Have you ever seen so much sickness around? How many people do you know with cancer? How many families do you know that have a child with autism or ADHD? How about diabetes, hypertension, arthritis, dementia, etc? And I’m talking about Christian families!  Are we healthier than non-Christian families? It doesn’t appear so.  And, the divorce rates are about the same…

There are many ways to get sick. This time of year all you have to do is be around someone else for a bit and you are likely to come down with a cold or a flu-like illness. There are, of course, hereditary factors. Certain types of cancers “run in the family”. We are exposed to toxins daily that compromise our immune systems. Our diets are often not the best (for instance, too much sugar can interfere with your ability to avoid or fight infections).  Even a lack of sleep and excessive worry are factors.

We live in a “fallen” world and the “god of this world” (Satan) came to steal, kill, and destroy. That includes destruction of your health and even death itself. But, does God leave us open to these attacks? Non-Christians are fair game, and have little defense against the devil who roams around “like a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour.”  It’s different for the Christian, a member of God’s family. Among the many names for Christ Jesus, He is our Healer. Yes, He still heals. Let me tell you of one of the times He healed me, and then we’ll find out THE REASON that so many Christians around us are sick and dying.

Around seven years ago I suddenly had onset of strange symptoms….every single time I looked upward and to the right I had pain in my upper left chest, down my left arm, and numbness in my left thumb and first finger. It got worse, and eventually I had to sit at my desk between patients and give myself traction (pushed my head upward)  for relief. The symptoms were consistent with compression of my spinal cord in the region of the 3rd and 4th neck vertebrae, and an  x-ray showed a “bone spur” causing pressure there.

I definitely did not want to have neck surgery, but that seemed likely. But wait, I have a Healer! I chose to give Him the opportunity to fix the problem, and He did. It’s been seven years now, and I have not once had any of those symptoms return. How can we obtain this healing from the Lord?

First of all, you must be “born again“, which sounds weird, but refers to death of the old human nature and possession of the new spiritual nature that Jesus gave us at the cross. He actually “became sin”, though He never once sinned. All of our sins, past present and future were loaded onto Him and God judged them all, which allows for ANYONE  who wishes to receive the righteousness of God in return for those sins! God is not out to judge you, He’s out to save you! That’s right, being made right with God is a GIFT from Jesus, and nothing that you or I could ever obtain by working for, no matter how hard we tried. Accept it and be glad and be thankful.

God’s living word, the Bible, tells us exactly why so many Christians are sick and dying. If you are a Christian, then you celebrate communion, or “the Lord’s supper” periodically. This very important ordinance is for us to remember and reflect on Jesus’ willing sacrifice of His own blood and body for us on the cross. Some do it weekly, some monthly or quarterly; you can do it any time, anywhere. All you need are the elements (the bread and wine or juice), salvation,  and a thankful heart.

Okay, here’s where we find THE REASON: read I Corinthians 11:29,30  “…for he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord’s body. For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep”. (“sleep” means are dead) It’s widely taught that “unworthily” here refers to taking communion with some remaining sin in your life, but the specific reason given is the failure to discern the Lord’s body. Did you get that? I Peter 2:24 tells us about Jesus “by whose stripes you are healed”.  Isaiah 53:4,5 in the Hebrew tells us that Jesus literally bore our diseases.

All Christians believe that by Jesus’ shed blood our sins are removed forever, which is true. But along with bearing our sins and rising without them, He also bore our diseases and infirmities so that we can have supernaturally good health. I didn’t make that up; it’s what God’s word says.

My advice to you is this… first of all take communion regularly and frequently, especially if you are afflicted with some health problem(s). When you eat the bread, you are taking in Jesus’ broken body (broken for YOU) so that you may be healed. If you will thus properly discern His body, you will allow yourself to start on the path to divine healing. It often does not happen all at once, but the more you partake, the more that healing will be manifested for you.  My cervical radiculopathy was taken away, and not what I would expect in the natural. I give the Lord all of the credit.

If you ignore God and His word, you eventually end up in Hell. That’s sadly the path our nation is on today, having begun with dedication to God and Christ, but having officially left Him out  of daily life. You have heard of Ripley’s “Believe it or Not!” You can read I Corinthians and believe it, or not. With God, what you believe is what you get. Believing is seeing, is what I say. Here’s to your good health!

Blessings,

Dr. J