Heal The Land 1. 60 min. I am Bible Teacher Herman Parks, and I will be your host for this next hour of intercessory prayer. Please feel welcome to join me in these intersecory prayers during these trouple times. This foram is for the predominate purpose of inerceeding on behalf of God's people through prayer. To pray ye one for another. Mostly, to pray for the land. That is to pray for those issues which plegue us collectively, which are called strong holds. Let us pray. Heavenly father, we come to you 1st and foremost in the spirit of Thanksgiving and intercessory prayer. We thank you for what you have done, what you are doing, and what you are yet to do in our lives. We thank you that we are more today than we were yesterday. We thank you for your word, which say's if we draw close to you, you will draw close to us. Thus we make an on purpose, and deliberate decision to draw closer to you. Secondly, and equally important, I want to thank you for your word. That word that forces us to think differently. That word that declares that “ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”; that word that declares that, "If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed." That word that declares that if we your people, who are called by your name, would humble ourselves, pray, and turn from our wicked ways, that you would heal our land. That word that declares that salvation and healing is the same idea. To be more precise, it is the same Greek word; "sozo", S, O, Z, O,. That is to save, to deliver or protect, to heal, to preserve, to do well, or to make whole. I want to thank you for your word that declares that you would no more save some people and not others, than you would heal some people and not others. Your word that declares that you are not a respecter of persons; but you are a respecter of faith. If we have the faith of Abraham we can expect the blessings of Abraham. Let me say right up front. I am not the perfect example. I have not arrived, but I have left. Lord when visiting my grand-daughter at the hospital, my only grand-daughter, I found myself in the mist of a maternity ward filled with children born blind in a manner of speaking, and it took me some time to overcome my own grief, that is my own disbelief. Lord the question was asked to you, why are some people born blind. Then you answered, so that the glory of God can be revealed. That is to say that the reason these children were born blind was so that men, not God, but men utilizing the power of God, can heal those children. That is men who are part of the group labeled as those who believe. Lord you said in your word, "Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth. The text says "I wish above all things, not some things, but all things; that you might prosper and be in good health". That is not the attitude of the basic Christian today. Instead many have actually embraced sickness, thinking that in some cases it is something good that God has sent. Lord you never taught healing, you just did it. Nevertheless, we have 2,000 years of bad teaching in this area. These traditions and doctrines of men are so ingrained in our thinking that you cannot even mention Paul's thorn in the flesh, without many people immediately beginning to think the wrong things about it. An incorrect scripture interpretation, which is a major obstacle to the wrong thinking that you God are the one who puts sickness on us, is the interpretation of Paul's teaching about his thorn in the flesh. I do not believe that the bible teaches that you gave Paul some eye problem, and that you would not heal Paul because you wanted Paul to stay sick in order to humble him. Therefore, God you sometimes put sickness on us in order to teach us something. This is the traditional religious interpretation. I believe that the reason why people teach that is, because it is a convenient theology. We have to want to believe it to find it in scripture, because the scripture makes it very clear that Paul's thorn in the flesh was not from you, oh Lord, rather it was a messenger of Satan. Sickness and disease is a tool of the devil. God you do not have to use the tools of the devil to teach us. You use your word. Lord, if we did not already have a bias and prejudice, if this had not been taught against so much, I do not believe that people could get from these scriptures what religion has taught. Nevertheless, once it is taught, and once it is mentioned over and over, we cannot even mention Paul's thorn in the flush without people getting this misconception. Lord your word, in 2 Corinthians 12:7 says; "And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure." Lord you said clearly, this thorn in the flesh was given to Paul by a messenger of Satan to buffet Paul, not a messenger of God. Nevertheless, despite what you said in your word, religion has turned this around and said that this was from you Lord, that you willed it. What part of the messenger of Satan is not understood. Lord, the word for messenger is the exact same Greek word that is translated angel. Lord you are clearly talking about a demonic angel came and afflicted Paul and buffeted him. The word buffeted means to strike over repeatedly. For example the waves buffet the shore. They hit and recede, and come back and hit again. Lord, you are talking about Paul was just hit with this messenger of Satan, over and over. Now there are some things here that on the surface when we look at it they might make us think that this came from you Oh God, but it very clearly says that it was the messenger of Satan and that should trump anything else. Here is one of those things that make some people think that this is from you Lord. Paul said lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh. Therefore, the purpose of this thorn in the flesh was to debase Paul because of pride. Sometimes, people just automatically assume that God is the only one that wants to debase