Why Miracles Happen--The Glory of
God's Love
by Todd Bentley

RECEIVE JESUS AS GOD, THE ALMIGHTY CREATOR

Physics, natural laws, winds, seas, Heaven, earth, and bodies obey God. He is Elohim, the Creator. All of creation is subject to Him and His Word, so it shouldn't surprise us that sickness and disease are subject to Him, too. Because He lives within us, sickness and disease are subject to His power within us.

Jesus so clearly wanted the disciples to have this revelation, but they still did not have it when the windstorm arose on the sea and threatened to capsize their boat (Mark 4:35-41). "But He said to them, 'Why are you so fearful? How is it that you have no faith?'" (verse 40). The disciples were not yet ready to receive Jesus as God. Today, we need that revelation of Jesus as the Almighty creator, Elohim. What is the difficulty in God giving us a new heart when He is the One who gave us our first heart?

There is a difference between healing and miracles. Healing is a process. The Bible says, "...they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover" (Mark 16:18). Miracles happen when the supernatural laws of God override the natural laws of man--they are instant.

Let's continue now with the final 15 of the 30 reasons why miracles happen. (To view reasons 1-15, previously posted on Identity Network, click here: http://www.identitynetwork.net/articles_view.asp?articleid=24081&columnid=2093.) Understand that this list is not exhaustive! There are many reasons why God heals, but as you'll recall, the first and most important reason is--God's love.

16. GOD IS SOVEREIGN

This is a simple reason that is good enough for me. Clearly, the Bible shows us that God sometimes acts in sovereign ways and doesn't necessarily explain everything to us: "Do not be hasty to go from His presence. Do not take your stand for an evil thing, for He does whatever pleases Him" (Ecclesiastes 8:3). Why healings? Why miracles? Because He is sovereign and does whatever He pleases!

In Scripture, we read how God sent an angel to the pool of Bethesda at a certain time to stir the waters, so that the first person in, would be healed (John 5:4). In the original Greek, God sent the angel at a Kairos time (a set, convenient or due season). This was a sovereign healing visitation not based on the fulfillment of any conditions by those who were sick.

Yes, God does give us principles as well as reasons for the things He does--but not always. If He wants to do something, He just does it. He doesn't have to explain it to us. He is God, and we are not.

17. CHARITABLE GIVING

You will see more miracles in your ministry through charitable giving and prayer. Our alms and offerings open the Heavens! Tabitha's good works and charitable deeds caused God to raise her from the dead (Acts 9:36-41), and God brought salvation to Cornelius' house because of his giving (Acts 10:1, 2). Alms are not tithes. They are resources given to the poor beyond the tithe. They are love offerings--special gifts to the poor or for children--for the sake of mercy.

"Blessed is he who considers the poor; the LORD will deliver him in time of trouble. The LORD will preserve him and keep him alive, and he will be blessed on the earth; You will not deliver him to the will of his enemies" (Psalms 41:1, 2).

Scripture also promises that He will give us victory over our enemies, and strengthen us on our sickbeds (Psalms 41:2, 3). These verses declare not just healing, but divine health. God will preserve us and keep us alive. He'll strengthen us on our beds of illness. Why would the Lord do all this? Because we consider the poor. That's one reason God does miracles today--charitable giving.

18. IT'S THE GOSPEL

Miracles happen because of the Good News. We need to preach the gospel! As the apostle Paul said, "I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes" (Romans 1:16). The gospel is the power of God for everyone who believes. A person cannot be saved without power. The power of God to save is found in the preaching of the message.

In the Book of Romans, Paul talks about his ministry among unbelievers. He goes on to talk about the ministry of Jesus given to him: "In mighty signs and wonders, by the power of the Spirit of God, so that from Jerusalem and round about to Illyricum I have fully preached the gospel of Christ" (Romans 15:19).

Do you know what Paul just said? He clearly said that he has not fully preached the gospel if he does not do it with miracles, signs, and wonders in the power of the Holy Ghost! Wow! Signs and wonders are a powerful confirmation of the truth of the gospel. "So then, after the Lord had spoken to them, He was received up into Heaven, and sat down at the right hand of God. And they went out and preached everywhere, the Lord working with them and confirming the word through the accompanying signs" (Mark 16:19, 20).

