Christ the Healer
Many books can be read as easily as fish are
filleted with an electric knife. In 1995, Dr. Samuel Bacchiocchi gave me an
autographed copy of his book, God's Festivals in Scripture and History.
I read the entire book, cover to cover, that evening. The next morning, when I
was ready to discuss the book with him, he exclaimed, "Mama mia!"
when I told him I had already read and digested his book.
When I review a book, I usually give a
summary and significant points of the book, because I realize not everyone will
take the time to read it. In the case of the classic book, Christ the
Healer, by F.F. Bosworth, I cannot follow the usual routine. This book
is a spiritual journey. Any words of summary or discussion of its contents seem
flat compared to the actual content of the book. I cannot write an adequate
review to do this book justice. All I can do is to ask you to read this book,
available free from Giving & Sharing. Because it is so profound, I could
not read it at one sitting.
Today, the Church of God has largely
forgotten fifty percent of the gospel message. The message of the Messiah had
two salient points: preaching the Gospel of the Kingdom of God, and healing the
sick. The gospels attest to this fact (e.g. Matthew 9:35 - 10:8). His
disciples and the early New Testament Church followed this two-point program
precisely. In today's faithless age, we are more sophisticated than that. The
Gospel has become merely an announcement of the coming Kingdom of God on this
earth. We doubt that it is God's will to heal us when we are sick. So, you do
not see the Church covering the half of the Gospel that deals with our physical
healing. You see few healings because there is so little faith (see Luke
18:8).
When we repent, how are we sure that
our sins are forgiven by God? Why, by faith in the Word of God! Is it
God's will to forgive us for our sins? Can we have confidence that the death
penalty for our rebellion against the Almighty has been removed by the blood of
our Savior? Certainly, because God's faithful Word says so, I John 1:8-9;
I Peter 1:18-19; Revelation 7:14. Do you believe that God forgives all
your iniquities? Psalm 103:2-3 says so, "Bless the Lord, O my soul,
and forget all His benefits: Who forgiveth all thine iniquities . . . ."
Can we believe this? Do we have faith in God's Word because He says so? We
should also have faith in the rest of verse 3, ". . . who
healeth ALL thy diseases."
Many in the Church of God today are faith
destroyers, rather than faith builders. A little two-letter word, "if,"
destroys the faith of thousands. "IF it is God's will to
heal you," they say to the sick, "He will heal you." When a
leper came to Jesus wanting to be healed, he said, "If thou wilt."
Jesus, "moved with compassion," settled the matter immediately,
informing this man, "I will; be thou clean," Mark 1:40-45.
Jesus healed ALL that came to Him for healing. He is the same yesterday, today,
and forever.
Another hackneyed excuse that destroys faith
in God's healing power is the mistaken idea that Paul's "thorn in the
flesh," II Corinthians 12:7, was a physical ailment or sickness
that would not go away. However, every place this expression is used in the
Bible, refers to persons, "messengers of Satan," or pagan
Canaanites, Numbers 33:55; Joshua 23:13. Paul's thorn in the flesh was a
demon who caused him to be persecuted.
Faith is the core message of the Gospel,
and the Bible. F.F. Bosworth's
Christ the Healer, 241-pages, is available free from Giving &
Sharing, Box 100, Neck City, MO 64849. Originally written in the early
1920s, it has inspired thousands with Bible-based Truth on healing. Will you
claim God's promises for healing in the same way you have confidently called on
Him to forgive your spiritual sins? Christ is the Healer!