Why Doesn't God Heal All Sick Believers?
Notes
Transcript
Main text of Scripture: 1 Corinthians 1:27; 2:3
1 Corinthians 1:27 “27 But God chose what is foolishness in the world to shame the wise, and chose what is weakness in the world to shame the strong.”
Introduction
I want us to turn our thoughts to the book of 1 Corinthians 1…
I want to ask you a question: If the apostle Paul stood up here today, what do you think he would look like?
I want you to use your sanctified imagination and see if you can visualize the apostle Paul.
What do you think he would look like?
Well, he probably wouldn't be pretty at all.
It probably wouldn't be big.
He would probably be sickly, weak and probably have very poor eyesight - I imagine a bit hunched over.
He would have some scars. He would be a very physically weak man.
Let's take a look at some verses.
But look, for example, in 1 Corinthians, chapter 1, verse 27. Paul himself said:
27 But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong.
And I believe Paul was talking about himself, and reflecting on others, when he said this.
Look at chapter 2, verse 3. He says of himself:
3 I came to you in weakness with great fear and trembling.
He would never have been given the opportunity to give a “TED” talk if he hadn't changed his way of public speaking.
" His hands shook as he spoke.
And then, if you can, turn to 2 Corinthians, chapter 1, verses 5 and 6:
5 For just as we share abundantly in the sufferings of Christ, so also our comfort abounds through Christ.
Paul was a man who not only suffered, but suffered abundantly -
Look at …
9 Indeed, we felt we had received the sentence of death. But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead.
Then look at 2 Corinthians chapter 12 and notice verse 7:
7 or because of these surpassingly great revelations. Therefore, in order to keep me from becoming conceited, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me.
8 Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. 9 But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. 10 That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.
Paul was physically weak and infirm
So I would like us to reflect on this subject today: "Why doesn't God heal all sick believers?"
I believe almost everyone here is feeling pain somewhere. And there are some who are very sick who are listening to me, and some of God's most used believers.
I would like to remind you that the man who wrote the books of 1 and 2 Corinthians was a great spiritual giant; yet he was a man, by his own admission, and from the scriptures we have just read, he was sick and weak. Indeed, he was a man who had the power to heal others, but he himself carried a disease in his body.
As we approach this subject of illness and healing, let me present three things I believe with all my heart about healing:
1) I believe with all my heart, soul, and understanding that God miraculously heals the sick. I want you to know this. God miraculously heals the sick: I believe that.
2) Secondly, I believe that it is often God's will, God's plan, to use doctors and medicine. I thank God for the medical profession; I thank God for the doctors.
3) I believe with all my soul that God's will is not always to heal.
I just want to say these three things to lay a foundation.
But what about those who love the Lord - I mean, who love God as Paul loved God - and yet are not healed?
Let me say, dear friend, that the Scriptures abundantly show that you can be right with God and still be sick.
Paul was a great man of God and yet he was sick. He asked God three times to take away this “thorn in the flesh.” (2 Corinthians 12:7)
A thorn in the flesh that actually wasn't something that appeared overnight. If you read the context, fourteen years earlier this thing came upon him; three times he asked God to take it away; and three times the answer came, "No, I will not do that."
Now, why wasn't Paul healed? Was it because he was weak in faith? No, he was strong in faith. Was it because there had been sin in his life? No, his heart was pure. Was it because he was outside of God's will? No, he was walking hand in hand with the Lord.
I can give you other illustrations.
For example, 2 Timothy chapter 4, verse 20.
20 Erastus stayed in Corinth, and I left Trophimus sick in Miletus.
Paul said of this dear brother, "I left Trophimus sick at Miletus." (2 Timothy 4:20)
Paul had the power to heal, but he clearly did not have the power to heal everyone.
He certainly was not able to cure Trophimus. I know he would have healed if he could. But he said, "I left Trophimus, my dear brother, sick at Miletus."
And do you remember what Paul said to young Timothy? 1 Timothy, chapter 5 and verse 23 - Paul said to this splendid young preacher:
23 Stop drinking only water, and use a little wine because of your stomach and your frequent illnesses.
Paul said to Timothy, "Here is something you can do to help your constant illness." He was often sick, but he was a man of God who loved the Lord with all his heart.
Another illustration, now from the Old Testament.
In fact, write this one down because it's really good.
