The compassion and mercy of Jesus operated as a force
against illness and disease. A good illustration of this is
in Mark 1:40-42 when a leper came to Jesus and asked
to be made clean. Verse 41 says, “And Jesus, moved with
compassion, put forth his hand, and touched him, and
saith unto him, I will; be thou clean.” As soon as Jesus had
spoken, the leprosy immediately departed from him, and
he was cleansed.

The Bible does not say, “immediately he was healed.”
It said that immediately leprosy itself departed, indicating
that the spirit life behind the disease left. When
that happened, the man’s body regained its health. The
force that drove the leprosy out was the compassion of
God released in the words that Jesus spoke and through
His hands.

The mercy of God governed Jesus in every situation.
After He healed the leper, Jesus instructed him not to say
anything about his healing but to show himself to the
priest. However, Mark 1:45 through Mark 2:1 says: “But
he went out, and began to publish it much, and to blaze
abroad the matter, insomuch that Jesus could no more
openly enter into the city, but was without in desert places:
and they came to him from every quarter. And again he
entered into Capernaum….”

The leper went out and stirred up the countryside to
the point where Jesus had to retreat to Capernaum. He
called attention to his healing until there were so many
people that Jesus could not even minister to all of them.
Jesus went to Capernaum. The crowds flooded Him there
as they had in the desert. It says in Mark 2:1-4:

And again he entered into Capernaum after some
days; and it was noised that he was in the house.
And straightway many were gathered together,
insomuch that there was no room to receive them,
no, not so much as about the door: and he preached
the word unto them. And they come unto him,
bringing one sick of the palsy, which was borne
of four. And when they could not come nigh unto
him for the press, they uncovered the roof where
he was: and when they had broken it up, they let
down the bed wherein the sick of the palsy lay.

When Jesus saw their faith, He said, “Your sins are
forgiven you.” What a statement of mercy! He paid no
attention to them taking apart the roof. Through mercy,
He saw their faith. Through mercy and forgiveness, He
ministered healing and deliverance.

Gloria Copeland

Don’t ever come against somebody’s faith, even if you
do not think they are strong enough. Get in there and help
them. That is what Jesus did. He was governed by mercy
and compassion instead of by legalism, rules and fear. If
He had been afraid Peter was going to drown, He would
have started sinking Himself.

Peter walked on the water based on the Word of Jesus,
“Come.” As long as he kept his eyes on Jesus, he made it.
But when he started looking at the wind, he became afraid
and began to sink.

As he started to sink, Peter cried, “Lord, save me.” The
Bible says:

Immediately Jesus stretched forth his hand, and
caught him, and said unto him, O thou of little
faith, wherefore didst thou doubt? And when they
were come into the ship, the wind ceased. Then
they that were in the ship came and worshipped
him, saying, Of a truth thou art the Son of God.
And when they were gone over, they came into
the land of Gennesaret. And when the men of that
place had knowledge of him, they sent out into all
that country round about, and brought unto him
all that were diseased; and besought him that they
might only touch the hem of his garment: and
as many as touched were made perfectly whole
(Matthew 14:31-36).

All this took place because Jesus was moved with
compassion out in the desert. In the life of Jesus, compassion
took a higher priority than anything else. It caused Him to
continually reach out to others and respond to their need.
Matthew 20:30-34 is a good example of this:

And, behold, two blind men sitting by the way
side, when they heard that Jesus passed by, cried
out, saying, Have mercy on us, O Lord, thou son of
David. And the multitude rebuked them, because
they should hold their peace: but they cried the
more, saying, Have mercy on us, O Lord, thou son of
David. And Jesus stood still, and called them, and
said, What will ye that I shall do unto you? They
say unto him, Lord that our eyes may be opened. So
Jesus had compassion on them, and touched their
eyes: and immediately their eyes received sight,
and they followed him.

Jesus had compassion on them, not just for them. The
two blind men had caught sight of the fact that mercy
would do the job. They cried, “Have mercy,” and Jesus was
moved with compassion. The power of His mercy was
released and brought them their eyesight.

Gloria Copeland

The nature of compassion is to give you a part of what
it possesses. This is how it works. For example, in spite
of His personal circumstances, Jesus prayed and
ministered to the people all day long and then provided
for their physical nourishment.

