I normally don't post stuff that's controversial or try to stimulate discussion, but lately I've been knee-deep in theology and not being an internal processor, I need to type it out. Thanks for listening :)
I'm teaching a class in my church next month titled Authority to Heal, after the book we'll be using by Ken Blue. I have my own journey with healing, which I hope to share soon here, which makes teaching the class even more exciting. I've been scouring books from every theological perspective on healing and trying to get a grasp on not only what I believe, but what is the TRUTH.
The major split I see on this subject is the root of the suffering that calls for healing to be needed. Some say that while God never does evil, He may permit it, owing to the truth that God is sovereign over all. Others say that God never does evil, never permits it, but it is inherently impossible for Him to give freedom and not allow that freedom to be used, so there is evil operating without his "divine sanction." Depending on where you fall with the above dichotomy will dictate your view on suffering and the possibility, much less the need to pray for healing. If you believe God permits our suffering, your prayers for healing may not be as strong and your hope that the person will be healed will be diminished. If however, you believe God sent his son Jesus to assault the kingdom of Satan and heal all suffering He encountered (which is true in the NT), your prayers and hopes for healing will look VERY different. Instead of praying, "if it be Your will, God..." you'll pray with authority because you believe it will happen with God's power.
For purposes of full disclosure, I side with the latter view. This is based on years of believing the other side and having those beliefs damage my relationship with God as well as my own body and spiritual health. After much study over the past year, I've also come to see the truth and scripture behind my belief.
It really comes down to what we believe about God. We may all believe God is merciful, but how far will we go with that belief? Is He only merciful to those who love Him? Do we believe God loves EVERYone? Do we believe He will really provide for us?
As I've been delving into this topic, I've had to deal with what I believe about God and renounce several lies I've been believing. It can only help your relationship with God to renounce those lies - they get in the way of God showing you new parts to His character and new ways of living. So what lies are you believing? Chances are you may not know. Ask Him to show you, and I can guarantee He won't be angry. He just wants to love you, if you'll let Him.
The topic of healing is certainly one that engages not only our understanding of church doctrine, but also our personal experience with prayers for healing and the suffering in our own life and the lives of those we love. It is a topic we can't ever just examine in an objective, intellectual way. Many of us have lost loved ones despite our fervent prayers.
ReplyDeleteThat being said, I admire you for raising this important topic in your blog. May God bless your class.
I think you're brave to share your position on what is a topic where there are a lot of strong opinions. I'll share my current understanding: I will say that I do pray for the healing of myself and others, even multiple times, however if it doesn't happen "soon," then I don't spend more time on it. I accept that this may be a "cross to bear."
There are stories where people had to wait a long time for their healing until something specific happening: for example, the man who was born blind (John 9) remained blind until Jesus came to town to heal him as a sign to the people. I also read about Paul praying for some kind of torment to be removed and God expressly telling him that the situation was not going to change. So I understand that sometimes we endure suffering for a long time as a part of God's master plan. It is not a sin to be sick or to be injured. Sometimes we get hurt as a consequence of doing something stupid or sinful, but illnesses and injuries aren't evil and they don't prevent us from having lives of loving and joyful obedience to God. I say this having experience sickness without miraculous healing and having had sweet times with God during those periods.
I have also prayed for people to be healed and seen immediate--and what I would call miraculous---results. I don't think every report of miraculous healing that I hear really is miraculous, but if even 10% of them are true, then it's demonstrable proof that God does continue to heal.
So with all that said, here's my understanding: God does heal, and I think miraculous healing is a good thing, but it doesn't happen as often as we want it to, and I think we as a church can grow a lot by accepting when a healing is not coming. I have seen in my own life and in the lives of friends where we become so obsessed about "getting our healing" that we allow other aspects of our faith to deteriorate and we opt-out of serving in the church "until we're whole."
My hope is most of all in the New Life that we are are promised in the gospels and the book of Revelation. I don't want to be distracted from that guaranteed wholeness and life because I don't see as much miraculous healing here on Earth.
I would love to read other people's thoughts and comments...
Well, of course I disagree. I spent 10 years believing that my suffering was the only way that God could teach me beautiful things and that everyone should suffer so they could be close to God. You can see how damaging that is! I would also suggest reading Ken Blue's book. It is REALLY well-written, with tons of scripture, and brings up precisely the issues you're raising. You can borrow my copy if you want! :)
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