It's controversial, but there’s only one truth you really need to hear.
Gary Keesee • January 10, 2023
Reading Time 3 mins 30 secs –
Ready to talk about a controversial topic?
It’s time to talk about healing.
Healing isn’t a popular subject for most people, and it’s definitely not a popular sermon for most pastors. But that doesn’t make sense to me, because health is a really big deal.
So, maybe you’ve talked to some people in your family about health, healthcare, and maybe even healing. Do you know what your family thinks about all of that? What about your friends? Where do they stand on the important issues? How about your church? What do those people think? And how about your elected officials? What are they saying?
Because if you know all of those views, you’ve got it covered, right?
Well, wait just a minute.
Can you tell me what the Bible says about it?
If you’ve ever heard me speak, you know that I’ve said that healing is a promise from God. You may know of a few specific places in the Bible you can reference, like Isaiah 53:5, which tells us that by Jesus’s wounds, His stripes, we are healed. But there is more. There is so much more.
So, go get your Bible and give me just a few minutes of your time. (Go on and get it. Really, I’ll be waiting right here.)
You have to have your Bible with you because this is warfare, and your Bible is your weapon. Sickness and disease are spiritual battles. When you’re fighting those battles, you have to know your legal rights. You have to know what the Bible says. You can’t try to fight just knowing what I say or what some other TV preacher says. You have to know the Bible for yourself.
Let’s begin by looking at Matthew 8:16. It says in my Bible that Jesus restored to health ALL who were sick. What does your Bible say?
How about Matthew 4:23? What does that say?
Matthew 9:35? Matthew 12:15? Matthew 14:14? Matthew 15:30? Matthew 19:2? Matthew 21:14? Acts 10:38? I could keep going.
“But that’s Jesus,” you say. “Of course He healed everyone, Gary.”
Well, look at Luke 9:1. Jesus gave the disciples the same power He had to heal people. Now, look at Luke 9:6 then Luke 10:1-9. This is where Jesus appointed 72 others to carry on the mission of preaching the Gospel and healing people.
In Mark 16:15-18, we read that Jesus authorized and deputized the church to do the exact same thing. He said if WE believe and are baptized that WE have His power, His Spirit, and that we’re to go out and lay hands on the sick so that they will get well.
You see, the promise of healing is everywhere in the Word of God.
What’s the deal then? Why are some people healed and others are not?
One critical thing that prevents us from receiving our healing is our lack of confidence. When you’re not sure what you believe, you’re not confident. We have to know beyond a shadow of a doubt that it’s God’s will to heal every time or we can’t possibly be confident. If we’ve been taught that God allows sickness, that He uses it to teach people things, or that He’ll heal when He’s ready to heal, we’ve lost confidence. None of that is Scripture. None of that is the will of God.
Once you know the will of God, you can know that justice will be served for you. The only way you know the will of God is to study the Word of God.
Another thing that prevents us from receiving our healing is tradition. The Bible says in Matthew 15:6 that tradition nullifies the Word of God. What is tradition? It’s the passing on of beliefs or customs from generation to generation. How many times have you heard, “I don’t believe like that” or “My church doesn’t teach that”? Well, brace yourself—who cares what your church says? Who cares what I say? You need to know what the Bible says about it!
What has been set up in your mind about yourself? What have you learned or possibly adapted to that does not line up with God’s Word?
Let’s change it. Let’s change your mentality. Let’s stop saying, “Help me” and start saying, “Let’s find out what God’s will is.” Let’s get to where you’re thanking God that you’ve already been helped.
How do we do that? Get in the Word of God. Guard your heart, and make sure you’re putting ONLY faith in there. Use your words. Enforce the promise. Don’t be intimidated. Don’t let the situation appear bigger than God.
Right now, you might not be there. You might be intrigued, but that’s about it. Just wait a little while. Keep digging into the Word of God. Let faith build in your spirit.
Put faith and the Word of God in your heart before anything comes into your life. Because sometimes you don’t have time to get your Bible, and you need to be prepared. Have the Word of God in your heart so you can get to it if you can’t get to your Bible. Know and be convinced of what the will of God is.
