“The law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul; the testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple;” (Psalm 19:7 ESV) 

The Jesus Revolution

Susan and I went to see the movie “The Jesus Revolution” as soon as it was released, and it brought back a lot of memories. Both of us were a part of what is now commonly called the Jesus Movement, which took place during the beginning of the 1970s. It was an amazing move of God, and many thousands of young people from coast to coast, especially hippies, turned to Christ spontaneously and seemingly without anyone in charge. It was obvious that it was something that God was doing everywhere at once and that no human could take credit for it. It was Billy Graham who publicly called it the “Jesus Revolution.” And it was.

Revivals spread

An interesting thing about revivals is that they cannot be contained and spread. They catch fire, and soon the coals of revival go to other places, catching fire there as well. At the time of my writing, the Asbury revival in Kentucky had spread to many other schools and institutions. And no one can predict how far and wide its influence will eventually reach. Only God knows the answer. 

“All the ends of the earth shall remember and turn to the Lord, and all the families of the nations shall worship before you.” (Psalm 22:27 ESV) 

God acts for those who wait for Him

“Oh that you would rend the heavens and come down, that the mountains might quake at your presence— as when fire kindles brushwood and the fire causes water to boil— to make your name known to your adversaries, and that the nations might tremble at your presence! When you did awesome things that we did not look for, you came down, the mountains quaked at your presence. From of old no one has heard or perceived by the ear, no eye has seen a God besides you, who acts for those who wait for him.” (Isa. 64:1-4 ESV)

He revives the spirit and the heart

“For thus says the One who is high and lifted up, who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy: “I dwell in the high and holy place, and also with him who is of a contrite and lowly spirit, to revive the spirit of the lowly, and to revive the heart of the contrite.” (Isa. 57:15 ESV)

God says, “If my people….”

“If my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land.” (2 Chron. 7:14 ESV)

Therefore

“Restore us, O Lord God of hosts! Let your face shine, that we may be saved!” (Psalm 80:19 ESV)

“Will you not revive us again, that your people may rejoice in you?” (Psalm 85:6 ESV)

What does revival look like?

After a small group of Gen-Z students stayed behind to pray and worship after the normal chapel service concluded recently at Asbury Christian University in Kentucky, it caught the attention of other students, who quickly returned to join them. Within a short time the numbers grew, the news spread over social and national media, large crowds began to swarm in from everywhere, and everyone was talking about it. Was (is) this a “revival” sent from God? Many think so, but many don’t. Only God knows for certain.  

My simple observation

The Asbury revival looks to me like young people turning to God with genuine repentance and sincere worship, and honoring and glorifying Jesus in the process. There doesn’t seem to be anyone in particular in charge or orchestrating it. It certainly looks like people are having a revival. Why should we argue about that? Isn’t that what we want to see happening, especially among our youth? I know I feel blessed to see it!

Alive with God’s presence

A genuine revival may look very different than what we think or expect and therefore be surrounded by controversy and questions as people try to figure it out. That’s because revival is something God does by His Holy Spirit. It changes hearts and lives as a result; people who experience it are revived and refreshed.

“Repent therefore, and turn back, that your sins may be blotted out, that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord, and that he may send the Christ appointed for you, Jesus, whom heaven must receive until the time for restoring all the things about which God spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets long ago.” (Acts 3:19-21 ESV)

What to do if you are sick

“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.” (James 5:14 ESV) 

Why people don’t get healed?

