“It’s never God’s will that you’re sick. Jesus healed everyone. Just claim that healing.”
Several times both through my original cancer journey and this latest drama, I’ve heard this. And well before my own health troubles, I’ve heard it too. Have you? Or perhaps this is what you believe?
I think it’s something we need to talk about. Because I know how I react to it emotionally, and I also know how dear friends and family have reacted to it. Personally, I always find myself thinking, “I understand your belief, and I know you’re saying this out of love and faith. I, too, believe Christ is our Healer, that He can heal anyone. But saying that He will choose to heal me if I just have faith enough is not helpful.” I’ve never said this to an individual before, because the last thing I want to do is lash out when someone’s trying to speak hope to me. But it has lingered in my mind this time.
So let’s ask the question. Does God ever will our ills?
Many people say, “Of course not! God wills only good for us!” And that is absolutely the truth…but I don’t think it’s the full picture. I don’t believe that God wants disease or illness for us, I don’t believe He sends them to us…but I do believe they are an inescapable consequence of our fallen world and that, because God in His omniscience knew this world would fall, He’s made a way not just to deliver miraculous healing in some cases, but to use our ills for His glory in ALL cases…if we let Him.
First of all, we have examples like Job, where God did indeed will and explicitly allow Satan to bring hardship including disease onto His faithful servant. Now, God did not send the disease. But God did allow the disease. And though, yes, Job was eventually delivered from it and went on to new health and wealth and joy, we can also be certain that he still died eventually. And that would be after he spoke to God directly.
In the New Testament, we know that Paul had some undisclosed issue (most scholars I’ve read assume it was a physical ailment, though of course we can’t know for sure) that he prayed three times to be delivered from. And what did God say?
My strength is made perfect in your weakness.
We also see in the Epistles that new Christians were very confused as to why some of them were dying. Didn’t Christ’s wounds heal them? Weren’t they supposed to live forever? But they weren’t. They died like everyone else. What did that mean? Was their faith false?
Of course not, and Paul explains it all to them, making it clear that eternal life is for now given to the soul, and that the resurrection of our bodies, our flesh, will come later.
And we also need to look at the two thousand years of Church history. We know that every Christian to come before us has died. And we know that they didn’t all die from violence or martyrdom. That many–most–died of some disease or another.
So taking all of this into account, I would have to say that, questions of will aside, we all do get sick, and the majority of us die of some sickness or another. Is this God’s will? Or is it all Satan?
Questions like this feel not only tricky but dangerous. Because obviously God’s perfect will was for man not to sin, and hence not to die–EVER. Which would include no sickness. But mankind did sin and DOES sin, and so we introduced death into the world. And given that God created this world, created man, created free will, knowing all along what would happen, I think we need to accept that there is nuance to the will of God. That while He would love for us all to be perfect as Christ is perfect, imperfection is part of His working will. That includes our sin, our brokenness, and also our diseases.
Which brings us back to today. Do I believe God afflicts us with disease? No. Do I believe that God can and does still give miraculous healings? Absolutely. But I also believe that those people who receive them will go on to die, likely of some different disease, at a later time. We will all die. For many of us, we’ll be sick first. This is reality, and given that there are no 2,000-year-old people still walking around, our faith must take that into account.
For many, many Christians, living with ongoing suffering, with chronic illness, is reality too. And this is not a lack of faith. But I’ve spoken with so many suffering friends who have been told that if they just believed more, they’d be healed. And I grieve with those friends over the guilt this puts on them–a shame they do not deserve.
Because you know what? God uses our pain for His glory. When we are weak–sick, injured, dying, suffering, exhausted–He’s still at work. He is strong, and His strength can shine through us. When we are weak, we are quite often better at sharing the heart of Christ than when we are well. When we are weak, our hearts are more vulnerable to the pain of those around us.
Christ chose to suffer, after all. He could have called down the angels. He could have miraculously healed His own wounds. He could have walked through the midst of the people who came for Him, as He had done before. But He didn’t. He chose instead to be subjected to the most painful suffering humanity had been able to devise. It wasn’t disease, obviously, but it was intense agony. He suffered it for us.
I cringe every time someone says I (or someone else) just needs to claim healing because Christ healed all the sick, and if we have faith, we can claim it too…because this argument effectively says the opposite too: that if you’re sick, if you die of disease, you must not have faith enough for healing. This is dangerous, friends. This is judging people for being what humans have been since the Garden: MORTAL. This is unrealistic and hurtful to those who are already suffering. I have met quite a few people who left a church and nearly left the church because they have a chronic illness and were told they could just be healed if they believed.