Reading Time 6 mins 35 secs – Have you ever wondered why something God promised doesn’t seem to be happening in your life? Maybe you’ve prayed, stood on Scripture, confessed the Word, and believed, but the situation still hasn’t changed. When that happens, don’t assume God has failed you. His Word always works. Instead, become a student of the Kingdom and ask the Holy Spirit to show you what may be getting in the way. Hebrews 12 warns us about one of those things: a bitter root. It says, “ See to it that no one falls short of the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many. ” Bitterness doesn’t stay small. It grows. It affects your heart, your words, your relationships, and even the people around you. That is why God takes it so seriously. If you want to walk in freedom and experience everything God has made available to you, you cannot allow bitterness, unforgiveness, gossip, or offense to take root in your heart. Bitterness Grows When It Is Fed Most bitter roots begin with a real offense. Someone hurts you, disappoints you, betrays you, mistreats you, or says something that cuts deeply. The pain may be legitimate, but what happens next matters. The natural response is often to replay the situation, judge the person, or tell someone else what happened. Before long, you’re not only carrying the offense yourself, but you’re inviting other people to carry it with you. That is what happened with Miriam and Aaron in Numbers 12. They began speaking against Moses, criticizing him and questioning his leadership. But Scripture includes one important sentence: “ And the Lord heard it. ” Miriam and Aaron were not responsible for judging Moses. God had chosen him. They did not know everything God knew, yet they spoke as though they had the authority to evaluate and condemn him. We do the same thing far too easily. We hear a story, see something online, get frustrated with a leader, coworker, friend, family member, or even a stranger, and suddenly we have an opinion about their heart, motives, and character. But you don’t know everything. You don’t know their entire story, and most importantly, they do not answer to you. Gossip, slander, and judgment feed bitter roots. They create trouble, spread offense, and poison hearts. God has called us to something different. Unforgiveness Keeps You Bound Jesus told a story in Matthew 18 about a servant who owed his king an enormous debt, far beyond anything he could ever repay. The king had mercy on him and completely canceled the debt. Then that same servant found someone who owed him a much smaller amount. Instead of extending the mercy he had just received, he demanded payment and had the man thrown into prison. When the king heard about it, he called the servant wicked because the man had been forgiven of an impossible debt but refused to extend forgiveness to someone else. That story gives us a picture of what Jesus has done for us. Colossians tells us that through Christ, we have been forgiven. Jesus paid a debt we could never repay. He brought us into God’s Kingdom, gave us a new identity, and made His inheritance available to us. When you understand how much you have been forgiven, it changes the way you look at the people who have hurt you. Forgiveness does not mean what happened was acceptable. It does not mean there are no consequences, boundaries, or restitution. Forgiveness is about what you choose to carry in your own heart. You can hold someone responsible for appropriate consequences without allowing bitterness to hold you captive. When you refuse to forgive, the person who hurt you may continue living their life while you remain imprisoned by what happened. God wants you free. Forgiveness Is a Decision, Not a Feeling One of the biggest mistakes people make is waiting until they feel ready to forgive. Forgiveness is not primarily a feeling. It is an act of faith. Jesus modeled this for us. First Peter 2 says that when people insulted Him, He did not retaliate. When He suffered, He made no threats. Instead, He “entrusted himself to him who judges justly.” Jesus trusted the Father to be the judge, and you can do the same. You may not feel differently the moment you forgive someone. That is okay. Feelings follow. They do not lead. By faith, you can say, “God, I choose to forgive them. I release this into Your hands. You know what happened, You know the pain, and I trust You to judge justly.” That decision begins pulling the bitter root out of your heart. Guard Your Heart and Your Words Proverbs 4 tells us, “ Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it. ” Your words reveal what has been growing in your heart. Jesus taught in Mark 11 that faith-filled words have authority. We love to quote the verses about speaking to the mountain, believing we receive, and seeing the answer come to pass. But sometimes we forget what Jesus says immediately afterward: when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive them. That connection is important. You cannot spend a few minutes speaking the Word over your life and then spend the rest of the day criticizing people, complaining about your circumstances, speaking defeat, and feeding offense. Your words matter all day long. The same mouth you use to speak faith can also release fear, bitterness, judgment, and unbelief. You are constantly agreeing with something, so ask yourself: Are your words agreeing with heaven or with the enemy? Don’t Let Strife Take Root in Your Home This principle is especially important in marriage. Ephesians tells us not to let the sun go down while we are still angry because unresolved strife gives the enemy an opportunity. Marriage is a covenant of unity, and when bitterness and unforgiveness enter that relationship, they begin attacking the very agreement God designed to bring strength. If you have offended your spouse, apologize. If your spouse has hurt you, forgive. That does not mean ignoring problems. It means dealing with them without allowing resentment to take root. The enemy would love to use offense to divide your marriage, your family, your friendships, your church, or any other relationship God wants to use for His purposes. Don’t give him that opportunity. You will not go through life without someone hurting you. Offense will come. The question is what you will do with it when it arrives. You do not have to carry it, replay it, tell everyone about it, or let it become part of your identity. You can forgive by faith. You can trust God to judge justly. You can guard your heart, speak life, and pull the bitter root out before it has the opportunity to grow and affect anything else. Jesus has already paid the price for your freedom, and He wants you to experience everything He made available to you. So if the Holy Spirit is bringing someone or some situation to your mind right now, don’t ignore it. Give it to God. Forgive. Apologize if necessary. Make things right where you can. Your freedom is worth it. A Simple Prayer Father, thank You for the mercy and forgiveness You have shown me through Jesus. I choose today to forgive those who have hurt, disappointed, or offended me. I release them into Your hands and trust You to judge every situation justly. Forgive me for the times I have allowed bitterness, gossip, criticism, or unforgiveness to grow in my heart. Help me guard my heart and use my words to bring life, encouragement, and faith to the people around me. Show me if there is anyone I need to apologize to or anything I need to bring into the light. I receive Your freedom today and choose to walk in love, forgiveness, and obedience. In Jesus’s name, I pray. Amen.
