In one of my first sermons, in which I was teaching the people how to receive healing by faith in Jesus Christ, I told them, “Even if you do not need healing now, you still need to pay attention. Even if you think that medical science is more advanced than it has ever been, new diseases are coming. New diseases are coming that medical science will not be able to cure. And suppose medical science will discover the cure to a new disease, how do you know that it will find it in time to save you? Look! By the time it reaches everyone, if it ever reaches everyone, another new disease is born.” This is not some prophetic statement, because I assume that even unbelievers realize this. Since then I have labored to advocate Christ’s message of healing, which is to say, I have preached the gospel. The most fanatical opposition has come from those who claim to be followers of Jesus Christ, but in reality they are those who have hijacked the community of Christ to establish their own religious customs and empires. It was also like this in the time of Christ. Those who claimed to follow Moses would speak against his ministry of healing, calling the Lord a false teacher, a deceiver, a blasphemer, and one possessed by demons. Jesus said that if they truly believed Moses, then they would have believed him, because Moses prophesied about him. If the people are true followers of Jesus, they would believe me, because I merely repeat what he said.

And Jesus said, “A tree is known by its fruit. You brood of vipers! How can you speak what is good when you are evil? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.” In one place where he said this, he was answering those who attacked his ministry of healing. He said that those who blaspheme the Son could be forgiven, but those who blaspheme the Spirit could never be forgiven. What these people said against the ministry of healing revealed what kind of people they were. They were wicked people who likely blasphemed the Spirit, and would never be forgiven. They would burn in hell forever. They claimed to be followers of Moses, but they were nothing of the kind. They claimed to be children of Abraham, but as Jesus observed, Abraham would never have wanted to kill the Son of God. They were children of the devil. Now those who oppose the ministry of healing can claim all kinds of wonderful things about themselves, but their words betray them. Jesus would have never opposed what I teach, or what I do, when I am merely repeating what he said, and doing what he commanded. The apostles would have never opposed me, for they would not have dared to contradict Jesus. They can claim to be children of God. They can claim to be followers of Jesus. They can claim to be spiritual descendants of the apostles. But a tree is known by its fruit. How can they speak good things when they are evil? They speak evil on this same topic of Christ’s ministry of healing. Now if Jesus said that the people at his time blasphemed the Spirit, and that the words revealed an abundance of evil in their hearts, who am I to propose a different diagnosis, when people in my time do the same thing? A tree is known by its fruit. They are the children of the ones who would speak like they do.

Christians should have been the ones leading the charge to save lives in the name of Jesus, and do it with a divine power that others cannot replicate unless they join us in the faith. After more than 1500 years of apostasy in this most basic of the gospel ministries, and after reformations upon reformations, revivals upon revivals, when we have had multiple opportunities to examine our doctrines and practice over and over again, most Christians still have not awaken to righteousness. Now unbelievers are leading the charge to save lives. They do not give up even though their measly science fails again and again. They do not give up even though research proves to be expensive, and the process arduous. They keep marching forward even though some of their comrades perish in the way. And with all their fumbling efforts and blasphemous theories, they have saved countless “Christian” lives. As these so-called Christians boast about how “the will of God” has made them sick, and how all the promises of miracle healing in their infallible Scripture have lost all relevance, the wicked evolutionists shake their heads and save their lives anyway. This is not common grace, but common wrath. Both groups despise the precious promises of God, secured by the blood of Jesus for all those who would have faith in him. Neither camp can escape the outpouring of divine judgment.

People call themselves Christians but mock the doctrine of healing. Sarcasm and malice drip from their lips. The faithful ones have been carrying out this ministry, speaking, and writing, and praying overtime in an uphill battle to make up for the willful neglect of their so-called brothers. When miracles happen, these people pay no attention. But when they are itching for a debate, they whine, “If what you say is true, show us! Show us!” They have the same Bible. They should have been doing the same thing, and then together we could show the world! But they would not. They are like the heathens who struck Christ in the face and sneered, “Prophesy! Who hit you?” And they are like those who say, “Physician, heal yourself! Do here in London what we heard you did in Boston!” It is uncanny how much they are similar to those who mocked and murdered Jesus Christ.

Jesus was indeed a prophet, but he was not a clown show. He did not perform at the demand of unbelievers, but at the demand of believers, at the demand of faith. When his miracles happened in front of skeptics, they called him a deceiver, or perhaps a magician, and then they associated his work with demons and blasphemed the Holy Spirit, damning themselves forever. Likewise, we can indeed heal the sick and cast out demons, not because we are special in ourselves, but because Jesus said that anyone who has faith can do these things. Think about it, if our “Christian” critics can do these things, would they not happily join with us? You see, they cannot do these things. They know within themselves that they cannot do these things. They cannot do these things not because Jesus did not promise them, but because they have no faith. But it is easier for them to say that Jesus never promised them than to admit that they have no faith, or perhaps even that they have never believed in Jesus. If they are true followers of Christ, they would be helping us, not fighting us. They would applaud us for healing the sick and for teaching the doctrine. And they would do these things with us. The apprentice is not greater than the master, but it is enough for the apprentice to be like the master. We can indeed do in London what they heard that we did in Boston, but when they witness signs and wonders, they will respond in the same way that their spiritual forefathers did. They will call the followers of Christ deceivers and magicians. And they will blaspheme the Holy Spirit.