1 Corinthians 12: 7 But to each one is given the manifestation of the Spirit for what is profitable. 8 For to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, and to another the word of knowledge according to the same Spirit; 9 to someone else faith [d]by the same Spirit, and to another gifts of [e]healing [f]by the one Spirit, 10 and to another the workings of miracles, and to another prophecy, and to another the [g]distinguishing of spirits, to someone else various kinds of tongues, and to another the [h]translation of tongues. 11 But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually just as He wills.
27 Now you are Christ’s body, and individually members of it. 28 And God has [o]appointed in the church, first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then [p]miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, administrations, various kinds of tongues. 29 Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Are all workers of [q]miracles? 30 Do all have gifts of healings? Do all speak with tongues? Do all [r]translate? 31 But [s]you earnestly desire the greater gifts. And I will yet show you a more excellent way.
Well, we continue today with our study of the Spiritual gifts. And, as timing would have it, our message today falls on Superbowl Sunday. And I kind of wanted to use that as an illustration today. You know, right before the game, reporters often go and do short interviews with the coaches of each team to see how they are feeling about the game, any strategy differences they are going to try. We all know that a lot of attention has been paid to Patrick Mahomes. He has been a key component of the success of the Kansas City Chiefs. But, I’ve never heard a reporter ask about strategy, and had the coach say, “Well, you know, we think Mahomes is so great as quarterback, and as quarterback, he has led the team to three consecutive winning seasons into the Superbowl, so what we decided to do this week, is we are going to make everybody be Patrick Mahomes.” “What do you mean?” “Everybody is going to be quarterback.” “Everybody is going to contribute to the discussion of what plays to make.” “Everybody is going to run spur of the moment sneaky runs.” “And everybody is getting their hair done like Patrick Mahomes."
Well, we know that there is no sports team, or business, or organization where that is a successful strategy. You don’t try to make everyone alike, you fill positions and functions that need to be filled, and train and encourage those that fill them to do the best job they can in that position.
Well, as ridiculous as it would be to turn every player into Patrick Mahomes, it is equally ridiculous in the church for us to try and shove everyone into just a few spiritual gifts molds.
Paul writes in 1st Corinthians,
29 Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Are all workers of [q]miracles? 30 Do all have gifts of healings? Do all speak with tongues? Do all [r]translate?
But sometimes, in church, it has felt like, we find a preacher, some teachers, some musicians, and then it’s “and the rest.” Everybody else just kind of muddles through trying to figure out their place, and many of them just end up being spectators.
But Paul wrote about the importance of all the gifts.
So, we are going through them all. So far, we have looked at the offices of the church. Today we start looking at the three categories of gifts; sign gifts, speaking gifts, and service gifts. We will just get through the sign gifts today.
And I wanted to remind you that I believe, and many believe, that the sign gifts were given only to the disciples and those working with the disciples, and that after that generation passed, the gifts passed. We will be looking at Scriptural, historical, and experiential evidence for that.
Prayer
As you can see from this list that I gave you, the sign gifts were healing, miracles, tongues, and the interpretation of tongues. And I am going to group healing and miracles together, and tongues and the interpretation of tongues. And we will first define what they are, then answer some very important questions about the times after the apostles; did these gifts continue after the disciples died? And do we see them today? Let’s begin with healing and miracles.
I. Healing and miracles
A. What are they?
I put a definition for healing on the sheet I handed out. “Instantaneous curing of sickness or physical injury.” And I defined it that way because I needed to distinguish it from medicine. We talk about medicine as being a part of the healing arts. There are individuals who have dedicated their lives to healing; doctors, nurses, pharmacists, dentists, etc. And those people can be called healers. But that is a different kind of healing than what we are talking about as a spiritual gift. It is not the knowledge and practice of helping someone become whole through medications and procedures. It is the “instantaneous curing of sickness or physical injury.”
Jesus and His disciples did instantaneous miracles of healing.
Mark 16:18 These signs will follow those who believe… and they will pick up serpents, and if they drink any deadly poison, it will not hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.”
Now, what we are referring to is the kind of healing that Jesus did. Jesus healed instantaneously, He healed completely, He healed whomever He chose to heal. He healed organic disease. He restored limbs that were absent, He didn’t just heal lower back pain.
And the gift of healing was the same gift that Jesus had, and the disciples had.
So, what then does it refer to when we say someone had the gift of miracles?
Miracles are manifestations of supernatural power. The Greek word for miracles is Dunamas. We get our word dynamite from it. It simply means powers. A miracle is a manifestation of power beyond nature. And it is a broader term than healings. A healing can called a miracle, but a miracle may not be a healing. Let me share a passage or two.
Casting out demons was a manifestation of power. Jesus did it.
Luke 4: 36 And amazement came upon them all, and they were talking with one another saying, “What is [r]this message? For with authority and power He commands the unclean spirits and they come out.”
His disciples did it.
Acts 5:12 12 Now [d]at the hands of the apostles many signs and wonders were happening among the people, and they were all with one accord in Solomon’s Portico.
