Ever Increasing Faith - 5. I Am the Lord that Healeth Thee
by Smith
Wigglesworth
"Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church; and let
them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord: and the
prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if
he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him" (James 5 :14, 15) .
We have in this precious word a real basis for the truth of healing. In this
scripture God gives very definite instructions to the sick. If you are sick,
your part is to call for the elders of the church; it is their part to anoint
and pray for you in faith, and then the whole situation rests with the Lord.
When you have been anointed and prayed for, you can rest assured that the Lord
will raise you up. It is the word of God.
I believe that we all can see that the church cannot play with this business.
If any turn away from these clear instructions they are in a place of
tremendous danger. Those who refuse to obey, do so to their unspeakable loss.
James tells us in connection with this, "if any of you do err from the truth,
and one convert him, let him know, that he which converteth the sinner from
the error of his ways shall save a soul from death." Many turn away from the
Lord, as did King Asa, who sought the physicians in his sickness and
consequently died; and I take it that this passage means that if one induces
another to turn back to the Lord, he will save such from death and God will
forgive a multitude of sins that they have committed. This scripture can also
have a large application on the line of salvation. If you turn away from any
part of God's truth, the enemy will certainly get an advantage over you.
Does the Lord meet those who look to Him for healing and obey the instructions
set forth in James? Most assuredly. Let me tell you a story to show how He
will undertake for the most extreme case.
One day I had been visiting the sick, and was with a friend of mine, an
architect, when I saw a young man f from his office coming down the road in a
car, and holding in his hand a telegram. It contained a very urgent request
that we go immediately to pray for a man who was dying. We went off in an auto
as fast as possible and in about an hour and a half reached a large house in
the country where the man who was dying resided. There were two staircases in
that house, and it was extremely convenient, for the doctors could go up and
down one, and my friend and I could go up and down the other, and so we had no
occasion to meet.
I found on arrival that it was a case of this sort. The man's body had been
broken, he was ruptured, and his bowels had been punctured in two places. The
discharge from the bowels had formed abscesses, and blood poisoning had set
in. The man's face had turned green. Two doctors were in attendance, but they
saw that the case was beyond their power. They had telegraphed to London for a
great specialist, and, when we arrived, they were at the railway station
awaiting bis arrival.
The man was very near death and could not speak. I said to his wife, "If you
desire, we will anoint and pray for him." She said, "That is why I sent for
you." I anointed him in the name of the Lord and asked the Lord to raise him
up. Apparently there was no change. (God often hides what He does. From day to
day we find that God is doing wonderful things, and we receive reports of
healings that have taken place that we heard nothing about at the time of our
meetings. Only last night a woman came into the meeting suffering terribly.
Her whole arm was filled with poison, and her blood was so poisoned that it
was certain to bring her to her death. We rebuked the thing, and she was here
this morning and told us that she was without pain and had slept all night, a
thing she had not done for two months. To God be all the praise. You will find
He will do this kind of thing all along.)
As soon as we anointed and prayed for this brother we went down the back
staircase and the three doctors came up the front staircase. As we arrived
downstairs, I said to my friend who had come with me, "Friend let me have hold
of your hands." We held each other's hands, and I said to him, "Look into my
face and let us agree together, according to Matthew 1$:19, that this man
shall be brought out of this death." We laid the whole matter before God, and
said, "Father, we believe."
Then the conflict began. The wife came down to us and said, "The doctors have
got all their instruments out and they are about to operate." I cried, "What?
Look here, he's your husband, and I tell you this, if those men operate on
him, he will die. Go back and tell them you cannot allow it." She went back to
the doctors and said, "Give me ten minutes." They said, "We can't afford to,
the man is dying and it is your husband's only chance." She said, "I want ten
minutes, and you don't touch his body until I have had them."
They went downstairs by one staircase and we went up by the other. I said to
the woman, "This man is your husband, and he cannot speak for himself. It is
now the time for you to put your whole trust in God and prove Him wholly true.
You can save him from a thousand doctors. You must stand with God and for God
in this critical hour." After that, we came down and the doctors went up. The
wife faced those three doctors and said, "You shan't touch this man's body. He
is my husband. I am sure that if you operate on him he will die, but he will
live if you don't touch him."
Suddenly the man in the bed spoke. "God has done it," he said. They rolled
back the bed clothes and the doctors examined him, and the abscesses were cut
clear away. The nurse cleaned the place where they had been. The doctors could
see the bowels still open and they said to the wife, "We know that you have
great faith, and we can see that a miracle has taken place. But you must let
us unite these broken parts and put in silver tubes, and we know that your
husband will be all right after that, and it need not interfere with your
faith at all." She said to them, "God has done the first thing and He can do
the rest. No man shall touch him now." And God healed the whole thing. And
that man is well and strong today. I can give his name and address to any who
want it.
