{"id":20419,"date":"2006-07-15T13:50:17","date_gmt":"2006-07-15T13:50:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/km7.a6a.mytemp.website\/journal\/the-power-of-the-cross-old-testament-foundations-signs-wonders-and-the-people\/"},"modified":"2006-07-15T13:50:17","modified_gmt":"2006-07-15T13:50:17","slug":"the-power-of-the-cross-old-testament-foundations-signs-wonders-and-the-people","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/km7.a6a.mytemp.website\/journal\/the-power-of-the-cross-old-testament-foundations-signs-wonders-and-the-people\/","title":{"rendered":"The Power of the Cross: Old Testament Foundations: Signs, Wonders and the People"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"
The Power of the Cross: The Biblical Place of Healing and Gift-Based Ministry in Proclaiming the Gospel<\/strong><\/big><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

 <\/p>\n

Old Testament Foundations: Signs, Wonders and the People, by Jeffrey J. Niehaus<\/strong><\/p>\n

When the Son of God came to earth he brought what the Bible metaphorically calls the \u201cwater\u201d of the Holy Spirit, who had been poured out on him without measure. The Son\u2019s first advent was foretold by the prophet Isaiah, who foresaw the result of Christ\u2019s ministry. He said it would be a time when \u201cthe Spirit is poured upon us from on high, and the desert becomes a fertile field\u201d (Isa. 32:15). Isaiah was a great poet as well as a prophet, and he spoke powerfully of the Messiah\u2019s life and work. What he said has come to pass, and both he and the other Old Testament prophets have much to teach us, not only about God and his Christ, but also about prophetic ministry\u2014a kingdom ministry of \u201csigns and wonders\u201d\u2014both in the past and today.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Signs and Wonders\u2014Moses and Jesus<\/strong><\/p>\n

We know from the Old Testament that God did signs and wonders to advance his kingdom. The phrase, \u201csigns and wonders,\u201d first occurs in the Bible to describe the plagues which God, through his prophet Moses, brought upon Egypt (Exo. 7:3). But the miracles of God in the Old Testament are not only destructive. God also parted the Red Sea and held up the waters of the Jordan River and brought his people safely across both. Such miracles were part of his plan of salvation for Israel.<\/p>\n

Isaiah and the other Old Testament prophets have much to teach us, not only about God and his Christ, but also about prophetic ministry\u2014a kingdom ministry of \u201csigns and wonders\u201d\u2014both in the past and today.<\/em><\/strong><\/div>The New Testament declares that Jesus also worked great miracles as part of God\u2019s plan of salvation for his people. Some of Jesus\u2019 \u201csigns and wonders\u201d showed God\u2019s power over nature, just as Moses\u2019 had done. For instance, Jesus turned water to wine (Jn. 2:1ff.), caused a fig tree to shrivel up (Mk. 11:12-14.20-24), and stilled the stormy waters of the Sea of Galilee (Mat. 8:23-27). But most of Jesus\u2019 miracles involved the healing of diseases and bodily infirmities, and deliverance from evil spirits.<\/p>\n

The ministries of Jesus and Moses have important things in common. Both were covenant mediators: Moses mediated the old covenant; Jesus mediated the new. Both Moses (Deut. 34:10) and Jesus (Acts 3:22) were prophets. And both did signs and wonders which were part of the advance of God\u2019s kingdom\u2014his program of salvation for his people.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Signs and Wonders and Prophetic Ministry<\/strong><\/p>\n

The great examples of Moses and Jesus show a connection between prophetic ministry and signs and wonders. This is not accidental. The Old Testament contains evidence that God has always intended to establish a relationship between prophetic ministry and miracles, including divine healing.<\/p>\n

The Old Testament contains evidence that God has always intended to establish a relationship between prophetic ministry and miracles, including divine healing<\/em><\/strong>.<\/em><\/strong><\/div>Signs and wonders are, in fact, a well-documented part of what it meant to be a prophets in the OT\u2014one who was called to speak and act on God\u2019s behalf\u2014in the Old Testament.1<\/sup> The word prophet, for example, first occurs in the Old Testament in the context of a healing\u2014the healing of king Abimelech\u2019s wife and slave girls. Abraham told Abimelech, king of Gerar, that his wife Sarah was his sister (she was in fact his half-sister, Gen. 20:12). He did this out of fear that someone would kill him and take his wife because she was so beautiful (Gen. 20:11; he had done the same in Egypt, Gen. 12:12ff). Abimelech believed Abraham and took Sarah, but God warned Abimelech in a dream that he must not have another man\u2019s wife. God also \u201cclosed the wombs\u201d of Abimelech\u2019s wife and slave girls as both a warning and a punishment (Gen. 20:18). God then told Abimelech, \u201cNow return the man\u2019s wife, for he is a prophet<\/em>, and he will pray for you and you will live<\/em> \u201c (Gen. 20:7). God\u2019s statement makes a clear connection between Abraham\u2019s prophetic call and the power to heal. The same is affirmed at the end of the chapter: \u201cThen Abraham prayed to God, and God healed Abimelech, his wife and his slave girls so they could have children again\u201d (Gen. 20:17).<\/p>\n

