CHRISTIAN PROPHESY
Prophecy in today's complicated, multi denominational churchsystems, is a highly controversial subject! The reason it is controversial, is because of its many different interpretations by various Bible scholars in the field of Eschatology, as well as theinterpretations and understanding of what the office of a prophetconsists of.
The objective of this discussion is not to study prophecy in the various eschatology systems, but to discuss the office and function of prophets in our present church age, as compared with the office of prophets in the early church and Old Testament. It is important that we, as Christians, become able to distinguish between genuine prophets and false prophets. Many in the church claim to be prophets of God today, but are they really? Do their claims line up to the Bible discription of theoffice of a prophet?
Is the office and function of prophets in thechurch today the same as they were in the Old Testament, or even inthe early church during the Apostolic era? Prophecy is one of the nine Spiritual gifts mentioned in FirstCorinthians, Chapter 12.
Two other gifts mentioned in that chapterare the Gift of the Word of Knowledge, and the Gift of the Word ofWisdom. Each of these gifts have different functions in the church and although are closely related in appearance, achieve differentend results when exercised by saints of God who are given thosegifts by the Sovereign grace of God. It is my contention that in our churches today, where the so called gift of prophecy is being operated, that there is much misunderstanding and confusion concerning the operation and purposeof the gift, and that the Gifts of the Word of Knowledge and Wisdom are usually being exercised, and being confused with the Gift ofProphecy!
It is not unusual for someone to stand up in the normal Pentecostalor Charismatic worship services today and give what is referred toas "a prophetic message from the Lord." Are we to believe that Godis still speaking directly to us today through prophets, and if so,can they be new revelations?
Did God really complete His revelations to man with the completionof the Canons of Scripture, or has He continued to give us newrevelations since the completion of Canon? In other words, where does the Bible end? Some say today's church is the continuation ofnew revelation, and that the 29th chapter of Acts is being written!If we are to accept that logic, how are we to discern between trueand false prophets?
Most of the cults were started because of somenew prophecy or new revelation of its founding prophet. Not only do the cults claim to be receiving new revelation from God through their prophets, but prophets from the occult are giving new revelations as well! In fact, "fortune tellers" presently sell their "prophecies", which in many cases, give accurate knowledge of the past events of the lives of people seeking this knowledge, as well as foretelling their future!
This is the reason Christians must have a clear understanding of the present office of God's prophets and the functions they are called to perform in todays church. Christians should be able to distinguish between "foretelling"and "forthtelling", which can bring a clearer understanding of the gift of prophecy, distinguishing it from the gifts of the word of knowledge and wisdom.
In this discussion, I will be intermingling these three gifts, while discussing their functions. The objection of the discussion is to take some of the confusion away from distinguishing between the three spiritual gifts, and to bring some light from the Scriptures on the present purpose and operation of each gift.
Christians should be on their guards and weigh heavily any new revelations given by the prophets before accepting them! The last prophecy given in the Bible, which applies to the entire Canon is recorded for all believers to heed: "For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues.
THE DEFINITION OF THE GIFTS OF PROPHECY,WORD OF KNOWLEDGE AND WISDOM
PROPHECY
The Bible teaches that a prophet is a speaker of, or for God. The Bible prophet is also called a "Seer" in the Old Testament, meaningthat he could see into the future. Most of the confusion of understanding what a prophet is can be deciphered by understandingthat there were different kinds of prophets, with different levels of authority revealed throughout the Bible in different dispensational times.
The Old Testament Prophets were specifically chosen by God, and given His highest office or authority. The Old Testament prophets were the actual "mouthpiece" of God. God spoke to His prophets, whatever He wanted revealed to the masses of people and the prophets relayed the message to the people, either orally, or written.
The method is recorded for us in Hebrews 1:1,2. "God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spoke in times past unto the fathers by the prophets; hath in these last days spoken unto us by His Son,whom He bath appointed heir of all things, by whom also He made the worlds."
So, to clarify, God used prophets to speak to the Old Testament saints, and used His Son, Jesus Christ to speak to New Testament saints.
Most of the Old Testament was written by Old Testament prophets, while the New Testament writers only recorded what they heard and witnessed from the personal witness of the last prophet, Jesus Christ. Even the last book of the Bible, were the prophecies of Jesus Christ recorded by John, who wrote and recorded "The Revelation ofJesus Christ, which God gave unto him, to show unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass; and he sent and signified it by his angel unto his servant John: Who bore record of the word of God, and of the testimony of Jesus Christ, and of all things that he saw." (Revelation 1:1,2).
Therefore, the entire Bible was written as a prophecy to mankind by God through His servants. The Bible was a history book written in advance, so men of God would never have to be ignorant of Gods plan for their lives!
The prophet Amos stated this fact in Amos 3:7 under inspiration ofGod: "Surely the Lord God will do nothing but He revealeth His secret unto His servants the prophets."
False prophets are not new to the church, but have always been used by Satan, even in the Old Testament to imitate God's real prophets. In the New Testament, Peter stated: "But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying theLord that brought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction." (2 Peter 2:1)
The genuine way that God spoke to His people in the Old Testament is recorded also by Peter in 2 Peter 1:21. "For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Ghost."
And the results of those inspired messages from God, spoken by His prophets were recorded in the Bible, for instruction to mankind to find salvation in Jesus Christ."
All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable fordoctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction inrighteousness: that the man of God may be perfect, thoroughlyfurnished unto all good works." (2 Timothy 3:16,17)
Old Testament prophets primarily dealt with "future events", while the office of a New Testament prophet was different. The New Testament prophets, other than Jesus Christ, did not have the office of "forth telling" the future as did the Old Testament prophets, but instead, they had the authority to "foretell" events either as they were happening, or after they happened.
Also, there were different levels of authority of the prophets in the New Testament. The apostles had the most authority, and all held the office of a prophet, except Judas Iscariot, who was a false apostle.
CONT.>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Thursday, August 17, 2006
Wednesday, August 16, 2006
Soul, as per Hindu Scriptures
Hindu Scriptures Speak on the Soul
The atman pervades all like butter hidden in milk.
He is the source of Self-knowledge and ascetic fervor. This is the Brahman teaching, the highest goal! This is the Brahman teaching, the highest goal!
Yajur Veda
The inspired Self is not born nor does He die; He springs from nothing and becomes nothing. Unborn, permanent, unchanging, primordial, He is not destroyed when the body is destroyed.
Yajur Veda
Now, the teaching concerning the atman: the atman is below, it is above, it is behind, it is before, it is in the South, it is in the North The atman indeed is all that is. He who sees, reflects and knows this-he has joy in the atman.
Sama Veda
Verily, he is pure, steadfast and unswerving,
stainless, unagitated, desireless, fixed like a spectator and self-abiding. As an enjoyer of righteousness, he covers himself with a veil made of qualities; [yet] he remains fixed-yea, he remains fixed!
Yajur Veda
He who with the truth of the atman, unified, perceives the truth of Brahman as with a lamp, who knows God, the unborn, the stable, free from all forms of being, is released
from all fetters.
Yajur Veda
A part of Infinite Consciousness becomes our own finite consciousness, with powers of discrimination and definition and with false conceptions. He is, in truth, Prajapati and Viva, the Source of Creation and the Universal in us all. This Spirit is consciousness and gives consciousness to the body. He is the driver of the chariot.
Yajur Veda
He who ells in he light et is other than the light whom the 4, light does not know, whose body is the light, who controls the light from within-He is the atman within you, Yajur Veda
pure consciousness, taking form as knowledge and ac on, is present in the soul everywhere and always, for the soul is universal in its unfettered state. ' Mrigendra Agama
The three impurities are anava, maya and he one caused by actions.
Suprabheda Agama
When the state is attained where one becomes Siva, the madas--the "bonds diverse, mental states and experiences that arose for the "individualized soul-will all fade like the beams of the moon in the presence of the rising sun.
