...and
not only for "the mission field" but for the West as
well
There
are some miracles that we have found are not difficult to perform
when in the context of proclaiming the Kingdom of God to the lost,
for example, in an evangelistic meeting. One need not have the
gift of healing or limit oneself to meetings in primitive Third-World
countries to witness such miracles. To learn how, we can look at
three outstanding miracles done by the apostles Peter and Paul
in Acts.
Acts
3:6 Then Peter said, “Silver or gold I do not have, but what
I have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk.” 7
Taking him by the right hand, he helped him up, and instantly the
man’s feet and ankles became strong. 8 He jumped to his feet
and began to walk.
Acts
9:33 There he found a man named Aeneas, a paralytic who had been
bedridden for eight years. 34 “Aeneas,” Peter said
to him, “Jesus Christ heals you. Get up and take care of
your mat.” Immediately Aeneas got up. 35 All those who lived
in Lydda and Sharon saw him and turned to the Lord.
Acts
14:8 In Lystra there sat a man crippled in his feet, who was lame
from birth and had never walked. 9 He listened to Paul as he was
speaking. Paul looked directly at him, saw that he had faith to
be healed 10 and called out, “Stand up on your feet!” At
that, the man jumped up and began to walk.
In the
first two of these cases, the miracles were a deciding factor in
souls receiving Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. Although
such miracles certainly cannot guarantee that people will turn
to Him---as in Paul’s miracle---they do draw attention to
Him and multiply the likelihood that they will believe on Him.
Even
though it is not a simple matter to do miracles of such great magnitude,
there are similar miracles of “lesser” magnitude that
are not difficult. We have witnessed them in our meetings. We have
found that there are many people with difficulty getting up and
walking because of arthritis, knee and joint pain, hip problems
and various pain in their legs. They can be elderly and when they
limp forward to be healed their infirmity is obvious to everyone.
The
purpose of the healing done in the name of Jesus Christ is to prove
to the lost that He is the only way to the Father in heaven.
The
very first step is not present in the above three miracles done
through Peter and Paul, but may be appropriate for believers who
are new to healing the sick. This step involves laying hands directly
on the infirmity, for example, on arthritic knees. Then with
utmost authority and mountain-moving faith rebuke the infirmity
or arthritis in the name of Jesus. Authoritatively command the
knees to be healed in Jesus’ name.
The
second step involves commanding the person to get up or to walk
in Jesus’ name, as did Peter and Paul. You can even help
the person up as did Peter in Acts 3 and lead them forward by the
hand. Usually the person will experience immediate improvement
and walk much better than before. Often I will tell the person
to run, and people who were previously unable to run will run in
a way that they have not done in a long time. In this way the name
of Jesus is exalted, believers are encouraged in their faith, and
unbelievers are drawn to Christ. (If after the first time of ministry
the person senses improvement but their healing is not yet complete,
lay hands on them again and minister as before.)
Perhaps
such miracles are “easy” to perform because the Lord
is very willing to do them. With such infirmities in particular,
the healing is very visible and obvious to all, and no one can
deny the power of the name of Jesus Christ after having witnessed
the miracle firsthand.
The
End Time Model of Evangelism
Other teachings