Healings in today's church

[Kay]

Brothers and Sisters:

Why is it that in today's "miracles" in the US are different in other countries that aren't so technologically advanced?

It boggles my mind (and my little coffee study group) Why were the healings in the bible so instant? or does it just seem that way? and everyone one who asked to be healed were healed? And today some are not.

Sometimes I think we use it is "God's will" as an excuse.

I know I was healed from cancer; but why is my sister in Christ not healed to see? She believes just as I do. Why doesn't the Lord show me to pray for Jane; and not to pray for Cary? He showed the disciples who to pray for in instant healings. Why not us? Or does He and we don't listen. What is the difference?

Am I the only one who is lost in this question?

Please enlighten me.

IN HIS LOVE

Kay

[godrulz]

There are no simplistic answers. The world is a complex place.

We know that God can and does heal. He is supernatural. Jesus (God with a face) came to oppose evil, sickness, and sin.

Faith is important. Our culture has rationalized away the supernatural. Faith should not be presumption. Not every person will be healed of every disease (extreme Word-Faith) since we live in a fallen world subject to accidents, the curse, lifestyle problems/environment causing disease, etc. We will be whole when we receive glorified bodies at our resurrection. In the mean time, God can and does heal many. The ministry of Jesus is continued through the Church by the power of the Holy Spirit.

Some are not healed due to unbelief, sin, timing, sovereignty of God (we cannot reduce healing to a formula that always works), etc. The Healer and Spirit move as they wish. We should deal with hindrances in our lives and pray with faith on the authority of Scripture. Jesus healed in different ways. Persevere with things like calling the elders of the Church, praying yourself, having others pray for you, go to healing meetings with those who move in the Spirit, etc.

My wife has MS and is getting worse. She may or may not be healed in this life. We still feel we are to seek the Healer (not the healing).

There are no easy answers. Know that He still heals today; accept that not everyone gets healed instantly, trust the wisdom and timing of God; persevere in seeking Him with humility and faith.

[Kay]

Thank you for your insight.

It does answer some of my question

But is there a difference in the 2nd Century CHURCH?

HELP HELP HELP

[Guest mjohn]

Kay...

It is not my position to enlighten you...but to say that Faith is needed...

And, God honors faith....here in America or elsewhere...

I am a medical missionary and work in eye care as an optometrist...or as I say a doctor with a small d...

God has been good to me personally and I have seen many things including healings over the years of being a Spirit Filled Christian...

It is troubling here in the USA there is literally a doctor on every corner...

And, sadly enough much of what they have to offer is no more than man's wisdom...and often powerless to treat or heal...

Drugs and surgery are not much help for the masses of people who are sick from lack of knowledge or from being deceived...the great deceiver is active and out to discredit the Power of God the Great Physician...with a Large P...

I will not ramble... just some info...I hope you will seek and find the answers...

May God Himself reveal More and More to You and to all who read these Forums...

Trust God and do good... MJohn

[jamie]

Brothers and Sisters:

Why is it that in today's "miracles" in the US are different in other countries that aren't so technologically advanced?

It boggles my mind (and my little coffee study group) Why were the healings in the bible so instant? or does it just seem that way? and everyone one who asked to be healed were healed? And today some are not.

Sometimes I think we use it is "God's will" as an excuse.

I know I was healed from cancer; but why is my sister in Christ not healed to see? She believes just as I do. Why doesn't the Lord show me to pray for Jane; and not to pray for Cary? He showed the disciples who to pray for in instant healings. Why not us? Or does He and we don't listen. What is the difference?

Am I the only one who is lost in this question?

Please enlighten me.

IN HIS LOVE

Kay

Makes you wonder what the apostles had that we so obviously lack huh? I think as new christians our discipleship consist of "go to church", "Stop sinning", "Love everybody", etc. We have no example of anybody truly walking in power. Power comes by KNOWING Jesus intimately. Those disciples knew Jesus because they spent time in his presense. They knew their authority and position in the kingdom and had the faith to back it up. Jesus said, "my people perish for lack of knowledge". We dont understand that those things are for us, right now to be doing. When you've reached that level of maturity and understanding through relationship and RIGHT discipleship, things happen!

[irishcowboy]

Faith does have alot to do with it...

where does one really put their trust? stop, and think about it...

insurance, doctors, drugs, lawyers, money....

and when there are healings going on, people go running...... some go running towards the person that God is using thinking this man will heal me ( instead of saying God will heal me )........ others are running away saying it is satan deceiving..........

then there are the scoffers...... "If you are truely being used of God to heal, why not go to the hospitals and heal all that are there......." Remember that when Jesus was even in His home town, he was scoffed at, and could do very little...... and with the little girl that had died, he had every one leave but a couple of deciples and the girls parents, why? cause they were of so little faith and they were mocking Him, and they would have hindered the work that was needed......

another way to look at this, is if God wants a person to be used for healing, God will tell this person where and when and who...... there are times that God may want to use a persons illness/infirmity for His Glory, not mans......

also,

who are we to tell God who and where to send His annointed???

are we the boss of God???? are we out to tempt God????

