Message of the Month

                                “... by whose stripes you were healed.”

                                                                                               1 Peter 2:24.

Dearly beloved in Christ,

I express my loving greetings to you in the sweet name of the Lord Jesus Christ. The Lord Jesus Christ came to this earth and suffered on the cross to redeem, deliver and heal us and to do various other good things to us. Acts 10:38 tells us: “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.”

For us to live with the blessings of several good things today, He suffered and was bruised on the cross. It had been prophesied earlier: “But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed” (Isaiah 53:5). In Psalm 6:2, David says: “Have mercy on me, O Lord, for I am weak; O Lord, heal me, for my bones are troubled.” Hosea exhorts: “Come, and let us return to the Lord; For He has torn, but He will heal us; He has stricken, but He will bind us up” (6:1). Jeremiah 17:14 pleads, “Heal me, O Lord, and I shall be healed...” Jesus Christ has the power to heal us as said in these passages and has done everything for that on the cross. Let us know this and rely upon Him.

I WHAT THE DIVINE HEALER DOES

1. Heals Backsliding

“I will heal their backsliding, I will love them freely, for My anger has turned away from him.” (Hosea 14:4)

Many have fallen from an exalted state and are living in a miserable state. They have spoiled themselves and are filled with wicked deeds and words. Their deeds bring destruction on people around them. Apostle Paul counsels Timothy to refrain from certain things. “But reject profane and old wives’ fables, and exercise yourself toward godliness” (1 Tim. 4:7). “O Timothy! Guard what was committed to your trust, avoiding the profane and idle babblings and contradictions of what is falsely called knowledge” (1 Tim. 6:20). In Hebrews 12:6, we read: “lest there be any fornicator or profane person like Esau, who for one morsel of food sold his birthright.” Jeremiah 31:22 says: “How long will you gad about, O you backsliding daughter? For the Lord has created a new thing in the earth— A woman shall encompass a man.” The Lord loves us and wants to take us back. ‘“Return, O backsliding children,” says the Lord; ” for I am married to you. I will take you, one from a city and two from a family, and I will bring you to Zion’ (Jer. 3:14). In Genesis 6:11-12, we read: “The earth also was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence.  So God looked upon the earth, and indeed it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted their way on the earth.” The Lord wants to heals us of backsliding and restore us to the former state.

2. Heals Our Soul

‘I said, “Lord, be merciful to me; Heal my soul, for I have sinned against You.”’ (Psalm 41:4)

We should be concerned about our souls. But we find people more concerned about amassing wealth than about the welfare of their souls. Jesus Christ is the Lover of our souls. He quickens our conscience which is dead in sins. He used a parable to explain how we are. A man had a good harvest. He wanted to enlarge his barns for storing the rich harvest. Therefore he destroyed the one he had to make room for a larger one. Then he said to his soul: “Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years; take your ease; eat, drink, and be merry” (Luke 12:19). But God called him a fool as he might die that day. Then what would happen that he had for himself. This is our case too. We should be rich toward God. The Lord wants to satisfy our souls and to restore strength in our souls. Let us be strengthened in our souls to face the challenges of the day.

The Lord quickens our souls through His words and testimonies. We should seek our Lord with all our strength and souls. The Bible teaches us so. You may be filled with sorrows in your soul. But the Lord would like to fill your soul with joy. He wants to heal your soul to redeem you from the pit of destruction. We need a healthy soul to do things aright. Let us always praise the Lord who heals our souls.

3. Heals Our Sickness

“Who forgives all your iniquities, Who heals all your diseases” (Psalm.103:3).

Diseases afflict us and make us weak. Some are fatal that lead to death. Some paralyses us so much that we can do nothing. We are not able to do our everyday activities. Some diseases pertain to the mind and disable us, leading to helplessness and depression. In this state people are broken in the spirit and they wail with the grief of spirit (Isaiah 65:14). The Lord Jesus Christ can heal one from all sorts of diseases.

