Healing:  God’s Will

This document is written to obedient believers, who want to obey God’s will and command in healing the sick.  I wrote it because I did not find online literature on this topic that teaches this premise:  While obedient believers must suffer pain and persecution (including poverty Hebrews 10:34, 1 Corinthians 4:11) at the hands of evil men, they can access (through the blood of Jesus--Psalm 103:3; Isaiah 53:4, 5; Matthew 8:17; James 5:14-16; 1 Peter 2:24) physical healing from disease, sickness, and deliverance from demonic attack for themselves and others who are willing to believe.

 

 

Health is God’s will for His people

 

III John 2 Beloved, I wish [it is my will] above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health...

 

Some might say that that is only the Apostle John’s will.

 

I Thessalonians 2:13 For this cause also thank we God without ceasing, because, when ye received the word of God which ye heard of us, ye received it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which effectually worketh also in you that believe.

 

But they need to receive the Word of God through John and the other Bible authors on the issue of healing:

 

Psalm 107:20 He sent his word, and healed them, and delivered them from their destructions.


Matthew 8:16b...he cast out spirits with his word, and healed all that were sick.

 

Salvation and Healing provided for in the Atonement

 

Psalm 103
Of David.
1 Praise the LORD , O my soul;
all my inmost being, praise his holy name.
2 Praise the LORD , O my soul,
and forget not all his benefits-
3 who forgives all your sins
and heals all your diseases,

 

Isaiah 53

4 Surely he took up our infirmities
and carried our sorrows,
yet we considered him stricken by God,
smitten by him, and afflicted.
5 But he was pierced for our transgressions,
he was crushed for our iniquities;
the punishment that brought us peace was upon him,
and by his wounds we are healed.
6 We all, like sheep, have gone astray,
each of us has turned to his own way;
and the LORD has laid on him
the iniquity of us all.

 

Matthew explains Christ fulfillment of this scripture more explicitly in regards to physical healing:

 

Matthew 8:17 (New International Version)

16When evening came, many who were demon-possessed were brought to him, and he drove out the spirits with a word and healed all the sick. 17This was to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah:
   "He took up our infirmities
      and carried our diseases."[[c]

 

After Matthew clarifies that Isaiah is indeed referring to physical healing in 53:4, Peter quotes Isaiah’s next verse.

 

1 Peter 2:24 (New International Version)

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

 

Peter states that divine healing has been provided for in the atonement.  Salvation and physical healing (usually in that order) are available to all by faith.  All three of these verses mention both the atonement from sin, and physical healing, as does this one:

 

            James 5:14-16 (New International Version)

14Is any one of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord. 15And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise him up. If he has sinned, he will be forgiven. 16Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.

 

Which makes us a promise, as does this one:

 

Romans 8:11 But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken [make alive] your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you.

 

That God will heal His children.  Of course there are conditions to this promise, but at least we know that God wants to heal His children, just as he wants to save them.  Of course, you could be saved and not healed, like Paul (Galatians 4:13) or Timothy (1 Timothy 5:23) were.  Paul’s advice on healthy living may have brought Timothy healing.  Do you find it odd that this Paul fell ill?

 

Acts 19:11-13 (New International Version)

11God did extraordinary miracles through Paul, 12so that even handkerchiefs and aprons that had touched him were taken to the sick, and their illnesses were cured and the evil spirits left them.

 

I bet he wished that he saved one of those handkerchiefs.  Just kidding.  So why isn’t every Christian always healed?  There are conditions and blockades to healing that the Bible mentions.  This link actually informs the central premise of this document, and will return you to this document.

 

Even while Paul was sick, he still obeyed God’s command to preach salvation, healing, and deliverance.  That was just part of being Paul. 

 

 

Commission:

Example

Matthew 4:23
Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom, and healing every disease and sickness among the people.
(Whole Chapter: Matthew 4 In context: Matthew 4:22-24)

 

Notice it does not say, “healing every disease and sickness” except the ones that were not God’s will to heal. 

 

John 14
12I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father.

