Hundredfold Ministries, Int'l

The denomination I spent my childhood in taught me that God doesn't heal people today the way He did in the Bible. Then as a young man in 1968, a friend invited me to attend a healing service in Los Angeles. I went reluctantly and I certainly was not expecting to see anything supernatural. In fact, my mind was closed. I didn't want to hear or see anything that was counter to my church doctrine.

The speaker was a woman evangelist and she wasn't even a good speaker. She just walked around the platform talking about her wonderful Jesus. Suddenly, she began to point to various areas of the large auditorium announcing healings that Jesus was doing at that moment. People would stand and say, "Yes! That's me. I'm healed!" In my suspicious mind I said, "They planted these people in the audience to testify. God isn't really healing them."

Suddenly, immediately behind me a woman began to shout over and over, "My daughter's arm! Jesus healed her!" I didn't see the arm before so I couldn't be sure of her claim, but both arms and hands looked fine to me. The little girl also had a terribly shrunken, deformed leg with a steel brace on it. The mother quickly removed the brace and immediately, before my very eyes, the malformed leg grew out and became completely whole, just like her other leg!

From that moment, nearly thirty years ago, I set aside the false church doctrine I had been taught. I began to look only to the Bible for an understanding of God's healing power. I realized that when Jesus walked this earth His love and compassion often led Him to heal the sick. The Bible specifically tells us that Jesus hasn't changed. "Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever." (Heb 13:8 NIV) Because this is true, He still heals today.

Causes of Sickness and Disease

In order to understand supernatural healing, we must first look at the sources of sickness and disease. As I see it, there are two causes or sources of sickness and disease. They are sin and the demonic forces.

1. Sin

a. Adams Sin - When God created the earth and placed Adam on it, there was no sickness or disease. Adam's and Eve's sin opened the door for sickness, disease, and death for mankind. (See Rom 5:12-19.) Obviously, this wasn't God's choice, it came because of human sin. From that time on, every human being is subject to sin, sickness, disease, and death because of Adam's sin.

b. Our Own Sin - In Mark's gospel, we read about some men lowering a paralytic through the roof into the room where Jesus was ministering. "When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, 'Son, your sins are forgiven.'" (2:5 NIV, emphasis added.) The context of this healing as well as Jesus's words indicate that the man was paralyzed because of his own sin.

After Jesus healed the man at the pool of Bethesda, Scripture says, "Later Jesus found him at the temple and said to him, 'See, you are well again. Stop sinning or something worse may happen to you.'" (Jn 5:14 NIV) We therefore conclude that our own personal sin may bring sickness into our bodies.

c. The Sin of Others - Some people get sick or diseased because of contact with others whose sin has caused a contagious disease or illness. All over the world today there are innocent babies born with drug addictions and/or some other disease or illness given them by their parents. Other examples of harm to the body caused by another are the violent acts of those intoxicated by drugs and alcohol that maim countless other people who happen to be in their way.

There is another way the sins of others can cause our bodies harm. When God gave Moses the Ten Commandments, He spoke clearly about idol worship. "You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me . . ." (Exo 20:5 NIV, emphasis added.) Some people are sick or diseased because their parents and/or grandparents hated God. (Of course, this punishment may take on other forms which do not involve sickness or disease.)

2. Demonic

The second way that disease, illness, and harm impact our bodies is through demonic activity. The Bible gives us examples of demons bringing sickness on people. In Mark 9:17-18, we read,

A man in the crowd answered, "Teacher, I brought you my son, who is possessed by a spirit that has robbed him of speech. Whenever it seizes him, it throws him to the ground. He foams at the mouth, gnashes his teeth and becomes rigid . . ." (NIV) [in Luke's record we read on] "Even while the boy was coming, the demon threw him to the ground in a convulsion. But Jesus rebuked the evil spirit, healed the boy and gave him back to his father. (Lk 9:42 NIV, emphasis added.)

Luke gave us another example when he wrote, ". . . a woman was there who had been crippled by a spirit for eighteen years. She was bent over and could not straighten up at all." (Lk 13:11 NIV)

Thus we know from Scripture that demons can also cause sickness and disease.

