They expected prayer to do for them what God's Word will do for them. Prayer is successful only when it is based on the promises in God's Word.
We needn't pray, "God, heal this man; heal this woman." In the mind of God, He already has healed them. Sometimes we pray, "God, save this man," or "God, save my son." Nowhere does the New Testament say anything about praying that the lost will be saved.
Jesus said, "…pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he would send forth labourers into his harvest" (Luke 10:2). If you want to pray for someone who is lost, say, "Lord, send someone to minister to them." They can't be saved without it.
If a man comes to the altar to be saved, you could pray for him for six weeks, but until he acts on what God said, he will get up and go home unsaved.
Turn to God's Word. Show him what the Bible says. Get him to act upon it and to believe it. As far as God is concerned, the man already is saved. From God's standpoint, salvation is already bought and paid for. So it is not a matter of God's saving him; it is a matter of his accepting the salvation God offers!
Just Accept The Gift
Similarly, it is not a matter of God's baptizing someone with the Holy Spirit; it is a matter of the person's accepting the gifts of the Holy Spirit that God offers. Likewise, it is not a matter of God's healing an individual; it is a matter of his accepting the gift God already has provided.
Some say, "Well, I believe God is going to heal me sometime. I believe that in His own good time and in His own way, He will do it." That kind of thinking is out of line with the Word of God. First Peter 2:24 says, "…by whose stripes ye were healed."
Notice it says "were," not "going to be." If I believe what the Bible says, then I believe that we were healed. Peter is looking back to Calvary. I was healed then. I accept that.
God laid on Him (Jesus) our sicknesses and diseases; He bore them. He was "stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted" with our diseases. Therefore, Satan has no right to put on us what God put on Jesus.
Someone may say, "It may be the will of God for me to be sick. God may get more glory out of my being sick than if I were well."
What right, then, would God have to put your sickness on Jesus if He wanted you to keep bearing it? There is no need for both of you to bear it. Because Jesus bore it, you are free!
All of God's blessings and provisions are conditional. He gave us His Word to let us know what conditions must be met in order for us to receive these blessings. They won't just fall on us automatically like ripe cherries fall off a tree.
There is a God-ward side and a man-ward side to every battle and to every blessing. God has His part to play, but man also has his part to play.
The Promised Land
Paul said that what happened to Israel happened as an example for us (1 Cor. 10:11). When God led the children of Israel out of Egypt (which is a type of the world), He didn't abandon them in the wilderness; He had a further blessing for them. He had another land for them: Canaan's land.
Canaan is a type of the baptism of the Holy Spirit and our rights and privileges in Christ, which include healing. God promised the children of Israel repeatedly that He was going to give them that land.
When they finally crossed over the Jordan River into Canaan, God said, "Every place that the sole of your foot shall tread upon, that have I given unto you, as I said unto Moses" (Josh. 1:3). God had said He would give them the land, but the people had to possess it.
That's how it is with our rights and privileges in Christ. Healing belongs to us. God has provided it for us. But we have to possess it. Unless we possess the provision, we will not enjoy its benefits.
Excerpt permission granted by Faith Library Publications
Rev. Hagin served in Christian ministry for nearly 70 years and was known as the "father of the modern faith movement." His teachings and books are filled with vivid stories that show God's power and truth working in his life and the lives of others.
