One Mind Church

People Who Heal the World (Acts 14:8-18)                                                                      August 28, 2011

Mt.4:23 summarizes what Jesus did on earth as three things. First, He went around teaching, second, He proclaimed the good news of the kingdom, and third, He healed every disease and sickness among the people. Even now, God wants us to realize important spiritual realities within Christ, receive the strength He gives, and at last receive healing to our hidden spiritual problems, habits, and diseases. Then what is next? He wants us to rise as those who heal the world. Ever since the first men Adam and Even fell in Genesis 3, all life has become diseased. Everyone lives within the diseases of the soul, mind, habits (addiction), and body. There are so many who actually hear things and are demon-possessed (spiritual disease). Because their hearts are full of scars, they are oppressed by loneliness, rage, fear, and stress. That is why Jesus said, “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest” (Mt.11:28) concerning the diseases of the mind. If your mind is diseased, your body is bound to be diseased as well. Almost all diseases come from overwork, stress, and diseases of the heart. That is why it says in Is.61:1 that Jesus came to “bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners.” I bless and hope that you may receive healing to your hidden problems within Christ and rise as people who heal the world.

1. When God decides to heal you, there is a specific order. Complete healing takes place when you follow God’s order and method.

1) God’s Word must enter you. We call this spiritual healing. Why is this important?

a. God created the world through His Word. And He still heals us through His Word (Eze.37 – prime example).

b. The Word of God must enter and the soul must be reborn. When you realize Christ that God sent through His Word and accept Him as your Savior, His Spirit resides within your spirit. We call that acceptance. That is when His work begins.

c. What is the most important thing that takes place when you realize Christ’s love for you, His power and authority though the Word? The spiritual curses and forces of Darkness that worked in your life and spirit are bound. There is a specific spiritual problem in each family. It is the origin of many problems. Scientifically, we call this genetic inheritance. Diseases are not the only things that are passed down. Personality and habits are also genetic. But spiritually speaking, there is a spiritual being that works from one generation to another. That is the devil. This began from the times of Adam. This must be finished. But the devil is not afraid of anything. He fears only when Christ is proclaimed and when you realize Him within you (what thieves fear).

d. In Acts 14:9, there was a man who was crippled from birth and had never walked before, and he listened to Paul’s words. What did he hear? He heard the Word of God, the words about Christ.

2) When the Word enters within you, faith blossoms. It says in Acts 14:9, “Paul looked directly at him, saw that he had faith to be healed.” The state in which this kind of faith is formed within you is the healing of the mind and thoughts.

a. “O, it works when God works. That is why Christ came.” It refers to your faith in God.

b. What is another important thing? You will have peace, courage, and hope within you. When you are in the state in which you are always discouraged, anxious, in despair, hatred, and unbelief, nothing will be healed. Whether it is the disease of the spirit, mind, or body, it is the same. That is in fact how our bodies are formed. When we have courage and hope, our bodies produce neurotransmitters like serotonin and dopamine that can fight the diseases from within. That is how our bodies fight the bad cells and create new cells.

c. This is the key to become healthy. Like it says in Phil.4:6-7, discard all your anxieties and remain in prayer through thanksgiving. Then the peace of God will guard our minds and thoughts. When our minds and thoughts are restored, the Darkness fades away. That is how we win without fighting. Christ has definitely finished all problems. Training the lifestyle of 1The.5:16-18 continuously is the key.

3) Paul called out to the crippled man in Acts 14:10, “Stand up on your feet!” This is the stage of healing your actions and habits.

a. When God is working in your life, you do need some of your own time to change your life yourself. If that man was stubborn and never tried to get up, he would have never walked. It is fighting against yourself.

b. When a doctor tries to heal a patient, there is a stage in which the doctor instructs the patient to do on his own (“Take medicine” “Exercise regularly”). Many diseases come from bad habits. They may actually become channels for Satan. If you just slightly change your speaking habits, eating habits, breathing habits, sleeping habits, and walking habits, many of your diseases will be healed (straightening your chest and walking straight). Try to make just one change in your life. If you do not try to change yourself, no work can take place.

4) Healing of the body, family, children, and finance follow after the first three take place. I hope that important healing and answers within your family, children, and finance may begin anew through healing of the spirit, thoughts, and habits.

2. One sure thing is that God wants you to be healed, and eventually stand as someone who heals the world.

1) As much as you are healed, you can testify (witness – Acts 1:8). The problems are for you to receive healing to your hidden spiritual problems, and then stand as witnesses.

2) If it does take place, there is no reason to be arrogant or boast about yourself after you achieve something (help or heal others). This is where many believers and even ministers are deceived. They cannot stand being unacknowledged. That is why they feel upset and fall into trials.

3) When people saw the crippled man walk in Acts 14:11, they misunderstood Paul and Barnabas as God. They were mentioning the names of their own gods like Zeus and Hermes and tried to offer sacrifices to them. In Acts 14:15 Paul said, “We too are only human, like you. We are bringing you good news.” If Paul really meant what he said, he has truly received healing. There is no reason to be boastful just because someone acknowledges you, or be discouraged because someone does not. We live by His grace and live for His name and glory. We can do this only because we have already received. Of course there will be rewards, but we do not really need them. Only then true answers and evidence of our life and ministries begin.

<Conclusion>

God has definitely called us as people who will save and heal the world. That is why He first revealed our problems so that we may receive healing first and stand as witnesses in the world. Do you have problems within yourself, family, children, and business? Hold firmly onto Christ and continuously go into the Word. Change your thoughts. Even if it is just one habit, change it.