Healing & Miracles

Well, we are continuing our series / / Everybody Loves A Gift! Last week we talked about faith. And how faith is both a gift, and also the reality that we ALL NEED faith. The bible says, it is impossible to please God without faith.

/ / Faith is what our Christianity runs on. It’s the very basis of everything. Belief / Faith in Jesus Christ. And doubting isn’t wrong. We learned that by Jesus’ response to Thomas. He didn’t put Thomas down for not believe, he simply gave him reason to believe!. Not having faith isn’t something God gets upset about. Rather than leaving us in our doubt, Jesus actually wants to meet us there and bring us into belief.

You know Atheists, someone who says they don’t believe in God, or Agnostics, someone who believes there is a God, but says they have no idea what that means or how it all works. You could say both of those are denying the God of the Bible, and you would think that any self respecting God, who is being denied like that would be pretty upset. Here he is, he created humanity, and humanity is rejecting him.

I’ve said this before, but I believe that this is the highest form and really the very definition of love. That you create someone, FOR THE PURPOSE OF LOVE, but give THEM the power and the opportunity to reject you.

/ / Pure, True Love is found in loving someone and allowing THEM to CHOOSE whether they love you in return!

That’s what we call free will. God loves us so much that he does not, in any way shape or form force Himself upon us, because we know, that’s not love. To force someone to love us is control. And God doesn’t try to manipulate us. He doesn’t try to trick us into loving him. In fact, the entire Bible is filled with opportunity to find and experience a good life. The law in the Old Testament, the instructions Jesus gives, what we would call the rules and regulations found in the bible, all of them point to blessing.

God said over and over again, IF you do this, IF you follow my ways, IF you do what I say, you will be blessed. And it’s not a reward for good behavior, but rather a result of right living! So, he doesn’t force his blessing on us. He doesn’t force his love on us. He doesn’t force belief on us. He simply invites us to do so.

And as we read from Romans 10:17 last week, / / Faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.

If you want to have faith. If you want your faith to grow. If you want more faith. Open your ears to what He is saying. Take time to pray, to listen to what He may be trying to speak to you, AND pick up your bible (Daily Bible Reading Commercial #1). If you don’t have a bible, we have some on our welcome table. Take one, it’s free. Grab a daily Bible Reading Sheet at the same time!

/ / See, with God it’s always an invitation.

/ / An invitation to grow in faith by hearing his voice.

/ / An invitation to believe in Him.

/ / An invitation to experience life and life more abundant.

/ / An invitation to follow His ways which lead to life and blessing.

/ / An invitation to imitate, and learn from, and follow HOW Jesus lived.

We talked about Jesus telling his disciples that he was giving them a NEW commandment, it’s in John 13:34, Jesus says, So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. But, that’s wasn’t actually something new. He’s already confirmed that the GREATEST commandment is to love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength, AND a second like this, to love your neighbor as yourself. And when asked, “Ya, but who is my neighbor?” He tells a story that defines our neighbor as anyone and everyone, from those we love, to those we hate, essentially saying, “your neighbor is the world”. So, love God and love people.

But what’s different this time in John 13 is that after saying, Love each other, He says, / / Just as I have loved you, you should love each other. Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples.

Now, Jesus said something in that verse that I want to touch on today, and I think it’s perfect for our current series as well. Today is Father’s day, and I think one of the most important roles we have as a father is that one little point Jesus makes that changes everything. The old way was, / / Love your neighbor as yourself. But the new commandment is: / / Just as I have loved you, you should love each other.

Jesus lived his life as an example. And as a Christian that is what we do, we FOLLOW Jesus, living our lives to the best of our ability how he shows us, leads us and teaches us. And as a dad I know that my daughter watches every move I make. And every choice I make. She hears every word I say. She watches me like a hawk. For a very specific reason. / / She determines what she is allowed to do by my actions.

This works both way:

What I say, she says.

How I act, she acts.

How I re-act, she reacts.

What I do, she does.

Jesus knew this, that disciples, or students, those who want to learn, learn best by imitating the one they are learning from. Hear / See / Do… The Apostle Paul, in his letter 1 Corinthians, in chapter 11:1 he says, / / And you should imitate me, JUST AS I imitate Christ.

If you’re a dad in this room I want to speak to and encourage you in the most important super power you have. Being a good example.

My life, my words, my actions, my beliefs: they are ALL permission for my daughter. And it’s not just trying to be good. It’s not just trying to be better. But truly, it’s what Paul says, imitating Christ, pursuing Jesus, Following after God with our whole heart, mind, soul and strength IN FRONT OF OUR KIDS, so that they learn to value and pursue God like we do.

