WEEKLY SERMON

Text:  Psalm 77:1-15; 2 Kings 5:1-14; James 5:13-16; Mark 2:1-12

The Lord is still performing wonders today.  “Thou art the God that doest wonders: thou hast declared thy strength among the people.” (Psalm 77:14). One of His major wonders while on earth in His earthly ministry and what He commanded the disciples along with the Gospel is healing of the people (Mark 16:15-18). There are so many accounts in the Gospels where Jesus Christ healed people of all manners of sickness and diseases (Matt 4:23; 9:6; Luke 9:6, 11).

Healing is children’s bread (Matt 15:22-28). Every redeemed is qualified for healing. The price of redemption is the price of your healing in your spirit, soul and body. Good health is God desire for you. No wonder, Jesus spent so much time healing people and He is still healing people today.  Every stripe given to Jesus Christ during the torture and at the Calvary is stripe of healing for you and chastisement of your peace (Isa 51:4-6). A Christian is not supposed to be sick but operate under a divine health.  “Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth.”  (3 John 1:2). “And said, If thou wilt diligently hearken to the voice of the LORD thy God, and wilt do that which is right in his sight, and wilt give ear to his commandments, and keep all his statutes, I will put none of these diseases upon thee, which I have brought upon the Egyptians: for I am the LORD that healeth thee.” (Exodus 15:26). God says He will not put none of the diseases upon you. In Deuteronomy 7:15, God says, “And the LORD will take away from thee all sickness, and will put none of the evil diseases of Egypt, which thou knowest, upon thee; but will lay them upon all them that hate thee.” Sickness and disease are for those that hates you according to the word of God. You just make sure that you do not hate anybody but operate in love.

Sickness and disease do not know status but only they only respond to the work of redemption of Jesus Christ.  In 2 Kings 5:1-14, a great, honourable and mighty man of valour was presented to us who had got great deliverance for Syria through the Lord but he was a leper. A little slave girl who had understanding of the healing covenant the Jews enjoyed and the prophet anointed by God in case if any is sick, introduced Naaman to that God of Israel. He went with letter from king and so many good to exchange for healing of his leprosy but Prophet Elisha would not require that. He only him to wash in the River Jordan seven times. The man expected spectacular manifestation and he also demanded that he could wash in a better river than Jordan. But the way God performs miracle cannot be fathomed by man. He could use various way. Our Lord demonstrated these various in healing people. Thanks God for the servant who further pleaded him to obey the prophet’s instruction. He eventually got the healing. 

Faith is the key to healing. In Mark 2:1-12, Jesus saw the faith of those that brought the man sick of palsy. He healed him. Though firstly, he forgave the sin of the man so that he could be healed. Sin will always hinder faith to receive healing from the Lord. Jesus Christ will always say “thy faith hath made thee whole; go in peace, and be whole of thy plague.” (Mark 5:34; 10:52; Matt 9:22; Luke 7:50; 8:48; 17:19; 18:42). Without faith, it impossible to please Him (Heb 11:6). Anyone that wavers cannot receive anything from the Lord (James 1:7-9). If you have faith as mustard seed, you will say to a mountain and you do not doubt in your heart, you will have whatever you say (Matt 21:21; 17:20; Luke 17:6. You must come in faith to the Lord in order to be healed of your sickness and diseases.

How to be healed by God

There is no method speculated by God to be healed. But we infer from the word of God various way to be healed from what God had done in the past. “Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord: And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him. Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.” (James 5:13-16). Let us examine the steps if anyone in the church is sick.

1. Call on the elders of the church. The elders here are your Priests, Pastor, Unit leader etc
2. Pray over the person.
3. Anoint the person with oil in the name of the Lord.
4. If the person has committed sin, he will be forgiven.
5. Confess your fault one to another so that you will be healed.
6. The prayer of a righteous man is very powerful.

When you follow this simple instruction of the word of God, healing takes place. Your own is to obey God’s word and God s own is to fulfill His own word. How he will do it does not concern you. If He does it, He takes the glory and if it does not, you take the blame and not God.  Why? God cannot lie to His word.

 Your brother, friend and Bishop

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