DIG for Wednesday the 22nd of March…..we have been given the freedom to live as God intended…..Galatians 5 v 1

I’ve just had a lovely walk to and from Heroes’ Square here in Budapest.

I originally thought it was called Freedom Square and was planning a DIG as I was ambling back.

So, even though it is Heroes’ Square and not Freedom Square I am still going to share the DIG (being a Scotsman I never like to waste anything).

Wandering back I got to ponder on the notion of freedom.

For many it is to do what they want and when they want; for the Christian I thought it was slightly different.

To me freedom for the believer is about being able to do what we should do; it is about not being under pressure to perform, with the freedom to be ourselves.

Now if we are walking with the Lord and seeking His heart, this will end up doing what we want to do and when we want to do it.

Can you see my thinking on this?

We really ought to be doing what the Word tells us, for many this does not sound like freedom.

However as we are getting more in tune with the Lord (and having our mind renewed through His Word) the desires of our heart becomes the desires of His heart, and we do what we want to do!

If we are striving and trying to perform by holding to the law we will fail (the Word says so), and we will put ourselves under bondage.

But if we live under grace (as the Lord wants us to) we will have the freedom to do His will, which will end up being our will also!

So grace does not give us a licence to sin as many say, grace gives us a licence to be free from sin.

Speak this out today…..”Thank you Lord that I now live in freedom under grace and not bondage under law”.

Galatians 5 v 1…..Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage

Advertisement

DIG for Tuesday the 21st of March…..what part of John 10 v 10 do I need to explain further…..John 10 v 10

What a lot of Christians fail to recognise is that the Bible is a really easy book to understand at most times.

Yes, there can be hard parts in it, but John 10 v 10 is not one of them.

It can be summed up in four words; devil bad, God good!

There in a nutshell is some really good and deep theological doctrine for you and if you know this you can understand a lot more of what is going on in the world.

God is always good, the devil is always evil.

Poverty and disease are not good, prosperity and health are good; there is more truth that some believers are not able to comprehend.

Poverty and disease re from the enemy, while prosperity and health are from God.

Why do we get these mixed up so often?

In Deuteronomy poverty and disease are always seen as a curse.

The Word tells us that through His finished Word Jesus was cursed so that we do not have to be (Galatians 3 v 13).

We can live a life free from poverty and free from ill health, which is what the Word clearly says.

Prosperity and good health are part of an abundant life, so this is what Jesus came to bring.

The enemy is trying to steal, kill and destroy this prosperity and health and wants you to live in poverty and sickness.

This is one verse that you need someone to help you misunderstand; normally a theologian!

Speak this out today…..”Thank you Lord that you want me to live in health and prosperity”.

John 10 v 10…..The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that the might have it more abundantly

DIG for Monday the 20th of March…..yes, prosperity is included in your gift of salvation…..3 John 2

There is another “thing” that we receive as a gift of grace through faith in addition to the healing that we have been learning about recently.

We are also provided with prosperity!

This is something that I took years to preach on and sometimes feel slightly anxious on writing about.

I know I should not as prosperity is a sound Biblical principle however if there is one thing to “set off” some Christians it is a teaching about prosperity.

But, take a look at the verse that we used yesterday when talking about healing.

It says that as well as health God the Father wants us, above all things, to live in prosperity (3 John 2).

Prosperity is a Biblical principle.

Many get confused however and think that if we want prosperity we are living in greed, but this is not the case.

Yes, prosperity is so that we can live in abundance (John 10 v 10) however it is also so that we can give unto every good work (2 Corinthians 9 v 8).

Many may tell you that if you want to live in prosperity you must be selfish, I say that you are selfish if you do not want prosperity!

Prosperity is for you to sow into the Kingdom, why would you not want to do that?

Speak this out today…..”Thank you Lord that through the finished work of Jesus you have provided for me to live in prosperity”.

3 John v 2…..Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth

DIG for Sunday the 19th of March…..this is what God really wants for you…..3 John 2

I’m going to complete this mini-series on healing today, I hope the recent DIGs have blessed you.

So I want to finish with a verse that really sums up the heart of God with regards to health and healing.

In 3 John v 2 we can read that God wants above all things that we live in health and prosperity.

But maybe this is speaking about my spiritual life you may be thinking; well, that is not the case.

The Greek word used for health means to have sound health and be well in body.

This is, of course, talking about physical health.

We should not be surprised by this as all through the Gospels we see people healed in their physical body.

It was a common thing for Jesus to heal as this was the will of God the Father.