People who don’t ask won’t get healed – “you have not because you ask not.” (James 4:2)

“Ask and you shall receive.” (Matt. 21:22)

“Be gracious to me, O Lord, for I am languishing; heal me, O Lord, for my bones are troubled.” (Psalms 6.2 ESV)

Expect to be healed when you’re prayed for  

“Heal me, O Lord, and I shall be healed; save me, and I shall be saved, for you are my praise.” (Jer. 17:14 ESV)

Because Jesus Never turned anyone down for healing 

“He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed.” (1 Peter 2:24 ESV)

“And the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven.” (James 5:15 ESV)

“And great crowds came to him, bringing with them the lame, the blind, the crippled, the mute, and many others, and they put them at his feet, and he healed them,.” (Matt. 15:30)

In the New Testament we see that Jesus healed people in different ways such as with mud, spit, fingers placed in ears or on the tongue, and many times He healed with just a spoken word. And I believe He still heals today in various ways, as well. So don’t quit!

Continue with expectancy  

When we don’t see instant results, we can become discouraged and give up without continuing on with prayer and faith. Remember that Jesus prayed more than once sometimes to get the results He wanted. In Mark 24:25, He prayed for a blind man and then asked him if he could see clearly. “The man looked around. ‘Yes,’ he said, ‘I see people, but I can’t see them very clearly. They look like trees walking around.’ Then Jesus placed his hands on the man’s eyes again, and his eyes were opened. His sight was completely restored, and he could see everything clearly.”

Build up your faith

“But you, dear friends, by building yourselves up in your most holy faith and praying in the Holy Spirit,” (Jude 1:20 NIV)

We can build up our faith to pray for the sick by memorizing healing verses and by observing medically verified examples of how He’s healed others. So we see that God heals today. As I’ve pointed out several times over the past few days, the Bible says “faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God” (Rom. 10:17). The following is a website with lots of medically verified healing stories. Watch them and see what God has done. Become encouraged to pray for the sick with faith and total confidence.

https://www.awmi.net/video/series/healing-journeys/

What’s faith got to do with it?

“And whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have faith.” (Matt. 21:22 ESV)

 Faith is a crucial ingredient for healing success, and most in the modern church do not have it, and God says you cannot please Him without it! (Heb. 11:6)

 What is faith?

“Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” (Heb. 11:1 ESV)

 Notice in the above passage there are two things listed which are a part of what faith is: 1) assurance (of things hoped for) and 2), conviction (of things not seen).

When you pray for healing you must pray with complete assurance and with total conviction (all your heart) that it will happen.

 “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding.” (Prov. 3:5 ESV)

Two positive faith examples

• A desperate woman had faith for healing. She believed that if she could just touch the hem of Jesus’ garment she would be healed. And it happened! “And he said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace.” (Luke 8:48 ESV)

• A blind man had faith that Jesus would heal him. People tried to shush him but he persisted to cry out to Jesus. “And Jesus said to him, “Go your way; your faith has made you well.” And immediately he recovered his sight and followed him on the way.” (Mark 10:52 ESV)

One negative faith example

• Jesus was restricted by the lack of other’s faith (Mark 6.5) - Jesus visited His home town but found very little faith there, so He couldn’t do as much as He wanted to. “Then they scoffed, ‘He’s just a carpenter, the son of Mary and the brother of James, Joseph, Judas, and Simon. And his sisters live right here among us.’ They were deeply offended and refused to believe in him.” (Mark 6:3 NLT)

 According to your faith

“Then He touched their eyes, saying, “It shall be done for you according to your faith.” (Matt. 9:29)

“Then Jesus replied to her, “Woman, your faith is great. Let it be done for you as you want.” And from that moment her daughter was healed.” (Matt. 15:28)

“So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.”  (Rom. 10:17 NKJV)

 According to the above passage faith comes by two things. 1) by hearing, and 2) hearing by the Word of God. 

Let’s look at both things.

• Faith comes from hearing

 It’s interesting that the word hearing is mentioned twice in the short passage at top. Hearing is something you do with your ears, you hear something. Why is that important to faith? Because when you hear stories of God’s miraculous works of healing faith springs up in your heart. Your faith grows. Someone once said, faith is more than what is taught, faith is caught.