After all this had taken place, it says in Matthew 14:22
that “Straightway Jesus constrained his disciples to get into
a ship, and to go before him unto the other side, while he
sent the multitudes away.” Jesus had a reason in His heart
for telling them to go. I am satisfied that the Spirit of God
directed Him, in the middle of ministering to the people,
to go to the other side of the lake where more ministry
awaited Him, more sick, desperate people needing help.
Compassion was still directing Him.

He sent the disciples to the other side of the lake and
spent the evening in prayer. Matthew 14:23-28 picks up
the story: “And when he had sent the multitudes away,
he went up into a mountain apart to pray: and when the
evening was come, he was there alone. But the ship was
now in the midst of the sea, tossed with waves: for the
wind was contrary. And in the fourth watch of the night
Jesus went unto them, walking on the sea.”

His compassion for them brought about this miracle.
The Spirit of compassion, the Holy Spirit, revealed they
were in trouble. He then enabled Jesus to walk on the water
to get to them: “And when the disciples saw him walking
on the sea, they were troubled, saying, It is a spirit; and
they cried out for fear. But straightway Jesus spake unto
them saying, Be of good cheer; it is I; be not afraid. And
Peter answered Him and said, Lord, if it be thou, bid me
come unto thee on the water.”

Because Peter cornered Jesus by saying, “If it be You,”
Jesus could not answer Peter any other way but to say,
“Come.” Jesus knew Peter did not have the level of faith to
walk on that water, but He didn’t rebuke him for stepping
out on what little faith he had.

Gloria Copeland

You must supply the sounds as the Holy
Spirit supplies the words. These words will be
unknown to you. The Scripture teaches us that
in the spirit we speak mysteries unto God:
“For he that speaketh in an unknown tongue
speaketh not unto men, but unto God: for no
man understandeth him; howbeit in the spirit
he speaketh mysteries…. He that speaketh
in an unknown tongue edifieth himself; but
he that prophesieth edifieth the church”
(1 Corinthians 14:2, 4). You are not speaking
to man but to God.

One translation says we speak divine
secrets. You can pray beyond your natural
knowledge when you pray in other tongues.

So too the [Holy] Spirit comes to our
aid and bears us up in our weakness;
for we do not know what prayer to
offer nor how to offer it worthily as
we ought, but the Spirit Himself
goes to meet our supplication and
pleads in our behalf with unspeakable
yearnings and groanings too deep for
utterance. And He Who searches
the hearts of men knows what is in
the mind of the [Holy] Spirit [what
His intent is], because the Spirit
intercedes and pleads [before God] in
behalf of the saints according to and
in harmony with God’s will (Romans
8:26-27, The Amplified Bible).

The Holy Spirit comes to our aid to help
us in prayer when we don’t know how to pray
as we ought. He gives us utterance in other
tongues, praying the perfect will of God. We
need this help. So much of the time we know
so little. We may only see a symptom of a
much deeper problem. But the Holy Spirit
goes right to the root of the problem and
prays the perfect will of God for us.

Look at Jude 20, The Amplified Bible: “But
you, beloved, build yourselves up [founded]
on your most holy faith [make progress, rise
like an edifice higher and higher], praying in
the Holy Spirit.” Praying in tongues edifies
you. This means “to build up or charge,” as we
charge a battery.

Gloria Copeland

Amp—Because of faith also Sarah herself
received physical power to conceive a child,
even when she was long past the age for
it, because she considered [God] Who had
given her the promise, reliable and trustworthy
and true to His word.

Moffatt—It was by faith that even Sara got
strength to conceive, bearing a son when
she was past the age for it—because she
considered that she could rely on Him who
gave the promise.

NEB—By faith even Sarah herself received
strength to conceive, though she was past
the age, because she judged that he who
had promised would keep faith.

2 Corinthians 12:9
KJV—And he said unto me, My grace is
sufficient for thee: for my strength is made
perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore
will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the
power of Christ may rest upon me.

Amp—But He said to me, My grace—My
favor and loving-kindness and mercy—are
enough for you, [that is, sufficient against
any danger and to enable you to bear the
trouble manfully]; for My strength and power
are made perfect—fulfilled and completed
and show themselves most effective—
in [your] weakness. Therefore, I will all the more
gladly glory in my weaknesses and infirmities,
that the strength and power of Christ,
the Messiah, may rest—yes, may pitch a tent
[over] and dwell—upon me!

Moffatt—But he told me, “It is enough for
you to have my grace: it is in weakness that
my power is fully felt.” So I am proud to
boast of all my weakness, and thus to have
the power of Christ resting on my life.

