Hey Everyone,
So hope you’ve enjoyed the incredible interview and video about the song “Healer” that was on the Planetshakers album, and will soon be on the upcoming Hillsongs CD+DVD.
It’s a powerful song, declaring “I believe You’re my Healer” … which made me want a discussion on sickness and disease. I guess the whole thought really came back to the surface during a planning meeting at church where we were discussing a testimony of how God used cancer to radically intervene in someone’s life, drawing them deeper to Him. My concern was that we expressed that clearly, and didn’t allow it to come across as “God gave me this cancer/trial so I could experience this”. My thoughts were “God used this to ..” are WAY DIFFERENT than “God DID this to …”.
I realize this will probably be “one of those blogs” … we’ll all comment, and we’ve all decided what we believe, so nobody is going to get their mind changed here. With that in mind, let’s discuss your thoughts, your reasons, and as always, using Scripture is a plus.
Sickness - where does it come from?
Some say it’s from God … that He punishes or disciplines with it. Or that He uses it as a “trial” to teach us something. That since He is Sovereign, it must come from Him. (oddly enough, I cant’ stand the Sovereign stuff … just because someone is Sovereign, the Authority, the Supreme Ruler, doesn’t mean that everything that happens in their kingdom is the will of the Sovereign Ruler … )
Some say it’s from the Devil - it’s bad, sin, and it’s from the hand of Satan.
Some say it’s from neither - it’s the result of living in a sinful, fallen world. A consequence of sin - either vicariously, or from our own rebellion and disobedience.
Granted … you cannot read the Old Testament without seeing God Himself directly involved in sending plagues, sickness, disease, etc., usually as punishment to sin. I wish that weren’t the case … it makes me not like the OT God so much, but I don’t know how else to read that stuff.
However, I’d like to keep our discussion limited to the NEW COVENANT, meaning our promise and covenant with God that has resulted from the Sacrifice of Jesus Christ, His work on the cross, and His being raised from the dead.
I live and learn daily, and always seek for God to give me ongoing revelation and wisdom. But for me, I believe that under the New Covenant, our punishment for sin was put on Jesus … our substitute. I believe that healing of our disease and sickness is as much a part of the New Covenant and sacrifice that Christ made on the cross as is the forgiveness of our sins.
To suggest that God “puts sickness” on somebody seems completely against the reason He sent His Son into the world to be our substitute. Just as Jesus came to deliver us from sin, He came to deliver us from sickness. Would God “put sin” on us?
Of course, we still have sickness. We still have sin. People obviously will DIE. Many times, they die of sickness. God’s Word is clear that our earthly bodies are decaying.
In the New Testament, I’ve never really seen any Biblical reference where someone came to Christ in faith, asking to be healed, and where He said “no, I’m not willing”. On the contrary, He said “I am willing” and the passages that relate to Christ and healing indicate “he healed them all”.
Lastly, I would find it very difficult to have faith to pray for someone to be delivered from sickness and disease if I was thinking “maybe God wants them to have this”. As a natural father (which I understand is no comparison to our Heavenly Father), I cannot comprehend ever putting sickness on my children to teach them anything. When my children are sick, my heart and soul is broken and consumed with seeing them recover and be well. I don’t care how much they’ve misbehaved. I don’t care what lesson they could learn in the midst of their sickness. I want them healed and whole. There is not one single fiber of my being that would want anything less.
Can God be glorified in the midst of sickness? Yes - absolutely. My wife was very sick with leukemia. God healed her, praise God. But in the midst of the sickness, God was still glorified by her response, by her faith, by her tenacity to cling to God and His Word.
But … where does it come from?
What say you? (and be nice!)
Ladies and Gentlemen, Boys and Girls, Friends and Family: