Oct 24
6
Old Testament Reading: Psalm 103
“OF DAVID. Bless the LORD, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless his holy name! Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits, who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy, who satisfies you with good so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s. The LORD works righteousness and justice for all who are oppressed. He made known his ways to Moses, his acts to the people of Israel. The LORD is merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. He will not always chide, nor will he keep his anger forever. He does not deal with us according to our sins, nor repay us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our transgressions from us. As a father shows compassion to his children, so the LORD shows compassion to those who fear him. For he knows our frame; he remembers that we are dust. As for man, his days are like grass; he flourishes like a flower of the field; for the wind passes over it, and it is gone, and its place knows it no more. But the steadfast love of the LORD is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear him, and his righteousness to children’s children, to those who keep his covenant and remember to do his commandments. The LORD has established his throne in the heavens, and his kingdom rules over all. Bless the LORD, O you his angels, you mighty ones who do his word, obeying the voice of his word! Bless the LORD, all his hosts, his ministers, who do his will! Bless the LORD, all his works, in all places of his dominion. Bless the LORD, O my soul!” (Psalm 103, ESV)
New Testament Reading: Luke 14:1-6
“One Sabbath, when he went to dine at the house of a ruler of the Pharisees, they were watching him carefully. And behold, there was a man before him who had dropsy. And Jesus responded to the lawyers and Pharisees, saying, ‘Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath, or not?’ But they remained silent. Then he took him and healed him and sent him away. And he said to them, ‘Which of you, having a son or an ox that has fallen into a well on a Sabbath day, will not immediately pull him out?’ And they could not reply to these things.” (Luke 14:1–6, ESV)
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Please excuse any typos and misspellings within this manuscript. It has been published online for the benefit of the saints of Emmaus Reformed Baptist Church but without the benefit of proofreading.
Introduction
Luke 14:1-6 is very similar to Luke 13:10-17. In both passages, Christ heals on the Sabbath Day. In both passages, Christ comes under the criticism of Jewish leaders for it. In Luke 13:10-17 the criticism is spoken; in Luke 14:1-6 it is implied that the leaders were critical and judgemental towards Jesus in their hearts. In both passages, Christ rebukes his critics and insists that the Sabbath Day is not only a day for rest and worship but a day to show mercy to those in need.
In the sermon I preached on Luke 13:10-17, I focused on the Sabbath. I attempted to demonstrate that Christ was not against the Sabbath but was concerned to observe it properly. Christ was not preparing to do away with the Sabbath (as many claim) but was rescuing the Sabbath from the heard-hearted and loveless legalism of the Pharisees. In that sermon, I attempted to convince you that the Sabbath day was the very best day for Christ to perform this miracle of healing, for the Sabbath day is meant to remind us of the eternal Sabbath rest we will enjoy when Christ returns to make all things new. When Christ healed the woman with a disabling spirit, it was a foretaste and foreshadowing of the new creation. It demonstrated that Christ has the power to bring us into the state of glory, of which the Sabbath is a sign, and to heal us from all our infirmities. In that sermon, I also attempted to convince you that the practice of Sabbath-keeping remains for the people of God today (see Hebrews 4:9). The Sabbath day is no longer on the seventh day, but is now the first day of the week. Why? Because Christ rose from the dead on the first day of the week, and when he rose on the first day, he accomplished our redemption and inaugurated a new creation and the New Covenant. The seventh-day Sabbath has been fulfilled by Christ and has been taken away, but Sabbath-keeping remains for the people of God. Now, we rest from common labor and recreations to devote ourselves to worship, corporately and privately, on the first day of the week. It is Lord’s Day (see Revelation 1:10) or Christian Sabbath.
The passage that is open before us today is so similar to Luke 13:10-17, I suppose I could have simply preached that sermon all over again today. But instead of repeating what I said only a month or so ago, I have decided to come at this text from a slightly different vantage point. Instead of focusing on the Sabbath, I wish to focus on the topic of healing.
