Now, Isaiah 53: 5 states that "with his stripes we ARE healed! That makes me curious! Was Peter misquoting the earlier Scripture? Maybe Isaiah had it wrong. After all, he was prophesying this about the Messiah seven centuries before He came! Although this apparent mistake seems strange, is not possible because: "all scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness." (2 Tim. 3: 16) As well, scripture always confirms scripture. God never contradicts Himself! So, who was right, why does it seem contradictory, and what does it matter to your health and prayer life?

God's Name, Jehovah, or Yahweh, means "I am." In Exodus 3: 14 God told Moses: "I AM THAT I AM." He is the God of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses and you (Ex. 3: 6)! In other words, He is the self-existing, eternal, ever-present One! "I am" implies that He is always in the present. Although on earth you are bound by time frames, God is not. To Him, eternity is now.

God spoke through Isaiah of healing being received through the promised Messiah in the present tense. The Ark of the Covenant and the blood sacrifices of the Old Testament had been put in place to represent Jesus' future sacrifice on the cross. Even though the fullness of time had not yet come to receive the Messiah, the spoken Word was already in the earth through Moses hundreds of years before Isaiah, when he proclaimed the blessings in Deuteronomy 28. Yes, that was for the physical nation of Israel. If they obeyed the Ten Commandments, blessings would overtake them! But, if they refused to listen to God's Voice, all the curses, including every sickness, would come upon them. "But Israel, which followed after the law of righteousness, hath not attained to the law of righteousness. Wherefore? Because they sought it not by faith, but as it were by the works of the law." (Rom. 9: 31) "For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth. For Moses describeth the righteousness which is of the law, that the man which doeth those things shall live by them." (Rom. 10: 4-5)

But you are of the spiritual Israel, if you believe in Him. The promise was given not only to the physical seed of Abraham; but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham. (Rom. 4: 16) Unlike the offerings of blood from bulls and goats in the Old Testament, Jesus as your High Priest, died once and for all for your eternal redemption. (Heb, 9: 14; 12) You do not have to follow rules and do good works to be acceptable to God. Your healing is based on faith in Him! Just as you know without a doubt that you were saved, so by faith you have received your healing. You are saved by Grace and WERE healed! Yes, you were already healed of some ailment which you may get next year!

Our God is, has always been, and will be your Healer. If you believe, then thank Him for your anticipated healing, speak healing scriptures over your situation, and stand on His Promise that you were healed! Don't give up speaking and believing His Promise until you see the manifestation of it. In the meantime do not look at the circumstances, however painful they may be! If God said it, and you believe it, then it is so! Take a firm hold on His Promise. It's your inheritance! Remember, "faith is the substance of things hoped for; the evidence of things not seen." (Heb. 11: 1)