Tirumantiram
When jiva attains the state of neutrality to deeds good and evil, then does divine grace in guru form descend, remove attributes all and implant jnana that is unto a heavenly cool shade. The jiva is without egoity, and the impurities three are finished. He is Siva who all this does. Tirumantiram
The primal play of the Lord were jivas created. Enveloped in mighty malas were they. Discarding them, they realized themselves d besought the feet of their hoary Lord. Thus they became Siva, to birth no more to be.
Tirumantiram
Goldsmith fashions several ornaments out of gold. So God, the eat goldsmith, makes many ornaments-different souls-out of e one Universal Spirit.
Natchintanai
Yhe atman is eternal. This is the conclusion at which great souls have arrived from their experience....
Natchintanai..
What Is Our Individual Soul Nature?
SLOKA 26
Our individual soul is the immortal and spiritual body of light that animates life and reincarnates again and again until all necessary karmas are created and resolved and its essential unity with God is fully realized. Aum.
BHASHYA
Our soul is God Siva's emanational creation, the source of all our higher functions, including knowledge, will and love. Our soul is neither male nor female. It is that which never dies, even when its four outer sheaths physical, pranic, instinctive and mental-change form and perish as they naturally do. The physical body is the annamaya kola. The pranic sheath of vitality is the pranamaya kola. The instinctive-intellectual sheath is the manomaya kosa. The mental, or cognitive, sheath is the vijnanamaya koala. The inmost soul body is the blissful, ever-giving-wisdom dnandamaya koala. Parasakti is the soul's superconscious mind-God Siva's mind. Parasiva is the soul's inmost core. We are not the physical body, mind or emotions. We are the immortal soul, atman. The sum of our true existence is anandamaya kola and its essence, Parasakti and Parasiva. The Vedas expostulate, "The soul is born and unfolds in a body, with dreams and desires and the food of life. And then it is reborn in new bodies, in accordance with its former works. The quality of the soul determines its future body; earthly or airy, heavy or light." Aum Namah Sivaya.
How Is Our Soul Different from Siva?
SLOKA 27
Our soul body was created in the image and likeness of the Primal Soul, God Siva, but it differs from the Primal Soul in that it is immature. While Siva is unevolutionary perfection, we are in the process of evolving. Aum.
BHASHYA
To understand the mysteries of the soul, we distinguish between the soul body and its essence. As a soul body, we are individual and unique, different from all others, a self-effulgent being of light which evolves and matures through an evolutionary process. This soul body is of the nature of God Siva, but is different from Siva in that it is less resplendent than the Primal Soul and still evolving, while God is unevolutionary perfection. We may liken the soul body to an acorn, which contains the mighty oak tree but is a small seed yet to develop. The soul body matures through experience, evolving through many lives into the splendor of God Siva, ultimately realizing Siva totally in nirvikalpa samdhi. Even after Self Realization is attained, the soul body continues to evolve in this and other worlds until it merges with the Primal Soul, as a drop of water merges with its source, the ocean. Yea, this is the destiny of all souls without exception. The Vedas say, "As oil in sesame seeds, as butter in cream, as water in river beds, as fire in friction sticks, so is the atman grasped in one's own self when one searches for Him
with truthfulness and austerity." Aum Namah Sivaya.
How Is Our Soul Identical with Siva?
SLOKA 28
The essence of our soul, which was never created, is immanent love and transcendent reality and is identical and eternally one with God Siva. At the core of our being, we already are That-perfect at this very moment. Aum.
BHASHYA
At the core of the subtle soul body is Parasakti, or Satchidananda,immanent love; and at the core of that is Parasiva, transcendent reality. At this depth of our being there exists no separate identity or difference-all are One. Thus, deep within our soul we are identical with God now and forever. These two divine perfections are not aspects of the evolving soul, but the nucleus of the soul which does not change or evolve. From an absolute perspective, our soul is already in nondual union with God, but to be realized to be known. We are That. We do not become That. Deep within this physical body, with its turbulent emotions and getting-educated mind, is pure perfection identical to Siva's own perfections of Parasakti and Parasiva. In this sacred mystery we find the paradoxes of oneness and twoness, of being and becoming, of created and uncreated existence subtly delineated. Yea, in the depth of our being, we are as He is. The Vedas explain, "The one controller, the inner Self of all things, who makes His one form manifold, to the wise who perceive Him as abiding in the soul, to them is eternal bliss-to no others:" Aum Namah Sivaya.
Why Are We Not Omniscient Like Siva?
SLOKA 29
The three bonds of anava, karma and maya veil our sight. This is Siva's purposeful limiting of awareness which allows us to evolve. In the superconscious depths of our soul, we share God Siva's all-knowingness. Aum.
BHASHYA
Just as children are kept from knowing all about adult life until they have matured into understanding, so too is the soul's knowledge limited. We learn what we need to know, and we understand what we have experienced. Only this narrowing of our awareness, coupled with a sense of individualized ego, allows us to look upon the world and our part in it from a practical, human point of view. Pasa is the soul's triple bondage: maya, karma and anava. Without the world of maya, the soul could not evolve through experience. Karma is the law of cause and effect, action and reaction governing maya. Anava is the individuating veil of duality, source of ignorance and finitude. Maya is the classroom, karma the teacher, and anava the student's ignorance. The three bonds, or malas, are given by Lord Siva to help and protect us as we unfold. Yet, God Siva's all-knowingness may be experienced for brief periods by the meditator who turns within to his own essence. The Tirumantiram explains, "When the soul attains Self-knowledge, then it becomes one with Siva. The malas perish, birth's cycle ends and the lustrous light of wisdom dawns:" Aum Namah Sivaya.
How Do Hindus Understand Moksha?
SLOKA 30
The destiny of all souls is moksha, liberation from rebirth on the physical plane. Our soul then continues evolving in the Antarloka and Sivaloka, and finally merges with Siva like water returning to the sea. Aum Namah Sivaya.
BHASHYA
Moksha comes when earthly karma has been resolved, dharma well performed and God fully realized. Each soul must have performed well through many lives the varna dharmas, or four castes, and lived through life's varied experiences, in order to not be pulled back to physical birth by a deed left undone. All souls are destined to achieve moksha, but not necessarily in this life. Hindus know this and do not delude themselves that this life is the last. While seeking and attaining profound realizations, they know there is much to be done in fulfilling life's other goals, purushdrthas-dharma, righteousness; artha, wealth; and kama, pleasure. Old souls renounce worldly ambitions and take up sannyasa in quest of Paragiva, even at a young age. Toward life's end, all Hindus strive for Self Realization, the gateway to liberation. After moksha, subtle karmas are made in inner realms and swiftly resolved, like writing on water. At the end of each soul's evolution comes visvagrasa, total absorption in Siva. The Vedas say, "If here one is able to realize Him before the death of the body, he will be liberated from the bondage of the world:" Aum Namah Sivaya.
The atman pervades all like butter hidden in milk.
He is the source of Self-knowledge and ascetic fervor. This is the Brahman teaching, the highest goal! This is the Brahman teaching, the highest goal!
Yajur Veda
The inspired Self is not born nor does He die; He springs from nothing and becomes nothing. Unborn, permanent, unchanging, primordial, He is not destroyed when the body is destroyed.
Yajur Veda
Now, the teaching concerning the atman: the atman is below, it is above, it is behind, it is before, it is in the South, it is in the North The atman indeed is all that is. He who sees, reflects and knows this-he has joy in the atman.
Sama Veda
Verily, he is pure, steadfast and unswerving,
stainless, unagitated, desireless, fixed like a spectator and self-abiding. As an enjoyer of righteousness, he covers himself with a veil made of qualities; [yet] he remains fixed-yea, he remains fixed!
Yajur Veda
He who with the truth of the atman, unified, perceives the truth of Brahman as with a lamp, who knows God, the unborn, the stable, free from all forms of being, is released
from all fetters.
Yajur Veda
A part of Infinite Consciousness becomes our own finite consciousness, with powers of discrimination and definition and with false conceptions. He is, in truth, Prajapati and Viva, the Source of Creation and the Universal in us all. This Spirit is consciousness and gives consciousness to the body. He is the driver of the chariot.
