Objection: Some “Faith Healers” Have Been Exposed as Greedy Charlatans

So what?  That doesn’t prove that “faith healing” doesn't work.  It only proves that there is sin on the earth today.  Yes, I heard the story about the guy with the little speaker in his ear and the person in the back room who read him information.  Yes, I heard the one about the guy who got people’s names from their Bibles before services and then “supernaturally” announced them in the service.  Yes, I heard the one about the lady who used sleight-of-hand to make miracles seem to happen.  I’m not an eyewitness to any of these so I can’t vouch for the stories.  I really don’t care if they find out that there are 2,000 fake healing ministers and their names and faces all appear on your favorite tabloid TV show.  That still does not prove that there are not real ones out there, any more than the fact that there are fake home alarm companies out there proves that there are no real home alarm companies.

How many fake $30 bills have you come across?  None!  No one is going to counterfeit something that doesn’t actually exist and have real value.  Satan counterfeits healing ministry, but that is only because healing ministry does exist and it has real value.

I suppose that some people have attended healing services only to find out that the minister was exposed as a fake.  I can understand their disappointment.  If this is you, please do not abandon the idea of divine healing over it.  I heard of a singer who used to travel around the country giving altar calls at his concerts.  He went out in his bus and smoked marijuana after his services were over.  He was not even saved until the Lord dealt with him and he actually responded to his own altar call and got saved one night!  People responded and got saved because he preached the Word, even when he was a sinner.  Likewise, people can get genuinely healed by the power of God even at meetings run by pious frauds, especially if they preach the true gospel.

There have been preachers whose personal lifestyles left much to be desired whom God has used mightily in healing services, at least for a while.  It is the message, not the messenger, that sets people free!  The Word is still the Word even if it is preached in pretense, which Paul said that it sometimes is (Philippians 1:18).  (There is nothing new under the sun!)  Paul rejoiced in this, no doubt because he knew that the Word would bear fruit regardless of who preached it.  God confirms His Word; He doesn’t confirm the preacher.  God’s gospel is still His power unto salvation (Romans 1:16), no matter who is sharing it.  Corn doesn’t care who plants it – it grows anyway, even if the planter runs a protection racket and has an illegal back-room casino going on the side.

I knew a suicidal man who went to a drinking party.  He got so drunk that he couldn’t walk straight, but he had heard the gospel and he shared it with his drunken buddies at the party.  He could articulate it as well as I could, but they listened to him whereas they might not have listened to me.  They asked him if he had followed the instructions himself, and he said no, but he was going to.  He decided not to kill himself and instead he followed his own instructions and got saved.  The Word is anointed, no matter who preaches it, even if it’s a sinner doing it!

The very fact that fakes can preach the Bible and get results is a testimony to the power of God’s Word.  It proves that the power is in the Word and not in the preacher.  God’s Word will work for you if you believe it and act on it, no matter where you hear it.  Don’t let stories sour you on ministers.  Plenty of preachers don’t appear in the scandal sheets – because they don’t do anything wrong!  They are not all money-grubbing charlatans.  I’m not making any money off you through this book, am I?  It’s my gift to you to read for free.  So you can’t say that all preachers are just after your money.