Let me address the cases of sicknesses and diseases in which there is no discernable sin involved nor do there appear to be demonic forces at work. These instances seem to be simply random, unexplained sicknesses. I believe these cases are part of the generally fallen state of the human race since Adam and Eve's sin. In other words, when sin entered the world, we all are subject to the random diseases and illnesses that came with it. So the general fallen state of man can also be the cause of some sicknesses.

The Will

Now that we have seen the ways that sickness can enter our bodies, and we know that Jesus can and does often heal us, let's examine the will as it is involved in the healings. Searching Scripture, I find divine healing involves two different wills: the human will and God's will.

1. The Human Will

One day when Jesus saw a sick man He asked him a very important question. "When Jesus saw him lying there and learned that he had been in this condition for a long time, he asked him, 'Do you want to get well?'" (Jn 5:6 NIV)

The implication of this question is that there are sick people who do not want to get well. I won't go into all the various reasons some people don't want to get well, but let's look at two. If a person is just sick or infirm enough to pass the burden for his or her livelihood off onto others, he may not want to get well. Life is good enough. It pleases him that someone else provides for his needs. Or, one's sickness or infirmity may relieve him or her of socially unpleasant situations such as having to interact with those whom he dislikes or fears.

If this hidden reward or payoff from the infirmity did not exist in some human hearts, Jesus would not have asked, "Do you want to get well?"

2. Gods Will

One day a leper came to Jesus and begged Him for his healing. The leper said, "If you are willing, you can make me clean." Filled with compassion, Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man. "I am willing," he said. "Be clean!" (Mk 1:41,42 NIV, emphasis added.)

I believe the Holy Spirit placed these words in Scripture because it is so important for us to know, especially when we are sick, that Jesus is willing to heal us!

Most commonly healing takes place when at least one person's human will is working in concert with the Lord's will to bring about the healing.

The Healing Means

Scripture gives us various means of healing. I define "means" as that by which something is done or obtained. I have divided these means into six categories. We will examine each of them.

1. Acts of Jesus

We encounter the first means of healing in the New Testament, the various acts of Jesus. In reading all the gospels, we find that Jesus used four different kinds of physical acts to effect healing.

a. His Physical Touch - We note that with the leper in Mark, 1, Jesus touched the leper. "Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man. . ." (1:41 NIV) Similarly, we see in Luke, ". . . the people all tried to touch him, because power was coming from him and healing them all." (6:19 NIV, emphasis added.)

This flowing of power from Jesus is difficult for us to understand. Thanks be to God it isn't necessary to understand it to receive it. I doubt if anyone whom He touched in Scripture really understood this flowing of power, but He healed them just the same.

b. His Spoken Words - Matthew's gospel tells the story of the Centurion asking Jesus to heal his sick servant.

Jesus said to him, "I will go and heal him."

The centurion replied, "Lord, I do not deserve to have you come under my roof. But just say the word, and my servant will be healed. For I myself am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. I tell this one, 'Go,' and he goes; and that one, 'Come,' and he comes. I say to my servant, 'Do this,'and he does it." When Jesus heard this, he was astonished and said to those following him, "I tell you the truth, I have not found anyone in Israel with such great faith.

. . . Then Jesus said to the centurion, "Go! It will be done just as you believed it would." And his servant was healed at that very hour. (8:7-13 NIV, emphasis added.)

c. He Rebuked Sickness - One day when Jesus entered Peter's house, he saw Peter's mother-in-law lying in bed with a fever. "So he bent over her and rebuked the fever, and it left her. She got up at once and began to wait on them." (Lk 4:39 NIV)

The power of Jesus' rebuke drove the fever from this woman. Of course, in one sense, this is another type of the spoken words of Jesus because He did speak the rebuke aloud. But He did not just proclaim the woman healed, He specifically addressed the sickness in her body, rebuked it, and that resulted in her healing.

There is more power in Jesus' spoken words than any force in the world! Our own spoken words have power too, especially when we are speaking Jesus' words. "The tongue has the power of life and death . . ." (Pro 18:21 NIV) It is our right as believers, through Christ, to speak life and healing into ourselves and others. We can rebuke sickness just as Jesus did. We have that authority and even that responsibility as we take the light of Christ and His healing power into the world.

d. His Spittle - One day ". . . some people brought a blind man and begged Jesus to touch him. He took the blind man by the hand and led him outside the village. When he had spit on the man's eyes and put his hands on him, Jesus asked, "Do you see anything?" (Mk 8:22,23 NIV, emphasis added.) We see that He also put His hands on the man to effect the complete healing.

