Dying

I have started Matthew again this week in my personal reading time.  FIGHT Bible study is doing Hebrews.  Both are great books for new readers to pick up and read easily, so maybe choose to start a book tonight in one of those places!  Get reading!

Before I talk about something I read in Matthew last night, I want to encourage you to start dating the books you read.  I know at times, God asks us to read a part of this or that (I have recommended that you date the verses He speaks through before in this blog), but when He has you work through an entire book, I encourage you to start putting the date and year you read it by the title.  This will allow you to see how often you have read a book and over a lifetime it will show you how God’s word is so ALIVE every time you have read it, for the time that you read it.  I just started that recently and I know it will be just as encouraging as dating my verses have been.  Faith. Grows. 

 

Matthew 4:24

New King James Version (NKJV)

²⁴ Then His fame went throughout all Syria; and they brought to Him all sick people who were afflicted with various diseases and torments, and those who were demon-possessed, epileptics, and paralytics; and He healed them.

Jesus healed them all. 

I thought to myself, all?  He healed all?  He healed all these physical/mental illnesses that were brought to him?  No matter who they were?  No matter what the deal was or what had happened?  No matter what they did?  He healed these people that had faith if they just got to Jesus, they could be healed?

Yea.  He did.

What was I so shocked about… isn’t that exactly who Jesus is?  He heals us.  Instead, I want to think like a human and say, “whoa, what are their stories?  What were their lives like?  What were they saying about Jesus,” blahhhhh.  That aint Jesus’ way.

He will always Save a person from their sins if they become His follower. And, there is no sin “too big.”  Isn’t it strange that in order to be healed by Christ we must die?  All of those persons had to put themselves aside (die to self control) and realize, “I can’t do it, but this Jesus can.”

Dying to oneself and picking up your cross daily (Matt 10:38, Luke 9:23, Matt 16:24, Mark 8:34), so that you are not the central theme of your life (Salvation, just in case you weren’t sure what Salvation was… it is not a thing you say and go on living any way you want.  You give your life to the leadership of Christ…and you become new 1 Corin 5:17.  It is not something done with your mouth; it is something you do with your heart.  It’s making the choice, in Christ, to turn away from our self-centeredness and self-control to Christ’s direction and control.) 

When you are in Christ, yes, you are healed by being Saved and getting to go to heaven.  But as for this life here, you are healed, as well, to anything that was controlling you before and whatever is about to come your way walking through this life.  God can completely physically heal us of anything, if He chooses. However, maybe you are not physically healed of your disease, but you ARE healed by the freedom you have that it does not control your life anymore.  You have died to its control and are healed of its controlling power of who you are and your emotions. 

The same goes for anything else that controls you.  Outbursts of anger, jealousy, sexual immorality, getting drunk, being selfish, purity, quarreling, division, dissension, envy, etc (Gal 5:19 sins) can all be healed.  ONE IS NO WORSE than the other. 

You are healed.  Faith in Christ is the only power that can do that.  We have the Holy Spirit as Christians, this allows this power to take charge.  Choose today to stop saying that your family yelled, so you are a yeller <---most common one I hear (or change it to whatever you use to condone your behavior)…  that is a lie of the devil that that is who you are.  NOT JUST SINS, but you WHO YOU are changed, too.  You entered a new family when you came to Christ.  You were healed of _____ and you can take ownership if you have Faith in Christ to heal you.

The only thing those people did in Matthew was…believe. 

Action follows belief.