Expect Sudden Turnarounds from God

When Jesus came down from the mountainside, large crowds followed him.
A man with leprosy came and knelt before him and said, “Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean.”
Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man. “I am willing,” he said. “Be clean!” Immediately he was cleansed of his leprosy. Mt 8:1–3 NIV

God can change a man or a woman in an instant. God can change a person’s life in 24 hours. The day that David killed Goliath, he changed from being a shepherd boy to being a national military hero, in one day. More than that, in one day the nation of Israel changed from being terrified victims to being conquerors as God intended, all because one boy became a man in one day.

When the day of Pentecost finally arrived, there was the sound of a mighty rushing wind. 120 disciples of Jesus were baptised in the Holy Spirit. They all spoke languages they had never learned; Peter preached an inspired sermon and 3000 people were born again. The Church was born in a day.

One day a Pharisee named Saul was on his way to Damascus. The purpose of his journey was to arrest and imprison Christians in that city. On the way, Jesus appeared to Saul and the Apostle Paul was born.

On two days towards the end of 1915, a great but defeated army evacuated the coast of Turkey. Not one life was lost. In 2 nights, an unknown Australian colonel became a military hero whose brilliant thinking rewrote the British military textbooks and whose battle plans in 1918 shortened that terrible war by months.

When Jesus returns to Jerusalem to end the Battle of Armageddon, the surviving Jews will see their Messiah and believe, and a nation will be born again in a day.

Prepare for good things and great blessings. Expect sudden turnarounds.

Christian Love for Muslims

In 2001, two planes were hijacked by Islamic terrorists and destroyed the Twin Towers in New York. Since then, the world has not been the same. Islamic extremists have been engaged in Jihad, religious warfare, both with weapons and propaganda.

Many of us Christians have not known how to respond. I know an ex Muslim from Saudi Arabia to fearlessly shares the Christian gospel with every Muslim he sees.

God sent him to a secular university, where he completed his doctorate. There were many Muslims at that university and every one of them heard the message of Jesus.

One Muslim tried to kill him with poisoned food. A week later he met him and was astonished to find him alive. He had put enough poison in the food to kill a camel.

My Christian friend calmly answered with a promise from the Bible.

And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues;

they will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not hurt them at all; they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well.” Mk 16:17–18 NIV

The Muslim assassin was convinced by the power of God and became a Christian himself.

A Christian girl from England went to a holiday island in Thailand to reach out to people for Jesus. Many Muslims came to faith in Jesus, so other Muslims were determined to kill her.

When she was caught in an ambush, God made her invisible and she quietly walked away.

We must not be intimidated by Muslims. I have met a number of ex Muslims who no longer believe in Islam. Some have become Christians but others are in no-mans-land. They no longer believe in Islam but they are not converted to Christianity.

Some still believe in God and are appreciative if Christians pray for them.

I knew a young Muslim woman who wanted to know more about Christianity. She said her next door neighbour was a Christian who cared for her as if she was her own sister. They were both refugees and spoke the same language.

This woman asked me to help her learn more about Christianity, so I went to a Christian bookshop and bought a cassette tape with a reading of Mark’s Gospel in Persian.

If you are friendly with Muslims, you may be surprised to find how many are open to Christian love and truth.

Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, Mt 28:19 NIV

Millions of Muslims are becoming Christians today. How is this happening?

Christian TV, friendship and love from Christians, miracle healings, supernatural dreams in which they encounter Jesus.

Pray for Muslims and don’t be afraid.

Healed from AIDS. New life from Jesus.

 A boy in South America was the eldest child in his family. He had no brothers, only a younger sister. His mother died.

His father had to work hard and always came home tired. The boy had to take over his mother's work and he fulfilled the role of a capable housewife and mother.

As a teenager, he felt no male instincts. His identity was more feminine. He looked beautiful and for gay men he was very desirable. He became involved with men as a feminine homosexual and then he became a homosexual prostitute.

Then he was infected with AIDS. It got worse and worse until he was hospitalised. He was dying, but he experienced no human compassion. Cruel people visited the AIDS ward, not to comfort but to laugh at the dying gay men.

