Healing- sickness and illness

[AnnaBanana]

Matthew 8:16 When evening came, they brought to Him many who were demon-possessed; and He cast out the spirits with a word, and healed all who were ill.

Matthew 12:15
But Jesus, aware of this, withdrew from there. Many followed Him, and He healed them all

And so many other verses to go along with this.

Does this type of healing still happen today? I have been experiencing sickness for the past 4 months with no answers. I have prayed daily for healing or even a bit of relief and though I am not deserving of it- I feel that God has 1)not heard my prayer 2)teaching me something through this that I am not seeing just yet.

My view may be skewed but I am tired and weak from this everyday agony. It seems that when I hear/read these verses… Jesus immediately healed.
Friends of mine have passed away from things that I (and many others) asked him to heal- and yet, they passed away.

Sorry if I come across as selfish and entitled. I do not mean to.. I am just curious of others stories with healing.

 

[C4MERON]

Sorry to hear about your sickness and struggles with it over the past 4 months. That must be hard indeed.
A couple of thoughts in regard to the questions you raised, firstly I want to reassure you that God can, and does, heal today. I think the misunderstanding oftentimes can come when people think of it in terms of ‘faith healers’ in specific individuals.
Jesus healed and ‘immediately’ healing happened. We dont see this now but God still does heal.
I would say also, continue to hold on in prayer. Be assured the Lord does hear the cry of His people, and, even although physical healing for specific ailments does not always happen (as according to whatever His will decrees), God gives grace to withstand and be strengthened in Him for purposes even greater than physical relief. I will pray for you

 

[Deleted member 13126]

James 5:14 KJV immediately comes to mind.

We may ask our Lord for any thing. But He is not necessarily constrained to grant our requests initially, or at all. Sometimes the Lord says no. Blessed be the name of the Lord.

My recommendation, dear sister, in accordance with the Holy Scriptures, would be to call upon your elders to come and have them bring the oil.

 

[ZackF]

Matthew 8:16 When evening came, they brought to Him many who were demon-possessed; and He cast out the spirits with a word, and healed all who were ill.

Matthew 12:15
But Jesus, aware of this, withdrew from there. Many followed Him, and He healed them all

And so many other verses to go along with this.

Does this type of healing still happen today? I have been experiencing sickness for the past 4 months with no answers. I have prayed daily for healing or even a bit of relief and though I am not deserving of it- I feel that God has 1)not heard my prayer 2)teaching me something through this that I am not seeing just yet.

My view may be skewed but I am tired and weak from this everyday agony. It seems that when I hear/read these verses… Jesus immediately healed.
Friends of mine have passed away from things that I (and many others) asked him to heal- and yet, they passed away.

Sorry if I come across as selfish and entitled. I do not mean to.. I am just curious of others stories with healing.

Yes. I have a recent one of one of our members. Stage 4 cancer, melanoma, put into remission. Wasn’t “supposed” to happen. Praying for you Anna.

 

[AnnaBanana]

Sorry to hear about your sickness and struggles with it over the past 4 months. That must be hard indeed.
A couple of thoughts in regard to the questions you raised, firstly I want to reassure you that God can, and does, heal today. I think the misunderstanding oftentimes can come when people think of it in terms of ‘faith healers’ in specific individuals.
Jesus healed and ‘immediately’ healing happened. We dont see this now but God still does heal.
I would say also, continue to hold on in prayer. Be assured the Lord does hear the cry of His people, and, even although physical healing for specific ailments does not always happen (as according to whatever His will decrees), God gives grace to withstand and be strengthened in Him for purposes even greater than physical relief. I will pray for you

Thank you for your response what are your thoughts on why we don’t see this now like then?

 

[AnnaBanana]

James 5:14 KJV immediately comes to mind.

We may ask our Lord for any thing. But He is not necessarily constrained to grant our requests initially, or at all. Sometimes the Lord says no. Blessed be the name of the Lord.

My recommendation, dear sister, in accordance with the Holy Scriptures, would be to call upon your elders to come and have them bring the oil.

Thank you for the recommendation. I just might do that.

 

[AnnaBanana]

Yes. I have a recent one of one of our members. Stage 4 cancer, melanoma, put into remission. Wasn’t “supposed” to happen. Praying for you Anna.

What a beautiful blessing and testimony to share of God’s healing power.

Thank you for sharing with me.

 

[Ryan&Amber2013]

Here are a list of Bible promises for you to pray. I am by no means a prosperity Gospel person, and consider myself a very rational person. But when examining the Scriptures, I can't help but conclude that the faith we exercise actually correlates with real life effects. Come to the Lord with full faith, embracing these promises in the way God intends for you to. There are many unexplained happenings in life, and some of them include why we have such bold promises for prayer and don't receive the outcomes we hope for. Nonetheless, we cannot doubt God and must continue to believe his promises in full faith. As noted above, we must always submit to The sovereign will of God. But I do agree with you, that Biblically it seems like healing should be the norm.