The people wanted Jesus to touch the man, but Jesus knew what to do to heal him. Just like the crowds in Jesus' day, we often ask Jesus to do what we want, not understanding that His ways are always the best.

2. Faith

The second means of healing is through faith. In fact, Scripture is clear that divine healing always involves some form of faith. Interestingly, the necessary faith may be in the heart of different people. I see three groups of people in the Bible whose faith appropriated healing.

a. The Faith of the Sick - On a number of occasions when Jesus healed people he said, "Your faith has healed you." These words were spoken to the woman with the issue of blood (Mk 5:34), blind Bartimaeus (Lk 18:42), and to one of the ten lepers He healed (Lk 17:19).

On one occasion, Jesus asked two blind men who were seeking healing, "Do you believe I am able to do this?"

"Yes, Lord," they replied.

Then he touched their eyes and said, "According to your faith will it be done to you"; and their sight was restored. (Mat 9:28-30 NIV, emphasis added.)

From this we conclude there are times when Jesus heals someone through their own faith.

b. The Faith of Others - Some men lowered the paralytic down through the roof into the room where Jesus was ministering. "When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, 'Son, your sins are forgiven.'" (Mk 2:5 NIV, emphasis added.) And He healed him. Jesus also healed the Centurion's servant because of the Centurion's faith. Jesus said, "I tell you the truth, I have not found anyone in Israel with such great faith . . ." (Mat 8:10 NIV) So it is clear at times the faith of someone other than the sick person brings about healing.

For those of us who may be lacking in faith, we have the example of the father of the boy with an evil spirit. The boy's father exclaimed, "I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!" (Mk 9:24 NIV) That is a genuinely valid prayer.

c. Faith of the Person Praying - Of course in most instances of healing prayer in Scripture Jesus was the one who prayed. But we see the Apostle Paul's eyes were opened when Ananias prayed for his healing. (Acts 9:17) We also see Peter's faith operating when he said to the lame man, "In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk." (Acts 3:6 NIV) So we conclude that at times the healing faith is that of the person praying for the sick.

3. The Power of the Lord Was Present

One day as he was teaching, Pharisees and teachers of the law, who had come from every village of Galilee and from Judea and Jerusalem, were sitting there. And the power of the Lord was present for him to heal the sick. (Lk 5:17 NIV, emphasis added.)

On a few occasions in my life I have been present in meetings in which the power of the Lord was present to heal the sick. On such occasions miraculous healings take place. I do not believe that any person has the ability to bring on this power. The sovereignty of God is its only basis. When and if such Presence is ever manifested, any and everyone who needs healing should present themselves before the Lord for His healing power.

Let me conclude this section on faith by stating that I am aware of instances of healing when no one present had the faith to believe that there would be a healing. I recall one incident I heard from a missionary in Africa who prayed for a little boy's deformed feet to be made whole. He confessed that he had prayed for healings many times before and there had never been any remarkable healing in his presence. As a result, he didn't have the faith at that moment to believe in the healing; he prayed out of pure obedience. The small boy was too young to believe and his parents weren't saved and they didn't even understand what was going on. But the Lord sovereignly healed the boy despite the lack of faith of everyone present! That healing resulted in great joy and many salvations, as well as increasing the faith of those present.

4. The Elders of the Church

I am for any and every means of praying for the sick. But I believe in many of our churches today we have ritualized prayer for the sick. Usually it takes the form of an altar call either during or at the end of a service. The pastor calls the elders forward and then invites the sick to come forward for anointing with oil and prayer. This is done based on James, 5. But let's examine more closely what this passage is really telling us to do.

Is any one of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise him up. If he has sinned, he will be forgiven. Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective. (Jas 5:14-16 NIV, emphasis added.)

There are several points I want to examine in this passage. First let me say that as we examine this aspect of healing prayer, I believe we should reserve this use of the elders of the church for the seriously ill, not for lesser sicknesses that a short time and normal care will cure. In these cases we can minister the correct medicines to ourselves and we can ask others who are not elders to pray for our healing.