Sometimes, people suffer for a long time with some illness. The Lord Jesus Christ has concern and compassions for these people. There was a person left alone by the side of the Bethesda with no one to help him. He was there for 38 long years. Jesus Christ went to meet him and asked to take his bed and walk away. He worked a miracle in him. He went healed. The same Jesus Christ heals even today. There was a lady suffering for 12 years with the issue of blood. She had spent all the wealth she had for treatment with no effect. She came to Jesus Christ. He healed her of the disease.

Dear Brother/ Sister, are you suffering from a terrible disease? The Lord Jesus Christ who heals is alive even today with His power and might. He will heal you and fill you with joy. There is no disease that cannot be cured by Him.

II. WHOM DOES JESUS CHRIST HEAL?

1. Those with Faith

“...He will strike and heal it; they will return to the Lord, and He will be entreated by them and heal them.” (Isaiah 19:22)

The Lord God hears our prayers. He works miracles answering our prayers. Bartimaeus was a blind man sitting on the pathway. He was asking for alms. He heard that Jesus Christ was coming on that path. He cried to Him: “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” He was warned to be quiet, and yet cried out louder. Jesus stood still and said to him, ”What do you want Me to do for you?” The blind man said to Him, ”Rabboni, that I may receive my sight.” Then Jesus said to him, ”Go your way; your faith has made you well.” And immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus on the road (Mark 10:47-52).

Once one sister came to me for prayer for the problems she faced and for lack of peace in life. The Lord pointed out her sin and misdeeds. She realized her sins and turned to the Lord. The Lord listened to her prayer and healed her and her husband. There was peace in the family.

Dear Brother / Sister, you may be worried about your diseases and weaknesses. Humble yourself before the Lord and turn from your sins. The Lord of compassion will certainly heal you. “He who covers his sins will not prosper, but whoever confesses and forsakes them will have mercy” (Prov. 28:13). Accordingly, confess your sins and give them up and the Lord would have mercy on you.

2. Those with Whose Ways He is Pleased

“I have seen his ways, and will heal him; I will also lead him, and restore comforts to him and to his mourners.” (Isaiah 57:18).

The Lord knows our ways. The psalmist prays: “Teach me Your way, O Lord, and lead me in a smooth path, because of my enemies” (Psalm 27:11). In Psalm 128:1, it is written: “Blessed is every one who fears the Lord, who walks in His ways.”

Jesus says, ”I am the way, the truth, and the life” (John 14:6). The way of the Lord leads to life and is narrow. “Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it” (Matt. 7:14). But the way to destruction and death is wide. “When a man’s ways please the Lord, He makes even his enemies to be at peace with him” (Prov. 16:7). Which is your chosen way? The Lord Jesus Christ can set right your ways. When you walk in His ways, He will heal you. Let us today decide to walk in His ways and be blessed.

3. The Brokenhearted

“He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds” (Psalm 147:3)

The Bible says, “The Lord is near to those who have a broken heart, and saves such as have a contrite spirit” (Psalm 34:18). “The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit, a broken and a contrite heart—These, O God, You will not despise” (Psalm 51:17). He declared: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He has anointed Me To preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed” (Luke 4:18). He has compassion on those who are brokenhearted and heals them when they seek His help.

At the time I suffered from heart ailment, I was broken-hearted. I yearned for healing. I was desperately in need of deliverance. I was seeking for the Divine Healer as there was none to help me. The Lord then comforted me with His word: “Because he has set his love upon Me, therefore I will deliver him; I will set him on high, because he has known My name” (Psalm 91:14). I was thus healed from the disease in 1983.

Dear Brother/ Sister, you may be in a heart-broken state because of certain loss, or defeat or disappointment, cheating or break of relationship. You may be oppressed or depressed. The Lord knows your condition as He sees and reads your thoughts. He will console and comfort you whatever be the problem that dissipates or distresses you. He will deliver you and give a new life of cheer and hope. His words are good medicines to you; His mighty deeds are wrought on His people to heal and to make you trust on His goodness and mercy. He saw His people living and suffering under the Egyptian yoke; He heard their cry. As they sought the Lord in their captivity, He pitied them and sent His servant Moses to deliver them. Through him, He worked miracles and wonders and brought plagues on the Egyptians to deliver His people from them.

