Sickness and Faith

Get Ready to Fight

2012-03-05T09:39:00.000-05:00

But very truly I tell you, it is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Advocate will not come to you. John 16:7

Jesus had to go away to his Father in heaven, away from his disciples who had trustingly left everything to follow him. He had to go away, otherwise he could not send them their true helper, the Holy Spirit. If we think about this a bit, we realize that it was more important for the disciples to receive the “Advocate” than to further their personal relationship with Jesus. In order to become what God had in mind, they had to do without their Lord.
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Protesters against Death

2012-02-27T09:22:00.000-05:00

When you were slaves to sin, you were free from the control of righteousness. What benefit did you reap at that time from the things you are now ashamed of? Those things result in death!...For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 6:20–21, 23

When it comes to death, we are not dealing with just a sick organism. Human skills can help here or there, and it is our task to do the best we can, as a gardener does his utmost to ensure that his plants are not destroyed. But people who think no further than this do not understand sickness or death. Sickness is part of the work of death, and death is ultimately a consequence of sin.
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Like a Child

2012-02-20T08:54:00.000-05:00

Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened. Which of you, if your son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him. Matthew 7:7–11

Some people, including Christians, believe that we have no need for miracles. But then we might as well forgo the kingdom of God altogether. If God can no longer prevail on this earth, if God no longer has any power in our daily lives, if the only thing that counts is our own knowledge and effort, then we may as well forget about the kingdom of God.
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He Forgives

2012-02-13T09:39:00.000-05:00

Jesus stepped into a boat, crossed over and came to his own town. Some men brought to him a paralyzed man, lying on a mat. When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the man, “Take heart, son; your sins are forgiven.”…So he said to the paralyzed man, “Get up, take your mat and go home.” Then the man got up and went home. When the crowd saw this, they were filled with awe; and they praised God, who had given such authority to man. Matthew 9:1–8

The fact that Jesus healed the paralyzed man with a mere word should convince us that he also has the authority to forgive sins. He who is able to heal, forgives. This is why Jesus’ miracles are both unique and significant.
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The Lord Is Good

2012-02-06T09:04:00.000-05:00

Give thanks to the Lord Almighty, for the Lord is good; his love endures forever. Jeremiah 33:11

It would be very small-minded of us to think that God stood alone and all by himself, aloof from the billions upon billions of human souls here on earth. He is the Lord Almighty, the Lord of hosts. He commands great regiments and sends forth his servants to help us. He can call one to himself and say, “You go to such and such a person,” and to another, “You go to that one,” and so forth. He has servants for each of us – however many he needs, there are more than sufficient. He has servants enough so he can arrange everything to gain the great victory.
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Believe in Miracles

2012-01-30T10:47:00.000-05:00

While the man held on to Peter and John, all the people were astonished and came running to them in the place called Solomon’s Colonnade. When Peter saw this, he said to them: “Fellow Israelites, why does this surprise you? Why do you stare at us as if by our own power or godliness we had made this man walk? The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the God of our fathers, has glorified his servant Jesus.” Acts 3:11–13

Too few people grasp how God can work and how he can set things in order here on earth. We see things only from a natural viewpoint. Our educated outlook prevents us from seeing miracles.
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God of the Impossible

2012-01-23T09:41:00.000-05:00

Is anything too hard for the Lord? Genesis 18:14

Abraham was to have a son, though both he and his wife Sarah were well on in years. But the Lord assured him: “Is anything too hard for the Lord?” A similar thing happened to Mary, two thousand years later. She, too, could not quite believe that she was to receive a son. Yet the angel told her, “For nothing is impossible with God” (Luke 1:37).

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Signs and Wonders

2012-01-16T09:34:00.001-05:00

Jesus performed many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name. John 20: 30–31

When the Father in heaven does something, we should be all eyes and ears. Yet today, whenever a miracle takes place, we wrap it up and put it in our pocket, we keep it to ourselves. For this reason there is no blessing on it, and those around us don’t want to hear anything about it.
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God Delivers

2012-01-09T08:46:00.002-05:00

For you, Lord, have delivered me from death, my eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling. Psalm 116:8

David had been in deadly peril, almost doomed to death. And yet God delivered him. So he praises the Lord for keeping him from stumbling.
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Be Still

2012-01-02T11:03:00.002-05:00

In repentance and rest is your salvation, in quietness and trust is your strength. Isaiah 30:15

The prophet Isaiah spoke at a time when God’s people were in great danger from invading enemies. One can imagine the tremendous unrest, turmoil, and confusion that came when they were prey to the murderous, vindictive, blood-thirsty, and predatory enemy.
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Our Miraculous Savior

2011-12-26T09:50:00.004-05:00

Then Jesus touched their eyes and said, “According to your faith let it be done to you”; and their sight was restored. Jesus warned them sternly, “See that no one knows about this.” But they went out and spread the news about him all over that region. Matthew 9:29–31

Jesus did not like it when people made a big to-do about his miracles. He always had something more in mind than the miracle itself. When Jesus performed a miracle, what mattered most to him was that it would arouse a deep, godly feeling. His acts of mercy were signs of something greater – something beyond the temporal. He touched the inner person.
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Seek First the Kingdom

2011-12-19T09:00:00.000-05:00

Seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Matthew 6:33

Illness has often led me to seek greater quietness, to seek anew the way that God wants to lead me. People assume that after I get well, I will take up my activities again in the old way. But times and callings change, and we do not please God by clinging to the old customary ways. Instead, we must pay heed to the signs that show us new ways.
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In All Things

2011-12-12T08:51:00.000-05:00

And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. Romans 8:28

When I worked as a teacher in the Mission House in Basel, I came down with a high fever, and the doctor diagnosed smallpox. The following night, although calm and composed, I wrestled with the Lord, earnestly looking upward. At one point after midnight, it seemed to me that a hand stroked me from head to foot, and I suddenly felt well and free. Yet, I had been so weakened that I had to stay in bed another week.
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Conversion

2011-12-05T08:19:00.000-05:00

Therefore, since Christ suffered in his body, arm yourselves also with the same attitude, because whoever suffers in the body is done with sin. As a result, they do not live the rest of their earthly lives for evil human desires, but rather for the will of God. 1 Peter 4:1–2

If we desire happiness and health but not conversion, we are on the wrong track. The gift of healing will make no progress without repentance. Never will a divine gift of healing make itself felt unless it is preceded by repentance, by a cry of, “Lord, take away the curse under which we moan!” The Savior is not interested in playing a game of making us ill and then making us well again. If you are laid low, repent – that is what you must seek.
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When God Humbles Us

2011-11-28T08:58:00.000-05:00

I thank you that you humble and help me. Psalm 118:21, (free translation from the German).