Go to 2 Kings, chapter 13 and verse 14, and see what happened to one of the greatest prophets who ever lived:
14 Now Elisha had been suffering from the illness from which he died. Jehoash king of Israel went down to see him and wept over him. “My father! My father!” he cried. “The chariots and horsemen of Israel!”
Now why did Elisha die? Was he a sinner? Absolutely not - in the sense in which I mean it. Of course all men have sinned. But as you read this scripture, you discover that Elisha was in perfect communion with God, and even on his deathbed, he made one of the most remarkable prophecies in the entire Bible. And yet, here was a man of God, a mighty prophet, who became so sick that he died.
I'm saying all this just to say this: It's very dangerous to point the finger at someone who is sick and say, "Ah! You must not be right with God, otherwise you wouldn't be sick."
The man who wrote more than half of the NT, the books we are preaching about - 1 Corinthians and 2 Corinthians - was a sick and weak man, who had a thorn in his flesh. And many of God's most chosen saints have had to suffer some kind of illness.
Now, God often has a loving purpose in illness. I want to mention four of them that we will extract from the books of 1 and 2 Corinthians.
I. Power comes through suffering and illness.
I. Power comes through suffering and illness.
Power can come through suffering and illness.
See 2 Corinthians 12:9 -
and notice how God gave Paul wisdom regarding his illness, what was the logic:
9 But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.
The power of Christ can come through sickness.
Paul made a surprising discovery.
Paul discovered that the weaker he became physically, the stronger he became spiritually.
"So that the power of Christ may rest upon me" is an unusual phrase.
The phrase "rest upon me" can be literally translated as "spread a tabernacle over me." The power of God was spread over that weak, sick body like a tent.
What a mighty baptism of power the apostle Paul had!
That little Jew shook the world for Jesus Christ in a sick, weak, hunchbacked and bruised body. He stood up with shaking hands and knocking knees, and said, "I know my presence is contemptible, but the power of God spreads over me like a tent."
When he realized what God was doing for him, Paul simply said, "Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord. If God hadn't done this for me, I might have been tempted to trust in my own strength. But now I don't I am trusting in my strength; I am trusting in the dear Lord."
You see, God wanted his strength, not Paul's strength. Paul had a tendency to pride. Not that he was proud, but God had given Paul such an abundant revelation of Himself that Paul could have been proud. Therefore, God gave him - graciously gave him - a thorn in the flesh.
A. Your strength may be your greatest weakness
A. Your strength may be your greatest weakness
Now let me say that sometimes we can be sick so that God's power can be released through us.
Do you want to learn a great lesson today? And it doesn't just apply to illness; applies to many areas. Our strength - what we think makes us strong - can be our biggest weakness.
We often say, "Ah, well, I have a good mind; God can use that." That might be where the devil gets him. You say, "I have a strong body." This can become the devil's tool house. Let me tell you something, friend. Your strength may be your greatest weakness.
- Edinburgh Castle in Scotland, a large fortress-like building built high on a rocky hill, has only been captured once - and let me tell you how it was captured. They placed sentries at every important place in the castle except one place. On one particular side there is a cliff of rock so steep that it was considered impossible that the fortress could be attacked from that side, and therefore no sentries were posted on that side. And it was from there that the enemy came, and it was there that the castle was taken over. As you can see, the place of strength has become the place of weakness. It was at the strongest point that the castle fell because the guard was let down there. God is very wise in showing us that sometimes our place of strength is actually our place of weakness.
B. Your weakness can be your greatest strength
B. Your weakness can be your greatest strength
And so let me say, instead, that our weakness can be our greatest strength.
We say, "Well, I can't do this and I can't do that." This is wonderful!
So you can let the Lord do it, right?
When you say, "I can't," then you say, "He can, and I will let Him."
This is exactly what God was doing with the apostle Paul.
And Paul said, "God allowed me to have weakness so that I could be strong." So Paul said, "I glory in my infirmity."
Sometimes we become stoic and say, "Well, what cannot be cured must be endured."
Paul said, "What cannot be healed can be enjoyed." Hallelujah! I will glory all the more happily in my weaknesses.”
Have you ever thanked God for your weaknesses?