Yajur Veda
He who ells in he light et is other than the light whom the 4, light does not know, whose body is the light, who controls the light from within-He is the atman within you, Yajur Veda
pure consciousness, taking form as knowledge and ac on, is present in the soul everywhere and always, for the soul is universal in its unfettered state. ' Mrigendra Agama
The three impurities are anava, maya and he one caused by actions.
Suprabheda Agama
When the state is attained where one becomes Siva, the madas--the "bonds diverse, mental states and experiences that arose for the "individualized soul-will all fade like the beams of the moon in the presence of the rising sun.
Tirumantiram
When jiva attains the state of neutrality to deeds good and evil, then does divine grace in guru form descend, remove attributes all and implant jnana that is unto a heavenly cool shade. The jiva is without egoity, and the impurities three are finished. He is Siva who all this does. Tirumantiram
The primal play of the Lord were jivas created. Enveloped in mighty malas were they. Discarding them, they realized themselves d besought the feet of their hoary Lord. Thus they became Siva, to birth no more to be.
Tirumantiram
Goldsmith fashions several ornaments out of gold. So God, the eat goldsmith, makes many ornaments-different souls-out of e one Universal Spirit.
Natchintanai
Yhe atman is eternal. This is the conclusion at which great souls have arrived from their experience....
Natchintanai..
What Is Our Individual Soul Nature?
SLOKA 26
Our individual soul is the immortal and spiritual body of light that animates life and reincarnates again and again until all necessary karmas are created and resolved and its essential unity with God is fully realized. Aum.
BHASHYA
Our soul is God Siva's emanational creation, the source of all our higher functions, including knowledge, will and love. Our soul is neither male nor female. It is that which never dies, even when its four outer sheaths physical, pranic, instinctive and mental-change form and perish as they naturally do. The physical body is the annamaya kola. The pranic sheath of vitality is the pranamaya kola. The instinctive-intellectual sheath is the manomaya kosa. The mental, or cognitive, sheath is the vijnanamaya koala. The inmost soul body is the blissful, ever-giving-wisdom dnandamaya koala. Parasakti is the soul's superconscious mind-God Siva's mind. Parasiva is the soul's inmost core. We are not the physical body, mind or emotions. We are the immortal soul, atman. The sum of our true existence is anandamaya kola and its essence, Parasakti and Parasiva. The Vedas expostulate, "The soul is born and unfolds in a body, with dreams and desires and the food of life. And then it is reborn in new bodies, in accordance with its former works. The quality of the soul determines its future body; earthly or airy, heavy or light." Aum Namah Sivaya.
How Is Our Soul Different from Siva?
SLOKA 27
Our soul body was created in the image and likeness of the Primal Soul, God Siva, but it differs from the Primal Soul in that it is immature. While Siva is unevolutionary perfection, we are in the process of evolving. Aum.
BHASHYA
To understand the mysteries of the soul, we distinguish between the soul body and its essence. As a soul body, we are individual and unique, different from all others, a self-effulgent being of light which evolves and matures through an evolutionary process. This soul body is of the nature of God Siva, but is different from Siva in that it is less resplendent than the Primal Soul and still evolving, while God is unevolutionary perfection. We may liken the soul body to an acorn, which contains the mighty oak tree but is a small seed yet to develop. The soul body matures through experience, evolving through many lives into the splendor of God Siva, ultimately realizing Siva totally in nirvikalpa samdhi. Even after Self Realization is attained, the soul body continues to evolve in this and other worlds until it merges with the Primal Soul, as a drop of water merges with its source, the ocean. Yea, this is the destiny of all souls without exception. The Vedas say, "As oil in sesame seeds, as butter in cream, as water in river beds, as fire in friction sticks, so is the atman grasped in one's own self when one searches for Him
with truthfulness and austerity." Aum Namah Sivaya.
How Is Our Soul Identical with Siva?
SLOKA 28
The essence of our soul, which was never created, is immanent love and transcendent reality and is identical and eternally one with God Siva. At the core of our being, we already are That-perfect at this very moment. Aum.
BHASHYA
At the core of the subtle soul body is Parasakti, or Satchidananda,immanent love; and at the core of that is Parasiva, transcendent reality. At this depth of our being there exists no separate identity or difference-all are One. Thus, deep within our soul we are identical with God now and forever. These two divine perfections are not aspects of the evolving soul, but the nucleus of the soul which does not change or evolve. From an absolute perspective, our soul is already in nondual union with God, but to be realized to be known. We are That. We do not become That. Deep within this physical body, with its turbulent emotions and getting-educated mind, is pure perfection identical to Siva's own perfections of Parasakti and Parasiva. In this sacred mystery we find the paradoxes of oneness and twoness, of being and becoming, of created and uncreated existence subtly delineated. Yea, in the depth of our being, we are as He is. The Vedas explain, "The one controller, the inner Self of all things, who makes His one form manifold, to the wise who perceive Him as abiding in the soul, to them is eternal bliss-to no others:" Aum Namah Sivaya.
Why Are We Not Omniscient Like Siva?
SLOKA 29
The three bonds of anava, karma and maya veil our sight. This is Siva's purposeful limiting of awareness which allows us to evolve. In the superconscious depths of our soul, we share God Siva's all-knowingness. Aum.
BHASHYA
Just as children are kept from knowing all about adult life until they have matured into understanding, so too is the soul's knowledge limited. We learn what we need to know, and we understand what we have experienced. Only this narrowing of our awareness, coupled with a sense of individualized ego, allows us to look upon the world and our part in it from a practical, human point of view. Pasa is the soul's triple bondage: maya, karma and anava. Without the world of maya, the soul could not evolve through experience. Karma is the law of cause and effect, action and reaction governing maya. Anava is the individuating veil of duality, source of ignorance and finitude. Maya is the classroom, karma the teacher, and anava the student's ignorance. The three bonds, or malas, are given by Lord Siva to help and protect us as we unfold. Yet, God Siva's all-knowingness may be experienced for brief periods by the meditator who turns within to his own essence. The Tirumantiram explains, "When the soul attains Self-knowledge, then it becomes one with Siva. The malas perish, birth's cycle ends and the lustrous light of wisdom dawns:" Aum Namah Sivaya.
How Do Hindus Understand Moksha?
SLOKA 30
The destiny of all souls is moksha, liberation from rebirth on the physical plane. Our soul then continues evolving in the Antarloka and Sivaloka, and finally merges with Siva like water returning to the sea. Aum Namah Sivaya.
BHASHYA
Moksha comes when earthly karma has been resolved, dharma well performed and God fully realized. Each soul must have performed well through many lives the varna dharmas, or four castes, and lived through life's varied experiences, in order to not be pulled back to physical birth by a deed left undone. All souls are destined to achieve moksha, but not necessarily in this life. Hindus know this and do not delude themselves that this life is the last. While seeking and attaining profound realizations, they know there is much to be done in fulfilling life's other goals, purushdrthas-dharma, righteousness; artha, wealth; and kama, pleasure. Old souls renounce worldly ambitions and take up sannyasa in quest of Paragiva, even at a young age. Toward life's end, all Hindus strive for Self Realization, the gateway to liberation. After moksha, subtle karmas are made in inner realms and swiftly resolved, like writing on water. At the end of each soul's evolution comes visvagrasa, total absorption in Siva. The Vedas say, "If here one is able to realize Him before the death of the body, he will be liberated from the bondage of the world:" Aum Namah Sivaya.
HEALING: Conclusion, Part 14
be in health, even as thy soul prospereth." Therefore, they all yank this verse out of context and apply it to everybody! However, the verse was not directed to everybody. The proceeding verse 1, John states that he is talking to Gaius, a brother John had just heard had become a believer! It is him he is talking to wishing to prosper and be in good health! In verse three he says, "For I rejoiced greatly, when the brethren came and testified of the truth that is in thee, even as thou walkest in, the truth." So it was a specific person the message was directed to: Gaius!
