The Alpha Course is called the “Inspiration Course” (启发 qifa 课程) on the Chinese language video.

Title: Does God Still Heal People

LZ is on a bench outside, talking on the phone with her father. TR walks over with a hot drink and asks whether her father is ill. She says that he is not,  but she calls him everyday to cheer him up.
TR notes that sooner or later, 迟早 everyone will face health problems for themselves or loved ones. They talk about how fragile 脆弱 life seems to be when facing sickness. LZ wonders if God still heals people today.

1:12 Teacher: When I first began reading the Bible, I came to the places where Jesus was healing sickness and casting out devils. Even though I did not doubt the truth of those events, I still felt that they don’t happen in today’s world. I imagined that God healed then because medicine had not yet developed. Later I went to a church in which I saw with my own eyes authentic testimonies of people who had been healed. One of them was a young person named Xiao Jie. She had many small blisters  水泡 on her hands for no reason at all 无缘无故. The were so itchy they woke her up from sleep. Later she went to a doctor who said she had a kind of herpes 疱疹 pàozhěn. This had a high recurrence rate 复发性 a would develop into a chronic 慢性 skin condition. The girl was very anxious.焦虑. Then suddenly she was reminded: “Why haven’t I prayed for God to heal?” So she began to pray. She also had a sense that if she prayed God would heal her. On Sunday, the church’s speaker said:  Today the Lord will heal a person with a skin allergy. The girl was a member of the music team. And was on the stage singing a praise song. When she heard this, even though she had a slight hesitation, she stretched out her hand. Then she felt a light scraping on her skin. After the meeting, amazingly all the blisters had disappeared.

Sometimes it is not just a body, but a heart that God heals supernaturally. When I was leading a church in Germany, a foreign church wrote us a letter asking to pray for our team. They didn’t know our team at all and wanted me to tell them the names of the team members. They didn’t want any other information. After a period of time the church wrote back with what they received in prayer about our team. Every team member had about a thousand words written about them, describing their personality, the problems they faced, and scriptures for them and encouragement. The results were amazing. Everything they described 描述 fit the needs of each person. The words greatly encouraged their hearts. And these two experiences gave me new insights about healing.

3:57 (Hosts walking in a city park)  The Bible says “For I am the Lord who heals you (Exodus 15:26) Healing is in God’s nature. He loves you. He wants you to live a prosperous and full life. 兴盛完整 Jesus’s name means savior. He came to save us from our sins. He brought forgiveness to us. This word also carries the meaning that he came to heal us. He came to heal those with injured hearts. Jesus is willing  to heal. 乐意 He wants to use you and I to bring healing to those around us. When you wipe away 擦去 the tears of the brokenhearted, sooth broken spirits, 安抚破碎的心灵, help up the weak who have fallen, you are living according to the image of God. The Bible says that our words can carry healing. They can fill the broken spaces. We can bring peace, encouragement and forgiveness. Most of the hurts in our lives come from broken relationships. Actually, restoring a relationship can also bring healing. When we, God, and other people establish right relationships, then healing begins. However, when the Bible talks about healing, it points not only to emotional, mental, and spiritual health, but also to physical healing.

5:23 (Testimony) The area around my right temple (太阳穴) is sunken. 凹进去的 Eight years ago I had brain surgery 开颅手术 to remove a tumor about the size of a ping pong ball. That year after I received the CT scan 扫描  检测 detection report, I was really surprised because I had never had any kind of headaches or dizziness 头昏. So  immediately after 紧接着 I made an appointment for a nuclear MRI 核磁共振. But the results were the same. I had just turned thirty and had just divorced. My child was four years old, and in kindergarten. So I didn’t know...the doctor had told me this was probably very serious and I would die or have severe complications such that I could not take care of myself. I wondered what would happen to my child, or my parents. I was terrified and in despair. Later, I went back to church. Though I was a Christian I was very far from God. My belief in God had not influenced my life at all. But after this happened I had to grab hold of God. So I started going to church again.
I asked the brothers and sisters to pray for me. I remember that a friend then told me to read Psalm 91. My deepest impression from this was that “God is my refuge, my fortress and my God, and the one I trust”.  What I remember is that when I began to pray, I felt peace, the fear began to slowly leave. It was taken out of my heart. I became gradually more sure of God. 确信 God would certainly heal me. So I decided to have this surgery. As I was wheeled into the operating room, my heart was at peace. There was none of the previous anxiety and fear. The third day after the operation I could already get out of bed. One week later I was discharged. I am very thankful to God, that through this surgery he completely healed me. I am also thankful that there were no after effects of the surgery. I can now live normally. I am also thankful that my ex-husband accompanied me from the first doctor’s appointment to recovery after surgery,. Three months after the surgery we re-married. Through this surgery I truly learned to trust God. He not only healed my body, but also healed my marriage and family.

