The point is that the provision is there. His promise is to supply all our need. Do we need salvation, the provision is there, healing? Also there. He recieves all that come to Him. It is not His desire that any should perish.


Isa 53:5 But he [was] wounded for our transgressions, [he was] bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace [was] upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.


It says and, that means in addition to. I would say some folks don't walk in His peace either because they don't cast all their care on Him, however the provision is just as sure.

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KLC

I wasn't going to bother posting here, but just remembered a couple of Old Testament examples, Elijah and Elisha:

Elijah was taken directly to heaven, he didn't get sick or die.

Elisha was granted the "right of the firstborn", a double portion of the Spirit.

Elisha died of an apparently painful and unpleasant sickness.

Elijah's bones were nowhere to be found; no doubt now glorified in heaven!

Elisha's dead bones had so much power that a dead body was raised on contact!

Interesting! :-)

Jeannette

Good morning eveyrone.


Something which comes to mind as I read through these recent discussions that I have wanted to share in an appropriate place is the matter of context. This has been brought up before on the forums and I think this issue is a snare to us when we handle the word of God, this matter of context.




Consider for instance this question of healing as we look to the life and ministry of the Lord Jesus. I beleive we are to look to the Lord Jesus as our example. But even here, there is a context in which to view it.

For instance, the Lord's ministry in the flesh was nearly 2000 years ago. He came to, He lived among, a people who had a long history with God, who were bound to Him by a special agreement, a covenant. The events of His life, the time, the place, the people, the history, all were coalescing into the focal point of God's plan from eternity and man's redemption in history.

There is a context here and we must not miss it.

In what we call His [i]High Priestly prayer[/i], the Lord said

[b][color=660033] I have glorified thee on the earth: I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do.[/color][/b]


[i]I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do[/i]

Do you see brothers and sisters, He had [i][b]a work[/b][/i] to do. He went where God sent Him; He spoke what God told Him; He did what He saw with His Father. And you and I are to be like Him. But I do not think that means we are to copy Him, in the sense of, becuase He traveled in boats and walked on water I should do the same. Nor do I think we can decide from the work which God gave Him, what our work is to be as individuals as well.


Look then at this matter of healing in particular. Brothers and sisters, do you know that there was an awefull judgement in these miracles that He performed? Ohh they were a marvel but awefull as well.


He says,

[i][b][color=660033] If I had not done among them the works which none other man did, they had not had sin[/color][/b][/i]


[i][b][color=660033]...but now have they both seen and hated both me and my Father[/color][/b][/i]


When I read this my mind goes back to what happened to their forefathers in the desert. Remember how they saw the mighty acts of God as well, and He said of them




[i]...all those men which have seen my glory, and my miracles, which I did in Egypt and in the wilderness, and have tempted me now these ten times, and have not hearkened to my voice...[/i]


[b][color=000000]Surely they shall not see the land which I sware unto their fathers, neither shall any of them that provoked me see it[/color][/b]


And what happened to these in the time of the Lord Jesus? As I understand it, history records there was a terrible destruction at Jerusalem, which the Lord foretold, saying

[b][color=660033] For the days shall come upon thee, that thine enemies shall cast a trench about thee, and compass thee round, and keep thee in on every side, And shall lay thee even with the ground, and thy children within thee; and they shall not leave in thee one stone upon another; because thou knewest not the time of thy visitation.[/color][/b]


Remember too the woes he pronounced upon Chorazin, Bethsaida, and Capernaum, and saying of the first two


[i][b][color=660033]for if the mighty works had been done in Tyre and Sidon, which have been done in you, they had a great while ago repented, sitting in sackcloth and ashes.[/color][/b][/i]

There is a context here brothers and sisters, and we must not miss it. What then would happen if these same works were done in the cities of America today? Would it be worse for us then even it was for Chorazin, Bethsaida, and Capernaum? I do not know, but we have our own context, if you will, our own history, and I am inclinded to believe that this in some measure comes to bear in how God is dealing with us.



I believe that we are to look to the Lord Jesus or our example. But I do not believe we are to copy Him. I believe that, all of us, together, using the several and different gifts which God has given to us, working together, in all the situations and places of life that God may have us in, that we all, [b]together[/b], may come to or become...

[i]..a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ:[/i]

But not seperately. I do not believe that is the purpose of our being called a body.

The scripture says to some He gives [i] gifts of healing[/i] and to others [i]the working of miracles[/i] and [i] faith[/i]. But it also asks

[i]are all workers of miracles?[/i]

[i]Have all the gifts of healing? [/i]



Some thoughts about this,


Chris

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Christopher Joel Dandrow

very good thoughts brother, gives a nice "balance" i have been looking for, thanks for sharing

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CHRISTIAN

Dear Chris,

I'm not sure I understand what you are asking or saying. This thread is about healing being for all believers, not about all believers having the gift of healing.

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KLC

Christian, glad there was something helpful there!


Goldminer, how are you? Well, I was hoping to convey at least a couple things: one was to suggest that if we take Christ the Lord as our example for healing and God's will in it, the frequency and numbers of people that He healed, I wanted to suggest that if we do that, [i]we do so in view of the context in which all that occured[/i]. My concern is that when we isolate things in the Bible away from their context it can lead us into error.

That was for instance, my point in suggesting that the miracles which the Lord performed were in a sense a judgement of God also in refrence to what the Lord said about those cities that did not repent.


In making refrence to 1Corinthians 12 I had in mind the idea expressed elsewhere in these related threads recently, that the lack of healing taking place among us today was related(it seems to be suggested) purely to unbelief on our parts and that it was always God's will for everyone to be healed. I thought those verses speak to that idea and seem also to suggest that the Apostles did not have that same idea about healing. For instance, in asking if [b]all[/b] have gifts of healing and miracles, Paul seems to suggest these manifestations of the miraculous were limited in at least some sense, as were the others.



And maybe that is what we find today? For instance, these gifts of the miraculous are very much attested to in other parts of the world, where the Gospel is not firmly established, and where such signs would serve as they did in the days of the Apostles, to [i]confirm their word[/i], especially among peoples who are steeped in superstition and the occult and cultural traditions.


But in the west, maybe there are different gifts and offices in abundance as the need may be, for instance things which may be better suited to the needs and complexities of western life. Such as teachers, helps, and goverments?


I don't know, I see it as possible though. The scripture does say too that the Spirit divides [i] to every man severally as he will[/i] and that [i]God set the members every one of them in the body, as it hath pleased him.[/i]

None of that is to say that what we have today is ideal or even fulness or that our needs may not be changing or even have already changed; perhaps it is now time to see the miraculous again?


Well, thanks for letting me share and I wish us all to have God's best for us, whatever that may be.


Chris

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Christopher Joel Dandrow