This teaching, like many, can be pulled way out of balance, and believers can come into bondage by it. It is scriptural to expect to have your needs met by the Lord, and it is good stewardship to give to His work, but according to His plan! There is much more that could be said about this subject, however, it is not within the context of this thesis to do! So, except to briefly mention it goes right along with the faith healing doctrine!
CONCLUSION
It was not my purpose in this thesis to deny that God still heals divinely today, or that He is all through performing miracles. I certainly do believe He still heals, but only when He wills to do so, and not by men willing Him to do so! As far as miracles are concerned, life itself is a moment by moment miracle!
The new birth is a miracle! Every time one more of the elect is drawn into the kingdom by the Father (John 6:44), it is a miracle! However, again, whenever miracles do happen, they happen by the divine sovereignty of God, and not by the command of men.
The temporary sign gifts, which included the gifts of healings and miracles, were given to authenticate the preaching of the Gospel by God's appointed servants; the twelve apostles; the seventy, and a few of the apostles associates!. The gifts were not extended beyond them, as normative. However, in isolated cases, the Lord may choose to perform miracles and heal in answer to prayer, in order to verify the Gospel message to unbelievers who have never heard the Gospel, however, it would not happen in a Gospel hardened country like the United States or the like! In others, no one can put God in a systematic box. He can do what He wants, when he wants, how He wants. However, as normative procedure, He wants, how He wants.
However, as narrative procedure, He will act according to His already recorded word, the Bible which has been given to us as a record of His dealings with our ancestors, and as a lesson for us.
There are many counterfeit gifts being performed, usually for personal gratification, such as power, popularity, and financial. The psychic healers, cults, and anyone performing healings or miracles other than by the power of the Holy Spirit, which will always give glory to Christ, are Satanic manifestation. There are many fake healings being performed by them, but, there are real ones also!
God, in His divine sovereignty has allowed Satan to duplicate some of the gifts, in order to test the elect, and to further harden the reprobate, by offering them a delusion! Paul warns us, "Even him, whose coining is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders, and with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: that they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness." (2 Thess. 2:9-12).
Therefore, I trust the contents of this thesis gives glory to Christ by directing all power to Him, and to His will rather than the will of men. If we keep our eyes on Christ instead of signs and wonders, we will all get to see Christ face to face, and then we will have all the answers!
"I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from evil." (John 17:15).
THE END--Finis
Blessings! Eternal Flame
This teaching, like many, can be pulled way out of balance, and believers can come into bondage by it. It is scriptural to expect to have your needs met by the Lord, and it is good stewardship to give to His work, but according to His plan! There is much more that could be said about this subject, however, it is not within the context of this thesis to do! So, except to briefly mention it goes right along with the faith healing doctrine!
CONCLUSION
It was not my purpose in this thesis to deny that God still heals divinely today, or that He is all through performing miracles. I certainly do believe He still heals, but only when He wills to do so, and not by men willing Him to do so! As far as miracles are concerned, life itself is a moment by moment miracle!
The new birth is a miracle! Every time one more of the elect is drawn into the kingdom by the Father (John 6:44), it is a miracle! However, again, whenever miracles do happen, they happen by the divine sovereignty of God, and not by the command of men.
The temporary sign gifts, which included the gifts of healings and miracles, were given to authenticate the preaching of the Gospel by God's appointed servants; the twelve apostles; the seventy, and a few of the apostles associates!. The gifts were not extended beyond them, as normative. However, in isolated cases, the Lord may choose to perform miracles and heal in answer to prayer, in order to verify the Gospel message to unbelievers who have never heard the Gospel, however, it would not happen in a Gospel hardened country like the United States or the like! In others, no one can put God in a systematic box. He can do what He wants, when he wants, how He wants. However, as normative procedure, He wants, how He wants.
However, as narrative procedure, He will act according to His already recorded word, the Bible which has been given to us as a record of His dealings with our ancestors, and as a lesson for us.
There are many counterfeit gifts being performed, usually for personal gratification, such as power, popularity, and financial. The psychic healers, cults, and anyone performing healings or miracles other than by the power of the Holy Spirit, which will always give glory to Christ, are Satanic manifestation. There are many fake healings being performed by them, but, there are real ones also!
God, in His divine sovereignty has allowed Satan to duplicate some of the gifts, in order to test the elect, and to further harden the reprobate, by offering them a delusion! Paul warns us, "Even him, whose coining is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders, and with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: that they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness." (2 Thess. 2:9-12).
Therefore, I trust the contents of this thesis gives glory to Christ by directing all power to Him, and to His will rather than the will of men. If we keep our eyes on Christ instead of signs and wonders, we will all get to see Christ face to face, and then we will have all the answers!
"I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from evil." (John 17:15).
THE END--Finis
Blessings! Eternal Flame
HEALING: Part 13
.........by James in James 5:14,15,16. It reads, "Is any sick among you? Let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord: and the prayer of faith shall save the sick and the Lord shall raise him; and if he has committed sins, l they shall be forgiven him. Confess your faults one to another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much."
I do not believe that the present day anointing services are Biblical, because, from the context of the above verse, the sick person was to call for the elders of the church for prayer, rather than be emotionally charged up enough by a preacher inducing him to come to the altar for prayer. The elders were the pastors, or leaders in the church who were of course, believers. The fact that they are considered righteous from vs. 16, proves they were believers, because they would have needed the righteousness of God in Christ in order to get their prayer answered, as their own righteousness is as filthy rags, we are told in Isaiah 64:6. Also, since the elders were to pray over the sick person who called them to do so, this is an indication the person was lying down,, too sick to get up, or come to the elders on his own power!
This fact can be further verified, due to the fact that the prayers of the elders would raise him up (vs. 15). Also, notice it was the Lord doing the healing, and more than one elder was praying. Therefore, this eliminates the use of the "gift of healing" by any particular person, and when the Lord raised the sick person up, none of the individual elders could take the glory for it, as they would not know whose prayer brought the healing! The Lord gets all the glory, by this method, in answer to prayer!
I believe this is the most effective method of obtaining healings from the Lord today, however, that privilege is not exercised often enough! It is very rare, indeed when the sick actually call for the elders3 to come pray, and anoint with oil. The fact that they must call, exercises faith right at the start! However, it is usually the person praying who volunteers the prayer of faith, if the sick person can be induced to come forward in a meeting or service.
Notice that confessing of sins4 to each other was also another requirement (vs.16). Since all are sinners (Romans 3:23), the sick and the elders alike, all sin should be confessed to allow a holy, sure surrounding before the prayers and anointing with oil. This is another indication of a private setting, such as a sick room, either at home or elsewhere. How could this take place in a healing line at a church service? Can you imagine the healing evangelist confessing his sins to everyone before he prayed for them and vice versa? Verse 16 states, confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another. The prayers were to be a two way requirement, which would eliminate sin (vs.15) and then bring healing (vs. l6).
Therefore, compare the present anointing services to the above! I have seen an evangelist literally soak both hands in oil up to his wrists, and call all visiting pastors up to get his "anointing". Oil in the Old Testament was usually associated with the Holy Spirit, and being called out for His service.
I have also heard a preacher, when calling people for prayer, boast that he had a B.A. degree, and a D.D.H.G.. He said that meant he was "Born Again" and had a "Double Dose of the Holy Ghost".
PROSPERITY DOCTRINE-DOES GOD WANT US ALL RICH?
Those of us who have been Christians for six months or more all know who the "faith and prosperity" teachers are! They teach a doctrine that gets new converts excited, to say the least! I also tried my best to "confess my way into riches". I "confessed all the prosperity verses. I tried all the formulas. However, I never got rich!