8.34 (Hosts in a park) When Jesus was in the work he regularly went all around and healed people. We can see Jesus’s great compassion in Mathew 4:23: “Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom, and healing every disease and sickness among the people.” It wasn’t only Jesus that could heal people, he also gave this authority to those who followed him. We can also go out spreading the gospel, and heal the sick. 病患 It is not only specific people who can do this. Every Christian can!

9:13 Teacher - Whether Jesus was sending out the disciples or teaching the crowds Jesus often talked about the Kingdom of God. Jesus said: “9 Heal the sick who are there and tell them, ‘The kingdom of God has come near to you.’”  The Kingdom of God refers to the whole area of God’s influence. When Jesus was in the world he brought the kingdom of God to earth. After his resurrection he ascended to heaven. In the future he will return. At that time his Kingdom will be fully and completely revealed. 彰显 The Bible refers to Jesus’s return over 300 times. It is then that Jesus will wipe away all the tears of his people. There will be no more disease, pain, sadness or weeping. Currently that time has not yet come. We are in a time of waiting. Not everyone is healed.  The Apostle Paul wrote, “We are groaning inside, longing for the day of our adoption to sonship, the redemption of our bodies.” (Romans 8:23) It is only when Jesus returns that we will be completely 彻底 renewed and healed.

10:48 (two-story house) Testimony - When I was 23, I found out that my blood pressure had some abnormalities and went for a blood test. The doctor told my that my blood platelet count was dangerously low. 血小板的很低值  He said: ”Your blood doesn’t congeal 凝固, so you cannot have an operation. The next step is for you to be hospitalized for observation and treatment”. Yet another problem was that a previous operation for a sinus infection had left a wound there. That made my situation especially terrifying. If I got a nose bleed it would become like a water faucet that you couldn’t turn off. It would just keep running and running. At times, I was so nervous about this that the doctor would inject adrenaline 肾上腺素 to make the blood vessels contract. 收缩 This was the only way to reduce or stop the blood flow.

The doctor suggested I get this injection daily. But the price was too high. My hospital bill was already over thirty thousand per month. So my father sold his restaurant and everything else he could find at home to sell. Then he borrowed money from neighbors and relatives, to maintain the medical treatment. Our family debt was really heavy. We also tried stuffing all kinds of traditional medicine in my mouth and ears. I took a huge amount of medicine to stop bleeding,  止血药  but it had absolutely no effect. Perhaps two or three times, I had already become so weak that family members thought that I couldn’t go on anymore. 掌不住了So, in the car they told me if you want to arrange your funeral 处理后事 it is easier from the hospital. While sitting in the front seat of the car, I heard them discussing in the back seat what kind of funeral portrait would be better looking. 遗像 This made me think of something a Christian said who once came to the hospital to pray for me. He said that when you are in despair, God is your savior, and God is your hope. You must remember to call out to him. Actually I was too rationalistic then, it was difficult for me to understand these things or to accept this concept. But when nearing death, you are willing to try things you would have never tried before. So, when I prayed, I had no idea that God would not only let me go on living, but would give me a very smooth road to recovery. Even more, my blood platelet count would go from thirty to a very healthy figure of a hundred and fifty. When I went to the doctor and got this result, he had no way to explain it. This was a real miracle! My mother and I thought this was so amazing, that right there in the hospital we shouted out “Hallelujah!” God preserved my life 得以存留, The breath of life continues in me because of God’s grace  我的生命的气息得以延续. I believe with all my heart that God listened to my prayer. So now I am willing with a grateful heart to continue to worship and serve him.

