OVERCOMING PAIN

Pain - noun

  1. An unpleasant sensation, occurring in varying degrees of severity as a consequence of injury, disease, or emotional disorder.
  2. Suffering or distress.
  3. pains. The pangs of childbirth.

Afflict - transitive verb

    To inflict physical or mental suffering upon; cause grievous distress to:

Affliction - noun

  1. A condition of pain, suffering, or distress.
  2. A cause of pain, suffering, or distress.

Discomfort - noun

  1. Mental or bodily distress.
  2. Something that disturbs one's comfort; annoyance.

We started this study with the basic definition of pain and similar words from the Second College Edition of The American Heritage Dictionary, Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston, Copyright 1982. This study looks at pain as a physical and mental anguish that is felt in your body. The definitions above agree with what most people think about when they think of the subject of pain.

This study will look at only three basic groups of people who experience pain on different levels and for different reasons. The challenging problem when speaking of pain is that it is different for each person. There are many people who have a high threshold for tolerating pain while others have no threshold at all. The first group known as Group 1 have a physical reason for the pain and a cure is known to them, whether doctors and/or rest of the particular body member. The second group known as Group 2 usually deal with pain in association with a particular action in their life. The third group known as Group 3 have a recurring pain that seems be to unreasonable, there is really no physical reason for them to experience this intense pain repeatedly. The one thing that is common to all three is that God’s Word mixed with faith can help because the source of all pain started with sin. We will now look at the origin of pain.

Origin

To locate the original source of anything important going on in the world today it is often found in the book of beginnings. Genesis can identify the roots of any tree that is still living in the world today and it also can identify some trees that have become extinct. When God initially made everything in the earth it was good. When God looked at all the good things He created working and living in harmony He said it is very good.

Genesis 1:27-31
27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.
28 And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.
29 And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat.
30 And to every beast of the earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to every thing that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is life, I have given every green herb for meat: and it was so.
31 And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. And the evening and the morning were the sixth day. KJV

However, that state of Heavenly bliss only lasted one chapter, by the time we reach Chapter 3 mankind had a problem. The problem was sin which is simply a failure to do what God told you to do or what God commanded mankind to do as a whole. When Adam and Eve fell (yes both of them fell together) they brought a curse upon the earth. The wages of sin is death. To keep this discussion short, we will state that the curse upon the earth was five fold -

  1. Physical Death by constant slow decay
  2. Sickness and Disease
  3. Financial Lack
  4. Defeat and bondage
  5. Separation from God both physically and spiritually

The subject of pain falls under curse number 2 specifically disease or we could say discomfort. We can see the first mention of this problem in Genesis 3:9-19 with the announcement from God about the consequences of eating the forbidden fruit.

9 And the LORD God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou?
10 And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself.
11 And he said, Who told thee that thou wast naked? Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat?
12 And the man said, The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat.
13 And the LORD God said unto the woman, What is this that thou hast done? And the woman said, The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat.
14 And the LORD God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life:
15 And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.
16 Unto the woman he said, I will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception; in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children; and thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee.
17 And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life;
18 Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field;
19 In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return. KJV

The Word of God states that in sorrow thou (speaking of pregnant women) shall bring forth seed. This is where the reality of pain during child bearing originated. Yes, the pain is real and the word spoken by God is true. At that point it was a curse released upon women that they would have some pain during the birth of a baby. This was not God's will for women to suffer during pregnancy or the actual birth of the child but it was a direct result of the sin commented by Adam and Eve. We usually refer to this episode in man's history as "The Fall of Mankind In The Garden". When the Holy Bible said that in sorrow thou shall bring forth children, that word is actually the same word for pain. Notice the account of Genesis 3:16-19 in the New International Version (NIV) of the Holy Bible.

16 To the woman he said,

"I will greatly increase your pains in childbearing;
with pain you will give birth to children.
Your desire will be for your husband,
and he will rule over you."

17 To Adam he said, "Because you listened to your wife and ate from the tree about which I commanded you, 'You must not eat of it,'

"Cursed is the ground because of you;
through painful toil you will eat of it
all the days of your life.
18 It will produce thorns and thistles for you,
and you will eat the plants of the field.
19 By the sweat of your brow
you will eat your food
until you return to the ground,
since from it you were taken;
for dust you are
and to dust you will return." NIV

We can also see that this introduction to pain was not limited to the woman only, but the man also was open to pain during the labor of his physical work. This lets us see that pain can come to us from different things. That is the bad news, the good news for all people living upon the earth today is that Jesus reversed the curse. He took upon Himself the pain of the world. This truth is established by at least two witness so let us examine them below:

Isaiah 53:3-5
3 He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.
4 Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.
5 But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. KJV

Now we will look at this same verse in the Amplified Bible and notice word pain is used again in connection with sorrow:

Isaiah 53:3-5
3 He was despised and rejected and forsaken by men, a Man of sorrows and pains, and acquainted with grief and sickness; and like one from Whom men hide their faces He was despised, and we did not appreciate His worth or have any esteem for Him.
4 Surely He has borne our griefs (sicknesses, weaknesses, and distresses) and carried our sorrows and pains [of punishment], yet we [ignorantly] considered Him stricken, smitten, and afflicted by God [as if with leprosy]. [Matt 8:17.]
5 But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our guilt and iniquities; the chastisement [needful to obtain] peace and well-being for us was upon Him, and with the stripes [that wounded] Him we are healed and made whole. AMP