I firmly believe that in giving, to the Lords work, or wherever He directs, must come from the heart first! Paul taught this when he said "For if there be first a willing mind, it is accepted according to that a man bath, and not according to that he bath not." (2 Cor. 8:12). So it does not matter what we give, as long as it is from a heart condition. Faith teachers, again pull many verses out of context to try and get ungrounded Christians to give to their projects! I could write an entire thesis just on the gimmicks I have seen used or offered. It actually saddens and grieves my heart to think about some of the ridiculous offers I get through the mail by my "personal" computer preacher who "loves me, and was told by the Lord in their living room a few moments ago I need a miracle, etc., etc., etc. It's absolutely saddening, to say the least, how these ministries will get themselves in preposterous financial difficulty, and have to hire professional fund raisers to try every gimmick under the sun (but not the Son) to bring in those dollars! However, there is no need to go into the methods, because if the reader has been a Christian six months or more, he is on the mailing lists also!
The prosperity message is propagated about the same by all those teaching it except with a personal "slant" identified their individual plans such as "blessing pacts", "Seed Faith offerings", etc. They all state that you give to the Lord expecting to receive back 30, 60, 100 fold in return! I firmly believe that if your heart is right, you cannot outgive the Lord! He will take care of all your needs, (but not your greeds).
The first and formost Scripture verse quoted to teach that God wants everyone rich is 1 John 1:2. "Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and
CONT.>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
I do not believe that the present day anointing services are Biblical, because, from the context of the above verse, the sick person was to call for the elders of the church for prayer, rather than be emotionally charged up enough by a preacher inducing him to come to the altar for prayer. The elders were the pastors, or leaders in the church who were of course, believers. The fact that they are considered righteous from vs. 16, proves they were believers, because they would have needed the righteousness of God in Christ in order to get their prayer answered, as their own righteousness is as filthy rags, we are told in Isaiah 64:6. Also, since the elders were to pray over the sick person who called them to do so, this is an indication the person was lying down,, too sick to get up, or come to the elders on his own power!
This fact can be further verified, due to the fact that the prayers of the elders would raise him up (vs. 15). Also, notice it was the Lord doing the healing, and more than one elder was praying. Therefore, this eliminates the use of the "gift of healing" by any particular person, and when the Lord raised the sick person up, none of the individual elders could take the glory for it, as they would not know whose prayer brought the healing! The Lord gets all the glory, by this method, in answer to prayer!
I believe this is the most effective method of obtaining healings from the Lord today, however, that privilege is not exercised often enough! It is very rare, indeed when the sick actually call for the elders3 to come pray, and anoint with oil. The fact that they must call, exercises faith right at the start! However, it is usually the person praying who volunteers the prayer of faith, if the sick person can be induced to come forward in a meeting or service.
Notice that confessing of sins4 to each other was also another requirement (vs.16). Since all are sinners (Romans 3:23), the sick and the elders alike, all sin should be confessed to allow a holy, sure surrounding before the prayers and anointing with oil. This is another indication of a private setting, such as a sick room, either at home or elsewhere. How could this take place in a healing line at a church service? Can you imagine the healing evangelist confessing his sins to everyone before he prayed for them and vice versa? Verse 16 states, confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another. The prayers were to be a two way requirement, which would eliminate sin (vs.15) and then bring healing (vs. l6).
Therefore, compare the present anointing services to the above! I have seen an evangelist literally soak both hands in oil up to his wrists, and call all visiting pastors up to get his "anointing". Oil in the Old Testament was usually associated with the Holy Spirit, and being called out for His service.
I have also heard a preacher, when calling people for prayer, boast that he had a B.A. degree, and a D.D.H.G.. He said that meant he was "Born Again" and had a "Double Dose of the Holy Ghost".
PROSPERITY DOCTRINE-DOES GOD WANT US ALL RICH?
Those of us who have been Christians for six months or more all know who the "faith and prosperity" teachers are! They teach a doctrine that gets new converts excited, to say the least! I also tried my best to "confess my way into riches". I "confessed all the prosperity verses. I tried all the formulas. However, I never got rich!
I firmly believe that in giving, to the Lords work, or wherever He directs, must come from the heart first! Paul taught this when he said "For if there be first a willing mind, it is accepted according to that a man bath, and not according to that he bath not." (2 Cor. 8:12). So it does not matter what we give, as long as it is from a heart condition. Faith teachers, again pull many verses out of context to try and get ungrounded Christians to give to their projects! I could write an entire thesis just on the gimmicks I have seen used or offered. It actually saddens and grieves my heart to think about some of the ridiculous offers I get through the mail by my "personal" computer preacher who "loves me, and was told by the Lord in their living room a few moments ago I need a miracle, etc., etc., etc. It's absolutely saddening, to say the least, how these ministries will get themselves in preposterous financial difficulty, and have to hire professional fund raisers to try every gimmick under the sun (but not the Son) to bring in those dollars! However, there is no need to go into the methods, because if the reader has been a Christian six months or more, he is on the mailing lists also!
The prosperity message is propagated about the same by all those teaching it except with a personal "slant" identified their individual plans such as "blessing pacts", "Seed Faith offerings", etc. They all state that you give to the Lord expecting to receive back 30, 60, 100 fold in return! I firmly believe that if your heart is right, you cannot outgive the Lord! He will take care of all your needs, (but not your greeds).
The first and formost Scripture verse quoted to teach that God wants everyone rich is 1 John 1:2. "Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and
CONT.>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
HEALING: Part 12
...........When healers treat serious organic diseases they are responsible for untold anguish and unhappiness; this happens because they keep patients away from possibly effective and lifesaving help. The healers become killers.
"Search the literature as I have, and you will find no documented cures by healers of gallstones, heart disease, cancer or any other serious organic disease. Certainly, you'll find patients temporarily relieved of their upset stomachs, their chest pains, their breathing problems; and you will find healers, and believers, who will interpret this interruption of symptoms as evidence that the disease is cured. But when you track the patient down and find out what happened later, you always find the 'cure' to have purely symptomatic and transient.
The underlying disease remains." (pp. 60,239,250,256,257, 259,260).
Dr. Nolen then went on in his investigation, and took eighty cases of Kathryn Kuhlman's reported healings, and followed them up as per her suggestion and permission. He followed up on every one of them! His conclusion at the end of it all---not one was a legitimate healing!
Quoting further from his conclusion: "Now consider Kathryn Kuhlman. In a letter sent to by Marilyn March, Kathryn Kuhlman's secretary, Ms. March says that Miss Kuhlman conducts 'approximately 125 healing services in a year's time.' Attendance at these services varies; Ms. March mentioned that 'there are always 7,000 in attendance at the once-a-month services at the Shrine Auditorium in L.A.,' in Tulsa, Oklahoma, '18,000 people in Mabee Center with 3,000 viewing on closed-circuit T.V.'; in Atlanta, 8,000; in Ottowa, 16,000. Let's assume that Miss Kuhlman has an opportunity to treat an average of 10,000 patients per service, or 1,250,000 patients a year. We will have to guess, but I think it would be reasonable to say that one third of these patients are cancer victims - about 400,000 cancer victims a year. Miss Kuhlman, therefore, may treat 4,000 times as many cancer patients as I treat in one year, and I have, by national standards, a very busy surgical practice. It would be highly likely that in the approximately 400,000 cancer victims that come to her every year, there might be one patient who would fall into the spontaneous regression category. I Know Kathryn Kuhlman (or Norbu Chen, or Tony Agpaoa or any other healer) will never find among the patients she treats a spontaneous cure of a cleft palate, a hernia, gallstones, heart disease, paralysis due to injury, or any of the hundreds of other organic ailments for which patients seek help. What I find most unusual is that there are no well-documented spontaneous cancer cures reported in her books. You'd think, among the millions of cancer patients healers treat, at least one or two would demonstrate a spontaneous regression.
