Wednesday, July 27, 2011

LLM Question of the Day for 7-27-2011, and, A Study of the Epistle of James, pt. 3 of 3

First the Question: The word Gospel is not found ONCE in the Gospel of John. True or False?

Please take a moment to respond at the LLM Question of the Day

And now the answer to the LLM Question of 7-24-2011

Question: God had no Gentile Apostles. True or False?

Answer: TRUE! All of the Apostles were Jews! And out of the 679 responses we received 66.7% of you got it right! Therefore,

Today let us consider, A Study of the Epistle of James, pt. 3 of 3

All of these unscriptural Pastors, Preachers, and teachers who tell their disciples to look to the atonement for the healing of diseases….will die, if Christ does not come back within a reasonable time. Would they die, if healing of the body were in the atonement? No!

A child of God is blessed with every spiritual blessing in the heavenlies. He is a child of God because of the atoning work of Christ. And therefore, the “all things” that every believer has in Christ are because of His atoning work. But the theory of healing in the atonement as taught by the modern healers in the Church is absolute heresy.

Surely every true Christian believes in earnest prayer for the sick and should pray that God will bless every means that is being used to bring about the recovery of that sick one. Moreover, hundreds of God's people have been raised up from serious illness in answer to the prayers of God's Faithful children even after physicians have abandoned all hope. If THIS is what is meant by “Divine healing,” surely every sensible Christian believes in Divine healing.

However, the common “healing” heresy with which the Body of Christ is today troubled is that the miraculous sign healing of Yahuwshua of Nazareth and His apostles is still God's order for the Body of Christ, because “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever.” By “Divine healing” then in this heresy, is meant “spiritual healing of physical diseases,” without material remedies; other than anointing with oil.

There are several verses of Scripture which are often emphasized to support the claim of these people; but before we quote these verses we call your attention to the different words translated “sick” in this fifth chapter of James.

Is any sick? The word here used is “Astheneia”, literally, “without strength.” The very same word is used in Roman 5:6, “When we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly.” Look what it says, when we were yet sick, soul-sick, sin-sick. And then in Isaiah, “The whole head is sick.” Isaiah 1:5. The prayer of Faith shall save the sick, and the word used is ”Kamno”, meaning “weary or tired from toil.” I will leave it to you to explain the why of this change of words.

Now, for the several verses, so often used in healing circles today:

That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias the prophet, saying, Himself took our infirmities, and bare our sicknesses.” Matthew 8:17.

Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father.” John 14:12.

And these signs shall follow them that believe; in my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; 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.” Mark 16:17-18.

By whose stripes ye are healed.” 1 Peter 2:24.

Now the last statement is explained by the other words of the verse in which it is found and has NO reference whatever to the body. This verse in the Apostle Peter's epistle we shall refer to as we proceed to study the statement in Matthew.

Himself Took Our Infirmities, and Bare Our Sicknesses” Matthew 8:17. Yahuwshua of Nazareth was a man, approved of God by miracles and wonders and signs in the midst of Israel. Acts 2:22. However, “The Mystery among the Gentiles.” “Christ IN you the hope of glory” is quite different. Colossians 1:27.

The Word was God”, Christ was in the form of God. The Word became flesh, which was ANOTHER form. The form of a servant, a Man, and a Jew. However, NOW, He is the resurrected God-Man; GLORIFIED. The same Person, but three different forms.

Healing the sick was a part of the Kingdom program of Yahuwshua of Nazareth. Two Greek words, “bear” or “bare”, are used in the New Testament Scriptures: “Anaphero” and “Bastazo.” Bare our sickness is “bastazo.” However, “Bare our sin in His own body on the tree” is ”anaphero.” 1 Peter 2:24. This Greek word “anaphero” is used only one other time in the Scriptures, as bear. “So Christ was once offered to bear (anaphero) the sins of many.” Hebrews 9:28.