God cannot help anybody unless he first humbles him. Therefore David says, “I thank you that you humble and help me.” How can we expect any help from God, any special attention, any kind of healing, if our hearts are proud, if we have not allowed him to take us under his wings as poor sinners – knowing ourselves to be insignificant and needy?
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Be Cleansed, Be Healed

2011-11-21T08:09:00.000-05:00

Now on his way to Jerusalem, Jesus traveled along the border between Samaria and Galilee. As he was going into a village, ten men who had leprosy met him. They stood at a distance and called out in a loud voice, “Jesus, Master, have pity on us!”

When he saw them, he said, “Go, show yourselves to the priests.” And as they went, they were cleansed. One of them, when he saw he was healed, came back, praising God in a loud voice. He threw himself at Jesus’ feet and thanked him – and he was a Samaritan.
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What Truly Counts

2011-11-14T09:06:00.003-05:00

Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. 2 Corinthians 4:16

We should rejoice whenever someone gets well, especially after we have prayed for him. But our joy should not be because the person got well. There are many who must suffer sickness until the end of their lives, so why not this one? Rather, we should rejoice because we see that the Savior has done something for a particular person, that this person’s heart has changed and is awakened with new longing.
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Our Deepest Need

2011-11-07T08:54:00.000-05:00

Later Jesus found [the man he had healed] at the temple and said to him, “See, you are well again. Stop sinning or something worse may happen to you.” John 5:14

Every person who suffers longs to be helped, but how many of us long for a new life? Our human needs must not blind us to the Savior; they must not rob us of seeing the great, new reality that God gives in Christ.
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True Healing

2011-10-31T09:02:00.002-04:00

In your majesty ride forth victoriously in the cause of truth, humility and justice; let your right hand achieve awesome deeds. Psalm 45:4

When God uses his straight-edge of truth and justice the earth crackles with miracles. God’s miracles are always related to truth and justice. That is why his deeds are never strange happenings that puzzle us and make us wonder what they actually mean. There is always light, always meaning in God’s miracles; they always possess moral value. Instead of begging for miracles, therefore, we should pray: “Dear God, please see to it that only truth and justice rule in our house, yes, and in our hearts – do not spare us but go right ahead.” Then there will be no lack of miracles. What needs doing will be done.
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The Day Is Almost Here!

2011-10-24T08:54:00.000-04:00

The night is nearly over; the day is almost here. So let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light. Romans 13:12

The night is nearly over; the day is almost here. And yet, it does not look as if day is near. Our feet still walk in sin, our hands do not manage to do anything good. Around us there are thousands and thousands of people who are submerged in the mire of corruption. They die in masses. There appears to be no day on the earth. But our faith demands it, our love to God, our hope for God demands it, that we say: Nevertheless the night is nearly over; the day is almost here. This is what happened at the hour when Jesus was born. Day came.
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Take Heart

2011-10-17T10:05:00.000-04:00

In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world. John 16:33

Our strongest, most natural desire is to get free of suffering and sickness as quickly as possible. We find ourselves constantly praying, “Take this affliction away. Give us good days, so that all may be well with us again!” But God cannot always give us good days. In this world we will have trouble, and more importantly, Jesus must have people who help him carry the misery of the world, who do not shrink from distress and suffering.
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Bearing Fruit

2011-10-10T09:07:00.000-04:00

If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples. John 15:7–8

God knows why he does not always do what we ask for. But there are a thousand wishes for which we simply have no reason to think that they should come true. Paul wanted to get free of the angel of Satan, but the Lord said to him, “My grace is sufficient for you” (2 Cor. 12:7–9). We have to see ourselves as poor souls.
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Stand Firm

2011-10-03T08:37:00.000-04:00

Stand firm, and you will win life. Luke 21:19

When everything is upside down, when darkness seems to be gaining the upper hand, and when we see no way out, remember: patience, patience, patience. Hope in the Lord, who can change everything, who can lead everything aright, and who will be victorious in the end.
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The Lord Be Praised

2011-09-26T08:17:00.000-04:00

The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; may the name of the Lord be praised. Job 1:21

Everything Job owned was taken away from him, even his sons and daughters. And yet he was able to exclaim, “May the name of the Lord be praised!” It is hard to say whether Job fully understood what he was saying, but this word of praise shows how entirely submitted he was to God. In the end, this was enough for God. Satan was defeated at the very outset.
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Guard My Life

2011-09-19T08:40:00.000-04:00

Guard my life, for I am faithful to you; save your servant who trusts in you. You are my God. Psalm 86:2

David cries out to God in great need. Time and again we find ourselves crying out to God. Matters can get so hopelessly entangled that we are tempted to give up. How easy it is for us to think that God does not know how to help. When this happens, everything is lost, and we do not want to pray anymore. That’s when we give in to despair. But everything depends on your believing and trusting that God can do what seems to be impossible.
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The Lord’s Discipline

2011-09-12T08:16:00.000-04:00

Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. Revelation 3:19

The Lord disciplines those whom he loves. Therefore, when we have to suffer it is a mistake to think that God no longer loves us. Such thinking betrays the whims of our hearts and our self-love. What if a child being punished says to its mother, “I see now that you hate me and can’t put up with me!” How foolish!