I believe this would praise the Lord and bless Him. " give thanks in all circumstances." (1 Thessalonians 5:18)
Hallelujah! I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses.” This is what the apostle said in 2 Corinthians 12 and verse 9.
II. Suffering and illness Make me Productive.
II. Suffering and illness Make me Productive.
Second, productivity often comes through suffering and illness.
How greatly has the world been blessed, not always through the ministry of healthy, rich, happy people, but how greatly has the world been blessed through the ministry of those who have been sick and suffered!
Take a look at 2 Corinthians chapter 1 and verse 6 and see what Paul said happened in his ministry because of his suffering. He says:
6 If we are distressed, it is for your comfort and salvation; if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which produces in you patient endurance of the same sufferings we suffer.
What Paul is saying is, "I've learned to trust the Lord. And when I trust the Lord, great things happen. It makes me productive."
Notice again in 2 Corinthians chapter 1 as we continue reading in verse 9:
9 Indeed, we felt we had received the sentence of death. But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead.
Every day for Paul was a day of resurrection.
Paul said, "Lord, if you don't do it, it won't be done. It's not possible, Lord, that I can take this old, weak, sick body of mine and do the ministry that You want me to do, unless the do through me. But, Lord, the Lord has taught me a lesson. I no longer trust in You, who raises the dead." "My suffering," said Paul to the Corinthian believers, "is for your consolation and salvation."
You see, dear friend, sometimes illness and sadness make us very, very productive.
Jesus said, in John, chapter 15, verse 2, that when He wants a branch to bear more fruit, He prunes it. John 15:2 “2 He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful.”
that is, to be more productive.
Do you know what pruning a branch is? It's cutting it. Here the farmer, the gardener, takes his pruning knife, goes to the vineyard and starts cutting. The little vine, if it could speak, would say, "Ouch! It hurts! Don't do it! Why are you making me suffer like this?" And the gardener, if he could speak to the branch, would say, "It is not my purpose to make you suffer, but to make you more productive."
- A man was walking through an apple orchard in the Shenandoah Valley and saw a tree that was loaded with apples. It was so full of fruit that the caretaker had to support the branches with sticks so they wouldn't break. And the man who was visiting the orchard asked the caretaker: "Why is this tree so productive?" He replied, "Sir, you wouldn't believe it, but this was one of our least productive trees - until we split it on purpose." They had taken an ax and cut down the apple tree. And the man asked, "Why?" And the caretaker said, "We learned that when a tree has nothing but branches and leaves, nothing but beautiful foliage and wood, and no fruit, if it is wounded and bruised, it will bear fruit." -
This was certainly true in the life of the apostle Paul.
III. Purity comes through suffering and illness
III. Purity comes through suffering and illness
The third reason: 1) power, 2) productivity, I can also say that purity comes through suffering and illness.
I don't believe this was necessarily the case with Paul.
I don't believe there was any sin in Paul's life that God was trying to purge from him.
I believe there may have been some sin that God was trying to steer him away from.
But Paul certainly understood this principle that purity comes through suffering and illness.
I'll give you an example of this. Turn to 1 Corinthians chapter 11. Paul is speaking to the Corinthians about their illnesses, and many of the Corinthian church were sick. I begin in verse 30:
30 That is why many among you are weak and sick, and a number of you have fallen asleep.
"That is why” - is the cause of which he is speaking is their irreverence in the Lord's Supper and other sins - "many are weak and sick among you, and many sleep." (1 Corinthians 11:30) That is, many have already they died because of sin in the church and sin in their personal lives.
But then Paul seems to give a reason for this illness, as we read on:
And here he speaks of this illness as a judgment from God. But he says there is a way to escape this judgment, and that is to judge ourselves before God has to do it.
But then notice, as we read on:
Now why are we corrected? The Bible says in Hebrews that we are corrected "to be partakers of his holiness." (Hebrews 12:10)
Therefore, sometimes when we are judged, we become sick. And why do we get sick? So that we can be corrected.
And why are we corrected? So that we may be purified. Illness often has a way of purifying.
I'm not saying that everyone who is sick needs to be cleansed, but I am saying that this is one of the benefits and one of the blessings of being sick. Purity can come through suffering and illness.
