Chastening vs. Diseases: First, the disclaimer, this is my discernment by which I live in faith. I'm putting this out there, for your consideration, but seek the Lord for your own divine understanding in this matter. I believe recognizing the chastening of the Lord is very important, for how can we learn, from being chastened, if we do not recognize it. And according to the bible, (the KJV or NKJV) which I happen to believe in its entirety, all the disiplined children of God go through this painful and humbling experience. Let’s then consider, with an open heart, what the bible teaches, concerning the chastening of the Lord.
Hebrews 12:5-8 NKJV And you have forgotten the exhortation which speaks to you as to sons: "My son, do not despise the chastening of the LORD, Nor be discouraged when you are rebuked by Him; [6] For whom the LORD loves He chastens, And scourges every son whom He receives." [7] If you endure chastening, God deals with you as with sons; for what son is there whom a father does not chasten? [8] But if you are without chastening, of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate and not sons.
So how do we know, when we are being chastened, by the Lord?
Personally, I think we need to go to the Old Testament and review the events that took place, when the Lord turned Job over to Satan. And what I would discern, to be the chastening of the Lord, for at the end, by Jobs own words, he learned and repented. And the outcome of repentance was healing. And I discern that both the Lord and Satan knew the heart of Job, from the beginning, that if things got bad enough for Job, Job, possibly in the righteousness of his own mind, would ultimately place blame on God. And to have better understanding, that to curse God begins with blaming God, and that first happens in the heart and the thoughts of man. And keep in mind what Jesus said about men lusting for a woman:
Matthew 5:28 NKJV But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.
And I discern that we can apply the same scenario to Job, to curse God, face to face, did not have to be done by his lips but rather the Lord knowing the thoughts of his heart, and would Job blame God for the suffering he had to endure? Also consider this, face to face is a close as man can get to another, like in their face, but with GOd heart to heart is much closer and when we think the thought, the Lord immeadiate see's that ones thoughts. The Lord does not have to hear, for His divine Spiritual eyes sees our thoughts, long before they are manifested by what we do. Hope that makes sense. Therefore, Yes I personally, I think Job cursed God, through his thoughts, did surfaced later with his words.
Also consider thisk, when Satan told the Lord...he will surely curse You to Your face!", Satan was not lying. There is no way, Satan is going to lie to the Lord, for he, above all, knows how futile that would be. And at the end, that is exactly where Job was, face to face, with the Lord in total repentance. And the outcome was his health was restored as well as the blessings of God. So that is the benefit of learning from being chastened. Had he not learned, it is my discernment that he could of possibly died of that horrible disease. Now apply that to today, and the outcome of many diseases of today.
We can discern from scripture that bad health and sin go hand in hand. Consider how important it was for Jesus to go back and find the man He healed and leave him this very important warning:
John 5:14 NKJV Afterward Jesus found him in the temple, and said to him, “See, you have been made well. Sin no more, lest a worse thing come upon you.”
Anyway, if we go back to the first round of attacks of Satan, that caused the tragic loss of Jobs property and family members, pay close attention to how this verse documents Jobs response.
Job 1:22 NKJV In all this Job did not sin nor charge God with wrong.
Please notice, that Job, at this point, did not blame God for his horrific losses. But now there is another meeting between the Lord and Satan, and the conversation is very similar to the first.
Job 2:3-5 NKJV Then the LORD said to Satan, "Have you considered My servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, one who fears God and shuns evil? And still he holds fast to his integrity, although you incited Me against him, to destroy him without cause."
[4] So Satan answered the LORD and said, "Skin for skin! Yes, all that a man has he will give for his life. [5] But stretch out Your hand now, and touch his bone and his flesh, and he will surely curse You to Your face!"
And the Lord gives Satan approval, but not take his life and Satan obeyed the Lord. Now after Job gets this horrible and painful disease, let’s pay close attention to Jobs response to his wife which I think begins to reveal the heart of Job, for things are beginning to change. And there is a lot to pay close attention to, in this conversation between Job and his loving wife, Yes, loving wife, for no doubt, she deeply grieved and shared in her husband’s pain and was willing to give up her husband, to put an end to his horrific suffering. And also notice Jobs respect for her,and consider the pain he was enduring at this time, Notice how disciplined his language was, in taking care not to put his wife down. Notice, he did not call her a foolish woman, but that her words, were that of a foolish women. He was only speaking of the words she said but not degrading her in any way. But getting back on Job, take a close look at Jobs response to her… accept good from God, and shall we not accept adversity?