If you have been paying attention in our study through the gospel of Luke you will know that Christ healed many in the days of his earthly ministry. If you are familiar with the New Testament Scriptures, you will know that the apostles of Christ could heal (see Acts 3 & 4) and that some within the early church also had the gift of healing (see 1 Corinthians 12:28).
This raises many questions. Here are the questions that come immediately to my mind. Why did Christ heal? Why were the apostles of Christ given this ability to heal? Why did some within the early church have the gift of healing? Does the gift of healing remain in the church today? If not, does God heal today? If so, how does God heal? Should we expect that God will heal us? Why should we pursue healing when we are physically ill? And how should we pursue healing? These are the questions I would like to address today.
First, we will move very quickly through our text. After that, we will take up the topic of healing.
A Brief Exposition Of Luke 14:1-6
In Luke 14:1 we read, “One Sabbath…” As I have said, I do believe this text is about the Sabbath and the practice of Sabbath-keeping. “One Sabbath, when [Jesus] went to dine at the house of a ruler of the Pharisees…” I do like the idea that Christ dined with others on the Sabbath day. I do believe that the Sabbath is a wonderful day to have people in your home to eat with them. It is interesting, though, that Christ “dined at the house of a ruler of the Pharisees…” As you know, the Pharisees were typically opposed to Jesus, and that there was opposition and tension in this situation is made clear by the words, “they were watching him carefully.” They were watching him so as to catch him in some perceived error so that they might accuse him. I’m guessing you could feel the tension in the room. This doesn’t sound like a pleasant dinner to me.
In Luke 14:2 we read, “And behold, there was a man before [Jesus] who had dropsy” (Luke 14:2, ESV). Dropsy is a condition involving swelling due to the build-up of lymphatic fluid under the skin. We would call this condition, edema.
In Luke 14:3 we read, “And Jesus responded to the lawyers and Pharisees, saying, ‘Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath, or not?’” (Luke 14:3, ESV). The word “responded” is interesting. Responded to what? The lawyers and Pharisees hadn’t said anything! But they did, if you know what I mean. They said things before, they spoke through their body language, and Christ knew their thoughts, and so he responded to them, saying, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath, or not?”
I do wonder if this man with dropsy was a friend of theirs. I assume he was. Poor fellow. When Christ asked, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath, or not?”, everyone knew Christ was thinking of him and his condition. I’m sure the man with dropsey wanted everyone to show him mercy and to give the green light, but in verse 4 we read, “But they remained silent.” He must have felt betrayed and unloved by his legalistic friends. Thankfully, Christ showed him compassion. In the second half of verse 4, we read, “Then [Jesus] took him and healed him and sent him away” (Luke 14:4, ESV).
Jesus then took the Pharisees and lawyers to Sabbath school. Verse 5: “And he said to them, ‘Which of you, having a son or an ox that has fallen into a well on a Sabbath day, will not immediately pull him out?’” (Luke 14:5, ESV). The obvious answer is that everyone in the room would labor to pull their son or ox out of a well on the Sabbath-day. Why? Because these men, though they showed no love to their friend with dropsy, loved their sons enough to rescue them from harm on the Sabbath. And truth be told, they would even rescue their ox if it were in trouble. Why? Because an ox is a living being that is to be cared for and (perhaps this was the more important thing to these men) the ox had great monetary value. Think of how much work it would take to pull a son or an ox out of a water well. It would require a lot of work – way more work than was required of Jesus to free this man from his watery bondage. When the lawyers and Pharisees disapproved of Jesus’ actions in their minds and hearts, they once again were proved to be cold-hearted hypocrites, and so the text says, “they could not reply to these things” (Luke 14:6, ESV).
As I have said in the introduction to this sermon, though this text is mainly about the Sabbath, proper Sabbath observance, and the significance of the Sabbath, I wish to focus attention on the topic of healing.
Why did Christ heal?
Why did Christ heal? Why did he heal this man in this instance? And why did he heal so frequently in the days of his earthly ministry?