people. Satan also wants to debase people whom God has exalted. Lord we know that there is a wrong type of exaltation or pride, and you resist the proud. Nevertheless, there is a Godly type of exaltation. In Joshua chapter one, Lord you told Joshua, every place that you set the sole of your feet, I am going to be with you. The same promises I made to Moses, I am going to make to you. Then you told Joshua, I am going to exalt you in the eyes of the Israelites, so that they may know that I am with you as I was with Moses. So God, you talked about exalting Joshua. There is a Godly type of exaltation. You also said over in 1 Peter 5, "humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that I might exalt you in due time. It was this Godly type of exaltation that Satan buffeted Paul against. Satan came against Paul to keep him from being magnified, or glorified in the sight of people. Paul went in and saw miricles and people healed; and the people fell down and began to worship him or exalt him because they saw the power of God operating in him. Satan continuously attacked Paul in order to stop people from honoring Paul. God you exalted, or magnified, Joshua in the sight of the Israelites so that they would respect him and follow his leadership. Lord when Paul said in 2 Corinthians 12:7; "And lest I should be exalted above measure" this is not speaking of Paul having a pride problem that you had to deal with through affliction. This is speaking about Paul being so respected and honored in the sight of people that Satan had to do something to make Paul and his Gospel less attractive. He did that through persecution. The devil gave Paul a "thorn in the flesh" to keep him from being exalted in the eyes of people. Paul made it very clear that this "thorn in the flesh" came because of the abundance of revelations he had received. So, those of us who are claiming to have a thorn like Paul's would also have to have a similar number of revelations. Paul's revelations produced about one-half of the New Testament scriptures and one of the greatest missionary thrusts the church has ever had. Until we receive revelations that are proportional to Paul's, we should not hide behind Paul's thorn in the flesh. Lord, your word declares that the phrase "thorn in the flesh" was not original with Paul. It was an Old Testament term that referred to the negative influence, that ungodly people had, on righteous people. In Numbers 33:55, Moses said, "But if ye will not drive out the inhabitants of the land from before you; then it shall come to pass, that those which ye let remain of them shall be pricks in your eyes, and thorns in your sides, and shall vex you in the land wherein ye dwell". Joshua 23:13 says, "Know for a certainty that the LORD your God will no more drive out any of these nations from before you; but they shall be snares and traps unto you, and scourges in your sides, and thorns in your eyes, until ye perish from off this good land which the LORD your God hath given you". Judges 2:3 says, "Wherefore I also said, I will not drive them out from before you; but they shall be as thorns in your sides, and their gods shall be a snare unto you". Paul drew on Old Testament terminology to refer to the persecution he had suffered. Lord, there has been much debate about what Paul's thorn in the flesh was. Many of us, your people, who are called by your name, believe it was sickness sent from God to keep Paul humble. That was not the case. Paul's thorn in the flesh was persecution that came from the devil, to make people think twice about accepting the Gospel, because of the persecution that accompanied it. One of the reasons people think Paul's thorn was sickness is because of the use of the word "infirmities" in 2 Corinthians 12:9-10. They presume "infirmities" is referring to some type of sickness. However, as explained in 2 Corinthians 12:9, Paul made it very clear in this verse that Satan was the author of this thorn, not you. The reason you did not take Paul's thorn away was not because you wanted to afflict Paul; it was because believers are not redeemed from persecution. Paul later stated this when Paul stated "Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution." Lord, if you had stopped all persecution against your followers, Saul would have died before he became the Apostle Paul. Paul was one of the leaders of the persecution against Christians. God you did not redeem Stephen from persecution, but you used it to glorify yourself, and prick the heart of the future Apostle Paul. Therefore, you do not redeem us from all persecution. You even love those who persecute us, just as you loved those who persecuted you. You desire the conversion of our persecutors, not their judgment. The American Heritage Dictionary defines the word "buffet" as "to hit or beat, especially repeatedly." This is describing the work of this messenger of Satan as being a repeated action. Paul suffered persecution everywhere he went. If Paul's thorn was a sickness, it would have to have been repeatedly given and retracted to carry the full meaning of this word "buffet." But Lord, your scripture clearly states that it was not a disease, but the messenger of Satan, sent to repeatedly strike against Paul. Paul spoke of these attacks as being reproaches, persecutions, and distresses for the sake of Christ. Again the word "infirmities" in context is referring to persecution, not sickness, partly because of the use of, the word buffet, in "there was given to me a thorn in the flesh to buffet me." Lord, sometimes I wonder, why Paul would pray three times to have this persecution removed. It is possible that Paul accepted persecution as an inevitable part of the Christian life but was not sure he had to put up with a demonic spirit that incited this persecution. God you told Paul that your grace would be sufficient and that you would use these persecutions to display your strength in Paul. Once