For completion (fulfillment) we will look at the quotation of this verse in the New Testament

Matthew 8:16-17
16 When the even was come, they brought unto him many that were possessed with devils: and he cast out the spirits with his word, and healed all that were sick:
17 That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias the prophet, saying, Himself took our infirmities, and bare our sicknesses. KJV

These verses clearly indicate that it is not God's Will for anyone to be in pain. Jesus bore the sins of the world and at the very same time He also bore the sickness and diseases of the whole world. Having this information is critical because you are now equipped with the knowledge of God's Word which can empower you with comfort when properly utilized. Does this mean that there is no longer any sins going on in the world today? No. Does this mean that there is no such thing as physical or mental sickness and disease? No. What it means is that we have an option. This option is specifically available to those who know the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The Good News about Jesus taking upon His physical (and mental) body the sickness and disease across the whole earth is not common knowledge. Thus, we preach and teach these truths across land and water from day break to the next dawn. Since pain entered into the world by sin the only way to remove it out of the world is through righteousness. Thank God, Jesus Christ is our righteousness.

Jeremiah 23:5-6
5 Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth.
6 In his days Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely: and this is his name whereby he shall be called, THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS. KJV

1 Corinthians 1:30
But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption: KJV

Romans 3:22
Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference: KJV

As believers the good news about the plan of salvation applies directly to us. The source of pain was sin, but the causes of pain may be manifold. Which simply means of many diverse variety. Pain can be caused during child bearing because the deformation of the physical organs and tissue. Pain can come from injury due to abnormalities in your physically body, broken leg, infected tooth, separated skin, etc.... Pain can come with aches from over working your body, like the back area, the shoulder area, in the arms, etc... That is exactly what God told Adam in the Garden of Eden. Pain can also come from mental problems such as various degrees of head aches and other similar ailments. The key for us, as Believers, is knowing that we have a solution and our Solution is Named Jesus Christ.

First, Angela and I would counsel the person dealing with the pain to determine the pattern and the severity. Pattern is the frequency whereas severity is the intensity both are important when administering the proper treatment. There is some pain that determining the source is very easy because you know exactly what caused the problem and you know the severity immediately. For the sake of this teaching we will refer to this select group as Group 1. An example of this would be a broken leg, or a burn on the skin, etc.... If you have a confident understanding of why you are experiencing this kind of pain, then you are in a good position to decide what to do next.

The decision you make should be based upon the severity of the pain and what you decide is the best option for you. Our disclaimer is that we are not medical doctors, nor are we faith healers, what we do is teach people some principles in the Word of God for them to make up their own mind as to which option is best for the circumstance they are facing. Generally speaking, pain comes for a reason, if the reason is a physical aliment one must receive healing of that aliment to relieve the pain. That healing could come from a doctor and their staff or that healing could be through the natural recovery process of the body. Since we do not specialize in medicines or physical body diagnosis we will only speak about the spirit, soul and body receiving God's Word.

John 1:14
And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth. KJV

Psalm 107:19-20
19 Then they cry unto the LORD in their trouble, and he saveth them out of their distresses.
20 He sent his word, and healed them, and delivered them from their destructions. KJV

James 1:21-22
21 Wherefore lay apart all filthiness and superfluity of naughtiness, and receive with meekness the engrafted word, which is able to save your souls.
22 But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. KJV

It is very possible for you to experience a natural healing in your body from the spiritual power of God's Word. This comes primarily from two things. The first is knowledge, “Do you know what is available to you through faith and corresponding action upon God's principles?” The second is wisdom, the wisdom I am referring to in this context is to know yourself well enough to know exactly which solution will work best for you at a particular time. What I mean by that is, if I was experiencing pain from twisting my ankle during a basketball game. I would pray immediately and if the pain was severe I would probably stop playing for a while. However, if I were a professional athlete and the doctors looked at me and said you will be fine, continue playing, I would probably go back in and keep playing. I would always pray first the difference is with the second option I would act as if I wasn't hurt at all simply because the doctors said your fine and I would have to obey my coach. This is where everyone might treat the same injury a little different. Some would jump up and keep playing immediately simply because they believe they are fine. Others would stop immediately because they believe they are hurt because they are experiencing pain. Every individual is unique so we will not try to persuade you on which option is best, we will only encourage you to pause, acknowledge God's Word about your situation, and proceed with what you think is best for you.

The next group (Group 2) I will classify as those who only experience a certain amount of pain during some regular actions in their life. If the action is physical you many need to consider special equipment or a better technique. If the pain comes from an existing condition described by your doctor and the doctor has already prescribed a certain prescription then you can follow their directions to receive relief. However, that is not all you should do. We believe in using God's unmerited Grace for any situation in your life. Angela and I would recommend a public confession of Jesus Christ as being your personal healer. Work with the doctors but while you are working with them, believe you received your complete healing from God’s Word. If you take that position and show forth diligence on believing you received your complete healing through God's Word you will give the Lord's healing power an opportunity to manifest its cure on your behalf. We believe in the Good Lord helping doctors understand the physical body and how it works. Doctors typically due the best they can with the information they have. However, some doctors will only focus on the natural remedies and others will totally ignore the spiritual side of the equation altogether. The spiritual side always exist and using faith in God's Word to heal your body is always going to be in the best interest for your. Since healing is a process one would be wise to take advantage of everything that is available to them. Jesus personally bore your sickness, disease and pain so that you could walk the earth in perfect health, both mentally and physically. We can see this in the example of Luke 13:10-13