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Look to Jesus

2011-09-05T08:34:00.000-04:00

Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross...Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart. Hebrews 12:2–3

You may find yourself terribly ill and at the same time battling difficult emotions or nervous conditions. You get confused easily and are overcome with great anguish and fear, with the result that your whole body grows weak and heavy. The more you strive for clarity, the more confused you seem to become. Everything seems to be slipping away from you, including feeling the Lord’s presence.
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The Faith That Heals

2011-08-29T08:36:00.002-04:00

A large crowd followed and pressed around him. And a woman was there who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years. She had suffered a great deal under the care of many doctors and had spent all she had, yet instead of getting better she grew worse. When she heard about Jesus, she came up behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak, because she thought, “If I just touch his clothes, I will be healed.” Immediately her bleeding stopped and she felt in her body that she was freed from her suffering.
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Increase Our Faith

2011-08-22T09:06:00.002-04:00

The apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith!” Luke 17:5

When our faith is insufficient, we must ask for what we lack. We must, like the father of the boy who was possessed, cry out, “I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!” (Mark 9:24). And yet, the request for more faith is not enough. Whoever wishes to pray for more faith must let his soul be made ready for it. He must turn aside from anything that interferes with the power of faith. He must compose himself, gather his thoughts, his spirit, and all his faculties. He must also be united in spirit with his own people and must not be inwardly ravaged and torn. Then the prayer that faith may come will be effective. Faith will be given from above and will find a doorway by which it can enter the heart.
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In All Things Pray

2011-08-15T09:38:00.001-04:00

Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. 1 Thessalonians 5:16–18

Paul does not consider here what we are to pray for; rather, we are commanded simply to pray, and to do so in all circumstances. Why then do we think so long and hard before we approach the Father? Why do we first try everything else that people suggest and go to all kinds of trouble before turning to God in prayer?
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Sing Praises

2011-08-08T09:03:00.002-04:00

Praise the Lord! How good it is to sing praises to our God, how pleasant and fitting to praise him! Psalm 147:1

To praise the Lord is good. Praise is pleasant and fitting, far better than complaining and losing heart. Listen well. It is good to sing praises. Praise is truly fitting, especially from people who do not have good fortune and who have much reason to be sad and distressed. How heart-moving it is to hear their praises. What about the rest of us?
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Wait for the Lord

2011-08-01T08:50:00.001-04:00

I remain confident of this: I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord. Psalm 27:13–14

I know of no passage in Scripture that obliges us to do everything in our power to prolong life. Even if there were such a passage, it would give us too much power vis-à-vis God, who after all is the only master over life and death. It would be as if we should somehow force life by our own power. What Scripture does tell us is to be patient and wait for the help of the Lord.
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Even in Hell

2011-07-25T09:00:00.001-04:00

For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God. He was put to death in the body but made alive in the Spirit. After being made alive, he went and made proclamation to the imprisoned spirits…For this is the reason the gospel was preached even to those who are now dead, so that they might be judged according to human standards in regard to the body, but live according to God in regard to the spirit. 1 Peter 3:18–19; 4:6

After his death Jesus descended into hell, for even in hell he must have people who want to hear him. In every sickness, in every kind of darkness he must also have people who want to hear him. So there is nothing that cannot be healed, nothing that cannot be freed, no reason for us to give up hope.

If you let the Savior come into your situation no matter how difficult and troubling it is, then redemption will become reality in you and through you. It is much more important to pray, “Lord, take me into your hands, let me be under your rulership,” than to live free of suffering. Whoever has this attitude can play a real part in God’s kingdom.

Your suffering is not in vain if you have only God’s kingdom in mind and are willing to share in Jesus’ burden. Open the way, therefore, for him to enter into your very being, into your suffering, and serve him there. You will have to be completely involved in the fight, but then the Savior will come. You will have to let go of all half measures and root out whatever is your pseudo-God, your pseudo-help, your pseudo-hope, or your pseudo-joy. One hope, one joy, one faith, one love – that is our Father in heaven, with whom we want to be.

Don’t assume you can take a little twig of faith, another of despair, a twig of joy and a little twig of sadness – and put them all together in a fine bouquet. There is nothing wholehearted about that. What God wants is a wholehearted “Hallelujah!” We must throw ourselves in, body and soul, and let our suffering be to the honor and glory of God.

Remember, you are a child of God. Remain true to who you are and what he has given you. If you hold on to this hope, then in the midst of the greatest misfortune and darkness, even in death, you will be given strength, comfort, and the final victory.

Christoph Friedrich Blumhardt

Take Up Your Cross

2011-07-18T08:45:00.000-04:00

Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me.
Luke 9:23

Jesus came to destroy all the works of the devil, and this is why we are called to fight against every kind of darkness, including sickness. But what does this fight entail? It does not mean we automatically pray for God to help our every need and sickness. Rather we need to direct ourselves to Christ’s death first and recognize our own guilt for the sin and suffering in the world, including the sickness in our own bodies.

Our priority should be that God comes into his own right in our lives. In other words, we must do everything we can to fight against anything that seeks to exploit the grace and mercy of God, anything that turns Christ, our Savior, into our little servant. God is not duty bound toward us. It is we who must deny ourselves and take up our cross. It is God’s glory we must serve, and we must be prepared to let everything go and become poor, so that Christ alone is exalted.

Let us leave behind any begging before God and instead seek how to do justice to his cause. Put your own needs aside and do honest works of repentance, and do so joyfully, without grumbling and lamenting. Let yourself be judged, turn your inner life around, and stop looking at yourself and your own need. Instead, sacrifice yourself for the kingdom of God. Become zealous for him, and God will not let your life be put to shame. You will find that your suffering and distress will disappear by themselves.

Christoph Friedrich Blumhardt

Free Your Heart

2011-07-11T07:58:00.000-04:00

Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Colossians 3:1

When overwhelmed by trouble, learn to free your heart. Even if you are suffering from the most dreadful illness, when you can hardly stand it anymore, even if you spend the whole day praying and sighing, free your heart. Chase your illness out of your heart. Set your heart on things above and see to it that God reigns in your heart. You can carry your sickness in a bundle on your back if you like, but it does not belong in your heart. Free your heart, I say. Cast out your misery from your heart, and bear your cross.