"My point, in case I haven't made it clear, is that even if we were to find isolated cases of documented cancer cures in the files of Miss Kuhlman or any other healer, it would prove nothing; isolated spontaneous cures of cancer occur with or without the ministrations of healers. The chances of being cured of cancer by Kathryn Kuhlman or any other healer are the same as the chances of being cured if you do nothing and go to on one at all. To be logical, the cancer patient should go to a healer only if the healer had a cure rate of 50 per cent or better - the cure rate physicians can achieve. But cancer patients who go to healers are emotionally distraught and for this reason don't act logically." (pp. 266, 267)
The preceeding insert may have taken several pages to document its contents, but I feel it brings alot of light on the subject by a secular, unbiased report. So just because we hear about the many various reports of healings does not necessarily mean we have to believe them. Before we believe, we should look at all the evidence, to determine if it is genuine. Where is the evidence? Where are the organic, spontaneous healings? Where are the healings of broken bones, cancer, etc.?
In order for healing to be divine, which is the only genuine lasting healings, it should follow the pattern of the way Jesus healed! He healed with a word (Matthew 8:5-8); He healed with a touch (Mark 5:25-34); He healed instantaneously (Mark 5:29; Luke 17:14; Jn. 9:7; Mark 8:24); He healed totally (Luke 4:39,39); He healed everyone who came to him for healing! "Now when the sun was setting, all they had any who were sick with variousdiseases, brought them unto Him; and He laid His hands on every one of them, and healed them." (Luke 4:40). This record certainly is different than the healings which take place in our present healing meetings! Jesus also healed organic disease! He healed people crippled from birth, and blind from birth, besides deaf and dumb. Jesus didn't seek out people to pray for with breathing problems, palpitation of the heart, low back pain, etc. Jesus raised the dead!
God still does heal and perform miracles today. Nothing is impossible to Him. However, He does it for His glory, not to give publicity to faith healers! There is no evidence Biblically that anyone today is operating the gift of healing. God may heal through prayers of His saints (John 5:15), but that should not be confused with His healing in response to prayer with the ability to heal everyone as well, as in the case of Jesus, and the apostles, seventy, and a few of the associates of the apostles!
ARE "ANOINTING" SERVICES BIBLICAL?
Anointing services, with the use of all kinds of oil are very common today in many charismatic or Pentecostal churches. Prayer lines are formed, and the person to be prayed for is moistened with oil, usually on the forehead, and prayed for. The scripture passage where this procedure is taken from, by most of those doing it is recorded
CONT.>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
"Search the literature as I have, and you will find no documented cures by healers of gallstones, heart disease, cancer or any other serious organic disease. Certainly, you'll find patients temporarily relieved of their upset stomachs, their chest pains, their breathing problems; and you will find healers, and believers, who will interpret this interruption of symptoms as evidence that the disease is cured. But when you track the patient down and find out what happened later, you always find the 'cure' to have purely symptomatic and transient.
The underlying disease remains." (pp. 60,239,250,256,257, 259,260).
Dr. Nolen then went on in his investigation, and took eighty cases of Kathryn Kuhlman's reported healings, and followed them up as per her suggestion and permission. He followed up on every one of them! His conclusion at the end of it all---not one was a legitimate healing!
Quoting further from his conclusion: "Now consider Kathryn Kuhlman. In a letter sent to by Marilyn March, Kathryn Kuhlman's secretary, Ms. March says that Miss Kuhlman conducts 'approximately 125 healing services in a year's time.' Attendance at these services varies; Ms. March mentioned that 'there are always 7,000 in attendance at the once-a-month services at the Shrine Auditorium in L.A.,' in Tulsa, Oklahoma, '18,000 people in Mabee Center with 3,000 viewing on closed-circuit T.V.'; in Atlanta, 8,000; in Ottowa, 16,000. Let's assume that Miss Kuhlman has an opportunity to treat an average of 10,000 patients per service, or 1,250,000 patients a year. We will have to guess, but I think it would be reasonable to say that one third of these patients are cancer victims - about 400,000 cancer victims a year. Miss Kuhlman, therefore, may treat 4,000 times as many cancer patients as I treat in one year, and I have, by national standards, a very busy surgical practice. It would be highly likely that in the approximately 400,000 cancer victims that come to her every year, there might be one patient who would fall into the spontaneous regression category. I Know Kathryn Kuhlman (or Norbu Chen, or Tony Agpaoa or any other healer) will never find among the patients she treats a spontaneous cure of a cleft palate, a hernia, gallstones, heart disease, paralysis due to injury, or any of the hundreds of other organic ailments for which patients seek help. What I find most unusual is that there are no well-documented spontaneous cancer cures reported in her books. You'd think, among the millions of cancer patients healers treat, at least one or two would demonstrate a spontaneous regression.
"My point, in case I haven't made it clear, is that even if we were to find isolated cases of documented cancer cures in the files of Miss Kuhlman or any other healer, it would prove nothing; isolated spontaneous cures of cancer occur with or without the ministrations of healers. The chances of being cured of cancer by Kathryn Kuhlman or any other healer are the same as the chances of being cured if you do nothing and go to on one at all. To be logical, the cancer patient should go to a healer only if the healer had a cure rate of 50 per cent or better - the cure rate physicians can achieve. But cancer patients who go to healers are emotionally distraught and for this reason don't act logically." (pp. 266, 267)
The preceeding insert may have taken several pages to document its contents, but I feel it brings alot of light on the subject by a secular, unbiased report. So just because we hear about the many various reports of healings does not necessarily mean we have to believe them. Before we believe, we should look at all the evidence, to determine if it is genuine. Where is the evidence? Where are the organic, spontaneous healings? Where are the healings of broken bones, cancer, etc.?
In order for healing to be divine, which is the only genuine lasting healings, it should follow the pattern of the way Jesus healed! He healed with a word (Matthew 8:5-8); He healed with a touch (Mark 5:25-34); He healed instantaneously (Mark 5:29; Luke 17:14; Jn. 9:7; Mark 8:24); He healed totally (Luke 4:39,39); He healed everyone who came to him for healing! "Now when the sun was setting, all they had any who were sick with variousdiseases, brought them unto Him; and He laid His hands on every one of them, and healed them." (Luke 4:40). This record certainly is different than the healings which take place in our present healing meetings! Jesus also healed organic disease! He healed people crippled from birth, and blind from birth, besides deaf and dumb. Jesus didn't seek out people to pray for with breathing problems, palpitation of the heart, low back pain, etc. Jesus raised the dead!
God still does heal and perform miracles today. Nothing is impossible to Him. However, He does it for His glory, not to give publicity to faith healers! There is no evidence Biblically that anyone today is operating the gift of healing. God may heal through prayers of His saints (John 5:15), but that should not be confused with His healing in response to prayer with the ability to heal everyone as well, as in the case of Jesus, and the apostles, seventy, and a few of the associates of the apostles!
ARE "ANOINTING" SERVICES BIBLICAL?
Anointing services, with the use of all kinds of oil are very common today in many charismatic or Pentecostal churches. Prayer lines are formed, and the person to be prayed for is moistened with oil, usually on the forehead, and prayed for. The scripture passage where this procedure is taken from, by most of those doing it is recorded
CONT.>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
HEALING: Part 11
.........will find that in all the cases of so-called healers, the only types of healings they ever accomplish are functional, never organic. They are only dealing with the symptom.
I believe at this point in this thesis is to insert some quotations from a book which has been gleaned from a chapter on Charismatic healers. The author is not a Christian, but is interestingly objective. The book is entitled "Healing: A Doctor in Search of a Miracle", by William Nolen M.D. (New York: Random House, 1974). The excerts are kind of lengthy but I feel very appropriate to quote at this time. He discusses the late Kathryn Kuhlman, who was the most widely proclaimed lady healer of our century. When ever I ever speak against faith healing, always, her reported success will be brought up!
Nolan exclaims: "Finally it was over. There were still long lines of people waiting to get onto the stage and claim their cures, but at five O'clock, with a hymn and final blessing, the show ended. Miss Kuhlman left the stage and the audience left the auditorium."
