Is There A Relationship Between Sin And Sickness?

Jesus spoke the words that physicians are there for the sick. But seeing that on the right side of the divide you have quacks and naturalists and on the other side alternatives like homeopathy and even shamanism, what constitutes a good physician? The story of the woman with the flux of blood that spent all her money on doctors that claimed they could help her, demonstrates that this is a very important question. Jesus does not elaborate on this. And so He leaves it in our responsibility to answer this question.

Believe it or not, but you do have so-called Christians that behave like medicine men in their attempt to raise people from the dead and to cast out every demon that has to do with any imaginable sickness. In the process they conjure up more demons than they cast out. Then you have the herbalists, dead set against chemicals. In their camp you can reckon the homeopaths. They dazzle their readers with terms like allopathy and similia similibus curanda sint. But they are quacks. Yet they have many fervent adherents.

In countries like India and many African nations there is a lot of superstition and even dangerous occult practices that keep people in demonic bondage. Christians should steer well clear of these aberrations.

Let us be very aware that not every sickness is caused by a so-called concomitant sin. Often there is no direct causal relation, but it is a question of a fallen creation. And in the case of Christians sickness is supposed to work for good and for the glory of God. The right spirit is to subdue your soul under the mighty hand of God and not to try to get away from your daily cross by believing lies. Having said this, let us consider a few bible verses that show us that there definitely can be a relation between sin and sickness.

In cases like kleptomania and pyromania and also with alcoholism and gambling, it may be clear that a person is both sick ànd sinful. Sick from sinfulness and sinful from sickness. A terrible vicious circle. Also bible verses like Confess each other your sins and pray for each other that you may be healed, show that healing can be effected by confessing to a person what you did wrong to him or her. Then there is the situation in the assembly at Corinth where there were many weak people and many passed away. All because of their dishonorable comportment.

But on the other hand prosperity does not have to be at all a sign of God's blessing. Sodom and Gomorrah were affluent cities. Yet also the New Testament, in the letter of James, states: We call blessed those that have endured. You saw the endurance of Job and you noticed the end of the Lord, that the Lord is very compassionate and that He is loving in His care.

We need to beseech the Lord for wisdom and we must avoid hasty conclusions. When a Christian is struck by disaster, that does not mean there is some terrible sin in his life. God does not visit us according to our sinfulness. Else we would all have been dead a long time. He is forgiving so that we may fear Him. God is not some kind of Saint Nick, nor a haunting bogeyman.

On the mission field faithful Christians are used by the Lord to set souls free from occult bondage simply by bringing them the good tidings. This often results in improvement of health for the recent converts. This because also here there often is a relation between sins as idolatry and sicknesses.

Let us not get obsessed either about legalistic rules for our lives à la Teetotaler that strictly observes rest, regularity and cleanness. The Lord also spent nights in prayer and did not live by a fixed rule that forbade that. He ate dainties and drank alcohol and conversed with sinners where He found adherence to His Person.

Health, then, is not at all guaranteed. I mentioned elsewhere the eyesickness that pursued Paul. Then the beloved disciple and apostle John prays in his 3rd letter that a certain Gaius may be bodily just as healthy as his soul was. Prayer is an important weapon. But remember and be aware that the Lord can say 'No' and that we have to submit to Him and then resist the devil when he tries to seduce us into sin. When we advance far enough we learn this: Not only this, but we also boast in afflictions; knowing that affliction works endurance and endurance approvedness and approvedness hope: and hope does not make ashamed, because the Love of God has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us.

Source by Chris Bouter

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