NEB—But his answer was: ‘My grace is all
you need; power comes to its full strength
in weakness.’ I shall therefore prefer to find
my joy and pride in the very things that are
my weakness; and then the power of Christ
will come and rest upon me.

Gloria Copeland

Romans 4:16-21
KJV—Therefore it is of faith, that it might
be by grace; to the end the promise might
be sure to all the seed; not to that only
which is of the law, but to that also which is
of the faith of Abraham; who is the father
of us all, (As it is written, I have made thee
a father of many nations,) before him whom
he believed, even God, who quickeneth the
dead, and calleth those things which be not
as though they were. Who against hope
believed in hope, that he might become the
father of many nations, according to that
which was spoken, So shall thy seed be.

And being not weak in faith, he considered
not his own body now dead, when
he was about an hundred years old, neither
yet the deadness of Sarah’s womb:
He staggered not at the promise of God
through unbelief; but was strong in faith,
giving glory to God; And being fully persuaded
that, what he had promised, he
was able also to perform.

Amp—Therefore [inheriting] the promise is
the outcome of faith and depends [entirely]
on faith, in order that it might be given as
an act of grace (unmerited favor), to make
it stable and valid and guaranteed to all
his descendants; not only to the devotees
and adherents of the Law but also to those
who share the faith of Abraham, who is
[thus] the father of us all, As it is written,
I have made you the father of many nations.—
He was appointed our father—in the
sight of God in Whom he believed, Who
gives life to the dead and speaks of the
nonexistent things that [He has foretold
and promised] as if they [already] existed.
[For Abraham, human reason for] hope being
gone, hoped on in faith that he should
become the father of many nations, as he
had been promised, So [numberless] shall
your descendants be.

He did not weaken in faith when he considered
the [utter] impotence of his own
body, which was as good as dead because
he was about a hundred years old, or [when
he considered] the barrenness of Sarah’s
(deadened) womb. No unbelief or distrust
made him waver or doubtingly question
concerning the promise of God, but he
grew strong and was empowered by faith
as he gave praise and glory to God, Fully
satisfied and assured that God was able
and mighty to keep His word and to do
what He had promised.

Moffatt—That is why all turns upon faith; it
is to make the promise a matter of favour,
to make it secure for all the offspring, not
simply for those who are adherents of the
Law but also for those who share the faith
of Abraham—of Abraham who is the father
of us all (as it is written, I have made you a
father of many nations). Such a faith implies
the presence of the God in whom he believed,
a God who makes the dead live and
who calls into being what does not exist.
For Abraham, when hope was gone, hoped
on in faith, and thus became the father
of many nations—even as he was told, So
numberless shall your offspring be.

His faith never quailed, even when he
noted the utter impotence of his own body
(for he was about a hundred years old) or
the impotence of Sara’s womb; no unbelief
made him waver about God’s promise; his
faith won strength as he gave glory to God
and felt convinced that He was able to do
what He had promised.

NEB—The promise was made on the
ground of faith, in order that it might be
a matter of sheer grace, and that it might
be valid for all Abraham’s posterity, not
only for those who hold by the law, but for
those also who have the faith of Abraham.
For he is the father of us all, as Scripture
says: ‘I have appointed you to be father
of many nations.’ This promise, then, was
valid before God, the God in whom he put
his faith, the God who makes the dead
live and summons things that are not yet
in existence as if they already were. When
hope seemed hopeless, his faith was such
that he became ‘father of many nations’, in
agreement with the words which had been
spoken to him: ‘Thus shall your descendants
be.’

Without any weakening of faith he contemplated
his own body, as good as dead
(for he was about a hundred years old),
and the deadness of Sarah’s womb, and
never doubted God’s promise in unbelief,
but, strong in faith, gave honour to God, in
the firm conviction of his power to do what
he had promised.

Gloria Copeland

John 13:34
KJV—A new commandment I give unto
you, that ye love one another; as I have
loved you, that ye also love one another.

NIV—A new command I give you: Love
one another. As I have loved you, so you
must love one another.

Weymouth—A new commandment I give
you, to love one another; that as I have
loved you, you also may love one another.

John 15:12
KJV—This is my commandment, that ye
love one another, as I have loved you.

NIV—My command is this: Love each
other as I have loved you.

Amp—This is My commandment, that you
love one another [just] as I have loved you.

Romans 12:10
KJV—Be kindly affectioned one to another
with brotherly love; in honour preferring
one another.

NIV—Be devoted to one another in
brotherly love. Honor one another above
yourselves.