But then a very different kind of  woman came to him. She went to the boy and spoke with God's love.

‘Jesus loves you. You will soon get your last blood transfusion. Jesus will heal you and forgive everything.’

The boy believed and was healed and saved.

His healing astonished patients, nurses and doctors. Many were converted to Jesus and the newly converted Christians in the clinic became a new church.

I heard this testimony from the young man himself about twenty years ago on a cassette tape.

He told how he became strong in his faith, how his testimony had awakened new hope, faith and healing in many homosexuals and prostitutes.

He told how he had come to realise that God had gradually changed his feelings and his identity. He began to see himself as a man, and he fell in love with a Christian woman and they got married.

His voice was still sweet and gentle and not at all masculine, but gender stereotypes are not important to God. God loves you just as you are, not as others understand or misunderstand you.

Here are some Bible passages that might encourage you.

He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds. Ps 147:3 NIV

“The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon Me, Because the LORD has anointed Me To preach good tidings to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives, And the opening of the prison to those who are bound; Is 61:1 NKJV

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. 2 Cor 5:17 NKJV

Heal the Sick, Raise the Dead

 I have only heard God's audible voice once, and that was not with my natural ears, but in my spirit. That is, it wasn't just thoughts, but a voice.

Actually, it wasn't just one voice, but a few voices speaking together. I assume it was the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. The voices were not loud but very clear.

‘Tell the church: Heal the sick, raise the dead.’ ‘Speak to the church: Tell the church: Heal the sick, raise the dead’

When God speaks, he can question our traditions. He may challenge us to change our perspective, but He will never contradict Scripture.

And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues;

they will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not hurt them at all; they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well.” Mk 16:17–18 NIV

Who is to release these miracles? Only the apostles? Only the Christians in the New Testament?

No. ‘Those who believe.’

And these signs will accompany those who believe: … Mk 16:17 NIV
 
In the New Testament, only Jesus and the apostles brought the dead back to life.

But Jesus has given us a blank cheque for all time.

Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. Jn 14:12 NIV

I was in a Pentecostal church for years, where I saw and experienced miraculous healings. The Christians in this church told of a miracle in a service in this church where I was unfortunately not present.

A man was sitting in the service and had a heart attack. He died in the middle of the service. One of the women in the congregation was a nurse. She confirmed that the man was really dead, but the preacher prayed and commanded the dead man to come back to life, and he came back.  

The pastor had been a child in a church in England where Smith Wigglesworth preached. Smith Wigglesworth brought the dead back to life several times through his gift of faith.

We cannot work miracles on our own, but God has given us his Holy Spirit, just like in the New Testament.

Did Jesus raise the dead? Certainly. Did Peter and Paul raise the dead? According to the Bible, yes.

Should Christians do the same works? According to Jesus, yes.

Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. Jn 14:12 NIV

This statement by Jesus is open-ended. Jesus did not say a word about a time limit.

I have not personally seen a dead person revived, but I once prayed and someone I knew made a full recovery after a lethal overdose.

God Turns our Thinking Upside Down

 Who would have expected a teenage girl in a Jewish village to become pregnant without a man?

When the Virgin Mary became pregnant, it was the fulfillment of a prophecy in the Old Testament.

Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel. Is 7:14 NIV

Mary's fiancé was a devout Jew who was familiar with the Old Testament, but it did not occur to him to connect Mary's pregnancy with prophecy.

God intervened and Joseph's biblically based way of thinking was completely turned on its head.

Even in the Old Testament, God called Jonah to preach in Nineveh. The Assyrians in Nineveh were the cruellest and most dangerous enemies of the Jews, and Jonah did not want to obey.

Jesus had not yet come. Jesus taught that we must love our enemies, but this teaching was quite radical in the New Testament.

Jonah wanted to escape God's calling. God's plan went against everything he understood as a pious Jew.

Then God intervened again in an amazing way. A huge fish swallowed Jonah and carried him to Nineveh.

It is in the nature of God to contradict the thinking of devout Bible experts.