The word prophet first occurs in the Old Testament in the context of healing.<\/em><\/strong><\/div>The connection between God\u2019s prophets and God\u2019s healing ministry stands out even more boldly in the cases of Elijah and Elisha. Both of them did healings and other miracles which look forward to the ministry of Christ. The first reported \u201chealing\u201d done by Elijah was a resurrection, the son of the widow of Zarephath (1 Kgs. 17:19-24). Elisha also raised someone from the dead, the son of a Shunammite woman (2 Kgs. 4:32-37). In each case the prophet lay upon the dead body and prayed, and as he did so the boy came back to life. (Similarly, the apostle Paul brought the boy Eutychus back from the dead by lying on him, Acts 20:10). Both Elijah (1 Kgs. 17:7-16) and Elisha (2 Kgs. 4:1-7.42-44) miraculously reproduced scant supplies of food, just as Jesus did with the loaves and fishes. And Elisha healed Naaman the Syrian of leprosy by commanding him to go and wash in the Jordan seven times (2 Kgs. 5:1-19), just as Jesus healed the blind man by commanding him to go and wash in the pool of Siloam (Jn. 9:1-7). The parallels between the miracles of these Old Testament prophets and the miracles of Jesus (and Paul) are remarkable, and they have a purpose.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

God\u2019s Reasons for Performing Miracles<\/strong><\/p>\n

What was that purpose? Or to put it another way: Why did God do those miracles of healing and provision? There are at least three reasons: God did them to show that he was God; he did them for evangelistic purposes; and he did them out of compassion for his people. More than one of these reasons might be in operation at any given time.<\/p>\n

Old Testament examples show that God has always wanted to reach people of all nations and bring them to salvation.<\/em><\/strong><\/div>First, God sometimes performed signs and wonders to show his people that he alone was God (e.g., Elijah on Mount Carmel, 1 Kgs. 18:16-39). Whatever else a \u201csign\u201d or a \u201cwonder\u201d does, it always brings glory to God, who alone could do it.<\/p>\n

God also performed healings through his prophets so that non-Israelites could know him as the true God. So the widow of Zarephath, a suburb of pagan Sidon (a Phoenician city on the Mediterranean coast) exclaimed when Elijah raised her son from the dead, \u201cNow I know that you are a man of God and that the word of the Lord from your mouth is truth\u201d (1 Kgs. 17:24). Naaman the Syrian was converted to the true God when the Lord healed him by the word of the prophet Elisha: \u201cNow I know that there is no God in all the world except in Israel … [and I] will never again make burnt offerings and sacrifices to any other God but the Lord\u201d (2 Kgs. 5:15.17). These Old Testament examples show that God has always wanted to reach people of all nations and bring them to salvation. Through prophets like Abraham, Elijah and Elisha, he showed this desire by healing those who were not Hebrews and, at least in some cases, turning them to himself. There can be no doubt that such healings were not only acts of mercy, but also acts of evangelism (which is the greatest mercy, Lk. 10:20).<\/p>\n

We know that \u201cthe reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil\u2019s work.\u201d Nowhere is such destruction more obvious than in the salvation of a sinner, when the Spirit of Christ brings a person out of the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of God.<\/em><\/strong><\/div>Yet God also did (and does) signs and wonders out of compassion for his own people. God did many miracles through Moses, both to free and to provide for his people. Through Elisha God healed the waters of Jericho so that his people could drink it (2 Kgs. 2:19-22), miraculously reproduced oil for a wife of one of the prophets (2 Kgs. 4:1-7), and made a poisonous stew safe for his people to eat (2 Kgs. 4:38-41).2<\/p>\n

God worked miracles of healing and provision through his prophets as part of his care for his own people, but also to show people that he alone was God\u2014so they must turn to him and be saved. Whatever signs or wonders God did he always got glory for his Name, because he alone could do them. All of this foreshadows what God did through Jesus Christ, who showed God\u2019s compassion and provision for his own people, but also touched \u201cforeigners\u201d for God (e.g., a Roman, a Samaritan, a Syro-Phoenician), and always displayed his Father\u2019s glory and glorified his Father. In addition to being the Son of God, Jesus was also the greatest of all prophets.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The Old Testament and Deliverance Ministry<\/strong><\/p>\n

The David who delivered Saul was an anointed, prophetic figure, who not only became king of Israel, but also spoke prophetically of Christ on a number of occasions.<\/em><\/strong><\/div>One way that God healed people through the ministry of Jesus involved a blatant disruption of the demonic realm. We know that \u201cthe reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil\u2019s work\u201d (1 Jn. 3:8). Nowhere is such destruction more obvious than in the salvation of a sinner, when the Spirit of Christ brings a person out of the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of God (Acts 26:18; Col. 1:13), and gives that person \u201cauthority to become [a child] of God\u201d (Jn. 1:12). But it was also a very obvious, even dramatic thing when Jesus \u201cdestroyed the devil\u2019s work\u201d by casting out demons.<\/p>\n

The Old Testament does not say much directly about the demonic realm, but what it says is intriguing. From it we learn that the power behind pagan religion is demonic. Before Joshua led them into the promised land, Moses spoke in a prophetic poem (Deuteronomy 32) about the sins which future generations of Israelites would commit. His words are a theological commentary on pagan worship:<\/p>\n

They sacrificed to demons, which are not God\u2014
\ngods they had not known,
\ngods that recently appeared,
\ngods your fathers did not fear (Deut. 32:17)<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Later in the history of Israel, we read the sad fulfillment of Moses\u2019 prophecy:<\/p>\n

They sacrificed their sons
\nand their daughters to demons.
\nThey shed innocent blood,
\nthe blood of their sons and daughters,
\nwhom they sacrificed to the idols of Canaan (Ps. 106:37-38)<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

God has always intended kingdom life in both Old and New Testaments to be \u201cprophetic\u201d\u2014a life that includes signs and wonders.<\/em><\/strong><\/div>The apostle Paul wrote about the same spiritual dynamic when he warned the church in Corinth, \u201cDo I mean then that a sacrifice offered to an idol is anything, or that an idol is anything? No, but the sacrifices of pagans are offered to demons, and I do not want you to be participants with demons\u201d (1 Cor. 10:19-20). The point in both Old and New Testaments is that the power behind idolatry is demonic.3<\/sup><\/p>\n

In addition to a theological analysis of idolatrous worship, the Old Testament gives us an account of an actual deliverance. In this case, the power of God became available to set king Saul free from demonic oppression.<\/p>\n

One of the saddest accounts in the history of Israel is the story of Saul\u2019s disobedience toward God. The prophet Samuel, who originally anointed Saul king, put the king\u2019s rebellion in the strongest terms: \u201cRebellion is like the sin of witchcraft,\u201d and added, \u201cBecause you have rejected the word of the Lord, he has rejected you as king\u201d (1 Sam. 15:23). As part of God\u2019s punishment of Saul, \u201can evil spirit from the Lord tormented him\u201d (1 Sam. 16:14). This statement does not mean that the Lord commands hosts of evil spirits and sends them against hapless mortals. Rather, the Lord sometimes allows evil spirits to have their way with people who have rebelled against God, and that is one form of divine judgment upon them. A good example occurs in 1 Kgs. 22:19-28, where God allows a lying spirit to speak through false prophets, with the result that sinful king Ahab is led astray to campaign against the Aramaeans, and is killed in the battle. In the case of Saul, God allowed the judgment of demonic affliction to be ameliorated at times by his servant David. David would play the harp in Saul\u2019s presence when the evil spirit attacked the king, and then \u201crelief would come to Saul; he would feel better, and the evil spirit would leave him\u201d (1 Sam. 16:13, 23).<\/p>\n

On the basis of Rev. 19:10, we can now define the \u201cprophetic\u201d as that which is a \u201ctestimony of Jesus Christ.\u201d<\/em><\/strong><\/div>This is a case of deliverance (at least temporary deliverance) from demonic oppression, but it is not just deliverance by a shepherd boy. David had already been anointed by Samuel to succeed Saul, and when he was, \u201cfrom that day on the Spirit of the Lord came upon David in power\u201d (1 Sam. 16:13). Not only was David anointed by the Spirit; he was also a prophet, as we know from Peter\u2019s sermon on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2:30). It appears, then, that the David who delivered Saul was an anointed, prophetic figure, who of course not only became king of Israel, but also spoke prophetically of Christ on a number of occasions (e.g., Pss. 2, 16, 22, 110).<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Old Testament Healing and the Prophetic<\/strong><\/p>\n

I wish that all the Lord\u2019s people were prophets, and that the Lord would put his Spirit on them. <\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

– Moses<\/strong><\/div>These examples of prophetic healing and deliverance through prophetic figures in the Old Testament make a clear point. God chose to do signs and wonders through anointed, prophetic figures. He did them through his prophet and covenant mediator Moses; he also did them through other prophets such as Elijah, Elisha, and David. The New Testament evidence is similar. God did signs and wonders not only through Jesus4<\/sup> (the Prophet and Mediator of the New Covenant), but also through Jesus\u2019 disciples during his earthly ministry, and then through the apostles and other Christians5<\/sup> as the church age began.6<\/sup> The parallel suggests that God has always intended kingdom life in both Old and New Testaments to be \u201cprophetic\u201d\u2014a life that includes signs and wonders. This may seem a bold statement, but other evidence supports it, including both the outpourings of God\u2019s Spirit and the prophecies of such outpourings in the Old Testament.<\/p>\n

The Old Testament contains prophecies and yearnings for God\u2019s extension of his kingdom by signs and wonders\u2014of which the church age is a fulfillment. Moses first gave voice to this yearning during the wilderness wanderings of Israel. In the book of Numbers we read how God had the elders of Israel stand around the tent of meeting. God then \u201ctook of the Spirit that was on [Moses] and put the Spirit on the seventy elders. When the Spirit rested on them, they prophesied\u201d (Num. 11:25). Two other men, Eldad and Medad, were also listed among the elders, but had not come to the tent. But God also let his Spirit rest on them, \u201cand they prophesied in the camp\u201d (Num. 11:26). Joshua, who was Moses\u2019 helper, was jealous for his great leader. He wanted Moses to be the sole prophet. He complained to Moses about what was happening. But Moses, with God\u2019s heart, replied, \u201cAre you jealous for my sake? I wish that all the Lord\u2019s people were prophets, and that the Lord would put his Spirit on them\u201d (Num. 11:29).<\/p>\n

We know that Moses had God\u2019s point of view when he said this, because God later promised to fulfill Moses\u2019 wish in a prophecy well-known not only to Pentecostals and charismatics but to Christians everywhere:<\/p>\n

And afterward,
\nI will pour out my Spirit on all people.
\nYour sons and daughters will prophesy,
\nyour old men will dream dreams,
\nyour young men will see visions.
\nEven on my servants, both men and women,
\nI will pour out my Spirit in those days (Joel 2:28-29)<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The democratization of the Spirit from Pentecost onward means that signs and wonders are to be a normal part of kingdom life.<\/em><\/strong><\/div>Peter quoted Joel\u2019s prophecy on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2:17ff), to explain how it came to pass that believers in Christ could be proclaiming the wonders of God in various tongues, \u201cas the Spirit enabled them\u201d (Acts 2:4). The outpouring of the Spirit which began there continued as the church grew and God continued to gift his people for the work of his kingdom. The gift of the Spirit for kingdom work is what Jesus promised just before he ascended: \u201cYou will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses\u201d (Acts 1:8). In other words, they could not be Jesus\u2019 \u201cwitnesses\u201d until the \u201cpower\u201d of the Holy Spirit came upon them. The Holy Spirit\u2014the \u201cSpirit of prophecy\u201d (Rev. 19:10)\u2014was necessary to enable God\u2019s people to advance his kingdom. That Spirit was necessary in the Old Testament (as the prophets and their signs and wonders illustrate) and was necessary in the New Testament as well. And, since Jesus Christ is \u201cthe same yesterday and today and forever\u201d (Heb. 13:8), the same \u201cSpirit of prophecy\u201d which is the \u201ctestimony of Jesus Christ\u201d (Rev. 19:10) is necessary today, to make God\u2019s people faithful testimonies or witnesses of Christ.<\/p>\n

The examples of Old Testament outpourings of the Spirit and prophecies of such outpourings, taken all together, strongly indicate that God has always intended kingdom life, life under His rule and reign, in both Old and New Testaments to be \u201cprophetic.\u201d7<\/sup> On the basis of Rev. 19:10, we can now define the \u201cprophetic\u201d as that which is a \u201ctestimony of Jesus Christ.\u201d Old and New Testament evidence connects the prophetic with signs and wonders, and argues that such a prophetic lifestyle includes miraculous healings, deliverances, and other works of power. The democratization of the Spirit from Pentecost onward means that signs and wonders are to be a normal part of kingdom life. So it appears in the Early Church. That is no doubt why God provided lengthy New Testament passages (Rom. 12:1-8; 1 Cor. 12-14; Eph. 4:7-13; I Thes. 5:19-22; I Pet. 4:10-11) to help his people manage his abundant spiritual gifts.<\/p>\n

Jesus not only died on the cross for our sins: he rose and ascended on high and\u2014with the Father\u2014sent his Spirit to enter his people and empower them for prophetic living.<\/em><\/strong><\/div>If such was the case in the Early Church, one natural and related question is, to what extent signs and wonders may be expected in our day. A full answer to that question lies outside the scope of this chapter. A starting place for an answer may well be some of Jesus\u2019 comments on what it means to follow him (e.g. Mat. 10:25; Lk. 6:40; Jn. 14:12). One question that can be addressed (at least in a limited way) is that of divine healing. Old Testament prophets did not heal everyone who needed healing, nor did Jesus himself. To what extent may we expect God to heal people today? The question needs to be addressed because it involves an Old Testament passage (Isaiah 53) which has sometimes been misunderstood.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Isaiah 53: The Substitutionary Atonement of Christ and Divine Healing<\/strong><\/p>\n

No discussion of healing and the Old Testament would be complete without a look at Isaiah 53. More than any other Old Testament passage, Isaiah 53 portrays the character, the ministry, the sufferings, the death, and the exaltation of the Messiah\u2014as well as his gifting of the church. On the basis of this chapter alone, Isaiah\u2019s book might well be called the \u201cGospel\u201d of the Old Testament. Among other things, Isaiah\u2019s prophecy anticipates the healing ministry of the Messiah:<\/p>\n

