Let me state right at the very start that this is a controversial issue. Yet though it is controversial, it is also extremely important. The reason for its importance is because aside from salvation, health is the second-most important gift which Jesus paid for us to have. Without health, everything else falls flat. You could have a great family and wealth of every kind, but if you are sick and laid-up all of the time, you will never be able to enjoy any of it. And God does want us to enjoy life, both now in this present time and of-course in the future with Him in Heaven as well.
That’s why He has not left us helpless; He has not left us without provision. In-fact He has paid an extremely high price for us, for our complete salvation: spirit, soul and body. Yet many people are not experiencing this, due to the fact that many pastors and leaders are not teaching the complete message of what Jesus has paid to give us. Many leaders in the church shy away from what they perceive to be a false doctrine of health and prosperity – however the Bible does not make any attempt to hide the reality of what Christ has paid to give us, and how we are to receive it. And this is what we will be studying today… the complete picture of salvation that Christ has paid for us, spirit, soul and body.
There are many different opinions among believers today when it comes to healing. There are entire denominations today that have built complex doctrines around whether God heals today or not. People in general have a hard time believing in the miraculous aspects of God. If they can’t see it, touch it, or feel it, then it is not “real” to them. This of course is nothing new, people have always been this way, and Jesus understands that. In John 14:20, Thomas declared that he would not believe that Jesus was risen unless he saw the physical evidence for himself, which Jesus indeed gave him, but Jesus also said to Thomas, “blessed are those who have not seen and yet believe.”
Today we will be taking a look at the healing which Jesus provided for – specifically for your physical body. This is important because there are a great number of believers today who are suffering in their physical bodies. They are suffering with sicknesses, diseases, disorders and pains that God never intended, and He went to great lengths, suffering and dying on the cross, bearing the full punishment for your sin and mine so that we would not have to suffer any longer. As we examine this truth today, we will see how important this truth is to God, and to us as well.
Over the years I have talked with a lot of people about healing. And it is surprising how often the conversations take the same paths over and over again. Many people suffer from the same misconceptions and wrong beliefs when it comes to the blessings of God and specifically healing. Sure they know that God is capable to heal, but they do not believe that he is willing to heal, and this can take many different forms, such as God is using a sickness to teach me a lesson, or that God is keeping me sick so that I can be a greater witness for Him – even though none of these ideas are supported in the scriptures. However, the fact that these wrong beliefs are not taught in this scriptures, has not really stopped them from spreading to many people in the body of Christ, and caused them to develop a wrong understanding of the nature and character of God as a result.
That's why in this study today, we will be examining how healing is actually your right in Christ Jesus. He has paid for you to have it, and He wants you to be healed even more-so than you can possibly imagine. God is not withholding healing from you, nor is He your enemy. As you see these truths from scripture, they will expand and increase your ability to see the goodness and mercy of God, and will help you to replace the many misconceptions about God and healing with right believing founded on Biblical truth.
All across the globe, believers are struggling, striving, working, sweating screaming and shouting, they are doing these things in desperation as they try to receive the blessings and miracles into their lives that they need so much. Every day they try, and every day ends with another disappointment as the sun sets and they still are no better off… all their struggling was in vain. Perhaps you can identify with this scenario. Perhaps you need a miracle in your life right now, whether it is healing, or financial, or even a miracle in your mind or your spirit. Whatever it is, you have been fighting for it, but you just can't seem to lay hold on the thing that you are reaching for.
That’s why, in this study today we will be examining the truth of the completed work of Jesus Christ, as it applies to receiving the blessings that He has paid for you to have. As you meditate on these scriptural truths, you will be able to receive what is already yours in Christ.
Imagine for a moment if you will, that God appeared to you in a dream and asked you what He was to give you. What it is that you would ask for? Perhaps more money? Healing? Maybe to find true love? Would you ask to see more of Jesus? Now I am not asking the question in order to bring a sense of guilt on you, so please don't feel that way. However what we will be reading in scripture today will actually shift your mentality, to see that actually all of the other blessings will come as you see and receive more of Jesus into your life, because He is actually the source of every blessing.
As we study this today, it is my sincere hope for you that this will change your outlook, and even your thinking as you study the Bible in your personal time. That Bible reading will not be a chore, or a tool for behavior modification. But that it will become a joy and a treasure, as you grow closer to the LORD, and live a life of divine blessing through Him.
Many times when believers talk about health, they do it from the perspective of the world. As if sickness and disease is just a normal part of life. From a very early age, we are conditioned by the world to accept illness as a natural condition – as just part of being human, and so we receive it without a second-thought. Likewise when believers talk about prosperity, many times it is with derision “we don't want that prosperity gospel!”. As a result, many people spend their lives battling sickness and in poverty But is this what the Bible says should be? Is this what the life of a believer redeemed by Christ Jesus should be like?
Today in this study, we will be answering these questions from scripture as we examine what the Bible has to say regarding health and prosperity, in the light of the finished work of Jesus Christ. And as we see the truth of Jesus regarding these things, we will be able to receive more of Him.
The topic today is one of extreme importance. The poverty mindset or poverty mentality is one of the most widespread and also one of the most insidious devices of the enemy, not just in this generation, but all throughout history as well. It has affected a great number of believers and robbed many of receiving the full-measure of blessings from Christ, and they don't even realize that it is happening.
What we will be studying today is exactly what this poverty mindset is, recognizing the forms it takes, and how through Christ Jesus we can break this bondage and receive all of what Christ has given us. If you have been struggling to receive in a particular area of your life and just can't seem to understand why the provision isn't coming, then this study will benefit you today.
Over the last few weeks, we have been asking a reoccurring question: Do you know? Do you know that you have an inheritance in Christ? Do you know that you are safe and secure in His hands? Do you know that He loves you beyond measure? While countless blessings have been given to you in Christ Jesus today, if you do not know them or receive them, they will not do any good in your life.
So today we will be studying the goodness of God, because it is when we truly see His goodness directed towards us in all things, that we can have the belief necessary to receive all of His provision for us.