A conservative pastor prayed and a girl was healed, but his congregation did not believe in miraculous healings. The preacher sought advice. Had he done the right thing? A wise preacher said he should ask the girl.

Does God want us to stay sick so that we can learn patience? Many say miraculous healings are demonic. In the NT, sickness came from the devil and Jesus was the healer... Strange! And now it's the other way round? Biblically correct, right?

Expect Miracles Today.

 In our time we have seen gifted evangelists. There have been multiple healing miracles and huge numbers are converted to Jesus.

• Some claim that we should not celebrate miraculous healings because not everyone is healed.

• Should doctors not treat sick people because some do not get better?

• Should surgeons give up because some operations don't succeed?

• Should children stop going to school because some children are failing?

I believe we must follow Jesus. Should we try to live virtuously like Jesus? Of course, we should.

• Should we proclaim the good news of eternal life like Jesus?

• Should we love suffering people mercifully?

But nothing more?

How did Jesus minister?

And you know that God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. Then Jesus went around doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him. Acts 10:38 NLT

Without regular miraculous healings, the story of Jesus would have been completely different. For Jesus, miraculous healings were indispensable. That is why healings and miracles should be very important in our Christian life. Otherwise, we wouldn't portray Jesus as he really was.

But some claim that these miracles were only meant for back then.

What did Jesus say about this?

Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. Jn 14:12 NIV

Why should we expect miracles and pray for them? Because Jesus told us that his supernatural ministry should be our example.

Why?

Because in his ministry on earth, Jesus accurately portrayed God's eternal character, and that is also our task.

Philip said, “Lord, show us the Father and that will be enough for us.”
Jesus answered: “Don’t you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? Jn 14:8–9 NIV

Jesus did not turn away any sick person who asked for healing before the cross. Signs, wonders and healings were not exceptional events, but a revelation of God's eternal character.

Unfortunately, some leaders in the evangelical tradition have not understood this, but our model is not evangelical theology, but Jesus himself as he appears in the Bible.

A well-known evangelist explained that Jesus told him to expect a miracle every day. He was to tell the Christians: 

‘Expect a miracle every day.’

That is radical. But Jesus was also radical.

But when we read the story of Jesus in the Bible, we see Jesus thinking and acting in exactly the same way. Jesus is our role model.

Your Heavenly Bodyguard

Have you committed your life to the Son of God?
He wants to be your provider, healer and your invincible bodyguard.

The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear him, and he delivers them. Ps 34:7 NIV

In Africa, there are often conflicts between Christians and Muslims. A Christian community was once threatened by angry Muslims. The jihadists wanted to burn down the church and kill the Christians.

The Christians sought refuge in the church and prayed. When the Islamists approached, they were frightened and fled. Why? The Muslims saw powerful angels, God's bodyguards.

Jackie Pullinger is an English woman who moved to Hong Kong at the age of 21 to do missionary work on her own.

She went to the most horrible, dirty and dangerous neighbourhood to reach the prostitutes, pimps and drug dealers for Jesus. With God's power and love, this terrible place was totally transformed.

God was her bodyguard.

Can we therefore expect that as Christians, we will always be immune to all persecution and violence? Unfortunately not.

Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
“Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me.

Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you. Mt 5:10–12 NIV

Paul experienced terrible persecution but also many miraculous healings.

Some claim that Paul was seriously ill, that his illness was long-lasting and that God refused to heal him, or that Paul was never healed.

But when we consider the extreme violence that Paul was subjected to and how he was still able to continue his incredibly hard ministry, there is no way he could have done this without repeated miraculous healings.

Five times I received from the Jews thirty-nine lashes.
Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned, three times I was shipwrecked, a night and a day I have spent in the deep. 2 Co 11:24–25 NASB95

Then some Jews came from Antioch and Iconium and won the crowd over. They stoned Paul and dragged him outside the city, thinking he was dead.

But after the disciples had gathered around him, he got up and went back into the city. The next day he and Barnabas left for Derbe. Acts 14:19–20 NIV

Jesus promised us as his disciples that we should expect God's care, protection and healing, but also suffering and persecution.