If you want your children to have a good foundation for the rest of their lives, the best thing you can do is point them to Jesus, in word, but more importantly in action…how YOU point YOUR LIFE to Jesus.

You ever have a moment your child does something, or says something that you are giving them trouble for and their response is, “BUT YOU DID IT?!?!?!” looking at you in utter confusion because they took what you did as permission to do it themselves and now are wondering why that got them in the hot seat.

And every time I use that lame excuse, “ya, well I’m an adult, it’s different.” The hypocrisy dripping from my mouth… it even makes me cringe...

Dad, you are powerful.

/ / Dads, you have the ability to shape and mold the minds and hearts of your children, BY WHAT YOU CHOOSE!

Yesterday was my parents 50th wedding anniversary. If you’re on the chat this morning, say Hi! And I’ve expressed this the last few weeks, but I have to reiterate again that the most valuable lessons my dad has ever taught me are the example that his life have set for me. So, on this day, the day after your 50th anniversary where I honor both you and Mom, Dad, I want to honor you today for being a godly example of being a husband, a father and a man who puts God in the right place in his life.

And you, here, and online, Dads... I want to encourage you today. Choose wisely. Choose what is right. Choose what is good. Choose what is honorable, what is godly, what shows your children what you want them to be.

And in this series on the Gifts of the Spirit, this is the perfect opportunity to choose to be a shining example for our children. Because as we’ve been talking about over these last few weeks, knowing who you are, and how God has gifted you is of the utmost importance. Choosing the church and choosing the body of Christ is of the utmost importance.

You pursuing the things of God is an invitation for your children to do the same. And as we learn about the gifts of the Spirit, begin to watch your children, where you may see these things operating in their lives. Trust me when I say there is no baby Holy Spirit. If your children believe in Jesus Christ they have received the SAME Holy Spirit as you have received, which means the same Spirit, the same power that raised Christ from the dead is alive inside of them.

First of all, that should give us comfort, in a world where we are given plenty of reason to worry about our children, we should do everything we can to introduce them to the power of the Holy Spirit, the salvation of Jesus Christ and the Love of their heavenly Father!

And Secondly, this is an opportunity for us to follow after the things of God and model for them, example for them, what it looks like to be a disciple of Jesus, to live and use the gifts of the Spirit, to honor and value the church and the body of Christ.

There might be nothing more important than visibly developing a relationship with God and walking out your Christian life IN FRONT of your spouse and children.

So, with that in mind, today we’re going to talk about two gifts of the Spirit: / / Healing & Miracles.

These two gifts are closely connected. Healing can be the result of a miracle, but not all healing is a miracle, and not all miracles are healing.

And last week we laid the foundation for these gifts by talking about Faith, which is a big factor in these gifts. We’ve read from Hebrews 11:6 , / / And it is impossible to please God without faith. But the next part of the verse is really important as well. / / Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists AND that he rewards those who sincerely seek him.

So let’s define and talk about these things a little bit.

/ / 1. Healing

It may seem pretty straight forward, but when we begin to talk about being healed, we are really talking about becoming whole. / / God heals the whole person, not just body, but body, soul & spirit.

Jesus said of his ministry and his purpose, in John 10:10, / / …I came that they may have life and have it abundantly. And that word life is zoe, which means full of vitality, a vibrant life, a full, healthy, whole life.

God wants you to be whole. And if we ask the question, / / What can be broken? - by that of course I don’t mean dishes or cars…but in our lives... when we ask that question, “What can be broken?” whatever that answer is leads us to / / That’s what God can heal?

/ / Whether it is physical healing, emotional healing, psychological or spiritual healing. God is our healer:

Psalm 147:3 says, / / He [God] heals the brokenhearted and bandages their wounds.

Brokenhearted - needing emotional, internal healing. When we feel broken on the inside. God is our healer.

1 Peter 2:24 says, / / He himself [Jesus] bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds we have been healed.

And this scripture is actually making reference to a prophecy that came hundreds of years before Jesus was born, from the book of Isaiah 53, in vs 5, which says, / / But he was pierced for our rebellion, crushed for our sins. He was beaten so we could be whole. He was whipped so we could be healed. The ESV says, / / ...and with his wounds we are healed.

All of those things that were prophesied in Isaiah came true through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. He was pierced in his side as he hung on the cross, he was beaten and bruised, crushed, he was whipped multiple times, his body was covered in wounds as he endured the crucifixion.

And the promise of the Bible is that by those wounds, we receive our healing, because of the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, we can be healed. / / And there is no physical ailment, no disease, no issue that is too big for God. There is no sickness that is NOT covered under that scripture.

