牧者心聲
信心、信靠與醫治
周曉暉牧師
2023 年 12 月 9 日 / 10 日
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不論是為醫治的祈禱或抹油按手等服事（雅五 14），都不帶有任何神聖的能力。現時坊間常有「祈禱集氣」的說法，以為代禱的人數多才有勝算，但想想以利亞一人與 450 名巴力先知的祈禱對決！其實，焦點應在於禱告的對象。
宣道會會徽左下角的油瓶，表達耶穌基督是「醫治之主」。在聖經裡，油代表醫治。主耶穌已為因順服而有信心的兒女們預備了身體所需的力量與醫治。在醫學昌明的今天，人仍可藉著對主耶穌的信靠，由祂復活的生命支取健康與力量，直到走完此生。
如何領受醫治的應許
馬太福音八章 14 至 17 節關於耶穌醫好彼得岳母和一些病人的記載，顯明了幾個重點：
一、
二、
三、
我們當如何為病者禱告？
宣道會先賢宣信博士定期舉行醫治禱告的事工，但他並沒有為這類祈禱定下固定形式，也不主張使用某些特定的經文。他甚至教導人，禱告不要冗長，代禱者（或病者自己）只需簡單地（好像小孩向父母懇求一般）禱告就可。
進一步說，信心只是幫助人去接受耶穌基督的醫治而已。這種對信心的看法，清楚說明信心不是人可尋索取用的能量。病者要做的，其實是專注在主耶穌身上，好正視自己與神之間的關係（未信的要與神和好）。宣信說：
說到底，以主耶穌為信靠的對象，才是為病者禱告的重心。
1 宣信〔A.B. Simpson〕：《先賢之信：四重福音》（The Fourfold Gospel），華密譯，（香港：宣道，1987），頁 38、43。
Whether it be the ministry of prayer for healing or the laying of hands and anointment with oil (James 5:14), they do not carry any divine power. The saying of having a "congregation of vital energy through prayer" (祈禱集氣) in the public these days wrongly conveys that a larger number of people praying has a better chance of victory. But think about the 400 prophets of Baal fighting against Elijah! Really, the focus should be on whom we pray to.
The pitcher at the lower left corner of The Christian and Missionary Alliance logo symbolizes the Lord Jesus Christ as "Healer." In the Bible, oil represents healing. The Lord Jesus has prepared the necessary strength and healing for His children who obey and therefore have faith in Him. This blessing is as rich as the spiritual blessings He has prepared in the gospel.
In these days of medical advances, through trusting in the Lord Jesus, man can still draw health and strength from His resurrected life to live this life till the end.
How to receive the promise of healing
Matthew 8:14-17 on Jesus' healing of Peter's mother-in-law and some other patients tells us a few important points:
- Surrender completely to Christ. Trust in and accept His promises without doubt: Jesus stretched out His hand. Just one touch and the fever of the mother-in-law was gone. Meanwhile, many in the villages were convinced of Jesus’ mighty power. They brought the demon-possessed to Him, and He drove out the spirits and healed all the sick (8:15-16).
- Always rely on the Lord to receive the necessary physical strength: Matthew quoted the prophet Isaiah in the Old Testament: "He took up our infirmities and bore our diseases" (8:17). The Lord not only did this in the past. He still does so today and heal our lives with sicknesses according to His sovereignty and power. He is our Great Physician.
- Magnify and serve God with the life and health from the Lord: When Jesus went to Peter's home, Peter's mother-in-law was supposed to be the one to receive the visitors. After she was being healed, she continued to wait on and serve the Lord (8:14-15).
How should we pray for the sick?
Dr A.B. Simpson, forerunner of The Christian and Missionary Alliance, conducted regular prayer ministry for healing. Yet, he did not set a certain format for this kind of prayer ministry, nor did he recommend the use of any specific Scripture. He even taught people that the prayer needs not be long. The intercessor (or the patient) only needs to say simple prayers (like a child seeking something earnestly from his parents).
Moreover, faith is just to help people accept the healing of Jesus Christ. It follows that faith is clearly not any power that man can seek and utilize. What the patient really needs is to focus on the Lord Jesus, to address his own relationship with God (non-believers will need to reconcile with God). Dr Simpson said: "Unless you are in contact with Christ the living Healer, there is no healing." 2
After all, having the Lord Jesus as the One in whom we trust is really the center of prayers for the sick.
2 Simpson, A. B. (1984). The Fourfold Gospel. https://cdn.cmalliance.org/wordpress/cmalliance/ the-fourfold-gospel.pdf
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