Amp—Love one another with brotherly
affection— as members of one family
—giving precedence and showing
honor to one another.

Galatians 3:26
KJV—For ye are all the children of God
by faith in Christ Jesus.

NIV—You are all sons of God through
faith in Christ Jesus.

Amp—For in Christ Jesus you are all sons
of God through faith.

Galatians 3:28-29
KJV—There is neither Jew nor Greek,
there is neither bond nor free, there is neither
male nor female: for ye are all one in
Christ Jesus. And if ye be Christ’s, then are
ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to
the promise.

Amp—There is [now no distinction], neither
Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor
free, there is not male and female; for you
are all one in Christ Jesus. And if you belong
to Christ (are in Him, Who is Abraham’s
Seed), then you are Abraham’s offspring and
(spiritual) heirs according to promise.

Galatians 6:1-2
KJV—Brethren, if a man be overtaken in
a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such
an one in the spirit of meekness; considering
thyself, lest thou also be tempted.
Bear ye one another’s burdens, and so fulfil
the law of Christ.

Amp—Brethren, if any person is overtaken
in misconduct or sin of any sort, you
who are spiritual—who are responsive to
and controlled by the Spirit—should set
him right and restore and reinstate him,
without any sense of superiority and with
all gentleness, keeping an attentive eye on
yourself, lest you should be tempted also.
Bear (endure, carry) one another’s burdens
and troublesome moral faults, and in this
way fulfill and observe perfectly the law of
Christ, the Messiah, and complete what is
lacking [in your obedience to it].

Gloria Copeland

Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted
of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither
tempteth he any man: But every man is tempted,
when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed.
Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin:
and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death
(James 1:13-15).

This scripture says we are tempted when we are
drawn away. Drawn away from what? From God. As
new creatures in Christ Jesus, our inner man wants
to do the will of God. Our hearts want to please Him
and to do what is right in His sight. But we have to
contend with the temptations of the flesh.

The word most often associated with flesh is the
term lust. In our thinking it is connected with sex or
immorality. But in the Greek, the word simply means
“strong desire.” The lust of the flesh is simply the
strong desire to follow after the ways of the world,
rather than after God. For instance, a lust for money
can pull you away from God.

It is acceptable to have a desire for success, or to
obtain an education or career, or even to be recognized
in your profession. These “wants” are permissible if
they are kept in perspective—behind God. But we
must always be watchful that these things do not
draw us away from Him, and that we follow His will
for our lives. Our strong desire must be for God.

The Father wants us to be successful. On the other
hand, Jesus said, “What shall it profit a man, if shall
gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?” (Mark
8:36). We do not want to be drawn away from God
through fleshly desires. We can walk and function in
this world without being of it (John 17:16). As
believers, we are already citizens of the kingdom of
heaven. We are not of this world.

Gloria Copeland

“Keep them in the midst of thine heart.” Keep the
Word of God alive in your heart. Keep the Word
working in your heart. Just as you feed your physical
man, you must feed your spiritual man. Your spirit
man cannot live and stay strong on the Word you
received last year. Don’t try to rely on what you
remember from the Word.

Keep God’s words in the midst of your heart by doing
the things we have already discussed: attending to
the Word, inclining your ear to the Word, not letting
the Word depart from your eyes and keeping the
Word in your heart. Keep your spirit strong with the
Word of God. Continually feed yourself with it in
order to keep the Word producing the force of faith.

For They Are Life Unto Those That Find
Them and Health to All Their Flesh

“For they are life unto those that find them, and
health to all their flesh.” God’s words are spirit and
they are life (John 6:63). They are made life and
health to those who find them. The Word of God is
medicine. If you will put it in your heart in abundance,
it will be as hard for you to get sick as it was at
one time for you to get healed. (The key to this
statement is in the word abundance!)

God’s prescription for life and health works constantly,
whether you are sick or well. The Word is continually
being made life and health to your body. Satan cannot
make you sick when you stay strong in the Word and
keep your spirit full of God’s Word. By keeping the Word
in the midst of your heart, the healing power of God
will continually work in your body. It is continually being
made health to your flesh.

When the doctor prescribes medication, he tells you
to take the medicine so many times a day and you
will recover. If the doctor says swallow one teaspoon
of this every day and you decide to rub it on your
chest, all of his knowledge and experience is of no
value. If you expect to be well, you follow his
instructions, don’t you? Well, this is God’s prescription.
His Word is His medicine. If you will do what He says
as diligently as you would obey a doctor, you will get
results. Diligence in the Word of God is a key.