Let's look now at the term elders of the church. The most common word used in the New Testament to describe church leaders was presbyter and it is usually translated as elder. Thus, elder is the common term the New Testament used to describe anyone in church leadership or in spiritual authority. This is the word James used in the above passage. When it comes to praying for the sick, I believe we need to broaden our modern day definition of elder. In my opinion, James is referring here to those men and women in the church who know Scripture, are spiritually mature, live godly lives, and know how to pray effectively.

I believe in the context of James' exhortation, he is portraying the need to call for a number of spiritually mature people to go to the sick person's home, with a view toward staying there in prayer until there is an answer from the Lord.

While the elders are praying, there may be words of knowledge or words of wisdom regarding the sickness. Verse fifteen mentions the possibility of confession of sin and repentance. Remember, we have already established personal sin as a cause of sickness.

I once heard a pastor tell of an unusual experience he had while praying for the sick at his church altar. He had prayed for several people when one woman came asking prayer for healing. As he was about to anoint her with oil and pray, the Lord spoke to him saying, "You may pray for this woman, but do not pray for her healing." He prayed a general prayer for the woman then told her what the Lord had said to him. She became very angry and stormed out of the church.

A few days later the woman was in a hospital near death. In this state she called for her husband and confessed her grossly immoral sin and asked his and God's forgiveness. In a matter of days she was completely whole and well. In this case, a word of knowledge given the pastor brought about a confession of sin and it was that sin which was the cause of the sickness. To implore the Lord to heal such a person without dealing with her sin would indeed have been futile and certainly not in keeping with the mind of Christ in the matter!

Now let's deal with James' phrase, "anoint him with oil." There are two Greek words in the New Testament that are translated as the English word "anoint." They are ??e?f? and ???? (aleipho and chrio). Aleipho means "to anoint festally, or in homage, also medically, or in embalming the dead . . . chrio always has a religious and symbolical force, which is absent in aleipho." 51

In other words, aleipho means to rub ointment onto the body, which is something that would have been done in that day to treat a sick person medically. On the other hand, chrio is the ceremonial anointing for kings and priests. Chrio is the word from which we derive the word Christ, as in Jesus the Anointed, or Jesus the Christ.

When sick people come forward in our churches for prayer the elders chrio them. I'm not suggesting we stop doing this, but the word James used is aleipho! Therefore, I believe James is telling us to do everything within our power to get the person healed. Concurrently with the sick person seeking medical treatment, we are to pray as intercessors for and over him or her. We are to seek the Lord for words of knowledge and wisdom, and for the gifts of healing. We are to ask about the presence of sin in the sick person and we are to confront him or her with the need for repentance in cases of known sin. If the need arises, we are to cast out demons of infirmity.

It is my firm conviction if we diligently and commonly practiced this in our churches there would be many more healings than we now have. Indeed, the prayer of a righteous man (or woman) is powerful and effective! (Jas 5:16b)

5. The Gifts of Healing

Another means God uses for healing is the gifts of healing. The Apostle Paul gives a list of spiritual gifts God has given to the church. Among this list is the "gifts of healing." (1 Cor 12:9) The gifts of healing are available to believers in any church that believes and practices the teachings of the Bible. The basic question is, "Does the church know how to effectively use the gifts of healing?" Unfortunately in many cases, the answer to this question is "No"!

God in His infinite wisdom gives various gifts to different people in the church. Gifts are given but the person must still learn how to use the gift. This takes time, practice and patience. Frequently people have spiritual gifts and don't realize it. How does a person know if he or she has the gifts of healing? It usually manifests itself in a strong desire to pray for and lay hands on sick people. We should know the people who have such desires in our church and encourage them to pray for the sick. Why? Because these are usually the people with the gifts of healing. As they mature in these gifts people get healed.

Of course, apostles and evangelists often operate the gifts of healing as a part of their ministry call. This is not the same as a person who has the gifts of healing but in all three cases, healings take place.

Let me conclude this section by addressing the fact that Scripture refers to the plural "gifts" of healing. This indicates that there is more than one type of gift of healing. The most spectacular healing gift occurs when someone is instantly healed. We all love to see or hear about someone who was miraculously and instantly healed by the Lord of an illness or affliction. But there are also those kinds of healing which are not instantaneous but are much quicker than the normal healing process. We hear about someone who was healed of wounds, etc. in a few hours or two or three days or weeks when the medical experts predict, based on their natural experience, that the healing would take much longer.

