Tag Archives: faith

The Age of Abraham’s Blessing

“What I do have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk.”
(Acts 3:6 NIV.)

Why do you stare at us as if by our own power or godliness we had made this man walk? (v.12)

Indeed, beginning with Samuel, all the prophets who have spoken have foretold these days… He said to Abraham, ‘Through your offspring all peoples on earth will be blessed.” (v.24-25).

The first statement from Peter would get you kicked out of most churches. God’s power healed the cripple. This is the context. Peter didn’t say, “What Jesus has, Jesus gives to you,” or “what Jesus has, I give it to you.” No. Peter said, “What I have, I give to you.”

Peter did affirm the ultimate level of reality by saying, this was not our godliness or power. This is like saying, “when I shot the man who was trying to kill me, the gun and the bullet is not my power. It wasn’t my power that blew a hole through his chest.”

The power is God’s, but God gave the power to Peter and Peter pulled the trigger by saying, “in the Name of Jesus, walk.”

How does Peter have this power? Do we have it?

The power is the Spirit and the authority is the access to use Jesus Name. Jesus said, “if I cast out demons by the Spirit of God.” And so, it was the Spirit’s power not Jesus’ power, when He was healing and casting out demons. In John 14:10 Jesus also says, the Father does His works, referring to the miracles Jesus was doing. Thus, Jesus was not doing miracles by Jesus’ power, but the Spirit’s power. The power of the Spirit, Jesus gives to us, as Peter argues in Acts chapter 2. It was promised by the Father, and Jesus sitting at God’s right hand ensures the Spirit of power is poured out on all those God calls to Himself. Jesus said, referring to the Spirit, that life giving waters will flow out of our inner man. The authority is given to us to use Jesus’ name to ask for whatever we want. Jesus says this 4 to 5 times in John 14-16.

Our identity in Jesus, as Peter says, means we are a royal priesthood. We are not just sub-heirs with Jesus, but co-heirs with Him. We are called children of God. Paul says in Ephesians that all blessings have already been given to us, and that we are already seated in the heavenly places with Jesus, above all names, times and authorities. All of this means we have divine, heavenly and royal authority. The gifts and callings of God are irrevocable.

Also, as purchased gifts we have power and authority. The power of the Spirit is a promise of the Father to Jesus, to give to us, upon His resurrection. It is part of the finished atonement and resurrection of Jesus. The authority to use Jesus’ Name is our definition for having our identity in Jesus. Water baptism means we are raised in new life, with Jesus, as part of Jesus. This new identity includes having the definition to wield Jesus’ name to ask for whatever we want.

What is interesting about this, is that it has nothing to do with apostles. It is centered on the finished work of Jesus and His current position of ruling from the Power’s right hand.

Peter makes a last reference to Abraham. The context is why the man was healed in the Name and power of Jesus, and how Peter did it, and how the man received it by faith in Jesus. Peter’s last point to explain all of this was Abraham and God’s promise to bless all people through his offspring. Think about that. According to Peter, the ability to use Jesus Name, and power to heal, is based on the blessing of Abraham. This blessing, as Peter also says, means forgiveness and salvation. But our point of interest in the context of Peter explaining the healing to the authorities.

It was not as if Abraham is so important, but that God made a promise. Abraham was asleep. It was all God. God gave a promise to bless Abraham with fame, favor, healing, supernatural healing, wealth, victories and etc, and to do the same with his children, and by this bless the whole world. Paul argues in Galatians 3, that the atonement of Jesus did not replace Abraham’s blessing, but Jesus’ crucifixion grafts us into this blessing. Jesus took on our curses and in substitutionary exchange gave us the blessing of Abraham. Paul also sums up this gospel as the “Spirit and miracles,” which is received by faith in Jesus. Paul says the power of the Spirit for miracles is part of Abraham’s blessing, and Peter sums up the access to use Jesus’ Name to heal as part of Abraham’s blessing.

Acts opens of with Jesus’ command to receive power by the baptism of the Spirit. The first miracle is Peter claiming to have Jesus’ authority. Rather than saying it was a gift of the Spirit, Peter says it was faith in Jesus that caused the healing. Thus, the first miracle was performed by normal discipleship faith. Peter knew his identity and authority in Jesus. He knew about the privilege and command to use Jesus’ name to heal the sick and cast out demons. He then used it. Peter then says this is part of Abraham’s blessing.

Why is this important. It is important because we have the same blessing of Abraham. The blessing of Abraham is not one thing for one person and something different for another. The only real factor is faith. Your faith determines how much you can extract out of your blessing in Abraham. This is why Paul rebuked the Galatians. Their faith in Jesus, giving them access to Abraham’s blessing, extracted miracles for them. But now they want to abandon faith for works. A relationship of works will stop the miracles that came to the Galatians, from being grafted into Abraham’s blessing.

Lastly, remember again, this has nothing to do with apostles. It is about God and how faithful, true and awesome He is in keeping promises. God made a very old promise, and after all these years, He still keeps His promise. And so, if you hear someone say, “but the book of Acts, is about the apostles; the miracles are only for them; the miracles stopped with them,” then you understand how dumb and perverted they are.

“So, the Book of Acts isn’t just a highlight reel for the apostles. No siree, it’s the kickoff for the “Age of Abraham’s Kids Doing Cool Stuff.” It’s not about how special the apostles were; it’s about how faithful God is. He made a promise to Abe, and centuries later, He’s still like, “Yeah, I got you.”

