failure to be in your mind." Never doubt for one minute that you have the answer. If doubts persist, rebuke them and get your mind on the answer. Constantly affirm that the promises are true, and that prayer has been answer. Eradicate every suggestion, image, vision, dream, impression, feeling; in fact extirpate all thoughts that do not contribute to your faith that you have what you have asked.

Thoughts are governed by observations, associations, and teachings. Guard against every evil that comes into the mind. Stay away from all places and things that will not support your affirmation that God has answered prayer.

In your waking moments think on the greatness of God and His goodness. Count your blessings and faith will increase. Lift your heart to God constantly in gratitude and increasing praise for what He is doing for you now. Maintain that all things are possible to the believer.

Do Not Ask God Over and Over

7. Make every prayer relative to what you have asked, a statement of faith instead of unbelief. Do not ask God over and over again for the same things as if He had not heard you the first time. Rather remind the father that you are still claiming the promises and that you praise Him, and you know He has heard you and has answered you. In Isaiah 43:26, God does tell us to remind Him of what, we have asked Him for, and to give reasons to Him as to why we have asked Him. "Put me in remembrance: let us plead together, declare thou, that thou mayest be justified." Remind Satan that you have taken authority over him and his oppression in your body. Constantly give praise to God for your healing. Then your spirit (the inner man) will rise up and take hold of the promises of God, and you shall see victory.  

Say Aloud What You Believe*

8. Confess your faith—that is, say aloud what you believe. "For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation" (Romans 10:10). "For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith" (Mark 11:23).

Notice that the tenth chapter of Romans says "unto salvation," but that is not only true concerning salvation. It is true concerning anything else that you receive from God. All that you receive from God comes the same way —through faith. It is with the heart that man believes for answered prayer, and with the mouth confession is made unto. It is with the heart that man believes when it comes to healing, and with the mouth that confession is made unto. Whatsoever you receive from God will come in this way.

Notice again the text in Mark 11:23says with the same thought involved, "For verily I say unto you that whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe (that is, shall believe in his heart) that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith." Jesus in this text mentions believing one time, and He mentions saying it three times. Many people believe, but they are not saying it. One has to say with his mouth what he believe s if it is to work for him. No Scripture in the Bible teaches that if one just believes in his heart, that he will receive an answer. But the Bible does teach that if you believe with your heart and say it with your mouth, whatever you want shall come to pass. The 9th and 10th verses of Romans 10 says that, and we know that it is true.

Notice the 8th verse of Romans 10: "But what saith it? The word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth, and in thy heart: that is, the word of faith, which we preach." Again the word of faith must be in our mouths as well as our hearts to work for us. If it is just in our hearts, it will not work. But when it is in both our hearts and our mouths, thank God it will work. "With the mouth confession is made unto."

You can say, "I am healed," "I do have faith," or "I do believe that I have what I prayed for," just as easily as you can make statements of unbelief. You can think thoughts of faith just as easily as you can think thoughts of doubt and unbelief. It is thinking faith thoughts and speaking faith words that leads the heart out of defeat into victory. Do not accept "No" as an answer. Do not be denied. It is our family right as children of God, our redemption right, our gospel right, our creative right to have what God has promised. It will come. It is yours now, so accept it and it will become a reality. Our confession can be, "God is with me." "Greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world." You can fearlessly say, "God is in me now." You will find that your confession of faith will cause Him to work on your behalf. He will rise up in you and put you over. The Master of creation is in you. You can face life fearlessly because you know that He that is in you is greater than any forces that can be arrayed against you. This should be your continual confession. Hold fast to it.

Actually there is no faith without confession. Confession is faith's way of expressing itself. Faith is of the heart, the spirit. Faith grows with your confession. You do not realize beyond what you say. If you say you cannot, then you cannot. You get nothing. But if you say you can, then you can. You can have what you say, whether unbelief or belief. It mightily affects your spirit or your inner man.

The reason the majority of Christians, though earnest, yet are weak, is because they have never dared to make a confession of what they are in Christ. Boldly confess what the Word declares you are in Christ. As you do this, your faith will abound. The reason faith is throttled and held in bondage is because you have never dared to confess what God says you are. Remember that faith never grows beyond your confession. Your daily confession of what the Father is to you, of what Jesus is doing for you now at the right hand of the Father, and what His mighty Holy Spirit is doing in you, will build a solid, positive faith life. You will not be afraid of any circumstances. You will not be afraid of any disease. You will not be afraid of any condition. You will face life fearlessly, a conqueror. But you will never be a conqueror until you confess that you are one. If you are going to get to be a conqueror first, and then believe you are one, you are all wrong. You have to confess it first, and then you become a conqueror. Faith's confessions create reality.

