- All right, well welcomeback to the show, everyone.

Many Christians at one pointhave faced unanswered prayers,

and this is somethinga lot of nonbelievers

hold against God as well.

So, Gordon, I wanted to ask you.

I mean, this is...

I feel like this is avery universal question

that believers and nonbelievers ask:

Why are some people healed?

and why are some people not healed?

- [Gordon] Uh, the short answer and the,

it's a really short answer is,

I don't know.

Um, and you can really get lost in this.

and...

I'll just tell you someexamples from my life.

There was a dear friendof mine, worked for CBN,

and he had cancer of theesophagus and he was healed of it.

and he goes on a missiontrip to Delhi in India

and unfortunately gets typhoid,

and, um...

the healing from cancer was a miracle.

It was absolutely, incredible miracle,

restored perfect health and cancer-free,

the doctors, you know...

So he goes to India, he picks up typhoid,

and his immune system gets weakened

and bang, the cancer comes back

- [Ashley] Wow.

- [Gordon] full bore andit's very aggressive.

I prayed for him and really got a word

and, you know, God spoke tome and I delivered it to him,

you know, you are living andthe cancer in you is dying.

It was...

He received it with great joy.

There was a remissionfor a period of time,

and then it really came back hard

and...

he died.

So, you know, what do you do with that?

- [Ashley] Yeah.

- [Gordon] And, you know, I had to,

I had to go to God with that and,

"Okay, you gave me a word,I delivered the word.

I did

what I thought you wanted me to do.

Why?"

And it was interesting the response I got.

His symptoms were screaming at him.

So so often

that word

can become unprofitable

because you're overwhelmed.

- [Ashley] Yeah.

- [Gordon] And it's not acondemnation of anyone cause...

You can get into the basic scripture

where uh,

a man has a demon-possessed son

and it was just horriblewhat would happen to him,

The demon would throwthe son into the fire

and the disciples had been commissioned,

like you and I are commissionedto go heal the sick,

and they couldn't do it.

and Jesus had to stepin and they asked him,

"Why couldn't we?"

- [Ashley] Yeah.

- [Gordon] And His answer's pretty blunt:

"Because of your unbelief."

- [Ashley] Wow.

- [Gordon] Um, that can be very condemning

to people who are dying.

- [Ashley] Yeah, mm-hmm.

- [Gordon] You know well,you're not believing enough.

- [Ashley] Yeah.

- [Gordon] And I don't want that

to ever be part of the conversation,

that you died because youdidn't have enough faith.

But there is a difference in faith

and...

You know, there's thiswonderful Greek word,

you know, it's both a noun

and there's a verb tense to faith,

but I've read through the New Testament

and all the different uses of that word,

whether in verb form or in noun form,

and unfortunately, youcould read all of it

and really not understandwhat faith really is,

and the writers in the New Testament

are talking to a New Testament community

that has had an experience of faith,

and we have all had thatexperience as believers.

We've all had a miraculous encounter

to understand that oursins have been forgiven

and that we've been translatedfrom the kingdom of darkness

to the Kingdom of light.

but the faith

that that, how does that then operate

in the gifts of the spirit

and whether that's in terms

of word of wisdom or wordof knowledge or healing

or any of the gifts?

How does that operate?

and many times,

it's cause people aren'ttaught how to use it.

- [Ashley] Wow.

- [Gordon] When you lookat all the instances

of that word faith,

it's you don't really comeaway with a definition

that you can use because they'retalking about an experience

and it's much the same as, you know,

what does a peach taste like?

Well, if you've never tasteda peach, you don't know,

but when you have tasted it,then, oh, that's what it is

and this is how it worksand this is where it goes.

E.W. Kenyon put out some books,boy almost 100 years ago,

and he talks about thedifference between mental assent,

where mentally you agree,

Jesus died for you

and by His stripes you are healed

and he has carried awayall your infirmities

and all your diseases.

There's a mental assent thatsays, okay, I agree with that.

- [Ashley] Yeah.

- [Gordon] That's okay.

- [Ashley] Yeah.

- [Gordon] But it'sdifferent than you're all in

and your gut reaction isGod's going to do a miracle.

- [Ashley] Wow.

- [Gordon] So you canactually hear unbelief

in how people pray,

- [Ashley] Yeah.

- where um, Lord if it be your will,

which is,

huh?

(giggles)

You know, God's will is always to heal

and it's clear in scripture,but in your very prayer

you're denying it.

What part of the crucifixiondon't you understand?

I mean, do the Roman soldiersreally have to beat Jesus more

for you to finally get that

you know,

by his stripes, you are healed.

You're asking for something more.

- [Ashley] Wow.

Or the number of times they say well,

I'm going to pray for a period.

You know, its the length of my prayer,

or how long have I fasted or,you know, these other things,

you know, fasting is good.

Prayer is good, Bible study is good.

- [Ashley] Yeah.

- [Gordon] What they dois you deny your flesh

and you are able to

perceive things on a spirituallevel that you weren't when

you weren't denying your flesh

but it doesn't add anymore power to the cross.

- [Ashley] Yeah.

- [Gordon] So when doesmental assent become action?

When does mental value cause faith

in the new testaments is a verb.

So...its a noun and a verb

when does it become action?

When do you act like you believe?

- [Ashley] wow.

- [Gordon] When is it not,no longer wishing, hoping,

you know,

wanting,

desire

but a realization,

and when you realize

that you walk into the words of Jesus,

when you stay in play praying,

believed that you have already received,

and you will have it when you have that,

you have miracle power.