“And there they preached the gospel. And there sat a certain man at Lystra, impotent in his feet, being a cripple from his mother’s womb, who never had walked: the same heard Paul speak: who steadfastly beholding him, and perceiving that he had faith to be healed, said with a loud voice, Stand upright on thy feet. And he leaped and walked” (Acts 14:7-10).
That crippled man had never taken a step in his life. Then suddenly, he was up leaping and praising God! How did that happen? He received through faith. Where did he get his faith? “The same heard Paul speak.” What did Paul speak? Verse 7 says, “And there they preached the gospel.” So the man put his faith in the Gospel message and received a miraculous healing!
You hear some people say, “Well, Brother, we don’t preach healing around here; we just preach the Gospel.” That’s amazing. When Paul preached the Gospel, people had faith to be healed! A person can’t preach the whole Gospel without preaching healing.
“The same heard Paul speak: who steadfastly beholding him, and perceiving that he had faith to be healed….” Did Paul perceive that someday the man would get faith? No, Paul perceived that the man had faith right then. The man hadn’t taken a step yet, but he had faith to be healed. However, his faith didn’t work until he stepped out and acted on it.
It isn’t right to say to someone, “Well, if you had faith, you’d be healed.” Sometimes people just haven’t come to the point of stepping out and acting on their faith to get results.
And you can’t say, “Well, then, so-and-so is not healed because he isn’t acting on his faith.” No, a number of things can keep faith from working.
The bottom line is that we can’t judge another person’s faith. However, we can know that it’s God’s will to heal every person every time, because we have His Word on it!
I hear the full Gospel of salvation and healing, and faith
rises in me to be healed. I act on my faith in God’s Word,
and it produces what I desire. God’s Word works!
Excerpt permission granted by Harrison House Publishers
For over 40 years, Pastors Mark and Janet Brazee have traveled throughout the world sharing the Word of God and the Spirit of God. Together they've shared the powerful truths of faith and healing in more than 50 nations.
Today Mark and Janet pastor World Outreach Church in Tulsa, Oklahoma, where they base their ongoing outreach to the world. The Brazees still travel as the Lord leads, and they are raising up a congregation who share their passion to reach Tulsa and the world.