These two verses speak very definitely of the sacrifice of Christ on the cross of Calvary. For what? For SINS. Never is there any suggestion that Christ died for the believer's sicknesses. But time, and time again do the Scriptures say in many different statements that Christ died for our sins.

Bastazo” is used many times in the Scriptures; Matthew 3:11, “bearing shoes”; Luke 11:27, John 12:6, Luke 14:27, John 16:12, “bear the saying of Christ”; Acts 9:15, Galatians 6:2, Romans 15:1 “We then that are strong ought to bear the infirmities of the weak.”

How does one Christian bear the infirmities of another? Certainly not by making atonement; not by dying. Again, “Bear ye one another's burdens and so fulfill the law of Christ.” One law of Christ is the law of life for believers because of His death and resurrection. We have not power to lay down our lives and take them up again. This “bear” is the same “bear” used in Matthew 8:17.

Does this explain the expression: “Greater Works Than These Shall He Do; Because I Go To My Father.” John 14:12. Yahuwshua of Nazareth fed five thousand hungry people with half a pound of food. What Christian has fed more than that number with the same number of loaves and fishes? What Christian has calmed the storm? What Christian has walked on the water? What Christian has turned water into wine by miracle? What Christian has died on a cross and abolished death and destroyed him that had the power of death; that is the devil? What Christian has said goodbye to his earthly companions and gone to heaven in a body?

All of the people whom Jesus Christ healed afterward died of the same, or some other, physical ailment. The death rate of the human race, saint and sinner alike, is still one apiece, regardless of the method of healing employed.

Ten lepers were healed by Yahuwshua at one time. Luke 17:14. To the only one who returned to him to praise God, He said, “Thy Faith hath made thee whole.” Were the others saved men? Surely not!

Some hours after Jesus gave sight to the blind man in John 9, He said to the man, “Dost thou believe on the Son of God?” The man said, “Who is he, Lord, that I might believe on him?” “It is He that talketh with thee.” He said, “I believe and worshipped Him” John 9:35-38.

To the man sick of the palsy Yahuwshua said, “Son, thy sins be forgiven thee”, before he healed his infirmity. By the way, where is the Christian who can do a greater work than forgive sin? It is a far greater work to get a man saved from the damnation of hell than to get him healed of fever or rheumatism. By the way, this is the only case where Jesus healed sickness AFTER forgiving the sinner his sins. This case of the palsied man.

Yet, some of the healing preachers today are telling their hearers that they must accept the sacrifice of Christ for soul salvation before they can have physical healing. Is this according to the way Christ and His apostles healed? What saith the Scriptures!

Those who are doing “the greater works” today should not insist that sick people be saved before they can have Divine healing. If they are to prove that Ya-hweh Yahuwshua, the LORD Jesus Christ, is the same yesterday, today and forever by duplicating his miraculous works and thus demonstrating His Deity in the realm of natural science, they should not CHANGE the order He followed when here in the midst of the Jews; the Jews who require a sign. God’s “sign people”.

And these “miracle workers” should give to the skeptic public the right to choose the character of miracle to be performed; if they are to be convinced of the Deity of Christ by those who are doing the greater works. One will say, “feed five thousand hungry people with these few loaves and fishes, and I will believe that Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever.” Another says, “My brother died four days ago. I prefer to have him raised.” By the way, was it because of Lazarus' Faith that he was raised???

The miraculous sign healing of Christ and His apostles is quite different from the healing of Epaphroditus. Miraculous sign healing CEASED after the Apostle Paul said, “The Salvation of God is sent unto the Gentiles.” Acts 28:28. Otherwise he would not have told faithful Timothy to take wine for his oft sicknesses. 1 Timothy 5:23. This was not due to Timothy's lack of the Faith. The Apostle Paul praised him for his wonderful Faith. 2 Timothy 1:5.

