Frequently Asked Questions: Part 1

Published April 7, 2010 | By Cornel

We have made a list of some of the common questions people often ask us. If you have a question you would like answered about healing, the supernatural power of God, or anything else for that matter, please write to us and send in your questions to:

contact@charismaministries.org

Can sin stop the Power of God to heal or deliver me?

No. Romans 1:16 tells us the Gospel is the power of God unto salvation. The word ‘salvation’ in the Greek is the word soteria which also means to heal, to protect, to deliver, to make whole. Your sin wasn’t able to stop God from saving you, and neither is your sin able to stop Him from healing or delivering you. If sin could stop the power of God, sin would be more powerful than the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross. Now I am not saying sin is OK, but don’t let it stop you from coming to God. If your sin could have influenced His love for you, then He wouldn’t have sent Jesus to the cross to die for you. Sela.

Does God allow sickness to teach me something?

No. That is the cruelest thing you can say about a parent. If God teaches that way, then we could too right? So why don’t we give all our children cancer or aids to ensure they become better people? Because it’s stupid reasoning! God knows how to give good gifts. Something that steals health, kills people and destroys families is not my idea of a good and perfect gift from above. Also, if it were God’s will for you to be sick, then you would be in sin and rebellion going to the doctor to get better. Think about it, if you believe God makes you sick, you should pray for the symptoms to become worse so you can really learn your lesson.

Are doctors and medicine God’s way of healing today?

I have nothing against doctors personally, but I do not think they or medicine are God’s way of healing in this age. If they were, then why are doctors charging and why does medicine have negative side-effects? Jesus never asked for money and there weren’t any side-effects either. Now God can work healing through a doctor, but that is not His best way. His best way is the stripes of Jesus. Personally I agree with Curry Blake who says doctors are closer to the heart of God than most Christians because they have at least dedicated their lives to eradicating sickness and suffering. That is more than what we can say for a vast majority of the church today.

Does taking medicine void my faith?

No. Medicine is not stronger than God. If you have faith, you will be healed. If you then take medicine, your body will react differently to the medication. When it does, go to your doctor to check the need to continue taking the medicine. Don’t break your glasses after somebody prays for your eyes either. Put the glasses back on and check if you can still see through them. Also never listen to anybody who tells you to take or stop taking medicine unless they are a doctor. It is illegal to give advice or instruction on the intake of medicine if you are not a doctor.

Do I need to tithe for God to be able to bless me?

No. You need to believe in Jesus and the free gift of His righteousness. God blessed you based on that and that alone. If you are tithing in order to receive a blessing, it is vain worship because you are trying to buy God’s blessings. See what Paul told Simon when he tried to buy the free gift in Acts: 8:18-23. So next time you hear somebody ‘begging’ you for money from the pulpit and they say something along the lines of “If you don’t give, God can’t help you. You have to plant the seed so God can grow the miracle”, just remember that your miracle lies in Christ, and you can’t buy Him, you can only believe. I have nothing against giving and I give myself, but I do not expect a blessing from God because of my giving or any other actions because that is called self-righteousness and it falls under the law covenant. I expect God’s blessings because I am the righteousness of God through the obedience of the one man, Jesus Christ (Rom 5:19). Because I am an heir of God and co-equal heir of Christ by faith (Rom 8:17). The New Covenant is by grace through faith, not by grace through tithing.

Does God have a set time for my healing?

Yes. His set time was at the cross. By the stripes of Jesus your WERE healed (1 Pet 2:24) There is no future set time when God is going to do something to cause your healing. He did everything already and he did them perfectly. NOW is the day of salvation. (Salvation = soteria = healing, deliverance, protection, salvation, to make whole)

Can anyone minister healing or is it a gift?

According to Mark 16:15-18 both healing and deliverance are signs that follow ANY believer. If you believe in Jesus, then you can lay hands on the sick and they will recover. There is no mention of a healing anointing in the Bible. The gifts of healings do exist and do have a function, but we believe in the priesthood of all believers, saints who are equipped by the 5 fold ministry gifts to enable us to do the work of the ministry. You have the Holy Spirit and He has all the gifts anyway! Gifting is not an excuse.

Do I need to ask God to heal me?

No. Never ask God to do something He has already done. Since healing was provided by the stripes of Jesus and the works of the cross are finished, God has already done everything He needed to do. If you ask Him for something He has already provided, you are technically saying He hasn’t provided it yet meaning you are in doubt. Jesus taught us to speak to the mountain and tell it what we want it to do. He didn’t say talk to God about it, He said talk to the mountain. “Cancer, GET OUT in Jesus Name” is ministering in faith and authority. “God, please heal me of cancer if it is Your will” is ministering out of doubt and not knowing the will of God. There are no “ifs” in the prayer of faith.

Was Paul’s thorn in the flesh not a sickness given to him by God to keep him humble?

No. 2 Corinthians 12:7 says the thorn was a messenger of satan, not a messenger of God. If you read the verse in context with the previous chapter, you will soon see that the thorn he was referring to was the persecution he suffered for the sake of the Gospel. If you said you had a thorn in the flesh in that culture and time, it meant that you were facing persistent difficulty caused by a third party. In Paul’s case, he was persecuted wherever he preached. That was what he asked God to remove. He was irritated by the persecution that hindered the spread of the Gospel. Jesus said that if He is persecuted that we will be persecuted also. In such times, the grace of God is enough to see us through. A thorn in the flesh always refers to outside affliction and resistance against a person’s will, never to sickness. (Also read Numbers 33:55)

Can I get a ‘mantle of power’?

The teaching about people receiving ‘mantles’ that in turn empower them to do supernatural works stem from the story of Elisha and Elijah. When Elijah was taken up into heaven by the wind, his mantle fell back towards earth and Elisha took it. The story started where Elijah put his mantle on Elisha as a symbolic gesture that he is to be Elijah’s successor. After taking the mantle that fell down, Elisha went back to the Jordan and rolled it up in the same way Elijah had just done moments before to part the waters, hit the water and the river parted again. I believe Elisha did this purely to see if he had taken the place of Elijah because he never used the mantle for any other miracle again. Now just because of this one story, people want to build doctrines about mantles of power. Funny thing though is that mantles are not mentioned once in the entire New Testament. Neither Jesus, Paul, Peter or any of the other writers of the Bible told anybody to get mantles of power. In fact, the only time Jesus said they had to wait for empowerment, was when the disciples had to wait for the outpouring of Holy Spirit at Pentecost. After that, they were empowered, equipped, anointed and fully furnished to do every good work. So if you have Holy Spirit abiding in you, the personified power of Almighty God united with your spirit, why would you even want a mantle? Is Holy Spirit not strong enough? Is He lacking something? Scripture teaches that we can do ALL things through Christ who strengthens us. So if I have Christ I don’t need a mantle. Since I have been blessed with EVERY spiritual blessing in heavenly places and my sufficiency comes from Christ, I will only need to use a mantle when it is really cold outside, or if I want to put pictures up over the fireplace. Jesus said those who believe in Him will do the same and greater works then He did. Not those who believe and receive mantles. Just believe. That is always the only requirement to do anything for God. Only Believe!