What did they do? They preached everywhere. What did they preach? It was the full gospel message of salvation with power--signs which included deliverance, healing, and miracles. Healing signs specifically accompany the message of the gospel of Christ.

19. FRIENDSHIP WITH GOD

Friendship with God is another reason God heals today. Jesus said to His disciples:

"No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I heard from My Father I have made known to you. You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask the Father in My name He may give you." (John 15:15, 16)

When you become a friend of God, the first thing you get is the inside scoop on what He is doing. Why? Because you are friends. Whatever you ask of the Father, He will give to you. God hears the prayers of His friends. There is a wonderful connection between intimate friendship with God and working miracles today. As we abide in the Vine, we ask for whatever we wish and it happens. He is saying, "I am going to answer your prayer and you are going to bear much fruit" (John 15:7, 8).

20. THE GLORY OF GOD

Miracles bring glory to the God of Israel (Matthew 15:31). Jesus healed the maimed--a creative miracle that restored arms, legs, or other missing body parts. He also healed the mute, lame, and blind. Why? So people would give glory to the God of Israel. God sometimes does miracles so that we will praise Him. Miracles make us aware that God is good and all-powerful. Through healing, He reveals His powerful goodness. Our faith grows, and we experience breakthroughs when we see His faithfulness. Abraham grew strong in faith by giving glory to God (Romans 4:20).

God may use miracles to bring favor on our lives and ministries, but if our motive for ministering healing is for the attention to turn to us, then we are stealing God's glory. We need to be passionate in our pursuit to give God the glory. Yes, God does miracles so people will glorify Him, and be drawn closer to Him when they see Him as the God of great power and goodness. Miracles are for the glory of God.

21. THE CURSE OF THE LAW

God also heals today because, according to Galatians 3:13,"Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law." God will heal you today because Christ redeems us from the curse of the law "...that the blessing of Abraham might come upon the Gentiles in Christ Jesus" (Galatians 3:14). God wants us to receive the blessing of Abraham. God wants to free us from all the diseases described under the curse of the law in Deuteronomy 28.

That description includes just about every sickness that you can find in the world today, as well as blindness, tumors, boils, skin conditions, insanity, confusion, mental illness, chronic conditions, and miscarriages. Although certain diseases today may have different names, they still fit under the criteria of "...every sickness and every plague, which is not written in this Book of the Law" (Deuteronomy 28:61).

To redeem us from this curse of the law, and to fulfill His covenant with us (which was paid with Jesus' blood), God has to heal us from every sickness and disease. Christ paid the price for our complete freedom from the curse of physical sickness.

22. DESPERATION

Remember blind Bartimaeus who, when he cried out, was told to be quiet, yet he cried out all the more? (Mark 10:46-48). He received his healing. The woman with the issue of blood pushed through in desperation to be healed. In fact, she risked her life, but she got what she was seeking (Mark 5:25-34). Jesus at first, seemed unmoved by the pleas of the Canaanite woman to heal her daughter. The disciples tried to make her go away, but she persisted. Jesus responded to her desperation and healed her daughter. (Matthew 15:22-28)

When people cry out to God, in spite of those who discourage them--when they press through the crowd, over the obstacles, and beyond their fears--God heals.

23. TO DESTROY THE DEVIL'S WORK

If God did miracles for no other reason than this one, it would be enough. He does miracles to destroy the devil's work! Think about that truth for a minute. Here's what the Bible says: "God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power, who went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him" (Acts 10:38). Jesus went about doing good and healing people to set the oppressed free! "For this purpose the Son of God was manifested that He might destroy the works of the devil" (1 John 3:8).

In God's eyes, any sickness or disease is oppression and a work of the devil. This doesn't mean you are demon possessed if you are sick; rather, there is a demonic source behind the illness. The Enemy is at work to afflict and destroy people's bodies. We can resist sickness because Scripture tells us that every sickness and disease is of the devil. Rise up in God's righteous anger to destroy the enemy's works--just as Jesus did.