First of all, we must say that Christ healed the sick because he had compassion on them. In Luke 7:13 we are told that Christ had compassion on the weeping widow who had lost her only son before he raised him from the dead. In Matthew 14:14 we read, “When [Jesus]… saw a great crowd, and he had compassion on them and healed their sick.” There is more to be said about the reason Christ healed, but one reason is that he had compassion on the sick.
Secondly, when Christ performed these miracles of healing it was a sign. The Apostle John often uses the word “sign” in his gospel to describe the miracles Jesus performed. John 2:11: “This, the first of his signs, Jesus did at Cana in Galilee, and manifested his glory. And his disciples believed in him.” John 2:23: “Now when he was in Jerusalem at the Passover Feast, many believed in his name when they saw the signs that he was doing.” John 3:2: “This man came to Jesus by night and said to him, ‘Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher come from God, for no one can do these signs that you do unless God is with him.” John 4:48: “So Jesus said to him, ‘Unless you see signs and wonders you will not believe.’” John 6:2: “And a large crowd was following [Jesus], because they saw the signs that he was doing on the sick.” John 7:31: “Yet many of the people believed in him. They said, ‘When the Christ appears, will he do more signs than this man has done?’” Etc.
A sign is “an event which is regarded as having some special meaning” (Louw-Nida, 442.) The miracles that Jesus performed were signs that demonstrated that: his words were true; he was from God and that God was with him; he was the Messiah just as he claimed. In Acts 10:38 we hear the Apostle Peter speak of the earthly ministry of Christ, saying, “God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. He went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him” (Acts 10:38, ESV). You see, when Christ healed and cast out demons it was a sign that God was with him and that the kingdom of God was indeed present with power (see Luke 11:20).
But why this sign? Why did Christ heal as a sign that God was with him? In other words, is there some special significance or meaning within the sign of healing? Indeed, there is. Friends, the signs Jesus performed were not magic tricks. It is not as if Christ performed miracles merely to impress his audience. It is not as if he said, do you not believe my claims? Well, watch this! No, like with the Ten Plagues that were poured out on Egypt through Moses, the miracles themselves were pregnant with meaning.
When Jesus cast out demons it was a demonstration that he had the power to overthrow Satan and his kingdom and to establish the kingdom of God. And when Christ healed the sick and raised the dead it was a demonstration that he has the power to eradicate all sickness and even death. He has the power to do what the Psalmist hoped for in Psalm 103 – to heal all our diseases and redeem our life from the pit.
If we wish to interpret the healing ministry of Jesus correctly, we must remember where sickness and death came from. They were not a part of God’s original creation. They were not present before man’s fall into sin. Sickness and death entered the world when Adam rebelled against God. Indeed, the wages of sin is death! The healing ministry of Jesus Christ must be viewed against the backdrop of man’s fall into sin and God’s promise to send a Redeemer. In brief, in Old Testament times it was promised that God would send a Redeemer who would defeat the Evil One who tempted Eve and, through her, Adam. This Redeemer would reverse the effects of the fall. More than this, he would bring his people into the estate of glory, of which Adam, and through his representation, all humanity, fell short.
When Christ healed the sick it was not only a sign that his words were true, that he was from God and that God was with him, and that he was the Messiah just as he claimed. It was also a sign that he had come to reverse the effects of sin and to bring his people into the estate of glory, where sin and death will be no more.
Why were the Apostles of Christ given the ability to heal?
The answer to the question, why were the apostles of Christ given the ability to heal?, is almost the same. The difference is this: while Christ healed by his own authority and power, the apostles of Christ healed and worked signs and wonders in Jesus’ name.
In Acts 3 we find a story wherein the Apostle Peter healed a man who was lame from birth. The man was begging and he “fixed his attention on [Peter and John], expecting to receive something from them. But Peter said, ‘I have no silver and gold, but what I do have I give to you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk!’” (Acts 3:5–6, ESV). The man was healed and the people were astonished, “For the man on whom this sign of healing was performed was more than forty years old.” (Acts 4:22, ESV).