Reading Time 5 mins 59 secs – Have you ever sensed God calling you toward something bigger than what you can accomplish on your own? Perhaps it was restoring a relationship, launching a business, serving in ministry, changing careers, or believing Him for healing, provision, or freedom. Yet as soon as you considered taking that first step, your mind filled with questions. How will this happen? Where will the resources come from? What if it doesn’t work? Those questions are familiar to every believer because God’s promises often lead us beyond what seems naturally possible. Left to ourselves, we tend to evaluate every opportunity by our own experience, abilities, and resources. But God’s Kingdom doesn’t operate according to human limitations. It operates by faith. Too many Christians spend years living in what Proverbs describes as “hope deferred,” waiting for circumstances to change while never stepping toward what God has already promised. God never intended for His children to simply admire His promises from a distance. He invites us to believe His Word, act on it, and experience His faithfulness firsthand. Every Promise Carries God’s Ability When God makes a promise, He never asks you to accomplish it through your own strength. His promises are not empty wishes or encouraging thoughts. They carry His power to accomplish exactly what He has spoken. Isaiah reminds us that God’s Word never returns empty but accomplishes the purpose for which He sends it. When God speaks, He has already considered every obstacle, every need, and every detail you cannot yet see. Nothing catches Him by surprise. That truth changes how we respond when God leads us into unfamiliar territory. Instead of asking, “How am I going to make this happen?” we begin asking, “Lord, what are You asking me to do next?” Faith doesn’t require us to have every answer before we obey. It simply requires us to trust the One who does. Faith Moves Before You See the Outcome Hebrews 1:1 tells us that “faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” God’s Word becomes the evidence that gives us confidence to move forward even when visible proof has not yet appeared. Throughout Scripture, we see this pattern repeated again and again. Peter had to cast his line before finding the coin in the fish’s mouth. Joshua and the priests stepped into the overflowing Jordan River before the waters parted. The disciples seated thousands of hungry people before the loaves and fish multiplied. In every case, obedience came before the miracle. God rarely reveals every detail in advance because He is teaching us to trust Him instead of our own understanding. As we move toward His promise, He faithfully reveals the next step. Revelation follows obedience. Stop Measuring God’s Promise by Your Resources One of the greatest obstacles to walking by faith is our tendency to evaluate God’s calling based on what we currently possess. We look at our bank account, our experience, our education, or our circumstances and conclude that what God has placed in our hearts is impossible. But impossible according to whom? If God has truly spoken, then His promise is not limited by your current resources. He already knows what you need before you ever take the first step. He knows the people you’ll meet, the opportunities He will open, and the provision He has already prepared. The God who gives the assignment also provides everything necessary to fulfill it. Our responsibility is not to manufacture the outcome. Our responsibility is to trust His Word enough to begin walking. Faith Always Has Corresponding Action James 2:17 teaches that faith without works is dead. Genuine faith always produces action because believing God changes the way we live. A farmer builds a barn because he expects a harvest. A fisherman prepares his equipment because he expects to catch fish. Expectation always leads to preparation. The same principle applies to every promise God gives us. When we truly believe His Word, our actions begin to reflect that confidence. We pray differently. We speak differently. We prepare differently. We stop waiting for perfect conditions and begin positioning ourselves for what God has promised to do. Faith is never passive. It responds. Don’t Leave the Promise Unclaimed Second Corinthians 1:20 tells us that every promise of God is “Yes” in Christ. Through Jesus, we have been welcomed into God’s Kingdom and invited to live under His covenant promises. Those promises were never intended to remain words on a page. They were given so we could experience God’s goodness in every area of life. The question isn’t whether God is faithful. The question is whether we are willing to believe Him enough to move. Faith doesn’t wait until every detail is clear. It responds to God’s Word with confidence, trusting that He will reveal each step in His perfect timing. As we walk in obedience, we begin to see His faithfulness unfold in ways we never could have orchestrated ourselves. What promise has God placed before you? Where is He asking you to trust Him instead of your own understanding? Perhaps today is your opportunity to stop waiting for certainty and begin walking by faith. As you take that first step of obedience, remember this: God already knows the way forward. He has already prepared what you cannot yet see, and He is faithful to accomplish everything He has promised. When you move toward His promise, you’ll discover that He has been preparing the way all along. A Simple Prayer Father, thank You that every promise You make is trustworthy and backed by Your power. Forgive me for the times I’ve allowed fear, doubt, or my own understanding to keep me from moving forward in faith. Teach me to trust Your Word more than my circumstances and to recognize the next step You are calling me to take. Give me the courage to obey even when I cannot see the entire path ahead, knowing that You are faithful to provide everything I need. Help me walk confidently in the promises You have prepared for me and experience the fullness of life You desire for Your children. In Jesus’s name, I pray. Amen.