Then finally, there is the healing, however long it takes, when medically speaking, there was no chance of the person getting better. This is God causing the gift of healing to work on a body where nothing else could explain the recovery.

6. The Transfer of Jesus' Authority to Us

It is so easy to believe that Jesus went about healing people. Few of us have any problem believing in His miracles. The problem lies in believing anything will happen when we pray! Well, I have good news for you:

When Jesus had called the Twelve together, he gave them power and authority to drive out all demons and to cure diseases . . . (Lk 9:1 NIV, emphasis added.)

Are you a disciple of Jesus? If the answer is "yes" then this provision is yours! This reality lies at the very foundation of how Jesus established His church. He did it by deputizing and enabling His disciples to carry on His work! As Christians we can call on the name of Jesus in authority and power, power that can heal the sick and even raise the dead. Sickness and disease, as part of the natural realm, are subject to the power of God. Satan and every demonic power is also subject to the power of Jesus. It is this power that we call upon when we pray for the sick. I believe that God wants His church to be much more aware of and to use this power with much greater force and authority than most of us ever do.

How Exactly is a Healing Accomplished?

We have just read that we have the power and the authority to heal in the name of Jesus, our Savior and Healer. And we know that when we pray often someone is healed. We have extraordinary examples of healings in Scripture after Christ's ascension into heaven, such as people being healed when Peter's shadow fell on them, (Acts 3:15) or others being healed when Paul's garment touches them. (Acts 19:12) But we do not know exactly how these healings happen. Is the Holy Spirit always the agent sent from the throne of God to heal? Or does Jesus simply speak the word into the natural realm of our human bodies, through the spirit realm, and then our human bodies respond? We simply don't know the answers to these questions. We know the healings happen and we know the Lord is the source. But Scripture doesn't tell us exactly how it happens, it simply happens. But that is part of God's plan too. If we understood it fully and could explain it, it would lose some of its miraculous impact, especially on the unbelievers. Supernatural healings are simply one more aspect of the awesomeness of our God.

Biblical Reasons for Sickness

Let me say at the outset of this section that there may be more reasons in Scripture for sickness than those I have listed below. I have chosen these eleven because they seem to me the most common and obvious reasons.

1. Overcoming the Evil One

Job eventually overcame the evil one, didn't he? However, before he did, he was very sick. In the early chapters of Job, we plainly see why Job was sick: the devil caused it! John lists three stages of Christian growth in his first epistle. (See 1 Jn 2:12-14.) He divided these three stages into little children, young men, and fathers. To the young men he wrote, "I write to you, young men, because you have overcome the evil one." (2:13 NIV) When young Christians approach the spiritual young man or young woman stage, they are going to encounter the devil. The reason for this encounter is so they can learn to overcome him.

If this is the case, to deliver a person entering into the young man stage from his sickness before he has learned to overcome the evil one would be frustrating God's plan for his or her spiritual growth and development. After all, God's overarching purpose and will for all of us is to grow into spiritually mature Christians. It is not for us to lead problem free lives.

2. Trial of Your Faith

All of us want our faith to increase, don't we? But there's a catch. Every time we move into more faith, it is going to be tried! Peter knew well what this meant. He lived it first hand. Concerning trials and the problems of this life, which include sickness, he wrote:

These have come so that your faith--of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire--may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. (1 Pet 1:7 NIV, emphasis added.)

There are times when sickness can be part of the trial of one's faith. To deliver someone from the trial before his faith is proven would frustrate God's work in the person's spiritual growth.

3. To Reveal the Works of God

There are times when God wants to reveal His works and glory. Sometimes this involves a sick person whom God intends to raise up so that we may see His power and glory. This was the case of the blind man in John's gospel.

As he went along, he saw a man blind from birth. His disciples asked him, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?" "Neither this man nor his parents sinned," said Jesus,

"but this happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life." (Jn 9:1-3 NIV, emphasis added.)

To some this may appear cruel. The man Jesus healed was fully grown. He had been blind all his life. He had never seen a sunrise, his parents, a flower, or anything. Yet God prepared him and caused him to sit begging all those years just to display His power at the right moment. Humanly speaking this is hard, but God never shortchanges anyone! I believe God greatly rewards those he uses in this way.