Friends, there is healing beyond the physical, and that is what Christ wants for us most of all. You remember the story of the paralyzed young man who was lowered through the roof by his friends, right? Do you remember Jesus’s immediate reaction? He says, “Your sins are forgiven.” The faith of this man and his friends did not immediately garner a physical healing–Christ knew his REAL need, and that was salvation of his soul. That was what He offered first, from His heart. It was the snarky thoughts of the onlookers that spurred Him to give a visible sign, a visible healing.
I know that young man rejoiced to leap from his mat. But what do you think really gave him the most joy–use of his legs for another decade or two, or an eternity in Heaven with his Lord?
Every week in Mass, there’s a part where the priest holds up the host and says, “Behold, the Lamb of God. Behold, He who takes away the sins of the world. Blessed are those called to the Supper of the Lamb.”
And the congregation answers with another Scripture, but with a single world that reflects on our own situation, every day, rather than the centurion’s. We say, “Lord, I am not worthy that You should enter under my roof. But only say the word, and my soul shall be healed.” The Scripture, of course, says servant. But we say this as a recognition that we do not come to Jesus every day, every week, to ask that a servant and friend be delivered of a fever. We come to Him every day, every week, to be delivered from the sins that plague us. It’s our souls that He heals every time we ask–fully, completely, eternally. It’s our souls that most urgently need to be cleansed from disease.
The test of our faith is not whether or not we get sick, suffer, or die. The test of our faith is how we get sick, suffer, and die. By which I mean, how do we handle it? Do we make the best or the worst of it? Do we affix our eyes to Christ on the cross as we’re suffering, asking Him to take our pain and join it to His world-changing sacrifice, or do we complain about everything and cling to despair instead of hope?
Because yes, the world is watching. And while a miraculous healing might win hearts…so does God-lent strength amidst our trials. God can be glorified through our healing, but He can also be glorified through our suffering.
In this world, we will get sick. And whether or not our Lord chooses to heal us, our part is to cling to Him through it. Our testimony is not whether or not we are healed this side of Heaven–our testimony is whether or not we’re pointing to Heaven through it.
A friend recently reminded me of a passage from the little freebie I make available to newsletter subscribers, The Heart of His Brother. This is just a chapter that’s part of the Secrets of the Isles series, about the older brother of the Tremayne siblings who we never meet in the books because he’s already passed away, but whose memory and legacy is a very real part of Oliver and Beth’s story and even has a profound effect on Bram, hero of book three, who is a visitor to the Isles. Morgan was always plagued by disease and always knew he would die young. But he chose to live life in a way that made every moment count. My friend quoted this passage to me, and I think Morgan’s reflections here sum up my own beliefs rather well (and this was written years ago, well before any of my own health struggles):
“This infirmity, whatever it is,” he’d said to Beth, “is not from God. But He will use it. He will redeem it. He made me to be as strong as Oliver, and though my body betrayed that, He will perfect me in some other way, if I let him. For everything I cannot do, there’s something I can, that I’ve only discovered because of my limitations. And if I fail to do that, if I wallow in the ‘not’ instead—well, that’s my own fault, isn’t it? The Lord made me to praise Him. If I can’t do it with a leap, then I’ll do it with a shout.”
We should never stop praying for and believing in miracles. I absolutely, one hundred percent, believe that God can and still does deliver those miraculous healings. How can I not?
He’s already given me the most miraculous healing of all. He’s already forgiven my sins, taking my dying soul and restoring it to perfect life in Him. My body? He can heal that too. But if He doesn’t, then I will trust. I will trust that He can work more glory through pain and disease than He could through miraculous physical healing. I will trust that there’s still something I need to learn about Him that I can only learn here. I will trust that a healing received in Heaven is no less real, no less miraculous, no less beautiful than one given on earth. And I’ll know that I will see that there because He’s already granted that MORE important healing.
Pray for healing, friends. Always. But also remember that healing is never perfected this side of heaven. Lazarus went on to die a second time–bodily. But that is no cause for despair. Remember the words that Jesus told Martha outside that tomb:
Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?” (John 11:25, ESV. Emphasis my own.)
Do we believe this? Do we believe that, though these earthly bodies fail for now, in the way that matters most, WE SHALL LIVE? That day, Jesus raised Lazarus bodily from the grave. In another day, He’ll raise us bodily from the grave. It doesn’t matter if we were already sick and died. It doesn’t matter if we stink or have decomposed entirely, if our bones have been burned to ashes even.
When the Word that created the very universe says, “Come forth!” that’s exactly what we’ll do.
Because the only death that matters is death of the soul–and if we believe in Him, that’s the death we will never taste. The only healing that ultimately matters is healing of the soul–and if we believe in Him, that’s the healing that we can know. Every day. Every hour. Every minute.