Let us not be impressed by sickness. For what is sickness anyway? If we live in an atmosphere of life, sickness is dispelled like a mist. We experience this, time and again, and so do doctors. Our mortal mists are not as dense as they seem at first sight. They dissolve. At some point they are there, then they disappear, and no one can tell where they came from or where they have gone.

So free your heart. Let your head be concerned with trifles, if you like, but God the Savior must be in your heart. Don’t let yourself be so hounded by trivialities that you are of no use anymore. Scores of people are paralyzed because they allow so many little things, especially their aches and pains, to enter their hearts.

Keep yourself free so that even in the deepest suffering, in the most unhappy of circumstances, in short, in all situations, you can joyfully serve Christ. Let nothing cloud your heart, least of all yourself – thinking and worrying about yourself. Instead, sacrifice yourself anew to God with prayer and thanksgiving. In this way you will give God the glory on earth, and he will lift you above all that presses down upon you.

Christoph Friedrich Blumhardt

Before You Ask

2011-07-05T09:04:00.000-04:00

And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him. Matthew 6:7–8

Many people think their prayers won’t work if they don’t utter them clearly enough, or fail to explain to God exactly what they mean, or don’t speak loudly enough to him with sufficient earnestness. But when this happens, prayer becomes so exaggerated that our Savior even forbids it.

Obviously Jesus does not want to discourage us from praying. His point is that when we pray we must have a sense of proportion. Once we have prayed, we must be quiet. We need to be like the farmer who has sown his seed. Help will come only when you are quiet in faith. Also in your sickness or with other needs, learn to be still and look to the kingdom of God.

We can share our needs with the Father in a few words, without making a fuss, and rest assured that God already knows what we need and what he will do to help us. We don’t have to explain our requests in great detail to God, or try and make quite sure that he knows our needs. God knows about even the smallest matters and takes them straight into his heart. We can turn to him by glancing heavenward, with no words at all. We can do this even when we pray about something concrete and tangible, or about something that specifically troubles us. We may realize that what we thought we needed is actually not necessary and that we can find a way right in the midst of how things are now.

This doesn’t mean that we just let things happen – as if everything will come of its own accord without our longing for it. Nor should we just cast a brief and hurried request at God’s feet. When this happens, we too easily lose sight of God, assume that everything comes to us without his help, and we forget to thank him. Then we cease to have a believing heart and are consequently not true children of God.

Jesus said, “Before you ask him.” Therefore we do need to make our requests known to him, otherwise many things will not be given that could have been given. It never displeases God when we come to him with our heartfelt requests. A real child asks for everything, knowing God has an ear for him. We should bring all our burdens and needs to him, for at the very least this helps to make us ever more aware that in all things God is the giver.

God always has our interests in mind. He carries our various needs with fatherly concern, eagerly waiting for us to come to him. He has not forgotten us. And when we feel tempted to think so, then all the more we should remember that he knows it all and cares for us. In fact, he knows much more about us and our needs than we do. Simple, childlike prayer is enough to move his heart, give you something out of the fullness of his compassion, and save you from all sorts of fear and trouble.

Johann Christoph Blumhardt

Cast Your Cares on the Lord

2011-06-27T08:35:00.000-04:00

Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous be shaken.
Psalm 55:22

We who are ridden with care, fearful and troubled, are to “cast our cares on the Lord.” In other words, we are to fling them away, leave them to him, and let the Lord take care of them.

I realize that this isn’t always easy to do – to leave everything to the Lord. We try and do this, but still remain burdened. Our cares still weigh us down. Somehow, we do not believe and trust enough, and do not know how to unburden ourselves. We pray but then act as though we had not prayed. We say, “Lord, Lord, take this burden upon yourself,” yet we do not give up worrying, and then doubt whether God has heard our plea. We are halfhearted children who do not yet hold on to the One we do not see as though we saw him.

Imagine carrying a load so heavy that you can scarcely move under its weight. At last you find someone who takes it off you. How light and free you feel! That is how we should feel when we have surrendered something to God. God will help us – that is his trustworthy promise – but only if we like children give not only our cares but ourselves into his care. He is faithful and will not let us down. Even when he lets us go astray, even when he leads us on roundabout ways, even when darkness deepens around us, he takes care of us. He always leads us to the goal he has in mind for us.

Sometimes peace simply eludes us for a long time. But God will not allow us to be shaken. Help will come, and it always comes in time. So do not be afraid. Remain faithful and stand true before God. In this way you will not despair or grow fainthearted. He who perseveres will, in the end, see how much God’s delay was his gain.

Johann Christoph Blumhardt

Give Your Heart

2011-06-20T08:35:00.001-04:00

My son, give me your heart and let your eyes delight in my ways.
Proverbs 23:26

What does the Lord ultimately want from us? Our hearts. To act or live a bit decently here and there, to feel good about our virtues and accomplishments, to stroll through life being looked up to – none of this is what the Lord wants. God wants your heart, yourself, your real self. What finally matters is that you love him who is merciful, and that he has your whole heart.

The heart that strives for the good looks to God. Such a heart is made happy by the miracle of his grace. God’s grace is always given to a heart that seeks him, and when relief comes, your heart will be flooded with more love, and you will feel liberated from everything that binds you and keeps you from being genuine. You will be truly joyful – you will be able to freely give or withhold whatever is required by the Spirit. You will no longer feel the need to measure up to anything or anyone, because your love for God, to whom you belong, will make you stand firm. Your heart will beat for what is pleasing to God, and it will be pained by whatever is done against him.

Happy and secure is the one who has given his whole heart to God. How simple this is if we but look to Jesus, God’s Son and our brother, whose pure heart reaches out to us.

If you don’t give your heart to Jesus, you will eventually become puzzled over what life brings to you – especially when things go wrong or when you have to suffer. You will not be able to discern where God is leading you. And you will be tempted to murmur and complain and become bitter. You will not only see things from a human perspective, but you will risk falling into doubt and disbelief. All your goodness, all your spiritual striving will then amount to nothing.

God wants you to rejoice in his will, so accept it humbly and gratefully. When he possesses your heart, he will guide you, not by circumstances or by the whirling events that press against you, but by his word. You will know how to accept what God sends because you will have ceased to have a separate will or self-will of your own.