Many are the afflictions of the righteous, But the LORD delivers him out of them all. Ps 34:19 NASB95

God is for you, not against you.

 What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?

He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? Rom 8:31–32 NIV

Your life is a gift. You are because God is. Your talents and abilities are from God.

God has good plans for your life, but you may not see it.

An American was a world champion shooter. He was on the verge of winning a gold medal at the Olympics. His last shot was a direct hit. He was delighted, but then shocked. He had hit the wrong target. No medal!

You may have talent, but despite hard work and remarkable achievements, you are frustrated. Many people try very hard but are unfulfilled.

Vincent van Gogh is still world-famous as an artist, but he was not respected during his lifetime. His family were devout Christians, and very strict Calvinists at that. He was supposed to become a preacher, but everything went wrong.

He was very depressed, but in his church there was no understanding of mental illness or God's miraculous healing. Thank God we have good psychiatry in our time and also Christian ministries where you can receive healing.

We are obviously in the end times. Many Christians focus on the schemes of the devil that can be seen everywhere, but in our time God has also given marvellous gifts.

We now understand much better that Jesus is not only the Saviour and Redeemer, but also the Healer who heals all diseases, just like in the Bible.

If Vincent van Gogh and his family had understood God's plans better, he might have experienced miraculous healings. His gift as a painter would have been recognised and he would have been able to manifest his Christian faith as an artist.

Thank God we have miraculous healing services today and also good psychiatric care. I know Christians who need both. God is so good.

I know Christians who, despite loving support from friends or family, were often overwhelmed by stress, illness or panic until they got the help they needed with good care and psychiatric medication.

 What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?

He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? Rom 8:31–32 NIV

Many of us need counselling, healing and good care to release our talents. Then we need wisdom to understand what God's purpose and plan is for our lives.

Each of us is unique and somehow different. Vincent van Gogh was not meant to be a preacher, as he was expected to be, but an artist.

Different Ways to Reach People

We are often like a tram travelling on the same tracks.

Jesus was different.

Sometimes he communicated with parables, but sometimes with harsh rebukes.
He often led people to faith by healing their illnesses. Only after they were healed did they come to faith.

When he healed the sick, he didn't just have one method.

A leper asked for healing.

Moved with compassion, Jesus stretched out His hand and touched him, and said to him, “I am willing; be cleansed.” Mk 1:41 NASB95

He healed a blind man in a very unusual way.

Taking the blind man by the hand, He brought him out of the village; and after spitting on his eyes and laying His hands on him, He asked him, “Do you see anything?” Mk 8:23 NASB95

A royal official begged Jesus to come to his home and heal his son.

“Go,” Jesus replied, “your son will live.” The man took Jesus at his word and departed.
While he was still on the way, his servants met him with the news that his boy was living. Jn 4:50–51 NIV

We also read how Jesus sometimes gave an instruction or command.

But I want you to know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins.” So he said to the paralysed man, “Get up, take your mat and go home.”

Then the man got up and went home. Mt 9:6–7 NIV

God understands us. He created you and me.

God has very different ways of helping different people, healing us and awakening faith in us.

Some find God by studying the Bible. Others by receiving a miraculous healing in a meeting.

Many Muslims come through miraculous healings, and many others see Jesus in a dream.

How did you find your way to Jesus? There are so many different answers to this question.

God Rescues Ruined People

There are terrible people who repent and God forgives them.

Hermann Zaiss was a very blessed German evangelist at the end of the war. As early as 1945, thousands and thousands of people from all regions of Germany and other countries came to his meetings.

Many gravely ill people were miraculously healed, but these were not the greatest miracles.  

He was a young soldier in the British army of occupation. He had a burning hatred of the German people.

His commander was a Canadian officer who looked upon this young man with Christian compassion because his uncontrollable bitterness was poisoning his own soul.

This young man was no monster. A Jewish child from Germany, he had found refuge in England, but his entire family was murdered by the Nazis.

The Canadian officer brought the emotionally wounded young soldier to the meeting where the German evangelist was preaching.

