Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!know!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!mips!dimacs.rutgers.edu!aramis.rutgers.edu!athos.rutgers.edu!christian From: etxtdi@diana.ericsson.se Newsgroups: soc.religion.christian Subject: Healing. Message-ID: Date: 13 Nov 90 09:28:24 GMT Sender: hedrick@athos.rutgers.edu Organization: Ericsson Telecom, Stockholm Lines: 72 Approved: christian@aramis.rutgers.edu Hi everybody ! Not so often I post articles, by here is one. I have followed some articles by Allen S. Cheung about healing and Gods will about that. In the article Patricia Shanahan then reacts against Allen saying that sickness could have reasons, as for instance unrepentant sinning. I would not try to defend "one against the other", but I think this question is pretty interesting and often asked among believers as well as non believers. Patricias response shows that. My view IS basically Mr. Allens about sickness and healing in Jesus Name. I don't know if this particular post by Mr. Allen 100% expresses what he actually means by this. I think his previeous posts pretty well explains what it is all about. Patricia says: > This is the most truly and absolutely evil explanation of sickness that > I have read. Why do you end a message that accuses your God of such > petty cruelty with "Praise God"? If your God really does let people > get sick as a punishment for "sin" or for "lack of faith" you should > condemn and fight Him with all your strength, not praise Him. I agree with Patricia that IF God really let people get sick as a punishment for sin or lack of faith, the best thing would be to fight him or try to "convert" him or whatever. But doesn't Patricia and others understand that there are three parties involved here in this controversy? As Allen so clearly has said (and with which I do agree) Adam LET Satan take over the dominion on this earth which God in the first place gave to Adam. Adam (and we as his children) had really messed it up here! When any of Gods will has to be done here on earth, it has to be done IN THE NAME OF JESUS, because OUTSIDE of him rules the prince ofwwww this darkness. Jesus is the one that has defeated Satan and taken the power from him. But as long as God intended man to have dominion over the earth when He gave it (the dominion), Satan is in the positihon to use it in his destructive way. (By deception, lies and all kinds of terror, hasn't history shown?). God cannot "steal" it back from Satan, then God would be a lawbreaker. But if we don't care to enter into Jesus, or claiming healing in Jesus name, God cannot just "break in" and force his will onto people. Gods will is really 100% good in every aspect, He has a heart which trembles of love for His children. His grace is available in Jesus here on earth. That is why Jesus is SO important to bring to people. About punishment. Sometimes when man sins by will, God HAS to allow punishment for that sin to hit man. God has after all given the law, and sin HAS to be punished according to that. If man thus is outside Jesus, and persistently sins, God is forced to withdraw his protection, while Satan can reach man with attacks. It looks like God punishes man here, but since Jesus has paid for all our sins, we have the possibility to repent and go free, but if a man refuses that, the situation still occures that he has to be punished. Now normally this is not the kind of suffering Christians experience. Satan is a "spiritual terrorist" so he tries to attack "the good ones" anyway, and always. So what I need is the knowledge about this, the faith to stand against him and declare the Word about Jesus as the victory against Satan. "Resist the devil and he will flee from you". For those of you who are with me this far, In Jesus we are strong, and can "break down strongholds". About faith, faith is nothing hard or some desperate effort. Faith can be like a mustard seed, but the subject of our faith is great and powerful. It just has to do with the hearts childish trust in our father who has revealed himself in the Word through Jesus. God bless you all ! I am not really interested in debate, I just hope that some will be blessed by this and get to know our father better. Tord Ivarsson, Stockholm Sweden.