Healing: Is this Faith or Fantasy?

"For this reason it is by faith, in order that it may be in accordance with grace, so that the promise will be guaranteed to all the descendants, not only to those who are of the Law, but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all, (as it is written, "A father of many nations have I made you ") in the presence of Him whom he believed, even God, who gives life to the dead and calls into being that which does not exist. " ~http://bible.com/100/rom.4.16-17

I'm held in place here by that last line - "calls into being that which does not exist." Wow - the Word talks a lot about calling into being, into existence, things from nothing into something. How can I believe that with a straight face? Particularly in a world of science and unbelief? Well, our spiritual father Abraham had the faith to move such mountains and put them into the sea...

"Truly I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, 'Be taken up and cast into the sea,' and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says is going to happen, it will be granted him," Mark 11:23 (and repeated in other places).

So is this Faith or is it Fantasy? Does Jesus really mean what he says here in Mark or is it just a metaphor? Well - let's look at his life in practice...

• Turning water into wine - transforming water molecules into grape and fermented molecules in vats of water so that it is the sweetest wine of the wedding. (John 2:11)

• Walking on water - either floating on top of the water so that he appears to be walking, or as the scripture says - he is actually walking on the water. He has done something to the molecular structure of either the water or His own body to allow himself to walk on the Sea of Galilee without making a big splash. (Matthew 14:26)

• Bringing life from death - This was manifest several times (I was at first going to write "performed", but I would not want to reduce our Lord to a circus act!). See here, the places where people were raised from the dead in the Bible by Jesus and others. 

So is it unrealistic for us to believe that Jesus (the Word become flesh) wants to heal today - especially when he said,

"Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do, he will do also; and greater works than these he will do; because I go to the Father. http://biblehub.com/john/14-12.htm

Some will say - "you're running after signs and wonders!" No, my brothers, I'm only looking to fulfill the promises in the Kingdom here on earth that Jesus said we would do if we believe.

Abraham believed he could "call into being that which did not exist..." Jesus said, "he who believes in Me, the works that I do, he will do also; and greater works than these he will do..."

Until next time...

Does the Word mean what it says? How can I believe that?

7“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. 8For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. 9Or what man is there among you who, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? 10Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent? 11If 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! 
Coming back to the topic of - does the Word really mean what it says? The verse above gives many folks a canker sore. In reality, I believe it's a matter of what kind of theology you've been taught - and believe. First off - I had to come to grips with the question to myself: "Am I a Bible believing Christian? Or a Bible-teaching believing Christian?"
I've begun to transition to believing the Word and start receiving the promises of what God the Father promises to me, rather than what my old religion taught me.
Once I started believing the Word at face value (in context, of course), then when the Word didn't line up with my personal experience, what was I going to do? Believe the Word or believe my experience?
I MUST filter my experience through the Word, rather than filter the Word through my experiences. 
So - does God the Father REALLY give good gifts to his children? Is He a better father than me? If I would never give my daughter a snake when she asks for a fish, then why would I think God would not do the same. 
Let's bring it down to what we hear in Sunday School. God allowed me to get sick so I could learn some important lessons.
Oooo -- a little too close to home, isn't it? "But! If I pray and plead to God to heal me and I don't get healed, then the sickness MUST be from God for Him to teach me something...right?"
What does the verse say - 11If 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! 

What does the Word say? Is the Word the problem? Is God the problem? Or is there something that might be blocking the showers of blessings? Think about it and post below.

Until next time...

The Power of Your Words

"The good man from his inner good treasure flings forth good things, and the evil man out of his inner evil storehouse flings forth evil things. But I tell you, on the day of judgment men will have to give account for every idle (inoperative, nonworking) word they speak. For by your words you will be justified and acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned and sentenced." ~ Matthew 12:35-37

Your spoken words have power, both in the spiritual and physical world. The question is do we really believe the Word of God? Or do we apply it as if it is figurative? This verse says my words have power, do I believe it?

Psalm 105 says, bless the Lord, "who forgives all our iniquity" is easy to pick up and believe because I only need to speak that I am saved and those around me, and myself,  can either believe it or not.

But then the verse continues, "who heals all my diseases" and this is where it gets tough! Am I really healed? I still have the sickness, the disease, the flu= hmmm, This verse must not mean what it says.

It does mean what it says, but the Word also says, if a man doubts, then he'll receive nothing, wavering, in James. We can't doubt God's Word, instead we should look at whether we really believe the Word, and is that why my healing is not manifesting? Do I believe the Word or my physical condition?

Again, the Word testifies: "For by your words you will be justified and acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned and sentenced."

Until next time...

"Who heals all your diseases..."

In 2012, my wife was delivered and healed from chronic depression and anxiety. Gone were the unsure days, cocktail of prescription drugs - and - I got a pay raise: once she was off the drugs, I received a prosperous dividend of about $600 per month for prescriptions I didn't have to pay for anymore!

Psalm 103 played a huge part in this new chapter of our lives: Verses 2-5 lay out a very stark but life-changing truth:

Bless the Lord, O my soul,
    and forget not all his benefits,
3 who forgives all your iniquity,
    who heals all your diseases,
4 who redeems your life from the pit,
    who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy,
5 who satisfies you with good
    so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.

We both came to the realization that what we had believed the last several decades was not accurate -- that God heals some of the time, if it’s in His will. What we've learned through a serious search in the Word and not filtering it through unbelieving teaching is that God loves us – He’s a good God – and His Word means what it says. What withheld our healing and deliverance was our ignorance of His Word and our unbelief that it means what it says.

Join us in this transformation through the "renewing of your mind" (Romans 12:2) and learn in these last days that we have authority as fellow laborers with Christ (1 Corinthians 3:9) to carry out His purpose to destroy the works of the devil (1 John 3:8) and those are the works that affect your spirit, soul and body. 

 These are also the testimonies of how God has delivered my family from anger, distrust, impatience, judgement, accusation and a host of other negative emotional and spiritual curses that have followed us through our lives. We never knew we could have as free-living life that we now have.

But of course – that’s what our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ promised when he said, “I have come that they might have life and have it more abundantly.” (John 10:10).