Surely he took up our infirmities
\nand carried our sorrows,
\nyet we considered him stricken by God,
\nsmitten by him, and afflicted.
\nBut he was pierced for our transgressions,
\nhe was crushed for our iniquities;
\nthe punishment that brought us peace was upon him,
\nand by his wounds we are healed\u00a0(Isa. 53:4-5)<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Old Testament prophets did not heal everyone who needed healing, nor did Jesus himself. To what extent may we expect God to heal people today?<\/em><\/strong><\/div>Jesus began to fulfill these verses when he started his healing ministry, as Matthew reports: \u201cHe drove out the spirits with a word and healed all the sick. This was to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah: \u2018He took up our infirmities and carried our diseases\u2019\u201c (Mat. 8:16-17, citing Isa. 53:4a). Matthew applies Isaiah\u2019s words to what Jesus did in his earthly ministry. But, as Luke says of the Lord\u2019s works, these are \u201call that Jesus began<\/em> (\u0113rxato<\/em>) to do and to teach, until the day he was taken up to heaven\u201d (Acts 1:1-2). Luke describes the works of Jesus as those that he \u201cbegan\u201d to do, because Jesus then went on to do similar works in and through the Early Church (I Cor. 12:6; Gal. 3:5). And he is still doing them. Therefore, Isaiah\u2019s words leave room for an understanding that the ongoing ministry of the Messiah includes miraculous healing and deliverance such as Matthew describes.<\/p>\n

That is not to say that healing is automatically available to every believer today, any more than it was when Jesus walked the earth, or in the Early Church (cf. Gal. 4:14; Phil. 2:27; I Tim. 5:23; II Tim. 4:20). It also does not mean that healing and the atonement is \u201cin the atonement\u201d in the same way that forgiveness of sin is. On this point Isa. 53:5 (\u201cThe punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed\u201d) has been misunderstood.8<\/sup> Isaiah\u2019s references to \u201cpunishment\u201d and \u201cwounds\u201d in this verse are a description of the suffering servant\u2019s substitutionary atonement (cf. Isa. 53:6-12). But the \u201cpeace\u201d (Hebrew shalom<\/em>, \u201cwholeness\u201d) that comes as a result, and the \u201chealing\u201d brought by his wounds, are primarily the healing from sin (cf. Isa. 1:5, 6) and the peace of the promised Spirit (cf. Isa. 48:16; Jn. 14:26-27), whom we have within because of Christ\u2019s atoning work.<\/p>\n

Healing of sickness is made possible through the atonement (\u201che took up our sicknesses [h\u2011\u014dl\u0101y\u0113n\u00fb<\/em>]\u201d Isa. 53:4; cf. Mat. 8:16-17), inasmuch as forgiveness of sin makes healing possible (Ps. 103:3; James 5:15-16; see also Peter H. Davids chapter in this book on sin and the fruits of sin). But Scripture also makes it clear that the healing of disease mentioned in Isaiah 53 will only be experienced in part.9<\/sup> In I Corinthians 13 Paul says that in this age the church will only experience spiritual gifts, which include healing, \u201cin part <\/em>(ek merous<\/em>)\u201d until the second coming of Christ: \u201cFor we know in part <\/em>and we prophecy in part\u201d<\/em> (I Cor. 13:9; cf. I Cor. 1:6-7 and 13:8-10, 12; I Jn. 3:2; Rev. 22:4).10<\/sup><\/p>\n

Healing of sickness is made possible through the atonement, inasmuch as forgiveness of sin makes healing possible. But Scripture also makes it clear that the healing of disease mentioned in Isaiah 53 will only be experienced in part.<\/em><\/strong><\/div>The apostle Peter applies Isa. 53:5 to the forgiveness of sin. Peter says of Christ, \u201cHe himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed<\/em>\u201d (1 Pet. 2:24; ). Just as Isaiah portrays sin as disease (Isa. 1:5.6), so Peter uses Isaiah\u2019s words to inform us that the \u201chealing\u201d of Isa. 53:5 is first and foremost a healing from sin<\/em>. That is the \u201chealing\u201d that we find in the atonement. In the same vein, Peter goes on to quote Isa. 53:6: \u201cFor you were like sheep going astray<\/em>, but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls\u201d (1 Pet. 2:25). The work of the atonement is to heal us from sin and to return stray sheep to God, as Peter\u2019s application of Isa. 53:5-6 makes clear. It makes physical healing possible (\u201cHe took up our sicknesses\u201d Isa. 53:4 and Mat. 8:16-17) but does not necessarily guarantee it in this age to God\u2019s people.<\/p>\n

That does not mean that healing and the atonement are totally unrelated. Because of Christ\u2019s atonement God has sent healings and many other gifts of the Holy Spirit to his church. As Gordon Fee has observed, \u201cHealing is provided for [in the atonement] because the atonement brought release from the … consequences of sin; nonetheless, since we have not yet received the redemption of our bodies, suffering and death are still our lot until the resurrection.\u201d11<\/sup><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Old and New Testaments and Healing Today<\/strong><\/p>\n