In short, if you believe in Jesus, you’re not just saved; you’re also signed up for the spiritual sequel where you get to do the stuff. The power’s there, the name’s yours to use, and the only limit? Your faith. So, go out there and make some divine mischief in the name of Jesus, because according to Peter, it’s all part of the family business!”[1]

The book of Acts, is not the age of the apostles. It is not about the apostles. The book of Acts is about the Acts of Abraham’s children. It is the Age of Abraham’s blessing. It is the Age of the power of the Spirit and authority of Jesus Christ spoken by the lips of His children. The book of Acts is the age of faith and power, in the Name of Jesus Christ.

“Get up and Walk!”

[1] Grok AI, fun mode 2024, summary of this essay.

You Resist Satan & He Will Flee From You

James says that if God resists Satan, no, wait that’s wrong; he says if you resist Satan then he will flee from God, no wait, that’s still not right. If you resist Satan, then he will flee from you.

James tells us, if you tell Satan to skedaddle, he’ll scram faster than a cat at a cucumber party. But here’s the kicker: some folks are out there praying like God’s their personal bouncer to kick Satan to the curb. Spoiler alert: that’s not how it rolls.

Some people pray prayers that make no sense. One such prayer is to ask God to make the devil leave you. This is crazy, because God’s standing command is that you resist, and you make the devil leave, not God. God has given you His divine authority to make the devil leave and has also given you the command to use that authority. You can pray, beg and cry all day long, asking God to make the devil stop harassing you, and God will ignore it.

It is possible that God might still answer a sinful prayer like this out of extreme pity, but do not bank on it. It is a sinful prayer, because you are willfully disobeying God’s command that says you make the devil leave. You are asking God to do something He commanded you to do.

You cannot say, “well, if Satan is harassing me with temptations, or sickness, or depression or evil thoughts, (or however he is victimizing you) and so it is God’s will for me to grit my teeth and just bear with it. It is not God’s will, because God will is His commandments. His command is that you resist the devil and make him stop victimizing you, and make him leave with his tail tucked beneath his legs.

God will not do this for you. You must do it.

God’s like, “Hey, I gave you the authority to ghost the devil yourself. Use it!” You can wail and flail in prayer all you want, but God’s just gonna sip His ambrosia, waiting for you to step up.

Two things that Jesus did, as a man, when Satan harassed Him. First, Jesus used the scripture. Second, Jesus commanded Satan to leave. If you only do one of the two, then you will have a partial victory and never know true triumph. If you only do one of the two, then Satan will not fully leave you and thus, you will still be disobeying God’s command to make the devil leave. You must renew your mind on the scripture. You must confess the promises of God with your mouth as part of your reality and definition. But you also must command the devil and any demonic harassment to shut up and leave. Jesus, the OG of devil-ditching, showed us the ropes: quote scripture like it’s your favorite movie line and tell Satan to hit the road, Jack. Do one without the other, and you’re not really fighting, but just playing at this spiritual tug-of-war.

You are already a royal priesthood. You already have the royal authority of God as an heir and priest of God. This has already happened. You do not need to ask God for the use of His Name and authority, because you already got it. This is why God commands you to cast out demons and to resist the devil and make him flee, because you already got the authority to do it. It is not an emotion. It is reality. It is part of your identity in Jesus that you got when you were born from above. The gifts and callings of God are irrevocable. Thus, you always have this authority and power. You cannot lose it. It is you.

Remember, you’re not just any Joe; you’re a royal priest with the kind of clout that makes demons check their calendars for any other appointments. So, when Satan or his minions come knocking, don’t wait for God to answer your “please evict this evil” prayers. You’ve got to swing the door shut yourself, with the authority you’ve had since your spiritual rebirth.

Even if you were foolish and allowed the devil a foothold into a part of your life, you, not God, you must resist and make the devil flee. Even if you were foolish, you still have the command and authority to shove Satan’s foot out of the door. Take the sword of the Spirit and cut off that foot trying to worm its way in. This goes without saying, but whatever you were doing to allow the devil a foothold must be corrected. Confess the promises of God over you, and command the devil to shut up and leave. No one else can do this for you, not even God, because He commanded you to do it.

When I say not even God can do it, I am not referring to a limitation in God, but to a category fallacy.

And just like you wouldn’t ask God to brush your teeth for you, don’t ask Him to do the devil-defying for you. It’s your gig. You confess, you command, and you reclaim your space. Because in the grand reality show of life, you’ve got the power, the script, and the divine right to tell any satanic squatter, “Not today, Satan, not today.”[1]

This is the same with conversion and forgiveness of your sins. Not even God can do this for you, because only you can confess your sins and ask God to save you on the account of Jesus Christ. The same for healing. You must command the sickness to leave. It is your responsibility, and you already have the authority and finished atonement of Jesus to do it. The healing is already yours. You don’t need to ask God for it. He already gave it to you. To ask God to heal you is like asking God to give Jesus another 39 stripes, because it was by the stripes of Jesus that you are healed. It already happened. You already have it. But you must be the one to resist the sickness and command it to leave.

[1] Used Grok AI (fun mode) 2024, for some witty summary statements.

They Were All Healed

Also a multitude gathered from the surrounding cities to Jerusalem, bringing sick people and those who were tormented by unclean spirits, and they were ALL HEALED. Acts 5:26

Tradition says only Jesus could heal everyone, but this is a lie coming from a false teacher. The bible says that Christians do the same. The foundation is Acts 2:31-36. It is a God-centered focus on Jesus ruling at the right hand of the Power. It is not a man centered focus on the apostles; rather, is about Jesus and the authority to use His Name (Acts 3:6,16, 16:18). Peter said, “what I have I give to you, in Jesus Name, walk.” What Peter had, was the Name of Jesus, not the authority of an apostle. We have the same Name of Jesus today. Jesus teaches us in John chapters 14-16 that all Christians who have faith, can use His name to ask and command anything. In fact, this authority goes beyond healing and casting out demons to asking for anything you want.