And Jesus said to him, “ 'If you can!' All things are possible for one who believes.” Mark 9:23

And Jesus answered them, “Have faith in God. Truly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and thrown into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says will come to pass, it will be done for him. Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. And whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone, so that your Father also who is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.”
Mark 11:22‭-‬25

And Jesus answered them, “Truly, I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what has been done to the fig tree, but even if you say to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and thrown into the sea,’ it will happen. And whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have faith." Matthew 21:21-22

For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will instead of a fish give him a serpent; or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion?
If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!
Luke 11:10‭-‬13

Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do; and greater works than these will he do, because I am going to the Father. Whatever you ask in my name, this I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask me anything in my name, I will do it.
John 14:12‭-‬14

You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you.
John 15:16

In that day you will ask nothing of me. Truly, truly, I say to you, whatever you ask of the Father in my name, he will give it to you. Until now you have asked nothing in my name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full.
John 16:23‭-‬24

He said to them, “Because of your little faith. For truly, I say to you, if you have faith like a grain of mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move, and nothing will be impossible for you.”
Matthew 17:20

Again I say to you, "If two of you agree on earth about anything they ask, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them.”
Matthew 18:19‭-‬20

Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working.
James 5:14‭-‬16

If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.
John 15:7

“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. Or which one of you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent?
If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!" Matthew 7:7‭-‬11

Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.
Hebrews 4:16

 

[AnnaBanana]

Here are a list of Bible promises for you to pray. I am by no means a prosperity Gospel person, and consider myself a very rational person. But when examining the Scriptures, I can't help but conclude that the faith we exercise actually correlates with real life effects. Come to the Lord with full faith, embracing these promises in the way God intends for you to. There are many unexplained happenings in life, and some of them include why we have such bold promises for prayer and don't receive the outcomes we hope for. Nonetheless, we cannot doubt God and must continue to believe his promises in full faith. As noted above, we must always submit to The sovereign will of God. But I do agree with you, that Biblically it seems like healing should be the norm.

And Jesus said to him, “ 'If you can!' All things are possible for one who believes.” Mark 9:23

And Jesus answered them, “Have faith in God. Truly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and thrown into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says will come to pass, it will be done for him. Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. And whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone, so that your Father also who is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.”
Mark 11:22‭-‬25

And Jesus answered them, “Truly, I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what has been done to the fig tree, but even if you say to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and thrown into the sea,’ it will happen. And whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have faith." Matthew 21:21-22

For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will instead of a fish give him a serpent; or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion?
If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!
Luke 11:10‭-‬13

Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do; and greater works than these will he do, because I am going to the Father. Whatever you ask in my name, this I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask me anything in my name, I will do it.
John 14:12‭-‬14

You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you.
John 15:16

In that day you will ask nothing of me. Truly, truly, I say to you, whatever you ask of the Father in my name, he will give it to you. Until now you have asked nothing in my name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full.
John 16:23‭-‬24

He said to them, “Because of your little faith. For truly, I say to you, if you have faith like a grain of mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move, and nothing will be impossible for you.”
Matthew 17:20

Again I say to you, "If two of you agree on earth about anything they ask, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them.”
Matthew 18:19‭-‬20

Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working.
James 5:14‭-‬16

If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.
John 15:7

“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. Or which one of you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent?
If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!" Matthew 7:7‭-‬11

Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.
Hebrews 4:16

Reading through these now and praying them with boldness over my life. Thank you so much!

 

[davejonescue]

Hello. I just finished an eBook this morning by Puritan Timothy Rogers, entitled "Practical Discourses on Sickness & Recovery." It is set to come out in Monergism in the next few days, but here is a PDF for you to read. I hope it can be of some help in your trying times. Let me know if you prefer an ePub, if interested, and I will link it for you.

 

[C4MERON]

Thank you for your response what are your thoughts on why we don’t see this now like then?

Healing by God’s hand not ‘faith healers’.
Arguments for the cessation of miraculous, gospel-authenticating sign-gifts notwithstanding, if there were such individuals today, its hard to imagine one wouldnt go on mass hospital-healing crusades.
There have been many well known, godly people who have repeatedly asked for healing from their ailments (Justin Peters, Joni Eareckson Tada) and have had to be all the more content with the giver of all good gifts.
But persevere in prayer, sister, the Lord does heal often. Also ask God that whatever happens that He would strengthen you with all grace to stand firm and seek Him as your chiefest joy.

 

[Stephen L Smith]

Reading through these now and praying them with boldness over my life. Thank you so much!