May you learn to give your love and your heart anew to God each day, so that his ways – even when they are rough – do not appear strange and unpleasing. Surrender your heart and let your eyes delight in his ways, no matter what else may or may not happen to you.

Johann Christoph Blumhardt

When God Waits

2011-06-13T08:52:00.000-04:00

The Lord longs to be gracious to you; therefore he will rise up to show you compassion. For the Lord is a God of justice. Blessed are all who wait for him!
Isaiah 30:18

Sometimes it seems as if God no longer cares for us, as if he has forgotten his people. This is what the ancient Israelites thought and said. However much they cried for grace, no help seemed to appear, and their worst fate was imminent.

But the prophet Isaiah tells Israel that not only has God not ceased to be gracious, but he longs to be gracious to them. As much as they were impatient for his grace, he was (so to speak) impatient to be gracious – he was actually longing to be gracious. God was not indifferent toward them, for him it was a pain to have to wait until he could again reveal his grace to them.

What does this mean? If God is waiting to be gracious, there must be a reason why he is waiting, and that reason must lie with us. He sees something in us, something that is not right, something that impedes his grace. And so he has to wait until this impediment is removed. The Israelites readily sought false help elsewhere – from neighboring nations or from other gods. How then could God be gracious and help them? Yet God still longed to show mercy.

We in our unrest also try a thousand things, not realizing that by so doing we get farther and farther away from God. But God longs to bless us. He wants to have our entire heart and our undivided trust, so that he can be gracious to us. But when we don’t give these to him, God has to wait; and we, too, have to wait in misery.

Ah, that we might not make the Lord wait any longer, so that he can bring his great help of which we are in such dire need! He is ready, he wants to be merciful to us.

O Lord, show us your mercy. Take away everything that hinders your grace and keeps you from being gracious to us! Amen.

Johann Christoph Blumhardt

God’s Will For You

2011-06-06T08:54:00.000-04:00

Now listen, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.” Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. Instead, you ought to say, “If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.” As it is, you boast in your arrogant schemes. All such boasting is evil. If anyone, then, knows the good they ought to do and doesn’t do it, it is sin for them. James 4:13–17

We must not tell God what to do. Even less should we persist in praying until the Lord finally hears us. Such “faith” is resistance or even defiance to the Lord. Even if we include the words, “if it is the Lord’s will,” in our prayers, it is a sham. If we are honest, we often include these words only because we know we are supposed to. But we don’t really want God’s will to happen.

When we pray for God’s will to be done, we have to be inwardly and unconditionally prepared to accept this will. It is not right to constantly and expressly ask for our health, or someone else’s health, to be restored, especially when conditions seem to steadily decline. To pray incessantly does not help anyone –especially not ourselves or others who are ill. It only increases our tension and restlessness, and hinders our spiritual life.

This doesn’t mean we should just give up. God sometimes allows conditions to get worse (he knows why) before he finally provides help. What I mean is that we should become more quiet and resigned in our prayers for healing and health. It is God’s will that matters. And true resignation and submission to God’s will puts everything into his hands, so that his help, when it does arrive and however it comes, can come on God’s terms, not ours.

It is also better not to speak too much of dying or not dying. Each of our lives is a mist. Here we must become even more quiet, and in silence wait for whatever the Lord has in mind. If death is knocking at the door, we should prepare our hearts for either life or death (Phil. 1:20–26). If someone you know is facing a similar situation, help them to let go and accept whatever God has in mind. None of us knows what tomorrow will bring anyway. We must make ready our hearts. Then all will be right. God gives his grace to the humble, and those who are most humble and do the will of God receive abundant grace indeed.

Johann Christoph Blumhardt

Offer Yourself

2011-05-30T08:55:00.000-04:00

Now Abel kept flocks, and Cain worked the soil. In the course of time Cain brought some of the fruits of the soil as an offering to the Lord. And Abel also brought an offering –fat portions from some of the firstborn of his flock. The Lord looked with favor on Abel and his offering, but on Cain and his offering he did not look with favor. So Cain was very angry, and his face was downcast. Genesis 4:2–5

When we pray we must make a sacrifice. We first have to surrender something. That is the difference between Abel and Cain. With his offering Abel gave himself and all he had – fat portions. Cain, however, kept back something for himself and expected something because of his offering. There is a big difference between these two.

We can make an offering selfishly, or we can make an offering in true surrender. We can also pray selfishly, or we can pray in true surrender. Some people pray thinking only of themselves, quietly wishing to get as much as they can from God. Others, however, do not think of themselves at all and long only that God takes possession of them. Again, there is a big, big difference.

There are times when life gets beyond our control and fear overtakes us. Like Cain, we shudder and pray and make offerings to God. However, we only do this to obtain speedy help for ourselves and rid ourselves of fear. We humble ourselves a little and cry out, “Dear God, help me!” But afterwards we are the same old person, living life as usual. Once again we have our house, our health, our money and possessions, and we can look after our own welfare pretty much by ourselves. Perhaps we still pray from time to time, giving thanks: “God is kind. Without him things would not be going so well for me.” But all the while, we are filled with selfishness.

When we pray, what is offered or sacrificed is not so important. People in the Old Testament could offer a little dove or an ox; it was all the same. It did not matter to God whether much or little was brought to him. What mattered was whether it was brought selfishly or willingly. And whether we pray selfishly or in true surrender is still important today.

Let us beware. God does not want our prayers and offerings if they spring only from self-interest. If we don’t burn for God and for his kingdom on earth, our religion is like inferior plaster – it falls down again. Praying for all our little woes is of no use, it does nothing for God. It kills true prayer, as Abel was killed by Cain. Let us take warning. Everything depends on whether God has us completely. So offer your whole self to God – this is the only sacrifice that matters.

Christoph Friedrich Blumhardt

Be Opened!

