The late Jack LaLanne, a famous nutrition and fitness expert, once said, "I spoke to my mother recently and she told me that the two most important vitamins you need are F and G. Remember that: F and G. That's faith-in-God. When you have those, nothing is impossible for you!"
This is very important for us to keep in mind. Jesus is merciful. He forgives all our sins and heals all our diseases, according to Psalm 103. When we come to Him in repentance and faith, we can ask Him to heal us and fully expect Him to do so. His question for sick people who came to Him was often to find out whether they believed He could heal them. And then when they did believe, it was done according to their faith.
In fact, James teaches that believers who are sick should call upon their elders for prayer. He wrote, “Is anyone among you sick? Then he must call for the elders of the church and they are to pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord; and the prayer offered in faith will restore the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up, and if he has committed sins, they will be forgiven him. Therefore, confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another so that you may be healed. The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much.” (Jam 5:14-16).
Notice that we are supposed to call upon the elders to pray for us when we’re sick. This means you need to be part of a church where they believe the Bible and still do this. The elders are supposed to pray over the sick and anoint Him with oil in the name of the Lord. James says that when they offer such a prayer in faith, the Lord will restore the sick person to health.
But he also makes a statement about sin in direct connection with this. “If he has committed sins, they will be forgiven him.” Sometimes we are sick because of sin. I know some people have abused this and when people don’t get healed, they tell them it must be due to some sin in their lives. Uncaring people who have said such things have hurt folks. Yet it is still true -- sin leads to emotional and physical illness, especially the sin of unforgiveness! This is why we need to repent of these sins and confess them to one another. James says, “Therefore, confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another so that you may be healed.”
The power of God is still able to heal in the same way Jesus did two thousand years ago. As James says, “The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much.” Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forever.
How to Heal the Sick
If you are a believer in Jesus Christ, who has received the baptism with the Holy Spirit, and you would like to learn how to heal the sick, I encourage you to spend a couple weeks, watching the 15-hour video series by Charles and Frances Hunter called How to heal the Sick. Each lesson is one hour long, so I recommend watching one hour per day. It actually took me about three months to watch all of them, but they were all excellent. Charles and Frances Hunter prayed for thousands of people to be healed, and you will see many of those healings on this series. But this couple not only functioned in the gift of healing, they taught others how to do so. You may either watch the series at the following links on Youtube, or you can purchase it from Joan Hunter Ministries for around $60 USD:
The full playlist for this entire series is at this link, but the videos are not in the proper order in the playlist, so using the above video links will enable you to watch them in their proper sequence.
Attribution notice: Most Scripture quotations taken from the NASB. Most other Scriptures taken from The Holy Bible, New International Version® NIV®, unless otherwise noted.
Author's note: This post is part of a series. If you enjoyed it, you may also like the other posts in this blog available through the links in the side bar, such as Healing is in the Atonement. I also recommend The Name of Jesus and my daughter's poem, Faith Should Not Depend on Feeling, which she wrote the same day she received a divine healing in her body. You may also access my blog directory at "Writing for the Master."
Do You Want to Know Him?
If you want to know Jesus personally, you can. It all begins when you repent and believe in Jesus. Do you know what God's Word, the Bible says?
“Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.’” (Mar 1:14b-15). He preached that we must repent and believe.
Please see my explanation of this in my post called "Do You Want to Know Jesus?"
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Len Lacroix is the founder of Doulos Missions International. He was based in Eastern Europe for four years, making disciples, as well as helping leaders to be more effective at making disciples who multiply, developing leaders who multiply, with the ultimate goal of planting churches that multiply. His ministry is now based in the United States with the same goal of helping fulfill the Great Commission. www.dmiworld.org.
A comforting blog as I am experiencing severe lower back pain on a regular basis. Thanks for sharing. Denis Lacroix
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