Another observation is that healing is equated to casting out demons, which lines up with what Peter said in Acts 10:38. This is important because even if there is not a specific authority to cast out demons, yet, the free access and authority to heal includes any demonic oppression on the body and mind. In Isaiah 53 we are told Jesus’ substitutionary atonement includes healing. In this sense, authority over demons is a subcategory of healing. Jesus purchased with this blood our healing, which includes any harassment to our bodies or minds caused by demons.

To say healing is not on the demand of faith is to also say being freed from demonic oppression is not on the demand of faith because demonic oppression is a subcategory under healing.

Jesus did not lie. He said whosoever believes in Him will do His miracles and even greater. This is why see examples in the book of Acts, where everyone got healed, just like Jesus did it. The foundation for this happening was being baptized in the Spirit and faith in Jesus. We have the same foundation today. Jesus is still sitting at the right hand of the Power. We have the same context, the same Jesus, the same Spirit and the same millennial rule of Jesus at the Power’s right hand.

Sickness Is Satan’s Glory, Not God’s

Oshea Davis.

The Arminians are wrong about God’s sovereignty. God does directly and absolutely control and predestine all things. However, this is about ultimate metaphysics, which the Bible speak on less, while it mostly speaks on the human level—the level where God commands us, relates to us, and where we slug it out day-to-day. It’s how the Bible mainly talks to us, so we’ll follow that pattern here. Talking any other way most of the time just means you’re not talking like the Bible.

God says in Isaiah 54:15, “They will surely gather against you, but not by me.” He quietly assumes His own sovereignty but speaks straight to us on our level. God is more God-centered than anyone, yet He has zero problem saying, “I didn’t cause them to gather.” Jesus—the most God-centered man who ever walked the earth—said about both healing and forgiveness, “Your faith has saved you.” In Acts 10:38, Peter says all the sick people Jesus healed were oppressed by the devil. So the Bible has no problem declaring that sickness isn’t from God. It’s from Satan or the curse.

And this matters. Big time. If we think sickness comes from God, we won’t fight it. That’s one reason Jesus went full wrecking-ball mode on sickness while religious tradition sits back and sighs. Jesus saw sickness as Satan’s direct smack in the face to Him, His Father, and His people. So He smashed it wherever He found it. The only time He didn’t obliterate the sickness (which Satan was causing) was when unbelief got in the way. Let that sink in: unbelief could stop Jesus, but Satan couldn’t. Jesus was a one-man divine demolition crew against every disease the devil hurled.

So here’s the truth: sickness is Satan flipping the bird at Jesus’ atonement. Healing is Jesus slamming His fist—again and again—into Satan’s smug face. There’s a real war here. You’re either with Jesus in this fight or you’re against Him.

In the substitutionary atonement, Jesus took those 39 stripes in exchange for our healing. It’s already done. In the Father’s mind, our sicknesses were lifted off us and slammed onto Jesus with every lash. Jesus carried our sicknesses in our place. The verse right before it (as the Spirit explains through Matthew) says He “bore” (Hebrew nasa) our sicknesses and diseases and took them away. It’s the exact same word used in verse 12 for Jesus bearing our sins, and in Leviticus 16 for the scapegoat when the high priest transferred the people’s sins onto it and sent it off into the wilderness. Pure substitutionary atonement language—and Isaiah 53 applies it straight to our sickness and healing.

Yet many still pin sickness on God—not just in some ultimate metaphysical decree sense, but right here on the everyday, relational level. That’s flat-out wrong. In our New Contract with God, sealed by oath and blood, God promises to always deal with us in certain ways. We’re promised forgiveness, imputed righteousness, and healing—the blessing of Abraham and constant good. It’s fish for fish, healing for healing. If Jesus is my High Priest and Mediator forever, He doesn’t flip in and out of the role. If He gave me sickness, He’d be a minister of sickness. If Jesus hands out sickness, then His gospel ministry turns into one of pain and torment. But Jesus is only a minister of healing—He takes sickness away. He doesn’t dish it out.

This stands out sharply in one powerful example. Jesus sometimes told certain Jews they weren’t Abraham’s children because they refused to believe—proof they didn’t belong. So when He calls someone a daughter of Abraham, it’s a big deal. Remember the woman bent over for 18 years? Jesus declared she was a daughter of Abraham—not an outsider, but an insider to the blessings in God’s contract with Abraham. In that very context, He said Satan had bound her, not God. God’s contract with Abraham included supernatural blessing and healing, not sickness. It was the opposite. So in God’s relationship with her, Satan delivered the sickness, not God. Jesus used the Abrahamic contract as the reason she had to be healed. It wasn’t optional—it was necessary. God keeps His contracts. He doesn’t break them.

Because she had a legal standing in God’s contract for healing, and because Satan had inflicted the sickness as a curse and weapon against God’s kingdom, Jesus wiped it out. Unless we see things the way Jesus did, we won’t hit sickness hard with God’s healing power. If we don’t recognize our insider status with God—or realize sickness is Satan’s attack to ruin us (and by extension, God’s kingdom)—we’ll just let Satan roll right over us. We’ll take his cheap shot, slap a shiny “For God’s Glory” sticker on it, and call it a day.

That’s not just wrong. That’s demonic.

When Satan attacks a believer with sickness, he sidelines a soldier and stalls God’s kingdom advance. Just like in earthly warfare, an injured soldier pulls other soldiers off the front lines to carry and care for him. This is why it’s often smarter in war to injure than to kill. Satan plays the exact same dirty tactics with Christians. Injuries in our army are the enemy’s glory. Sickness in Christians is Satan’s glory—not God’s.