 

Notice that He says that we (obedient believers) will do the things he has been doing.  What was he doing?  Peter sums it up this way:

 

Acts 10:38
how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and power, and how he went around doing good and healing all who were under the power of the devil, because God was with him. 39" (Whole Chapter: Acts 10 In context: Acts 10:37-39)

 

 

It is commanded

Matthew 10:1
He called his twelve disciples to him and gave them authority to drive out evil[ 10:1 Greek unclean] spirits and to heal every disease and sickness.
(Whole Chapter: Matthew 10 In context: Matthew 10:1-2)

 

Matthew 10
7As you go, preach this message: 'The kingdom of heaven is near.' 8Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy,[1] drive out demons. Freely you have received, freely give.  (Whole Chapter: Matthew 10 In context: Matthew 10:7-9)

 

Mark 6

Jesus Sends Out the Twelve
7Then Jesus went around teaching from village to village. Calling the Twelve to him, he sent them out two by two and gave them authority over evil[2] spirits.
8These were his instructions: "Take nothing for the journey except a staff--no bread, no bag, no money in your belts. 9Wear sandals but not an extra tunic. 10Whenever you enter a house, stay there until you leave that town. 11And if any place will not welcome you or listen to you, shake the dust off your feet when you leave, as a testimony against them."
12They went out and preached that people should repent. 13They drove out many demons and anointed many sick people with oil and healed them.

 

 

Many teach that this command was only for the twelve, and/or the 72.  However, a large random group of believers prayed that God would continue to work through them the same repentance-preaching, demon exorcizing, miracle healing ministry.

 

            Acts 4

The Believers' Prayer
23On their release, Peter and John went back to their own people and reported all that the chief priests and elders had said to them. 24When they heard this, they raised their voices together in prayer to God. "Sovereign Lord," they said, "you made the heaven and the earth and the sea, and everything in them. 25You spoke by the Holy Spirit through the mouth of your servant, our father David:
   " 'Why do the nations rage
       and the peoples plot in vain?
    26The kings of the earth take their stand
       and the rulers gather together
       against the Lord
       and against his Anointed One.[3] '[4] 27Indeed Herod and Pontius Pilate met together with the Gentiles and the people[5] of Israel in this city to conspire against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed. 28They did what your power and will had decided beforehand should happen. 29Now, Lord, consider their threats and enable your servants to speak your word with great boldness. 30Stretch out your hand to heal and perform miraculous signs and wonders through the name of your holy servant Jesus."
31After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly.  

NOTE:  Healing the sick is not the only thing that Jesus commanded the 12. 

Matt 10 5These twelve Jesus sent out with the following instructions: "Do not go among the Gentiles or enter any town of the Samaritans. 6Go rather to the lost sheep of Israel. 7As you go, preach this message: 'The kingdom of heaven is near.' 8Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy,[2] drive out demons. Freely you have received, freely give. 9Do not take along any gold or silver or copper in your belts; 10take no bag for the journey, or extra tunic, or sandals or a staff; for the worker is worth his keep.

So many interpreters claim that these commands (including healing the sick) do not apply to us.  Otherwise, we could never “take along any gold or silver or copper in your belts; 10take no bag for the journey, or extra tunic, or sandals or a staff”.  The next time I am traveling through Israel, I will consider traveling this way.  One problem: I’m not Jewish, and things have changed in Israel.  Modern Israelis might not be so hospitable to a Jesus-preaching Gentile like me.  I might have to bring my own stuff. 

I would not be greedy though, and bring fancy stuff.  In Acts 4, 32-37 below, the believers continued to obey Christ’s leading in humble stewardship and mutual generosity.  So in this sense, they and we do obey these specific commands. 

[Passage continued from above]
The Believers Share Their Possessions

32All the believers were one in heart and mind. No one claimed that any of his possessions was his own, but they shared everything they had. 33With great power the apostles continued to testify to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and much grace was upon them all. 34There were no needy persons among them. For from time to time those who owned lands or houses sold them, brought the money from the sales 35and put it at the apostles' feet, and it was distributed to anyone as he had need.
36Joseph, a Levite from Cyprus, whom the apostles called Barnabas (which means Son of Encouragement), 37sold a field he owned and brought the money and put it at the apostles' feet.