Paul saw this, he actually took pleasure in the persecutions he suffered, knowing that you would get the ultimate glory. As I stand before you oh Lord, I confess that I have sinned and done wrong and acted wickedly, by not fully believing your word; thinking God can heal, and even sometimes people do get healed, nevertheless although we may accept healing on a random basis, yet to come out with a statement that healing is, in your will, for us, that it is part of the atonement, it is not just for some people, it is for every person, all the time. As a whole, I, and the body of Christ, had rejected that. Now when I say the body of Christ, there are churches that are doing a marvelous job, but a large segment of the church is falling short in this area. Lord, healing is for everyone, is not the attitude of the basic Christian today. That is, this is not the attitude of many of your people, who are called by your name, that is us who are called Christians. Instead many of us have actually embraced sickness, thinking that in some cases it is something good that God has sent, or allowed, in order to perfect us, never really knowing; although your word declares that "these things are written for our learning". Nevertheless, we declare that we can not know anything, unless we have been through something. Lord, help our disbelieve. Lord you know that I am trying to change as fast as I can. This confession is a major step in that direction, for our private practice defines our public performance. Again I thank you for your word, which gives us the confidence to believe that we are what you say that we are, more than conquerors. Jesus you showed us what it is like to be more than a conqueror. You did not just conquer death on the cross, you put death to shame. People actually got up out of the grave, and walked the earth, and were seen by many. For Lord your word says, that as you are so are we in this world. Lord you said, that the things that you do we will do also. You said, that these signs will follow them that believe: that they would heal the sick, caused the blind to see, and raise the dead. You said, that fully preaching the gospel, is follow by signs and wonders. As we abide in you, and you abide in us, our expectations are consistent with your word. For everything is held together by the power of your word. It is true, that you can do anything but lie. It is also true that you could not go against your word. For if you did, then everything which is held together, would fall apart. For thou hast magnified thy word above all thy name. This is the confidence that we have in your word. For he that descended, is the same that ascended. Upon your ascension you said, now all power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. That is, now, in contrast to before, all power is given unto me as a man, because I already had all power as God. Now, the authority which Adam had is now given unto me as a man. Because this is true, you said, in my name I am authorizing you to go ye therefore and teach all nations. That is go ye therefore and make disciples of men, make apprentices of men, duplicate yourself. When you teach them, teach them all things, including healing the sick, causing the blind to see, and raising the dead. Now because we have the authority of Jesus Christ, we can say to the devil with confidence, Jesus you know, Paul you know, and now, me you know. More precisely we can say with confidence that when we use the authority of Jesus, that the devil cannot tell the difference between us and Jesus. You said in your word that we overcome the devil by the blood. That is we overcome the devil by what you did on the cross. We could say, that we overcome the devil by someone else's blood and not our own blood. That is Jesus's blood. Furthermore, we overcome the devil by the words of our testimony. That is we overcome the devil by the words that we use, that is, what we do or say. Not only us, but others overcome the devil by our testimony or by our words. For Jesus, your word declares that these things are written for our learning. We do not have to bang our heads up against the wall to know that banging our heads up against a wall is not a good thing to do. True, we can learn from our own experiences. Nevertheless, learning from the experiences of others is a better way to learn, because we do not have to get all beat up and torn down in order to learn. Often times, we simply do not survive the beating. Therefore, Lord I pray that he that has an ear, let him hear. Let us rise to the point that we can learn from other people's experiences. Lord you said that if we your people, who are called by your name, that is the name of Christians, humble ourselves, and pray, and seek your face, that you would heal our land. Lord, there are problems that we have as a people. There are problems that we have because we are Christians. Lord you said that my people perish because of a lack of knowledge. The devil beats up on us because we are Christians. Lord there are some things that happen on this earth, in this land, that we, even I, need to exercise the authority that you have entrusted us with. We, even I am here to enforce the covenants, what you and Jesus have spoken on the earth. This we can do through intercessory prayer. God you are looking for those that you can partner with, to accomplish what you want to do on the earth. "For your eyes run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show yourself strong on behalf of those whose heart is loyal to you." You said that, then you will raise up for yourself a faithful priest who shall do according to what is in your heart and in your mind." God you are looking for individuals who are willing to stand in the gap to fulfill your purposes and enforce your covenant on the earth. For Lord you said, "So I sought for a man among them who would make a wall, and stand in the gap before Me on behalf of the land, that