10 And he was teaching in one of the synagogues on the sabbath.
11 And, behold, there was a woman which had a spirit of infirmity eighteen years, and was bowed together, and could in no wise lift up herself.
12 And when Jesus saw her, he called her to him, and said unto her, Woman, thou art loosed from thine infirmity.
13 And he laid his hands on her: and immediately she was made straight, and glorified God. KJV

This type of aliment in which a person is bowed over constantly probably caused her some pain. We all know being bent over for a long period of time is very uncomfortable, thus resulting in distress. Mental pain could possibly be linked to this disease because she knew it was nothing she could do about it. Eighteen years is a long time to be in bondage to pain and an abnormal posture. Perhaps this woman did not have the financial means to hire medical help. We must mention in this case without any help or proper professional physical diagnosis Jesus administered healing to the woman first by His Words and then by laying His Hands upon her. The Holy Bible states that she was made straight, or we could say healed. This was not an accident, but done on purpose. We will now look at an example where doctors did all they could do but it was not enough to bring healing to the patient.

Mark 5:24-34
24 And Jesus went with him; and much people followed him, and thronged him.
25 And a certain woman, which had an issue of blood twelve years,
26 And had suffered many things of many physicians, and had spent all that she had, and was nothing bettered, but rather grew worse,
27 When she had heard of Jesus, came in the press behind, and touched his garment.
28 For she said, If I may touch but his clothes, I shall be whole.
29 And straightway the fountain of her blood was dried up; and she felt in her body that she was healed of that plague.
30 And Jesus, immediately knowing in himself that virtue had gone out of him, turned him about in the press, and said, Who touched my clothes?
31 And his disciples said unto him, Thou seest the multitude thronging thee, and sayest thou, Who touched me?
32 And he looked round about to see her that had done this thing.
33 But the woman fearing and trembling, knowing what was done in her, came and fell down before him, and told him all the truth.
34 And he said unto her, Daughter, thy faith hath made thee whole; go in peace, and be whole of thy plague. KJV

This is a totally different kind of healing because in this account the woman was not waiting for Jesus to touch her, but she desired to touch Him. We touch Jesus by believing and speaking His Word. Notice that she said, “If I may but touch but his clothes, I shall be whole”. She believed this and that is exactly what she got. The first example showed a woman healed by the compassion and faith of Jesus. The second example shows a woman of faith drawing God's Power to her by the belief in her heart mixed with the confession of her mouth. Notice verse 30 states that Jesus has healing power (virtue) and that healing power was drawn out of Him by the woman. The thing to notice here is that faith pulls God's Power unto the scene. The power of God is always available. Those who speak the word of God consistently because they believe it to be true are the ones who utilize God's Power. Jesus taught us the basic principles of faith in Mark 11:22-24

22 And Jesus answering saith unto them, Have faith in God.
23 For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith.
24 Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them. KJV

The process is simple, you believe God's Word in your heart and then you speak out consistently what you believe. Piece of cake, right. Well some will answer, “Yes” and others will answer, “No it is not that easy”. Ok for peace sake, Angela and I will proclaim both are right. For the believer who is full of God's Word because they have spent adequate time meditating on the promises of God's and they believe it so strongly that nothing else is acceptable to them, it will be easy. Why, because out of the abundance of the heart the mouth will speak, and the mouth will speak consistently exactly what your heart believes according to Luke 6:45

A good man out of the good treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is evil: for of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaketh. KJV

This person is like the tree planted by the rivers of water that always brings forth their fruit at the proper time according to Psalm 1:1-3

1 Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.
2 But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night.
3 And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper. KJV

This person is daily spending time with God through the Word of God and prayer. This person understands faith and confession to the point of guarding their heart at all times. They work diligently to not let any perverse words come into their thought life. They speak right simply because they think right and that influences greatly exactly what they believe. This is known as Believing on purpose rather than believing by sight. Believing is the easy part for Christians, to speak His Word consistently takes a renewed mind and that brings us to the second person. This second person is correct also because if God's Word is not your constant diet it is very possible to believe in God's Healing Ability but not believe it is currently present (working) in your body right now. If you don't believe you received the promise of God right at this very second you are not walking by faith you are just hoping for things to work out. Hope is good and hope is godly, but hope is not faith. Faith is bold and confident, faith proclaims repeatedly that My God and His Word is manifested in my physical body at all times. Yes, today, tomorrow and forever. If you don't firmly believe you were healed 2000 years ago because Jesus took your sickness, diseases and pain you probably will speak faith at times and doubt at other times. Mingling God's Word of Faith with words of fear about the circumstance confronting you will not yield a good crop. What I am saying is this, trying to speak God's Word out loud boldly when your heart has doubts and fears is not easy. If you are double minded the whole process of God breaks down to the place of not receiving your healing. Remember Mark 4:18-19

18 And these are they which are sown among thorns; such as hear the word,
19 And the cares of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, and the lusts of other things entering in, choke the word, and it becometh unfruitful. KJV

This scripture clearly tells us that cares can choke the word of God. Although it would be more accurate to state that care only chokes the production of the Word of God from producing in your heart. Therefore you must remove all care from your heart by decreasing your vocabulary of words of carefulness. People in this state must always guard their heart by watching their words and actions. If you never say you are careful about disease but your actions speak to everyone else that you are, care is present. Care means being overly concerned about an issue, words like worry, fear, and dread are all tied to carefulness. The Holy Bible tells us in Philippians 4:4-9 one way to dispel it.