When your doctor says you need surgery, you don’t
say, “Well, Doc, I don’t have time to have an operation.”
No, you make time, even if you lose your job. Be that
courageous, diligent and determined about the Word
of God. Make time to attend to God’s Word. It will bring
far better results!

Gloria Copeland

But the more I studied the Word and meditated on
it, the more my thinking changed. Hope began to
develop. I grabbed hold of 2 Corinthians 9:8 that
says, “God is able to make all grace abound toward
you; that ye, always having all sufficiency in all
things, may abound to every good work.”

An inner image of all my needs being met with
plenty left over for every good work began to grow
by God’s Word. I began to see it on the inside. I
got a revelation of it. After that it wasn’t a matter
of how God would meet my financial needs. It was
a matter of fact that He’d already met them. All I
needed to do was get in line with Him. After a while,
that revelation was so real in my consciousness
that I began to think like a man without debt. I
began to talk like a man without debt.

It wasn’t long until Gloria and I were totally,
completely debt free. We didn’t owe anybody
anything and God was the One Who had done it.
We hadn’t asked anybody for a dollar.

I’ve never written an appeal letter in this ministry
and I never will because I don’t have to. My needs
aren’t met by your giving. My needs are met by my
giving because I’m standing on the Word that says,
“Give and it shall be given unto you” (Luke 6:38).
That’s why my needs are met. God is my source,
so I don’t have to put any pressure on you. Now,
God may use your giving to meet my need, but
that’s not where my earnest expectation is built.
My hope is built on the forever Word of God’s
promises.

I learned how to think that way by studying Jesus.
He never looked to people to meet His needs. It’s a
good thing, too. One time when He was preaching,
everyone in His congregation walked out. They just
got up and left. The only people who stayed were
the members of His own staff.

Did He get upset about it? No, He just went right
on to the next place and held another meeting. That
time He had a landslide. But the landslide didn’t
affect Him any more than the walkout because those
people weren’t His source. God was His source. He
was there to help them. He didn’t call them there
to help Him. They did help Him, but not because He
pressured them to.

Do you get the picture? I did. Thirty-plus years ago,
it came alive inside me. I took hold of it and it
changed my financial life forever.

I got a picture of prosperity from God’s Word, and
faith made that picture a reality. That’s how the
process always works. First you have to have the
hope, then faith goes into action. Hope is the inner
image. Faith becomes the substance of that image.
Hope is the blueprint. Faith is the material.

Faith can’t build on wishes. How many times have
you heard someone say, “I sure do wish God would
do something for me”? The rest of the statement
hangs unspoken in the air, “…but He probably won’t.”
That’s not faith. That’s unbelief. But it works the
same way faith does—only backward.

Fear is actually faith in the negative dimension. It’s
faith in failure, danger or harm. When someone is
meditating on negative thoughts or, “worrying,” as
we call it, he or she is developing inner pictures. Not
pictures of hope, but pictures of despair.

Just as fear is the flip side of faith, despair is the
flip side of hope. It’s an inner image of failure,
sickness, poverty or whatever else the devil wants
to inject into you. Despair is actually hope in the
negative and fear, like faith, brings it to pass.

Do you see how powerful this process is? This is
the process that controls the course of your life.
These inner images, whether they are of hope or
despair, become the blueprint for your faith or fear,
and ultimately control your destiny.

Once you understand that, you hold the key to your
future. You hold the key to becoming everything
God wants you to be. It doesn’t matter where you
are right now. You may be sick. You may be broke.
You may be defeated. It doesn’t matter!

What you must do is dig into the Word and begin
building your hope. Start developing God’s pictures
within you. As long as you have an image of your
own defeat on the inside of you, you’re destined to
be defeated on the outside as well. But change that
inner image with the Word of God and no demon
in hell will be able to hold you down. Jesus came to
change the inner man. “If ye continue in my word,”
He told us, “then are ye my disciples indeed; and ye
shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you
free” (John 8:31-32).

Get that truth working inside you. Put it in there until
hope begins to paint new pictures in your heart.
Then, hang onto those pictures relentlessly. Don’t
ever let them go. Eventually— inevitably—faith will
make those pictures as real on the outside as they
are on the inside.

“For as he [a man] thinketh in his heart, so is he”
(Proverbs 23:7). It’s the pictures inside you that
determine your destiny. Get yourself some power
pictures. God’s Word is full of them. The question is,
are you?

Gloria Copeland