Aphiémi Healing, Part
2
November 1, 2013
As you all know, we've been doing these world-wide healing
conference calls on Mondays, Wednesday's and Fridays. On one of these Coffee
Breaks a few weeks ago I mentioned how the Lord had healed George Robinson's
shoulder and -- from what we can see -- literally gave him a new shoulder out
of the "parts room" in Heaven.
It has happened again, and this time with George's heart.
We have mentioned on a few occasions that George needed healing
for his heart and that he has (in times past) suffered several heart attacks,
two or three of which resulted in his flat-lining. On each occasion the Lord has raised George
back to life. The problem has been,
however, that his heart was still in need of being replaced with a new one.
Early this week, George called us and he was in serious trouble
again with his heart. We went to prayer
over the issue, and this time we called for a new heart for George out of the
parts room in Heaven. He called me a
couple of days ago and said he woke up feeling really energized. He decided to go to the health club and do a
work out. After a couple hours or so of
weight lifting, running on the treadmill and doing a number of other exercises,
he went home and began cleaning out the pond in his back yard. Besides cleaning out dead leaves, he had to
pull grass and weeds from the pond (and of course, that takes some effort).
The catch here is that the pond is down a hill in his back
yard. In times past, every time he had
climbed that hill back up to the house, he suffered shortness of breath and
even chest pains on occasion. This time
George climbed the hill without a single symptom of breathing issues and was
still full of energy when he got back up to the house. He called me and his reaction was, "It's
so cool!" Riiiiggghhhhttt! See what God does? What He did for George, and what He's done
for me, He will most certainly do for you.
Join us on our healing calls. (See
the number below.)
Let's
continue where we left off last week and begin with Mark 9:41-50 from the
Amplified Version:
"For
I tell you truly, whoever gives you a cup of water to drink because you belong
to and bear the name of Christ will by no means fail to get his reward. And whoever causes one of
these little ones (these believers) who acknowledge and cleave to Me to
stumble and sin, it would be better (more profitable and wholesome) for
him if a [huge] millstone were hung about his neck, and he were thrown into the
sea.
"And if your hand puts a stumbling block before you and causes
you to sin, cut it off! It is more
profitable and wholesome for you to go into life [that is really
worthwhile] maimed than with two hands to go to hell (Gehenna), into the fire
that cannot be put out.
"And if your foot is a cause of stumbling and sin to you, cut
it off! It is more profitable and wholesome for you to enter into life
[that is really worthwhile] crippled than, having two feet, to be cast into
hell (Gehenna).
"And
if your eye causes you to stumble and sin, pluck it out! It is more
profitable and wholesome for you to enter the kingdom of God with one
eye than with two eyes to be thrown into hell (Gehenna),
"Where their worm [which preys on the inhabitants and is a symbol of
the wounds inflicted on the man himself by his sins] does not die, and the fire
is not put out. For everyone shall be
salted with fire. Salt is good (beneficial), but if salt has lost its saltness, how
will you restore [the saltness to] it?
Have salt within yourselves, and be at peace and live in harmony
with one another."
Jesus
is getting at something here that many Christians seem to miss out on. So many folks suffer from chronic diseases
and ailments. They ask for prayer for
healing, they read the promises in the Word relating to healing and often quote
those scriptures to themselves. Many of
these same people understand the concept of speaking the Word and having a
proper confession, and yet complete healing seems to be just beyond their
grasp.
Sadly,
lots of folks give up when they don't receive their healing after repeated
prayers and "proper confessions," and many fall prey to the lie of
Satan which says, "Well, it just
must not be God's will for you to be healed.
You just need to bear your cross (spoken, of course, in a whiny,
religious voice). After all, let's not
forget Paul's thorn in the flesh."
Whewww!!! What a pile of religious horse puckey!
Jesus
most certainly did not suffer all those stripes -- stripes I might add that
left him looking like nothing more than a mass of bloody and ripped flesh and
almost unrecognizable as a human being -- because he wanted some folks to
continue on in their sicknesses, diseases and infirmity! He paid for all of it, PERIOD!! There's no such thing as it being necessary
for some folks to be sick and some folks to be healed. What a lie!