If you search for the phrase “signs and wonders” in the book of Acts, here is what you find: Acts 4:29-30 we find believers praying for continued boldness in the face of persecution, saying, “And now, Lord, look upon their threats and grant to your servants to continue to speak your word with all boldness, while you stretch out your hand to heal, and signs and wonders are performed through the name of your holy servant Jesus.” In Acts 5:12 we read, “Now many signs and wonders were regularly done among the people by the hands of the apostles.” In Acts 14:3 we read, “So [Paul and Barnabus] remained for a long time [in Iconium], speaking boldly for the Lord, who bore witness to the word of his grace, granting signs and wonders to be done by their hands.” In Acts 15:12 we are told that the “assembly [in Jerusalem] fell silent, and they listened to Barnabas and Paul as they related what signs and wonders God had done through them among the Gentiles.”
The apostles of Christ were given the ability to perform wonders in the name of Jesus Christ as a sign that the word they proclaimed was true. These saw Christ resurrected, remember. These were commissioned by Christ to function as his special representatives. It is no wonder that God enabled them to work signs and wonders as a demonstration that their word was true.
Do you know where else the phrase, “signs and wonders”, is found? It is found in the Old Testament in texts that are about the Exodus. In Exodus 7:3, God speaks to Moses, saying “But I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, and though I multiply my signs and wonders in the land of Egypt, Pharaoh will not listen to you. Then I will lay my hand on Egypt and bring my hosts, my people the children of Israel, out of the land of Egypt by great acts of judgment.” In Deuteronomy 6:22, Moses says, “And the Lord showed signs and wonders, great and grievous, against Egypt and against Pharaoh and all his household, before our eyes.” Jeremiah 32:20 says, “You have shown signs and wonders in the land of Egypt, and to this day in Israel and among all mankind, and have made a name for yourself, as at this day.” This is an important observation. The working of signs and wonders is linked to great acts of redemption. God worked signs and wonders through Moses in the Exodus. And God worked signs and wonders through Christ and his apostles in the days when Jesus accomplished our eternal redemption.
Why did some within the early church have the gift of healing?
Why then did some have the gift of healing in the days of the early church (see 1 Corinthians 12)? I trust you can anticipate the answer. In the days of the early church – in the days before most of the New Testament Scriptures were written – there were apostles, prophets, and other eyewitnesses to Christ’s resurrection ministering the word of God and testifying to what they saw, and miraculous gifts did accompany them – the gift of healing, miracles, and tongues – as a sign that their word concerning Christ was true.
Does the gift of healing remain in the church today?
Does the supernatural gift of healing remain in the church today? No. There are no apostles, or prophets in the church today. These are the stones of the foundation of God’s new covenant, new creation temple, remember? Christ is the cornerstone. The church is built upon this foundation. The offices of apostle and prophet have ceased. And neither are there eyewitnesses of Jesus’ resurrection in the church today. For this reason, there are no miracle workers or healers in the church today. The ability to work miracles and heal functioned as a sign that the apostles, prophets, and eyewitnesses of Christ’s resurrection spoke the truth. These have passed away, and now we have their inscriptuarted word. The miraculous gifts have ceased. More could be said in support of our cessationist position, but this will have to do for now.
Does God heal today?
But does God heal today? This, my friends, is a different question. And the answer is, yes! Do Christians have the supernatural gift of healing today? No. But does God heal today? Yes.
How does God heal today?
And how does God heal? Three categories come to mind.
One, miraculously, through prayers of his people.