2011-05-23T09:23:00.000-04:00

Some people brought to Jesus a man who was deaf and could hardly talk, and they begged Jesus to place his hand on him. After he took him aside, away from the crowd, Jesus put his fingers into the man’s ears. Then he spit and touched the man’s tongue. He looked up to heaven and with a deep sigh said to him, “Ephphatha!” (which means “Be opened!”). At this, the man’s ears were opened, his tongue was loosened and he began to speak plainly. Mark 7:32–35

The Savior stands in our midst as a fighter for us. He sighs and looks up to the Father in heaven, and then he calls loudly, “Ephphatha! Be opened!” Perhaps this man who came to Jesus was timid about coming to him. He certainly would have been anxious when the Savior took him aside and touched him – not really understanding why Jesus did this. But then suddenly, with “Ephphatha!” his ears were opened and he could exclaim, “The news is true, Jesus is the Lord who can put an end to sin and suffering. I have experienced it. Praise and thanks be to God!”

Beloved, this “Ephphatha!” must be the conclusion of the history of our world. The Savior is even now busily at work, turning the gospel that we hear into deeds. But the Savior must also approach us personally, in secret, and in secret he must pray for us before his Father’s throne. And finally the great “Ephphatha!” will come; it will shake the whole world.

For the time being everything is hidden. The greater Jesus’ victories are, the more they take place in secret. The way this man was taken aside by the Savior is an example of how humankind as a whole will be taken aside by the Savior. Quietly, but with deep ardor, Jesus will bring humankind before his Father’s throne.

So we who are God’s priestly people must cast the sick at his feet. We must cry out to him, “Dear Savior, you are the Lord. We cannot bear it that so many people follow false gods, for we know that you alone are the Lord. So here we are. We will not leave you in peace, for you came to represent us before the heavenly Father in order to help us.” This is how we must implore him. It is our task as the church.

Oh, you dear ones, I am often very sad when I see so many Christians who no longer bring people to the Savior on account of their sins and their suffering. We must not allow the gates of heaven to close between sinners and the Savior. The gates must remain open for all who suffer, for all sick people. Were it not for this, I do not know whether I could believe the gospel.

Let this be firmly established within us; then we shall help toward the coming of “Ephphatha!” The greater our regard for the one who was crucified and rose from the dead, the greater will be the “Ephphatha!” in the final days –like when God said in the beginning, “Let there be light!” Yes, one day we shall hear, “Ephphatha! Be opened!”

Christoph Friedrich Blumhardt

He Knows Our Need

2011-05-16T08:49:00.000-04:00

For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are–yet he did not sin. Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need. Hebrews 4:15–16

There are times when life gets so hard that you feel unable to pray; you may even feel you no longer have any faith. It seems as if the Savior is far from you and that you no longer belong to the Savior, or that you never were on the right track to begin with. It’s as if you were in hell, gripped with fear and a sense of being lost. You may even wish you had never been born. The pain is too great, the future too hopeless.

How I would love to direct you in such a way that all darkness is taken away from your soul! But such agony cannot be blown away with one stroke. For that, we have to wait for a time of grace. Yet, even now the Savior can give you much, but only if you become quiet and place your hope in him. If you remain childlike about your condition, you will not think that everything is lost – even when you hear discordant voices inside you. The Savior is there to comfort you. And if you are unable to become quiet, don’t worry. The harm is not irreparable. Inability is not a sin. The Savior loves you, if only because of your sighs.

Remember, Jesus came into the flesh, into your very need, so that you may know that God is not indifferent to your suffering. You sigh and weep, you are miserable, you mourn for the Savior. That is all right, as long as you do it in the right way. The Savior did not say: “Blessed are those whose cause is right.” He did say: “Blessed are the poor in spirit. Blessed are those who mourn” (Matt. 5:3–4). Believe it!

If you can’t feel the Savior, then all the more believe in him. Those to whom God’s love is nearest are precisely those who don’t see and yet believe (John 20:29). The same is true of those who don’t feel and yet believe. The enemy often wreaks havoc on our feelings; but he can’t touch your faith. The devil cannot own your faith –unless you give in.

Sometimes you will feel that you have no faith, and yet deep down you still believe. Believe then in your faith. Things will get better. Christ is there, even if he is somewhat hidden. Don’t even be afraid of hell – he is there too. Anyone who sighs and longs will not be lost. It is for our sake that the Lord reveals his glory. Remember, the Savior intercedes on our behalf (Rom. 8:34) and cannot help but intervene with his assistance if you have a longing in your heart.

Johann Christoph Blumhardt

He Bore Our Griefs

2011-05-09T08:14:00.000-04:00

When evening came, many who were demon-possessed were brought to him, and he drove out the spirits with a word and healed all the sick. This was to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah: “He took up our infirmities and bore our diseases.” Matthew 8:16–17

The amount of need and suffering in the world, both in Jesus’ day and our own, can hardly be overstated. The Savior not only healed all kinds of diseases, but also the demon-possessed. People came to him who were out of control and who caused their relatives an incredible amount of pain, since an alien spirit within them made them furious, raging, screaming, or unmanageable.

If this was the case then, just think how many so-called mentally ill and insane there are today. Yet hardly anyone dares to call them possessed. Still, one cannot help thinking of Jesus’ time, when many possessed came to him. There are thousands of people among us today who are sick in the same way.

Yet we read how Jesus ruled over the spirits that oppressed people. He drove them out by his word. All this, Matthew quotes from Isaiah, was to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet, “He took up our infirmities and bore our diseases.”

The passage in Isaiah says literally: “Surely he took up our pain and bore our suffering” (Isa. 53:4). Isaiah speaks more of a freeing from sin, rather than from sickness and disease; yet it is significant that Matthew speaks also of disease, that the Lord’s Servant wants to bear all our griefs. Jesus took away disease and sickness and in this way bore our infirmities. It is as if Jesus had made the diseases of the sick his own, representing the sick before his Father, who had given him the power to heal.

Something similar happens whenever we intercede for one another – we take the sickness of others on ourselves as though we were praying for ourselves. Intercession to God is genuine only when we feel very deeply for each other and share in each other’s pain; that is, when we have real compassion.

Our vocation is to represent Jesus, who was full of mercy. Everything we do must be done in his name and by his Spirit. “Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ” (Gal. 6:2). But we must be on guard, for whatever we do in our own strength, including intercession, has no value.