From the Old Testament we see that God combined spiritual words and deeds of power as he advanced his kingdom through his servants the prophets. So when Elijah had raised the widow of Zarephath\u2019s son to life she exclaimed, \u201cNow I know that you are a man of God and that the word of the Lord from your mouth is truth\u201d (1 Kgs. 17:24). For her it was an act of power<\/em>, her son\u2019s resurrection, that confirmed the truth of God\u2019s word<\/em> from the prophet\u2019s mouth. In a similar way, Elisha\u2019s healing of Naaman the Syrian made the latter a believer in God (2 Kgs. 5:15.17).12 God used not only words, but also power, to bring the lost to himself, even in the Old Testament. He did the same in the New Testament. Jesus not only preached<\/em> the \u201cGospel of the kingdom\u201d\u2014he demonstrated<\/em> it by miraculous healings, deliverances, and resurrections (Mat. 4:23; Jn. 11:38-44). Jesus\u2019 teaching and his works of power were intimately related\u2014so much so that the people at Capernaum exclaimed, \u201cWhat is this teaching<\/em>? With authority<\/em> and power<\/em> he gives orders to evil spirits and they come out!\u201d (Lk. 4:36).<\/p>\n

From the Old Testament we see that God combined spiritual words and deeds of power as he advanced his kingdom through his servants the prophets.<\/em><\/strong><\/div>The apostle Paul followed Christ\u2019s example. His words to the Romans are noteworthy. He tells them how he has been \u201cleading the Gentiles to obey God by what I have said and done\u2014by the power of signs and wonders, through the power of the Spirit\u201d (Rom. 15:18-19a). Paul characterizes his twofold ministry (\u201cwhat I have said<\/em> and done<\/em>\u201d) by saying, \u201cI have fully<\/em> proclaimed (pl<\/em>\u0113ro\u014d <\/em>\u201cfill, fulfill\u201d13<\/sup>) the gospel of Christ\u201d (Rom. 15:19b). Paul\u2019s account seems to make it clear that a \u201cfull\u201d Gospel proclamation consists both of preaching\/teaching the word and of attendant works of power\u2014signs and wonders. That is just what the Old Testament evidence would lead us to expect, for that is just the way God worked through Old Testament prophets who foreshadowed the person and work of Christ.<\/p>\n

That twofold ministry of words and works does not stop with the apostle Paul or with the New Testament church. As one moves through the Old Testament, the evidence mounts that God has in mind the creation of a prophetic people, who will be gifted to advance his kingdom by signs and wonders like the prophets of old.14<\/sup> Another way of saying this is that Jesus not only died on the cross for our sins: he rose and ascended on high and\u2014with the Father\u2014sent his Spirit to enter his people (Jn. 14:17) and empower them (Rom. 8:9-14) for prophetic living.<\/p>\n

That twofold ministry of words and works does not stop with the apostle Paul or with the New Testament church. As one moves through the Old Testament, the evidence mounts that God has in mind the creation of a prophetic people, who will be gifted to advance his kingdom by signs and wonders like the prophets of old.<\/em><\/strong><\/div>After all, \u201cthe testimony of Jesus Christ is the Spirit of prophecy\u201d (Rev. 19:10). Those who are living testimonies of Jesus Christ have the Spirit of prophecy within them. This does not mean that all of God\u2019s people will prophesy, or that they are \u201cprophets\u201d in the sense that Agabus was a prophet (Acts 11:27-28, 21:10-11). Rather God will work through his people by that Spirit to do \u201csigns and wonders\u201d\u2014even miraculous healings\u2014on earth, just as he worked through his prophets in the Old Testament, and through his Son, and through the disciples\/apostles and early Christians. It was, after all, Jesus (that perfect prophet) who said, \u201cA student is not above his teacher, but everyone who is fully trained will be like his teacher\u201d (Luke 6:40; cf. Mat. 10:25). Jesus\u2019 words are a calling on God\u2019s church. The church can embrace that calling with faith and expectation, because Jesus also promised: \u201cHe who believes in me will also do the works that I do (ta erga ha eg\u014d poi\u014d),\u201d<\/em> and he added, \u201cAnd greater works than these (meizona tout\u014dn)<\/em> will he do, because I go to the Father\u201d (Jn. 14:12 RSV).<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00a0PR<\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

In the Next Issue<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

The Fall 2006 issue will feature \u201cA Biblical View of the Relationship of Sin and the Fruits of Sin: Sickness, Demonization, Death, Natural Calamity\u201d by Peter H. Davids.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Notes<\/strong><\/p>\n