4 Rejoice in the Lord alway: and again I say, Rejoice.
5 Let your moderation be known unto all men. The Lord is at hand.
6 Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.
7 And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
8 Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.
9 Those things, which ye have both learned, and received, and heard, and seen in me, do: and the God of peace shall be with you. KJV

The first thing in these verses the Apostle Paul points out is Rejoice. Yes, you should be rejoicing at all times. Someone could say that sounds ridiculous. Well my friend it only sounds funny to people who don't walk by faith. Rejoicing is necessary because the joy of the Lord is our strength according to Nehemiah 8:10

Then he said unto them, Go your way, eat the fat, and drink the sweet, and send portions unto them for whom nothing is prepared: for this day is holy unto our Lord: neither be ye sorry; for the joy of the LORD is your strength. KJV

Believe me when you walk by faith you will need the strength of God working with you, and this strength requires joy. The Holy Bible states for us to be strong in the Lord and in the Power of His Might in Ephesians 6:10. We could re-quote that verse in our own understanding as, "Be joyful in the Lord and then you will walk in the Power of His Might”. Joy is part of the fruit of spirit according to Galatians 5:22 and it is so powerful it carried Jesus through all the pain and suffering of the cross.

Hebrews 12:2
Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God. KJV

You will never be able to convince me that you don't need joy to win large battles it was necessary for Jesus to rely upon joy to endure the cross where divine supernatural strength was a must. So you, my faith friend, will need to use joy to overcome any huge obstacles standing in your path of total complete victory in this world. We also want you to notice in this verse that faith was connected to joy. The two work together to achieve the desired result. Joy helps give you endurance and strength while faith decrees the desire result as being done. Faith is not waiting for a manifestation it is speaking forth the manifestation before the body feels it in the natural. Faith states, “I AM Healed”, even when the body states, “I don't feel like it”. Faith does not ignore the body it just solely considers the facts of God's Word like the patriarch Abraham in Romans 4:16-22

16 Therefore it is of faith, that it might be by grace; to the end the promise might be sure to all the seed; not to that only which is of the law, but to that also which is of the faith of Abraham; who is the father of us all,
17(As it is written, I have made thee a father of many nations,) before him whom he believed, even God, who quickeneth the dead, and calleth those things which be not as though they were.
18 Who against hope believed in hope, that he might become the father of many nations; according to that which was spoken, So shall thy seed be.
19 And being not weak in faith, he considered not his own body now dead, when he was about an hundred years old, neither yet the deadness of Sara's womb:
20 He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God;
21 And being fully persuaded that, what he had promised, he was able also to perform.
22 And therefore it was imputed to him for righteousness. KJV

There are several things to notice in those verses. We will start in verse 16 with the resounding truth that, "It is of faith" faith is a must so that, "It might be by grace". This lets us see that God's grace is available to all who need it but the only way to access His unmerited grace is through His method of faith. The verse also states it is God's will for His Promises to be delivered to His children. As a matter of fact God desire that His Word would be a sure thing for all the children of Abraham, or we should say to all Christians. In verse 17 the words, "As it is written" is special because that is the foundation for everything we believe. If it is not a godly truth in Holy Bible we really don't have any good reason for believing in it. Remember, what you think on consistently is exactly what you will believe on in your heart and that is exactly what you will speak out of your heart without reservation. Fill your spirit, soul and mind with God's Promise of you being pain free because Jesus took all your pain and then you are ready to fulfill the latter part of verse 17 by "calling those things which be not as though they were". This means speaking freely and easily that you are feeling good, worry free, pain free, in total peace and comfort in the Name of Jesus. This may sound like a bold or brassy statement but it is the exact kind of statement you should believe because it is truth according to God's Word. Remember we established at the beginning of this article that God's Will for you is to be healed and because you are healed you can boldly rejoice in Christ Jesus. This is your position of faith, you are not healed because your body feels good, no my faith friend you are healed because the Word of God decrees you were. If you are a child of Abraham you are redeemed from the curses of the Old Testament law.

Galatians 3:13-14
13 Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree:
14 That the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ; that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith. KJV

Here we see again that it is God's Will for us to receive the promises of God because of what Jesus did for us. The conditions of reception are based on faith. This helps us to understand that if you desire to receive divine healing from God you must, I repeat, you must walk by faith. Which means you must master the concept of faith and practice speaking God's Word on a regular (consistent) basis. You must also spend whatever time is necessary to convince your heart that you believe God's Word without an shadow of doubt. We noticed earlier that if you doubt in your heart you will hinder the power of God from working on your behalf. Doubt always works against faith according to Mark 11:23, so doubt not. Doubt is removed by thinking, believing, pondering, and most importantly speaking forth the desired result of God’s promise consistently. This would include speaking your desire result before the storm, during the storm and even after the storm passes, keeping your heart, soul (mind) and body focused on God's Promise. The problem is never with God's Power and God's Word has been proven reliable the only thing that can stand in the way of your healing is the condition of your heart as spoken of Mark 4:14-19 but in verse 20 we see the good ground always produces:

Mark 4:20
And these are they which are sown on good ground; such as hear the word, and receive it, and bring forth fruit, some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some an hundred. KJV

Therefore it is in our best interest to keep the ground of our heart good. The better the ground the more fertile the soil, and the more fertile the soil the better the production. The most fertile ground is always the ground of love. These are the true disciples of Jesus according to John 13:34-35

34 A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.
35 By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another. KJV

Love is the way of God, loving people and loving God keeps your heart right no matter what. If we choose to operate in the principles of God's Love we will keep a clear conscious when it comes to receiving from God. Love not only keeps our heart right but it also keeps undesirable things out of our heart too. In the Holy Bible it is recorded that mature (developed) love removes fear. This is important because fear is another type of weed (care) that will choke the production of God's Word if allowed to grow in your heart.

1 John 4:15-19
15 Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God, God dwelleth in him, and he in God.
16 And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him.
17 Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world.
18 There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love.
19 We love him, because he first loved us. KJV

In verse 16 we can clearly see the nature of God is love. Dwelling in Love keeps you right in the center of God's heart, this position is optimal for divine healing. Your love walk is directly related to receiving from God because love is fertile ground and fertile ground is the good ground referred to in Mark 4:20 that produces fruit. In the following verse the statement; "As He is, so are we in this world" has to be mentioned. This verse speaks to me personally as a child of God. When I think about how Jesus "IS", I imagine, think and believe for myself to be right now. For example, “Is Jesus healed right now?” The correct answer is yes. Therefore, right now since Jesus is healed so am I, period. Next example, “Is Jesus in comfort right now?” The correct answer is yes. Therefore, I believe I am in complete comfort right now too. This is why I desire for each and every believer not to wait for your healing but rather claim, “You are healed right now!” I know your physical body might not feel that way, but that is a natural condition that is subject to change. The change we seek is for the better. One way to get the better is through the speaking (believing, claiming, confessing) of God's Word. When you feel good say, “I am in great comfort in the Name of Jesus!” When you feel pain in your physical body or mind still say, “I am great comfort in the Name of Jesus!” What Angela and I are endeavoring to teach is don't base your words on your circumstances, but rather base your spoken words on God's Written Word. Speak the same godly words no matter what. Some one might say, “But that doesn't make good sense”, and we would answer, “It makes perfect sense when you walk by God’s faith”. The saints of God always have an option of living by faith or living by what they see, hear, taste and understand with the natural senses. Those who live by faith will govern their life by what they see in God's Word and believe on in their heart and speak forth from their mouth. The faith of God does not need your complete understanding to work, the only thing your understanding does is help you gain the confidence that you are doing what is right before God. We are teaching you the basic godly principles of faith in this article to convince you that walking by faith is God's Will for your life. Your God given faith will work effectively at removing all pain. The real question is, "Do you believe God’s Promises to the level of living your life as a person of faith?" We have noticed that the faith walk is not for the faint of heart it takes a commitment to discipleship to be efficient in the reception of the blessings of God. Notice what God expects from His children in Habakkuk 2:5

Behold, his soul which is lifted up is not upright in him: but the just shall live by his faith. KJV

And Galatians 3:11
But that no man is justified by the law in the sight of God, it is evident: for, The just shall live by faith. KJV

And Hebrews 10:38
Now the just shall live by faith: but if any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him. KJV

All three of these references mention faith as a lifestyle and all three of these references mention this lifestyle is for the Just. The Just are those who are justified which is specifically the Saints of God, for this dispensation the Just are known as Christians. Notice the picture painted in Matthew 5:44-45

44 But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;
45 That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust. KJV

All true Christians know these verse in Matthew 5:44-45 is referring to them, who else is called to love their enemies? Who else is called to bless those that curse them? Who else is told to do good unto those that hate them? Who else is commanded to pray for those who use them and persecute them? No one, except a Christian. In verse 45 the scripture informs us that those who demonstrate this type of behavior are acting like their Father in Heaven. We could say they are acting like God, we would say those people are acting like Jesus. In this verse the unbelievers are referred to as the evil and the unjust while the believers are referred to as the good and the just. We were justified by the Blood of the Lamb and His justification was so strong and powerful that it cleansed us from all sin and even the smell of sin. Since Jesus did this work for us we now qualify for complete healing in our physical body and mind according to 1 Peter 2:24

Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed. KJV

This verse declares that all believers are in right standing with God. Since we are cleansed from all sin we should also enjoy our life in comfort and health because that is His Way for us. My dear friend, don't be sin conscious and sickness conscious you are dead to sin and you are also dead to sickness and disease and discomfort. Be alive unto healing and comfort and strength for it is God's Will for your life. Jesus came that we might experience this better lifestyle while we are living on the earth right now according to John 10:9-10

9 I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.
10 The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly. KJV

Jesus sole purpose for coming to this earth was to set you free from the snares of enemy. Jesus came to break you out of the jail of satan. We can see from 1 John 3:8 that sin came into the world through the deception of the devil and Jesus came to undo all the works (effects) of evil, that would include sickness, disease and pain.