This is why James says, “Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord” (James 5:14, ESV). It is not only the elders who should pray for healing. If a person is ill, they should pray for their own healing. They should also pray with others for healing. And if the illness is so severe that they are bedridden and unable to assemble with the church, they ought to ask the elders of the church to come and pray for them and to anoint them with oil. Some say the anointing oil is medicinal. Others say that it symbolizes the Holy Spirit. While I respect the medicinal view, I do believe the oil symbolizes the Holy Spirit. And I do not believe that the symbolic view requires us to call this anointing a sacrament of the church, as the Roman Catholics do. The oil signifies the Holy Spirit. It reminds the one who is ill of God’s presence and of his love for them in Christ Jesus. The oil does not heal. Prayer is the means through which the healing comes (if it is God’s will to grant it), and that what James says next: “And the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven” (James 5:15, ESV). The point is this: though the miraculous gift of healing has ceased, this does not mean that God has ceased from healing in miraculous ways. If it is his will to heal, he will do it through the means of prayer
Another way that God heals is naturally, through prayer, with the help of gifted physicians.
Did you know that Luke, the author of this Gospel, was a physician? That is what Paul calls him in Colossians 4:14. As we reflect on the fact that Luke was a physician, I suppose it should strengthen our conviction that God can bring healing to us miraculously or through natural means. Luke knew that Jesus could heal and yet that did not lead him to abandon his work as a physician.
Dear friends, if you are ill it is not wrong for you to seek help from a physician. God has gifted men and women with the natural ability to study the natural body and to help it heal from injury and illness. We should rejoice in this gift and make use of it when necessary. But I would urge you to be careful. Take care that you do not place your trust in man rather than in God. Take care to avoid the assumption that physicians have all the answers. In our day and age, I believe it is especially important to think critically and to take responsibility for your health. We should recognize that the majority of the doctors in our society operate within a system. In fact, you should know that it is very difficult for a doctor to break away from the established system even if they want to. And while there are many good things about our modern medical system – things to be thankful for – it is my conviction that the system has significant flaws and weaknesses. We should be mindful of the flaws and weaknesses, brothers and sisters, as we pursue health and healing.
I do not wish to bind anyone’s conscience on this point, but I would encourage you to consider looking outside of the established system for alternative approaches to health and wellness. It is my opinion that while our modern medical system excels at trauma care, there are alternative approaches that better support overall health and healing. But as soon as I say this, I must caution you again. In my experience, many of the so-called alternative approaches to health and wellness that I have encountered are all tangled up with philosophies, worldviews, and religions that we as Christians must not entertain. I have also read books on alternative theories about health and wellness that claim to be Christian or are written by professing Christians. But upon close examination, I find their use of Scripture to be very concerning and their theology very poor.
The general point that I am making is simple. God has the power to heal us miraculously and directly. This he will sometimes do, and if he does it, he will do it through the prayers of his people. But God might also heal through natural means and with the help of physicians. Dear brothers and sisters, in some instances, I do believe it is right for us to seek the assistance of physicians and health practitioners while pursuing health and healing, but we must be discerning. Ultimately, our trust must be in God, not man. All things must be bathed in prayer.
There is a third way that God heals that we sometimes forget about. God does also heal through prayer and the body’s natural healing processes.
Friends, God has designed our bodies with this incredible ability to heal. You can see it most clearly when you cut yourself. The cut will heal naturally and over time. I’m afraid we sometimes forget about this natural ability and feel as if we must intervene whenever symptoms arise. Worse yet, we intervene with medicines even before there is a real problem, having been convinced of a threat. There is clearly a time for medical intervention. But is it not possible that our excessive interventions and our propensity to overmedicate make problems worse in the long run? To be clear, my view is not that all medications are bad. Neither am I advising that those on medications stop the use of them. That can be very dangerous, as you probably know. I am, however, urging thoughtfulness and discernment. I am urging you to take a step back from the system and from the industry that supports and surrounds it and to ask critical questions. When it comes to the topic of health and healing, we cannot forget that God has designed the human body with the capacity to heal itself. I would even propose to you that many of the common symptoms of illness that we experience are in fact an important part of the body’s healing process. When we always rush to suppress symptoms, we might be doing more harm than good. I do believe we would benefit from regaining confidence in the body’s natural ability to heal. Not every fever requires a pharmaceutical. Not every ache or pain requires a consult with a doctor. As I consider our modern medical system, I do wonder if a good deal of the sickness in our society is not the result of a system that overmedicates and is quick to intervene.
