Monday 23 May 2011

Power in The Word

The Bible is full of miracles, it is bursting at the seams with what God has done, what He is going to do and what He is capable of doing.
It is often referred to as "The Word of God", but this is an inaccurate description of what it is. It is less than a tiny percentage of what God is actually capable of, of what He has said and of who He is.
Besides, John 1:1 is one of the most loaded verses in the Bible:

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. NKJV

If the Bible is the Word of God, then why does it say that the Word was God, in other words, Jesus?

I think the reason for this is that we don't value Jesus highly enough. He is the one that said we would do greater things than He did (John 14v12) Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father. NKJV

If these are the words of The Word, then they must be the truth!

In Trinity, we've been praying for many people and have seen them healed. In the last 8 months, we have seen scalded hands completely healed, legs healed, shoulders healed, necks healed, other hands healed, sciatic nerve pain, repetitive strain injury in the arm, knee pain, this list goes on. There have been reports of successful surgeries and dramatic improvements after prayer intervention.
When Jesus said we would do greater things than He did, He meant it. He knew that He was giving us His Holy Spirit to enable us to go into situations that we otherwise would have run away from. God loves it when we take risks. Gideon took a risk and defeated a whole army without even having to fight.

We have had a few prayer requests over the last year and more, for friends and family who have been ill and needed prayer.

Ruth's nephew David has been very sick with chrones disease and we have been lifting him up in prayer. He's lost two of his closest friends in the last fortnight- we need to stand in the gap for him. God is working in David's life and situation. God is easily able to heal him and is willing us into the fight.

Many people prayed for Rory, a 15 year old who had an aggressive cancer in his hip who had his leg amputated. He was given the all clear and then got lung cancer. He passed away last month.

We can all give examples of situations like these, some very personal and still painful.

When we come up against situations like these, the enemy wants to tell us that our faith wasn't big enough, that we prayed the wrong prayers, that we didn't pray enough, that prayer doesn't work. The reason he does this is because he knows that this is the crucial part of the battle. He realises that this is where we either sink or swim, give up or go on.

Our reaction to a setback determines our action in the future.

When Rory died, it gave some of us a new determination to go after sickness and the enemy. He is a defeated enemy, he is weaker than we can be strong. We have an infinite God with us and we are fighting a Finite enemy.

Sickness is not something that God gives us. God created a perfect world and sickness only came into it when sin entered it. God is Good. He is able to use situations like these to His glory. When I attended the removal for Rory, the Lord told me Rory was safe with Him now. This is the difference our prayer makes. We stand in the gap for those who can't. We fight for those who are weak, and our victories inspire us onto new victories against bigger enemies.

When Jesus told the parable of the talents in Matthew 25 NKJV, He wasn't just talking about gifts like financial management, singing or baking! He was teaching us about how He trusts us with what He's given us and then gives us more.

We've seen people healed of what we would call 'small things', but our reaction to this determines what God gives us the next time. Don't trivialise the healing of a sore leg. Give glory to God for it, it's made a difference to the person who was in pain! If we use the talents as God has intended, He will give us more. God knows what we are capable of handling and won't give us more than that. It's not just the healing we have to be ready for, it's the reaction of others, people who need a healing in their family when we know we are needed somewhere else- how do we make a decision like that? God will enable us at the time He knows is best, we need to keep chasing Him and seeking Him and giving glory to Him.
We are going to see incredible miracles happen in front of us, it is part of the amazing journey God is bringing us on. We just need to trust God and do what He wants.

And remember, no matter what happens, give thanks. Only one leper gave thanks when Jesus healed 10. Be that one person every time, because God deserves it.

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