Well,
let's begin breaking down these statements that Jesus made and show you the
relationship between each of these comments and our ability to receive and
retain our healing for the long term.
I'm going to move back and forth between these verses of scripture, but
let me begin with the statements in Verse 43.
"And if your hand puts a stumbling block before you and causes
you to sin, cut it off! It is more
profitable and wholesome for you to go into life [that is really
worthwhile] maimed than with two hands to go to hell (Gehenna), into the fire
that cannot be put out."
This
is a revelatory statement. The reference
to one's hand is a reference to the way one conducts business. The Hebrew text in the Old Testament uses the
word, yamiyn, and the Greek text
of the New Testament uses the word, cheir. In both instances, the translation from
Hebrew and Greek is a representation of power; it represents an instrument or a
means of conducting business, and it is a representation of one's strength.
Scripture
is full of examples of the use of the hand, and especially the right hand. Take a quick look at some statements David
makes in the Psalms.
Psalm
20:6: Now know I that the Lord saveth His anointed; He will hear him
from His holy Heaven with the saving strength of His right hand.
Psalm
21:8: Thine hand shall find out all thine enemies: thy
right hand shall find out those that hate thee.
Then
we have this contrasting illustration.
Psalm
26:9-10: Gather not my soul with sinners, nor my life with bloody men: in
whose hands is mischief, and their right hand is full of bribes.
Now
take a look at some references in which the hand is an example of business
endeavor.
Psalm
78:54: And He brought them to the border of His sanctuary, even to this
mountain which His right hand had purchased.
Psalm
80:15-17: And the vineyard which thy right hand hath planted, and
the branch that thou madest strong for thyself.
It is burned with fire, it is cut down: they perish at the rebuke of thy
countenance. Let thy hand be upon the
man of thy right hand, upon the son of man whom thou madest strong for
thyself.
This
is a tiny fraction of several hundred such illustrations scattered throughout
the Word. Are you beginning to see the
picture? Do you understand what Jesus is
saying when he makes reference to one's hand putting a stumbling block before
them and causing them to sin?
Let's
go back to Mark 9:41-42:
"For
I tell you truly, whoever gives you a cup of water to drink because you belong
to and bear the name of Christ will by no means fail to get his reward. And whoever causes one of
these little ones (these believers) who acknowledge and cleave to Me to
stumble and sin, it would be better (more profitable and wholesome) for
him if a [huge] millstone were hung about his neck, and he were thrown into the
sea."
Jesus
is referring to offenses -- offenses that we bring toward others, as well as
seizing the opportunities to do even the littlest thing for someone, something
as tiny as just bringing a cup of water to someone who thirsts and bringing it
in the name, the character, the life, the makeup of the Lord Jesus Christ.
As
representatives of the Lord Jesus Christ, and as ambassadors and
representatives of the Kingdom of God, every action and every reaction we have
or take is a reflection on Him. He
promises to reward every individual who performs even the littlest task when it
is done in, by and through Him. Believe
me, when He says He will reward you, that's exactly what He will do!
There
is a corollary to this, however, and it is the opposite side of this
equation. If anyone who represents the
Lord Jesus Christ causes a "little one" -- a relatively new believer
-- to stumble and/or give up in their spiritual walk, there are huge
consequences. As Jesus puts it, it would
be more profitable for the Kingdom of God that the one who offends or causes
someone else -- whether that "someone" is a friend, an acquaintance,
a stranger, or even a member of their own family -- to stumble and fall in
their walk with the Lord, that person is better off having a millstone hung
about their neck so that they are weighted down, cast into the sea and drowned.
Pretty
strong, isn't it? But we live under
Grace, don't we? True, but Grace is not
an excuse or justification, or some reason why we should escape the
consequences of our offenses.
Let
me take this illustration the next step.
Pay attention to something that Paul writes to the Ekklesia in
Corinth. He says this within the context
of eating and drinking at the Table of the Lord. (See I Corinthians 11:28-30 with my
additions)
"But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that
bread, and drink of that cup. For he that eateth and drinketh
unworthily (carelessly), eateth and drinketh damnation to himself, not
discerning (not recognizing those among you who are a part of) the Lord’s body
(the body of Christ). For
this cause many are weak (suffer from infirmities) and sickly (with
diseases) among you, and many sleep (die prematurely)."