15 to such an extent that they even carried the sick out into the streets and laid them on cots and mats, so that when Peter came by at least his shadow might fall on any one of them. 16 Also the multitude from the cities in the vicinity of Jerusalem were coming together, bringing people who were sick [e]or afflicted with unclean spirits, and they were all being healed.
Paul did it.
Acts 19: 11 And God was doing extraordinary [c]miracles by the hands of Paul, 12 so that cloths or aprons were even carried from his body to the sick, and the diseases left them and the evil spirits went out.
Of course, we could also include in the list of miracles some of the things that Jesus did demonstrating power over nature like calming the storm, causing a great catch of fish, and multiplying food like bread, fish, and even turning the water to wine.
And though we don’t get the specifics about miracles other than healing the sick and casting out demons concerning the disciples, there is no doubt in my mind that some very miraculous things happened as they carried the gospel to the world.
But did miracles and healings continue after the disciples?
Well, first let me say that there were individuals in Scripture, who were not of the 13 apostles, who performed miracles and healings.
We know that their were individuals who were the associates of the apostles who had these gifts.
Acts 6:8 8 And Stephen, full of grace and power, was doing great wonders and [f]signs among the people.
Acts 8: 6 And the crowds with one accord were giving attention to what was being said by Philip, as they heard and saw the [c]signs which he was doing. 7 For in the case of many who had unclean spirits, they were coming out of them shouting with a loud voice; and many who had been paralyzed and lame were healed. 8 So there was great joy in that city.
Acts 14 Barnabus and Paul do healings
But we also find something else that I pointed out in a previous sermon. Healing and miracles begin to fade as time passes.
Why do they begin to fade? Well, here’s something that I’ve always wanted to say to those seeking the miraculous today; ask God. Some people today are desperately seeking after miracles, healings, supernatural manifestations. And I would submit to you first, that it is a dangerous thing to seek miracles, as opposed to seeking the Lord of the miracles. Because Satan can imitate the miraculous. We are not told to seek the miracles, we are commanded to seek the Lord who gives the gifts, and He does so “according to His will.”
So, if you question why these miracles aren’t happening today, ask God. He’s in charge of that, not me.
And what you will find, if you study Scripture, is that times of supernatural manifestations from God, were rare, limited to a few people, related to a new revelation from God, and limited in time.
What do we find in Scripture? When were the times in the history of the world that miracles came? It really comes down to three time periods; during the time of Moses and Joshua, the time of the prophets Elijah and Elisha, and during the time of Jesus and His disciples.
During the time of Moses, God demonstrated His power supernaturally in the plagues against Egypt, God led the Children of Israel for forty years in the wilderness, with a pillar of fire leading them by night and a cloud by day. He fed them with manna from heaven, He gave them water from a rock. But when Moses died and they crossed over into the Promised land, do you know what happened? God quit feeding them with manna every day. Now, under Joshua, God gave them supernatural victory over their enemies. But after Joshua died, though God was still with them in battle, and providing for needs, it wasn’t this grand miraculous deliverance anymore.
During the time of Elijah, and Elisha his protege, representative of the prophets, God was bringing new messages to the children of Israel. Much of it was prophetic around the coming Messiah. Elijah and Elisha raised people from the dead, miraculously multiplied bread, cured disease. But, after they are gone, it’s as though the miraculous dried up. Now, it didn’t disappear entirely. But something happened that becomes the norm for these “non-miraculous times. There is a principle. Miracles come by God’s providence, and by prayer. You don’t have individuals who are performing miracles at their own whim.
We have a time after the death of Elisha until the announcement of Christ, a period of over 800 years where there is little evidence of the miraculous. Then Jesus is born, as a man He is introduced to Israel, and there is an explosion of the miraculous. During Jesus 3 years of ministry, disease is practically eradicated from some regions of Israel. Jesus calms the storm, feeds 5000 and 4000, raises the dead, predicts the future. And His disciples perform miracles as well. Why were these able to do this?
They are the signs of an apostle.
Ephesians 2: 19 So then you are no longer strangers and sojourners, but you are fellow citizens with the [j]saints, and are of God’s household, 20 having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the corner stone,
1 Corinthians 12:12 12 The [e]signs [f]of a true apostle were worked out among you with all perseverance, by [g]signs and wonders and [h]miracles.
Hebrews 2:3-4 3 how will we escape if we neglect so great a salvation? That salvation, first spoken by the Lord, was confirmed to us by those who heard, 4 God also testifying with them, both by signs and wonders and by various [d]miracles and by [e]gifts of the Holy Spirit according to His own will.
The signs were intended to set Jesus and His disciples apart in history. They were a supernaturally validation of the gospel message that they were bringing to the world.
During their time, they had these gifts, and a few others who were associated with the apostles also had these gifts. Now, as I studied this time, I noticed something.
There is no evidence that there was a person with the gift of healing in every church. It was only the 13 apostles and a few others who were associated with the apostles.
What is the evidence for that? Even during the time of the apostles, look at how the members of the church were instructed to deal with sickness. James was one of the earliest epistles written. AD 44.