Also among the audience was another seriously injured man. He was a hardcore Nazi from the Waffen SS, a loyal disciple of the Führer.

In the last days of the war, he was hit by an artillery shell explosion.

When he woke up from a coma, he saw a black American nurse smiling at him with Christian compassion.

He no longer understood the world. One of his legs had been torn apart, and he was permanently crippled.

The helpless SS officer and the embittered young Jew listened to the sermon, saw the healings, and felt the presence of God with his love and mercy.

Then their hearts became warm and soft. They turned to Jesus and testified of their experience.

He heals the brokenhearted And binds up their wounds. Ps 147:3 NASB95

Then the most amazing of all miracles took place. They became firm friends.

We know that we have passed from death to life because we love one another. Whoever does not love abides in death. 1 Jn 3:14 NRSV

Therefore, since we have been made right in God’s sight by faith, we have peace with God because of what Jesus Christ our Lord has done for us. Rom 5:1 NLT

123 Minutes Dead, then Fully Restored

Luca was sitting happily and contentedly with his wife in a restaurant. Suddenly he collapsed. The pain in his kidneys was unbearable.

Shortly afterwards, he was lying on an operating table. The pain was overwhelming, but for the doctors it was apparently a routine operation.

But then his heart stopped.

It was a completely unexpected allergic reaction to medication. His circulation collapsed and he died on the operating table.

As he lay dying, the painful feeling lasted only a moment. Then he was suddenly whisked away somewhere and he met a marvellous being who radiated brilliant light and unconditional love.

Immediately he realised this being was Jesus Christ. Jesus surpassed his imagination. Luca was overwhelmed. He had arrived home and he didn't want to go back.

Meanwhile, his wife Sarah prayed for two hours without ceasing. The doctors warned her to prepare for the worst. Nevertheless, she was completely convinced that God would save her husband.

After 123 minutes, the doctors were astonished when Luke's vital signs returned. 

But when you are clinically dead for two hours and amazingly revived, you don't expect healthy life and normal brain function.

Luca then spent three days in an induced coma. When he woke up, the doctors were amazed that he could speak normally and think clearly.

Some sceptics want to explain away near-death experiences. They spread speculative theories that the dramatic experiences in the afterlife are supposedly just manifestations of brain damage.  

But there are so many people like Luca who not only come back, but can think and speak completely clearly.

Lazarus was friends with Jesus when he died and was dead for four days. When Jesus came to call him back to life, Lazarus' sister was traumatised, but Jesus comforted Martha with these unforgettable words.

Jesus told her, “I am the resurrection and the life; whoever believes in me, even if he dies, will live,
and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?” Jn 11:25–26 NAB

Toscani, Gabriel. And then there was light: 35 people, all of whom were clinically dead, tell us what they saw and experienced ‘on the other side’. Some were in paradise, others in hell. (German Edition) . Kindle Edition.

Gratitude Releases the Power of God

 When he arrived at the other side in the region of the Gadarenes, two demon-possessed men coming from the tombs met him. They were so violent that no one could pass that way. Mt 8:28 NIV

In Mark and Luke, we read the same story, but only one demonised man is mentioned. Some might claim that this is proof that you can find errors in the Bible, but that is not the case.

Speaking of only one person in a situation does not mean that there were no others.

Why do Mark and Luke only focus on one of the possessed men?

Because this man played a dramatic role in Jesus' mission after his deliverance.

Jesus commanded the demons to leave both men.

The demons threw themselves from the men into a herd of pigs. The pigs were forced by the demons to throw themselves into the sea, where they drowned.

The pagan population were outraged and asked Jesus to leave their neighbourhood.

One of these men wanted to stay with Jesus, because after his deliverance he believed in Jesus, but Jesus sent him on a mission instead.

But Jesus said, “No, go home to your family, and tell them everything the Lord has done for you and how merciful he has been.”

So the man started off to visit the Ten Towns of that region and began to proclaim the great things Jesus had done for him; and everyone was amazed at what he told them. Mk 5:19–20 NLT

His mission was not in vain, for when Jesus later returned to the area, he was received very favourably.

