Communion With God

Chapter 25—Prayer for Healing

BIBLE GEM

“Is any among you afflicted? let him pray.”—James 5:13 CWG 62.1

QUESTION

Is our Lord and Master as much a healer of disease today as when He was here on earth in person? CWG 62.2

ANSWER

Christ still the Great Physician: “Our Lord Jesus Christ came to this world as the unwearied servant of man's necessity. He ‘took our infirmities, and bare our sicknesses,’ that He might minister to every need of humanity.”—The Ministry of Healing, 17 CWG 62.3

“He is our refuge in sickness as in health. ‘Like as a father pitieth his children, so the Lord pitieth them that fear Him.... He sendeth His word, and healeth them, and delivereth them from their destructions.’ CWG 62.4

“God is just as willing to restore the sick to health now as when the Holy Spirit spoke these words through the psalmist. And Christ is the same compassionate physician now that He was during His earthly ministry. In Him there is healing balm for every disease, restoring power for every infirmity.”—The Ministry of Healing, 225, 226 CWG 62.5

The source of healing: “The desire of God for every human being is expressed in the words, ‘Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth.’—3 John 2 CWG 62.6

“He it is who ‘forgiveth all thine iniquities; who healeth all thy diseases; who redeemeth thy life from destruction; who crowneth thee with lovingkindness and tender mercies.’ ” (Psalm 103:3, 4).—The Ministry of Healing, 113 CWG 62.7

Cooperation with God necessary: “The physician should teach his patients that they are to cooperate with God in the work of restoration.... He knows that the laws of nature, as truly as the precepts of the Decalogue, are divine, and that only in obedience to them can health be recovered or preserved. He sees many suffering as the result of hurtful practices who might be restored to health if they would do what they might for their own restoration. They need to be taught that every practice which destroys the physical, mental, or spiritual energies is sin, and that health is to be secured through obedience to the laws that God has established for the good of all mankind.”—The Ministry of Healing, 113 CWG 62.8

Use of remedial agencies: “Those who seek healing by prayer should not neglect to make use of the remedial agencies within their reach. It is not a denial of faith to use such remedies as God has provided to alleviate pain and to aid nature in her work of restoration. It is not a denial of faith to use such remedies as God has provided to alleviate pain and to aid nature in her work of restoration. It is no denial of faith to cooperate with God, and to place themselves in the condition most favorable to recovery. God has put it in our power to obtain a knowledge of the laws of life. This knowledge has been placed within our reach for use. We should employ every facility for the restoration of health, taking every advantage possible, working in harmony with natural laws.”—The Ministry of Healing, 231, 232 CWG 63.1

God's purpose in afflictions: “Many of your afflictions have been visited upon you, in the wisdom of God, to bring you closer to the throne of grace.”—Testimonies For The Church 4:143 CWG 63.2

SUMMARY AND PRAYER THOUGHT

We are created within certain fixed unchangeable physical and spiritual laws. To the degree we obey them, to that exact same degree we will receive a blessing. CWG 63.3

If we put diesel into a car that runs on gas and water in place of motor oil, how far will our car go? Surprisingly, however, our bodies will run on junk food for a while, but then we will have all the diseases of the people around us. The main health destroying substances are sugar, white bread, fatty meats, candies, chocolate, cookies, cakes, sugar loaded drinks, coffee, tea, etc. Less harmful but not the best are devitalized cooked food, preserved and canned products, etc. CWG 63.4

We have been wonderfully made. To maintain perfect health, we need to go back to the Edenic diet. Eve didn't have a stove or an oven or microwave to spoil her food. CWG 63.5

To maintain good health without disease, we need to one, expose our bodies to sunshine. Two, live where the air is fresh and open the windows twenty-four hours a day. Three, exercise regularly at least three or four times a week. Four, use six to eight glasses of water each day. Five, vegetarian diet of 75% to 85% uncooked foods, like raw vegetables, fruits and nuts, etc. Six, go to bed early to make sure we get enough sleep. Seven, we must have a clean conscience. Eight, pray for wisdom and heavenly guidance. CWG 63.6

If you have health problems, please get Dr. George Malkmus's book “God's Way to Ultimate Health,” and his video. He healed his cancer in the bowel with God-given simple food substances and for the last twenty years he has not had one headache or a cold. CWG 64.1