Ah, may the time come when we will fully have what Jesus promised and sealed with his blood: the power of God for salvation that heals all wounds, including those of the body. This is promised to all those who seek him.

Johann Christoph Blumhardt

Even Today!

2011-05-02T08:48:00.001-04:00

Jesus went around doing good and healing all who were under the power of the devil, because God was with him. Acts 10:38

Jesus did not use or require any formalities when people came to him for help. With one word help was there. He also did not withdraw somewhere, in a high and mighty way, and wait for people to come and ask for help. He went around and came to all those who were miserable and desolate, those suffering in body and soul, and called to them, “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest” (Matt. 11:28). He offered himself as the Savior who would help those whom no one else would help.

Has he changed any? Certainly not! He traveled from place to place doing good and healing just so that all subsequent generations could trust him, and so that all who are miserable and afflicted might always know where to turn for help. Jesus still does wonderful things, “going around doing good and healing,” even if it is in a more inconspicuous way. He draws close to anyone in need and pain so that we, too, might experience firsthand that he is the one who knows how to help us. Still today Jesus works good and heals. The question to us is: Will we come to him?

Johann Christoph Blumhardt

God is Willing

2011-04-25T09:19:00.000-04:00

When Jesus came down from the mountainside, large crowds followed him. A man with leprosy came and knelt before him and said, “Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean.” Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man. “I am willing,” he said. “Be clean!” Immediately he was cleansed of his leprosy. Matthew 8:1–3

A leper comes to Jesus in great trust that he can help him, although leprosy was, at that time, the most incurable illness on earth. This really took some doing –it demanded a great deal. All human wisdom lies far below the simplicity of such a wretched man. This poor man, tormented and horribly disfigured, knew God’s greatness and might. Whoever thinks of God in this way has come very near to him. We should be filled with holy reverence to see one of the most wretched among men standing before his God with such confidence.

“You can do it, if you are willing,” says this man. Christ cannot possibly lack the power, this man thinks. He could not lack power, since he has come from God. Now everything depends on whether he wants to use it. “If you are willing” means “If you have pity, if you have a compassionate heart – and you must have compassion. You can do it, if you want to. What more is needed to help me?” Such a noble way of thinking cannot come to nothing.

“I want to,” says the Lord. “Be cleansed!” Now look – where has the leprosy gone? It is no longer there; it has disappeared. When a man like that leper possesses such a childlike heart, God steps in. He wants to reveal himself so that everyone can trust in his greatness and might.

We must believe that the Lord can do anything if he wants to. Yet in the garden of Gethsemane, the Lord prayed, “Not my will, but your will be done.” Even though Jesus knew he had to drink the cup of suffering, he nevertheless prayed to be spared. And then the angel strengthened him. Likewise, if we pray earnestly, it may be that an angel will quietly strengthen us so that we may bear whatever is laid on us. And, as is so often the case, the Lord may even provide more than what we need, beyond our expectation.

If we pray with unceasing, childlike faith, and if it is God’s will, the Lord will let us see his glory revealed in deed and miracle. “If you are willing, you can do it” is the prayer of all those who fear him. And in his great wisdom, the Lord will say, “I am willing.”

Johann Christoph Blumhardt

The Light of God

2011-04-18T08:44:00.000-04:00

Jesus stepped into a boat, crossed over and came to his own town. Some men brought to him a paralyzed man, lying on a mat. When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the man, “Take heart, son; your sins are forgiven.”
At this, some of the teachers of the law said to themselves, “This fellow is blaspheming!”
Knowing their thoughts, Jesus said, “Why do you entertain evil thoughts in your hearts? Which is easier: to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up and walk’? But I want you to know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins.” So he said to the paralyzed man, “Get up, take your mat and go home.” Then the man got up and went home. When the crowd saw this, they were filled with awe; and they praised God, who had given such authority to man. Matthew 9:1–8

The story of the paralyzed man should remind us of our own situation, because we are all broken people. Even if we are not physically crippled, our whole being is broken by sin. Corrupt powers of decay gnaw at our souls and bit by bit at our bodies, either openly or in secret, whether we are aware of it or not. Our spirits are dragged down into the captivity of fleshly pursuits. Many of us can barely keep our heads above water. We have either wasted our lives or become dull to anything of a higher nature. Divine things elude us, and things of eternal value escape us.

It would behoove us not to wait until the power of death and corruption strikes us down, as it did with this paralyzed man. Jesus came to make it possible for each of us to recognize our wretched condition, and in this recognition we can be healed. But we must not hide the fact that we are hurting in some way or another. That we are all in misery is evident by the fact that we come running when genuine help arrives, or even imaginary help, or when any kind of help seems to be on the way. Everywhere, as soon as a facility is built for the sick and disabled, people come flocking. But all this human help pales in comparison to the power Jesus had. When he touched people, life-giving powers poured forth.

And now, you dear ones, let Jesus work. Let him use your affliction to drive you into the light. Don’t hide what afflicts you. Indeed, through Jesus we may look even deeper and ask ourselves what really afflicts us in our innermost being. Through Christ, we can turn to the light as poor, weak, and wretched human beings, crippled many times over, both inwardly and outwardly.

Don’t try to hide your need and cheerfully ignore it. Even if this is heroic, it does not bring help, nor does it bring praise to God. We should rather be like the paralyzed man and show ourselves as we really are. Let us not pretend to be strong, but instead recognize our misery and bring it out into the open before God. The Savior wants to reveal everything wrong in us so that we can be healed. Only then can those around us, like those around the paralyzed man, be filled with awe and praise for God.

All Can Come

2011-04-11T08:59:00.002-04:00

And the power of the Lord was with Jesus to heal the sick.
Luke 5:17

Wherever Jesus walked or stood, power streamed out from him, healing and reviving both soul and body. Whoever came to him with a trusting heart found help. The Lord of heaven, the God of Israel–the strength of this God streamed out from Jesus and worked healing. How wonderful that God’s Son appeared in this way!

It can hardly be grasped that God would draw so close to us with such kindness. How obvious it was that everything was rotten. How little fear of God there was on the earth. How hypocritical was the piety of those who pretended to be devout. Even the temple was made into a “robbers’ den,” turned into a marketplace.