1 John 3:8
He that committeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil. KJV

Jesus came to the earth specifically to bring you a better life and that better life includes healing, good health and comfort so we ask you, "Are you willing to walk by faith to receive from God?" Are you a believer on Jesus Christ the Savoir of the World? Are you a Believer that chooses to speak and do God's Word? If you answered yes to the three previous questions you are ready for the next most important step. All you need to be completely blessed in your life is - Be a doer of God's Word. You already stated you believe on Jesus and you do believe God's Word and you are willing to change your language to the vocabulary of faith so let's do it right now in Jesus Name.

Start proclaiming who you are in Christ Jesus and exactly what your body is right now, not what it shall be (that would be hope), but certainly what it is according to God's Word in the Name of Jesus and you shall receive the manifestation of God's Power in your spirit, soul and body.

I have spoken of two different kinds of groups up to this point, now we will speak about a third group of people dealing with pain today. This Group 3 is those individuals who really don't have a good natural reason for experiencing the pain they feel in their body. Take for example those who may feel migraine headaches without any reasonable explanation. There are a lot of people out in the world today who just feel pain for physical reasons that are not apparent to doctors or people of science. These people may experience pain when a certain event happens in their life (time of the month, vacation, the thought of going to the dentist gives them a headache, etc....) The intensity of the pain changes and it is removed after some time. For those in this category I ask you to examine your words and just as importantly examine your thoughts. We have noticed the scriptural principle of Mark 11:23 still holds true for all mankind whether you are using good words of health or bad words of sickness or disease (pain).

Mark 11:23
For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith. KJV

Notice the condition the Lord Jesus mentioned was if you believe those words you speak will come to pass, you will have the words you speaks. In this verse we also see that words are considered things by God, this is because everything you see in this earth has a name and it was produced by words. Remember in Genesis 1 God created the world by speaking what He desired before He saw it in the earth. This truth is confirmed in Hebrews chapter 1 verse 3 with the words, “all things (in this earth) are upheld by the Word of God's Power”. The Word of God not only has power inside of it, but is it the Power of God. Whenever there is a person speaking God's Word (out loud) there is energy coming forth from their mouth. We may not always feel the power of God coming through our vocal cords but it is the very real power of God. We speak and that gives place to power and the power gives place to God's Promise. This principle starts with right thinking and grows into actually being manifested in your body. Notice Proverbs 23:7

For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he:..... KJV

The reason I bring this up is because you must know exactly what you are thinking before, during and after the event. If you are concerned or fearful about the circumstances you may feel during this event dread will counteract your joy. If you have no joy, you definitely will not have strength and with no strength you are an easy target for sickness, disease and/or pain. Remember earlier we stated that cares, concern, worry and fear all work against your faith. You need the faith of God to produce God's Word in your life. Therefore you must be responsible to remove all negative elements from your heart and mind, if you don't doubt is presence and it will hinder your faith. All those people in this group must aggressively pursue God's Presence. The manifested Presence of God will, without any shadow of doubt, destroy all pain and discomfort. These individuals need to saturate themselves in God's Word with praise. The Word of God will give you the knowledge you need to think right first and secondly the meditation of God's Word will breed a better understanding of how to work the principles of God's Word. The praise of God gives you the strength you need to practice this as a life style and it also gives you peace during any storm. Nothing can usher in God's Presence like praise, the praises of God coming out of our mouth is a form of worship that excites (blesses) our Heavenly Father. Since our Father God and Lord Jesus are blessed when you do this they will manifest their presence. God Presence can be perceived by the Praiser when they become sensitive to the Holy Spirit. God's Presence brings peace and the blessed assurance that you are His and He is yours, when you rest your mind on that thought no pain can hurt you. The strength of unreasonable pain is fear, darkness and confusion. The more love, light and peace you bring into the circumstance of pain the lesser the intensity and the lesser the effects. Let God's Presence drive out any pain by being a Praiser unto God no matter what. Develop this good habit in your life to keep you focused on God before, during and after any attack of pain or discomfort. We see a type of this remedy in Psalm 149

1 Praise ye the LORD. Sing unto the LORD a new song, and his praise in the congregation of saints.
2 Let Israel rejoice in him that made him: let the children of Zion be joyful in their King.
3 Let them praise his name in the dance: let them sing praises unto him with the timbrel and harp.
4 For the LORD taketh pleasure in his people: he will beautify the meek with salvation.
5 Let the saints be joyful in glory: let them sing aloud upon their beds.
6 Let the high praises of God be in their mouth, and a twoedged sword in their hand;
7 To execute vengeance upon the heathen, and punishments upon the people;
8 To bind their kings with chains, and their nobles with fetters of iron;
9 To execute upon them the judgment written: this honour have all his saints. Praise ye the LORD. KJV

What I hope you noticed in this Psalm is that the Praises of God should come from our lips (out loud) continuously. Singing in the church is common but singing upon your bed is not so common. This tells me that praising should be done daily for those who need to develop the Power of God in their life. We can see from this Psalm also that the praises of God bind the enemies with chains (shackles) of iron. This is how we bind sickness, disease or pain. That is what needs to be done against those things that come upon our physical body or mind. This is what we mean when we use the term aggressive faith. Aggressive Faith takes action before a problem, it does not wait until a problem arises, it speaks before any problem is felt in the body. Aggressive faith speaks out against any thought that tries to intimidate the believer. Aggressive faith constantly resists the pain, sickness or disease at all levels. First spiritually by proclaiming, “I AM full of God's Life and Power nothing can hurt me”. Then mentally by speaking, “I believe God's Word, I AM happy and joyful today because Jesus Loves me”, and physically by proclaiming, “I AM in total comfort, my body is full of the life of God”. This aggressive faith has no fear, no dread, no concern and no worries about pain it realized that Jesus took it all. This aggressive faith has no doubt that God's Word was already established in their body. This aggressive faith understands that all the promises of God are a reality in their life according to 2 Corinthians 1:19-20