1<\/sup> The Hebrew word translated \u201cprophet\u201d (n\u0101b\u00ee\u2019<\/em>) appears to be a passive participle from a root related to Akkadian nab\u00fb<\/em>, \u201cto call.\u201d The sense seems to be that a prophet is someone called by God to be a spokesman for God (cf. Ex. 4:14-16). The Greek word (proph\u0113t\u0113s<\/em>) which normally translates the Hebrew, and from which our English word \u201cprophet\u201d comes, means, according to Henry George Liddell and Robert Scott, A Greek-English Lexicon<\/em> (Oxford: Clarendon, 1968), p. 1540, \u201cone who speaks for a god and interprets his will<\/em> to man … revealer of God\u2019s will, prophet<\/em>.\u201d However, it is clear from what prophets did in the Old Testament that they had far more than a speaking role.<\/p>\n

2 <\/sup>Elisha also miraculously caused a lost axehead to float, thus relieving the anxiety of the man who had both borrowed and lost it (2 Kgs. 6:1-7); and by Elisha\u2019s word God struck an army of hostile Aramaeans blind, facilitated their capture, and then restored their sight\u2014with the result that they left off raiding Israel\u2019s territory (2 Kgs. 6:8-23).<\/p>\n

3 <\/sup>Cf. C. Fred Dickason, Angels, Elect and Evil<\/em> (Chicago: Moody, 1975), p. 152.<\/p>\n

4 <\/sup>Mat. 4:23; 9:35-36; 10:1, 7-8; 11:5; 12:15, 18; 14:14; 15:30; 19:2 [cf. Mk. 10:1]; 21:14 [cf. Lk. 21:37] Mk. 1: 32-39; 2:2, 11-12; 3:14-15; 6:12-13; 10:1 [cf. Mat. 19:2] Lk. 4:18, 31-36, 40-44; 5:17, 24; 6:6-11, 17-18; 7:22; 9:1-2; 10:9, 13; 13:10-13, 22, 32; 14:4, 7ff.; 21:37 [cf. Mat. 21:14]; Jn. 2:23; 3:2; 7:14-15, 21-23, 31, 38; 10:25, 32, 38; 12:37, 42, 49; 14:10, 12; Acts 1:1; 2:22; 10:38<\/p>\n

5 <\/sup>Acts 3:6, 12; 4:29-30; 5:12-16, 20-21, 28, 42; 6:8, 10; 8:4-7, 12; 9:17-18 (cf. 22:13), 34-35; 14:3, 8-10, 15ff.; 15:12, 36; 18:5, 11 (cf. II Cor. 12:12; I Cor. 2:4-5); 19:8-12. Rom. 15:18-19; I Cor. 2:4-5; 11:1; 12:1-11, 28-31; 14:24-25; II Cor. 12:12; Gal. 3:5; Phil. 4:9; I Thes. 1:5-6; Heb. 2:3-4.<\/p>\n

6 <\/sup>As George Eldon Ladd, The Gospel of the Kingdom<\/em> (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1959), p. 115, says of the disciples, \u201c … the Kingdom of God was at work among men not only in the person of our Lord but also through His disciples as they brought the word and the signs of the Kingdom to the cities of Galilee.\u201d<\/p>\n

7 <\/sup>It is also clear, of course, that part of Christ\u2019s work was to send the Spirit to all believers, thus enabling them to live such a \u201cprophetic\u201d lifestyle far beyond what Old Testament believers normally could do (cf. Jn. 7:37-39, 14:16-17).<\/p>\n

8 <\/sup>See Gordon D. Fee, The Disease of the Health and Wealth Gospels<\/em> (Beverly: Frontline, 1985).<\/p>\n

9 <\/sup>In Eph. 5:18 Paul commands us to \u201cpray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests\u201d (cf. I Thes. 5:17; Col. 4:2). Yet, Paul was ill in Galatia for a long enough period that it \u201cwas a trial\u201d to the Galatians (Gal. 4:14); Epaphroditus did not experience immediate healing from illness and almost died according to Phil. 2:27; Timothy had chronic illnesses involving his stomach which were not completely healed according to I Tim. 5:23; and Paul had to leave Trophimus sick in Miletus, apparently seeing no healing in response to prayer (II Tim. 4:20).<\/p>\n

10 <\/sup>On experiencing healing of illness as a \u201cgift of grace\u201d (I Cor. 12:9, 28, 29) experienced only in part in the Early Church according to the New Testament, see A. Oepke, \u201ciaomai<\/em>,\u201d TDNT<\/em>, vol. 3, p. 214; on experiencing spiritual gifts in this age only \u201cin part (ek merous<\/em> I Cor. 13:9),\u201d see Gordon Fee, The First Epistle to the Corinthians <\/em>(NICNT<\/em>, ed., F. F. Bruce; Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1987), p. 644 and n. 21; Schneider, TDNT<\/em>, vol. 4, p. 596.<\/p>\n

11 <\/sup>Fee, The Disease of the Health and Wealth Gospels<\/em>, p. 19. Fee goes on to say, \u201cWhile there are scores of texts that explicitly tell us that our sin has been overcome through Christ\u2019s death and resurrection, there is no<\/em> text that explicitly says the same thing about healing, not even Isaiah 53 and its New Testament citations.\u201d<\/p>\n