Do What You Could Not Do Before

9. Do the things that you could not do before. If you could not bend over, do so. If you could not walk before, start walking. God has committed Himself to honor your faith. If you could not see before, start looking. "Faith if it hath not works (or action) is dead, being alone" (James 2:17).

Remember the Scripture says, "Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen" (Heb. 11:1). When you see the answer, you will no longer need faith for it. IT IS ONLY WHILE YOU DO NOT SEE THE ANSWER WITH YOUR PHYSICAL SENSES THAT YOU EXERCISE YOUR FAITH.

Divine Health

One last great truth about healing should be grasped by every Christian. Even though it is God's will to heal us every time we are sick, His perfect plan is not for us to be continually in need of more healings, but to live in divine health and strength as revealed in III John 2, "Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth." He will renew our strength as eagles. Just as it is not God's will that we be saved over and over again, but that we remain spiritually well, it is not really God's best that He heal us over and over again, but that we "be in health." Thus, whenever Satan tries to put any weakness on our bodies, we should immediately take these same steps to force him to withdraw before he gets a stronghold on our physical being the same way we would rebuff an attack on our spiritual being.

Hitherto we have been mainly concerned with the healing of those who are already sick. But God's best for you, His child, is actually something more than healing. God has said that His will is that you should "prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth” (III John 2). When God gave the covenant of healing to the children of Israel, He did not emphasize healing so much as He did divine health. He said, that if Israel were obedient to the commandments of the Lord, disease and sickness, which had come on the Egyptians, would not come on the Israelites.  

Lest the people of Israel should misunderstand the real meaning of the covenant of healing, the Lord repeated the promise in slightly different words in Exodus 23:25: "And ye shall serve the Lord your God, and he shall bless thy bread, and thy water; and I will take sickness away from the midst of thee."

The promise is repeated and the condition is repeated. The people were to serve the Lord, and He would bless them by taking "sickness away from the midst ..."

Again in the book of Deuteronomy, the promise of divine health and immunity from sickness is repeated still again: "And the Lord will take away from thee all sickness, and will put none of the evil diseases of Egypt, which thou knowest, upon thee; but will lay them upon all them that hate thee" (Deut. 7:15).

It is interesting to note that the book of Deuteronomy concludes with the observation that if plagues and sicknesses of Egypt should appear among the people of God, it would be a sign of their disobedience. (Deut. 28:15-28).

The remarkable thing is that the children of Israel did for a considerable period appropriate and live under the blessings of the promise. There were exceptions in which some of the people disobeyed God. There were jealousies, murmurings, lusts that resulted in bringing plagues upon themselves. But as a whole, over a long period of time, while the nations wandered in the wilderness, the people were immune to sickness. Thus the Psalmist could say: "He brought them forth with silver and gold and there was not one feeble person among their tribes" (Psalms 105:37).

The Scripture gives us examples of those who enjoyed divine health. One was Moses who had reached the advanced age of one hundred and twenty. In the natural, we might suppose he had reached extreme senility and decrepitude, yet he retained the virility of youth until the day he died: "And Moses was an hundred and twenty years old when he died: his eye was not dim, nor his natural force abated" (Deut. 34:7).

Nor was Moses the only example of one enjoying the benefits of divine health. There was Caleb, one of the twelve spies and one of the two that brought back "a good report." Caleb had put in some strenuous years, and yet at eighty-five years of age, he had a remarkable testimony: "And now, behold, the Lord hath kept me alive, as he said, these forty and five years, even since the Lord spake this word unto Moses, while the children of Israel wandered in the wilderness: and now, lo, I am this day fourscore and five years old. As yet I am as strong this day as I was in the day that Moses sent me: as my strength was then, even so is my strength now, for war, both to go out, and to come in" (Josh. 14:10-11)

It is evident that the reason we have so much sickness in the church is that we have restricted God's promise to repeated healing instead of the promise of health. Of course, there are conditions to the promise as the Scriptures plainly show. But, if we are obeying God's commandments and living in fellowship with Him, then it is our absolute right to divine health. Thus, when Satan attempts (as he may do) to put sickness or disease upon our bodies, we should not wait until we are overcome with sickness. At the first sign of attack from Satan, we must rise up and rebuke him. "Resist the devil, and he will flee from you" (James 4:7). We must continue to fight him until he sees that we mean business and are determined to defeat him.

The Bible teaches that it is God's will that the believer should have a long and useful life, blessed with health and strength. The best medicine is the 91st Psalmwhich should be read over and over.

Psalms 103:5 speaks even of the renewing of the believer's youth: "Who satisfieth thy mouth with good things; so that thy youth is renewed like the eagle’s."

