Divine healing

On 4th July I wrote the story about our dear daughter, Dora Poh Chin. It was not meant to elicit sympathy or empathy let alone pity from anyone. My intention was to encourage fellow pilgrims on life's journey. That's the purpose of my blog. Anyway I received an encouraging comment from a Christian brother. His comment meant a lot to me and I thank God for him.

Let me state clearly. I believe implicitly that God is all powerful. He is our Creator and is sovereign over all the earth. He still rules the universe. He answers prayer always, not necessarily in way we anticipated. I have been reading Philip Yancy's book "Disappointment with God." Yes, there are times when we do not understand God and we get disappointed, but I still love Him just the same.

It is the will of God for man to be healthy in body, soul and spirit. Let us not fall into the erroneous belief that God wills sickness on us as a punishment,a form of discipline or preparation for Heaven. Francis MacNutt once said, "When we say that God sends sickness or asks us to endure it, we are creating for many people an image of God they must eventually reject. What human mother or father would choose cancer for their daughter in order to tame her pride? Those preachers and chaplains who try to comfort the sick by telling them to accept their illness as a blessing sent from God are giving an immediate consolation, but at what ultimate cost! In a sense we unwillingly treat God as something like a pagan, placated by human sacrifice."

The belief that God sent sickness to sanctify us can be traced back to the early church when Christians suffered much persecution. Tertullian said, "The blood of martyrs is the seed of the church." Suffering brings benefits.

Later in the time of Constantine Christians were well respected and protected by the State. Christianity became the official religion. Degeneration set in. In order to overcome this, Christians resorted to self inflicted punishment. Suffering was looked upon as of value for our spiritual growth. True some of the finest saints have been through pain of sickness and suffering. God can work through suffering and sickness as in the case with our daughter and our reaction to her handicap. But this does not mean that it is God's intention that we should be sick. We need only to look at the life and ministry of Jesus to see that God wants us to be healthy.

The Bible abounds with stories of miraculous healing. Some people, He simply touched and were healed; others He issued the word of command. With yet another He went through of process of mixing clay with spittle, spreading over the man's eyes and commanded him to wash in the pool of Siloam. He used different methods for different people. In the same way with the early church as recorded in Acts. God loves variety!

The power of God is the same today as in the past. God gave to some the gifts of healing. However, the important thing to remember is not to expect God to do our bidding. Some people want God to be like their puppet! "Lord, You do as I tell you or I won't come to church or believe in You." That is sheer arrogance and pride! He knows more than we do and He gives the best to those who leave the choice with Him! I've proved this to be true again and again!

There are times when our request for healing is denied, for reasons only known to Him. That does not alter the fact of divine healing. God's power is as near us in sickness and in death as it is in healing. When we pray and immediate healing does not come, it is not for us to question the reality that God is still the Healer. My duty is simply to love and trust Him for healing and at the same time be aware of the effect of this fallen world world on us.

Recall the story of Joni Eareckson Tada the lady who became paralysed as a result of a diving accident. I personally attended a meeting where she was present to give her testimony sitting in a wheelchair. She believed in faith healing and equated this with instantaneous healing. For her this did not happen and after much prayer and agonising she learned to accept her infirmity and allowed God to use her for His glory.

I end with a poem by Dr. A B Simpson called "Himself"

Once it was the blessing, now it is the Lord;
Once it was the feeling, now it is the Word;
Once His gifts I wanted, now the Giver own;
Once I sought for healing, now Himself alone.