Job 2:9-10 NKJV Then his wife said to him, "Do you still hold fast to your integrity? Curse God and die!" [10] But he said to her, "You speak as one of the foolish women speaks. Shall we indeed accept good from God, and shall we not accept adversity?" In all this Job did not sin with his lips.
What did Job just say...accept good from God as well as adversity? Did he not just blame God for the adversity? And now pay close attention to the next sentence, .."in all this Job did not sin with his lips.". What a change of heart, from where his heart was, on the first round of disaster. ...In all this Job did not sin nor charge God with wrong, to …In all this Job did not sin with his lips. And I discern, this is also the reason the Lord delivered Job to Satan, in the first place, for the Lord knew the heart of Job and knew that if things were to go real bad for him, he would blame God and not see the possibility of his trusting in the error of his own self righteousness. But only the Lord knew His reasoning. And I think this event is documented in the bible so that you and I can also learn from the experiences of Job and see what being chastened by the Lord looks like, and Satan role in the Lord getting that accomplished.
Let’s pause here for a moment and consider this. Take notice to the business man to business man, type of relationship between Satan and the Lord. There does not seem to be any animosity between them. Which leads me to discern, this may very well be the purpose of Satan, to do the dirty work, which is to kill, to steal and to destroy, which the Lord places limits, accordingly to one’s personal relationship with the God through Christ. As in the case with Job, the Lord had reason, to delivered Job to Satan. And we see a similar deliverance to Satan, in the church of Christ Jesus, as documented in the New Testament of the bible. For in the next scripture, we see the apostle Paul giving instruction to deliver this one individual to Satan.
1 Corinthians 5:4-5 NKJV In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, when you are gathered together, along with my spirit, with the power of our Lord Jesus Christ, [5] deliver such a one to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus.
And we see this again in: 1 Timothy 1:20 NKJV of whom are Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I delivered to Satan that they may learn not to blaspheme.
So what we learn about Satan, Satan still has to submit to the Lord, and cannot do anything to the children of GOd, apart from the will of the Lord. We also learn that it is Satan that did all this damage to Job but the world would view it different. They would say it was the Sabeans that raided them, and it was the fire, and the Chaldeans, and the tornado, you know the … “wind came from across the wilderness” that destroyed the house that killed his children. So in like manner, if the Lord delivered one of His children today, to Satan, allowing Satan to use covid, most, in the flesh would not see that, as the chastening of the Lord, instead, they would say it was China that did this to us. Just let that soak in, for the Lord is the same today, as He was in the day with Job.
Anyway, moving on, there comes a point when Job and the Lord have this heart to heart talk, actually face to face!
Job 40:6-8 NKJV Then the LORD answered Job out of the whirlwind, and said: [7] "Now prepare yourself like a man; I will question you, and you shall answer Me: [8] "Would you indeed annul My judgment? Would you condemn Me that you may be justified?
Consider this, I do not believe the Lord would of made that last comment, had Job not blamed the Lord for his suffering. And then at the end, just like Satan said, Job was indeed face to face before the Lord! And Job is indeed repenting.
Job 42:5-6 NKJV "I have heard of You by the hearing of the ear, But now my eye sees You. [6] Therefore I abhor myself, And repent in dust and ashes.”