So, yes, some of the commands have a clear cultural/situational context.  That does not mean that we are not commanded to preach the gospel or heal the sick. There is nothing culturally specific about those commands:

Matthew 28  The Great Commission

16Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. 17When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. 18Then Jesus came to them and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in[1] the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."

So that settles it.  We must obey everything commanded of the 11, including healing the sick and driving out demons, as He commands us above. 

Was the believers’ prayer in Acts 4 presumptuous or unbiblical?  Or is it something that we should also pray and obey?  Notice that this prayer was confirmed by a miracle in verse 31.  Let me warn you to obey it:

Hebrews 2
Warning to Pay Attention
1We must pay more careful attention, therefore, to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away. 2For if the message spoken by angels was binding, and every violation and disobedience received its just punishment, 3how shall we escape if we ignore such a great salvation? This salvation, which was first announced by the Lord, was confirmed to us by those who heard him. 4God also testified to it by signs, wonders and various miracles, and gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his will.

Paul was not even saved yet at the time of this prayer, but when he got saved, he obeyed the healing command to the 12.  So did Barnabas. 

Acts 14:3
So Paul and Barnabas spent considerable time there, speaking boldly for the Lord, who confirmed the message of his grace by enabling them to do miraculous signs and wonders.
(Whole Chapter: Acts 14 In context: Acts 14:2-4)

Romans 15:19
by the power of signs and miracles, through the power of the Spirit. So from Jerusalem all the way around to Illyricum, I have fully proclaimed the gospel of Christ.
(Whole Chapter: Romans 15 In context: Romans 15:18-20)

Ezekiel 34
3 You eat the curds, clothe yourselves with the wool and slaughter the choice animals, but you do not take care of the flock. 4 You have not strengthened the weak or healed the sick or bound up the injured. You have not brought back the strays or searched for the lost. You have ruled them harshly and brutally. 5 So they were scattered because there was no shepherd, and when they were scattered they became food for all the wild animals.

 

If you are a follower of Jesus Christ, don’t be a bad Shepherd.  Heal the sick as He commanded.  You are not commanded to explain why people do not get healed (I’ll try to explain some of that here).  You are commanded to pray in faith (not doubting).

 

James 5
14Is any one of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord. 15And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise him up. If he has sinned, he will be forgiven. 16Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.

.

 

 

“Anomaly Scriptures”

Some scriptures make it seem like Healing is sometimes not God’s will—or that God does not want to heal His people.  However, He always wants to heal people on His terms—not necessarily theirs.

 

As far as the devils children, yes He can send sickness upon them.  Even in the New Testament, He struck a sorcerer blind (below), and he killed two “Christian” liars in Acts 5. 

 

Acts 13

4The two of them, sent on their way by the Holy Spirit, went down to Seleucia and sailed from there to Cyprus. 5When they arrived at Salamis, they proclaimed the word of God in the Jewish synagogues. John was with them as their helper.
6They traveled through the whole island until they came to Paphos. There they met a Jewish sorcerer and false prophet named Bar-Jesus, 7who was an attendant of the proconsul, Sergius Paulus. The proconsul, an intelligent man, sent for Barnabas and Saul because he wanted to hear the word of God. 8But Elymas the sorcerer (for that is what his name means) opposed them and tried to turn the proconsul from the faith. 9Then Saul, who was also called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked straight at Elymas and said, 10"You are a child of the devil and an enemy of everything that is right! You are full of all kinds of deceit and trickery. Will you never stop perverting the right ways of the Lord? 11Now the hand of the Lord is against you. You are going to be blind, and for a time you will be unable to see the light of the sun."
12Immediately mist and darkness came over him, and he groped about, seeking someone to lead him by the hand. When the proconsul saw what had happened, he believed, for he was amazed at the teaching about the Lord.