III. HOW JESUS CHRIST HEALS?

1. By Deliverance

“And as he was still coming, the demon threw him down and convulsed him. Then Jesus rebuked the unclean spirit, healed the child, and gave him back to his father.” (Luke 9:42)

Jesus Christ healed all sorts of deformities and illness. He delivered them from the clutches of the devil and healed them. The reason for some of the diseases is the work of the devil. In this case, the young man was under the power of the demon. It threw him down and made him convulse. Jesus Christ rebuked the devil. He was healed as it left him.

The devil sometimes works in a person surreptitiously so that no one can find it out. It causes several forms of illness which cannot be diagnosed easily. The physicians may try to identify the cause of a disease through various tests and methods of medical examinations. But the devils evade everything.

Once a nurse working in a foreign land was subjected to severe suffering. After several medical examinations, the doctors decided to perform an operation on her in the lungs. I asked her to come to India and get admitted to a hospital here. When I went to see her in the hospital, I prayed for her and the devil left her. The next day she was examined by the doctors and was found to be fully healed. She was discharged.

2. Through the Word

“He sent His word and healed them, and delivered them from their destructions.” (Psalm 107:20).

The words of the Lord are life and spirit. Those words from the Lord never return without accomplishing its purpose. Isaiah 55:11 says: “So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth; It shall not return to Me void, But it shall accomplish what I please, And it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it.” In Jeremiah 23:29, it is written: ‘“Is not My word like a fire?” says the Lord, “And like a hammer that breaks the rock in pieces?” Such powerful words are sent by the Lord to heal. In November, 2012, I was sick and the Lord promised me that He would be a wall of fire for me. But the condition became worse and I prayed continuously in my heart to send the fire from His presence. As He promised me, He protected me as a wall of fire around me. To the surprise of many, I was healed.

Dear Brother/ Sister, to heal you and to deliver you from your problems, He will send His words and do a miracle.

3. By Touch

‘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.”’(Luke 13:12-13)

In the synagogue, Jesus Christ met a woman who was bent for 18 long years. She could not stand erect. He saw her condition and placed His hands on her and said, “Woman, you are loosed from your infirmity.” Immediately she was healed and she glorified Him.

A leper came to Jesus Christ and said, “Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean.” In those days, lepers were outcasts. They dwelt away from the society. They could not come near other people. When anyone came near them, they should cry out, “Unclean, unclean.” Such a leper came to Jesus Christ and bowed before Him and worshipped Him. Then Jesus touched him and healed him.

Dear Brother/ Sister, even if you are affected by a terrible disease, do not be dismayed. Do not fear. Go to church. The Lord, who sees you, will touch you and heal you. Decide and act today itself. You will see a miracle.

4. By His Authority

“And the whole multitude sought to touch Him, for power went out from Him and healed them all” (Luke 6:19)

Jesus Christ was filled with power and authority when He was on earth and worked miracles. All power belongs to the Lord. Zeph. 3:17 says: “The Lord your God in your midst, The Mighty One, will save ...” Jesus Christ taught His disciples to pray, “... For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen” Matt. 6:13. He did mighty things in His days (Luke 4:36). He also gave His disciples power and authority over diseases and demons.

Dear Brother/ Sister, the power of the Lord cannot be measured. It is beyond the realm of science and human wisdom. The gospel was preached by the apostles with authority and power. He works miracles to declare His glory.

5. By His Stripes

“But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed” (Isaiah 53:5).

As it was foretold, Jesus Christ, though He worked many miracles, was crucified by those who did not accept Him as Messiah. Before that, He was insulted and whipped. He was struck on His head with a rod; He was spit. Thus, He hung on the cross for our sake and bore our sorrows and weaknesses and curses. His stripes have the power to heal us today.

Dear Brother/ Sister, when we turn to Him with faith, and make our prayer to Him, He heals us. He sees our ways and heals us. He heals all those who are broken-hearted. By His stripes, we are healed. He gives abundant life. Let us look to Him today itself. He will work miracles and bless us.

     The blessings of the Lord be with us all.

    In the service of Christ Jesus,

    Bro. C. Ebenezer Paul

 


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