Friends and loved ones,

I have a close friend who swallowed the health, wealth, and prosperity lie. I'm dealing with the "health" side of it all. I'm writing a letter to him to shed biblical light on the errors (60+ pages so far). I'm stuck on a certain section and was wondering if I could get some of your input. Biblically, how would you respond to this?...

This was his reason for why he believes that it's always God's will to heal. He wrote this in an email...

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Concerning Healing, If you want to know what the will of God is concerning Healing. Study the life of Jesus. Many times he said i have come to do the will of him who sent me. that is how he lived a sinless life. He did the will of the father only. In John 1 in the first few verses it talks about the word, "In the beggining was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in teh beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.....in Verse 14 it says, " And the word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father), full of grace and truth. So by the verse of scripture in John it is clear that Jesus is the Word. In isaiah 55:11 it says, "So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which i please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it." That scripture shows us that the word that proceeds from God will accomplish the thing for which it was sent." , Here is just one example of the will of God being displayed. Mathew 8:2-3, "And behold, there came a leper and worshipped him , saying, Lord if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean. And Jesus put forth his hand, and touched him saying, I WILL; be thou clean. And immediately his leprosy was cleansed." You said you cant find a place where healing is gaurenteed. I agree in one sense. There is one vitally important part of mathew 8:2, first the leper came to jesus, Jesus didnt look for the leper. Next the leper worshipped him, and put himself in a place of humility, then he spoke his faith. He said by faith if you are willing you are able to make me clean. He had faith to believe that Jesus could do it, and because he spoke his faith to Jesus and told him you are able Jesus showed the heart of the Father and said I Will, be thou clean. This is where i agree that not everyone gets healed. When you stand in doubt and unbelief that God cant do it than he will be bound by your unbelief. Here is a scripture reference for that. Mark 6:5-6. " And he could there do no mighty work, save that he laid his hands upon a few sick folk, and healed them. And he marvelled because of their unbelief." he couldnt do any mighty work which means that there where some mighty works that needed to be done. Even though they would not believe he still tried to lay hands on a few people, and those people that he touched were healed.

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As you could see, a lot of things were taken out of context. I really want to get across to him that it's not "always" God's will to heal. I believe God certainly can heal today, but as far as "gauranteed" healing for all who have "faith" and speak their faith? No.

Also, he loves to use Proverbs 18:21 as a "prooft text" to say that our words effect our lives and can change situations such as sickness and cancer. "Life and death are in the power of the tongue..." You know, positive confession and all of that. My wife and I lost a child not too long ago. Afterwards, he was telling me that I'm to speak life to the baby while he/she is in the womb. I thought, "No way. God is sovereign. Blessed be Jesus." I know, beyond the shadow of a doubt, that this is not what Solomon had in mind when he penned these words. We don't have power to bring things into existence like the Lord can.

My question is: "How can I show him that Proverbs 18:21 doesn't serve as fuel for the fiery teachings of the faith movement? How would you rightly divide and correctly interpret what Solomon is saying?" I've done a lot of studying concerning this verse, but I'd like to get your input.

I'm really concerned about this guy. He's pursuing a pastoral degree or whatever through his Assembly of God church. He's going to affect a lot of people with false teaching. That's what worries me. God has opened the door to share what I believe concerning all of these things. I want to do it biblically, lovingly, and of course, prayerfully. I'm praying that God opens his eyes before it's too late. Thank you for your help brethren.

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Justin

Hi Trevino, how are you?




"Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof."

- Proverbs 18:21(KJV)




I think that we can understand this verse as a summary of all the other verses in the proverbs that have to do with our speech, in the particulars.


Some deal with honesty in our speech(12:19), or how many words we speak(10:19), or when to speak(18:13), or how to speak(15:1), or what not to speak(29:11), how the righteous speak(10:11), or what good speech is like(25:11). And they tell us about the consequences of our speech. And I think, if you take these altogether, that what you have in 18:21 is a short summary of them all.



Is this helpfull at all?



Please let me know if you can,


Wish you well.

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Christopher Joel Dandrow

Hi Trevino,

I believe that NT clearly reveal us Christ as the Healer, it it an office and title of Christ among many others like Christ the Sanctifier, the Savior, King, Lord and High Prist.

I personally believe Jesus today can and wants to heal every desease or sickness of believers as long as they confess their sin and get right with God, but their are exceptions in the permissive will of God who will allow a rightous man of God suffer sickness for His Glory.

Old testament story of Job is the best illustration to God's allowing deasease and poverty to struck rightous Job who was blameless and perfect in the sight of God.

It is true that by the "his stripes we are healed" not only spiritually but physically as long as we apply living faith in Christ, but still we have to bare in mine God is sovereign and can have even paul the great aplostle, suffer "a thorn in his flesh" and not answer his believing prayers, why? God had a better thing for Paul, His answer to him was "My grace is sufficient to you". How many of God's suffering saints have been encouraged by only these 6 letters? Only God knows.

The danger behind the gosple of health and wealth or prosperity is simply and purely humanistic philosophy using God as a means of material and physical blessing.Its a teaching that lays hold of Abrahamic material blessings but often denies the cost of discipleship and forgetting or ignoring that the Life our our Lord on earth is an example to follow not only to believe.

Paul himself makes it clear that he was content with nothing or with abundance, whether he was hungry and starving or filled and satisfied.His secret was to be content in every circumstance, because he has all he needed God and God alone is enough.

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Redi

I would caution on Roger Sapp from the thread 'All will be healed'. Have seen some of his videos and some of his articles and have serious doubts.

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geraldine