a night of healing leads to further reflection
when we meet together, we will almost always share the miraculous testimonies of what God has done over the course of a week when people have taken the risk to offer others the power of the Kingdom. I can't remember a week in years where no one came with a testimony. it was that way in the beginning (over 10 years ago), but it is never that way.
after talking about healing, it we often are led to pray for healing in the room - and this happened again the last time we met. a number of people with pain and/or other conditions were healed. all manners of things were healed.
there was a time when that would have shocked us but no longer.
I struggle to understand the worldview of Christians who think that 'healing' is some exceptional activity that is pursued by extreme or fringe Christian groups. Healing people was one of the primary activities of Jesus - you couldn't have been with Jesus very long without seeing Him heal people. The same with the Apostles and their descendants.
Even this week, as I was reading some "new approaches" that western Christians are advocating - new ways to "network", "coach", "mentor" (to use their buzzwords), I would close their webpages, having seen the dozens of books these so-called experts have written and wondering if they are "healing the sick and casting out demons". My strong suspicion was that they weren't. Their theological identities was mostly conservative Evangelical and sadly when power, Kingdom power, is NOT present, then all other types of "approaches" and "strategies" will be invented and implemented.
How about a novel approach? The Body of Christ humbly admits that we actually don't look a whole lot like Jesus and His Apostles. We acknowledge that the power that they manifested we are most often not showing the world. We stop coming up with theological excuses for why our experience doesn't look like the life of Jesus. We get in touch with our profound unbelief and pursue God's Kingdom with everything we've got.
after talking about healing, it we often are led to pray for healing in the room - and this happened again the last time we met. a number of people with pain and/or other conditions were healed. all manners of things were healed.
there was a time when that would have shocked us but no longer.
I struggle to understand the worldview of Christians who think that 'healing' is some exceptional activity that is pursued by extreme or fringe Christian groups. Healing people was one of the primary activities of Jesus - you couldn't have been with Jesus very long without seeing Him heal people. The same with the Apostles and their descendants.
Even this week, as I was reading some "new approaches" that western Christians are advocating - new ways to "network", "coach", "mentor" (to use their buzzwords), I would close their webpages, having seen the dozens of books these so-called experts have written and wondering if they are "healing the sick and casting out demons". My strong suspicion was that they weren't. Their theological identities was mostly conservative Evangelical and sadly when power, Kingdom power, is NOT present, then all other types of "approaches" and "strategies" will be invented and implemented.
How about a novel approach? The Body of Christ humbly admits that we actually don't look a whole lot like Jesus and His Apostles. We acknowledge that the power that they manifested we are most often not showing the world. We stop coming up with theological excuses for why our experience doesn't look like the life of Jesus. We get in touch with our profound unbelief and pursue God's Kingdom with everything we've got.
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