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I was thinking about a situation I was in recently where I was doing interdenominational ministry. I need to be vague so nobody can figure out if I’m talking about them or not, but I remember someone asking me if I had a “baptist” version of my newsletter. Or a ‘non-charismatic’ version–I forget the exact wording. But the idea was this particular friend didn’t want me to shoot any chances I had of receiving some kind of respect from her colleagues and was encouraging me to downplay or lighten up on a few points of doctrine. Well, not even my doctrine, but lifestyle–I don’t necessarily talk about some things but just do it.
Like if someone tells me they are sick or would like prayer–I offer to do it right then and there–not later.
Oh, and I expect the prayer of faith to heal them, just like the Bible says it will.
This friend of mine wanted me to save myself some embarrassment because her colleagues don’t believe in divine healing and I should back off of stuff they don’t believe in.
It’s a good thing I don’t ask for permission in some situations. It’s a good thing I try never to find out what people believe or I’d be nervous and modify what I am planning on preaching.
Or I might still not care, but either way, I don’t bother to find out. I don’t feel the need to hide what I believe from other Christians. Funny thing when the most flack I get from people in life over my beliefs are not atheists or backsliders, but other religious folk.
At least when an atheist tells me they don’t believe God heals miraculously, they’re being consistent with their worldview. But when Christians can’t agree with me that the Bible means things it says, I get really confused.
I sometimes think the reason we don’t like to believe in healing is because it puts responsibility on us. We like God to be “sovereign” and “nothing happens unless He says so”. If that is the way He is we might as well not do anything but just sit around and watch TV and drink Kool-Aid and eat popcorn, and not go off into other countries as missionaries.
Have you ever noticed God doesn’t seem to be so “sovereign” about evangelism? We don’t just pray and twiddle our thumbs hoping God will save someone, but we actively engage in witnessing or evangelising to get them saved, using our mouths, or inviting people to things that will present a Gospel message to them?
But suddenly, when it comes to healing, it’s a different story and we sit back and blame God when someone’s not healed.
How about we just believe the Bible, and do it? No more “God is sovereign” excuses for our responsibilities.
This line is so key for me.
*Funny thing when the most flack I get from people in life over my beliefs are not atheists or backsliders, but other religious folk.*
Religious folk, that speaks volumes because following Christ is not a religion, it just is. Man made religions and that is what has broken the body up into it’s fragmented state.
Right on +Steve Bremner How about we just believe the Bible?
Good article!
Thanks for the encouragement!
I love the +steve bremner here. Shows what social network you’re a fan of!
Hey Steve,
Nice post!
This is so true..”How about we just believe the Bible, and do it?” When folks come and ask for prayer, I stop right then and there and bring it before the Lord in faith.
Best,
Tim
Agreed. It’s so easy to make praying for someone a thing we do later when they’re not around any more. And it’s also so much easier to forget to do it when we go home or we are alone later.
Thanks for the kind words.
Corrrr! tough one Steve.
I’ll be honest I’ve become more sinical than I should over healings. (please pray for that) I remember being 19 and just going up to people, praying, and seeing things happen…or not. After a while I started “listening to common sense” and not doing it as much.
I think you may have seen me post this before but I love what soren kierkegaard said about the bible.
“The matter is quite simple. The bible is very easy to understand. But we Christians are a bunch of scheming swindlers. We pretend to be unable to understand it because we know very well that the minute we understand, we are obliged to act accordingly. Take any words in the New Testament and forget everything except pledging yourself to act accordingly. My God, you will say, if I do that my whole life will be ruined. How would I ever get on in the world? Herein lies the real place of Christian scholarship. Christian scholarship is the Church’s prodigious invention to defend itself against the Bible, to ensure that we can continue to be good Christians without the Bible coming too close. Oh, priceless scholarship, what would we do without you? Dreadful it is to fall into the hands of the living God. Yes it is even dreadful to be alone with the New Testament.”
Thanks for the *honest* comment. My ebook is called 6 Lies People Believe About Divine Healing. The purpose is two-fold–to help people who are hard pressed to see the healing they are waiting for, and to encourage the rest to lay hands on other sick people to see healings.
I too wrestle with how come my feet still have fallen arches, when I’ve received a lot of prayer. I’ve laid my hands on other people for the same problem and seen it happen. I could get cynical about how I didn’t receive but others did, or I can rejoice that God is doing amazing stuff and be happy for others. At any rate, I hear you on some level.
Thanks for the encouragement. I know my reaction doesn’t make sense and this was a great prompt to start praying more (like there is ever a time when we don’t need to be prompted of that!)
Thanks Steve. Let’s hangout soon!