The latest apostlette usurping God's power and sovereignty...

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(No longer drink only water, but use a little wine for the sake of your stomach and your frequent ailments.) - 1Timothy 5:23 (ESV)

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The above link is to a new Charisma News article advocating for healing on demand. Much like Bill Johnson and other heretics before him, Sandra Smith simply does not understand the bible. What can you expect from someone who brags in her bio that she "carries the mantle of apostle and prophet" and who has written a book entitled, "Reflections of a Conqueror." It is important for us who need to discern how to spot the specious biblical arguments Sandra and her ilk always make. It is important for our own faith and understanding of who God is and what He has done for us. So, let us reason together through this article with our bible and hearts opened.

"We can learn from the woman in the book of Luke who was hunched over for 18 years. The Bible says, "Then should not this woman, being a daughter of Abraham whom Satan has bound these eighteen years, be loosed from this bondage on the Sabbath?" (Luke 13:16). We can learn so much from this verse. First, Jesus called sickness bondage. We do not know the specific disease this woman had; it could have been crippling arthritis. But we do know the Bible called it a spirit of infirmity. Whatever it was, Jesus never called her sickness a blessing. He also did not say, "should not this woman who God has blessed these 18 years ..." No. God's blessing was in sending Jesus to loose the woman from her infirmity. The truth is God never had anything good to say about sickness. In fact, He detested it so much He sent His own Son Jesus to bear all the sickness of the world upon Himself." - Sandra Smith

When we approach the bible to reaffirm what we already believe we are not seeking to hear from God. The point of the story with the woman affirmed with a spirit of disability is not the healing but rather to teach the hypocritical Pharisees about the true spirit of the law. Only the Pharisaical spirit can complain when someone who has been sick for 18 years is healed. Their complaint of course was not sincere as it was more a way of trying to condemn Jesus by accusing Him of violating the Sabbath. Even though Smith misses the point, let's review what she believes she sees in this passage. It is true that Jesus referred to this woman's suffering as bondage but the bible clearly says it was a spirit of disability, not arthritis. Smith is trying to assign a common ailment from today so she can extrapolate out the actions of Jesus to all sickness. The text does not indicate anything close to that. I am unsure why she becomes fixated on people who believe sickness is a blessing as I do not recall any Christian making that argument. What Jesus detested was sin and the bondage that accompanies it. Sickness comes as a direct result of sin but in typical Charismaniacal fashion, Smith pays lip service to the real problem in her pursuit of healing on demand. The sickness of the world was not arthritis. It was and remains sin.

"Sickness was never called a blessing in the Bible, and anyone who calls it a blessing today does not know what the Bible says. If sickness and disease are from God, then Jesus was fighting against God when He healed people. If sickness and disease are from God, then Jesus robbed God of His glory when He called sickness a bondage of Satan. Thank God the Bible sets us free from wrong thinking and wrong believing, so we can enjoy the blessings of healing, health and wholeness. Sickness is a bondage from Satan, clear and simple! God wants you, as a believer, to live free of sickness and pain, but it is up to you to choose to walk in health today." - Sandra Smith

Sickness and disease are not from God but He allows them. God's permissive will reminds us that He is ultimately in control of all things within His creation. The real crime committed here is Sandra takes a truth that applies to this one woman and applies it to everyone. Jesus never called all sickness bondage from Satan. People suffer from the flu every year yet do we really believe they are in bondage? Does God really desire that every believer live a life free sickness and pain? Consider the key verse for today. Paul reveals that Timothy suffers from frequent stomach related ailments! Does he chastise his young prote'ge' for his lack of faith? Does he wonder why Timothy must struggle in bondage when Jesus promised us a sick-free life? No. Instead he gives him some sound advice to take a little wine, which can help with such conditions. That's odd? Why would Paul instruct Timothy to do such if we were all promised uber-healing whenever we need it? Perhaps because we are promised no such thing. What Smith does here is so cruel, no matter how unintentional. By declaring that it is up to you to walk in health, she sets believers up to shipwreck their own faith by blaming themselves if they do not receive the healing she promises. Beloved, God is always sovereign. He can heal but that does not mean He must.

"So many believers are in the sickness prison, and the enemy has them believing that the prison door is locked, the key thrown away. But the blood of Jesus shed for us put that lie to shame! "The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me because the Lord has anointed me to preach good news to the poor; He has sent me to heal the broken-hearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound" (Isa. 61:1). The phrase, "the opening of the prison," is God's metaphorical way of saying that we have been released from the bondage of Satan. That includes sin, sickness, disease and torment--everything that is involved with Satan's prison house. The prison door was opened through the redemptive act of Jesus Christ. And whatever we need--spiritually, mentally, emotionally or financially--has been provided by that act." - Sandra Smith

Keep in mind that I am not advocating for accepting illness and not seeking God for healing. The bible is clear that if we are sick we should call for the elders of the church to pray the prayer of faith over us. The problem is when we start assuming God must heal us. That somehow He has promised all believers to never be sick. This is an absurd premise that infects the body of Christ today. Smith quotes Isaiah 61:1 but again misses the point. When using the word healing Isaiah ascribes it to the broken-hearted, not the infirmed. That is what the Gospel does! Consider the explanation of liberty for the captives from Gill's Exposition:

"to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening, of the prison to them that are bound; to such who were captives to sin, Satan, and the law, and as it were prisoners to them, shut up by them, and in them, and held fast there; but Christ, as he is the author of liberty; obtains it for his people, and makes them free with it, so he proclaims it in the Gospel; a liberty from sin, from the damning and governing power of it; a freedom from the curse and condemnation of the law; a deliverance from Satan, as of a prey from the mighty, or as of prisoners from the prison house." - Gill's Exposition of the Bible

Smith rushes to include sickness in with the bondage from sin and in doing so glosses over sin, which is the entire point. We love this world because it is all we know and as such we often miss the eternal truths for the pursuit of mortal promises. The truth is that our freedom in Christ transcends this world. Should we pray? Absolutely. Should we demand healing from the creator of the entire universe? Tread lightly!