24. THE NAME OF GOD

One of God's redemptive names is Jehovah Rapha--a Hebrew name that means "The Lord Heals." This word also means "physician" or "doctor." In Exodus 15:26, God said to His people, "I am the LORD who heals you." The word Rapha refers more to physical healing than inner healing, relational healing, or national healing. He is Jehovah the Great Physician. By definition, He heals and makes healthy. His wisdom and power over disease is far greater than that of an earthly doctor. Let's put our faith in Jehovah Rapha, our Healer.

25. COMMUNION

It is vital that we understand the power of communion in healing and miracles: "For he who eats and drinks in an unworthy manner eats and drinks judgment to himself, not discerning the Lord's body. For this reason many are weak and sick among you, and many sleep" (1 Corinthians 11:29, 30). When we understand that believers in every denominational stream are just as important to Christ's body as we are, then we become strong and healthy.

Revelation of the power of communion--the healing power in Christ's body, found in the atoning sacrifice, brings rivers of healing to the church. When we take communion, we see and know the healing that is found through His broken, beaten body. We understand the forgiveness of sin, and the sozo--the salvation, healing, and deliverance at the moment of salvation for the body, soul, and spirit.

We need the revelation in communion that He suffered for sickness and desires us to be forgiven and healed. Christ's body was broken for our spiritual wholeness as well as our physical wholeness. Partaking of communion in a worthy manner, with full revelation of the atoning sacrifice and of Christ's body, brings us God's revelatory power for life and healing.

26. GIFTS OF THE SPIRIT

God has given His children the gifts of the Spirit, so that we can walk in the same power Jesus did. As the apostle Paul said about these gifts: "To another (is given) faith by the same spirit, to another gifts of healing by the same spirit, to another working of miracles" (1 Corinthians 12:9, 10). Why do healings happen today? That verse is clear--He heals through and because of the gifts of the Spirit.

27. THE NAME OF JESUS

Why did God heal the lame man at the Beautiful Gate? The answer is found in the apostle Peter's words: "Silver and gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk" (Acts 3:6).

Clearly, healing happens because of the name of Jesus Christ. Peter confirmed the power of Jesus' name saying: "And His name, through faith in His name, has made this man strong" (Acts 3:16). The name Jesus comes from the Hebrew root, Yeshua, meaning, "Jehovah is salvation" (again pointing to sozo), while the name Christ means "the Messiah" or "Anointed One," such as a priest or king. As the Christ, Jesus was anointed with the Holy Spirit to release healing power. Healing is in Jesus' name and He is still the same today; He has not changed His name. That wonderful name is the only reason we need for healing and miracles today.

28. FILLED WITH THE SPIRIT

Soak in the reality of Romans 8:11! This Scripture reveals that the same Spirit that lived in Jesus, also lives in us. Being filled with the Spirit is a powerful key to the manifestation of God's healing power and anointing in life and ministry. Divine healing comes through His Spirit who dwells in us and brings life to our physical bodies.

The healing anointing is in us--it comes through the Spirit that dwells in us, not the Holy Ghost on the outside. The same Spirit that empowered the ministry of Jesus to heal those oppressed by the devil lives in us, and the same Spirit that came on Jesus in power and raised Him from the dead lives in us. This same Spirit was involved in the creation of the entire universe, and He lives in us! This revelation will bring healing to your mortal body and life to your soul. The healing power of the Spirit is within you.

29. I AM SAVED

In God's eyes, salvation (or sozo) doesn't simply mean spiritual salvation and freedom from sin. Remember what Scripture says about Jesus' healing ministry? "And as many as touched Him were made well" (Mark 6:56). That word "well" is sozo or salvation--so everyone who touched Jesus was saved from their sickness. When we come to Jesus for salvation, we get the whole package--salvation, healing, and deliverance. (Other sozo Scriptures are Luke 7:50 and Romans 10:9.)