Jesus left Tyre and went up to Sidon before going back to the Sea of Galilee and the region of the Ten Towns.

A deaf man with a speech impediment was brought to him, and the people begged Jesus to lay his hands on the man to heal him.

Jesus led him away from the crowd so they could be alone. He put his fingers into the man’s ears. Then, spitting on his own fingers, he touched the man’s tongue.

Looking up to heaven, he sighed and said, “Ephphatha,” which means, “Be opened!”
Instantly the man could hear perfectly, and his tongue was freed so he could speak plainly!

Jesus told the crowd not to tell anyone, but the more he told them not to, the more they spread the news. Mk 7:31–36 NLT

One of the two possessed men in the account in Matthew's gospel responded with extreme gratitude and devotion, but we know nothing more about the other man.

Many receive miraculous healing and deliverance from Jesus even today. Perhaps you too. How do you respond to God's love and grace?

When you Need a Miracle ...

 A well-known evangelist was once praying. Then a dramatic thought occurred to him. God told him to tell his listeners: ‘Expect a miracle every day!’

Some will object that this is sensationalism or showmanship.  
But we don't need a miracle until we need a miracle.

We keep hearing about dramatic miracles in the Third World.

C Peter Wagner was a lecturer in a conservative Bible school. He heard these dramatic testimonies in South America. Instead of dismissing these reports as exaggerated fairy tales, he visited the revivals in Brazil and Argentina himself.

He saw many poor people suffering from terrible toothache because they had no money for a dentist. They attended meetings where they expected miraculous healings, and they were not disappointed. They came with rotten teeth and went home with gold fillings.

You don't need a miracle until you need a miracle.

In Europe and North America, many people think that we don't need such miracles anymore because we have modern medical care.

I am very grateful for good dentists and eye specialists. Modern medicine can help cancer patients and very often prolong their lives. But in the Bible, Jesus healed everyone who sought healing from him, everyone.

No modern doctor can do that. So many suffer with chronic pain and disabilities.

Many Christians claim that the miracles in the Bible only applied to that time. They quote a few proof texts and try to explain away the many promises of God.

But if you need a miracle, you need a miracle. Jesus healed because he was moved by deep compassion. Has God's heart grown cold?

But all Bible-believing Christians agree that God hears our prayers. When God answers your prayer, He supernaturally intervenes in the natural order of the world. That is a miracle.

We once visited a woman in a clinic in Germany. As we left the clinic, it started to rain. It was cold and the streets were empty. We needed a taxi, but our friend who was familiar with that part of town told us we would be waiting a long time for a taxi. My wife prayed and a taxi appeared almost immediately.

A friend told us his wife was dying. His heart was broken. The doctors were no longer trying to save her life and was just waiting for her to die. My wife and I prayed and the woman recovered and returned home.

This woman was over 70 years old and had all sorts of serious health problems. She had to be hospitalised again and again. Two years later, she was dying again. The doctors could no longer help. We prayed again and, against all expectations, she returned home.

When the time of miracles is past, God no longer answers prayers, because every answer to prayer is a miracle.

If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. Jn 15:7 NIV 

This statement is not a theological theory, but a promise from Jesus himself.

Many want to water down or question such promises, but please don't let this mislead you

You don't need a miracle until you need a miracle.

You can rely on Jesus. He loves you.

Healing for All

 In the beginning, there was no sickness in the garden. Adam and Eve were never meant to die.

What did Jesus say?

“This, then, is how you should pray: Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Mt 6:9–10 NIV

Is there a headache or a cold in heaven? Of course not.

Before the Fall, Eden was like God's heaven on earth.

Why did Adam and Eve lose this paradise?

They did not honour Father God. They believed the devil and ate from the forbidden tree.

Because they did not honour Father God, the earth was no longer like heaven.

But God had a plan to restore everything.

Adam and Eve were supposed to rule the earth with God, but they gave their authority over this world to the devil.

Is that really true?

Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendour. 

“All this I will give you,” he said, “if you will bow down and worship me.” Mt 4:8–9 NIV

The kingdoms of the world were in Satan's hands.

