One last one for Duncan, then one last one for Marie. Since there are no more healing by the laying of hands, I am really wondering how I was healed of cancer, after my pastor did lay hands?
We’re not denying that God can answer prayer and we’re not denying that things can happen which are outside of any medical explanation, e.g. people are healed of cancer. We’re not denying that. However, it’s got to be faced up to that there’s a lot of cures and healings being done by sources other than “Holy Spirit”. There are all sorts of people claiming to do mind over matter things and they do them, as far as I’m concerned. We’re not denying that. For example, there were people who claimed to “speak in tongues” in the sense of ecstatic utterances who were totally not Christian. One does not deny these things happen. What we’re saying is that the miracles that were performed by the Holy Spirit were not related to internal things, for example red blood cells versus white blood cells within the human body. They were clear, visible healings. For example, limbs suddenly appearing, the dead being raised. And “greater works than these shall ye do”, if you really have the miraculous gifts. Don’t forget that. So we’re not denying the power or prayer, but I am drawing attention to the fact that what I’m calling “internal healings” related to diseases, for example like healing from cancer, epilepsy, depression…These things may be cured by various means. It may involve belief in a charismatic individual, for example a pastor who may lay hands on, may not lay hands on…he may pray for example. Say he prays. We’re not denying that those things happen. What we are simply saying is that the gifts of the Holy Spirit which we read of in the New Testament were not curing cancer, were not curing epilepsy, or depression let’s say. They were not curing those things. They were external miracles which involved visible, clear, obvious granting of limbs, wasted limbs suddenly appearing healthy; things like that. And as I said, the raising of the dead. They are the miracles that were performed in the first century and if we now (in this dispensation) have those gifts, they are the things we should be performing.