James 5: 13 Is anyone among you suffering? Then he must pray. Is anyone cheerful? He is to sing praises. 14 Is anyone among you sick? Then he must call for the elders of the church and they are to pray over him, [k]anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord.
Notice what he didn’t say. He didn’t say call on the local member with the gift of healing. This is significant because James isn’t writing to just one congregation. He is writing to all Jewish Christians dispersed over the Roman world. He doesn’t say call on the elders with the gift of healing. He said, “Go get the elders to pray.”
That sounds more like the standard for miracles during the course of most of the world. The normal standard for us is, miracles are by God’s providence, and by prayer.
Now look at 1st Timothy.
AD 62-66, 20 years after James 1 Timothy 5:23. Paul has discovered that Timothy has been having stomach problems. So, does Paul perform a miracle and heal Timothy from afar. Does he rebuke the spirit of infirmity? Does he tell Timothy to find the person with the gift of healing in the churches (plural) that he is serving? No, this is what Paul says,
No longer drink water only, but use a little wine for the sake of your stomach and your frequent ailments.
What? Take a little wine for your stomach and your frequent ailments? Now this is particularly interesting from chapter five, because Paul made another statement in chapter 4. Paul is greeting the people he knows Timothy will have interactions with.
1 Timothy 4: 19 Greet Prisca and Aquila, and the household of Onesiphorus. 20 Erastus remained at Corinth, but Trophimus I left sick at Miletus.
Paul left Trophimus sick at Miletus? Why did he do that? Why didn’t he heal him? This is especially significant, because Paul was an apostle, and had stated in another place that the “signs of an apostle” which included healing had been manifest in him.
Also note that healing is not even mentioned in 12 out of 13 of Paul’s epistles. All that together leaves the impression that the miraculous time was fading.
So, what happens in history, after the death of the apostles and their associates?
It is important to note that some healing is mentioned in the early church. But it is spoken of in a general way, it doesn’t give direct accounts of healings. And it doesn’t record the names of any individuals purported to have the gift. Which leads me back to a conclusion from before. That the early church was initially blessed with individual apostles and a few others with the gift of healing, but that for the most part, even the early church, when faced with sickness in an individual, did exactly what we do, they prayed for them. And based on God’s choice, His providence, some were healed.
But did it continue in history as a gift given to specific individuals who can exercise that gift at will? Let me address something here. Many who claim to have the gift of healing today have a problem. The problem is that if they advertise that they have the gift of healing, many people who are sick will come to be healed. The problem is that of the many who come, very few are healed. How do you explain that? Is this a spiritual gift or not? I, for example, have the gift of preaching. When can I exercise that gift? Any time I want. I could get up at three a.m. and go to Quicktrip, and preach to the cashier. Someone else has the gift of service, or helps. When can they exercise that gift? Whenever they choose to. They can go serve, or help at any hour. They just need a recipient. The same can be said of every speaking gift, and every service gift. The gifts are subject to the person with the gifts, and their submission to the Spirit. I have never said, “I was unable to preach, because the audience lacked faith.” But, if you believe today that you have the gift of healing, you will find yourself with many unhealed people. And that is how they explain it. “Well, you didn’t have faith.”
And they will use Scripture to try and justify that answer. There are occasions when it says that Jesus “didn’t do many mighty works there, because of their unbelief.” But that is speaking of a region. I challenge you to find any place in the New Testament where someone came to Jesus, or His disciples, and asked to be healed, and they were not healed. And Jesus or His disciples sent them away saying, “you didn’t have enough faith.”
Why do they say that today? I submit to you that the reason is that we are in a time that is not the time of miracles where God has given a gift to individuals to perform miracles. We are in a time when God’s miracles come according to God’s sovereign will, in answer to prayer.
That doesn’t mean that miracles don’t occur. In fact, I believe miracles happen all the time that we are not even aware of. Because what is a miracle? It is God interjecting Himself into the natural course of life. It’s like a still pond, or a perfectly still body of water. If I reach in and put my finger in the water, I create a ripple, that would not be there if I didn’t disturb the water’s surface. And any time that God interjects Himself into life, it is a miracle. That means that every person who ever becomes a Christian, it’s a miracle, because the Spirit of God moved on their heart. I believe God is at work actively protecting and directing in the lives of His children. He protects me from my stupidity. Every time the Holy Spirit works through a believer, it is a miracle. And I believe that God responds to the prayers of His people. So, miracles happen all the time, we just don’t acknowledge them because it wasn’t necessarily something profound or dramatic. But they are not universal. Many Christians get sick and die. And we don’t find God gifting people with miracle working power at each of His churches.
Does anyone doubt me on that? If you do, then ask yourself this question. Which church in Wichita can I go to, where I know that I can be healed of any disease of physical problem that I have? I looked it up. There are about 415 churches in Wichita. Many people in this city have been afflicted with cancer, heart disease, diabetes, and any number of ailments. Where should they go to be healed? And does the fact that you don’t know tell you that nobody is in the healing ministry in this town. Well, you might say, you have to go to Tulsa. We will get to that next time.