Really?

Now is the time for judgement on this world; now the prince of this world will be driven out. Jn 12:31 NIV

Jesus acknowledged that Satan had been the ruler of this world since the fall of man, but Jesus had come to take back this rule.

When Peter preached the gospel to non-Jews for the first time, he summarised Jesus' mission in concise words.

And you know that God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. Then Jesus went around doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him. Ac 10:38 NLT

Jesus went about healing all. He healed everyone.

But how can that be? Jesus sometimes chose only one sick person. 

But no one in Matthew, Mark, Luke and John asked for healing from Jesus without receiving it. Not one.

All those the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never drive away. Jn 6:37 NIV

If we read the New Testament with open eyes, it becomes clear that Jesus forgives all who seek forgiveness, and if Jesus forgives you, he will also give you eternal life.

For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. Ro 6:23 NIV

Those who trust Jesus can expect a much better life in heaven after death.
Because of our sin, without God's grace, we can only expect the endless desolation of hell.

Salvation is only by grace, but God will not force you to receive His grace. God gives us the choice.

The same is true for healing from all diseases. Healing is a gift of grace, but you must receive healing. It can be a learning process.

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Mt 11:28 NIV

Are you burdened with sickness, shame or guilt? Come to Jesus.

God did not even spare his own Son, but gave him for all of us.

He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things? Ro 8:32 NKJV

Lazarus Came Back

 Yegor was a young Russian communist sent to America on a secret mission. He was enchanted by freedom in the USA and wanted to defect, but he was so naive that he made his intention known.

That was his death sentence. He was poisoned by a KGB agent. A few hours later, his body was in a refrigerator in a hospital, but his mind was wide awake. He was astonished. He was dead, but he was still conscious. As a communist, he didn't believe in an afterlife.

For two days he was freed from his body and was able to reconsider the reality of his life, but then things got really serious. He was enveloped in deep loneliness and darkness. He knew he was on his way to hell.

‘Jesus Christ, if you really exist, then please, please take me away from here. Forgive me for all my sins, forgive me for never believing in you, but please, please take me away from here!’

“I put my last spark of hope into this prayer, and at the exact moment I uttered the last word, the miracle happened: I saw a small, bright light in the pitch-black darkness.”

Toscani, Gabriel. And then there was light: 35 people, all of whom were clinically dead, told me what they had seen and experienced ‘on the other side’. Some were in paradise, others in hell. (German Edition) . Kindle Edition.

Jesus revealed himself as a radiant light but also as a loving presence. Yegor had never experienced such love.

After two days they took me out of the fridge and after another twelve hours they wanted to start the autopsy. Just as the doctor was about to put the scalpel to work and make an incision in my chest, I opened my eyes.

Toscani, Gabriel. And then there was light: (German Edition) . Kindle Edition.

He had to stay in hospital for another nine months. Without the intensive care and God's healing power, he would not have survived.

Only later did he fully understand that it was actually Jesus who had answered his prayer.

It is exactly as it says in the Bible: “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. Jn 14:6 NIV

“I am convinced from the bottom of my heart that what it says is true.”

Toscani, Gabriel. And then there was light: (Und dann war Licht) German Edition) . Kindle Edition.

The Power of Good Thoughts

 I was studying to be a social worker. I had a practical placement in a public hospital. 

The social worker introduced the students to a cancer ward. She explained that dying patients were given strong narcotics to ease the pain and mental suffering. The medication was effective but it also helped the patients to die more quickly.

I began to think more intensely about my mortality and the meaning of my life. I was in my twenties and I could look forward to 50 or 60 more years, but what then?

I was going to a church which focused on humanist theology, social justice, therapy for troubled souls and human solutions to problems. I had a nagging feeling that I was avoiding eternal spiritual issues, but I was afraid to commit myself to the God of eternal heaven and hell.

In my confused state of mind, I was enticed by a horrible cult following a false Messiah. After a few days of brainwashing I was on the edge of a mental breakdown and I walked out of the commune.

I was desperate and I was finally ready to go to a church that took the bible seriously. I made a real commitment to be a disciple of Jesus, but I was still very depressed.

