It certainly seems like Christians worldwide are immersed in many forms of persecution and trials today! So many of friends and aquaintances of mine have expressed their own, personal struggles and attacks from every side, it appears, and much of the trials touch the area of health! I can't help but think of Job who became a target of satan in his attempts to mock God and tempt Job to turn his back on God! Neither attempt succeeded! In fact, Job was such a 'godly' man that he was blessed abundantly by God after going through a 'hell on earth, including a wife who wanted him to "just curse God and die"! She didn't have the faith that Job had and he called her a 'foolish woman for her unbelief and stupidity! The devil had to tuck his tail and run away after that miserable effort!
God is always faithful to keep his word and he does so even today! We don't need to doubt our creator! When he says he will " never leave us nor forsake us", that's just what he means! During the fiery, horrible trials of today's Christian lives, we can still count on the rock-solid promises of our heavenly Father! The Lord Jesus very often reassured new believers that he would never leave them or turn away from them, and he never did! His word was always kept and is still, today, at this moment of our lives, as rock-solid as it was thousands of years ago! Much of what we read in testimonials has to do with a particular, or several, physical illnesses, and our health is just about the most immediate need any of us have! Jesus always met someone at their greatest need, health! The woman with the 'issue of blood' for over much of her life comes to my mind! While she saw Jesus walking among a crowd, she said to herself, "if I can only touch his clothes, I will be healed"! She had great faith! When she approached him and finally was able to touch the edge of his garment, Jesus 'felt' strength leave him and he turned to see who had touched him, though he was well aware of it all along, and he saw the woman! She was made well from that moment! Her faith made her well! The lepers that Jesus beheld and had mercy on were all healed, though only one came back to thank him! After seeing the grief of Mary and Martha, Lazarus' sisters, and grieving himself for his friend, The Lord raised Ladurus from the dead! Wow! Are you kidding me? Nope! He actually healed a man from death and made him live! Now, I would say that that is the best doctor in the world to have around! Wouldn't you? God is full of mercy and he will not change anything in his character! He is our healer! Our doctor! He is ready to heal us when we are ready to believe it! Faith is the key that opens the supernatural doors! Jesus also raised up a man's precious daughter when she had fallen ill and died! Her father was grieved but he knew, by faith, what to do! He had to get to the only one who could give life back! He had to get to the doctor! To Jesus!
So in todays world, among all of it's excruciating troubles and trials of sickness, money-woes, family breakups and death, we can still go to the 'true doctor' of our souls, Jesus, and get the spiritual medicine we need from his word! He doesn't change! Hebrews 13:5 let's us know that! The Lord will not change, ever! He is the very same healer, father, best friend and advocate (lawyer, if you prefer) today as he was when his good friend, Ladarus, had died! No different! Our battles have not changed either in all that time! Scripture is very clear when speaking about this situation, as well! The battle is not in the 'physical world', though that's where we live but its in the 'spiritual world'! We fight against our friends, co-workers, government (my pet peace) and against our loved ones when that is not the true area of conflict! The bible is a supernatural book, as my friend, L A Marzulli often says, and the war we are constantly in is a spiritual one! We can only gain victory in that world by weapons of faith! Not faith in 'faith' but faith in the power of God! He is the mighty King and warrior, not us, after all, and its only through his power and might that we can trust to get us through the most difficult days and moments of our life! One of my favorite bits of scripture is found in Hebrews 11 verse 1, which states it all clearly...."NOW faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen"! It's the "NOW" kind of faith which leads us to see where the victory is...in Jesus! It's not in us! It could never be in us! We are weak and mortal and we aren't very trustworthy, let's face it! But in Christ, Job was victorious, as was Lasarus and the woman with the issue of blood! It works the same way for us who are modern day believers! Our warfare is "not carnal, but mighty THROUGH GOD, to the pulling down of strongholds"! (kjv) and when we realize that crystal-clear truth, we will be able to move ahead into this thing called life and nothing will stop us, short of death, which is only temporary anyway!
Be encourage believer and stay in faith! Walk forward not backward in your faith! We win!
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