It’s not like Jesus paid for headaches, but not cancer. Does His sacrifice cover skin conditions, but not heart conditions? No, there is nothing, no matter how it happened, where you got it from or what the cause is or was, that is not covered under the gift of healing through Jesus Christ. Listen, God can heal even if you did it to yourself. God can set free, even if you damaged your own body. The lie that you got yourself there so you have to get yourself out is exactly that. A big ol’ fat lie. It’s just not how the love of God works.

Now, I said that healing can be through a miracle, but isn’t always a miracle. So, does God do a miracle every time? I think in the way we expect a miracle: instantaneous, miraculous, bam it’s just done and the person is healed, and never deals with it again? No, not every time. In fact, I think God does more process than instant and we just don’t recognize it as such, and because it’s not a miracle, or instant like we expect, we sometimes fail to recognize it was God and give Him the credit.

I also mentioned being whole in Spirit, right? We are made up of body, soul and spirit.

Body being what we feel, physically.

Soul being what we feel, emotionally.

Spirit being what we feel, spiritually. Our spirit is how we connect to God. A man named Nicodemus asked Jesus to show him some sort of sign that God was with him, and Jesus tells him, unless you are born again, you can’t see the Kingdom of God. Nicodemus obviously and rightfully troubled, because “born again” is a term no one has used before, asks, / / “how can an old man go back into his mother’s womb and be born again?” Good question Nic...

Jesus says in John 3:5, / / I assure you, no one can enter the Kingdom of God without being born of water and the Spirit. Humans can reproduce only human life, but the Holy Spirit gives birth to spiritual life.

Our connection to God, who is Spirit, must be BY our spirit. Jesus said in John 4:24, God is Spirit… and we can only truly experience him in his fulness if we also are born spiritually, or how Jesus said it to Nicodemus, born again, by our belief in Jesus Christ, and receiving the Spirit of God.

And that right there is the ultimate healing. God doesn’t want to just heal you physically, doesn’t just want to heal you emotionally, / / but wants to birth something in you that will forever be connected to Him!

Now, the gift of healing is not just that we know about healing, or know what the Bible says about healing. It’s not even just that we believe God CAN heal, but it is actually the ability, given to us by the power of the Holy Spirit, TO heal.

Throughout this series we have to keep going over 1 Corinthians 12:7 / / A spiritual gift is given to each of us so we can help each other.

And continues on in vs 9-10 saying, / / The same Spirit gives great faith to another (what we talked about last week), and to someone else gives the gift of healing. He gives one person the power to perform miracles...

Now, one thing we need to understand about the gift of healing, like any of these gifts really, is that you don’t know if you have it until you use it. And all of us can try. In fact, I believe we all should try, and try again, and try again, and try again.

Let me ask you a quick question. No matter how amazing the gift is that you may receive from someone, who of you in this room or watching online, mastered how to use a new gift on the first try?

I think most of you by now know the story of my circular saw. Kelley bought it for me many many years ago, and it sat in a box for many many years, it moved, in the box, from Raleigh, to Ottawa, to a storage unit while we were in Europe, and finally, came out of the box in Miami, 7 years after it was purchased... And you want to know what happened the first time I used it? the cut wasn’t straight, I didn’t measure properly… I mean, the project itself was....I would still call it a success, but man, was it sloppy.

/ / Any gift worth giving, and any gift worth using, is a gift worth getting to know HOW to use.

And I personally believe that the more we understand that these gifts are meant to help other people, and the more we follow Paul’s instruction to truly and genuinely love each other, the more compassion will be built up inside of us and we will ASK FOR and PURSUE these spiritual gifts. AND it will cause us to TRY because we care.

There is something so simple about faith and the spiritual gifts I wish we all understood. And I wish our humanity and our apprehension, our questions and doubt didn’t limit us like they do. Because to simply believe, if God said there is a gift of healing, and God said by the stripes and sacrifice of Jesus Christ we can be healed, and God said pray for each other that you will be healed, then all of that should just be true, so, you’re sick, let me pray for you, let us see you healed.

And the more we allow compassion and love to lead us, the more we will desire to embody the very things that help each other. Right? Earnestly seek the spiritual gifts! WHY? / / Because wouldn’t you want the power to heal? Someone comes to you with a diagnosis of cancer and you say, “I have faith that God wants to heal you, let’s pray and ask for the power of the Holy Spirit to move on your body and remove all signs of cancer.”

Is it a bit risky? Ya, sure, because the reality is, it might not happen. And to address the elephant in the room, why doesn’t God just heal all the time? Doesn’t he love people? Isn’t he capable of doing so?

I will answer with this:

Yes, God loves all people.

