Jesus tells us in John 10:10 that “the thief comes to kill, steal, and destroy but that He comes to bring us life and life in abundance.” Life in abundance refers not only to eternal life in heaven but also to our life here and now. All over the world where I have had the opportunity to travel, it is evident that the deceiver is busy with his business of killing, stealing, and destroying. Deception tells us that it is God’s will that we suffer. The idea that the promises of Jesus for our abundant life are only in our eternal heavenly state steals the destiny of our earthly lives and creates a powerless gospel. Nothing kills hope more quickly than assuming that we have no supernatural ability to create change here on earth and are simply biding our time waiting for heaven.
The Word of God says that if we resist the enemy, he will flee. Some of us were never taught how to fight the enemy or to recognize the patterns of deception he uses against us. I know that was true for me. Maybe you are like I used to be before I was healed, not understanding what Jesus paid for through His perfect sacrifice on the cross and His daily intercession for us.
Perhaps you have never experienced our Heavenly Father’s love or the power of Jesus to heal through His marvelous Holy Spirit. Or, maybe you have not seen into the depths of God’s love for you. Throughout the gospels, we read of Jesus bringing love where love had not yet arrived—to the prostitutes and outcasts. Jesus touched lepers, sat with sinners, and spoke their names in love. He invited them into a deep relationship with Him, as He continues to do for us. The theologian Beldon Lane writes, “Divine love is incessantly restless until it turns all woundedness into health, all deformity into beauty, and all embarrassment into laughter.” We are far from perfect, but in John 8:12, Jesus calls us His light. We are not the light when we get everything together and perfect. He made us the light as soon as we said yes to Him.
Having said yes, we are now learning that His love is the answer to all that we need. The love of God is wide and high and long and deep. The more we allow His love to heal us, the brighter our light shines because we no longer hide under a veil of unworthiness and insecurity. This is the life of a believer in Christ—To live in the majesty of the Almighty and believe that we are accepted just as we are. In Ephesians 1:6, Paul writes that we are “accepted by the beloved,” and that means we are a divine delight to the Lord. It’s much easier to believe we greatly please God’s heart when our faith is childlike.
A few years ago, I was on the East Coast ministering in a colossal revival tent in the summer heat. People came from around the country for a week of worship, prayer, and ministry training. In the middle of my teaching about how Jesus prayed for the sick, I felt an impression from the Lord to ask who in the crowd had back pain the longest. When I asked the question, two hands from the back of the tent shot up and waved frantically. Although many others also had hands up, I knew this person in the last row had to be the one the Lord wanted to bring forward. An older woman in a purple t-shirt and white pants walked up the dusty aisle of the tent. She was limping slightly and clearly in pain. She told me she had injured her back as a child, and for 67 years, she had been in excruciating pain. The next moment, I had another impression to ask if any four-year-old children were in the crowd.
A beautiful young woman with a baby on her hip pushed a small four-year-old boy into the aisle. “Can he pray with me?” I asked the beaming mom. “Of course! He prays for all kinds of people!” I laughed. I asked him his name, and he answered, Malachi. “You have a name bigger than you, Malachi. Would you pray with me?” Malachi nodded, and together, we placed our hands on the woman. When we prayed, the power of Jesus tangibly moved through her body, and when she opened her eyes, she had no more pain! I shouted thanks to God as the woman hugged us.
Malachi smiled but acted as if this was ordinary as he wandered back to his mom. Even at four years old, because of his parents, he prays for people as a lifestyle, and they are healed in the name of Jesus. Childlike faith. We all need more of that. Three days later, the woman with 67 years of tormenting back pain was dancing in the tent as the worship team played. I looked over and saw Malachi watching the woman. He turned and smiled at me. This is the Kingdom of heaven manifesting on earth through the simple prayers of ordinary people. All because of Jesus, nothing is impossible for God.
Father in heaven, thank You that You have not given us a spirit of fear but of power, love, and a sound mind. You called Your children a royal priesthood and a holy nation, a people for God’s possession. Today, give us the faith of a child and lead us to the broken, hurting, and lost that they may be healed, freed, and delivered into Your saving love in the mighty name of Jesus Christ.