 

Rev 21:8 tells us that neither of these people who were physically afflicted by God were His children.

 

 

It was good for me to be afflicted

 

Psalm

(119:67) Before I was afflicted I went astray,

      but now I obey your word.

(119:68) You are good, and what you do is good;

      teach me your decrees.

(119:69) Though the arrogant have smeared me with lies,

      I keep your precepts with all my heart.

(119:70) Their hearts are callous and unfeeling,

      but I delight in your law.

(119:71) It was good for me to be afflicted

      so that I might learn your decrees.

(119:72) The law from your mouth is more precious to me

      than thousands of pieces of silver and gold.

 

“Afflicted” here does not refer to physical illness.

 

6031  `anah-

 

1) (Qal) to be occupied, to be busied with

2) to afflict, to oppress, to humble, to be afflicted, to be bowed down

            a) (Qal)

1) to be put down, to become low

2) to be depressed, to be downcast

3) to be afflicted

4) to stoop

            b) (Niphal)

1) to humble oneself, to bow down

2) to be afflicted, to be humbled

            c) (Piel)

1) to humble, to mishandle, to afflict

2) to humble, to be humiliated

3) to afflict

4) to humble, to weaken oneself

            d) (Pual)

1) to be afflicted

2) to be humbled

            e) (Hiphil) to afflict

            f) (Hithpael)

1) to humble oneself

2) to be afflicted

 

6031  `anah (aw-naw');

 

a primitive root [possibly rather ident. with 6030 through the idea of looking down or browbeating]; to depress literally or figuratively, transitive or intransitive (in various applications, as follows):

 

KJV-- abaseself, afflict (-ionself,), answer [by mistake for 6030], chastenself, deal hardly with, defile, exercise, force, gentleness, humble (self), hurt, ravish, sing [by mistake for 6030], speak [by mistake for 6030], submitself, weaken, X in any wise.

 

“Thorn in my flesh”

Paul’s thorn was not a sickness that was God’s will for him to have.  He himself identified it as a demon, or messenger (angel) of Satan.

 

2 Corinthians 12

7To keep me from becoming conceited because of these surpassingly great revelations, there was given me a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. 8Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. 9But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. 10That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

 

The preceding chapter and surrounding context tells us that this demon may have followed Paul around and stirred up trouble for him, in the form of “insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties” not in physical illness. 

 

2 Corinthians 11

23Are they servants of Christ? (I am out of my mind to talk like this.) I am more. I have worked much harder, been in prison more frequently, been flogged more severely, and been exposed to death again and again. 24Five times I received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one. 25Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned, three times I was shipwrecked, I spent a night and a day in the open sea, 26I have been constantly on the move. I have been in danger from rivers, in danger from bandits, in danger from my own countrymen, in danger from Gentiles; in danger in the city, in danger in the country, in danger at sea; and in danger from false brothers. 27I have labored and toiled and have often gone without sleep; I have known hunger and thirst and have often gone without food; I have been cold and naked. 28Besides everything else, I face daily the pressure of my concern for all the churches. 29Who is weak, and I do not feel weak? Who is led into sin, and I do not inwardly burn?
30If I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness. 31The God and Father of the Lord Jesus, who is to be praised forever, knows that I am not lying. 32In Damascus the governor under King Aretas had the city of the Damascenes guarded in order to arrest me. 33But I was lowered in a basket from a window in the wall and slipped through his hands.

 

Job

Job got healed eventually did he not?  Should he have not prayed for his own healing?  Did he not say, “Though you slay me, I will trust you Lord”?  That is a prayer of faith, to trust in “The Lord your Healer”, when you think it was Him that afflicted you. 

 

Job 2:10
He replied, "You are talking like a foolish [ 2:10 The Hebrew word rendered [ foolish ] denotes moral deficiency. ] woman. Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?" In all this, Job did not sin in what he said.
(Whole Chapter: Job 2 In context: Job 2:9-11)

 

You could blame God for indirectly afflicting Job via Satan. 

