That Which You Hear and See

The blind receive their sight and the lame walk, lepers are cleansed (by healing) and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up and the poor have good news (the Gospel) preached to them (Matthew 11:5 AMP).

Nothing dispels doubt quite like a manifestation of the healing power of God that accompanies the preaching of the gospel.

When John the Baptist was in prison, he began to have doubts about whether he had really heard God. Had he really seen the Holy Ghost descend upon Jesus at the Jordan River? Had he really heard God speak?

Each of us has times when the enemy of our soul will send the fiery darts of doubt our way that we have great difficulty fighting off with the shield of faith and the sword of the Spirit. During these times, we can be strengthened and encouraged by the manifestation of the miraculous.

This is why the working of miracles, gifts of healings, and such, are a part of the arsenal of the Spirit-filled believer. Our faith steps forward and lays hold of the promises of God in Christ Jesus when we preach the good news to the spiritually poor. We know that the kingdom of God is not a distant place, but that it is at hand (Matthew 10:7), and that . . . "faith apart from [good] works is inactive and ineffective and worthless" (James 2:20 Amp).

As we proclaim the good news, our faith will always be met with the encouragement of the demonstration of the closeness and power of God as we, "Cure the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers [and] drive out demons" (Matthew 10:8a AMP). There is no room for doubt or argument as we move in the realm of faith that echoes with the words, "Freely (without pay) you have received, freely (without charge) give" (Matthew 10:8b AMP).