Yet, he came. And what was he like? He came not as one who judges but as one who was full of kindness, warmth, love, and mercy. Nobody needed to fear him. Everybody was allowed to come, everybody was allowed to have hope –the wretched, even sinners and tax collectors. They could all come. And all who came were healed and satisfied. Everybody could rejoice that God’s ambassador in person had visited them.

Because the Lord was so kind and good to everyone who drew near him, it proved that he really came from God. Who could be greater? Can there be anything more wonderful than knowing that this man from Nazareth came from God? Can anyone else satisfy our deepest need? Can we imagine anyone coming from heaven greater, more majestic, or more glorious than he? Truly, he is the One. “We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth” (John 1:14).

Jesus is still the same Savior today. So there is hope for everyone – nobody needs to despair or doubt his patience and love. No matter who you are, you can come. But you have to come! Come in longing for grace and mercy. Then you will receive his goodness in abundance. Even in these troubled times you can know his mercy and that when the time is right, God will “wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away” (Rev. 21:4). Praise to him for such immeasurable hope!
Johann Christoph Blumhardt

The Compassion of Jesus

2011-04-04T08:13:00.000-04:00

Jesus left there and went along the Sea of Galilee. Then he went up on a mountainside and sat down. Great crowds came to him, bringing the lame, the blind, the crippled, the mute and many others, and laid them at his feet; and he healed them. The people were amazed when they saw the mute speaking, the crippled made well, the lame walking and the blind seeing. And they praised the God of Israel.
Matthew 15:29–31

Great crowds came to Jesus, bringing the lame, the maimed, the blind, the dumb and putting them at his feet; and he healed them. The news of his presence spread in a hurry. Indeed, if any one of us had been there and had heard of a chance to be freed from our affliction–who of us would not have given everything to come to Jesus?

Yet, it was not always easy for the sick to get to Jesus. Many relied on the help of others. These people must have had a lot of compassion and made considerable effort as well. How then could the Savior not receive them? Should he have shown less compassion just because they might have come to him for the wrong reason?

Compassion sees only the need of others; it omits all criticism and judging. Jesus never gave the sick a sermon first, or first examined their inner condition; he never asked them what sins they might have committed to merit this sickness. This would not only have been harsh but would have hurt the sick even more.

Why then are we so quick to judge the sick, examining them to find out whether they are remorseful enough or worth praying for? Jesus said, “Whoever comes to me, I will not reject.” This is why it is always wrong to think that illness is “a blessing in disguise.” What is more beneficial for us – sickness or health? The Savior certainly did not think that the sick were better off than the healthy, otherwise he would not have healed or bid his disciples to heal the sick.

Yes, God knows why some have to suffer; surely he chooses what is best for them. But the Savior welcomes each one who comes to him with deep compassion, and quickly the blind see, the mute speak, and the lame receive full use of their limbs. Let us remember this. All those who came and all those who brought the sick and lame to Jesus had a great deal of faith and hope. A lot more than we have. And in his boundless mercy Jesus healed them all.

Johann Christoph Blumhardt

The Good News

2011-03-28T14:03:00.000-04:00

Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom, and healing every disease and sickness among the people. News about him spread all over Syria, and people brought to him all who were ill with various diseases, those suffering severe pain, the demon-possessed, those having seizures, and the paralyzed; and he healed them.
Matthew 4:23–24

There are two sides to the gospel of Jesus Christ. It is a message of forgiveness of sins, of everlasting life, but also a message of opposition to human misery. Not only is an end to sin proclaimed, but also an end to suffering and death. All suffering shall cease! Just as sin is overcome through the blood of Christ, so suffering will come to an end at the resurrection. When Jesus performed signs and wonders, he was proclaiming the gospel against suffering.

With this gospel we can be certain that the wretchedness of this world will cease, just as we are sure of everlasting life. We cannot separate these two sides of Christ. We must not one-sidedly emphasize the cross and forgiveness, while ignoring the resurrection and the overcoming of our misery. It is Satan’s trick to try and make us waver so that the Savior does not receive a full and complete hearing.

Faced with the world’s longing for redemption, it is obvious that we can never bring real comfort through the gospel as long as we stress only the one thing – that the Savior forgives our sins – and otherwise the world can go its own way. Similarly, we would be unable to bring real comfort through the gospel, if we represented the Savior only as a miracle-worker and proclaimed, “Be comforted, you can be healed through the Savior.” Then repentance and forgiveness would be utterly forgotten, and no fundamental change would ever take place in men.

Jesus allowed the sick to come to him, just as he did sinners. He was ready to forgive sins and ready to heal. There were times when very few sinners came, only sick people. And Jesus welcomed them all. Oh, that the nations would hear the good news! That the sick would come, and that sinners would come –all are welcome!

Christoph Friedrich Blumhardt

Foreword

2011-03-25T11:38:00.003-04:00

Anyone facing serious illness or death must ask themselves: “What am I going to do about it?” Will you allow it to change you? Or will you resist and avoid God’s will for your life?

There comes a time when each one of us has to face eternity. When this happens, your whole life is laid out before you. I have experienced this personally. When I was confronted with terminal cancer several months ago, I saw – as I never had before–my sin, how human my past efforts were, and how much I needed repentance and forgiveness. I see starkly now, also as a shepherd of God’s flock, how confiding all of one’s burdens to someone else has eternal consequences and tremendous blessings.

The Blumhardts did not shy away from medical help. They also believed and personally witnessed that God can heal the body as well as the soul. But above and beyond this they saw and understood how true healing can be found only through repentance and forgiveness. This is the message of the gospel and why Jesus came. For them, what mattered most was the kingdom of God. Ultimately, healing is given when people repent and in unity believe that God hears their prayers.

I have experienced this tangibly. When people are fully united, not only is assurance of faith granted, but the kingdom of God draws near. May these words from Johann Christoph and Christoph Friedrich Blumhardt help the reader truly experience the power of redemption. What these two men express comes from what they experienced of God’s kingdom, which I have experienced too.
Richard Scott