19 For the Son of God, Jesus Christ, who was preached among you by us, even by me and Silvanus and Timotheus, was not yea and nay, but in him was yea.
20 For all the promises of God in him are yea, and in him Amen, unto the glory of God by us. KJV

In the Old Testament David displayed aggressive faith in 1 Samuel 17 by first understanding that God would bless him and give him victory in every battle he encountered. David knew that Goliath was not God's Will for the children of Israel, thus for Goliath to defeat David in battle was not the Will of God for David's life. In this story Goliath spoke first and David answered him in faith, void of doubt. David was very confident that God could not fail him. David also stated that the Lord was his salvation in verse 47. In the very next verse it is noted that David hasted and ran toward the army to meet the Philistine, this my friend is aggressive faith. David did not wait for the giant to throw his best shot, no quite the contrary, while (at the same time) David was running toward the obstacle (his giant) he reached into his bag and started slinging a stone. Notice this battle never lived up to the hype, one stone thrown by the man of God killed the giant, in reality the battle was short and sweet. This is a type of battle we all face and should be ready to use our God given faith at all times and fear no giant (pain). The giant never had a chance against the power of the Word of God and neither will any pain when commanded to depart in the Name of Jesus. Let us now look at an example of Jesus exercising His authority upon the earth over another kind of giant in the life of Peter's mother-in-law.

Luke 4:38-39
38 And he arose out of the synagogue, and entered into Simon's house. And Simon's wife's mother was taken with a great fever; and they besought him for her.
39 And he stood over her, and rebuked the fever; and it left her: and immediately she arose and ministered unto them. KJV

We will point out that in this example a great fever, might of had pain associated with, but if not it certainly had a large amount of discomfort (distress) because she was not up doing her normal serving as noted in verse 39. The principles set forth in this situation will work exactly same and be just as effective at removing unreasonable pain. First, Jesus stood over her, this shows us that we need to stand up in our God given authority of the Name of Jesus. Next, Jesus rebuked the fever, this shows us that we need to rebuke all pain in the Name of Jesus. This can not be over looked, for this reason I am stating you must have aggressive faith that takes the position of resistance over acceptance. After that, the fever left her, this shows us that the root cause of her problem obeyed the Word of God. Since Jesus demonstrated His authority (His rights and power) on earth he showed us that His Name will work just as effectively for us today. For any believer dealing with pain, you can command the pain to leave your body in the Name of Jesus and it will go. Notice Jesus spoke to this situation only once. My faith friend you do not have to argue with a pain or disease. You simply command it to go in the Name of Jesus and begin to thank God that you are whole, if at all possible go about your normal business day.

James 4:6-7
6 But he giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble.
7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. KJV

If you do not aggressively resist the pain that comes against your body it will enforce it's will of pain upon your body by the constant thoughts of sickness, disease and discomforting mental torment in your mind. These negative thoughts will try to convince you that you are subject the pain and it will try to have you think about the current condition of your physical body and mind. You must keep your mind on Jesus, by considering not your own physical body.

Romans 4:18-21
18 Who against hope believed in hope, that he might become the father of many nations; according to that which was spoken, So shall thy seed be.
19 And being not weak in faith, he considered not his own body now dead, when he was about an hundred years old, neither yet the deadness of Sara's womb:
20 He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God;
21 And being fully persuaded that, what he had promised, he was able also to perform. KJV

If there is really no physical problem with your body and to the best of your knowledge you are in good health, your physical body should not be your concern. We just read about why the faith of Abraham was so strong, it was because he did not consider his own body now dead. Although our physical bodies are not really dead to life, we should considered them dead to sin and dead to sickness, disease and discomfort. The word “dead” used in that scripture simply means his body or her body does not respond to the normal natural process of pregnancy. For us as Believer our body shouldn’t respond to the things of the world (sin, sickness, disease, worry, care, etc….). Your body responds to the Holy Word of God and that is what it is suppose to respond to. As a Christian your body is alive unto God’s Promise of comfort, period. As a Christian consider your body unaffected by unreasonable pain and mental torment but responsive to the comfort and peace of God. God’s Word of Power produces the good results of strength, health and peace to your spirit, soul and body in the Name of Jesus even when the natural circumstances states it can’t. You are healed, whole and delivered in the Name of Jesus, just remember that on purpose and except nothing less.