Reading Time 5 mins 07 secs – Many Christians know what God has promised. They’ve read the verses. They’ve heard the sermons. They believe God is faithful. Yet they still wonder why they aren’t seeing breakthrough. Why does fear keep returning? Why does peace seem so difficult to hold onto? Why do God’s promises sometimes feel distant from everyday life? The problem often isn’t that God has failed to provide. The problem is that many believers have never learned how His Kingdom works. God never intended His children to simply know His promises. He intended them to live in them. You Belong to the Kingdom Paul writes that we are “ No longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with God’s people and also members of his household ” (Ephesians 2:19, NIV). The moment you accepted Jesus Christ, everything changed. You weren’t simply forgiven. You became a citizen of God’s Kingdom. Citizenship comes with rights. Every nation has laws that protect its citizens and benefits they are entitled to receive. God’s Kingdom is no different. When you were rescued from the kingdom of darkness and brought into God’s Kingdom, every promise He has made became part of your inheritance. You have a legal right to everything God says belongs to His children. The question is whether you’re living like a citizen. Knowing Isn’t Enough Many people assume that knowing God’s promises is enough. But Scripture teaches something different. You can know what God says and still fail to experience it. Imagine owning a field. The deed is in your name. You clear away the weeds and prepare the soil. But you never plant a seed. The land belongs to you, yet it produces nothing because you never put it to work. Many believers treat God’s promises the same way. They know them. They can quote them. But they never learn how to apply them to their lives. God’s promises were never meant to stay on the pages of your Bible. They were meant to become your reality. Prioritize Standing Your Ground Paul tells believers to “put on the full armor of God” so they can stand against the schemes of the enemy. Then he repeats the same instruction again and again: Stand. Stand your ground. Stand firm. The enemy’s greatest weapon is often intimidation. He wants you to surrender what God has already promised. He fills your mind with fear, doubt, and discouragement, hoping you’ll abandon your confidence before the answer comes. But Scripture says the shield of faith extinguishes every fiery dart of the enemy. Fear doesn’t have to control your thinking. When you know who you are in Christ and what God’s Word says about you, you don't have to agree with the enemy. You agree with God. Apply What God Has Given One of the most powerful verses in Hebrews says that the heroes of faith, Through faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, and gained what was promised (Hebrews 11:33a, NIV). Notice the progression: They believed. They acted. Then they received what God had promised. Faith is more than believing God can do something. Faith responds. It takes hold of what God has already provided. Jesus demonstrated this throughout His ministry. When He encountered sickness, He spoke to it. When He encountered demonic oppression, He commanded it to leave. He applied the authority that already belonged to Him. As citizens of God’s Kingdom, we have been given authority through Christ. That doesn’t mean we control God. It means we agree with His Word, receive His promises by faith, and apply them to the situations we face. Don’t Settle for Less In the book of Judges, the Israelites abandoned the fertile land God had given them and hid in caves because they were afraid of their enemies. Instead of standing on God’s promise, they adjusted their lives around fear. How often do we do the same? We settle for anxiety. We accept defeat. We lower our expectations. We begin believing our circumstances have the final word. But God’s Word says otherwise. If He says He will provide, believe Him. If He says He has given you peace, receive it. If He says healing belongs to His children, stand on His promise. Don’t build your future around what the enemy says is possible. Build it on what God has declared. Every Promise Is Already “Yes” Scripture says that every promise of God is “Yes” in Christ. God has already spoken. His promises are already established. Our response is faith. Our response is “Amen.” “So be it.” When we agree with God’s Word, stand our ground, and refuse to be moved by fear, we position ourselves to experience what He has already provided. God isn’t withholding His promises. He invites us to understand His Kingdom and walk confidently in the authority He has given us. His promises are still true. His Kingdom still works. And everything He has spoken remains available to those who believe Him. A Simple Prayer Father, Thank You for making me a citizen of Your Kingdom through Jesus Christ. Help me understand what You have already provided for me and teach me to walk confidently in every promise You have given. Strengthen my faith to stand firm when challenges come and to agree with Your Word instead of fear. Show me how to apply Your truth to every area of my life and trust that Your promises are always faithful. Thank You that every promise is “Yes” in Christ. I receive what You have prepared for me and choose to stand on Your Word today. In Jesus’s name, I pray. Amen.