Yes, God IS capable of healing any and all disease and sickness.

Yes, God is GOOD, all the time.

And I don’t know why it doesn’t happen all the time. I don’t. And there’s nothing I can say that can change that. There’s nothing I can do to figure that out. I don’t know if there will ever be sufficient explanation for that question to make it make sense. But that doesn’t mean I’ll stop praying, that doesn’t mean I stop asking, that doesn’t mean I stop pursuing the gifts.

What I do know is God DOES give gifts and to some he has given the gift of healing, and if you have confessed your belief in Jesus Christ, you have received the Spirit of God, and if you’ve received the Spirit, you have been given gifts, and maybe, just maybe you have a gift you didn’t even know you have. And God wants to work THROUGH YOU to see people healed.

So, to truly see this gift, you have to test it out. Pray for someone. Ask God to use you in this life to bring healing to people. And then try it. It’s like any gift. I’ve mentioned the gift of Teaching. That gift is of no benefit if I never allow myself, or put myself in a position where I can teach.

We know that the power to heal is not from us. It’s God’s power. It’s the GIFT of healing. The Spirit of God at work in us and through us. So, one of the ways Kelley and I were taught to pray, when we pray for healing, is that we often say it in this way, / / “Because of what Jesus did on the Cross…”

And if we’re praying for someone we’ll ask the person to repeat with us. / / “Because of what Jesus did on the Cross... I receive my healing now.” It keeps the focus where it’s supposed to be. I may have a gift, but the only reason I have the gift is because the Spirit of God chose to give it, and the power is because Jesus sacrificed his life, and that’s because God so loved the world. So, forget that I had anything to do with it, I’m just a guy with a gift using it for the glory of God. Remember, don’t think too highly of yourself, but have an honest evaluation of who you are and what you have. If you have been given the gift of healing, you have an incredible opportunity to introduce people to the power and love of God for THEIR benefit. And when someone experiences the power of God through healing, it’s very difficult to deny that He exists and that He truly loves them.

Now, I also said that not every healing is a miracle. I believe there are doctors who have the gift of healing. I believe there are nutritionists, homeopaths, psychologists, therapists, counselors, physical trainers and ya, even life coaches, that have been given the gift of healing and are using that gift to encourage people to be healed, to live a life that brings healing.

The unfortunate thing is that we’ve all probably met a Dr that got into medicine for the money, but hopefully we’ve all met a Dr that got into medicine because they have a compassion for people, to see them made whole.

Not every healing is done through miracles.

But while we’re on the topic, let’s look at that one for a minute. Because miracles are awesome.

/ / 2. Miracles

Miracles are a divine moment where we see God do something that no human could do, and this is another area of our lives that God wants US to expect, AND to operate in.

When you think of miracles, think of some of the stories from the bible. Like Jesus taking 5 loaves of bread and 2 fish, blessing them and feeding a crowd of thousands. The bible says 5000 men were present, so that’s plus women and children. So however many that adds up to be, 10, 15, 20 thousand people. And every single one of them ate and they took up 12 baskets of left over food.

Jesus’ first miracle, he’s at a wedding, and they’ve just run out of wine way to early in the evening. And the head of the house is freaking out a bit. And Jesus’ mother tells the head servant at the party, “go to my son and just do whatever he tells you to do.” So Jesus says, “OK, grab those pots, fill them with water, and pour it into a cup...” and the water becomes wine. Not just any wine, but the master of ceremonies for the party says, “wow, most people serve the good wine first, and when everyone’s had a good amount, they switch to cheap stuff, but you’ve saved the best for last.” Jesus made premium wine from water.

Of course, talking about healing today, let’s list at a few healings that definitely are miracles. We won’t read the stories, but you can go back and read them on your own time, and let the stories of Jesus’ miracles build your faith.

/ / John 9:1-34, Jesus heals a man who has been blind from birth!

/ / Luke 7:1-10, A Roman centurion asks Jesus to heal his servant who is ill, Jesus doesn’t even go to the house. And it says, after Jesus spoke, when they got back home they found the servant well again.

/ / John 11:1-44, This one is more than just a healing... Jesus’ friend Lazarus gets sick, and he finds out about it, but instead of going to heal him, he stays where he is for a few more days. By the time he gets to Lazarus home town Lazarus is dead. Now, is this a missed opportunity for healing? Maybe, but it’s also a perfect opportunity for a Miracle!

Jesus actually says in John 11:14, / / And for your sakes, I’m glad I wasn’t there, for now you will really believe. Come, let’s go see him!