Romans 4:19-22
19 And Abraham's faith did not weaken, even though he knew that he was too old to be a father at the age of one hundred and that Sarah, his wife, had never been able to have children.
20 Abraham never wavered in believing God's promise. In fact, his faith grew stronger, and in this he brought glory to God.
21 He was absolutely convinced that God was able to do anything he promised. NLT

The problem really lies in what is going on in your mind, because if you believe the pain in your body is so intense that you can not think right or do anything, you will act that way. The opposite of that is thinking upon God’s Word and His Power and acting upon those thoughts. The more you keep your thoughts upon the goodness and blessing of God the less influence the thoughts of pain will have on your physical body. Remember Isaiah 26:3-4

3 Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee.
4 Trust ye in the LORD for ever: for in the LORD JEHOVAH is everlasting strength: KJV

This scripture again tells us that your mind must be thinking right and your words and actions should correspond to the truths of God's Word. The Word of God works period, all the time and for everyone in the earth today. Developing your heart will hasten the production (fruit) of God's Word because the power of God is fully manifested by more than just one thing. For example the Holy Bible tells us in Jude 20-21

20 But ye, beloved, building up yourselves on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Ghost,
21 Keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life. KJV

This tells me that when I pray in tongues my faith is enhanced. With that knowledge I choose to make a conscious effort to speak (pray) in tongues on a regular basis, if necessary every day. Praying in tongues while reading your Holy Bible is wonderful and accomplishes two things at once. My mind is renewed by the reading of God's Word, while at the same time my spirit is edified by praying in tongues. This praying in tongues also stirs up the joy and peace of God. The joy and peace of God will enhance your faith also by allowing your mind to be clear to accurate hear from God. We have written about quite a few different issues in this article let us summarize exactly what you need to do for overcoming pain using aggressive faith.

1) Believe that God's Will for your life is to be free from pain.

2) Develop a lifestyle that includes a regular profession of God's deliverance to establish your stance.
Job 22:27-28
27 Thou shalt make thy prayer unto him, and he shall hear thee, and thou shalt pay thy vows.
28 Thou shalt also decree a thing, and it shall be established unto thee: and the light shall shine upon thy ways. KJV

Example - That you Jesus for taking all pain, so I don't have any.
Example - I always walk in great comfort in the Name of Jesus
Example - Nothing on this earth can ever stop me from enjoying the promises of God.
Example – I am not afraid of any pain, because I am strong in the Lord and the Power of His Might.
Example – My body is the temple of the Holy Ghost, therefore no evil thing has any place in me in Jesus Name.
etc....
3) Develop a habit of praising God no matter how you feel in your body.

4) Spend time reading God's Word on a daily basis to know what you ought to do each day, sometimes God will show you something important while you are fellowshipping with Him.

5) Develop a habit of praying in tongues to strengthen your faith in God

6) Purpose to be joyful all the time, because the joy of the Lord is our strength.

7) Never give thought to pain coming upon you in the future, resist those thoughts by speaking out loud God’s Word or your statement of faith in the Name of Jesus.
(If you don’t resist evil - fear, worry, dread, and doubt of God's healing power will take root in your mind and thrive in that negative atmosphere).

Doing those several things maybe enough to keep chronic unreasonable pain away from your body, but if pain does try to manifest in your physical body simply identify the root cause of your pain, by knowing if it is physically related or a spiritually unexplainable attack. If physical pray first, see doctor if necessary or follow the best option for you. If spiritual pray specifically by rebuking the pain and commanding it where to go. Remember you need to command that pain in the Name of Jesus, the stronger your faith, the lesser the doubt and the easier it will be for you to receive God's comfort.

Example: Pain I resist you by the Blood of Jesus, now be thou removed and cast into the sea in the Name of Jesus.

Now if possible start praising and singing to God out loud for season (however much time you need) to keep your head straight. Keeping your head straight means your mind is not worried, concerned, or careful about the pain because you know you are healed (pain free). If you are at work or in a public place where you can't just stop whatever you are doing and begin praising God purpose to focus on your task at hand to keep your mind off any pain. When I am in this position of being at work and pain is upon my body I know to rebuke the pain first, then I start quietly saying that I am whole and pain has no part or lot in my body in the Name of Jesus. If you prefer thinking on a song of His goodness and quietly singing it that would be just as powerful. This helps to keep us focus and endure any attack that comes against our body. I know I am not trying to get healing from God, because God's Word has already told me that I am the healed, I am in total comfort, all I need to do is resist this pain and the thoughts that come to my mind about the pain. This method of receiving relief from pain through the reception of God's Word and power has been proven by His people and validated by His Word. It does not work for the unbeliever, the worry wart, the doubter or the lazy person who only wants a quick fix. This will always work for the person who develops a lifestyle of loving God's Word while they love other people and develop their faith. We will not say this way is always the best way for your specific situation, but we will say that it is an option. We have proven by the scripture references given earlier that God wants you perfectly pain free and we believe that you want to be pain free and that my faith friend is attainable through Jesus Christ. If the pain is a direct result of an abnormal physical condition we have no problem with using natural solutions (doctor's and/or medicines) to receive your healing. However, if the pain is due to spiritual reasons Jesus maybe your only solution for complete deliverance.

Isaiah 53:4-5
4 Surely He has borne our griefs (sicknesses, weaknesses, and distresses) and carried our sorrows and pains [of punishment], yet we [ignorantly] considered Him stricken, smitten, and afflicted by God [as if with leprosy]. [Matt 8:17.]
5 But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our guilt and iniquities; the chastisement [needful to obtain] peace and well-being for us was upon Him, and with the stripes [that wounded] Him we are healed and made whole. AMP

The Word of God can not lie and since Jesus took your pain we pray that you don't take it also. Remember Jesus came that you might be pain free and enjoy comfort more abundantly. Amen!

John 10:10
The thief comes only in order to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have and enjoy life, and have it in abundance (to the full, till it overflows). AMP

In His Love, Eric & Angela Foster

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