Monthly Archives: April 2010

Click on following links for: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7, Part 8, Part 9, Part 10, Part 11, Part 12, Part 13 and Part 14.

What happened when the twelve disciples returned from their preaching and healing journey?

The disciples gathered together with Jesus; and they reported to Him all they had done and taught. (Mark 6:30)

When the apostles returned, they gave an account to Him of all they had done. Taking them with Him, He withdrew by Himself to a city called Bethsaida. (Luke 9:10)

What do you think the disciples told Jesus? Maybe something like the following:

“Lord,” said Peter, “You should have seen the man. He was a raving lunatic, totally out of his mind. And to be honest, I didn’t really know what to do but I knew he had a demon. So I said to him, ‘In Jesus’ name, come out of him.’ And it did. He was set free and healed. And then there was a woman …”

John, in his excitement, interrupted Peter.

“Lord, Lord,” said John, “I healed a six-year old girl, lying on a stretcher. She was paralyzed and near death. I laid hands on her and she was instantly healed. She jumped up and ran around, doing somersaults and cartwheels. And then, there was the man…”

James could not contain himself any longer and interrupted John.

“Guess what, Lord?” said James. “I laid hands on a dead man while they were carrying him in a funeral procession to a tomb. Everyone praised God. And then…”

Matthew pushed James aside, interrupting him.

“You should have heard me, Lord!” exclaimed Matthew.  “I preached an awesome Kingdom of God message in front of some Pharisees and Sadducees. Their eyes almost bugged out of their heads. It was so anointed. And …”

Then another disciple interrupted Matthew. And another. And another. Until everything they had done was told to Jesus.

Now, what do you think Jesus was doing when the disciples told Him about their adventures?

I don’t think He was critiquing them, nitpicking and telling them what they did wrong. Jesus is the perfect Teacher. He understands that first graders do not have the maturity level of high schoolers.

So, I believe Jesus was excited and acted like a cheerleader for them. Maybe He said things like, “Yea! Oh boy, that’s great! Way to go! Yes!”

Maybe, He stood up and danced and slapped his leg in joy and laughed aloud.

What about the disciples’ mistakes and mishaps? Did Jesus just overlook their errors?

Jesus is the great Teacher. He understood what level the disciples were at when this preaching and healing journey took place, then He promoted them to the next level. They then received more teaching and more was expected of them.

The soil produces crops by itself; first the blade, then the head, then the mature grain in the head. (Mark 4:28)

Just like a crop, there are learning stages we believers have to go through if we want to be used in healing ministries. We will make mistakes. But all we have to do is stay teachable.

(Conclusion for now. This series will be continued often in the future.)

A new series begins on Wednesday.

lick on following links for: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7, Part 8, Part 9, Part 10, Part 11, Part 12 and Part 13.

Then He appointed twelve, that they might be with Him and that He might send them out to preach, and to have power to heal sicknesses and to cast out demons. (Mark 3: 14-15)

The Greek word apostello is translated into our English word send in the above verses. And from this Greek verb, the English word apostle is derived, which simply means the sent one.

Paul referred to apostles in this manner:

Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ… (2 Corinthians 5:20)

for which I am an ambassador in chains… (Ephesians 6:20)

By definition, the word ambassador means a representative sent by a sovereign (person or state) to represent that sovereign with all of the power and authority of that sovereign backing him in whatever he does or says.

For example, the U. S. Ambassador to France, Charles Rivkin, when he speaks to Nicolas Sarkozy, President of France, he has all of the diplomatic power and authority of the U.S. government and President Barack Obama backing him. It’s as if President Obama and the U.S. government were standing before President Sarkozy and speaking personally to him.

And He called the twelve together, and gave them power and authority over all the demons and to heal diseases. And He sent (Greek word: apostello) them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to perform healing. (Luke 9: 1 -2)

The apostles understood the principle of transference of power and authority from Jesus to themselves.  They had seen it work in their own lives before they were sent out on their own.

Therefore when the Lord knew that the Pharisees had heard that Jesus was making and baptizing more disciples than John (although Jesus Himself was not baptizing, but His disciples were) (John 4: 1 -2)

And one of the crowd answered Him, “Teacher, I brought You my son, possessed with a spirit which makes him mute; and whenever it seizes him, it slams him to the ground and he foams at the mouth, and grinds his teeth and stiffens out. I told your disciples to cast it out, and they could not do it. (Mark 9: 17 – 19)

The twelve apostles were trained by Jesus in a hands-on style.

Yes, they watched Him. Yes, He taught them. But even more importantly, they did not stand around with notebooks in their hands, jotting down important points here and there. Jesus used them in His work and transferred some of His power and authority to them.

So, when the twelve apostles went out on their journey, they were confident in the power and authority of the One who sent them.

(Continued in Part 15)

Click on following links for: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7 and Part 8.

2. Strengthening Oneself (Physically).

In high school, I played football and suffered a knee injury which required surgery. Four years later, in college, I injured the other knee playing intramural football. It, too, required surgery.

Now, when I was young, middle age and arthritis seemed like a million years away. Won’t I stay young forever? I foolishly thought.

I paid no attention to work conditions. I just gritted my teeth and plowed through whatever pain I was suffering, knowing that four Ibuprofen tablets would relieve most of the pain so I could do it all over again the next day.