So to my friends with chronic illness; to my friends with terminal disease; to my friends who suffer every day in a body that has betrayed that perfect vision, know this. You are already healed. And healing of the soul…that takes far more faith than healing of the body. That is the work that only God Himself can do. Physicians can stitch these limbs back together, perform surgery, do such amazing things to prolong physical life.
But the Great Physician is the only one who can give that most miraculous healing of all–the healing that makes us ready for eternity.
I don’t know if my cancer will ever spread, if it’ll come back again someday, if I’ll die of disease eventually or something else entirely, if it’ll happen in a year or a decade or a century. But I do know this.
I am already healed.
Roseanna M. White is a bestselling, Christy Award winning author who has long claimed that words are the air she breathes. When not writing fiction, she’s homeschooling her two kids, editing, designing book covers, and pretending her house will clean itself. Roseanna is the author of a slew of historical novels that span several continents and thousands of years. Spies and war and mayhem always seem to find their way into her books…to offset her real life, which is blessedly ordinary.
Excellent teaching. Even so…I will praise the Lord. Daniel 3:18 Even if He doesn’t rescue me HERE, I will not waiver.
Yesterday I barely made it to get my hair cut. My energy sapped, but my daughter who is also now medically disabled really wanted to give me the gift of a hair cut before Christmas. So she used up her energy driving me 20 minutes away. And today I slept until 5pm. And she’s still asleep.
Our faith is strong. Our love of Jesus is solid. But our bodies are not.
Amen! How you can write the words is truly a gift from God. Thank you for sharing.
Roseanna, what a beautiful commentary on a harsh comment that people say sometimes to hurting people. Thank you for this. I’m going to co py it and keep it for myself or for someone else who might be hurting. These words and others I have read from you shoud be put into a book about God’s healing or Faith in Pain. You are an eloquent write and I’m so glad I know you!!
Thank you! I’ve struggled with how to make sense of this. I have a friend who believes in this movement. It’s not just physical healings, it’s anything that feels out of control. Rather than trusting God through it, you trust God to fix it, change it. What I finally had to realize is that even though they are a super spiritual person who can happily spend all day doing devotions and seem to have a super faith, they really don’t have much faith. In fear, this movement attempts to control God. “If I do ____, then God will fix anything not going my way.”
In some ways I prefer their theology. I’m in favor of not having to trust, of being able to control everything. Faith is HARD! But the problem is that God isn’t controllable. He’s God. I’m not. And He tells me over and over to trust. I’m still not good at it. I just know that it’s the only thing that will bring true peace. My seeming to gain control over situations won’t bring peace, just a continued frantic attempt to keep hold of control. Again though, knowing it and applying it are two different things 😀
Thank you so much for sharing this profound truth. It helped solidify some pieces in my own thinking that had been jiggling around for years.
This is beautiful Roseanna! You have put into words my beliefs exactly. Thank you
Roseanna, thank you for this post!
Unfortunately I used to be one of those people. Praise God, He opened my eyes to how I was incorrectly interpreting the Bible and I’ve departed from the belief that faith heals you, as well other incorrect theologies.
I’ve since left the church that taught that and have worked at unlearning many of those things. Because when it comes down to it, beliefs like that can be very damaging to your faith, or to other peoples’ faith, like you mentioned. I’ve seen it happen, and it’s so tragic and sad. Believing that whatever you have faith for will happen sets you up for so much disappointment. The greatest of joys is found in JESUS. If you never receive your healing on earth, is Jesus still enough??
God never promises that everyone will be healed, or that everyone will be wealthy or have an easy life. I believe that many people believe these false theologies because they’ve been incorrectly taught how to interpret the bible–at least that was the case for me.
I’m sorry you’ve had people say this to you. Your faith throughout your journey is encouraging. 🤍
Thank you for sharing, Emma! I always know that when people say these things, they’re speaking from love. That they want good for me. That helps me put it in perspective, for sure, and as I said, I have never chosen to argue with anyone trying to speak faith and healing into my life. And it’s certainly given me much cause for pondering what our loving God DOES promise us, and that’s always a win!
Roseanna,
I so appreciate your post. And I have to say, I agree with what you’re saying. The role of faith in healing is very complicated, and one that our human brains probably can’t fully comprehend. And while I personally believe it’s vitally important to have faith and to ask for healing and miracles (it’s always good to ask!), it’s still entirely up to God and His plan as to who is and isn’t healed. His plans and His reasons are far beyond our own human comprehension. But to think that we could simply “heal ourselves” by having the exact right amount of faith or belief, is almost like trying to “be God” Himself. But God still the one who decides, and I think we have to trust that.