A person’s mind is seriously broken when they can’t tell good from evil, or God’s glory from Satan’s victory lap. When a so-called Christian refuses to attack sickness with God’s healing power, they’re letting Satan hammer God’s kingdom—and they’re strangely okay with it.

Eschatology In A Nutshell

If someone sums up eschatology without baptism of the Spirit for power, they have no idea what they are talking about.

Acts 1:6-8 NIV. “ Then they gathered around him and asked him, “Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?” But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses… to the ends of the earth.”

The context is about eschatology. Jesus has sat down on his eternal throne and is ruling. The disciples did what most do, they made eschatology about politics. However, Jesus rebukes them and says eschatology is about being baptized in the Spirit for power and miracles.

The important part to note is that in eschatology the followers made it political and Jesus made it about miracles and the Spirit for power. By making it about politics they made it about man. Religious elites make the baptism of Power belong only to the apostles, and thus they still make it about man. They use religious words, but the result is a man-centred doctrine in what it means to be God-centred. In Peter’s sermon on Pentecost, he made baptism of power about Jesus and His eschatology position, sitting at the right hand of the Power. It had nothing to do with the apostles, thus, the baptism of power still remains, because Jesus still remains at the right hand of the Power. The Power was faithful to His promise to give Jesus the authority to pour out power.

Jesus is still faithful in pouring out power on “all whom the Power calls to Himself,” (Acts 2:39). The Baptism of power is connected to God predestination of the elect. Peter’s point is not directly about repentance, but baptism of the Spirit and to this Peter directly connects, as many as God calls to Himself. This is why Peter says the gentiles were granted salvation and eternal life when He witnessed them speaking in tongues (Acts 10:44-47). In His Pentecost sermon Peter already said that being baptised in the Spirit is about God calling His predestined ones to Himself. Thus, when Peter saw the gentiles speaking in tongues, and then he told the other disciples, they concluded God elected them to eternal life (11:15-18). In fact, Peter said because the Spirit was given to them, it was proof they should be baptised in water. And let us not forget that water baptism is a sign that they have died and were raised in new life with Jesus. Speaking tongues was proof they were elected to eternal life.

Peter’s argument for the baptism of power is based on two points. One is the Father being faithful to His promise (2:33) to Jesus, so that Jesus has the authority to pour out power. The second part of the argument is that Jesus is sitting on His throne, at the right hand of the Power (2:31-36). These are the 2 relevant factors, in Peter’s argument, for the conditions in pouring out the baptism of power. Peter, who is an Apostle, gives no scriptural quotes or logical connections, that the baptism of the Spirit is connected to the apostles. Zero. What do the religious elites know that Peter did not?

In addition to the Spirit baptism of power, there is the issue of authority. Jesus gave the disciples the authority to heal the sick. In fact, it was a command, because He said, you “heal the sick,” and “cast out demons,” and “preach the gospel.” Then Jesus did the same with 72 others, and so no one can logically say it was only for the apostles. To further insure this, Peter in Acts 3, after commanding a healing, says it was by “faith in Jesus,” and not by the authority of an apostle. Faith in Jesus is what causes a person to receive salvation, and it is the same faith that commands sickness to leave. It is heavily God-centred. It is not man-centred on the apostles. It is centred on Jesus and His position of authority, while He is sitting at the Father’s right hand.

The next major event after the baptism of the Spirit Acts 3-4, shows how Jesus’ plan for power is how to apply His eschatology.

After being released from prison the Christians got together and prayed. They quoted Psalms 2, a militaristic Psalm, and asked that God would apply this to their situation of government opposition, by healing the sick, miracles and boldness to preach the gospel. God responded back with a resounding Yes.

This is how they applied eschatology. This is how they applied the doctrine that Jesus is on His eternal Throne and rules forever. This is how they applied the doctrine that King Jesus gave them power to advance His Kingdom when they face opposition, even when their enemies use the government to persecute them.

In context of eschatology advancement under King Jesus, they mentioned 3 things, healing, miracles and bold preaching. Many only preach (and they are not even good at that), which is only 1/3rd of the disciples applied eschatology. It is no surprise they fail at kingdom advancement.

The Will OF GOD is Irrelevant

The bible teaches that God has absolute and direct control over all things. He is the only real cause for all things, and there is no such thing as secondary causes. God is the metaphysical author of sin and evil. God has predestined all things by His own goals and choices, and decrees all reality in a logical order in relation to His goals (supralapsarianism). There is no such thing as free-will. Man is responsible because he is not free but under God’s sovereign control and command. Because God absolutely and directly causes all things, He absolutely and directly causes the predestination of the elect and reprobate. Logic and deduction are so easy. As Romans 9 says, God takes from the neutral lump (before good or evil) and by the same power and choice makes some to be evil reprobates and some to be righteous elect. God has not given up some of His control to man, because free-will does not exist, because the bible never says He made this choice, and because the nature of God insures that there is no difference in how direct and absolute He causes one thing or another in creation. God’s thoughts, power and choice are one and the same. Because He thinks about it and decides on it, it is reality. Therefore, in the ultimate sense, God Will is the only relevant issue.

I say all of this to state a broad and correct doctrine of God’s sovereignty, so that I am not misunderstood in my following comments.

When we pray for healing, miracles or forgiveness the “will of God,” (referring to His causality, not commands), is irrelevant. As Vincent Cheung points out in “Healing: The Will of Man,” to talk about the “will of God” in this context is already a partial defeat, because the bible talks about man’s will, not God’s will.

The bible’s positive doctrine is that healing is about the will of man, not the will of God. This is how the scripture presents the subject. Jesus never asked the Father if it was God’s will to heal a particular person; rather, He always asked if it was the man or woman’s will to be healed. Jesus then said to his disciples and followers, “you heal the sick.” The will of God (referring to His decrees/causality) was never brought up; only “man’s will,” was brought up. The will of God was simply irrelevant. Jesus, who is more God-centered than you or your favorite pastor, taught us the “will of God,” was irrelevant, and that “man’s will” was the relevant issue.