For me, the book of Job is a hard read, much of it is hard for to understand but overall, this is what I take from it and I think it applies today, to the diseases that we have, to include cancer and covid and many other diseases. Yes we may of gotten this covid from China but it was the evil work of those that are slaves of Satan, and it is my deepest conviction that this virus could not of happened to us here in America, had it not been allowed by the Lord. It is my discernment that viruses like covid and diseases like cancer are the tools that Satan uses when the children of God have been delivered to him for chastening. And the cancer, the Lord allows to falls on His church, for it is like a mirror image to the deception. For no one knows they’re deceived or they would not be deceived and only Christ can reveal all truth when one is deceived, drifting away from the truth. And Cancer, in like manner, most of us have no clue when we have cancer, not until it is revealed by a doctor. And cancer, like deception, can reach a point where it is incurable. And I personally think this is why there is so much cancer today. Because of so many being deceived. Other illnesses like the cold and flu’s may be, simply for our own good, so our bodies can become stronger, to fight off other sicknesses. But I think when we are found with cancer that can be a divine warning especially to the children of God. Not saying that everyone with cancer is deceived, I don’t know, just saying that it could be a warning and each should take care and seek the Lord, with a submissive heart, and in their most sincere discerning, search their own heart to see if they are being chastened. Here’s a thought of mine and its because of the next verse, but I think a lot of the undesirable things that happens to those taking claim to Christianity is because of their lack of prayer. When God created us, He gave us choice. And until we choose to seek divine involvement, I may very well be that the Lords hands are tied. Consider this verse where the apostle James says, we do not have because we do not ask. I think asking in prayer for divine involvement is essential, especially when the request is not for our self-centered pleasures. But health, is important, for the children of God to be a light in a dark world.
James 4:2-3 NKJV You lust and do not have. You murder and covet and cannot obtain. You fight and war. Yet you do not have because you do not ask. [3] You ask and do not receive, because you ask amiss, that you may spend it on your pleasures.
We can see that there are two types of prayers. One is asking the Lord with a submissive heart, and the other is praying in accordance to a self-centered heart. And I discern, the latter will see little to no results from the Lord. And I’m thinking that those that are Satan’s, may very well avoid much of Satans killer diseases, because they are already dead and without Christ and some, Satan may have more freedom to do his will because of that one’s not seeking the Lord in prayer, because I believe it's possible that the Lords hands may be tied, becaaue of our freedom of choice, and not praying for divine intervening, with a submissive heart. But when we chose to pray in sincerity, I believe that frees one from Satan and the Lord can intervene. Sincere prayer is very important in living in Christ! And to those, with even a seed of desire, to be Christ's, are likely of being chastened by the Lord as He is trying to raise them as any Father would raise their children. And if the Lord is allowing Satan to put cancer in your body, one had better research their beliefs for truth, because cancer could very well be a tell-tale sign to the erroneous beliefs, one may endorse, that is in error.
Anyway, I am sharing this because I have had cancer some years back and currently recovering from covid, a twenty-four day battle, being the day I was released out of the hospital, not counting the long time span of recovery at home. And yes, I do believe, I have been chastened, by the Lord, in His allowing Satan to put both, the cancer and most recently, this covid, in the severity it was, on me. And yes, I hope I have learned and indeed I’m trying to correct what I discern, I was to learn from that chastening.
Divine Healing - A Divine Gift of God
Divine Healing: After considering the grace of God, divine healing is a very good option to be considered and to seek from the Lord. After all, there are wonderful promises in the bible concerning divine healing. Also consider that Job did repent, but is was not until after he prayed for his friends, that he receive his divine healing from the Lord. The following verse explains that Jesus has the power to forgive sins as demonstrated through His divine healing.
Matthew 9:2. And behold, they brought to Him a paralytic lying on a bed. And Jesus, seeing their faith, said to the paralytic, "Son, be of good cheer; your sins are forgiven you." 3. And at once some of the scribes said within themselves, "This Man blasphemes!" 4. But Jesus, knowing their thoughts, said, "Why do you think evil in your hearts? 5. "For which is easier, to say, `Your sins are forgiven you,' or to say, `Arise and walk'? 6. "But that you may know that the Son of Man has power on earth to forgive sins" then He said to the paralytic, "Arise, take up your bed, and go to your house."
There are instructions in the bible how we can be directed to the benefits of the cross. In 1 James 5:13-16, to me there seems to be three directives to healing in this Scripture followed by an affirmation.
James 5:13. (1) Is any among you afflicted? let him pray. Is any merry? let him sing psalms. 14. (2) 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: 15. 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. 16. (3) Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. (Affirmation)The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.