I will give you some other scriptures. You might want to write them down. First Peter, chapter 5, verse 10:
See? Suffering can perfect you, establish you, strengthen you, and establish you. This is what Job meant when he said in Job 23, verse 10: "When he tests me, I will come out like gold." (Job 23:10)
Do you know what the psalmist said in Psalm 119, verse 67? "Before I was afflicted I went astray, but now I have kept your word." (Psalms 119:67)
See, there can be a purifying power in illness. And I am very grateful to God for that.
There is the purifying power of suffering. Job said, "When he tries me, I will come out as gold." (Job 23:10) I thank God that He has a purpose of love not just of power and not just of productivity, but of purity.
IV. Praise comes through suffering and illness
IV. Praise comes through suffering and illness
Finally, I would like to say that there is praise that comes through suffering. Praise can come through suffering and illness.
God often receives greater glory through our suffering and illness.
There is an abundance of Scripture that makes this clear, that we learn to praise and glorify God when we are sick.
This is very true. Jesus made this very clear in John, chapter 11, verse 4, talking about Lazarus' illness.
I want you to hear this. Jesus said, "This sickness is not unto death, but unto the glory of God."
That's clear, isn't it? "
You see, God often receives greater glory in a strange way. And certainly, if you read the rest of this chapter, you will find that the result of Lazarus' illness, subsequent death, and resurrection was that many believed in the Lord Jesus Christ.
Why, even our death must glorify the Lord.
The Bible says, "Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints." (Psalms 116:15)
And the Bible describes Peter's death in John, chapter 21, verse 19…
19 Jesus said this to indicate the kind of death by which Peter would glorify God. Then he said to him, “Follow me!”
I want to tell you, friend, that you can glorify God with your health. You can glorify God with your illness. And you can glorify God by your death.
Is it not wonderful that in all things He can have the pre-eminence? Whatever we do, we must do it all for the glory of God.
See, friend, the devil has a lie about Christians. We know that the devil tells this kind of lie, because it is recorded in the Bible, in the book of Job. The devil said to God, "The only reason Job serves you is because you bought him. He's just a Christian who doesn't care." It matters in time; he doesn't really love you. The only reason Job serves you is because you have been very good to him. If you make him really sick, he will deny that he knows you. , God".
Do you know what the Lord said? He said, "You don't know my servant Job. Job doesn't love me because he's healthy. Job doesn't love me because everything is going well for him. Job just loves me." I will tell you, God obtained such great glory from Job, who suffered from illness, but did not deny his God; he glorified God.
I believe God chose some of you who are watching right now from a sickbed to shut the devil up.
And when people see you praising and glorifying the Lord and saying with Job, "Though he kill me, yet will I trust in him" (Job 13:15), they will say, "There is a quality of life in you, sir - in you, ma'am - that's different." Oh, the praise to God that can sometimes come through sickness and suffering! Jesus made this very clear: "This sickness is not unto death, but unto the glory of God." (John 11:4)
Sickness can often be for the glory of God.
Conclusion
Andrew Murray was a great saint of yesterday, and Andrew Murray said something that I think is very good. I would love to share it with you. Here's what this dear old saint said: "In times of trouble, the confident child of God can say, 'First, He brought me here. It is by His will that I am in a tight place. Then He will keep me here. in His love and will give me grace in this trial to behave like His child. Then He will make the trial a blessing, teaching me the lessons He wants me to learn and working in me the grace He intends to bestow. in His due time He may bring me back - as and when He knows how."
This is not good? See, He brought me here. Nothing comes to me except what passes through Him first. He will keep me here. He will teach me a lesson. And in His due time, He will bring me back. And so Andrew said: Let's say, first of all, that I'm here by God's appointment. Number two, I'm here under his guard. Number three, I'm here under his training. Number four, I'm here in His timing.
I don't know about you, but I'm grateful that the apostle Paul was a weak man who wrote the book we are studying. And I'm grateful that not only did he write in the Bible that God chose the weak things of this world to confound the wise, but I'm also glad that the Lord used him to illustrate that. And I want to tell some of you today who are going through deep waters that the Lord understands. He knows.
"All things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to his purpose." (Romans 8:28)
Could you bow with me in prayer? Our heavenly Father, we are so grateful today that we can be here with our brothers and sisters in Christ, and that we can open this book and see such wonderful truths in it. Now, dear Father, bless and give comfort, strength, power and productivity, purity and praise to your suffering saints. For we pray in the name of Jesus. Amen.