I should not destroy it; but I found no one." Lord it is true that standing in the gap is intercession. Lord, I believe that standing in the gap also means that believers are standing in the gap for unrighteousnes, even as Daniel prayed for his nation. It means becoming the solution to unrighteousness. Us believers become the salt and light that is going to allow culture to be shaped and transformed so that Jesus does not have to judge that people or nation. We are to fill the gap. Lord, evil still exists on the earth through Satan, but God you have given the "lease" on earth back to us through the blood covenant of Jesus. However, we must exercise it, to see the manifestation of the covenant promises. God you are waiting on your people, who are called by your name to exercise their authority to bring these things into being. Jesus one of your last instructions was the passing of your authority to those of us on earth. Our role is to enforce your will through prayer by claiming your promises and defeating the works of the enemy. Jesus, you came to defeat the works of the enemy. "For this purpose you were manifested, that You might destroy the works of the devil." We, too, are called to defeat the works of the enemy on earth. We do not have to ask what your will is in many situations because you have already stated your will. We are here to enforce your will through intercessory prayer. Unless we do this, we will not see the manifestation of your will and purposes on the earth. That is why prayer exists. You limited your authority on earth based on our involvement to pray your covenantal promises into existence. Many things on earth do not happen because we your representatives are failing to pray it into existence. You refuse to act without your representatives, using their authority through prayer and spiritual warfare to activate your desired will. In another sense Lord, in reference to if we your people called by your name, Lord God, you said in reference to Jesus your son, that I will give him a name above all other names. In the Septu-agint when referring to you Lord God, and when referring to you Lord Jesus, Jesus was given the name Curios. Jesus was given the name of God the father which is a name above all other names. This gives me the confidence that you, my God, have given us a way to be healed of those problems that we face as a people. The devil makes an on purpose and deliberate decision to steal the word that we have heard. Nevertheless, the word declares that if we resist the devil he will flee from us. For what did the demons say to Jesus? Have you come to destroy us before our time? They were afraid of you Jesus, and if we correctly use your name, and your authority, then again I say, the demons can't tell the difference between you and us. As they were afraid of you they will be afraid of us. For the word says if they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you. Again I say, if they were afraid of you, they will be afraid of us. Blessed be the name of the Lord. In relationship to us being healed of those problems that we face as a people, your word says be angry but sin not. Jesus, just as you became angry when your house was turned into a den of thieves, we to, should become angry when the devil comes to steal from us, the word that we have heard. We should not let the sun go down on our wrath. That is, we should not become complacent at the situation. For your word declares that the kingdom of heaven suffereth violence, and the violent take it by force. That is they do not become complacent. For before the foundation of the world, all spiritual blessings were placed in heavenly places. For God you created the world in 6 days. Within those 6 days, you placed all of our spiritual blessings in heavenly places. It is incumbent upon us to sift through those spiritual places, find the blessing which we are seeking, and take it by force. We do not have to create it. In a manner of speaking we do not even have to speak it into existence. It has already been created. It has already been spoken into existence. All we have to do is say to our situation what you God has already said. We must speak to our mountain about our God, not speak to God about our mountain. We don't have to speak to God about the devil. We do not need to say, God get the devil off of my back. Rather, we should speak to the devil about our God. We must speak to the fig tree about our God instead of speaking to God about the fig tree. Jesus, you said that you only do what your father does. You only say what your father has said. Father your word says that words are things, and things are words, devar. The word declares that there is no difference between the word and its manifestation. For faith is the substance of things unseen. Faith is more than confidence. It is substance. For God, you used your faith to speak the universe into existence. Just as there is no difference between the Jew and the Gentile, there is no difference between our faith and its manifestation, when we use the words that you my God used. Father the path to your righteousness is the same for the Jew as it is for the Gentile. That path to your righteousness is the faith of Jesus Christ. It is not by our faith that we get to your righteousness. For our faith was as dirty rags, but it is by the faith of Jesus Christ which he gave every man the measure of. Jesus, it is not our faith but your faith. Therefore we can have confidence that when you Jesus say, the things that I do, you will also do, is true. The things that you, Jesus did, you did by your faith. Therefore, if we use your faith, we can do the things that you did. Likewise, there is no difference between our faith and its manifestation, and your faith God, and its manifestation, when we use the words that you my God used. To God be the glory. I pray these things in the name of Jesus, in the authority of Jesus. So let it be. Amen.