Demons, Miracles, Obeying God, Satan, Spiritual Warfare

Jesus Heals and Casts Out Demons

We often face hardship in this world including sickness, and yes… demon possession, though many today reject that concept. However, scripture is clear… it differentiates between Jesus’ healing of sickness and His casting out of demons. Jesus demonstrates His power through a series of miracles in Matthew 8:1-17.

8 Large crowds followed Jesus as he came down the mountainside. 2 Suddenly, a man with leprosy approached him and knelt before him. “Lord,” the man said, “if you are willing, you can heal me and make me clean.”

3 Jesus reached out and touched him. “I am willing,” he said. “Be healed!” And instantly the leprosy disappeared. 4 Then Jesus said to him, “Don’t tell anyone about this. Instead, go to the priest and let him examine you. Take along the offering required in the law of Moses for those who have been healed of leprosy.[a] This will be a public testimony that you have been cleansed.”

5 When Jesus returned to Capernaum, a Roman officer[b] came and pleaded with him, 6 “Lord, my young servant[c] lies in bed, paralyzed and in terrible pain.”

7 Jesus said, “I will come and heal him.”

8 But the officer said, “Lord, I am not worthy to have you come into my home. Just say the word from where you are, and my servant will be healed. 9 I know this because I am under the authority of my superior officers, and I have authority over my soldiers. I only need to say, ‘Go,’ and they go, or ‘Come,’ and they come. And if I say to my slaves, ‘Do this,’ they do it.”

10 When Jesus heard this, he was amazed. Turning to those who were following him, he said, “I tell you the truth, I haven’t seen faith like this in all Israel! 11 And I tell you this, that many Gentiles will come from all over the world—from east and west—and sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob at the feast in the Kingdom of Heaven. 12 But many Israelites—those for whom the Kingdom was prepared—will be thrown into outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

13 Then Jesus said to the Roman officer, “Go back home. Because you believed, it has happened.” And the young servant was healed that same hour.

14 When Jesus arrived at Peter’s house, Peter’s mother-in-law was sick in bed with a high fever. 15 But when Jesus touched her hand, the fever left her. Then she got up and prepared a meal for him.

16 That evening many demon-possessed people were brought to Jesus. He cast out the evil spirits with a simple command, and he healed all the sick. 17 This fulfilled the word of the Lord through the prophet Isaiah, who said,

“He took our sicknesses
    and removed our diseases.”[d]

Jesus makes no promise of healing everyone physically in this world. We live in a fallen world based on our own sin nature. Sometimes it may even serve God’s bigger plan to allow sickness or death in some circumstances for the furthering of His kingdom. God allowed Satan to torment Job, a faithful servant of God’s,  with physical illness and pain… not to mention a long list of other suffering.

In most of the examples above… people who had demons or were ill sought out Jesus. They came to him humbly and in faith that He could and would heal them. It is clear that neither illness nor demons are a difficult problem for Jesus to solve.

Unfortunately quite a few pastors twist this scripture and others like it. They would have you believe if you come to Jesus with faith you are guaranteed a healing and if you are not healed then you failed in your faith. Though a lack of faith may certainly block you from receiving healing from Jesus, the fact that you were not healed does not always mean you did not have enough faith or that God did not hear your prayers. Sometimes He wants us to glorify Him even in our illness or suffering. Sometimes it is just a result of a fallen world and He has chosen not to intervene to provide healing. We may never know why He chooses not to intervene at times, but we are to trust God as His followers.

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Am I on the path?, Heaven and Hell, Jesus Christ / Yeshua, Righteousness / Serving God

Not All Who Call Jesus’ Name Will Enter Heaven

Jesus speaks a strong warning to each of us in Matthew 7:21-23.

21 “Not everyone who calls out to me, ‘Lord! Lord!’ will enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Only those who actually do the will of my Father in heaven will enter. 22 On judgment day many will say to me, ‘Lord! Lord! We prophesied in your name and cast out demons in your name and performed many miracles in your name.’ 23 But I will reply, ‘I never knew you. Get away from me, you who break God’s laws.’

There are far too many who even identify as Christians that have not truly accepted Jesus Christ in their hearts. They accept Him in name, perhaps go to church, maybe volunteer and even do good works. However, only those who actually do the will of God will enter heaven.

If you identify with Christ, I encourage you to spend time studying His word and changing your behaviors to become more like Him and less like the world. It is a hard road, as it was for Jesus. It is not typically a comfortable walk from a worldly perspective but when we walk with the Lord we can find joy in living as He commands.