Of course every promise has a condition. The condition in this case is that the individual will satisfy himself with the good things of heaven and not the things of earth. He must soar like the eagle up above the petty things of this world. He must learn to dwell in the heavenly places with Christ Jesus. "And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus" (Eph. 2:6).

In closing we would direct attention to the words of the Proverbs which inform us that if we diligently give heed to the word of God, then we can claim the promise of health. "My son, attend to my words; incline thine ear unto my sayings. Let them not depart from thine eyes; keep them in the midst of thine heart. For they are life unto those that find them, and health to all their flesh" (Prov. 4:20-22).

What Does Christ's Death on the Cross Mean to You Personally?

"Bless the Lord, O my soul: all that is within me, bless his holy name. Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits: Who forgiveth all thine iniquities; who healeth all thy diseases" (Psalms 103:1-3).

Healing of the body and salvation of the soul go together. Physical healing will benefit a person very little if he continues to reject Christ as his eternal Saviour. Christ said, "For what shall it profit a man if he shall gain the whole world and lose his own soul?" (Mark 8:36).

And so when Christ died for us in our stead, He took care of all our needs—both spiritual and physical.

Let us think back upon the day when Christ was crucified. There He hung between earth and heaven—a spectacle to men and angels with the tortures becoming more unendurable every moment. Death by crucifixion includes the sum total of all the suffering a body can experience: thirst, fever, open shame, long continual torment. It was now the noon hour, ordinarily the brightest hour of the day. But instead, a darkness began to descend upon the earth. Nature itself, unable to bear the scene, withdrew its light, and the heavens became black. This  darkness had an immediate effect upon the onlookers. There were no more jeers and taunts. People began to slip away silently to leave Jesus alone to drink to the deepest depths the dregs of suffering and humiliation. Yet a greater horror was yet to come. Instead of a joyful communion with God, there was a cry of distress. Jesus found himself utterly deserted by both man and God. His cry even today brings a shudder of terror. It was ... "My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?"

There was apparently one thing that God had held back from his son Christ, lest even He should be unable to bear it. The terrible truth came to Him only in the last hours of darkness. As the sun withdrew its shining, so the presence of God was being withdrawn also. Though sometimes forsaken of men, He could always turn in confidence to His heavenly Father. But now even God had forsaken Him.

God indeed had forsaken Him, though only for a moment; and the reason is clear: at that moment the sin of the world with all its hideousness rested upon Jesus. He became sin; "For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him" (II Cor. 5:21).

There we have the answer to what happened. Christ was made sin for us. He took upon Him the sin of the world, including yours and mine. Therefore, He had to receive the judgment that fell upon sin.

And now at last the end was drawing near. The loss of blood produces a thirst that is beyond description. Jesus cried, "I thirst." The One who hung on the cross thirsted. He is the same One who now satisfies our souls' thirst —"If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink" (John 7:37).

The final moment had come. Jesus bowed his head in death saying as He died, "It is finished!" Salvation had been completed. It was a salvation, not of works to be earned by fastings, by penances, by pilgrimages. Salvation is forever a finished work. We need not complete it by our own efforts. There is nothing more to do but to accept it. There is no need to struggle and to labor, but to take quietly what God has prepared at infinite sacrifice.

So did Christ die for our salvation. So was He raised again three days and nights later in glorious triumph to die no more. Therefore, He says,"BECAUSE I LIVE, YE SHALL LIVE ALSO" (John 14:19).

God has done all that is possible to bring you eternal life. He paid the full price of punishment for your sins. It is now your turn to accept Him. God sees your mind and soul. He knows all of your thoughts. If you sincerely want to accept Jesus Christ, the Son of God, into your life, you will be reborn. You will become a child of God, and God the Father will become your father.

Even though this was a bit longer of a chapter, it’s necessary for Christians to appropriate God’s word to receive their healing just as they’ve received their salvation. As we read earlier, we’d like to reiterate it; “Just as it is notGod's will that we be saved over and over again, but that we remainspiritually well, it is not really God's best that He heal us over and over again,but that we "be in health." Thus, whenever Satan tries to put any weakness on our bodies, we should immediately take these same steps to force him to withdraw before he gets a stronghold on our physical beingthe same way we would rebuff an attack on our spiritual being.”

We realize that this message has and continually receives push-back by the religious and demonic realm alike. Just as the devil fights to keep one from being born again, so he fights to keep them sick and diseased. Allow this word to sink deep into your heart that it is God’s will that you be healed and live in health. Only by meditating in God’s word day and night will your mind be renewed and washed.

As we prayed today, we took authority over fear, doubt and unbelief that would rob the word of God. We prayed for healing in our bodies. Even as Moses, Joshua and Caleb lived out their days strong and healthy, so we declared that over our lives. We celebrated communion as we do in every service.