Divine Healing - Part 2 - Hindrances To Healing
[original text in italics]
The only hindrance to healing is that you believe there are hindrances to healing. This may be due to not knowing God's truth, unbelief, or doubt. Any of these three hindrances make believers ineffective, not just in laying hold of healing, but also of any of God's blessings.
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Not Knowing
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Not knowing God's will or truth is due to lack of knowledge or understanding of God’s word. The cure for this is gaining truth of what is yours in Christ and believing it. As seen in the previous sections, it is the will of God to heal and it is part of the propitiation [sin offering, pardon, atonement] provided by Jesus in the redemptions [ransom, gaining possession of us by providing full payment for our sins]. Now that you know, the only thing that can stands in the way is unbelief and/or doubt.
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Unbelief
Unbelief is described in scripture as distrust, unwilling to believe, unpersuaded, and unfaithful in the execution of commands. The cure for unbelief is submission and obedience to God. This obedience means believing and acting on the Word of God. In the following verses, Jesus scolded the disciples for their distrust:
MATTHEW 17:17-21 And I brought him to your disciples, but they could not heal him.” And Jesus answered, “O faithless [unpersuaded, unfaithful in the execution of commands] and twisted [corrupt] generation, how long am I to be with you? How long am I to bear with you? Bring him here to me.” And Jesus rebuked the demon, and it came out of him, and the boy was healed instantly. Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, “Why could we not cast it out?” He said to them, “Because of your little faith [low in quantity and occurrences of faith],” He answered. “For truly, I say to you, if you have faith as a mustard seed [if you have any faith at all], you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.”
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For more on faith as a mustard seed, see BLOG: It's The Type Of Faith, Not The Size Of Faith
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Doubt
Doubt means wavering and entertaining other options and thoughts contrary to the word of God and that compete with his truth. A negative thought (i.e. opposite of God's word, fear, anxiety) does not become doubt until it begins to be entertained in one’s consciousness.
JAMES 1:8 But let him ask in faith, with no doubting [wavering, discerning, judging, distinguishing various options], for he who doubts [discerns, judges or distinguishes various options] is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind. For let not that man suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.
MATTHEW 21:21-22 And Jesus answered them, “Truly, I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt [waver, discern, judge, distinguish various options], you will not only do what has been done to the fig tree, but even if you say to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and thrown into the sea,’ it will happen. And whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have faith.”
Look at this woman's faith, who drew healing from Jesus, without his involvement:
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MARK 5:25 And there was a woman who had had a discharge of blood for twelve years, and who had suffered much under many physicians, and had spent all that she had, and was no better but rather grew worse. She had heard the reports about Jesus and came up behind him in the crowd and touched his garment. For she said, “If I touch even his garments, I will be made well.” And immediately the flow of blood dried up, and she felt in her body that she was healed of her disease. And Jesus, perceiving in himself that power had gone out from him, immediately turned about in the crowd and said, “Who touched my garments?” And his disciples said to him, “You see the crowd pressing around you, and yet you say, ‘Who touched me?’” And he looked around to see who had done it. But the woman, knowing what had happened to her, came in fear and trembling and fell down before him and told him the whole truth. And he said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace, and be healed of your disease [Greek: mastix, scourging, whipping].”
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The devil uses condemnation against believers to make them think their prayers won’t work because of something wrong they have done. This guilt tactic is designed to put doubt and unbelief in the person. Indeed, it is best to keep away from sin so that our heart does not condemn us and cause us to become double minded. A clear conscience brings confidence and protects our faith:
1 JOHN 3:19-22 By this we shall know that we are of the truth and reassure our heart before him; for whenever our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart, and he knows everything. Beloved, if our heart does not condemn us, we have confidence [freedom of speech, boldness] before God; and whatever we ask we receive from him, because we keep his commandments and do what pleases him.
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Therefore, know the word, be faithful to do it, believe it without doubting, and maintain a clear conscience. Then, the devil will not be able to stop you.
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Next, we will look at people's rules and precepts that hinder healing.
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