 

Job 2:7
So Satan went out from the presence of the LORD and afflicted Job with painful sores from the soles of his feet to the top of his head.
(Whole Chapter: Job 2 In context: Job 2:6-8)

 

After all, God is bigger than Satan and He did allow it.  Even if God directly sickened Job, what would be wrong with Job asking Him to heal him?  What could be wrong with believing in God’s will to heal? However, I’d be real careful about attributing Satan’s actions to God. 

 

Job 1:22
In all this, Job did not sin by charging God with wrongdoing.
(Whole Chapter: Job 1 In context: Job 1:21-23)

 

Don’t blame God for Satan’s works. 

 

Matthew 12

Jesus and Beelzebub

22Then they brought him a demon-possessed man who was blind and mute, and Jesus healed him, so that he could both talk and see. 23All the people were astonished and said, "Could this be the Son of David?"
24But when the Pharisees heard this, they said, "It is only by Beelzebub,[4] the prince of demons, that this fellow drives out demons."
25Jesus knew their thoughts and said to them, "Every kingdom divided against itself will be ruined, and every city or household divided against itself will not stand. 26If Satan drives out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then can his kingdom stand? 27And if I drive out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your people drive them out? So then, they will be your judges. 28But if I drive out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.
29"Or again, how can anyone enter a strong man's house and carry off his possessions unless he first ties up the strong man? Then he can rob his house.
30"He who is not with me is against me, and he who does not gather with me scatters. 31And so I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven. 32Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but anyone who speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come.
33"Make a tree good and its fruit will be good, or make a tree bad and its fruit will be bad, for a tree is recognized by its fruit. 34You brood of vipers, how can you who are evil say anything good? For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks. 35The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in him, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in him. 36But I tell you that men will have to give account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken. 37For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned."

 

Blame Adam or Eve for sickness if you have to.  They gave the devil authority, by following him, and made him the “prince of this world” (John 16:10).  They did this by following his idea to disobey God.  Have you ever disobeyed God?  You gave authority to the Devil then too.  Why don’t you blame yourself for the sickness you see?

 

Hebrews 12

10Our fathers disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness. 11No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.
12Therefore, strengthen your feeble arms and weak knees. 13"Make level paths for your feet,"[2] so that the lame may not be disabled, but rather healed.

 

Verse 13 tells you that if you obeyed God more, maybe the lame people that you come across would be healed.  Don’t blame that lame person for being sick, and quit blaming God for sickness.  Why are you always trying to blame everyone but yourself?  You are the only one that you can change.  Are you going to part of the problem or part of the solution? 

 

 

No more excuses

Don’t be a bad Shepard. Heal the sick.  Quit blaming and start obeying.  Heal the sick.  You (and we all) may have given authority to the Devil by not obeying God’s command to heal, but enough is enough.  Now Jesus has given those of us who obey Him “authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy”.

 

Luke 10
Jesus Sends Out the Seventy-two
1After this the Lord appointed seventy-two[1] others and sent them two by two ahead of him to every town and place where he was about to go. 2He told them, "The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field. 3Go! I am sending you out like lambs among wolves. 4Do not take a purse or bag or sandals; and do not greet anyone on the road.
5"When you enter a house, first say, 'Peace to this house.' 6If a man of peace is there, your peace will rest on him; if not, it will return to you. 7Stay in that house, eating and drinking whatever they give you, for the worker deserves his wages. Do not move around from house to house.
8"When you enter a town and are welcomed, eat what is set before you. 9Heal the sick who are there and tell them, 'The kingdom of God is near you.' 10But when you enter a town and are not welcomed, go into its streets and say, 11'Even the dust of your town that sticks to our feet we wipe off against you. Yet be sure of this: The kingdom of God is near.' 12I tell you, it will be more bearable on that day for Sodom than for that town.
13"Woe to you, Korazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago, sitting in sackcloth and ashes. 14But it will be more bearable for Tyre and Sidon at the judgment than for you. 15And you, Capernaum, will you be lifted up to the skies? No, you will go down to the depths.[2]
16"He who listens to you listens to me; he who rejects you rejects me; but he who rejects me rejects him who sent me."
17The seventy-two returned with joy and said, "Lord, even the demons submit to us in your name."
18He replied, "I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. 19I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you. 20However, do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven."