12 <\/sup>Naaman may well have appreciated that (in the words of one British New Testament scholar) \u201cmiracles of healing are \u2026 symbolic demonstrations of God\u2019s forgiveness in action.\u201d Cf. Alan Richardson, The Miracle-Stories of the Gospels<\/em> (London: SCM Press, 1942), pp. 61ff.<\/p>\n

13 <\/sup>The use of plero\u014d<\/em> \u201cbring (the Gospel) to full expression\u201d in Rom. 15:19 cannot mean that Paul finished<\/em> preaching the Gospel, because he was still planning to visit Rome and preach the Gospel further in Spain (Rom. 1:13, 15; 15:23f.). Nor can it mean that he said<\/em> everything<\/em> there was to say about the Gospel (J. Murray, The Epistle to the Romans<\/em> [NICNT; Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1968], p. 214). But, as G. Friedrich points out, it means that Paul proclaimed the Gospel in the way he described in 15:18-19, \u201cin word and deed, by the power of signs and wonders, by the power of the Spirit\u201d: \u201cAgain, Rom. 15:19 … does not mean that Paul has concluded his missionary work, but that the Gospel is fulfilled when it has taken full effect. In the preaching of Paul Christ has shown Himself effective in word and sign and miracle (v. 18). Hence the Gospel has been brought to fulfilment from Jerusalem to Illyricum and Christ is named in the communities (v. 20)\u201d (Friedrich, TDNT<\/em>, vol. 2, p. 732).<\/p>\n

14 <\/sup>God shows by signs and wonders in both Testaments that he has invaded our space with his kingdom. As Ladd, The Gospel of the Kingdom<\/em>, pp.107, 115, has noted, \u201cWhen Israel rejected the Kingdom, the blessings which should have been theirs were given to those who would accept them … The Kingdom of God, as the redemptive activity and rule of God in Christ, created the Church and works through the Church in the world. As the disciples of the Lord went throughout the villages of Palestine, they proclaimed that in their mission, the Kingdom of God had come near to these villages (Luke 10:9). They performed the signs of the Kingdom, healing the sick and casting out demons, thus delivering men from the satanic power (vv. 9, 17) … In the same way, the Kingdom of God, the redemptive activity and power of God, is working in the world today through the Church of Jesus Christ.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the NIV\u00ae.
\n\"\"<\/p>\n

This chapter is from Gary S. Greig and Kevin N. Springer, eds., The Kingdom and the Power: Are Healing and the Spiritual Gifts Used by Jesus and the Early Church Meant for the Church Today? A Biblical Look at How to Bring the Gospel to the World with Power<\/em> (Ventura, CA: Regal Books, 1993). Used with permission.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

  Old Testament Foundations: Signs, Wonders and the People, by Jeffrey J. Niehaus When the Son of God came to earth he brought what the Bible metaphorically calls the \u201cwater\u201d of the Holy Spirit, who had been poured out on him without measure. The Son\u2019s first advent was foretold by the prophet Isaiah, who foresaw…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3034,"featured_media":20420,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_kad_post_transparent":"","_kad_post_title":"","_kad_post_layout":"","_kad_post_sidebar_id":"","_kad_post_content_style":"","_kad_post_vertical_padding":"","_kad_post_feature":"","_kad_post_feature_position":"","_kad_post_header":false,"_kad_post_footer":false,"_kad_post_classname":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[12,5342],"tags":[3394,4818,2784,2811,4973,3024,5369],"ppma_author":[4593],"class_list":["post-20419","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-biblical-studies","category-summer-2006","tag-cross","tag-foundations","tag-people","tag-power","tag-signs","tag-testament","tag-wonders","author-jeffreyjniehaus"],"authors":[{"term_id":4593,"user_id":3034,"is_guest":0,"slug":"jeffreyjniehaus","display_name":"Jeffrey Niehaus","avatar_url":{"url":"https:\/\/km7.a6a.mytemp.website\/journal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/JeffreyNiehaus-GordonConwell-214x214-150x150.jpg","url2x":"https:\/\/km7.a6a.mytemp.website\/journal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/JeffreyNiehaus-GordonConwell-214x214-150x150.jpg"},"0":null,"1":"","2":"","3":"","4":"","5":"","6":"","7":"","8":""}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/km7.a6a.mytemp.website\/journal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20419","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/km7.a6a.mytemp.website\/journal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/km7.a6a.mytemp.website\/journal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/km7.a6a.mytemp.website\/journal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3034"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/km7.a6a.mytemp.website\/journal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=20419"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/km7.a6a.mytemp.website\/journal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20419\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/km7.a6a.mytemp.website\/journal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/20420"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/km7.a6a.mytemp.website\/journal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=20419"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/km7.a6a.mytemp.website\/journal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=20419"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/km7.a6a.mytemp.website\/journal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=20419"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/km7.a6a.mytemp.website\/journal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/ppma_author?post=20419"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}