"Before going back to talk to Miss Kuhlman, I spent a few minutes watching the wheelchair patients leave. All the desperately ill patients who had been in wheelchairs were still in wheelchairs. In fact, the man with the kidney cancer in his spine and hip, the man whom I had helped to the auditorium and who had his borrowed wheelchair brought to the stage and shown to the audience when he had claimed a cure, was now back in the wheelchair. His 'cure', even if only a hysterical one, had been extremely short lived. "As I stood in the corridor watching the hopeless cases leave, seeing the tears of the parents as they pushed their crippled children to the elevators, I wished Miss Kuhlman had been with me. She had complained a couple of times during the service of the 'responsibility, the enormous responsibility', and of how her 'heart aches for those that weren't cured,' but I wondered how often she had really looked at them. I wondered whether she sincerely felt that the joy of those 'cured' of bursitis and arthritis compensated for the anguish of those left with their withered legs, their umbecilic children, their cancers of the liver. "
"I wondered if she really knew what damage she was doing. I couldn't believe that she did. Here are some aspects of the medical healing process about which some of us know nothing and none of us know enough. To start with the body's ability to heal itself; Kathryn Kuhlman often says, 'I don't heal; the Holy Spirit heals through me.' I suspect there are two reasons why Miss Kuhlman continually repeats this statement: first if the patient doesn't improve, the Holy Spirit, not Kathryn Kuhlman gets the blame; second, she hasn't the foggiest notion of what healing is all about and once she puts the responsibility on the shoulders of the Holy Spirit she can answer, if questions about her healing powers, 'I don't know. The Holy Spirit does it all.'
"Let me repeat: A charismatic individual, a healer, can sometimes influence a patient and cure symptoms or a functional disease by suggestion. A healer can sometimes influence a patient and cure symptoms or a functional disease by suggestion, with or without a laying on of hands. Physicians- Can do the same thing. These cures are not miraculous; they result from corrections made by the patient in the function of his automatic system. We do not know yet how to control this system, but we are learning. All healers use hypnosis to some extent. ('See-your pain is going away. Isn't that wonderful?)
"Doctors use hypnosis, or suggestion, frequently. When I give a patient a pill or a shot, I make a point of saying, 'This medicine should make you better in twenty-four or forty-eight hours. This medicine always works very well! I know that in some cases I am going to get better results if I suggest to the patient that the medicine will work than I would if I said, 'Well, I don't know about this medicine---sometimes it works pretty well, sometimes it's not so hot. We'll give it a try and hope for the best. There's alot to the power of positive thinking. Particularly where functional disorders are concerned.
"Hypnotism is not something with which one should trifle. Relieving symptoms can be dangerous. Remember the poor woman whose back pain went away at Kathryn Kuhlman's suggestion, leaving her temporarily free to frolic until her cancerous vertebrae collapsed? Symptoms-pain, nausea, dizziness - may be purely psychological, but they may also be the warning signals of dangerous, possibly life threatening, organic (as opposed to function) diseases. To eliminate a symptom without getting a the cause of that symptom can cause delay in treatment which may be serious or even fatal.
"Now,, finally, in our attempt to understand 'healing', we must deal with organic diseases - diseases that are caused not simply be disfunction of an organ, but by derangement of the structure of an organ or organs.
Infections, heart attacks, gallstones, hernias, slipped discs, cancers of all kinds, broken bones, congenital deformities, lacerations, and multitudes of other diseases and subdivisions of those I have mentioned are included in the organic-disease classification. Some organic diseases are self-limited, i.e., healed by the body itself; the common cold and minor sprains are examples of such ailments. But to cure many organic diseases, the body needs help.
"These are the diseases that healers, even the most charismatic, cannot cure. When they attempt to do so - and they all fall into this trap, since they know and care nothing of the differences between functional and organic diseases, they tread on very dangerous ground.
CONT.>>>>>>>>>>>>
I believe at this point in this thesis is to insert some quotations from a book which has been gleaned from a chapter on Charismatic healers. The author is not a Christian, but is interestingly objective. The book is entitled "Healing: A Doctor in Search of a Miracle", by William Nolen M.D. (New York: Random House, 1974). The excerts are kind of lengthy but I feel very appropriate to quote at this time. He discusses the late Kathryn Kuhlman, who was the most widely proclaimed lady healer of our century. When ever I ever speak against faith healing, always, her reported success will be brought up!
Nolan exclaims: "Finally it was over. There were still long lines of people waiting to get onto the stage and claim their cures, but at five O'clock, with a hymn and final blessing, the show ended. Miss Kuhlman left the stage and the audience left the auditorium."
"Before going back to talk to Miss Kuhlman, I spent a few minutes watching the wheelchair patients leave. All the desperately ill patients who had been in wheelchairs were still in wheelchairs. In fact, the man with the kidney cancer in his spine and hip, the man whom I had helped to the auditorium and who had his borrowed wheelchair brought to the stage and shown to the audience when he had claimed a cure, was now back in the wheelchair. His 'cure', even if only a hysterical one, had been extremely short lived. "As I stood in the corridor watching the hopeless cases leave, seeing the tears of the parents as they pushed their crippled children to the elevators, I wished Miss Kuhlman had been with me. She had complained a couple of times during the service of the 'responsibility, the enormous responsibility', and of how her 'heart aches for those that weren't cured,' but I wondered how often she had really looked at them. I wondered whether she sincerely felt that the joy of those 'cured' of bursitis and arthritis compensated for the anguish of those left with their withered legs, their umbecilic children, their cancers of the liver. "
"I wondered if she really knew what damage she was doing. I couldn't believe that she did. Here are some aspects of the medical healing process about which some of us know nothing and none of us know enough. To start with the body's ability to heal itself; Kathryn Kuhlman often says, 'I don't heal; the Holy Spirit heals through me.' I suspect there are two reasons why Miss Kuhlman continually repeats this statement: first if the patient doesn't improve, the Holy Spirit, not Kathryn Kuhlman gets the blame; second, she hasn't the foggiest notion of what healing is all about and once she puts the responsibility on the shoulders of the Holy Spirit she can answer, if questions about her healing powers, 'I don't know. The Holy Spirit does it all.'
"Let me repeat: A charismatic individual, a healer, can sometimes influence a patient and cure symptoms or a functional disease by suggestion. A healer can sometimes influence a patient and cure symptoms or a functional disease by suggestion, with or without a laying on of hands. Physicians- Can do the same thing. These cures are not miraculous; they result from corrections made by the patient in the function of his automatic system. We do not know yet how to control this system, but we are learning. All healers use hypnosis to some extent. ('See-your pain is going away. Isn't that wonderful?)
"Doctors use hypnosis, or suggestion, frequently. When I give a patient a pill or a shot, I make a point of saying, 'This medicine should make you better in twenty-four or forty-eight hours. This medicine always works very well! I know that in some cases I am going to get better results if I suggest to the patient that the medicine will work than I would if I said, 'Well, I don't know about this medicine---sometimes it works pretty well, sometimes it's not so hot. We'll give it a try and hope for the best. There's alot to the power of positive thinking. Particularly where functional disorders are concerned.
"Hypnotism is not something with which one should trifle. Relieving symptoms can be dangerous. Remember the poor woman whose back pain went away at Kathryn Kuhlman's suggestion, leaving her temporarily free to frolic until her cancerous vertebrae collapsed? Symptoms-pain, nausea, dizziness - may be purely psychological, but they may also be the warning signals of dangerous, possibly life threatening, organic (as opposed to function) diseases. To eliminate a symptom without getting a the cause of that symptom can cause delay in treatment which may be serious or even fatal.
"Now,, finally, in our attempt to understand 'healing', we must deal with organic diseases - diseases that are caused not simply be disfunction of an organ, but by derangement of the structure of an organ or organs.
Infections, heart attacks, gallstones, hernias, slipped discs, cancers of all kinds, broken bones, congenital deformities, lacerations, and multitudes of other diseases and subdivisions of those I have mentioned are included in the organic-disease classification. Some organic diseases are self-limited, i.e., healed by the body itself; the common cold and minor sprains are examples of such ailments. But to cure many organic diseases, the body needs help.