1. Is any among you afflicted? let him pray. Afflicted: af-flict tr.v. af-flict-ed, af-flict-ing, af-flicts. To inflict grievous physical or mental suffering on.
2. 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: 15. 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.
3. Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed.
Affirmation:The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.
First, the bible tells us that for those that are afflicted, which could be either a physical or a mental affliction, they should personally go to the Lord in prayer.
Secondly, for those that are sick, we see another picture, for they are instructed to call upon the elders of the church, and I don't believe that it's necessarily those that have been appointed into position of leadership today but rather those that have known the Lord for a longer time, within the body of Christ. You see when this Scripture was written, the definition of "church" was referring to only those that were placing their faith in Jesus, the body of Christ, so I believe this Scripture was addressing those that had known the Lord for a longer time, having a close relationship with Him, and being more knowledgeable in how to minister to the needs of others. And the Scripture says, "and they shall pray over him, anointing him with oil, in the name of the Lord". This is the only Scripture in the New Testament that refers to anointing anyone with oil, in the name of the Lord, and I believe this anointing with oil is symbolic in recognizing one's need for the anointing presence of Christ. In other words, this person is coming to the elders of the church seeking direction for their physical healing but these elders are recognizing their first need of a spiritual healing with the anointing of oil. For I believe the need for spiritual healing supersedes the physical healing that is received through faith. And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; As we can see, this saving is accomplished through faith. Also take note that this verse continues to say, if he has committed sins they will be forgiven. Take note to the phrase "if he have committed sins" signifies that this one may still be a sinner and possibly has not yet committed their life to Christ, considering that those that are in Christ, their sins have already been forgiven.
Thirdly, we have another directive, and that is to confess our faults to one another, and to pray for one another so that we can be healed. It's clear that this directive of confession is targeted to the brethren in Christ that is seeking healing. Doing this could be a real challenge for some but practicing this edification would truly bring growth and spiritual health to the body of Christ, closing the door to Satan and his snares. If, those of us that are Christ's, would really do this, humbling ourselves and truly setting aside "self" maybe we'd find a deeper and a more sincere personal bonding within the body of Christ. Most of us are too independent to do this. Consider this, if we were open with our brethren about our weaknesses, then they would know how to be helpful and encouraging and to be there with us in prayer. Confessing our faults is contrary to our sinful nature and pride but praying for each other is much easier, and in doing this, one can have the appearance of godliness and our faults and weaknesses can remain hidden. There is a core message that is found throughout the whole bible and that is sincere love and also accountability. The bible tells us that each body part is accountable to the body. The body depends upon the legs and feet for transportation, the eyes are responsibility to view our daily paths, the ears are responsible to report the sounds and the mind and spirit is responsible for our decisions, and so on. Bottom line is that in the design of our body, each part has a function and is responsible to do its function for us to remain in good health. In 1 Corinthians 12, Paul made reference to the physical body as a symbolism to the body of Christ and in James 5:16 we continue seeing dependability upon the members of the body of Christ to correct their faults so that "ye may be healed". Take note that it's not "if" they have any faults but instead to "confess your faults". Confessing our faults with one another, in sincere prayer, fellowship and love would be an incredible way of edifying the body of Christ and keeping us from, not knowingly, being conformed to this world. None of us are perfect and we all need edifying or God would not of granted to His church the gift of edification.
The last part of verse 16 "The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much." is also very powerful. This part is speaking of one who knows the Lord and is obedient to His word that's found only in the heart of those that are His. This mans life demonstrates God's righteousness and take note that there are three following words really stick out which are: "effective" and "avails much". Think about it! The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much. Think about what each word is applying to this sentence. This is a statement of confidence, that those which are Christ's, should have in their prayers.
Food for thought: In the process of truly loving those within the body of Christ, recognizing and confessing our faults, and coming together, sincerely seeking the Lord in prayer, for strength and understanding to overcome our shortcomings and then if we have an affliction that may of been given from the evil one, maybe our love, understanding and forgiveness in Christ, is the power of God to overcome the evil one and he and his evil devices are driven from this presence of the Lord. Maybe if we were to do this, the Lord's church would find edification, purifying, and then perhaps the Lord could intervene more in our prayers, even to include those prayers for good health, so the glory of the Lord could be witnessed to the world.