Do you ask by what power this was done? I would answer in the words of Peter,
"His name, through faith in His name, made this man strong." The anointing was
done i7. the name of the Lord. And it is written, "The LORD shall raise him
up." And He provides the double cure; even if sin has been the cause of the
sickness, His Word declares, "If he have committed sins, they shall be
forgiven,"
You ask, "What is faith?" Faith is the principle of the Word of God. The Holy
Spirit, who inspired the Word, is called the Spirit of Truth, and, as we
receive with meekness the engrafted Word, faith springs in our heart-faith in
the sacrifice of Calvary: faith in the shed blood of Jesus; faith in the fact
that He took our weakness upon Himself, has borne our sicknesses and carried
our pains, and that He is our life today.
God has chosen us to help one another. We dare not be independent. He brings
us to a place where we submit ourselves to one another. If we refuse to do
this, we get away from the Word of God and out of the place of faith. I have
been in this place once and I trust I shall never be there again. I went one
time to a meeting. I was very, very sick, and I got worse and worse. I knew
the perfect will of God was for me to humble myself and ask the elders to pray
for me. I put it off and the meeting finished. I went home without being
anointed and prayed with, and everyone in the house caught the thing I was
suffering with.
My boys did not know anything else but to trust the Lord as the family
Physician, and my youngest boy, George, cried out from the attic, "Dadda,
come." I cried, "I cannot come. The whole thing is from me. I shall have to
repent and ask the Lord to forgive me." I made up my mind to humble myself
before the whole church. Then I rushed to the attic and laid my hands on my
boy in the name of Jesus. I placed my hands on his head and the pain left and
went lower down; he cried again, "Put your hands still lower." At last the
pain went right down to the feet and as I placed my hand on the feet be was
completely delivered. Some evil power had evidently gotten hold and as I laid
my hands on the different parts of the body it left. (We have to see the
difference between anointing the sick and casting out demons.) God will always
be gracious when we humble ourselves before Him and come to a place of
brokenness of spirit.
I was at a place one time ministering to a sick woman, and she said, "I'm very
sick. I become all right for an hour, and then I have another attack." I saw
that it was an evil power that was attacking her, and I learned something in
that hour that I had never learned before. As I moved my hand down her body in
the name of the Lord that evil power seemed to move just ahead of my hands and
as I moved them down further and further the evil power went right out of her
body and never returned.
I was in Havre in France and the power of God was being mightily manifested. A
Greek named Felix attended the meeting and became very zealous for God. He was
very anxious to get all the Catholics he could to the meeting in order that
they should see that God was graciously visiting France. He found a certain
bed-ridden woman who was fixed in a certain position and could not move, and
he told her about the Lord healing at the meetings and that he would get me to
come if she wished. She said, "My husband is a Catholic and he would never
allow anyone who was not a Catholic to see me."
She asked her husband to allow me to come and told him what Felix had told her
about the power of God working in our midst. He said, "I will have no
Protestant enter my house." She said, "You know the doctors cannot help me,
and the priests cannot help, won't you let this man of God pray for me?" He
finally consented and I went to the house. The simplicity of this woman and
her child-like faith were beautiful to see.
I showed her my oil bottle and said to her, "Here is oil. It is a symbol of
the Holy Ghost. When that comes upon you, the Holy Ghost will begin to work,
and the Lord will raise you up." And God did something the moment the oil fell
upon her. I looked toward the window and I saw Jesus. (I have seen Him often.
There is no painting that is a bit like Him
no artist can ever depict the beauty of my lovely Lord.) The woman felt the
power of God in her body and cried, "I'm free, my hands are free, my shoulders
are free, and oh, I see Jesus! I'm free! I'm free!"
The vision vanished and the woman sat up in bed. Her legs were still bound,
and I said to her, "I'll put my hands over your legs and you will be free
entirely." And as I put my hands on those legs covered with bed clothes, I
looked and saw the Lord again. She saw Him too and cried, "He's there again.
I'm free! I'm free!" She rose from her bed and walked round the room praising
God, and we were all in tears as we saw His wonderful works. The Lord shall
raise them up when conditions are met.
When I was a young man I always loved the fellowship of old men, and was
always careful to hear what they had to say. I had a friend, an old Baptist
minister who was a wonderful preacher. I spent much of my time with him. One
day he came to me and said, "My wife is dying." I said, "Brother Clark, why
don't you believe God? God can raise her up if you will only believe Him." He
asked me to come to his house, and I looked for some one to go with me.
I went to a certain rich man who was very zealous for God, and spent much
money in opening up rescue. missions, and I asked him to go with me. He said,
"Never you mind me. You go yourself, but I don't take to this kind of
business." Then I thought of a man who could pray by the hour. When he was on
his knees he could go round the world three times and come out at the same
place. I asked him to go with me and said to him, "You'll have a real chance
this time. Keep at it, and quit when you're through." (Some go on after they
are through.)
Brother Nichols, for that was his name, went with me and started praying. He
asked the Lord to comfort the husband in his great bereavement and prayed for
the orphans and a lot more on this line. I cried, "O my God, stop this man."
But there was no stopping him and he went on praying and there was not a
particle of faith in anything he uttered. He did stop at last, and I said,
"Brother Clark, it's now your turn to pray. He started, "Lord, answer the
prayer of my brother and comfort me in this great bereavement and sorrow.