Should we expect that God will heal us?
Does God heal today? Yes. How does God heal? Sometimes directly and miraculously as his people come to him in prayers. God also heals through natural means, with the help of gifted physicians, and through the body’s natural healing mechanisms. But should we expect that God will heal us when we are ill? This question must be answered carefully.
One, we must know for certain that God is able to heal us if it is his will. If God does not bring us healing immediately or ever in this life, it is not due to some weakness or inability in him.
Two, connected to this, we must not forget God’s purposes in our afflictions. Does the Bible teach that Jesus healed and that God can heal the sick? Yes. But the Bible also has a lot to say about the causes and purposes of afflictions in the lives of God’s people.
Earlier I mentioned having concerns with books I’ve read on alternative approaches to health and healing written by authors who claim to be Christians. One of the major concerns I have is with the idea that Jesus Christ came so that we might be healed bodily now. These authors will point to passages like our text for today and say, see, Jesus heals! In him, we are already healed. We only need to believe it and claim it, etc. That’s nonsense
In fact, the Scriptures have a lot to say about the benefits of afflictions and God’s purposes for them. You know, there is a book of the Bible devoted to this very subject, the book of Job. Job cannot be ignored. And neither can we ignore passages like James 1:1-2: “Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing” (James 1:2–4, ESV). 1 Peter 5:6-7 is also precious. Here Peter commands us, saying, “Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you” (1 Peter 5:6–7, ESV). These passages teach that we are to submit ourselves to God in the midst of afflictions. We are to trust him, knowing that he loves us. We are to wait upon him, knowing that he will exult us in due time.
This is what Paul did. In 1 Corinthians 12:7-10, he speaks of a metaphorical thorn in his flesh. “So to keep me from becoming conceited because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, a thorn was given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to harass me, to keep me from becoming conceited. Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me. 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 of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong” (2 Corinthians 12:7–10, ESV). Some claim that this thorn in the flesh was not a physical ailment but a person who harassed Paul. I doubt that given what Paul says about the weakness and limitations that Pual endured because of this thorn in the flesh. But really, it does not matter what this thorn in the flesh was. The point is clear. Paul suffered under an unrelenting affliction of some kind. Afflictions of all kinds are a part of life in this present evil age. Paul asked for it to be removed, but God said no. And the affliction was used by God to draw Paul into a closer dependence upon him. In this, Paul rejoiced.
Those who claim that Christ came to heal us now ignore the fact that afflictions of all kinds are used by God to test, strengthen, mature, and purify his people as we live life in this present evil age. Brothers and sisters, we must have a well-developed doctrine of suffering and afflictions. We will not fare well in this world without it.
The question that I would really like to ask these people is, what about death? Did Christ come to irradicate death now? Clearly the answer is, no. And that reveals the problem. These folks have developed a system of doctrine that erroneously brings the blessings that will be enjoyed by God’s people in life to come into the here and now.
Did Jesus come to heal us and to free us from all afflictions? The answer is yes! But we will experience the fullness of those blessings only in the life to come.
Why should we pursue health and healing?
Some, after hearing what I have said about God’s purposes in afflictions and my warnings against expecting the blessings of the life to come in the here and now, will think: then I suppose we must simply be content with sickness. That is not my point. Yes, we must pursue contentment when sick! But this does not require us to be content with the sickness. In fact, I do believe that Christians have an obligation to pursue health and healing.
Morally, the sixth commandment requires it! Our catechism is helpful:
Q. 72. What is the sixth commandment?
A. The sixth commandment is, “Thou shalt not kill.” (Exodus 20:13)
Q. 73. What is required in the sixth commandment?
A. The sixth commandment requires all lawful endeavors to preserve our own life and the life of others. (Eph. 5:29,30; Ps. 82:3,4; Prov. 24:11,12; Act 16:28)
Q. 74. What is forbidden in the sixth commandment?
A. The sixth commandment absolutely forbideth the taking away of our own life, or the life of our neighbor unjustly, or whatsoever tendeth thereunto. (Gen. 4:10,11; 9:6; Matt. 5:21-26)
Friends, God has given you a body. We must be good stewards of it!