There is another verse to be explained along with this one, “To another the gifts of healing by the same Spirit.” 1 Corinthians 12:9. The only sane and sure method of Scripture interpretation is to study Scripture in the light of other Scriptures. Violation of this principle will produce unbelief or fanaticism. We submit several facts for light on these Scriptures:

No GENTILE Christian ever had hands laid upon him for any purpose in the Christian Church, so far as the Bible record is concerned.

There is not one scriptural reference to one miracle performed by the hands of one GENTILE. God had no Gentile healing servants.

We quote Hebrews 4:4: “God also bearing (them) witness both with signs and wonders, and with divers miracles, and gifts of the Holy Spirit, according to His own will.” Read this last phrase, because there are certain false prophets who are teaching the people they ought not to say, “if it be God's will.” The miracles with which God witnessed the Apostleship of the Galileans who came down with Jesus to Jerusalem were “divers.” (diverse) Acts 13:31. The Hebrew Christians to whom this epistle of James was written were NOT performing healing miracles.

Miracles were the signs of an Apostle. 2 Cor. 12:12. God had no Gentile Apostles.

With the exception of Philip in Samaria where, “the people hearing and seeing the miracles which he did” and the case of Stephen who “did great wonders and miracles” among the Jews; either the Apostle Peter or the Apostle Paul was present in EVERY case of sign or miraculous healing in the Church mentioned in the Bible after the resurrection of Christ. The Apostle Paul was permitted by God to perform a miracle similar to each miracle performed by the Apostle Peter. Ask yourselves, WHY?

Sign healing was general. There was no hit and miss proposition with either Christ or His Apostles. Therefore the healing movements of today are not genuine. Here’s what the Scriptures say, “And healed all that were sick.” Matthew 8:16; “Healing every sickness and every disease.” Matthew 9:35; “He laid His hands on every one of them, and healed them.” Luke 4:40; “The shadow of Peter.” “And they were healed every one.” Acts 5:16.

One of the modern healers whose nefarious traffic is being supported by some splendid Christians, whom he has deceived, or rather whom Satan has, failed with about nineteen out of twenty of the poor unfortunate deluded victims who responded to his invitation at the close of one of his services. And he too supports his healing with, “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever”; and CONTRARY to the plain instruction of the Apostle James, the minister of the circumcision, he uses oil on Gentiles.

And here is Satan’s TRAP! Just think of the reaction when those who think these healing preachers know the Bible and are preaching true Biblical Christianity, find that the healing is but a foolish theory and sorcery, and then many of them will reason that Christ's atonement for the soul is also a false doctrine.

May God help every true saint to stand firmly AGAINST these healing heresies in this day of apostasy, and say with the Apostle Paul, concerning Satan, “We are not ignorant of his devices.”

Fully trust the LORD in health and in sickness and know that all things work together for good to the Faithful child of God. And be ready to say with the Apostle Paul, “Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.” 2 Cor. 12:9. “Though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day.” 2 Cor. 4:16. BUT, are you willing to say: “The LORD gave and the LORD hath taken away. Blessed be the name of the LORD.” Job 1:21.

Now, let me close this 3 part series of messages with this: Mental Science has long since passed the experimental stage, Psychology has worked wonders with many people. Truly there are many imaginary cures of real ills, and many real cures of imaginary ills, Psychic healing. Satan put sickness upon Job. He bound a daughter of Abraham for many years. he said, “all that a man hath will he give for his life” Can Satan perform miracles? Can Satan heal? Now go read 2 Thessalonians 2:7-11.

“Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved” Acts 16:31, while there is still time!

So There You Have it!

Spread this message to everyone you know, far and wide. The time is short

Grace be to you and peace, from God: our Father, and The LORD Jesus Christ.

In The LORD Jesus Christ,
The Lion and Lamb Ministry

Pastor David Picos, D.D.
Minister and Ambassador for Christ in the Ministry of Reconciliation (2 Cor. 5:18-20)

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