Some are more accustomed to think about the atonement and forgiveness and so we will start here. The big idea, is that healing (Isaiah 53, Matth 8, James 5, Gal. 3) is as much the gospel and substitutionary atonement as forgiveness is, if not more so.

So here is the question: is the “will of God,” relevant for salvation or conversion? It is not relevant, if I am the one answering it. I am not asking a broad doctrinal question. I am asking it as Jesus would ask a person, “do you want to be healed”? Do you want to be forgiven? I am asking it the way Moses says, “I have presented to you life and death,” now make a choice. I am asking it the way the bible personally addresses me with its promises and commands, telling me that I must respond to it.

The “will of God” is irrelevant for my salvation, because what God decrees and causes is irrelevant in my response to obey the command of God to repent. Paul in Acts 17 commands us to repent of our sins. It is not a choice or suggestion. When I evaluate how I should behave I only use the commands of God to do this, not God’s secret decrees or causality. For example, in Romans 5 Paul says God caused me to be born a sinner, with a sinful heart, because of what Adam did. If I were to use the “will of God,” as a relevant factor in my decision to repent of my sins or not, then I would recognize it was the will of God to decree and cause me to be born a sinner, thus I will choose to stay a sinner until God decrees and causes me to repent.

I will assume most will see the error of this. It is obvious that God’s Will is irrelevant in my consideration if I should repent of my sins. The relevant issue is God’s command for me to repent. If a person uses the “will of God” as a relevant issue to exempt them from having to repent of their sins, we would see this as an excuse to be rebellious and unbelieving.

The same is for healing and other various miracles and supernatural experiences. Healing is provided by the same atonement that provided forgiveness. Both are already accomplished and both are received on the demand of faith. God is sovereign over our faith, but on the demand of faith God always does what He promises. Faith always receives, and God is sovereign over faith. However, even though God is sovereign over faith (God’s Will), we are never told to consider it as relevant knowledge when we choose to believe a promise or not. When we are in the context of a “should” or “ought” the category is always about God’s command.

In John 15 Jesus uses God’s predestination as an encouragement to ask whatever we want and get it. Peter does the same thing in Acts 2 about the baptism of the Spirit for power. And so the Will of God is relevant in the topic of valuing God’s encouragement and explanation. Even though God’s Will is used by scripture to encourage our confidence for miracles and answered prayer, yet, when dealing with the topic of the scripture commanding me to repent and commanding me to receive healing and the gospel (James 5:15, John 14,15, Gal.3, Acts 2) the only relevant category is God’s command, not God’s Will.

Thus, when we pray for healing, God’s Will is irrelevant. The Will of God, is a non-issue. To have the Will of God, pop up into your head when praying for healing, is like having the decree of God that made you a sinner(Rom 5), pop into your head as a relevant issue if you should repent or not, and question if God would forgive if you had faith in Jesus. It is insane and delusional.

The Will of God is irrelevant when considering if God will save you if you repent in faith; it is a non-issue. The Will of God is irrelevant when considering if God will heal you if you command sickness to leave with faith; it is a non-issue.

“Oh, God, please forgive me. I am powerless. You have done nothing yet, but you could do something, Oh powerful and eternal God. You made me a sinner because of Adam’s sin, and so, I don’t know if You have decreed me to be saved or not, and so, If it is your Will, please forgive my sins.”

This insane prayer is how many pray about healing. They are stupid and sinful. The bible never tells us to pray like this. Such a person should not expect to be forgiven of their sin. And if they pray for healing like this, they should not expect to be healed. To pray, while using the Will of God as a relevant issue, will divorce you from being forgiven and healed; It is a prayer of death.

When Peter said, “What I have, I give, in Jesus Name, walk,” the Will of God never came up, because the Will of God is irrelevant. Jesus commanded His followers to heal the sick. This command is the relevant issue, not the Will of God. The Will of God is a non-issue in the context of my healing, or your healing. When you bring in the Will of God as a relevant issue for healing or forgiveness the end results in God’s command being negated. The category of God’s decree and command are different and so should never be used to void each other out, or mixed together.

“Oh God, by Your Will I was made sick, and so I don’t know if I should be healed or not, but please, heal me if it is Your Will.”

This is a prayer of death. It is a prayer of insanity and disobedience. This prayer uses God’s decree as an excuse to avoid obeying God’s command to be healed. To use God’s decree to excuse yourself from obeying any of God’s commands such as receiving forgiveness or receiving healing, is stupid and wicked.

Although, there is nothing wrong for a salvation prayer to “ask God into your heart,” yet there are more precise ways to describe it. Peter in his Pentecost sermon gives direction for a salvation prayer. He instructs the audience to ““Repent and be baptized, in the name of Jesus Christ.” Notice Peter did not instruct them to “ask” God to forgive them; rather, he tells them to repent in Jesus’ Name to be saved. Why? Because Jesus already died and was resurrected. The forgiveness already happened. We are not asking God to crucify His Son again to forgive us, because it already happened. We are not asking God to do anything in the present tense to forgive us, because Jesus already accomplished it. Because it has been accomplished all we do is repent. In this context we do not ask or beg. It is when a person has confidence in Jesus’ finished atonement, they repent of their sins in Jesus’ Name. Salvation in this sense is a confession, and not asking and begging. We confess our sins and that is all it takes. Faith is about God letting you know He has already forgiven you, and by repenting you are agreeing with God. It is foundationally about agreeing and confessing and not asking.