•  Hearing comes from the Word of God

“And Jesus answered them, “Have faith in God. Truly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and thrown into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says will come to pass, it will be done for him. Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.” (Mark. 11:22-24 ESV)

A testimony to help build your faith for healing

About twenty years ago, I heard a pastor's wife give a beautiful testimonial of how God’s Word had brought miraculous healing to her. She had pancreatic cancer, was very weak and extremely emaciated, and her body had turned an alarming yellow. The doctors told her there was nothing more they could do to help her and sent her home to die. She told how she then looked at her hopeless situation and what she decided to do. She said to herself, “No, this isn’t right! This isn’t how I believe. And I’m not going to die like this! I believe Jesus can and will heal me.”

She remembered a wonderful verse of Scripture that seemed very powerful and applicable to her situation:

“My son, pay attention to what I say; turn your ear to my words. Do not let them out of your sight; keep them in your heart. For they are life to those who find them, and health to one’s whole body.” (Proverbs 4:20–23)

So she boldly put a plan together

First, she got out her Bible and looked up all the healing verses. She then got a tablet and began writing all of them there in her own handwriting. As she wrote them, she thanked God for them and claimed each one for herself.

Second, she went through her photo albums and found photos of her looking strong and healthy. She posted them on her walls all around her home so she would constantly see herself as healthy, strong, and completely well.

Each day she again wrote the verses out by hand, prayed over them, and continued to thank God for healing her.

Through this daily process, she became filled with hope and faith

Day after day, she repeated the process, and each day she continued to live and improve slightly.

Over time, her health improved dramatically

When she returned to the doctor, no cancer was found in her body. It’s been more than twenty years, and she’s still healthy and praising God for it. You can read her story in her book, Healed of Cancer, by Dodie Osteen (find it on Amazon).

Therefore

“Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith;” (Heb. 12:2 KJV)

“let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.” (Heb. 10:22 ESV)

“if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move...” (Matt. 17:20)

“But Jesus on hearing this answered him, “Do not fear; only believe, and she will be well.” (Luke 8:50 ESV)

What prevents people from being healed today

“That evening they brought to him many who were oppressed by demons, and he cast out the spirits with a word and healed all who were sick.This was to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet Isaiah: ‘He took our illnesses and bore our diseases’.” (Matt. 8:16-17 ESV)

By His wounds you are healed!

A few years ago, I was an associate pastor of a large church, and one of my jobs was to pray with anyone who came forward for prayer at the end of services. A man asked me to pray that he would be healed of a physical condition. As usual, I used Scripture as I prayed for the sick. At one point, I placed my hand on him and declared boldly, “By the wounds of Jesus on the cross, you are healed!” The senior pastor of the church was nearby and heard me, and said, “Mike, we don’t believe healing is included in Christ’s atonement, so don’t say that!” I was astounded by what he said to me, especially in front of the man I was praying for. The prayer abruptly ended, and the man left, unhealed. But, I also understood at that precise moment why no one ever got healed at that church. And I also knew why I could no longer be on staff there. So shortly after that, I left. One of the things I know is that every church that sees healing happen on a regular basis believes healing is part of Christ’s atonement, and those churches that don’t believe it, rarely see healings happen.

Scripture teaches it

• The verse at top clearly states that Jesus “healed all who were sick to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet Isaiah: ‘He took our illnesses and bore our diseases’.”

• The Greek words for “saved”, which is used 108 times in the New Testament, is Sozo, which is literally translated as: saved from hell, healed, preserved, and rescued.

Two reliable Bible sources explaining the meaning of the word SAVED (sozo)

• Strong’s Greek: 4982. σώζω (sózó) -- to save - Phonetic Spelling: (sode'-zo) Definition: to save Usage: save, heal, preserve, rescue.

• New Testament Greek Lexicon - King James Version - Sozo. sode'-zo. Verb. to save, keep safe and sound, to rescue from danger or destruction. one (from injury or peril) to save a suffering one (from perishing), i.e. one suffering from disease, to make well, heal, restore to health. to preserve one who is in danger of destruction, to save or rescue. to save in the technical biblical sense.