"These are the diseases that healers, even the most charismatic, cannot cure. When they attempt to do so - and they all fall into this trap, since they know and care nothing of the differences between functional and organic diseases, they tread on very dangerous ground.
CONT.>>>>>>>>>>>>
HEALING: Part 10
...........person, commanding her to be healed, and audibally saying to her "I command you to be healed. I call those things which are not as though they were, and command them to be so." That brother was sincere in his action, and was full of zeal and faith, as I was, when I preached the faith healing message, but of course he had a wrong interpretation of the verse. God is the only one who does the calling of things that are not as if they are! That is how he created the earth!
Then Romans 10:9 is often used. "If thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved." The word "saved" here, coming from that Greek word "Sozo", can also mean "heal or , make whole",so they say "confess your healing". However, the word must always be interpreted according to that particular context, and in this case, the verse is specifically dealing with spiritual salvation, because in the following verse 10, it says "For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation." It is obvious, you must believe you are saved before you tell anyone your confession or confirmation! A good cross reference to that verse is Psalms 116:10 which verifies this very fact. It states: "I believed, therefore, I have spoken".
Also Paul states in 2 Corinthians 4:13, "we having the same spirit of faith,according 'as it is written, I believed and thereforehave I spoken; we also believe, and therefore speak."We are told by the faith teachers that Christianityis a religion of confession, and confession means, saying what God says. Then, they use a lot of other verses to confirm their teaching, but usually have them out of context.
For instance, it says, "Death and life are in the power of the tongue." (Psalms 18:21) Does that mean I can confess my healing over and over, and never die? No, it means if I have eternal life though Christ I will confess Him before men, and live (Matthew 10:32); and if you deny Him before men, you will perish, and loose eternal life! (Matthew 10:33) Jesus Himself stated the great plan of man's confession to life or death. "whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven. But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven."
There are verses however, that definitely teach you to speak good things, but they in no way promise healing or miracles. A few of those verses are: "Put away from thee a forward mouth, and perverse lips put far from thee." (Proverbs 4:24). "Thou art snared with the words of thy mouth, thou are taken with the words of thy mouth." (Proverbs 6:2) The faith teachers use that verse to put people in bondage, by putting fear into them of even accidentally saying any negative words, which would cancel any positive confession already confessed! They say to not admit or say that you are corning down with a cold, even if you do have a runny nose, or once you confess it, it is just like signing for the package, you will definitely get it! However, when you stop and think about that statement, it really is ridiculous.
Those that came to Jesus to ask for healing told Him what they wanted healing from. When I prayed for people, I would always ask them what their sickness was first, in order to be more specific in my prayer to the Lord to heal them. Again, this verse means that the words from your mouth that are snare, are the words that an unbeliever uses to deny God! James, in his epistle, talks about the power of the tongue also. (James 1:26;3:6,8) But again, it means the same thing.
The tongue must be used to confess Christ and the fact of salvation! "Let us hold fast the profession (or confession) of our faith without wavering." (Hebrews 10:23) So the proper confession always has to do with the Gospel of salvation, and our possession of it. "Whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, pure, lovely, of good report, if there be any virtue or praise, think on these things." (Phil. 4:8). "To him that ordereth his conversation aright3 will I show the salvation of God." (Psalms 50:23) "For by thy words thou shalt be condemned." (If you deny Him) (Matthew 12:37). Therefore, the main reason, and the purpose of "positive confession" is to confess Christ as saviour before men, 4 and to proclaim His saving grace to the unbelieving world in order to gather the elect into the kingdom. "I am not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God unto salvation to those who believe, the Jew first, and also the Greek." (Romans 1:16)
.
FUNCTIONAL VS. ORGANIC DISEASE
It's a known fact that the mind can aid in healing the body of some types of illnesses. That is the main reason why the mind science cults such as Christian Science and many others report their many claims of healing successes. These healings come from positive suggestions that healing is available and they can, or will get it. Even the Roman Catholic Church has reported all types of healings.
The mind is a powerful influence on healing, when the right suggestions, or stimulations are given it. In your mind you must make a destinction between functional disease and an organic disease. A functional disease is diagnosed when a perfectly good organ does not function properly. An organic disease is diagnosed when the organ is organically destroyed, maimed, or crippled. The functional disease had only a symptom without a reality. An organic disease has a reality and a symptom. And, you
CONT.>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Then Romans 10:9 is often used. "If thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved." The word "saved" here, coming from that Greek word "Sozo", can also mean "heal or , make whole",so they say "confess your healing". However, the word must always be interpreted according to that particular context, and in this case, the verse is specifically dealing with spiritual salvation, because in the following verse 10, it says "For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation." It is obvious, you must believe you are saved before you tell anyone your confession or confirmation! A good cross reference to that verse is Psalms 116:10 which verifies this very fact. It states: "I believed, therefore, I have spoken".
Also Paul states in 2 Corinthians 4:13, "we having the same spirit of faith,according 'as it is written, I believed and thereforehave I spoken; we also believe, and therefore speak."We are told by the faith teachers that Christianityis a religion of confession, and confession means, saying what God says. Then, they use a lot of other verses to confirm their teaching, but usually have them out of context.
For instance, it says, "Death and life are in the power of the tongue." (Psalms 18:21) Does that mean I can confess my healing over and over, and never die? No, it means if I have eternal life though Christ I will confess Him before men, and live (Matthew 10:32); and if you deny Him before men, you will perish, and loose eternal life! (Matthew 10:33) Jesus Himself stated the great plan of man's confession to life or death. "whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven. But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven."
There are verses however, that definitely teach you to speak good things, but they in no way promise healing or miracles. A few of those verses are: "Put away from thee a forward mouth, and perverse lips put far from thee." (Proverbs 4:24). "Thou art snared with the words of thy mouth, thou are taken with the words of thy mouth." (Proverbs 6:2) The faith teachers use that verse to put people in bondage, by putting fear into them of even accidentally saying any negative words, which would cancel any positive confession already confessed! They say to not admit or say that you are corning down with a cold, even if you do have a runny nose, or once you confess it, it is just like signing for the package, you will definitely get it! However, when you stop and think about that statement, it really is ridiculous.
Those that came to Jesus to ask for healing told Him what they wanted healing from. When I prayed for people, I would always ask them what their sickness was first, in order to be more specific in my prayer to the Lord to heal them. Again, this verse means that the words from your mouth that are snare, are the words that an unbeliever uses to deny God! James, in his epistle, talks about the power of the tongue also. (James 1:26;3:6,8) But again, it means the same thing.
The tongue must be used to confess Christ and the fact of salvation! "Let us hold fast the profession (or confession) of our faith without wavering." (Hebrews 10:23) So the proper confession always has to do with the Gospel of salvation, and our possession of it. "Whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, pure, lovely, of good report, if there be any virtue or praise, think on these things." (Phil. 4:8). "To him that ordereth his conversation aright3 will I show the salvation of God." (Psalms 50:23) "For by thy words thou shalt be condemned." (If you deny Him) (Matthew 12:37). Therefore, the main reason, and the purpose of "positive confession" is to confess Christ as saviour before men, 4 and to proclaim His saving grace to the unbelieving world in order to gather the elect into the kingdom. "I am not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God unto salvation to those who believe, the Jew first, and also the Greek." (Romans 1:16)
.
FUNCTIONAL VS. ORGANIC DISEASE
It's a known fact that the mind can aid in healing the body of some types of illnesses. That is the main reason why the mind science cults such as Christian Science and many others report their many claims of healing successes. These healings come from positive suggestions that healing is available and they can, or will get it. Even the Roman Catholic Church has reported all types of healings.
The mind is a powerful influence on healing, when the right suggestions, or stimulations are given it. In your mind you must make a destinction between functional disease and an organic disease. A functional disease is diagnosed when a perfectly good organ does not function properly. An organic disease is diagnosed when the organ is organically destroyed, maimed, or crippled. The functional disease had only a symptom without a reality. An organic disease has a reality and a symptom. And, you
CONT.>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
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