In the same way healing should be common place today as it is still the will of the Father for you to be well (and prosperous).

Health (and prosperity) come from the Lord, provided through the finished work of Jesus, and should be the way of life for all born again believers.

So I hope that you are now sure in your mind that God wants you well, and I pray that you are now speaking this out over your life and the lives of your family and friends.

Speak this out today…..”Thank you Lord that you want me to live in health and to be delivered from all sickness, pain and disease”.

3 John v 2…..Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth

DIG for Saturday the 18th of March…..we have the power and authority to do what He said…..Matthew 10 v 7 and 8

After yesterday’s DIG I had a question asking if all illness was from the devil.

This could be answered in a couple of ways.

Not all illness (in my opinion) is placed on us by the enemy, however illness and disease are in the world due to mankind and the world being in a fallen state, and this was the fault of the devil.

So we could answer yes or no, but in a sense it is always yes.

However there is another more important point with regards to this question.

If an illness is directly from the devil we have authority over it.

If an illness is due to our fallen state and the state of the world we also have authority over it.

In the name of Jesus we have authority over every single illness and disease that there is in this world.

We have been given authority from Jesus and power from the Holy Spirit to do the same as Jesus i.e. destroy the works of the devil.

We can cast out demons, raise the dead and heal ourselves and others.

The devil is no match for us when we understand the authority and power that we should operate under.

Wherever illness and disease have come from they are no match for the finished work of Jesus and the born again believer who believes in this work!

Speak this out today….”Thank you Lord that I have the power and authority to deal with all the sickness and illness that I see”.

Matthew 10 v 7 and 8…..And as ye go, preach, saying, The Kingdom of heaven is at hand. Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils; freely ye have received, freely give

DIG for Friday the 17th of March…..He came to destroy the works of the devil…..1 John 3 v 8

“But I thought God uses sickness and disease to teach us lessons and make us better people” is a statement that I hear Christians saying from time to time.

Let me be clear on this; that type of statement is absolute nonsense.

In this short series we have seen that Jesu never put illness onto a person so we know God will be the same (remember Jesus can only do what the Father did and He is the express image of the Father).

Jesus came to do a number of things and one part of His mission was to remove sickness and disease.

1 John 3 v 8 tells us that Jesus came to destroy the works of the devil, and we see Him destroying illness and disease throughout the Gospels.

This shows us that illness is the work of the devil and not the work of the Lord.

If illness was from the Lord why would Jesus heal people?

God would be schizophrenic if He were to send sickness on people and then send Jesus to heal them, this is just not logical (it is also not Biblical).

Jesus came to bring us life in abundance, while the devil comes to steal, kill and destroy (John 10 v 10).

What part does illness and disease play in an abundant life?

No part is the answer to that question!

Abundant life and healing is form God while sickness and illness is from the devil.

Please do not let yourself think that any illness you have may be from God; it is not, it is from the enemy and should be resisted.

God always wants you healed and send Jesus to destroy the works of the devil so that you can live a life of abundance and health.

Speak this out today…..”Thank you Lord that you want me to live in health and to be delivered from all sickness, pain and disease”.

1 John 3 v 8…..He that committeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was made manifested, to destroy the works of the devil

DIG for Thursday the 16th of March…..but the healing is only spiritual not physical…..Matthew 8 v 16 and 17

I have often heard it said that when the Bible talks about healing it is talking about spiritual healing and not physical.

I believe this is used as an excuse when people cannot or do not see healing, and I believe it is a view that is not Biblical.

We have already seen that healing was prophesied in the Word, in the book of Isaiah; this is the section that many teach as being spiritual healing.

In the Word we see Jesus healing Peter’s mother-in-law of a physical illness (Matthew 8 v 14 and 15).

Then we see Jesus delivering and healing people in the evening (Matthew 8 v 16).

The Word then goes on to say that He did this in order to fulfil that which was written by the prophet Isaiah (Matthew 8 v 17).

So Jesus fulfilled Isaiah 53 v 4 and 5 by healing people of physical disease, so we are talking about physical and not spiritual healing.

The Greek (that we read in Matthew 8 v 17) also makes this clear with infirmities meaning frailties of the body and sickness meaning sickness, illness or disability.

The Bible is very clear, Jesus healed people of physical ailments.

The Bible is also clear in that Jesus is the express image of the Father, so God the Father wants you healed (physically) and living a supernatural life of (physical) health.