Prepare me to face this great trial." I cried out, "My God, stop this man."
The whole atmosphere was being charged with unbelief.
I had a glass bottle full of oil and I went up tea the woman and poured the
whole lot on her in the name of Jesus. Suddenly Jesus appeared, standing at
the foot of the bed. He smiled and vanished. The woman stood up, perfectly
healed, and she is a strong woman today.
We have a big God. We have a wonderful Jesus. We have a glorious Comforter.
God's canopy is over you and will cover you at all times, preserving you from
evil. Under His wings shalt thou trust. The Word of God is living and powerful
and in its treasures you will find eternal life. If you dare trust this
wonderful Lord, this Lord of life, you will find in Him everything you need.
So many are tampering with drugs, quacks, pills and plasters. Clear them all
out and believe God. It is sufficient to believe God. You will find that if
you dare trust Him, He will never fail. "The prayer of faith shall save the
sick, and the LORD shall raise him up." Do you trust Him? He is worthy to be
trusted.
I was one time asked to go to Weston-super-mare, a seaside resort in the West
of England. I learned from a telegram that a man had lost his reason and had
become a raving maniac, and they wanted me to go to pray for him. I arrived at
the place, and the wife said to me, "Will you sleep with my husband?" I
agreed, and in the middle of the night an evil power laid hold of him. It was
awful. I put my hand on his head and his hair was like a lot of sticks. God
gave deliverance-a temporary deliverance. At 6 o'clock the next morning, I
felt that it was necessary that I should get out of the house for a short
time.
The man saw me going and cried out, "If you leave me, there is no hope." But I
felt that I had to go. As I went out I saw a woman with a Salvation Army
bonnet on and I knew that she was going to their 7 o'clock prayer meeting. I
said to the Captain who was in charge of the meeting, when I saw he was about
to give out a hymn, "Captain, don't sing. Let's get to prayer." He agreed, and
I prayed my heart out, and then I grabbed my hat and rushed out of the hall.
They all thought they had a madman in their prayer meeting that morning.
I saw the man I had spent the night with, rushing down toward the sea, without
a particle of clothing on, about to drown himself. I cried, "In the name of
Jesus, come out of him!" The man fell full length on the ground and that evil
power went out of him never to return. His wife came rushing after him, and
the husband was restored to her in a perfect mental condition.
There are evil powers, but Jesus is greater than all evil powers. There are
tremendous diseases, but Jesus is healer. There is no case too hard for Him.
The Lion of Judah shall break every chain. He came to relieve the oppressed
and to set the captive free. He came to bring redemption, to make us as
perfect as man was before the fall.
People want to know how to be kept by the power of God. Every position of
grace into which you are led-forgiveness, healing, deliverance of any kindwill
be contested by Satan. He will contend for your body. When you are saved,
Satan will come round and say, "See, you are not saved." The devil is a liar.
If he says you are not saved, it is a sure sign that you are.
You will remember the story of the man who was swept and garnished. The evil
power had been swept out of him. But the man remained in a stationary
position. If the Lord heals you, you dare not remain in a stationary position.
The evil spirit came back to that man and found the house swept, and took
seven others worse than himself, and the last state of that man was worse than
the first. Be sure to get filled with God. Get the Occupier. Be filled with
the Spirit.
God has a million ways of undertaking for those who go to Him for help. He has
deliverance for every captive. He loves you so much that He even says, "Before
they call, I will answer." Don't turn Him away.
"I slipped and fell on Broadway, San Diego, in February, 1921, and as was
afterwards discovered, fractured the coccyx (the base of the spine), and so
severely wrenched the hips and pelvic bones that I became a great sufferer. As
the broken bone was not discovered and set until about two months after the
accident, the constant pain and irritation caused a general inflammation of
the nervous system, and the long delay in getting the bone set, made it
impossible to heal, so that, my condition steadily grew worse, and I was taken
to the hospital and the bone was removed about a month after it had been set.
Though the wound healed rapidly, the nervous inflammation remained, and so for
many months longer I was in constant pain and unable to get around without
assistance. I was taken to the first service held by Mr. Wigglesworth on the
2nd of October, 1922. At the close of the service all those who were sick and
in pain and had come for healing were requested to rise if possible. My
husband assisted me to my feet, and as those were prayed for by the speaker I
was instantly healed. How
I do not know. I only know the Great Physician touched my body and I was made
whole, and freed from pain.
"After I got home I showed how I could sit down and rise with my hands above
my head; when before it had taken both hands to push up my feeble body, and I
had to have straps on my bed to pull up by. No more use for them now! I lay
down and turned over for the first time without pain. I shall never cease to
praise God for the healing of my body through the precious blood of Jesus and
in His name. I walked to the street car alone the next day and attended the
next service and have been "on the go" ever since. Can give names of friends
who can substantiate all I have written. To Jesus be all the, praise and
glory." -Mrs. Sanders, 4051 Bay View Court, San Diego, Calif.