Other gospel benefits such as a healing, and the authority to cast out demons and cast down mountains is the same. They have been accomplished by Jesus’ finished atonement. We do not ask and beg for them, because they have been accomplished by Jesus and given to us. It is irrational to beg for something that already belongs to you. It was the stripes on Jesus’ back that healed us. And so, it is irrational to ask God to heal us, as if He needs to break out the whip again and start slashing Jesus in the throne room. God accomplished our healing in Jesus’ atonement. Thus, we don’t beg for it, because it is already ours. As with salvation, we repent as a confession of confidence in Jesus finished atonement, rather than beg and ask forgiveness. The same with healing. It is the Will of Man to command sickness to leave. We confess and agree with God, rather than beg and ask. This is why Jesus tells us to “heal the sick, and cast out demons.” When we command healing and command demons to leave, we are giving a confident confession in the finished atonement of Jesus, which has given us the healing and authority to do such things.

Point The Gun At Satan & Pull The Trigger

No analogy is perfect, but faith to heal is like God giving us a gun. No one says to themselves, “it is my power that blew up this apple, when I shot it.” Rather, it is painfully obvious to all that the power was the gun powder and bullets. Yet, when a person shoots something or someone, then they are blamed, and rightly so, as “this person destroyed this,” and or “they hurt this other person.” Even though it was not their power, they directed the power to a target. If an Olympian sharpshooter wins gold, the medal is awarded to them and not to their gun.

It is similar when Jesus commanded us to heal the sick, rebuke demons and cast down mountains using His Name and authority. God and creation are not the same, or that is to say, we deny pantheism. Jesus gave us His power and authority. The Spirit was not given to God, to have rivers of life and power flow from His belly, but from ours. Because healing was produced by the stripes on Jesus, in substitutionary atonement for our healing, then it means we do not ask for healing, because it has already been accomplished and given to us. We do not ask God for forgiveness, but rather, we repent of our sins, because the forgiveness has already been accomplished.

Adam and Eve, did not beg God for food, because the food was already provided and given. They could beg all they want, but God was not going to grab a pear and shove it down their throats. They had to grab the provided food and eat it themselves. The same is for healing. The atonement provided the healing, it is our responsibility to grab it and partake of it. The way we do this is by faith and then opening our mouths and commanding the sickness to leave and healing to take place. Jesus said “you heal the sick.” He did not say, “ask God to heal them.” He said, “you do it.” Jesus did not tell us to tell God about our mountains, but to use our given authority and power, and then command them to move. Most Christians are in direct and explicit rebellion to Jesus on this doctrine. This is why Peter in Acts 3 says, “what I have, I give to you, in Jesus Name, walk.” Peter did not even pray, or not pray in the usual way. He commanded the healing, just like Jesus told him. We are under the same gospel and the same commandments.

Because the power, authority and healing has been given to us, it is us who pulls the trigger, not God. It is us, who climbs into the driver’s seat and makes things happen, not God. Thus, God is not holding back your healing, you are. God is not the one who is going to heal you and those around you, you are. Jesus said, “You heal them.”

This does not mean that God never works independently of our faith, because a “gift of faith” and or healing is to help us in our weakness. We seek them and gladly use them. However, the bible speak of the gifts in the least amount, as compared to something like normal discipleship faith in God’s promise. Faith is the master key. And so, the point remains, God is not holding back your healing, because He has commanded that you pull the trigger. The same is for something like the forgiveness of sins. God is sovereign and controls all things. God is sovereign over our faith, but on the demand of faith God always does what He promises, whether forgiveness or healing.

The power and authority has been provided to us to heal, just as much as food was provided for Adam and Eve. God has put the gun in our pocket, but it will not fire itself. It will fire, when we use faith and point it as sickness and command it to leave. God has commanded us to resist the devil and cast him out. His power is already in our bellies and His authority is already stamped upon our tongues. God is not holding you back from being freed from demonic harassment, because He commands you to point the gun at Satan and pull the trigger. He tells you to command demons to leave. You resist the devil, not God. You command them to leave, not God.

When we do, we are praised for the results and God is credited as the ultimate power, just like Peter said, “what I have, I give, In Jesus name, walk.” Jesus Christ says the mulberry tree, would not obey “God,” but that it will “obey, you,” when you command it. God will praise us, when we use our faith to use the authority that He has given us. When we pull the trigger, He has nothing but praises. “Your faith has saved you, and it has healed you.”

Many Christians are begging God to heal them, as if Jesus stripes did not already provide healing, and God needs to do something to give the healing. God does not need to re-crucify Jesus, because the atonement is a finished deal. Just like with forgiveness, because it is already done, you simply repent and receive forgiveness and righteousness by faith. God does not need to do something to forgive you, it has already been accomplished, and so you do not ask and beg God to forgive you.

They think prayer is like an Uber Driver, asking the driver (Jesus) to take them to the healing location. But this is wrong. The problem is that Jesus has already provided the healing (location) and the means to get there, which is faith (the car). They must get in the driver’s seat and drive it themselves. God is not withholding their healing, or righteousness. It is already done.

And yet, they pray asking and begging, as if they expect God to pluck off a pear (healing) and shove it down their throats (faith) and force their jaws to chew. This is why their prayers go unanswered. The pear tree is looking at them in the face, and they are begging God for a pear. If I saw a person like this, I would think they have a few screws loose in their head and likely be silent, not knowing how to respond to such bizarre behavior. This is one reason why God seems silent when you pray. Many Christians pray as if they are insane and delusional.

Let us obey Jesus’ extreme faith and prayer doctrine. Let us sound like intelligent Children of God. Let us not beg for something that God has already given us.

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* I want to give credit to Andrew Wommack for helping me understand some basics of this teaching, “You already Got It.” The example of the food in the garden, and silent prayers I got from him.