The very first step in looking for God's blessings in one's life is repentance: Acts 3:19. "Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord,
I believe most importantly, in getting God's undivided attention, is for Him to find true repentance in one's heart. Some in the multitudes that followed Jesus was not interested in His signs and what they meant but was only looking to the moment for the food. Same with healing, if an individual is only interested in the healing, they're missing the whole idea, healing although wonderful but is only temporal, for it has been appointed once for all to die. It's the healing of the soul that's important! First find the "...food which endures to everlasting life", which is the presence of Christ so your physical healed life can be lived for Him, being a living symbolic testimony of His salvation.
John 6:25. And when they found Him on the other side of the sea, they said to Him, "Rabbi, when did You come here?'' 26. Jesus answered them and said, "Most assuredly, I say to you, you seek Me, not because you saw the signs, but because you ate of the loaves and were filled. 27. "Do not labor for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to everlasting life, which the Son of Man will give you, because God the Father has set His seal on Him."
There is also a warning that comes with the physical healing, ... "sin no more lest a worse thing come upon you"! True sin is the rebelling against God's direction. God's direction comes from the Holy Spirit. Many of the things that we see and claim to be sin are only the disobedient acts against the leading of God's Holy Spirit. It is this disobedience that can bring on a worse thing! Not only is it important to live for His righteousness to salvation but also for His healing. Salvation, understanding, healing and righteousness is foundational gifts to the members of the true church, the body of Christ. For the most part, I feel that Jesus' death on the cross, does not give life nor healing to the "unbeliever" the "deceived" nor the "self-righteous" unless they repent. In my mind the gifts of the cross are intended only for the body of Christ, as described in 1 Corinthians 1:2. Although God is God and if He wants to give an unbeliever healing or some other of His blessings, to show His presence, that may be probable. The gifts of God are special and are especially reserved for those that "believe in" the Son, that is, those that are willing to submit their lives in obedience to the faith of Christ. Not saying that one can not make errors but rather living the faith of Christ.
John 5:14 Afterward Jesus found him in the temple, and said to him, "See, you have been made well. Sin no more, lest a worse thing come upon you."(I believe it's possible that God in all His mercy does not always give us the healing we ask for because He knows our heart and if it isn't right, then somehow this allows Satan the opportunity to give us a "worse" thing.)
The New Testament reveals remote healing; Luke 7:2. And a certain centurion's servant, who was dear to him, was sick and ready to die. 3. So when he heard about Jesus, he sent elders of the Jews to Him, pleading with Him to come and heal his servant. 4. And when they came to Jesus, they begged Him earnestly, saying that the one for whom He should do this was worthy, 5. "for he loves our nation, and has built us a synagogue.'' 6. Then Jesus went with them. And when He was already not far from the house, the centurion sent friends to Him, saying to Him, "Lord, do not trouble Yourself, for I am not worthy that You should enter under my roof. 7. "Therefore I did not even think myself worthy to come to You. But say the word, and my servant will be healed. 8. "For I also am a man placed under authority, having soldiers under me. And I say to one, `Go,' and he goes; and to another, `Come,' and he comes; and to my servant, `Do this,' and he does it.'' 9. When Jesus heard these things, He marveled at him, and turned around and said to the crowd that followed Him, "I say to you, I have not found such great faith, not even in Israel!" 10. And those who were sent, returning to the house, found the servant well who had been sick.
The New Testament reveals that healing can be spoken into existence by one of His, through Christ to a believer in the faith of Christ!
Acts 14:9. This man heard Paul speaking. Paul, observing him intently and seeing that he had faith to be healed, 10. said with a loud voice, "Stand up straight on your feet!'' And he leaped and walked.
First of all was healing set in the body of Christ? According to Scripture, King James' 1 Corinthians 12:28 And God hath set some in the church (the body of Christ), first apostles, secondarily prophets, thirdly teachers, after that miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, governments, diversities of tongues.
Is it through our own power or godliness that allows healing to be done through us? Absolutely Not!
