When talking about sickness and healing we need to get one thing straight; God doesn’t send sickness to teach us a lesson, it is the devil that comes to “steal and kill and destroy” but Jesus came “that we may have life and have it abundantly” (John 10:10; RSV). Sickness is in the world as a result of sin and what is the solution for sin? It is redemption. In Deuteronomy 28 every kind of sickness and disease is listed and called a curse but Galatians 3:13 says we have been redeemed from the curse. How? When Jesus took the 39 stripes on His back and shed His blood on the cross, He provided not only forgiveness of our sin but also our healing, both spiritual and physical (Isa 53:4,5; 1 Peter 2:24). It was a once and for all time sacrifice that did not need repeating (Heb 7:27; 9:26).

A large part of the ministry of Jesus was directed towards healing (Luke 4:18-19) and Jesus healed them all (Matt 4:24; Matt 9:35; Acts 10:38). Not only did Jesus have a healing ministry but He also gave us authority to heal too (Mark 16:18). Healing wasn’t just for the time of Jesus but it is for today also because Jesus is “the same yesterday, today and forever” (Heb 13:8).

If you have sickness in your body, know that it is God’s will to heal you (Mark 1:40-42). Collect all the healing scriptures you can from the whole of the Bible and speak them over your body and take them like medicine (Prov 4:22), pray the prayer of faith (James 5:15), rebuke the symptoms and keep believing until you see the manifestation. “Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them” (Mark 11:24; NKJV).

Before we became Christian’s sin in our lives caused us to die spiritually (Rom 6:23; Eph 2:1) and separated us from God (1 John 1:6-7; 2 Cor 14-15). Jesus told a Pharisee called Nicodemus that he needed to be born again spiritually (saved) to have his fellowship with God restored (John 3:1-7). How do you become born again or saved? “That if you will confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved” (Rom 10:9; WEB). Well, that’s quite straight forward.

To make Jesus Lord in our lives is to make Him our “master” (MSG) or allow Him control of our lives. Jesus died on the cross and paid the price for our sins so we could be forgiven (Eph 1:7) and saved. The Greek word translated believe in Romans 10:9 above is derived from the Greek word for faith and also means to be fully convinced of Jesus, to adhere to or stick to Him, rely on and trust in Him. This trust is to the extent of our submitting to Christ in obedience to His Lordship in our lives. In many verses in the Bible, it simply says to believe in Jesus and you will be saved (e.g. Acts 16:31). In all cases the Greek word used for believe is the same as described above. We can safely conclude that to be saved we must submit our lives to Jesus in a simple sold-out faith and desire for Him to come into our lives and have His way. The exact words we use are not so critical, God knows our hearts.

It seems that many people these days have low self-esteem and self-worth and are lacking self confidence However, according to the Bible that should not be the case. Genesis 1:27 tells us that, “God created man in His own image, in the image and likeness of God He created them “(AMPC). We are made in God’s image and God doesn’t make junk! In Psalm 139:15 we learn that we are, “fearfully and wonderfully made” (ESV). Because God created us, we are precious to Him (Isa 43:4) and Isa 49:16 says, “Behold, I have indelibly imprinted (tattooed a picture of) you on the palm of each of My hands “(AMPC). In the New Testament we are told that, “we are His masterpiece” (Eph 2:19; NLT). Wow! God made us all special! We don’t need to compare ourselves to others, we are all different and unique.

Not only did God create us but He also chose us as we read in Ephesians 1:4. In addition we see that in Jeremiah 29:11 God said, “I know the thoughts and plans I have for you, says the Lord, thoughts and plans for welfare and peace and not for evil, to give you hope in your final outcome” (AMPC). God has good thoughts towards us and wants good things for us.

Because God loves us so much, He sent His son to die for us so that we could live in constant fellowship with Him. That is how important you are to God! That being the case never underestimate yourself, you are valuable and precious to God, “the apple of His eye” (Zech 2:8).

Have you ever stopped to think what people should see when they look at us Christians? Colossians 3:12-17 is a good place to find the answer; we encourage you to study these few verses. Let’s summarize what we can see. We are to be holy, that is to be set apart for God, blameless and pure. Our lives should show tender, heartfelt mercy and compassion for others, just as God does for us. Kindness or a desire to do good to others, should characterize Christians, even if people try our patience.

We are to walk in humility, that is to be humble minded, realizing we are nothing without God and that all we are is because of Him. Meekness is listed next in our verses. A meek person has their strength and emotions under control, they are mild and gentle but most importantly, submitted to God’s teaching. We are also called to be longsuffering and patient, bearing with one another. A paramount character trait of Christians is forgiveness, we are also to walk in God’s unconditional love and His peace. God’s peace is best described as perfect well-being. We must have thankful hearts and God’s word should be a major focus in our lives, something that dominates our conversation and interactions. Our lives, all that we do and say, should reflect God’s grace. God’s grace is His unmerited favour and goodwill.

Finally, we are to: “do all in the name of the Lord Jesus” (Col 3:17; NKJV). Wow! That is a tall order you may say, but God is patient and we “can do all things through Christ who strengthens” us (Phil 4:13; NKJV). Let’s all commit to be open to fulfill Colossians 3:12-17. What a church we will be.

Self-control is the last in the fruit of the Spirit listed in Gal 5:23 and it’s one that we don’t hear too much about! One of the synonyms for self-control is self-discipline; it’s not a word that gives people warm fuzzies but it is one that is important.

When our spirits were recreated at the new birth our bodies and minds were not and so our bodies and minds therefore need self-control. As Paul said, “I discipline my body like an athlete, training it to do what it should” (1 Cor 9:27; NLT). Paul also told us that our bodies are “the temple of the Holy Spirit” (1 Cor 6:19; NKJV), and we were “bought with a price” (1 Cor 6:20; NKJV). For that reason, it is of utmost importance that we discipline them. We need self-control in every area of our lives: Spiritually, to establish and maintain prayer and Bible reading times. Physically, in our eating habits (1 Cor 10:31), exercise (Prov 31:17), our speech (Ps 141:3), and our tempers (Eph 4:26) to name a few areas. Mentally, in controlling our thoughts and emotions (2 Cor 10:5). We also need self-control with regard to spending, what we watch and listen to and much more.

A lack of self-control in any of these areas begins with thoughts in the mind, so it is important to find Bible verses to renew our minds (Rom 12:2) and replace these thoughts. We also need to remind ourselves that we are victorious because of Jesus (Rom 8:37) and we can do all things with His help (Phil 4:13). Don’t forget that the development of the fruit of the Spirit in our lives is a work of the Holy Spirit (Gal 5:22) so the more we walk sensitive to the Spirit (Gal 5:16) the easier it will be to develop self-control.