Jesus Was the Real Victim in this Story

He said to his disciples, “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?” (Mark 4:40 NIV)

Jesus told him, “Don’t be afraid; just believe.” (Mark 5:36 NIV)

The saying is true, you are either in faith or fear. Jesus puts these as opposites. He says, “only believe,” with no mixture of fear. He says in Mark 4 that the disciples had fear and zero faith. They don’t mix well. If you have fear in your heart about a sickness, then you realize you don’t have faith. This is how it works.

Jesus was the real victim in this story. He was asleep with His head on a cushion and was woken up for something He expected the disciples to deal with, without disturbing Him. I am not trying to be funny here. It is no joke being woken up from a good nap from something so minor as a deadly storm, which only a little faith could destroy and remove.

The prayers of many people are like the disciples in this story. They pray as if Jesus is teaching that He likes it, if we cry out in fear for His help over something like deadly weather or sickness. People repeat the disciples fearful cry as a model for prayer, when Jesus rebukes it as how not to pray. Jesus was upset with their fearful cries for help. Think about that. Because God is merciful He might answer some fearfully cries of unbelief, but don’t expect it.

The point that made it a bad prayer was no faith. It is ok to ask for Jesus help if you have faith, but here is Jesus’ point. If they had faith, then they did not need to ask for Jesus’ help. That’s how you know you have faith.

We do not have every lesson Jesus told the disciples at this point, but Jesus’ reaction gives us enough details that He expected them to use their faith, and deal with the situation, without waking Him up.

This also brings up the issue of where the storm came from. Of course in the ultimate level God causes all things, but the bible mostly deals with the human level. Peter in Acts 10:38 said it was not God, but Satan who was victimizing all the people in Israel with sickness and diseases. When Jesus was casting out diseases He was fighting demons, not God, because the sicknesses came from demons not God. When you have an insider relationship with God He relates to you in blessings. The contract in Jesus’ blood stipulates that God only relates to us in blessings (it could include discipline, but not curses). Thus, whether it is a sickness, or a deadly storm, in human level, it was not from God. When you rebuke it, you are not rebuking God but demons and the curse. Jesus teaches us to not tell God about our mountains, or sickness or deadly storm, but to use our faith and we command it to move and die. Jesus has given us the power and authority to do it, and expects us to do something. Don’t wake Him up and tell Him about a storm, when you have the Staff of God in your mouth. Open your mouth. You divide it. You heal it. You cast it out. You calm it.

Carnally Minded and Sickness

If you believe a doctor’s report over the promise that Jesus has already healed you, then you are the definition of fleshly or carnally minded. Stop condemning adulterers for being carnal, until you can remove the oak tree of carnality from your own eye.

But you say, the doctor says its stage 4 cancer. If you are carnally minded then I understand why that seems so serious. The bible says to be carnally minded is death. But we are to be spiritually minded. Spiritual and intellectual are really the same thing. We are intellectual by using the bible as our only starting point for knowledge. The Spirit enables us to believe His promises. This is spiritual minded. Does the bible say a stage 4 tumor is not included in the stripes of Jesus that healed us? Where?

To be carnal or fleshly has two meanings. One is about sinning according to bodily desires such as adultery or giving into anger. This carnal sinning is a consequent of the other meaning. The other is to center your choices on your sensations rather than the Spirit and the Word. This does not always mean an automatic sin. Just because you slept an extra hour more, because you were tired is not a sin. However, if the bible addresses the same topic and gives a command and gives a promise that contradicts, then it becomes a sin at this point to choose the fleshly desire over the scripture. To be carnal means your source of knowledge is empiricism. Atheism is to be carnally minded. The Christian is defined by their starting point being the Word and being led by the Spirit. This is a contradiction to being carnal.

A doctor is only telling you what they see and hear and feel. This is carnal. They give you knowledge based on carnality. Because the bible addresses sickness and healing, then to choose the so-called knowledge based off the flesh over the scripture is to be carnally minded. Your mind is focused on sensations and feelings and not focused on scripture and the Spirit. This is the definition of a carnal mind. When a person worries, they are replaying knowledge produced by the flesh. They are carnally minded. This carnal focus on empiricism will lead to fleshly sins such as worry, fear, unbelief, anger and then to other behavioral sins such as outburst of anger and drowning out worries with entertainment and lust.

To be carnal is more than just adultery. The foundation of a carnal mind is about knowledge. Where do you get knowledge? If you use your feelings and five senses, then you are the pinnacle of carnality. To hide behind a doctor, who is carnally minded does not remove your guilt. There is a line drawn in the sand. On one side is the Word and the Spirit, the other is what you can see, feel and touch. The scripture has drawn that line and so you must choose. As Jesus said, if you are not with Him, you are against Him.

My Power My Choice

Acts 3:4-6 NIV

Then Peter said, “Look at us!”

….what I do have I give you.
In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk.

First. Peter said, “look at us.” I thought we were to direct attention away from us and point to Christ? Why is Peter so focused on himself?

Second. Peter says “what “I,” have, “I,” give to you.” I thought it was, “what God has, He will sovereignly will or choose to give?” I thought it was God’s power, and God’s choice, not Peter’s power and Peter’s choice?

Peter said it was Peter’s power, “what I have,” and it was his choice, “I give.” Peter claims it was his power and his will. Why does Peter pray in a contradictory way as compared to the theologians? Who is right?