30. THE KINGDOM

Jesus said, "But if I cast out demons by the Spirit of God, surely the Kingdom of God has come upon you" (Matthew 12:28). Another Kingdom Scripture worth noting is Matthew 6:10. The disciples asked Jesus to teach them how to pray and Jesus replied, "Your Kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in Heaven."

The Kingdom of God is "as it is in Heaven." God's Kingdom comes when Heaven and earth synchronize--when Heaven touches earth. His Kingdom comes when Heaven shows up in your world, and your life lines up with God's world. That means no sorrow, no pain, no sickness, or disease in your life. Those things don't exist in Heaven.

The enemy will do anything to oppose this wonderful divine plan. So when you pray, welcome the Kingdom. Pray for the Kingdom to come. Invite the atmosphere of Heaven into your life, into your church, and into your city. God does miracles and healings in the church today because they are a sign and a manifestation of His Kingdom. When people see miracles manifested on the earth, they know that the Kingdom of God has come upon them.

TWO KEY STEPS TO MAINTAINING YOUR HEALING

We are "saints" and through the power of praise, worship, and thanksgiving, we can execute the written judgment on the enemy and his cohorts that oppose Christ's rule (Psalms 149:5-9) or His healing work in our lives.

1. PRAISE, PRAYER, AND WORSHIP

When you receive a healing, give praise and thanks for what He has done--this will help you maintain your healing. Examine the Bible--all the instances of healing and deliverance, as well as the promises of Scripture, and give thanks and praise that you already have these blessings. Sing spontaneous songs of thanks, and you will begin to execute written judgment on the enemy--those demonic powers of sickness and disease.

Praise, prayer, and worship are how you execute the triumph of Jesus over powers of darkness. Jesus has defeated sin, sickness, disease, death, and poverty and made us free. He "...has redeemed us from the curse of the law" (Galatians 3:13, 14). It's already done! It's a written judgment in God's Word.

Execute judgment through praise and thanksgiving. There is so much power in them, that some people don't even need prayer for healing. This week, jump out of bed each morning, and sing psalms and hymns to the Lord your God. Give thanks, and praise Him that you are already healed.

"Hallelujah! Thank you, Lord Jesus! We were healed; we are healed. You carried away every sickness and disease. You shed Your blood for the remission of sin. O thank You, Lord, that I am washed in Your blood--Your holy blood."

2. MEDITATE ON AND LIVE BY GOD'S WORD

Meditation on God's Word brings revelation, and revelation brings healing manifestation. "For they are life to those who find them" (Proverbs 4:22). Keeping the Word in the midst of our heart will bring health to our flesh. "Give attention to my words; incline your ear to my sayings...keep them in the midst of your heart" (verses 20, 21). Keep the Word in the midst of your heart even after the healing comes.

I know people who become desperate for a breakthrough and truly press in. They purpose in their hearts and go hard after God. When breakthrough comes--a miracle, a healing, or a gift, it's the answer they've prayed and pressed in for, and they no longer spend time with God. Then He has to ask, "Where have you been all week?"

People wonder why they're seldom able to maintain the victory that God gives them, let alone bring it to the next level. It's because they stopped doing what they did in the first place to get where they were. Even after they received their much wanted breakthrough, they should have just kept on going. They undo everything that they did to receive breakthrough by slacking off after the healing comes.

We have to meditate on and live by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God, standing on the provision of God in His Word when attacks come from the enemy. The Word of God is more powerful than sickness and the presence of God's Word heals us.

Todd Bentley
Fresh Fire Ministries
www.freshfire.ca

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Todd Bentley's Upcoming Itinerary:

July 15-18, 2006
California Revival Meetings
Church on the Hill
1445 Ford St.; Redlands, CA
Contact: info@freshfire.ca  or 604-853-9041

July 20-22, 2006
Fresh Fire Partner Conference
Anaheim Convention Center
777 Convention Way; Anaheim, CA
Contact: partners@freshfire.ca  or 604-853-9041

July 27-29, 2006
California Revival Meetings
Celebration Community Church
859 Blossom Hill Rd; San Jose, CA
Contact: info@freshfire.ca  or 408-225-1000 or www.celebratejesus.net