4. That We May Be Delivered From Pride

There are times that God may use a sickness to deliver us from the sin of pride. Paul said,

To keep me from becoming conceited because of these surpassingly great revelations, there was given me a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. (2 Cor 12:7 NIV, emphasis added.)

No one knows for sure exactly what the thorn was for Paul. But we do know from what he wrote that he understood it was there, "to keep (him) from becoming conceited." Of course, we all have this same tendency toward pride to some degree. We commend Paul because at least he was aware of it!

But whether or not Paul's particular thorn was a sickness or something else, the principle illustrated in this passage is valid. If the Lord needs to work on our pride, might not some illness serve that purpose very well?

5. Sins of Parents, Grandparents, and Ancestors

This is a spiritual principle that many of us find hard to believe or accept. Can the sins of one (or more) of our parents, grandparents, or more remote ancestors, bring sickness or disease on us. Here is what God wrote with His own hand in the tablets of stone:

"You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me . . ." (Exo 20:4,5 NIV, emphasis added.)

This is what is known as an ancestral curse, an inherited curse due to the sins of an ancestor. While it is true that God did not specifically say that the punishment of this curse was sickness, certainly sickness is among the forms this punishment can take. Other forms may include poverty, imprisonment, and/or poor relationship with others.

If we believe a Christian is the victim of an ancestral curse because of the acts of an ancestor, the first thing we should do is to break that curse in prayer. Then we are free to go on and pray for healing or deliverance. Have the afflicted person begin by praying a prayer something like this:

"God, I come to you in the name of Jesus, my Savior. I hereby confess the sins of my (ancestor)_________. I renounce his/her [witchcraft, idolatry, etc.] as sin. This sin is detestable in Your sight. On behalf of _______ I hereby ask Your forgiveness. Jesus, I now ask You to set me free from the curse my (ancestor)_________. Lord, the Bible says that, "Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, for it is written: 'Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree.'" (Gal 3:13 NIV) Jesus, You took the curse of my (ancestor)_______ upon Yourself for me. Thank You, Jesus for setting me free! Amen"

For those who think God is severe with the pronouncement of this curse, look what He promised for the descendants of those who love Him.

". . . but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments." (Exo 20:6 NIV)

So, by breaking an ancestral curse and loving the Lord, the believer can not only free himself and his decedents from the curse, but he can bring his family line under the love of Jesus for generations to come!

6. Physical Neglect and Carelessness

The Psalmist says:

I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. (Ps 139:14 NIV)

God has wonderfully made us. At the same time He has given us good minds and common sense. Carelessness and neglect of our physical well-being bring some sicknesses and injuries on us. For example, medical research has shown that it is not good for a person to work excessively hard for long hours, day after day, year after year. Eventually that person will experience a breakdown in health. Habitual unhealthy eating is also a form of carelessness and neglect of our bodies. And we all know that smoking, drinking alcohol, and using illicit drugs are very harmful to our bodies. Fast and reckless driving puts us and our bodies at risk, as well as jeopardizing others.

Don't forget, "Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own." (1 Cor 6:19 NIV)

We must learn to take care of the Holy Spirit's temple.

7. Our Own Sin

Scripture makes it clear from the example mentioned earlier in this chapter that sometimes we bring sickness on ourselves by our own sin:

"When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, 'Son, your sins are forgiven.'" (2:5 NIV, emphasis added.)

It is obvious from Jesus' words that this man was sick because of his own sin. Let me join this principle to another verse. Jesus said:

"Settle matters quickly with your adversary who is taking you to court. Do it while you are still with him on the way, or he may hand you over to the judge, and the judge may hand you over to the officer, and you may be thrown into prison. I tell you the truth, you will not get out until you have paid the last penny. (Mat 5:25,26 NIV)

Our adversary is the devil. One of his titles is "the accuser of the brethren." (Rev 12:10) When we are involved in long-term sin, Satan goes before God to accuse us. God, in His righteousness, must then act. If we ignore the charge, claiming our innocence, God hands us over to the officer, or Satan's power.

At this point, "prison" may take any form. Perhaps it is financial, relational, situational, or emotional problems . . . or it may be some form of sickness.

If this is the case, no amount of prayer and no doctor is going to bring healing. We must remove the cause of the sickness, our own sin. The only way this can happen is by going back to the Judge and confessing and repenting of our sin!