Acts 3:12. So when Peter saw it, he responded to the people: "Men of Israel, why do you marvel at this? Or why look so intently at us, as though by our own power or godliness we had made this man walk?
Is divine healing available today? Until the body of Christ is taken up, the gifts appointed to the body of Christ remains.
1 Thessalonians 4:15. For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who are asleep. 16. For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. 17. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord. 18. Therefore comfort one another with these words.
King James 1 Corinthians 12:28 And God hath set some in the church (the body of Christ), first apostles, secondarily prophets, thirdly teachers, after that miracles, then gifts of healings, ...
Romans 11:29. For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.
Mark 16:17. "And these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues;18. "they will take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.'' This is a promise spoken by Jesus.
James 5:14. Is anyone among you sick? 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. 15. And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. 16. Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.
Are there any diseases or sickness that God can not be heal? With God all things are possible.!
John 5:4. For an angel went down at a certain time into the pool and stirred up the water; then whoever stepped in first, after the stirring of the water, was made well of whatever disease he had.
God has always provided healing for "whatever disease" to His people. Where does sickness come from?
Acts 10:38. "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.
Deuteronomy 7:15. "And the Lord will take away from you all sickness, and will afflict you with none of the terrible diseases of Egypt which you have known, but will lay them on all those who hate you. 15. "And you shall destroy all the peoples whom the Lord your God delivers over to you; your eye shall have no pity on them; nor shall you serve their gods, for that will be a snare to you.
Luke 13:16. "So ought not this woman, being a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan has bound think of it for eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the Sabbath?"
What does one need to do to qualify for a healing? When one studies about all of those that Jesus healed, there is no emphasis as to what they had to do to qualify with the exception of having faith and believing. But I also believe that Jesus did His miraculous works to bring focus upon the church that was to be and His healing was representative to the character of salvation. For example, Jesus said the blind can now see and for those that are Christ's know that that's representative of the light of Christ that's in them and now they can see and understand the deep things of God. Jesus also said the lame can now walk, and again, those that are in Christ, find the strength of the Lord to become overcomers to the trials of this life and are no longer found to be spiritually lame and without hope. Therefore, it is my deepest belief that since Jesus acts of healing was to reveal His sacrificial gift and authority over the church, that repentance to Him is key in seeking His divine intervention in our lives to include the physical healing of our bodies.
1 Peter 2:24. 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. 24. For you were like sheep going astray, but have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.
3 John 1:2. Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers.
I believe those with a sincere heart will find God and His blessings if they continue to look to Him for all things. Healing is not a common thing, nor is salvation. Therefore it is reserved to those that will not treat what Jesus did on the cross as a common thing. The promises of the cross is a treasure and must be stored in the heart for safe keeping to eternity.
Hebrews 10:29. Of how much worse punishment, do you suppose, will he be thought worthy who has trampled the Son of God underfoot, counted the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified a common thing, and insulted the Spirit of grace?
Matthew 7:7. "Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. 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!
Take special note to what Jesus said in verse 8: "For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.
He said everyone who asks receives, but it is he who seeks will find, and those that reach out, will have them.
Abiding in Christ: John 15:7. "If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you.
It's my belief that when Jesus was speaking of His words abiding in those that are His, He was not referring to the bible but rather direction that is given through the Holy Spirit as explained in the following verse.
1 John 4:13. By this we know that we abide in Him, and He in us, because He has given us of His Spirit.Personally I believe that maybe one of the main reasons why God does not always heal is unbelief. I want to enter a thought here. Unbelief can actually be included in one's beliefs. Let me clarify, you know that in the days of Jesus' ministry, they had to of seen Jesus' healing and they must of believed that. So was it just because He was known to them or was it their unbelief that He was the Christ , that restricted Jesus from doing many mighty works? On the surface, we could think that it was simply their unbelief in His ability to heal but I think it was much deeper. Possibly, in their state of "unbelief" they may of thought they were believers and theologically right in the eyes of God. How could we apply this example to today? Today, Christianity, at least here in America, is rapidly growing in popularity with many different denominational preferences so obviously, Jesus is heavily believed upon, but with different ideologies. Is it possible that at least some of these ideologies could actually be "unbelief" to the "Way" of Christ. Is it possible for God to do a work in them, regardless of their unbelief? Just a thought here but possibly this is something, only the Holy Spirit can reveal.