14:28 (Flowers beside water) Hosts:  The bible promises that on the day that Jesus returns the Kingdom of God will be fully revealed on the earth. On that day there will be no more sickness, disaster or pain. But, before that time we might experience a taste of this future. It is like having a spring-like day when nearing the end 接近尾声 of a long cold winter. It feels just like the spring has arrived.  When that happens, people can hardly wait 迫不及待 to go outside and feel the warmth of the sun. But the next day, a cold front suddenly blasts in  and people are shivering in the frigid weather. So the beautiful day is mainly a sign that Spring is drawing near. Jesus healing the sick was a similar event. It gives us a glimpse of the wonder of the age to come, an illustration 说明 that one day everyone will be healed.

15:30 (Teacher) So, in this day and time, how should we look at healing? God values our lives. He can use a wide range of ways to heal people. He can use medical technology.  It is wonderful if God calls you to enter the medical practice. Go for it! Sometimes God can also use supernatural means to directly heal someone. This especially happens in a situation where doctors are powerless 无能为力 . So we should not give up prayer. It is God who heals, not us. God loves everyone. He has benevolent intentions toward us. He wants us to have hope for the future. Like one pastor said: When we don’t pray for anyone to be healed, no one is healed. When we pray for many people to be healed, some of them will be. When Jesus intercedes for people he is always full of love and compassion. He is motivated by this. That should also be our motivation. Of course, not everyone will be healed. Even if we pray fervently, sometimes God just doesn’t heal. At these times we must accept God’s sovereignty over healing. We must respect others. If someone sick is not healed, we must never, ever blame them or say things like God doesn’t love them or God is punishing them etc. One thing we can be certain of is that God can heal their heart. While sick, they can still trust God and be filled with joy and peace. They can also be absolutely without doubt about his promises.

17:29 Testimony (Wan Lihao)- When I was in Middle school I had pretty good grades but was considered a problem student. I was always fighting with others. For me, fighting was just like eating meals: I had to do it three times a day!  If anyone was angry with me, I would hit them right away. Honestly the source of the problem was completely in myself. I had low self esteem and chose to lash out at others. Later I came into in a deep depression. Around the last year of middle school, my depression became very serious. I lost the will to live. My Mom, Dad and psychologist were very worried about me. They placed me in a mental institution. Two security personnel 保全人员 brought me to my room. The room had three walls with a glass wall allowing nurses to observe me. Because I was sent there for depression, I couldn’t see how I could just suddenly get better there. I feared that I would be there my whole life. I was deeply, deeply hurt. But one evening, something happened that completely changed my life. In the middle of the night I suddenly woke up. I felt very different. I was filled with a kind of peace and joy, something I had never felt before. It was as if God had come into the room. It felt like he was right beside me. My mom came to visit the next day and I told her about what happened. She asked me what time it had happened. I said, “About midnight”. She said: “Hey! Peter that is exactly the time I asked people in your church to pray for you!” Then I thought to myself, “Wow, God is not just a feeling, he is real. He understands me, he knows me”. He not only healed my depression, he taught me how to love myself and at the same time I learned how to love others.

20:02 Teacher: Sometimes we must continue in prayer. We don’t necessarily 不见得 pray once and receive a healing. Jesus once prayed for a blind man and then asked him if he could see anything. The man answered I see people walking around but they look like trees. This showed that he could still not see clearly. So Jesus prayed again. Then the man could see clearly. So don’t give up! Even though that person was not yet healed, prayer itself is a great blessing. Today God still uses us to heal the sick. So we should pray for the sick, and ask God to heal their broken hearts, to wipe away their tears, and to lift up those who have fallen, to restore broken relationships. In Jesus’s name may our families, friends, colleagues, and even our neighbors receive healing.