Speak this out today…..”Thank you Lord that you want me to live in health and to be delivered from all sickness, pain and disease”.

Matthew 8 v 16 and 17…..When the even was come, they brought unto him many that were possessed with devils: and he cast out the spirits with his word, and healed all that were sick: That it might be fulfilled which was spoken of by Esaias the prophet, saying, Himself took our infirmities, and bare our sicknesses

DIG for Wednesday the 15th of March…..so why do some people stay sick…..John 5 v 6

This is not an easy question to answer as there are multiple reasons, which I will get onto soon.

However if you have been reading my DIGs over the last few days you will know that it is always God’s will to see you healed and living in supernatural health.

So the blockage to healing cannot be and is never God, of that we can be assured.

He is not stopping our healing from flowing because we are in too much sin or are not good enough, that is not the reason.

In my experience the main blockages to healing flowing is that people are in unbelief or ignorance.

A person may not know what the Bible says about healing or a person may have bene being taught that healing “passed away” with the apostles.

This is of course wrong and not a true understanding of the Bible.

So a person’s doctrine, or ways of thought, can stop the healing from being made manifest; remember “as a man thinketh so is he”.

What people speak out stops healing from flowing out of the spiritual realm and into the physical; remember “death and life are in the power of the tongue”.

I had contact today with a believer speaking death over themselves, and I’m sure they did not even know they were doing it.

I’ve also known people who do not want to be healed (Jesus even asked a man if he wanted to be healed); the illness may have become their identity or they may lose benefits and have to work (yes, believe me I have heard this said by Christians).

So there are many reasons why people are not healed, but God is not one of them!

Speak this out today…..”Thank you God that it is always your will to see a person healed and living in supernatural health”.

John 5 v 6…..When Jesus saw him lie, and knew that he had been now a long time in that case, he saith unto him, Wilt thou be made whole

DIG for Tuesday the 14th of March…..healing was predicted and confirmed in the Word…..1 Peter 2 v 24

The Word is very clear with regards to healing, it is always God’s will for us to see healing in our lives.

Not only can we see this through the example of Jesus; He is the express image of the Father after all.

There are many Scriptures however that also speak of the truth about healing.

In the Old Testament we are given the promise that Jesus would deal with sickness anddisease on the cross (Isaiah 53 v 4 and 5).

In the New Testament we see the confirmation of this promise (1 Peter 2 v 24).

And as we saw yesterday we can see evidence of Jesus healing people throughout the Gospels (too many Scriptures to mention).

So, if you value the Word of God you have to believe that healing is for today.

Even if we do not always see a healing made manifest, we have to believe that it is God’s will to see us healed and living a life of supernatural health.

It is not that God heals some and doesn’t heal others, remember He is “no respecter of persons”, meaning He has no favourites.

The fact is that God has already provided all the healing we will ever need through the finished work of Jesus; it is up to each of us to understand this truth, believe this truth and then receive this truth.

Speak this out today…..”Thank you Lord that your Word confirms that it is always your will that I am healed and living a life of supernatural health”.

1 Peter 2 v 24…..Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed

DIG for Monday the 13th of March…..well, what did Jesus do…..Matthew 8 v 16

Yesterday we say that Jesus could only do the will of the Father, He could only do what He saw the Father do.

So we concluded that if we looked at what Jesus did in the Gospels we could transfer this back onto the Father.

If you read through all Gospels you will see that Jesus never put illness or sickness on anyone, something that God the Father is often accused of.

If you read through the Gospels you will see many instances where Jesus healed ALL the people and nullified ALL sickness and disease.

If you read through the Gospels you will see that it is unbelief and not the will of Jesus that caused some people not to be healed.

If you read through the Gospels you will see that Jesus never refused to heal.

So what does this mean if we know Jesus is the express image of the Father and only does what He sees the Father do?

It means that it is always God’s will to see you healed, it means that God will never put illness or sickness on a person and it means that God wants you well!

But some may say that we cannot know the will of the Father; I say yes we can as we have seen the will of Jesus.

If we know the will of Jesus we know the will of the Father.

If we have seen the compassion of Jesus (and we will if you read the Gospels) you can know for sure that God the Father has compassion.

If Jesus has the will to heal then so has God.

This is a simple truth that we can see by rightly diving the Bible.

Speak this out today…..”Thank you Lord that it is your will for me to be healed and live a life of health”.

Matthew 8 v 16…..When the even was come, they brought unto him many that were possessed with devils: and he cast out the spirits with his word, and healed ALL that were sick