Bad Things Do Not Come From God - Finale

As we come to the close of this most important series, my prayer is that you have permitted the Spirit of Truth to guide you into all Truth. The Apostle Paul said to the church, "And if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it." (1 Corinthians 12:26) The fact that an incredible number of Christians have either been inoculated with doubt or have not been taught what true Bible faith is all about by faithless shepherds is evident by the number of Christians that suffer from sickness and premature death. This causes the entire Body of Christ to suffer whether we want to admit it or not.

For one of Gods children to suffer (other than through persecution for the gospel sake) with sickness, disease or destruction going on in their life is abnormal to Him. Christians must at all cost place their faith in the integrity of God's Word. Jesus said to the Father in prayer, "Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth." (John 17:17) Everything that God has said is true and unchanging, but no one can convince another of this fact. It can only be realized through ones faith! I want to share another incident that Jesus experienced in His ministry on earth that hopefully will roll the stone in front of the sepulcher of doubt which questions, "Do bad things come from God?" and seal it shut forever.

"Now He was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sabbath. And behold, there was a woman who had a spirit of infirmity eighteen years, and was bent over and could in no way raise herself up. But when Jesus saw her, He called her to Him and said to her, "Woman, you are loosed from your infirmity." And He laid His hands on her, and immediately she was made straight, and glorified God. But the ruler of the synagogue answered with indignation, because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath; and he said to the crowd,"There are six days on which men ought to work; therefore come and be healed on them, and not on the Sabbath day." The Lord then answered him and said,  "Hypocrite! Does not each one of you on the Sabbath loose his ox or donkey from the stall, and lead it away to water it? So ought not this woman, being a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan has bound — think of it — for eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the Sabbath?" And when He said these things, all His adversaries were put to shame; and all the multitude rejoiced for all the glorious things that were done by Him."
(Luke 13:10-17)

The sad side of this story is that this woman had to suffer being bent over for eighteen years. However, what is even more sad is how the church today would look at this woman. Let's be honest, the chances are that the majority of church leaders today would have her go to an Orthopaedic Surgeon after praying a faithless prayer doubting that God could not heal her. Although ALL sickness is related to Satan, in over 25% of the healing that took place in Jesus' ministry, He had to deal with a specific demon. In the account above Jesus was dealing with a "spirit of infirmity." Today we call it, Osteoporosis caused by Parathyroid Disease. To cure such a disease, proper nutrition may work only if started at the earliest stage of the disease. However, it can be treated with pharmaceuticals. But according to researchers the pharmaceuticals prescribed to offset the disease known as bisphosphonates has certain side effects.

Side effects for all bisphosphonates include gastrointestinal problems, such as difficulty swallowing, inflammation of the esophagus, and gastric ulcer. There have also been rare reports of osteonecrosis of the jaw (a condition in which the bone becomes weak and dies) and of visual disturbances. Which one is worse? The disease or the cure?Fortunately for this woman Jesus had no problem revealing the Father's will and loosed her from a spirit of infirmity.

Next we see the typical religious leaders response to Jesus healing on the Sabbath. But look closely at His response to them, "The Lord then answered him and said,  "Hypocrite! Does not each one of you on the Sabbath loose his ox or donkey from the stall, and lead it away to water it? So ought not this woman, being a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan has bound — think of it — for eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the Sabbath?" Who had bound this woman and cause this suffering for eighteen years? Satan! Now look at the emphasis that Jesus places on this situation, whom Satan has bound — think of it — for eighteen years. In other words, "you let this child of God suffer for eighteen years at the hands of God's enemy and did nothing about and to make it worse, you get upset because God healed her on the Sabbath which He created?"

A passage like this should cut us to the heart, especially when we know that there are children of God suffering at the hands of the one who causes bad things to happen, Satan and his gang of demon spirits. It is time for church leaders to repent of their wishy washy faithless theology that prevents God's children from knowing the truth and living a victorious life here on planet earth. It is time for the church to rise up and be the triumphant church; a church filled with His glory; a church filled with His presences; a church that replicates His ministry to a lost world; a church that breaks free from fear, doubt and unbelief. Jesus said, "And these signs will follow those who BELIEVE: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues; they will take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover." (Mark 16:17-18)

Think about this. If God is the one who causes bad things to happen, then why would he give the church this commission? Look close, "And these signs will follow those who BELIEVE..." If you are truly a believer then this applies to you! However, if after seeing God's true will and nature portrayed through this series which we find in His Word, and you still believe that Bad things come from God," then not only do you not know the price that Jesus has paid for you, but you also disagree with God's Word...Selah...