Selamat siang light of the world! Don't let your light go out. If the world defines who you are, then it can define what you can do. If your values change according to circumstances, they are not values, but advertising slogans.
" News about him spread all over Syria, and people brought to him all who were ill with various diseases, those suffering severe pain, the demon-possessed, those having seizures, and the paralyzed; and he healed them.
(Matthew 4:24, NIV)
❖ " When evening came, many who were demon-possessed were brought to him, and he drove out the spirits with a word and healed all the sick. " (Matthew 8:16, NIV)
❖ " Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all people, because all sinned. " (Romans 5:12, NIV)
❖ " For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of GOD is eternal life in CHRIST JESUS our LORD." (Romans 6:23, NIV)
GOD is not the author of disease. Sickness is one of the consequences of the entrance of sin into the world (Romans 5:12, Romans 6:23). From the moment Adam and Eve ate the forbidden fruit, they not only exposed themselves to death (spirit, soul, and body), but they also caused the curse of the land (Genesis 3:16; Genesis 3:17-18). The ground is cursed because sin is in the world.
Life is the nature of GOD while death is the nature of the devil. Since sickness leads to death, it is common to hear believers say that the devil is the author of sickness. Just as he is the author of sin and lies from the beginning (1 John 3:8; John 8:44). This does not mean that every disease is caused by a demon or that a demon is systematically present in the body of every sick person.
Whatever the circumstances, one must pray and ask for the assistance of the HOLY SPIRIT. Demons can cause and aggravate diseases. They can also delay and prevent healing. There are demons that go away simply by exercising one's faith or the authority received in JESUS CHRIST. Others go away only after true repentance, intercession on behalf of others (the case of Job), the forgiveness of an offense, praise, and thanksgiving, prayer of authority, a prayer of agreement, prophetic declaration, an exercise of a spiritual gift, fasting coupled with prayer and meditation on the Word, or obedience to a specific recommendation of the LORD.
To date, I have personally experienced three miraculous healings in my life. The first time was when I was a child. I said in my mind "LORD, I don't want to go to the hospital and be hospitalized. Please heal me." An hour later, much to the surprise of my maternal grandmother, my mother (a nurse), and the pediatrician who had just arrived home, I was perfectly healthy. The week before, my younger sister had been hospitalized for five days. The pediatrician had come to check on her. The second time, I was dying. The story would take too long to tell in this article. The third time, I was praising and giving thanks. I didn't expect a miracle. I thought he was going to heal me with medicine. I was telling GOD that whatever happens, I bless him and give thanks because I know my future is in his hands. I was saying Hallelujah! Praise the LORD GOD, my Father. These were not religious Hallelujahs. I had a rhema behind every statement. To every thought sent by the demons, I responded with a Hallelujah. I didn't realize that GOD was healing me. A few days later, when I went to the hospital for more tests, I realized what he had done.
The causes of a disease can be :
Natural
Psychological
Demonic (presence of one or more demons in the body, demonic attack or witchcraft, demonic oppression, curse)
A combination of the above causes
Demons have mainly four ways of accessing man (spirit, soul, body): sin, ignorance, exhaustion (fatigue, burnout), and alliances (made by the persons concerned, their ascendants or descendants). In addition to this, they can influence certain places and territories because of acts committed (idolatry, syncretism, occultism, debauchery, murders, abortions, etc.) or the rejection of the Gospel. Demons can oppress the minds of unbelievers, souls and bodies of believers and unbelievers. They can also influence circumstances. Many Bible teachers claim that there is at least one demonic influence behind every mental illness and behavioral disorder. I firmly believe that this is true in most cases, but to date, I do not have enough experience, hindsight, argument, and conviction to say that this is always the case.
Whatever the circumstances, one must pray and ask for the assistance of the HOLY SPIRIT. The devil can delay healing without a demon being present in the body of the patient. He can, for example, cause a medical error. For my part, I cannot imagine that one can pray for healing without praying for the people who take care of the sick person (doctors, nurses, caregivers). The devil recruits everywhere, it is not enough to be well-intentioned to be a good doctor, and even good doctors can make mistakes. Moreover, artificial intelligence in medicine is neither an infused science nor a perfect science.
Examples in the Bible of people who are sick because of a demonic influence
Job (Job 2:7)
The woman who was crippled for eighteen years (Luke 13:11-16). As I have explained in previous articles, JESUS is GOD, and he is the Word made flesh. Therefore, everything he says contains spiritual truth. He called her a daughter of Abraham, not just because she was Jewish, but because she had faith. JESUS laid his hands on her, and she was healed. He apparently had not cast out any demons. Yet he said that Satan had held her bound for eighteen years (Luke 13:16).
The blind and mute man (Matthew 12:22)
The mute man (Matthew 9:32-33)
The deaf and dumb child (Mark 9:25-27)
The man from Gadara (Matthew 8:28-34; Mark 5:1-10). To the Jews, it was obvious that this man was under the influence of demons. But unbelievers would say that he was suffering from dementia.
The man who spoke under the influence of an unclean spirit in the synagogue at Capernaum (Mark 1:23-27; Luke 4:35). To the Jews, this man was under the influence of demons, but unbelievers would say he was suffering from dementia.
GOD can heal in different ways: a revelation of his word (his love, redemption, authority in JESUS, a specific word), care, medicine, prayer, laying on of hands, anointing with oil, etc. Again, whatever the circumstances, one must pray and ask for the assistance of the HOLY SPIRIT.
JESUS said to a paralytic, « You are healed. Do not sin any more, lest something worse happen to you. » (John 5:14). He could give a similar recommendation to each of us in a specific area. "Here you are healed" could be replaced with "Here you are forgiven / delivered / set free / blessed / restored / heard / graduated / debt free / married / pregnant / taught / warned / consecrated / saved / etc."
I deduce and conclude with the following two points:
There are graces that we should not take for granted. What is a given for you, is not necessarily a given for your neighbor and vice versa. GOD can do everything, but he will do everything in the same way.
What GOD has done for us or through us, does not absolve us of the responsibility to flee from sin.
** Selamat siang = Good morning in Malay (Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia)
To go further (non-exhaustive list)
Healing the Sick: A Divine Healing Classic for Everyone, by T.L. Osborn
Healing belong tu us, by Keneth E. Hagin
Deliverance and Inner Healing, by John Loren Standford and Mark Standford
Ils chasseront les démons (traduction de They Shall Expel Demons ), Derek Prince
La Parole de DIEU guérit, Derek Prince
La sorcellerie exposée et vaincue, Derek Prince
101 Tactics for Spiritual Warfare , by Jennifer Leclaire
Complete delivrance, Apostle Joshua Selman
3 Keys you must engage to experience miracles and healings, Apostle Joshua Selman
The healing ministry (Part 2), Emmanuel Makandiwa