The Bible rejects pantheism. God is not what He creates; He absolutely and directly controls all things, but He is not what He controls. God gave his followers the power to heal the sick, and cast out demons. He did not give this power to Himself. Jesus commanded both the apostles and followers to heal the sick. Jesus commanded both is disciples and 77 others to “heal the sick and cast out demons.” Some stop at Matthew 10:7 when Jesus command them to “preach the kingdom of heaven.” Jesus is commanding them, and us by extension, to preach the gospel. So far, so good. But Jesus continues by saying, “heal the sick, cast out demons, and raise the dead.” Jesus was not going to do this; He was commanding them to do it. If someone was going to get healed, it was up to their power and choice. Thus to heal the sick and raise the dead is as much as a command as it is to preach the gospel. If it was not clear enough Jesus after His resurrection, commanded them to receive power, Acts 1:8. Most of them were not apostles, because it had nothing to do with the apostles, but Jesus sitting as the right hand of the Power. Not only did they have the power, it was their will or choice to administer it. It was not up to God’s power and will to heal, it was their power and will.

This is how Jesus spoke on this topic and it was how Peter spoke on it. However if I spoke like Jesus and Peter in most American churches I would be labeled a heretic.

Yes, on the ultimate level the power is God’s, just as the power in my hand to type this essay is ultimately God’s power and by His direct control. However, Jesus and the Bible rarely mention this ultimate level; they mostly speak on the human level. I will do the same. Thus, it was not God who typed this, but it was I, who typed with my power and choice. Likewise , the sick are not healed by God’s power and choice, but my power and my choice. Anyone who has a problem with this rejects a doctrine directly taught by Jesus and the Holy Spirit. Cut such a person out of your life. They are servants of demons.

Peter sums this up by saying faith in Jesus name brought the healing. It was a person’s will to have faith that brought the healing, not God’s will. For more on this topic see, Vincent Cheung, “Healing, The Will Of Man.”

Also, Peter did not even pray, at least not in the traditional way. He simply commanded the healing. This is what Jesus told us to do. “You heal the sick.” It was the same with Moses and the Red Sea. God said, “You divide it.” Many do not pray by commanding and this is why their prayers go unanswered. This is why many have died before their time by sickness and troubles. Jesus commanded us to do the healing, not God.

Jesus’ faith doctrine is extreme. He does not instruct us to pray to God and tell Him about our mountain; rather, Jesus tells us to move the mountain by using faith and commanding it to move. Jesus said, “it will obey you.”

This is not a suggestion. It is a command from our God. Because of this, when many pray they are in rebellion against God. Jesus commands us to move and heal. However, many respond back saying, “No, God, You do it, if You are willing.” By praying like this, they have ensured their sickness has already gained victory over them. On rare occasions God might still heal such a prayer, out of extreme pity, but it would be an exception. If you are sick and pray like a beggar, asking God to heal, you have already lost. You are a dead man walking. Sickness has already defeated you for the glory of Satan.

When some pray, they pray confessing unbelief rather than faith. If you are born-again then you are not a worm, not a beggar, not a nobody and you are not a sinner. James says the prayer of a righteous person is very effective; however, if your prayer is confessing how pathetic you are, then of course you will not pray knowing how righteous you are, and thus, your prayers will not be effective. Prayer is a good confession of faith in God’s truths and promises; and yet, people often pray confessing who they were, before they were born-again. They say, “I am a worn and sinful and nothing, but God is everything and powerful.” This takes no faith; it is a coward’s way out. It is a religious maneuver to remove you from God’s command and responsibility. If you are nothing and sinful then you need to get born-again so that you become righteous and have privileges that come from being a son of God.

To illustrate this think about asking God for the forgiveness of sins, or a salvation type prayer. Although, there is nothing wrong for a salvation prayer to “ask God into your heart,” yet there are more precise ways to describe it. Peter in his Pentecost sermon gives direction for a salvation prayer. He instructs the audience to ““Repent and be baptized, in the name of Jesus Christ.” Notice Peter did not instruct them to “ask” God to forgive them; rather, he tells them to repent in Jesus’ Name to be saved. Why? Because Jesus already died and was resurrected. The forgiveness already happened. We are not asking God to crucify His Son again to forgive us, because it already happened. We are not asking God to do anything in the present tense to forgive us, because Jesus already accomplished it. Because it has been accomplished all we do is repent. In this context we do not ask or beg. It is when a person has confidence in Jesus’ finished atonement, they repent of their sins in Jesus’ Name. Salvation in this sense is a confession, and not asking and begging. We confess our sins and that is all it takes. Faith in this sense, is about God letting you know He has already forgiven you, and by repenting you are agreeing with God. It is foundationally about agreeing and confessing and not asking.

Other gospel benefits such as a healing, and the authority to cast out demons and cast down mountains is the same. They have been accomplished by Jesus’ finished atonement. We do not ask and beg for them, because they have been accomplished by Jesus and given to us. It is irrational to beg for something that already belongs to you. It was the stripes on Jesus’ back that healed us. And so, it is irrational to ask God to heal us, as if He needs to break out the whip again and start slashing Jesus in the throne room. God accomplished our healing in Jesus’ atonement. Thus, we don’t beg for it, because it is already ours. As with salvation, we repent as a confession of confidence in Jesus finished atonement, rather than beg and ask forgiveness. The same with healing. We confess and agree with God, rather than beg and ask. This is why Jesus tells us to “heal the sick, and cast out demons.” When we command healing and command demons to leave, we are giving a confident confession in the finished atonement of Jesus, which has given us the healing and authority to do such things.

Some people are asking God to do things that He told us to do. They have it flipped upside down. And yes, we see examples of Jesus in John 14-16 telling us to ask in His name. However, in my experience it is only those who already know their authority in Jesus, who already are healing the sick, who are able to ask God for things in prayer, without asking as if they are a beggar or outsider. Those how can heal the sick and cast out demons are better equipped to march boldly to God’s throne of grace and confidently ask for things as a son who belongs there.