Let's
try this one more time but fully amplified from the Greek text: "But let a
man place himself for examination in the crucible by eating of that bread and
drinking of that cup, because he that eats and drinks treating the bread and
the cup as commonplace, incapable and unfit to accomplish in him [that for
which Christ died on the Cross] eats and drinks judgment to himself, not
separating or discriminating between that which is ordinary and the Lord's
body. For this reason many are weak, sickly, infirm, diseased and
poverty-stricken, and many die prematurely."
Now
do you get the picture? Good! Then let's get to the offense of the hand and
re-do Jesus' statement, clarifying it by (greatly) amplifying the Hebrew
metaphor.
"And
if the way you conduct business, if the way you exercise your influence and
power on a personal level causes you to err or depart from a walk or a way of
life that is obedient and responsive to the Lord Jesus Christ, cut off that
business; cease in the way you exercise your influence or authority. It is far more profitable for you as a member
of the body of Christ to go through life without being in that business or
living your life in a manner that draws attention to your power and authority
and position, and to live a life that is productive in Christ through your
place of weakness rather than live an unproductive life spiritually and lose
everything you've got in God heading into the fires of destruction, and
suffering a burning that you cannot quench."
OK, I know that's a bit expansive, but it is
important that you understand the significance of what Jesus is getting at.
We're
talking about healing in this discussion, so let's get to the crux of why Jesus
is focusing on your "hand" as the symbol of the way you conduct
business, and the way you exercise power, authority or influence, and how this
relates to chronic disease or infirmity.
"The
burning that you cannot quench" is a picture of a disease that is like a
fire inside you that consumes your flesh.
The text of the Amplified Version we began this discussion with
describes it as "the worm [which preys on the
inhabitants and is a symbol of the wounds inflicted on the man himself by
his sins] does not die, and the fire is not put out."
We
are talking about infirmities and diseases that men and women bring upon
themselves by their own sins. These are
the sicknesses, the places of weakness, the diseases and chronic afflictions
that people pray over, they declare over, they attempt to speak the word of
faith, they agree that "by His stripes we are healed," and yet the
diseases stay on and on and on without seeming remedy of any kind.
Is
there a remedy? Is there healing and
restoration from these chronic illnesses?
Yes, there is! That healing
begins with true repentance, and repentance is NOT saying to the Lord,
"I'm sorry." Repentance is
turning away from that which brought you to this place. Repentance is a turning back. The Greek term, metanoeo,
means: to think differently, to change the way you have thought
about things, to reconsider and do things differently.
The
application of repentance in this instance is to cut off that area or type of
business you've been involved in and with, or to begin to conduct business
according to Kingdom principles.
Remember the rich publican, Zacchaeus? The guy that had cheated folks in
business? When Jesus saw him sitting in
the tree, He said to him, "Zacchaeus, come on down. I'm coming over to your house today."
Naturally
all the religious folks standing around began to criticize Jesus for
associating with a guy whose business ethics were less than acceptable. Here's how Luke describes what happened next:
"And Zacchaeus stood, and said unto the Lord; Behold, Lord,
the half of my goods I give to the poor; and if I have taken anything from any
man by false accusation, I restore him fourfold. And Jesus said unto him, This day is salvation
come to this house, forsomuch as he also is a son of Abraham. For the Son of man is come to seek and to
save that which was lost." (Luke 19:8-10)
THAT,
folks was true repentance. And with that
repentance came Jesus' aphiémi.
Zacchaeus' past was eradicated.
He was a different businessman from that day forward.
Well,
we've only begun to scratch the surface on this. Next week we'll take up the picture of one's
foot offending them and draw some pictures for you from the Word.
A reminder: If you are in need of healing please join our prayer
conference calls on either Monday, Wednesday or Friday of each week at 7:00 PM
Eastern. Once again, the number to call
is (805) 399-1000. Then enter the access
code: 124763#.
Blessings on you!
Regner
Regner A. Capener
CAPENER MINISTRIES
CAPENER MINISTRIES
RIVER WORSHIP CENTER
Sunnyside, Washington 98944
Sunnyside, Washington 98944
Email Contact: Admin@RiverWorshipCenter.org
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