They arrive in the town and Jesus is told that Lazarus has been in the grave for 4 days already, so they go to the grave, which is a cave, with a large stone in front of the entrance. Jesus tells them to roll the stone away, they’re like, “bad idea, he’s gonna have a pretty pungent odour...”

But they follow his instructions and they listen, Jesus prays and vs 43 says, / / Then Jesus shouted, “Lazarus, come out!”. And the dead man came out, his hands and feet bound in graveclothes, his face wrapped in a headcloth. Jesus told them, “Unwrap him and let him go!”

The gift of miracles… I want to touch on something quickly here. This is true of all the gifts, that they are meant to point to God and encourage and help build our belief. Did you catch what Jesus said in John 11:14, / / ...for YOUR sakes, I’m glad I wasn’t there, for now you will REALLY believe...

The story I mentioned of Jesus turning water into wine, the end result is this, in John 2:11, / / This miraculous sign at Cana in Galilee was the first time Jesus revealed his glory. And his disciples believed in him.

The story from John 9, Jesus healing a man who had been blind from birth. The religious leaders started questioning the man who was healed, because they didn’t believe in Jesus, they were trying to find some sort of fault in him, they even say, “We don’t even know where this Jesus guy comes from!” and the man who got healed says in John 9:30, / / “Why, that’s very strange! He healed my eyes, and yet you don’t know where he comes from? Ever since the world began, no one has been able to open the eyes of someone born blind. If this man were not from God, he couldn’t have done it!”

/ / A miracle doesn’t just produce a result, it produces faith!

Miracles encourage us to believe.

OK, all those examples are Jesus. So, is the Gift of Miracles for us as well, and are they for today?

Well, biblically we can see a few things:

While Jesus was on the earth, he sends out 70 of his disciples and they come back and share with him how they were able to do miracles just like he was.

In Acts 6:8 it says, / / Stephen, a man full of God’s grace and power, performed amazing miracles and signs among the people. This was after Jesus had died, raised again and is in heaven, so this is purely by the power of the Holy Spirit. And do you know who Stephen was? He was in charge of distributing food to people in need. I want that guy at our next food drive. Here’s your box of food, and a healing & miracle as well!

In Acts 20 Paul is preaching and he’s getting a little long winded, as preachers sometimes do... and a man who’s sitting in a windowsill falls asleep, falls three stories and dies. Paul goes outside, picks him up and says, “don’t worry, he’s still alive” and in Acts 20:12 it says, / / ...the young man was taken home alive and well, and everyone was greatly relieved.

Paul says in 1 Corinthians 2:4 / / And my message and my preaching were very plain. Rather than using clever and persuasive speeches, I relied only on the power of the Holy Spirit. I did this so you would trust not in human wisdom but in the power of God.

OK, so what’s the point, do we all go out and start praying for dead people to see if we can raise them? Maybe not. But do we challenge ourselves to begin to believe that God can do the impossible? Do we begin to believe that more is possible than maybe we have believed before?

YES, absolutely. For YOU, and for OTHERS. How often do we have conversations with people that share with us how impossible their situation seems to them?

How often do we hear stories of how people feel at the end of their ropes, financially, emotionally, physically, relationally? People need miracles. And our God is a God of miracles. Plain and simple. And sometimes those miracles are exactly that. Plain and Simple.

Maybe the next time we hear ourselves say, “Ya, but that’s impossible.” We need to respond to ourselves and say, / / “Sure, but with God, all things are possible...”

The point of today is not to share stories from the bible that are so great we are left asking if we can even attain that, but it is to encourage us to begin to believe for more. To encourage us to believe that God can do more than we can ever think or even imagine. Remember Hebrews 11:6, If you want to draw near to God you must BELIEVE he exists AND REWARDS those who sincerely seek him. 1 Corinthians 13 tells us to pursue spiritual gifts.

The next time someone say, “I’m sick, my mom is sick, my husband broke his leg, my son is hurting, my daughter just got a divorce and is so emotionally broken...” Pray for healing. Believe God can do something great, and ask him to do something great. Pray that the person is healed, that the sickness leaves, that their hearts find comfort and peace and are pulled out of sadness. You don’t have to be there with the person. Jesus healed the centurion’s servant without even ever seeing him, or being anywhere near him.

When you hear someone is going through a rough time, pray for a miracle. Ask God to intervene. Ask the Holy Spirit to pour out his power on the situation. To create something, to change something, to shift something. It’s ok to say, “I don’t know how, I don’t know what He will do, but I know God CAN do something in this situation!”

Remember, Pursue spiritual gifts so that you can help each other.

To see miracles we must begin to ask.

To see healing we must begin to pray.

/ / There is a catalyst moment that must happen where faith and belief meet with request so that an experience can happen.