Mathew 13:57. So they were offended at Him. But Jesus said to them, "A prophet is not without honor except in his own country and in his own house.'' 58. And He did not do many mighty works there because of their unbelief.
How about those that have seriously went to the Lord for their healing and it was not granted to them? There is something mystical in seeking divine healing. It seems that divine healing is a promise but Paul also directed God's children to: 1 Timothy 5:23. No longer drink only water, but use a little wine for your stomach's sake and your frequent infirmities. We see here that the children of God are not guaranteed perfect health.
Paul himself did not receive his healing when he asked for the thorn to be removed. Whatever the thorn was, it was an infirmity and the Lord told him His grace was sufficient.
(KJV) 2 Corinthians 12:7. And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure. 8. For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me. 9. And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. 10. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong.
The thing that touches my heart is that Paul's desire for the power of Christ to rest upon him was greater than his desire for perfect health. It would also seem here that some of our affinities are given as a buffer because of our yielding to our pride or sinful nature. In verse 10 Paul comments that he took pleasure "in" (not "for") his infirmities. At first this puzzled me, how could anyone take pleasure in any infirmity? After considering the theme that is found throughout the New Testament, I had an inspiring thought! What the Lord promises is life and His presence. So then if our infirmities comes from the evil one, and if we, that are afflicted are, disgruntled, or even questioning, where is God in my time of need, this is exactly how Satan would want us to respond! He wants us troubled and unhappy! He wants us to question God! But if we chose to rather take pleasure in that infirmity, for the sake of our Lord, then Satan would find that he has no power over us, and the power of Christ, that is in us, prevailed ! To me, this really makes sense, because sometimes when men of God are stricken with an infirmity, rather than considering that as being a punishment from the Lord, it could rather be viewed as an opportunity to defeat Satan through Christ! I think it's good to seek the Lord for healing but in the event we do not receive that healing, we need to seek the power of Christ to find that peace we can have in God, even in our infirmities. You see Satan would like to make the Lord, a liar and that's exactly what's happening in our hearts if we question, where is the Lord in all my troubles, but if we recognize that what the Lord promises is life and His presence, we can take pleasure in His presence, in helping us overcome our troubles, therefore showing that the Lord does keep His promises and Satan is defeated. I would also suggest that since those that are His, having the presence of the Lord, just as Paul was given a "thorn in his side" to buffer his pride, should pay special attention to the Holy Spirit for any revelations that would expose one's thoughts, beliefs or behavior that may of given Satan an open door for that affliction. God has given those that are His, His Spirit to help us combat the works of Satan in our lives and in this, is where we can take pleasure in the presence of the Lord, even in our infirmities. You see, this sometimes can be the true healing for when in our infirmity, we find our strength in the Lord, even though in the flesh we are weak, and it would seem it to be our very right to focus on our troubles, but instead we stand upon our strength in the Lord, would this not send an outrageous message to the evil one, of our strength in Christ. Consider James 4:7. Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. If our infirmities come from the Devil, with him gone, would not this give us an open door to God's blessings? Maybe it's in our infirmities where we can best prove our loyalty to our Lord as Job did. And Job prevailed over Satan and ultimately found his healing along with many other blessings from the Lord.
Paul rejoiced in his infirmities and understanding why, has brought peace to my heart, for we can find victory over any infirmity and understanding the importance of supporting others that are going through their "time of trial".
God holds many mysteries that are continually being revealed to those that acknowledge His presence and precepts. The more our needs are brought to Him, the more we begin to understand the heart of our Lord and His love, as His presence is being revealed. For sure, in the divine gifts of God, much more is to be learned as we lay aside self and maybe even tradition and center our focus upon our heavenly Father and His Holy Spirit.
One thing for certain, when one sincerely seeks God, they'll find that, through Christ, they'll find the strength to overcome the trials in this life and find confidence in our Lord's divine leadership and promise of eternity.
Acts 2:38. Then Peter said to them, "Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 39. "For the promise is to you and to your children, and to all who are afar off, as many as the Lord our God will call.''