A Nugget from New Life Network
Scripture for the Day January 16, 2019
How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him. (Acts 10:38)
We live in a world that tends to blame God for everything. The insurance companies call natural disasters “Acts of God”. The vast majority of the “Church” today blames God for premature deaths, and deaths due to sickness, and they label these deaths the “will of God” under the banner of “the sovereignty of God”.
We have counseled with many people over the years that have lost loved ones with this same type of thinking. Inevitably, there is one thing that happens when they eventually learn the truth. They get mad!!! They’re not mad at God. They are mad at the “Church” because they were not taught the truth. They relied on a preacher to tell them the truth and they were misled. They are mad because they could have raised a child that committed suicide different. They could have known how to pray better. They could have realized that they were in a spiritual battle and learned how to fight better.
There is a real life story that I read about many years ago. I recently read this story again and the following is a brief account of how one man came to terms with this matter:
In the 1870s, when Dr. Alexander Dowie was pastoring a Congregational church in a suburb of Sydney, Australia, a terrible plague swept through Western Australia. People died like flies. Dr. Dowie recalled years later how he sat in his study one day, his head on his arms, sobbing his heart out before God and asking such questions as: “God are You the author of sickness and disease? Did you send this terrible plague on this land? Are you going to destroy my whole congregation? Where did this plague come from? Who is the cause of it?
Dr. Dowie had buried forty of his congregation. Four more awaited burial, and he had just returned home from visiting more than thirty parishioners who were sick and dying. “Then the words of the Holy Ghost inspired in Acts 10:38 stood before me all radiant with light, revealing Satan as the Defiler, and Christ as the Healer,” wrote this man of God. “My tears were wiped away,” Dr. Dowie said, “my heart was strong. I saw the way of healing, and the door thereto was opened wide, so I said, “God help me now to preach the Word to all the dying around, and tell them how Satan still defiles, and Jesus still delivers, for “He is just the same today.”
Dr. Dowie did not have long to wait. Within minutes, two young men burst into his study, pleading breathlessly, “Oh, come at once. Mary is dying!” Dr. Dowie ran down the street after them, not even pausing to take his hat. He found the girl in convulsions. As he entered the girl’s room, her medical doctor, having given up on her, was preparing to leave. He turned to Dr. Dowie and remarked, “Sir, are not God’s ways mysterious?” The Word of God was burning in Dr. Dowie’s heart. “God’s way?” No sir, that is the devil’s work!” He challenged the physician, who was a member of his congregation. “Can you pray the prayer of faith that saves the sick?” The doctor replied, “You are much too excited, sir, it is best to say God’s will be done.” And the physician left. (Isn’t that strange? Many do not believe it is opposing God’s will to be kept alive as long as possible by medicine, machines, and every other means, but they believe that praying to stay alive is working against God! And when people do die, they call it God’s will!)
Still furious at Satan’s attack, Dr. Dowie prayed the prayer of faith. The girl’s convulsions ceased immediately, and she fell into a deep sleep. Her mother and the nurse thought she had died. Dr. Dowie assured them she had not died. When the girl awoke she exclaimed , “Mother, I feel so well!” He instructed the nurse to fix Mary a cup of hot chocolate and some bread and butter. Then he went into the next room, where her brother and sister lay sick with the same fever. After prayer, they, too, instantly recovered.
From that day on, Dr. Dowie ministered to his flock on divine healing and prayed for their healing. He never lost another member to the plague.