"We constantly see that even though the prison door is open, the devil has been successful at keeping countless people inside. Many of them have accepted Christ as their Savior and have received salvation. They have received the spiritual benefits of the redemptive plan of God. But the devil has kept many of these Christians deceived regarding the physical inheritance that was bought for them on the cross and is rightfully theirs." - Sandra Smith

This is dangerously arrogant theology. God did not send His Son to die for our physical or mental illnesses. There is zero biblical support for that thinking. He sent His only Son for our spiritual sickness. Isn't that enough? God so loved the world He didn't want to see them suffering from arthritis? Stomach ailments? No. God so loved the world because we were His creation and we were separated from Him due to sin, no other reason. The problem is that sin is no longer preached today. The atoning blood is no longer sang about in churches. Instead the focus is on this world and our comforts in this life. We seek blessings that are entirely carnal in nature. Is it any wonder then that we would focus on sicknesses in this world?

"Why did Jesus open the prison door for us? According to Moffatt's translation of Isaiah 61:1, it was "to tell prisoners they are free, to tell captives they are released." How did Jesus open the prison door for us? By bearing the punishment for our sins. We see that in Isaiah 53. Young's Literal Translation of the Holy Bible records the last part of Isaiah 53:6 as "Jehovah hath caused to meet on him, the punishment of us all." In Deuteronomy 28, all sickness is listed among the punishments. And God tells us in Galatians 3:13 that we have been redeemed from those punishments. In Rotherham's translation of Isaiah 53:10 we read, "He laid on him sickness." Matthew 8:17 says, "He Himself took our infirmities and bore our sicknesses." So, you see, according to Scriptures, Jesus paid our debt. And because He did, we do not have to pay it. It is already paid in full." - Sandra Smith

Putting aside the need to hopscotch through dubious translations of the bible, let us instead focus on the biblical sleight of hand Smith traffics in here. Because she is seeking validation, she continues to miss the point even though it is slapping her in the face as she tries to shoehorn it into her poor theology. Let's go back to basics so we are not confused. The original plan of God was for His people to obey the Mosaic Law. The benefits of obedience and the curses for disobedience are found in Deuteronomy 28, which Smith references here. It is true that all sorts of sickness were listed among the various curses. It is also true that Jesus bore our infirmities, but again these are spiritual in nature. He came to complete the law that no one could keep. The law convicts us before a holy God of our sins and the Good News (Gospel) is that Jesus came to deliver us from that judgment. To set us free from the captivity of our sin that would have led to eternal judgment if based upon the Mosaic Law. What Galatians 3 redeems us from is the law, not sickness. It means we will be judged by the finished work of the cross instead of our sins from breaking God's law. That does not mean that we will now never get sick. It means that our sin-sickness will no longer condemn us.

'"Thank God, Jesus stepped up and said, "I will endure the pain of the cross; I will endure the stripes on My back; I will endure the crown of thorns on My head; and I will endure the shameful death of sin and disease so mankind can be free." Today, Jesus is saying, "I have opened the prison doors. You don't have to be bound anymore." My friends, because of the redemptive work on the cross and the precious blood that was shed by our Lord and Savior, as believers, we do not have to suffer anymore because Jesus Christ already suffered for us! He took your sickness and disease so you can be healed and set free. My prayer for you today is that you will get out of the sickness prison and walk out into your God-given destiny.' - Sandra Smith

At the risk of sounding repetitive, Smith continues to conflate our eternal inheritance and redemption from sin with healing on demand. She does so shamelessly. Jesus stepped up? Seriously? This is what happens when you trivialize the work of the cross. What you do not have to be bound by anymore is sin, not sickness. These words are not synonymous. Look throughout Christian history and see that many great theologians and preachers suffered from various conditions. Did they simply miss the big revelation that God gave Sandra Smith? Of course not.

"I rebuke the spirits of infirmity, sickness, disease, pain, addiction, affliction, calamity and premature death trying to operate against you or your loved ones. I rebuke and renounce every attack that is operating in your immune system, every accident spirit and every diabolical spirit that is trying to hinder, frustrate and abort God's plan, purpose and destiny over your life, and I sever them at the root and the fruit in Jesus' Name. Be healed and made whole in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth. Amen!" - Sandra Smith

Now we see the heresy full board. Sandra Smith has no power to rebuke spirits of infirmity, disease, pain, addiction, affliction, calamity, or premature death. Do you know who does? God. This is yet again another manifestation of the sin of Lucifer. The same sin that Eve fell for in the garden. We are the created, not the Creator. We do not have the power of creation in our words as God does. We cannot ascend to the throne. The job is already taken! This word faith gibberish is common among the healing on demand Charismaniacs. One day they will face a real illness and you know what they will do? Go to the doctor. Beloved, God has all power over His creation so He most certainly can heal us. Just think of the staggering arrogance to approach Him demanding that He must. As for Sandra Smith? She is just another in a long line of false apostles and false prophets selling things God never authorized her to. Mark her and do well to avoid her.

Reverend Anthony Wade - May 25, 2021

Authors Bio:
Credentialed Minister of the Gospel for the Assemblies of God. Owner and founder of 828 ministries. Vice President for Goodwill Industries. Always remember that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him and are called according to His purpose.