8. Affliction

Some sicknesses are afflictions. The dictionary says that an affliction is "anything causing pain or distress; calamity . . . implies pain, suffering, or distress imposed by illness, loss, misfortune, etc. . ."52 But sometimes afflictions are beneficial because they teach us lessons that we would otherwise not learn. Look at what the Psalmist wrote: "Before I was afflicted I went astray, but now I obey your word." (Ps 119:67 NIV)

Israel of old gives us an example of human nature at its worst. When everything was going well and they had plenty of food, good health, good crops, and an easy life, they tended to backslide. Whenever these conditions occurred, the Israelites turned from God to self-indulgence. Again and again God sent disaster upon them to cause them to return to Himself.

I fear that some Christians form similar habits. When God's blessings are flowing, self-indulgence can creep in and cause us to inwardly back-slide. All God has to do is momentarily lift His blessings and affliction rushes in! We too, like the Psalmist, run back to the Lord when affliction comes. Sometimes this affliction comes in the form of sickness. Its purpose is to cause us to turn again more fully toward Jesus.

9. The Discipline of the Lord

And you have forgotten that word of encouragement that addresses you as sons: "My son, do not make light of the Lord's discipline, and do not lose heart when he rebukes you, because the Lord disciplines those he loves, and he punishes everyone he accepts as a son." Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as sons. For what son is not disciplined by his father? If you are not disciplined (and everyone undergoes discipline), then you are illegitimate children and not true sons. Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of our spirits and live! Our fathers disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness. No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it. (Heb 12:5-11 NIV, emphasis added.)

I believe God's discipline takes many forms. It can be in a financial, relational, situational, or emotional form. I believe that His discipline may also take some form of sickness. When the discipline produces the desired results, the Lord will most likely heal the person under discipline.

10. Willful Ignorance of God's Word

Some years ago a police officer stopped me while I was driving my car. He told me that I had violated a traffic law. I replied, "I didn't know that was against the law." He wasn't very sympathetic. I have never forgotten his answer. He said, "Ignorance is no excuse."

Many Christians ignorantly violate God's laws. However, in many cases, such ignorance is willful. Most of us know how to read and most of us have a Bible or have access to one. If this is the case, God can say to us the same words the police officer said to me, "Ignorance is no excuse."

If a Christian has a Bible, knows how to read, and doesn't learn God's laws, he or she will violate His laws. Such violations are sin. We have already established that sin brings sickness, disease, calamity, and problems in general. Furthermore, look what God thinks about those who refuse to learn His laws:

If anyone turns a deaf ear to the law, even his prayers are detestable. (Pro 28:9 NIV, emphasis added.)

In other words, if we are sick and have not been actively seeking to learn God's word . . . even our prayers are detestable to Him!

11. Taking Communion in an Unworthy Manner

Some Christians are sick and some may even die because they partake of communion in an unworthy manner. Let's read the austere warning Paul gave the church at Corinth about this:

The Lord Jesus, on the night he was betrayed, took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, "This is my body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of me." In the same way, after supper he took the cup, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me." For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes. Therefore, whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of sinning against the body and blood of the Lord. A man ought to examine himself before he eats of the bread and drinks of the cup. For anyone who eats and drinks without recognizing the body of the Lord eats and drinks judgment on himself. That is why many among you are weak and sick, and a number of you have fallen asleep. But if we judged ourselves, we would not come under judgment. When we are judged by the Lord, we are being disciplined so that we will not be condemned with the world. (1 Cor 11:23-32 NIV, emphasis added.)

Based on this passage, it is very reasonable to believe that many Christians are sick because they have taken communion in an unworthy manner. In fact, the term "fallen asleep" is Paul's nice way of saying that some have even died.

But what does it mean to take communion in an unworthy manner? The simplest and most direct meaning is when someone takes communion with sin in his or her heart. This sin can include harboring hatred, malice, adultery, or unforgiveness against another in his heart. Unforgiveness is such a deadly trap. Remember Jesus' words, "For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins." (Mat 6:14,15 NIV)

Where or who the unforgiven are, or how badly they have hurt you, wasn't even mentioned by Jesus. He requires simply that we do our very best to totally forgive anyone who has offended us as we partake of communion.

