LAY HANDS ON THE SICK AND THEY SHALL RECOVER
Monday – July 17, 2017
Greetings from Patti and me at The Three Minute Word publication and welcome back to our Bible Study from the Book of Hebrews. God is so very good. Well, let’s dive right into our study by looking first at our primary text in the Book of Hebrews.
Hebrews 2:4 (KJV)
4 God also bearing them witness, both with signs and wonders, and with divers miracles, and gifts of the Holy Ghost, according to his own will?
As you may recall the first chapter of this wonderful Book of Hebrews opened for us what happened on the day that Jesus was raised from the dead (spiritual and physical) and restored to the right hand of Majesty on high as God. By the unction of the Holy Spirit the human writer of Hebrews has pointed out that we have been spoken to by the Prophets and by angels and every Word accomplished that for which it was sent. Now in these last days God has spoken to us by His Son. We have been admonished to give even more earnest heed to the Words spoken by Christ lest they slip. The writer of Hebrews makes the point that the Word of God spoken by Prophets and angels was steadfast and every disobedience resulted in the proper judgment. That being the case surely the Words of this great salvation spoken of by our Lord are steadfast with obedience bringing great reward and disobedience just punishment. This brings us to our primary text where we are told that stepping fully into this great salvation will result in physical manifestations of God. Hopefully, this sounds familiar.
John 14:21 (KJV)
21 He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him.
Some of you have heard me say or write that Bible love at its core is obedience to the Word of God. Obedience to the Word of God brings the manifestation of God into our lives. That manifestation will be sign and wonders, various miracles, and the display of the gifts of the Holy Spirit as the Lord wills (and we obey). God does not make us be a party to any of this, it is our choice, to not be a party or not to be in a position to be a party to these things is sin. There is no such thing as getting saved and then just sort of hanging out until the devil gets us to kill ourselves (not suicide in the typical sense) and simultaneously having God manifest in our life. I don’t know about you but I want to do my part to bring the manifestation of God into my life. I want God to bear witness to my obedience to His Word. As the Holy Spirit leads, I want to see signs and wonders, miracles, and the gifts of the Holy Spirit operating in my life and I want that to be a powerful witness, evidence to others.
Please do not lose sight of the fact here that the central focus is the Word of God, the good news of this great salvation. It is the Word that builds faith and our obedience (love) which lays the foundation for the operation of God in our lives. As one well known minister used to say, the signs and wonders, miracles, and demonstrations or the gifts of the Holy Spirit is the dinner bell for people to hear the gospel. Salvation, being born again is not meant to stand alone. Following salvation, we are to move forward by asking for and receiving the baptism of the Holy Spirit with the initial evidence of speaking in tongues. We are then to move fully into the Word of God, fully into our unique and special call and assignment in the body of Christ. That call may or may not be to the Five-Fold Ministry however all are called to minister. The day to day life of the Five-Fold Minister and all others in the body of Christ should be marked by increasing manifestations of God with increasing maturity. Now let’s turn our attention once again to our secondary text in Mark.
Mark 16:15-20 (KJV)
15 And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.
16 He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.
17 And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues;
18 They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.
19 So then after the Lord had spoken unto them, he was received up into heaven, and sat on the right hand of God.
20 And they went forth, and preached every where, the Lord working with them, and confirming the word with signs following. Amen. (Bold added by Dr. Wood)
Notice in verse sixteen above that believing (faith) the gospel and being fully immersed into the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit makes this great salvation a reality. Further development of that same faith brings one into the manifestations of God in our lives. Remember Hebrews 11:6 which tells us that we must not only believe that God is but that He is a rewarder of those that diligently seek Him. We must not only believe all the Words of God for us but we must act upon them led of the Holy Spirit. In the name of Jesus, we are to cast out devils, speak in new tongues, trample over all the power of the enemy, and lay hands on the sick who shall recover. We must believe these things nothing wavering and they will be so.
If we don’t do our part who will do our part? More importantly who will suffer and even be lost for eternity in Hell because of our disobedience? When God leads us to lay hands on the sick we must do it, not to is sin, and the resulting judgment allows the devil to steal, kill, and destroy in our lives. Please do not believe for a moment that the devil or God will cut you or me some slack. On the other hand, obedience brings great reward to the person prayed for and us. Notice it says that when believers lay hands on the sick “they shall recover”. We must build and maintain our faith, and lay hands on the sick as led of the Spirit. On the other side of the coin the person to receive the healing must have faith for the healing. Remember, even Jesus in His home town could not heal because of their unbelief.
Mark 6:3-6 (KJV)
3 Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary, the brother of James, and Joses, and of Juda, and Simon? and are not his sisters here with us? And they were offended at him.
4 But Jesus said unto them, A prophet is not without honour, but in his own country, and among his own kin, and in his own house.
5 And he could there do no mighty work, save that he laid his hands upon a few sick folk, and healed them.
6 And he marvelled because of their unbelief. And he went round about the villages, teaching.
Until our next publication, I speak blessing into your life right now, receive it in the name of Jesus, confess it, and walk it out with thanksgiving.
Numbers 6:24-26 (KJV)
24 The LORD bless thee, and keep thee:
25 The LORD make his face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee:
26 The LORD lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace.
By: Dr. David Wood, Author, Bible Teacher, and Prophetic Voice
CONTACT E-MAIL: pastordavidwood@gmail.com
MAILING ADDRESS: 3 Rosswood Green Lane, Unit Two, Oakland, Maine 04963