How should we pursue health and healing?
How then should we pursue health and healing?
One, always through prayer. When ill, we must pray to God to implore his mercy. As we ask him to remove the affliction, we must also humble ourselves before him and submit ourselves to his perfectly wise will. As we ask him to remove the affliction, we must pray that he would use it for good in our lives and the lives of others. We must also give thanks to God in the midst of the affliction. As Paul says, “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you” (1 Thessalonians 5:16–18, ESV). I’m afraid that people make their afflictions much worse when they give themselves over to a grumbly and ungrateful mindset. We are to pursue contentment in God and in Christ in every circumstance. As Paul says in Philippians 4:11, “I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me” (Philippians 4:11–13, ESV). How should we pursue healing? Always through prayer. And our prayers must always be perfumed with thankfulness. “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:4–7, ESV).
Two, when we fall ill, we should make a careful search for sin. All illness is the result of sin in a general way. As has been said, illness was not present in the world before Adam rebelled. To be clear, not every illness is the direct result of some personal and particular sin. The story of Job is clear about that. But some illness is the result of personal and particular sin. When David lived in unrepentant sin, he said that his bones wasted away and that his strength was sapped as by the heat of summer (Psalm 32). Paul says that some who partook of the Lord’s Supper in Corinth in an unworthy manner were weak and ill, and some had died (1 Corinthians 11:30). In the James passage that was read earlier about the one who is ill calling for the elders of the church to pray and to anoint with oil, James says, “And the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven” (James 5:15, ESV). James suggests that there may be a connection between illness and sin. It could be that God disciplines his beloved children when they are living in unrepentant sin by permitting them to be afflicted with illness. It could also be the sin that has brought with it what we would call natural consequences. If you are drinking to the point of drunkenness, do not be surprised if your liver is diseased. And similarly, if you are harboring bitterness and unforgiveness in your heart, do not be surprised when that heart sin affects your physical body. Dear friend, we are soul and body. These two parts of our nature must be distinguished but they cannot be divided. The soul affects the body, and the body affects the soul. When I urge you to make a careful search for sin, do not forget to look for sins of the mind and heart. Sins of the mind and heart will affect the natural body if left unchecked. I’m not sure why we have such a difficult time recognizing this in our day and age. When you are angry, you’ll feel hot and grow red in the face. When you are bitter, you’ll feel it in your gut. When you are anxious, you’ll experience tightness in your chest. When these sinful emotions are not dealt with and are allowed to remain, they are bound to impact us physically even resulting in illness. If sin is found, it must be turned from.
Three, when we fall ill, we should make a careful search for folly. By this I mean, we should examine our lives and ask, am I living foolishly in some way? Under this heading I would encourage you to ask questions like this: am I consuming unhealthy food, am I ingesting, injecting, or implanting things that may be toxic into my body, am I overworking, am I overly stressed, am I staying up to late and not getting enough rest, am I neglecting physical activity and exercise, etc., etc. These things might not fall under the category of “sin”, but it is possible that foolish living will result in physical illness. If folly is found, we must turn from the folly and pursue a life of wisdom.
Four, when we fall ill, we must look to Christ and place all of our hope in him. We must look back upon his earthly ministry to consider the signs and wonder he performed. When we consider that he cast out demons, healed the sick, raised the dead, and was raised from the dead himself, after which he ascended to glory, we see that he has the power to forgive all our iniquity, to heal all our diseases, to redeem our lives from the pit, to crown us with steadfast love and mercy, and to satisfy us with good so that our youth is renewed like the eagles (see Psalm 103). We must also look to the future to the return of Christ the King when all of these benefits will be ours in full in the new heavens and earth that he has secured. Then and there, God will wipe away every tear from our eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for then the former things will have passed away” (see Revelation 21:4).