A good Christian friend took me to a church where I encountered the love and the real presence of God, but sadly this was not a happy ending.

This church turned out to be an authoritarian cult. I was told to fast a lot and to stop seeing my psychiatrist. It was a disaster. I became upset and angry and I was excommunicated by the pastors.

I spiralled down into an abyss of mental illness and I spent 12 months in a psychiatric ward on strong medication.

In the few months before I was excommunicated, I had been hammered by severe preaching. We were told we must be broken in spirit, that our wills must be broken to submit fully to God. I was already broken by terrible trials and I just could not take this poisonous mixture of obligation, fear and guilt.

Before and long after I left that church, I lived in fear of condemnation from God. At times, I was terrified.

Eventually I left the hospital and went to a good church, where I found kind people and good ministers, but I struggled to overcome the deep depression.

I remember standing outside the church after a good meeting. I looked up at the night sky and told God I just wanted to die and go to heaven.

In this short article, I don't want to tell my whole life story, but the question is how I overcame my trauma.

I found a church where God's grace and miraculous healings were emphasised. I learnt to experience and enjoy God's loving presence on long walks.

Even in the hospital, I learned to distract myself from the horrible thoughts with positive and creative activities.

Sometimes I hear Christians condemning psychiatry and medication. I can only say that they are often misguided by ignorance and prejudice.

I am eternally grateful for the support of my parents, and also of good friends and loving Christians.

I have been in a church for seven years where a pastor has taught us to unleash our imagination to think of fond memories and develop an attitude of gratitude.

This is so important that we focus on beautiful thoughts.

When the dog bites, when the bee stings, when I'm feeling bad, I simply remember my favourite things, and then I don't feel so bad.’ (The Sound of Music.. Rogers and Hammerstein)

Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. Php 4:8 NIV

Prayer and Free Will

 God gave Adam and Eve the power to make the most amazingly powerful decision of all, to choose to obey God or disobey!! 

Humans were empowered to make real decisions, otherwise they would not reflect the image of the supreme decision maker, God.

And the LORD God commanded the man, “You are free to eat from any tree of the garden,
but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for on the day you eat from it, you will certainly die.” Ge 2:16–17 CSB

God gave Adam and Eve the ability to sin, to resist His own will. This is what sin is.

This is the reality of free will. God has never removed this free will, to obey or resist His will. Why do born again Christians still sin, if they have been given a new heart and a new nature? Because we still have a free will which God has sovereignly determined that we should have.

If humans do not have a free will to obey or resist the will of God, if all our actions are determined by God, then we would have to agree with Calvin, who said “God not only foresaw that Adam would fall, but also ordained that he should.” (Calvin’s Inst., b. 3, c. 23, sec. 7.) 

.... “he fell not only by the permission, but also by the appointment, of God.” (Calvin Responsio ad Calumnias Nebulonis
cujusdam ad Articulum primum.) “He sinned because God so ordained,
because the Lord saw good.” (Calvin’s Inst., b. 3, c. 24, sec. 8.)

Does that mean every person has complete freedom to recognise the choice he or she is confronted with? Sadly not.

But if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing.
In their case, the god of this age has blinded the minds of the unbelievers to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. 2 Co 4:3–4 CSB

• It is very difficult to believe if you are brought up to believe there is no God in a Communist country.

• It can be very difficult to believe if you are taught from infancy that Christians are bad people who believe in three gods.

• It can be difficult to believe in the goodness of God if you are brought up in a brutal, abusive family where you are led to believe in Jesus as a severe judge who hates you when you sin.

This is where we see the necessity of the mighty grace of God to open blind spiritual eyes.

How can we as believers penetrate this darkness?

There are many people who cannot believe only through hearing a message. They need a personal experience or direct encounter with God.

Millions of people are converted from other religions in our time through healing miracles and dreams and visions, in which Jesus personally reveals Himself.

This is the result of millions of Christians who pray for the conversion of atheists and believers in other religions. God commands us to pray and believe in His willingness to answer with great supernatural power.