Want to evaluate if you are “on the path” to heaven?  The Bible provides the answers. You may start by reviewing devotions from the category “Am I On The Path?” on our website home page. (On the  sidebar for computer users and by scrolling down on home page on mobile devices).

Understanding your eternal destination while you still have time to make corrections is important… make time for it.

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Heaven and Hell

Resurrection from the Dead

Many non-Christians, and even many Christians struggle to really comprehend resurrection of the dead.  Paul reminds us in 1 Corinthians 15:12-28 how essential resurrection is to our Christian faith.

12 But tell me this—since we preach that Christ rose from the dead, why are some of you saying there will be no resurrection of the dead? 13 For if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ has not been raised either. 14 And if Christ has not been raised, then all our preaching is useless, and your faith is useless. 15 And we apostles would all be lying about God—for we have said that God raised Christ from the grave. But that can’t be true if there is no resurrection of the dead. 16 And if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ has not been raised. 17 And if Christ has not been raised, then your faith is useless and you are still guilty of your sins. 18 In that case, all who have died believing in Christ are lost! 19 And if our hope in Christ is only for this life, we are more to be pitied than anyone in the world.

20 But in fact, Christ has been raised from the dead. He is the first of a great harvest of all who have died.

21 So you see, just as death came into the world through a man, now the resurrection from the dead has begun through another man. 22 Just as everyone dies because we all belong to Adam, everyone who belongs to Christ will be given new life. 23 But there is an order to this resurrection: Christ was raised as the first of the harvest; then all who belong to Christ will be raised when he comes back.

24 After that the end will come, when he will turn the Kingdom over to God the Father, having destroyed every ruler and authority and power. 25 For Christ must reign until he humbles all his enemies beneath his feet. 26 And the last enemy to be destroyed is death. 27 For the Scriptures say, “God has put all things under his authority.”[a] (Of course, when it says “all things are under his authority,” that does not include God himself, who gave Christ his authority.) 28 Then, when all things are under his authority, the Son will put himself under God’s authority, so that God, who gave his Son authority over all things, will be utterly supreme over everything everywhere.

What a glorious promise from God for those of us who accept Jesus as lord and savior! We can look forward to overcoming death and being reunited with Jesus Christ in heaven after we die. Properly understood it helps put our priorities and values in perspective.

Those who follow Christ should strive to live with eternal life in mind rather than living just to pursue personal desires and an easy life in this world.

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Consequences of Sin, Discerning / Judging, False Prophets / Teachers

Beware of False Prophets Disguised As Sheep

In Matthew 7:15-20, Jesus once again warns His followers to use discernment and wisdom to judge the motivations and heart of others. We are only able to judge based on actions and words where God judges from the heart and intentions. Though our assessment will be imperfect, we are called to judge the intentions of others wisely and apply that knowledge to protect ourselves and others.

15 “Beware of false prophets who come disguised as harmless sheep but are really vicious wolves. 16 You can identify them by their fruit, that is, by the way they act. Can you pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? 17 A good tree produces good fruit, and a bad tree produces bad fruit. 18 A good tree can’t produce bad fruit, and a bad tree can’t produce good fruit. 19 So every tree that does not produce good fruit is chopped down and thrown into the fire. 20 Yes, just as you can identify a tree by its fruit, so you can identify people by their actions.

It really seems quite obvious in the context of con men or criminals who may wish to rob or harm us for their selfish gain. We naturally identify a need to discern their intent from their actions and use judgment to protect ourselves.

However, Jesus is warning about something much more sinister. His warning applies to those who pretend to be His followers… or pastors or church leaders that pretend (often convincingly) to be serving Jesus when they really serve only their own selfish ambition and greed. Often these wolves know the Bible well, as Satan does… they just twist the scripture when they teach it to mislead their followers to do what they want instead of what God wants.

One of the best ways to recognize these false prophets is to be consistently reading and studying God’s word in the Bible ourselves. Add to your study by using multiple different resources from different, independent Christian leaders. Those who allow themselves to rely solely on a once a week trip to church to listen to someone else talk about the Bible and never or seldom study it themselves are easy prey to false prophets.

Some of the most effective wolves preach from the Bible but intentionally only teach part of the gospel… the part that God is a God of love… the part that makes people feel comfortable in their sinful lives rather than leading them to change. Some even openly say that they do not wish to talk about things that make people sad or uncomfortable. Does that sound like the Jesus of the gospels? No it does not. Jesus confronted sin, made people uncomfortable, and challenged them to change. When we read the Bible we see that while God is a God of love, He is also a God of righteousness and judgment. We are accountable for what we do and what we fail to do.