Here are just 3 examples of saved (Greek: sozo) which appears many times in the New Testament  

“Because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved (Greek: save, heal, preserve, rescue).” (Rom. 10:9 ESV) 

“For by grace you have been saved (Greek: save, heal, preserve, rescue)  through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.” (Eph. 2:8-9 ESV) 

“And they said, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved (Greek: save, heal, preserve, rescue), you and your household.” (Acts 16:31)

What prevents people from being healed today

“The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil’s work.” (1 John 3:8 NLT)

There are many reasons people doubt and waver when it comes to praying for healing. And, wavering in faith is a huge roadblock when it comes to being healed (James 1:6). Yesterday, I discussed that. But there is another big roadblock and that is not understanding that sickness is a result of sin.

Where does sickness come from?

No disease or sickness is from God. Diseases and sicknesses are from the kingdom of darkness – the devil. There was no sickness until the devil arrived. But, be happy and rejoice, there is good news.

Jesus came to destroy the works of the devil

“For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil.” (1 John 3:8)

“And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all kinds of sickness and all kind of disease among the people. And his fame went throughout all Syria: and they brought unto him all sick people that were taken with divers diseases and torments, and those which were possessed with devils, and those which were lunatic, and those that had the palsy; and he healed them.” (Matt. 4:23-24)

Therefore

“And Jesus answered them, “Go and tell John what you hear and see: the blind receive their sight and the lame walk, lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear, and the dead are raised up, and the poor have good news preached to them. And blessed is the one who is not offended by me.” (Matt. 11:4-6 ESV)

What causes people to waver (to have doubt) when it comes to praying for the sick?

“Jesus immediately reached out his hand and took hold of him, saying to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?” (Matt. 14:31 ESV)

Trained not to believe

I did hear someone ask Reinhard Bonke, who had millions show up to his African crusades and there were lots of medically verified healings, why there were so many people healed at his African crusades but not at the churches he spoke to in America, and he said something very interesting. He said in Africa, people come to his crusades filled with faith, expecting to be healed, and many are. But in America, people come not expecting to be healed, and they are not. He said people in America are too religious, have been trained not to believe, and are filled with doubt and skepticism.

What the Bible says about doubt and skepticism

James gives the following warning about wavering in your faith.

“But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed. For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord.” (James 1:6-7 KJV) Other translations replace the word wavering with not doubt.

The above passage are severe words of warning, indeed! So how much doubt does it take to undermine the faith it takes for healing to happen? It sounds like not much! The verse says, “Nothing wavering” which is pretty conclusive.

So, what could cause you to waver in your faith?

Lots of things! First, you could waver if you thought God doesn’t heal people today. We showed examples yesterday to prove that He still does heal people today.

What if you’ve been taught that God may want you to be sick?

Because maybe He’s teaching you something, perhaps about humility? I’ve heard pastors say that from the pulpit, usually when they are talking about Paul’s thorn in the flesh (2 Cor. 12:7), where Paul prayed three times and God didn’t remove it but said His grace was sufficient. And that answer wasn’t a no. But God pointed out that His grace is enough to handle anything the devil sends his way. In fact, he’ll become even stronger. Also, nowhere in that passage is the “thorn in the flesh” referred to as a sickness. People are just guessing that it is. Paul actually refers to the thorn more than once as a weakness (2 Cor. 12:9). And it’s not from God, but is “a messenger of Satan.” (2 Cor. 12:7). Many scholars believe the thorn is about persecution because that’s what Paul was talking about in this and the previous chapters (2 Cor 11 & 12) without ever changing the subject. And if you check everywhere else in the Bible where it refers to a “thorn in the flesh”, it’s never about a sickness but always about people, (or even giants in one passage), causing trouble. 

 Do not throw away your confidence

“Therefore do not throw away your confidence, which has a great reward.” (Heb. 10:35 ESV)