Then, at the age of 55, I could no longer jump an inch off the ground. Walking downstairs or upstairs was a painful experience. The years of climbing ladders as a painting contractor or walking on concrete for twelve hour shifts as a car salesman had destroyed what was left of the cartilage in both knees.

And arthritis? It was in my shoulders, elbows, knees and hips. Just standing up after sitting on a chair was a major undertaking filled with pain. And also, even though I was an easy going guy who hardly ever got upset, I was grumpy all the time. Constant nagging pain does that to a person.

Then what happened?

At the age of fifty-eight, Honey and I bought a home which had to be completely gutted and remodeled. I worked six months, tearing out walls, kitchen cabinets, bathrooms, carpet and whatever; and then redid everything. I even laid a thousand square feet of hardwood floors.

How could I endure all this work with bad knees and arthritis?

I felt that the Lord had whispered these words to my heart at the beginning of the project, “I will raise you up out of the remodeling.”

Did I suffer pain during the remodeling? Yes. But at the same time, there was an amazing grace that allowed me to endure it. It seems funny, right? Pain and grace being mentioned in the same context, but this is what happened to me.

It was three more years of agony and pain before a friend finally prayed for me. “Lord, you know what Larry needs, just do it for him now,” she prayed.

As you can see, it was not a pin-point, specific prayer, but rather a general one. But let me tell you, it was an effective prayer. All of my arthritis disappeared at once. It was gone!

Today, I am arthritis free, but I still have bad knees that cause me problems. So much so, that I quit exercising late last year, hoping rest would help the knees.

In January of this year, at sixty-four years of age,  I realized that I needed to quickly do something. My physical strength was rapidly dwindling. It was an all-out effort to lift a bag of groceries or walk upstairs.

Thus, I began power-walking, lifting weights, exercising and eating properly. After three months of this regimen, my strength is up 50-60% and my weight is down.

Do I still believe the Lord is going to heal me? Absolutely, yes! There is not a doubt in my mind, but sometimes, you have to go out to meet the Lord.

And there’s another reason why I am putting myself through this work-out and dieting discipline:

Therefore I run in such a way, as not without aim; I box in such a way, as not beating the air; but I discipline my body and make it my slave, so that, after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified. (1 Corinthians 9: 26-27)

I have waited almost twenty-five years to be a part of a move of God and I don’t want to sit on the sidelines, watching others do the work.

(Continued in Part 10.)

Click on following links for: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6 and Part 7.

…But the people who know their God shall prove themselves strong and shall stand firm and do exploits [for God]. (Daniel 11:32 AMP Version)

2. Strengthening Oneself (Spiritually).

Studying the word. Prayer. Fasting. These three exercises have to be a part of every believer’s life in order to build up his or her spiritual muscles, especially for a healing ministry.

But there is another characteristic which we must have to be spiritually strong:

And He has said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.” Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me. Therefore I am well content with weaknesses, with insults, with distresses, with persecutions, with difficulties, for Christ’s sake; for when I am weak, then I am strong. ( 2 Corinthians 12: 9)

The weakness mentioned in the above verses comes only through humility. And whether we like it or not, humility is not a characteristic quickly learned from How To- books or teaching seminars.

Humility is a Christ-like characteristic forged into a person while he (or she) goes through trials filled with countless insults, distresses, persecutions, difficulties and mistakes. And from these trials, he learns that if the Lord doesn’t show up to help him in any given  circumstance, he will be an utter failure.

But also, humility allows a believer to be content and at peace with this truth. After all, he (or she) knows that he can do nothing without the Lord; and thus is weak.

Now, William Branham was a humble man at the beginning of the Healing Revival. He was a quiet man who never really cared about money and was quite satisfied with an old pickup truck, a cabin and a fishing pole.

But Branham was the man for nine years. His ministry was the biggest, most well-known and had the greatest successes. Thousands of people had been saved and healed through his ministry.

So, when the Healing Revival fires died down (as all revivals do) in 1955, Branham struggled with  the dwindling crowds and the smaller numbers of miracles. He resisted change and continued onward with his large ministry, the huge financial overhead and even added a teaching element to his ministry.

Roberts Liardon wrote in his excellent book, God’s Generals:

“Instead of seeking the Lord for his place of ministry in the next move of God, Branham turned to radical doctrine and sensationalism…Everything he had stood for in the former days of ministry seemed to have escaped him. (God’s Generals, Albury Publishing, pp. 335)

For whatever reasons, William Branham ignored the changes the Lord wanted in his ministry, and he walked away from his greatest asset: humility. He somehow forgot that his ministry served at the will and pleasure of the Lord. Jesus is Boss!

But if you have any doubts that Branham and his gifts were the real deal, his last miracle might help to convince you:

In 1965, Branham and his wife were driving through Texas when their car was struck by a drunk driver. Branham’s son, who was in another car, quickly arrived at the scene and checked out his parents. Branham’s wife had no pulse and was dead. Branham had a faint pulse, broken bones and was unconscious.

Branham stirred for a moment. “Is Mom okay?” he asked.

“Dad, she’s dead,” his son replied.

“Just lay my hand on her,” Branham said.

The son laid his bloody hand on the woman. She instantly revived and lived. Branham went into a coma and died six days later.

So, how else should we strengthen ourselves?

(Continued in Part 9)