When a flock is led astray by false prophets, they do not get all that God wants them to have.  They may live their lives missing out on large parts of God’s word… they often become a powerful tool for Satan… a person identifying themselves as Christian, pointing to the Bible, but not living righteously. While the false prophets are accountable to God for their deception, so too are the people responsible for allowing themselves to be misled due to failure to study the scriptures themselves.

It is urgent that we each study God’s word consistently and connect with objective study tools to help us in addition to seeking out a godly church and godly counselors.

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Am I on the path?, Heaven and Hell, Jesus Christ / Yeshua, Obeying God, Righteousness / Serving God

The Door is Wide and the Road is Easy That Leads to Hell

Jesus provides a strong wake up call for us as His followers to expect to be different and make different choices than what is typical or popular. We are called to put God first not just in words but in our hearts and actions.

[Matthew 7:13-14] 13 “Go in through the narrow door. The door is wide and the road is easy that leads to hell. Many people are going through that door. 14 But the door is narrow and the road is hard that leads to life that lasts forever. Few people are finding it.

Jesus warns us directly to go on the “road less traveled” that represents following Him. It is a hard path, one where many will mock you for your faith. It is a path where you are doing things differently than most of those around you. You seek to serve God rather than yourself.  You make choices that are “unpopular” with people but honor God. You are willing to be a leader for those around you and a follower, submitting to Jesus Christ. You do not seek to do the bare minimum required by God to just “get in” to heaven, but rather rejoice in pleasing the Lord by living according to His word.

The road to hell… that is easy. Just follow the crowds or your own internal sin nature. It looks fun and easy. Many will agree with your choices. You blend in with the world and those around you. Few mock you for your faith… they don’t notice it.

Just because some acknowledge Jesus Christ with their lips, call themselves Christians, or go to church once a week does not mean they will come to heaven and rejoice eternally in the presence of Jesus Christ.

[Matthew 7:22-23] 22 Many people will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not preach in Your Name? Did we not put out demons in Your Name? Did we not do many powerful works in Your Name?’ 23 Then I will say to them in plain words, ‘I never knew you. Go away from Me, you who do wrong!’

Of course, for those of us who are trying to find and stay on the narrow path, we want to bring as many people as we can with us… so we must at times endure mocking to share the good news of the gospel with those who would receive it.

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Am I on the path?, Hebrew Roots / Commands / Law, How do I get started?, Love

The Golden Rule

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Jesus has a way of simplifying key concepts to help us remember and apply them to our lives. Many of us have heard of the “Golden Rule”, though it may surprise quite a few that it originates from Jesus Christ in Matthew 7:12.

12 “Do to others whatever you would like them to do to you. This is the essence of all that is taught in the law and the prophets.

This scripture matches closely with Matthew 22:37-40.

37 Jesus replied, “‘You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.’[a] 38 This is the first and greatest commandment. 39 A second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’[b] 40 The entire law and all the demands of the prophets are based on these two commandments.”

In the context of Matthew 7:12, Jesus is addressing how His disciples should treat one another. He is not referring to our relationship with God. In Matthew 22:37-40, He addresses both our relationships with God and with one another.

It is genuinely rare for someone to be able to truly think about something from someone else’s perspective. It is much easier to visualize from our own perspective. Thus Jesus has given us an easier way of thinking about how to treat others. Show love to others as we want to be loved and treat one another as we want to be treated.

The concept is easy to remember… the challenge for each of us is to apply it daily in our lives.

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Holy Spirit / Ruach HaKodesh, Prayer

Praying for Others

At times Christians feel a desire to intercede in prayer on someone else’s behalf.  There are multiple examples in the Bible of intercessory prayer from godly leaders. When we intercede, we do not come before God asking for worldly desires to be met, but rather we pray according to the character and word of God for those for whom we are interceding.

In Genesis 18:16-33, God reveals His plans for the destruction of  Sodom as judgment for their unrepentant sin. Abraham intercedes humbly before God on behalf of the righteous people that may live amongst the wicked in Sodom.

In Exodus 32:9-14, when God tells Moses that He will destroy the Israelite people for their blatant idolatry, Moses intercedes for the people. Moses changes God’s mind on this decision by highlighting  how their destruction may impede others from following God. He does not appeal to God in such a way as to say the punishment is inappropriate or harsh or undeserved… because Moses knows the punishment would be just.

Continuing to Exodus 32:30-35, Moses actually intercedes again asking forgiveness of the people’s sin, even at the expense of removing his own name from God’s record. In this case God decides instead to justly erase the names of those who sinned against Him and not to erase Moses’ name. The people were each held accountable for their own sins.