"If you are truely of God then go to the aids clinics and heal all those of aids..."

"If you are truely the Son of God then come down off the Cross and save Yourself"

"If you are that hungry then why not turn the stones in to loaves of bread"

sound familure??????

as it is written and as it has been said, thou shalt not tempt the Lord Your God.....

God will use people as God sees fit..... it is not up to us to tell God who He will use to heal people, nor is it up to us to tell God which people that willl be healed.....

maybe another reason that we do not see healings this day as the appostles did is because of PRIDE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

just think about this a bit also, if a person is used of God, they tend to BRAG about it, calling it TESTIMONY........

what was it Jesus told alot of those that He healed?? Go and tell no one, or , that their sins are forgiven and to sin no more...;..

we do almost the opposit.......... Hey, Look what I did..... go tell every one......

and Who cares if you sin again, you can not loose your salvation.... go on, you can come back and get saved again...... you can do this that and other to get your sins forgiven......

we tend to glorify man over God in things of this nature..... we want things our way instead of Gods way......

maybe, this is the reason that we do not see healings these days as we did in the earlier days of the church....

mike

[keslc]

Kay, you're post exactly like things I have asked too. I haven't recieved any clear cut answers but here is an experience I had....

My four year old son, Nathan, has sensory intergration dysfunction (SID). It is a very difficult condition to deal with because he looks normal, acts pretty normal, but privately suffers because every touch, sound, movement is magnified 100 times over to feel like a slap, loud yell, falling down a mountain.....Alot of the time, if he freaks out in public because things seem this way to him, people are very misunderstanding and think he's a rotten kid throwing a tantrum and I have no control over him. I've heard people mumble under their breath things like, "that kid needs a spanking" or "why doesn't the mom DO something". He is going to therapy and making great strides, but we have a long way to go. I have prayed for healing, but God sees fit to keep the condition there. I have to believe there is a purpose in it. I don't know what that purpose is, except to teach us dependance on Him, but I have to trust that there is a reason and God will use this situation to grow us in faith. What I sometimes have difficulty with though, is that God healed Nathan from something once when he was a baby and sometimes I get mad, "God, you did it once, why can't you do it again". When Nathan was one year old, he started getting strange rashes, ear infections, we were always in the dr.'s office. One day, he had a horrible rash that turned into bruises, he literally looked like he was beat all over his bosy with a baseball bat. I rushed him to the dr.'s and was told it was some rash (a german name I don't remember) and it would take two weeks to go away. That night I sat by his bed as he whimpered and cried from the pain. I prayed that God would end his suffering whatever that meant. I totally gave him over to God's hands. It was the hardest thing I ever did, giving over completely because I knew I could do nothing for him. The next morning, Nathan was completely healed! The welts, bruising, everything completely gone over night!! I will never forget that! I know God can and does heal, and I praise Him for it!!! I also know that God knows best and I have to trust in His Will and take what I am given. I don't know if I helped you or not, lol, but what you said was so familiar to me! I wanted to share what I had been through. God bless!

[stevehut]

This sounds like something that was being discussed in anothe thread, a couple of weeks ago. This is how I see it:

Jesus and the apostles has special authority from God. When they healed someone, it was instantly. This was intended to produce faith in the people who witnessed the act.

But even in the ministry Jesus, miracles (in general) were the exception, not the rule. The vast majority of his ministry was about exhorting people to repent of their sins and be saved. So I am always suspicious when I see ministers today who make physical healing such a prominent feature of their ministry. This is not following the example of Jesus.

Do I believe that God still heals today? Certainly I do. But in my estimation, it sometimes causes people to place their faith in the wrong things.

[godrulz]

Salvation (sozo) implies being made whole spiritually, emotionally, physically. The same word is used in the NT in a few places to refer to being saved from disease (wholeness). We will ultimately be changed at the resurrection when we receive glorified bodies. Until then, we can experience tokens of God's love and grace, even in physical healings. This does not mean that all will be healed all the time. The Gospels do not record every act of healing and deliverance Jesus did (the whole world would be filled with books- John). The Church is to continue the ministry of Jesus in the power of the Spirit to resist sin, sickness, and Satan.

[gypc]

All of me = None of God

Some of me = Some of God

None of me = All of God