As a person who has gone through three episodes in my life of times when I was staring death in the eye, I am happy to say that God can and does heal. At the same time, oddly enough, there is nothing like “dying” to teach a person about living. I think I learned more about appreciating life when I wasn’t sure I had much left. None of us knows the number of our days. But it’s important that we live those days to the fullest, and follow God’s plan for our lives while we’re here.
With all that, I am praying for you and asking God to heal you. I hope you can find joy in the beauty of life around you, and thank you for reaching out to serve others with your blog.
God Bless!
Exactly so, Cindy! He DOES still choose to heal in the physical many times, without question. We should never stop asking for His touch. We just need to remain always aware that physical healing is secondary to spiritual healing, and that even if He doesn’t touch this body now, that is not defeat. It’s still victory. To live is Christ, but to die is gain. <3 And sometimes, we will continue to suffer bodily...but that doesn't mean we have to suffer spiritually.
Amen!
Beautifully written. I too believe that because our God is good, He does want us healed but in this broken world it’s just not always that simple. Sometimes our God healer heals instantaneously and it’s beautiful. It brings Him glory. Sometimes He heals people by taking them to be with Him. Sometimes, (I know am amazing woman who this is her story) someone suffers for many years and then, after being prayed for about 1,000 times, God says, today. And she was after 14 years of suffering, and many prayers, healed in that moment and this particular woman now travels, ministering to others. God is so big. He is so good. Our world is broken and we just don’t have all the answers yet. We know in part. Keep pressing in for all the healing, (body, soul, spirit) that our wonderfully good and merciful God has for each one of us. Today could be the day. And in the waiting, we learn to depend on His beautiful strength.
Truth expressed so beautifully and thoroughly! Thank you Roseanna! I am praying for you and so thankful for all the faithful encouragement you have offered your readers throughout the years. God has given you a beautiful mind – thank you for sharing your words and exquisitely crafted stories. Praying there will be many more!
Thank you for sharing this. I’m pretty sure this teaching came out of Bethel Church in Redding, CA and it was something my former church repeated all the time, telling several chronically ill people in the congregation that they must be harboring some unconfessed sin, unforgiveness, or doubt that was preventing their healing. Not only does this harm the physically ill, but those who struggle with mental health issues as well. I remember reading that Joni Ericksen Tada spent years being shuffled from one healing service to another in constant pursuit of physical restoration, while her mental health and her ability to “live life” suffered immensely. She said when she finally stopped pursuing healing, that is when the rest of her life took off – her painting, her writing, and I’m sure her personal life too. I’m not sure if you watch The Chosen (I’m a huge fan) but there is a beautiful scene where one of the disciples goes to Jesus to ask why He hasn’t healed him, and the response Jesus gives him is so spot-on, in my opinion. (The actor who plays “Little” James has a disability, and therefore, so does Little James).
This is so beautiful. I have been told by many of my church friends to just claim my healing and it hurts so bad, because I don’t believe that way. I admit that this year has seen me in the pit of not allowing Him to shine through my pain but I’m through living in that pit of allowing the pain to define me. I just want to honor Him and share Him and His beautiful, incredible love.
Oh, Rebecca, I understand your pain and pray the peace and mercy of God lifts you so far above that bit that His light can’t help but shine through you, so brightly all those people who’d said those things can’t deny the truth of His presence IN the pain and illness.
Thank you~ need these reminders of the true eternal healing we already have. And not to be afraid. I’m often very afraid of dying. After watching and praying and caring for and waiting with my sister for ten years with disease, she finally went home to Jesus and I’ll admit, it was so hard to navigate all the prayers and hopes that we held on to all that time.
Amen. This was so beautiful. As someone who lives with chronic illness (and has done for decades), you summed it up perfectly. Praise God. And I love the quote from your story: “The Lord made me to praise Him. If I can’t do it with a leap, then I’ll do it with a shout.” Amen!
Such truth and comfort from the wisdom of God. Thank you for sharing.
Donna
That’s lovely, and something I needed to hear. Thank you.
So wise, so helpful…so what God wants our hearts to know. Thank you!
Thanks for writing so eloquently what I have believed for years. All I can say is, Yes! And, Amen!
Amen! This reminds me a lot of Christine Dillon’s book Grace in Strange Disguise. 😊
As we rapidly approach the 5th anniversary of my dad’s death from covid, I feel this. I saw so many who were healed from that awful virus and though we prayed without ceasing for him, he was not healed bodily this side of heaven (though I know he is fully healed now, never to be diminished again). That song that says “even if you don’t, my hope is you alone” is one that I’ve clung to since. I don’t know if we will ever understand on this side of the veil why He heals some and not others, but it is not ours to know. It is ours to trust.