Of course the most obvious example of intercession on behalf of others is Jesus Christ Himself. He took our sins on the cross and died for us. He has interceded on our behalf such that our sins would be forgiven… for those of us who accept His gracious offer. Even as He was dying on the cross He was interceding… asking for God to forgive even those who were persecuting them.

34 Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they don’t know what they are doing.” [Luke 23:34]

We should strive to listen closely to the Holy Spirit as well as look for guidance in the written word in regards to humbly interceding on someone’s behalf before our holy God.  We may not get what we ask for, but God will listen to a righteous prayer from a righteous servant.

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Can I Trust the Bible?, Discipline / Correction, Is the Old Testament Relevant Today?

Scripture is Inspired By God and Useful

Far too many people dismiss the value of scripture that God provides us. Even many who claim the label of Christian still reject His holy word in the Bible and instead listen to their own opinion or that of the news or popular culture.

[2 Timothy 3:16-17] All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right. God uses it to prepare and equip his people to do every good work.

[2 Peter 1:20-21]  Above all, you must realize that no prophecy in Scripture ever came from the prophet’s own understanding, or from human initiative. No, those prophets were moved by the Holy Spirit, and they spoke from God.

[Romans 15:4]  Such things were written in the Scriptures long ago to teach us. And the Scriptures give us hope and encouragement as we wait patiently for God’s promises to be fulfilled.

All scripture is inspired by God and useful. It is wrong to just pick and choose which scripture in the Bible we “like” and accept those and then decide which we “do not like” and reject those.

God provides scripture to help teach us what is true… to show us when we are wrong and show us what is right. It prepares us to serve Him, and gives us hope and encouragement while we wait for His promises to be fulfilled.

We should challenge ourselves to trust God’s word is true… all of it. If we do not understand part of it, instead of rejecting it, we should invest time to study it and learn more about God. There are amazing tools that make this much easier to do online than you might expect. We have included a collection of links to helpful Bible study resources in the Study The Word section of www.HearingFromJesus.org

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Anger (unrighteous anger), Holy Spirit / Ruach HaKodesh, How do I get started?

Do I Have “Right” To Be Angry?

When we let our sinful natures determine our response to events or people we often respond in anger. The world tells us we have a “right” to be angry based on these situations or words from others.

There are, in fact, situations where a righteous anger is an appropriate response… similar to when Jesus turned the tables of the money changers in the temple.  However, many times we are not responding in righteous anger and a response filled with patience and love would be more effective in managing the situation in a way that honors God.

[Proverbs 29:11] Fools vent their anger, but the wise quietly hold it back.

[Proverbs 15:1] A gentle answer deflects anger, but harsh words make tempers flare.

[Ephesians 4:26-27]  And “don’t sin by letting anger control you.”[a] Don’t let the sun go down while you are still angry, 27 for anger gives a foothold to the devil.

[Colossians 3:8]  But now is the time to get rid of anger, rage, malicious behavior, slander, and dirty language.

When we accept Jesus Christ as lord and savior and learn to let the Holy Spirit guide our behaviors and our words we begin to transform ourselves to become more like Jesus. We respond less in anger and more in patience and love.

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Hearing from God, Prayer

Keep on Asking

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Matthew 7:7-11 is part of what we commonly refer to as the Sermon on the Mount, in which Jesus is addressing His disciples regarding what it means to live a righteous life.

7 “Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened.

9 “You parents—if your children ask for a loaf of bread, do you give them a stone instead? 10 Or if they ask for a fish, do you give them a snake? Of course not! 11 So if you sinful people know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give good gifts to those who ask him.

Jesus is deliberate in using the metaphor of a parent and a child to help put into context what He is teaching. Good parents want their children to come before them and express their desires… even if the parents are already aware of the situation. It shows respect, humility, and faith to ask for help. It reaffirms that you want their help and demonstrates you know you cannot do it yourself.

However, even when we listen… and love our children… we do not always give them specifically what they ask for. Instead we may give them what they need or something that better addresses their desires than even they can identify.

A few closing thoughts…

  • God loves us and wants to give us good things, even if they are different than that for which we ask.
  • The more time we spend with God in prayer and in His word, the better we will understand what to ask for that is most in line with God’s will and God’s character.
  • Jesus tells us to keep asking, seeking, and knocking. He does not say… “Stop asking me. I already heard you.” We may continue until we receive His answer.
  • Coming before Jesus with our requests also gives us an opportunity to spend time listening to what He may tell us. Prayer is more than a time just to make requests, but also a time to hear answers.

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