Also read 2 Cor 4:16-18. A most comforting passage. Remember the love of God.

 

[AK]

You might find this edifying:

 

[Semper Fidelis]

I just wanted to say, first, that I love your username.

My oldest daughter (second child) is named Anna and she almost died at birth. I used to sing to her: "Anna. Anna Banana. Anna Banana. Anna Banana."

I want to answer first, that God can heal. I also want to answer that God is faithful to those who continue to suffer.

I just preached on Ruth 1 this past Sunday. Though not a story of physical suffering, it is the story of a marring of the soul that comes through the death of loved ones and is the characteristic feature of the misery of our fallen condition in Adam.

My family does not live with chronic pain but with diabetes, MS, and forms of physical blindness.

There is nothing that can be simply quoted to look at the effects of the Fall and just use them as motivational words to call suffering and misery anything other than it is.

It is the case, however, that the sufferer often cannot see beyond the inscrutability of God's Providence and why He has permitted things to happen to us. We see so many examples of Godly people crying out or soaking their pillows with their tears as they wrestle with their God.

And yet, they are wrestling with their God. They are not crying out to others in accusations against Him. They recognize that He has been loyal and loving to His people and so they remember the character of God. They remember that, though He is inscrutable, He is compassionate, loyal, faithful, and gracious. He is totally for His own and nothing in heaven and earth will stand in His way to bless them.

Even as Naomi told the women that they should stop calling her Naomi but Bitter (Marah) because the Lord had brought calamity upon her, she yet knew that God was faithful to His people. She couldn't see that her own judgment about what God was doing was incomplete. God wasn't waiting for her to fully understand it. Why? Because His compassion and loyalty toward His own extends beyond even their present understanding. He even surrounded her with love, loyalty, and faithfulness with Ruth and Boaz in a way that Naomi could not presently see. Even as Obed was placed in her lap, the past suffering left a continued mark but the child was a token that not only Naomi's suffering would eventually be vindicated but the suffering of all those who place their trust in the Lord.

 

[AnnaBanana]

I just wanted to say, first, that I love your username.

My oldest daughter (second child) is named Anna and she almost died at birth. I used to sing to her: "Anna. Anna Banana. Anna Banana. Anna Banana."

I want to answer first, that God can heal. I also want to answer that God is faithful to those who continue to suffer.

I just preached on Ruth 1 this past Sunday. Though not a story of physical suffering, it is the story of a marring of the soul that comes through the death of loved ones and is the characteristic feature of the misery of our fallen condition in Adam.

My family does not live with chronic pain but with diabetes, MS, and forms of physical blindness.

There is nothing that can be simply quoted to look at the effects of the Fall and just use them as motivational words to call suffering and misery anything other than it is.

It is the case, however, that the sufferer often cannot see beyond the inscrutability of God's Providence and why He has permitted things to happen to us. We see so many examples of Godly people crying out or soaking their pillows with their tears as they wrestle with their God.

And yet, they are wrestling with their God. They are not crying out to others in accusations against Him. They recognize that He has been loyal and loving to His people and so they remember the character of God. They remember that, though He is inscrutable, He is compassionate, loyal, faithful, and gracious. He is totally for His own and nothing in heaven and earth will stand in His way to bless them.

Even as Naomi told the women that they should stop calling her Naomi but Bitter (Marah) because the Lord had brought calamity upon her, she yet knew that God was faithful to His people. She couldn't see that her own judgment about what God was doing was incomplete. God wasn't waiting for her to fully understand it. Why? Because His compassion and loyalty toward His own extends beyond even their present understanding. He even surrounded her with love, loyalty, and faithfulness with Ruth and Boaz in a way that Naomi could not presently see. Even as Obed was placed in her lap, the past suffering left a continued mark but the child was a token that not only Naomi's suffering would eventually be vindicated but the suffering of all those who place their trust in the Lord.

THANK YOU!!!!!

 

[AnnaBanana]

You might find this edifying:

Needed this more than you know.

 

[TheInquirer]

A book I have found of great help to my soul in long term trials is "All Things For Good" by Thomas Watson. It might be a comfort to you in seeing all the ways God could be using this onerous trial in your life.

Praying for comfort and peace for you. Hang in there. The Lord's care for you has not and will not fail.

 

[Deleted member 13126]

“Suffering Is Never For Nothing” by Elisabeth Elliot was a really good book the ladies at the church went through.

 

[davejonescue]

A book I have found of great help to my soul in long term trials is "All Things For Good" by Thomas Watson. It might be a comfort to you in seeing all the ways God could be using this onerous trial in your life.

Praying for comfort and peace for you. Hang in there. The Lord's care for you has not and will not fail.

I also heard "A Crook in the Lot" by Thomas Boston is good for those suffering; though I have not had the time to read it myself.