 

God wants to heal the sick in His name.  That is one of the things he wants us to do.  If it was not His will, he would not have commanded us to do it.  He definitely would not give us authority to do it. How then, do we do it?  That is a topic for another document:  We can get started in doing it by addressing any blockades to healing in our lives.

 

 

God’s will does not always happen on earth

We observe plenty of cases where people do not get healed.  That does not mean that God’s will is done in those cases.  God’s will is not always done on this earth.  Otherwise, He would not tell us to pray for it to be done on earth.

 

 Luke 11:2
He said to them, "When you pray, say: " 'Father,[ 11:2 Some manuscripts Our Father in heaven] hallowed be your name, your kingdom come.[ 11:2 Some manuscripts come. May your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.]
(Whole Chapter: Luke 11 In context: Luke 11:1-3)


The implication is that God’s will is always done in heaven, but not always done on earth.  Therefore, He tells us to pray that His kingdom come and His will be done here on earth.  Not only did he tell us to pray, but He also commands us to heal.  Not only does he command us to heal, but He gives us authority to heal, among other things (v 19). 

 

Matthew 11:12
From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has been forcefully advancing, and forceful men lay hold of it.
(Whole Chapter: Matthew 11 In context: Matthew 11:11-13)

 

God’s will can be done on earth where forceful men lay hold of it: Taking authority over the devils powers and loosing God’s heavenly (or Kingdom) will on earth.

 

Matthew 18:18
"I tell you the truth, whatever you bind on earth will be[ 18:18 Or have been] bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be[ 18:18 Or have been] loosed in heaven.
(Whole Chapter: Matthew 18 In context: Matthew 18:17-19)

 

 

Origin of sickness

Sickness is part of the curse on man from original and/or personal sin. It is one of the powers of the enemy referred to in Luke 10:19 above.

 

Hebrews 2:14
Since the children have flesh and blood, he too shared in their humanity so that by his death he might destroy him who holds the power of death–that is, the devil–
(Whole Chapter: Hebrews 2 In context: Hebrews 2:13-15)

 

What is the power of death?  Scientists might describe it as “entropy”—the tendency of any system in the universe to move from order to disorder.  A layman would describe entropy this way:  Things get old and they break.  When people get old, they eventually die of some disorder, or sickness. 

 

1 Corinthians 15:56
The sting of death is sin…..(Whole Chapter: 1 Corinthians 15 In context: 1 Corinthians 15:55-57)

 

Another way to describe sickness is a lack of health. A lack of health is caused by biological disorder.  An orderly (or healthy) body has all its parts working together in an orderly way.  This is God’s will.  This was the case in the Garden of Eden, and is the case in heaven.  God is a god of order (1 Corinthians 14:33). 


Jeremiah 33
25 This is what the LORD says: 'If I have not established my covenant with day and night and the fixed laws of heaven and earth, 26

 

His laws are fixed.  Without his sustaining (or life-giving) power, everything, including people, would fall apart into disorder. 

 

Hebrews 1:3
The Son is the radiance of God's glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.
(Whole Chapter: Hebrews 1 In context: Hebrews 1:2-4)

 

This disorder is reflected in many disorders and sicknesses.  However, if we belong to the Sustainer Himself, then He can quicken (or supernaturally give life to) our physical bodies: bringing them back into His working order.

 

Romans 8:11 But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken [make alive] your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you.

 

Also, the Sustainer has given us “authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy” (Luke 10:19).  This authority was given in the context of a passage where He was talking about preaching the gospel, driving out demons, and healing the sick.  To learn more about the dynamics of this type of Gospel ministry, read blockades to healing.  This is a start on loosing God’s miraculous healing power in yours and other’s lives.

 

 

 

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