Of course, unforgiveness isn't the only sin Christians commit. There are many others. I believe anyone partaking of communion with any unconfessed sin in his heart is "sinning against the Lord's body." In fact, 1 Corinthians 11:28 tells us that, "A man ought to examine himself before he eats of the bread and drinks of the cup." (NIV) Thus, we see that, as much as possible, we should be free of sin up to the very minute of communion.

Let me make a second, less obvious point here. I believe that another interpretation of sinning against the Lord's body within the context of this principle means the church at large, or the larger body of Christ. In this context I believe partaking communion in an unworthy manner includes taking communion when we lack respect for other Christian churches, particularly those of other denominations. We need to regard all who are washed in the blood of Jesus as part of the church. If someone, anyone on earth, is a Bible believing Christian who loves Jesus, we are to respect that person. To do less when we partake of communion is to take it in an unworthy manner.

What Happens When There Is No Healing?

Even with all the above means of biblical healing and a deeper understanding of why Christians may be sick and how to bring about healing, there are still going to be instances in which some are not healed. When this happens our very humanness may cry out and ask God, "Why?" From man's viewpoint, it is very hard not to allow the pain and sickness to overshadow the answer. But the answer lies in looking at the circumstances from God's viewpoint and in focusing on who God is.

The problem is that, try as we might, we are, and always will be limited to our human understanding, our human viewpoint. I believe there are circumstances that we simply will not ever be able to fully understand until we are in glory with our Lord.

Because of this, I believe that finally, after we do all we know to do and no healing occurs, we must come face to face with the sovereignty of God. Ultimately, His ways are not our ways, and His ways often have a mystery about them that we will never truly be able to understand while we are on this earth. In these instances we must squarely face the test of believing in God's love and His purposes in every situation, regardless of whether we see good in it or not. And we do know that in the fullness of time, God will be faithful to reveal to all of us His purposes for our lives and the lives of those we love.

Let us look at one last Scripture. If, after we have done everything we can, and explored the principles and directions which we have examined in this teaching, and we still have no answer, we must look to what Peter wrote:

"So then, those who suffer according to God's will should commit themselves to their faithful emphasis added.)

Peter tells us that ultimately each of us are called to do two things, even in the midst of sickness and pain: 1) commit ourselves to God, and 2) continue to do good.

As we do this, we enable the Holy Spirit to move in the midst of a Christian's suffering and to begin an inward heart molding, purging away the sin and dross that separates us from nearness with Jesus. He is using it as an instrument to produce spiritual, permanent changes in our heart. Sometimes those changes may need to be in the heart of someone other than the one who is sick. If the Lord is accomplishing this, He isn't going to be in a rush to discontinue using this instrument of change, is He? I know that to some this may seem callous or even cruel, but the opposite it true. For God knows that we are creatures of eternity and that whatever kind of heart we take with us into eternity, we are going to live with forever! So He is merciful in his use of suffering to accomplish this purifying of the heart for all eternity. And through it all, we can be sure that our faithful Lord knows of our sickness and sorrow and will reward us beyond measure for all eternity!

Let me end with my personal story about God's miraculous healing power. When I was 20 years old the Lord called me to the ministry of a Bible teacher. I resisted that call and continued to go my own way. At age 29 I was diagnosed with Hodgkin's disease (cancer), and was given 5 years to live. When the doctor told me the news I returned to my hospital room and repented to God for my disobedience in not following my ministry call. I told the Lord that, if He chose to heal me, I would serve Him as completely as I knew how for the rest of my life. That was over 30 years ago! There is not a doubt in my mind that, even though I went through all the medical treatments available to me at the time, it was the Lord who healed me. My story is only one of countless examples which testify throughout the earth and the ages that we have a healing God!

Note: The emphasis of this chapter has been on biblical reasons for sickness and healing. This subject touches the issue of Christian suffering. For more about the subject of Christian suffering, see chapter 44 entitled, A Biblical View of Suffering.

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51. The Interlinear Literal Translation of the Greek New Testament, by George Ricker Berry, Ph.D., Zondervan Publishing House, Grand Rapids, Michigan - Greek-English New Testament Lexicon, page 5.

52. Webster's New World Dictionary of the American Language, Second College Edition, David B. Guarlnik, Editor in Chief, William Collins Publishers, Inc.