A Nugget from New Life Network
(excerpts from Chris Musgrove of Future Now)
Scripture for the Day (June 21, 2017)
Acts 10:38 says, “How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power, who went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him.”
One of the most controversial doctrines of the Christian church involves healing. Most Christians believe that God can heal, and did heal, but the doubt comes in when you start discussing the current healing practices of the Church. Some believe God can still heal but they don’t lay hands on the sick or anoint the sick with oil as the Bible instructs. You will never hear a sermon on healing in most churches even though we know that faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the Word of God. It’s almost like we have delegated all those type actions to our doctors and hospitals. Now, don’t get me wrong. I thank God for our physicians and hospital personnel but they don’t know everything.
Let’s take a look at just one Biblical example of healing.
Luke 13:10-17: Now He was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sabbath. And behold, there was a woman who had a spirit of infirmity eighteen years, and was bent over and could in no way raise herself up. But when Jesus saw her, He called her to Him and said to her, “Woman, you are loosed from your infirmity.” And He laid His hands on her, and immediately she was made straight, and glorified God. But the ruler of the synagogue answered with indignation, because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath; and he said to the crowd, “There are six days on which men ought to work; therefore come and be healed on them, and not on the Sabbath day.” The Lord then answered him and said, “Hypocrite! Does not each one of you on the Sabbath loose his ox or donkey from the stall, and lead it away to water it? So ought not this woman, being a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan has bound—think of it—for eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the Sabbath?” And when He said these things, all His adversaries were put to shame; and all the multitude rejoiced for all the glorious things that were done by Him.
This woman was bound by Satan with a spirit of infirmity for eighteen long years and Jesus laid His hands on her and healed her. Now you know every person in that community knew that woman. I’m sure they had watched her suffer for eighteen long years. So you would think people would have been rejoicing instead of complaining about her getting healed on the Sabbath.
According to Acts 10:38 God was with Jesus when he healed that woman. God who created the Sabbath was okay with her healing and wanted this woman healed. But the religious people felt that it was more important to obey their law than for this woman to be loosed on the Sabbath. Luke 13:16 in the New Living Translation says, “Isn’t it right that she be released, even on the Sabbath?”
As a daughter of Abraham she had a covenant right to be healed. Well, because of the sacrifice of Jesus Christ we have all become children of God. She was under the Old Covenant, but we are under the New Covenant. Hebrews 8:6 says, “But now He has obtained a more excellent ministry, inasmuch as He is also Mediator of a better covenant, which was established on better promises.”
How much more does God want to see us healed and released?
