Truth Seekers Newsletter
October 28, 2007: Now That I've Got Your Attention ...
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We have looked at what positive purposes diseases might serve. Today we look at some other interesting examples of how God used disease to get people's attention.
Does God Make People Sick?
I would love to say that just can't be true, but the Bible seems to indicate, upon occasion, God has used sickness for His Purposes. In Deuteronomy 7:15, Moses told the people the directions he had received from God. Part of the instructions from God was to let the people know if they obeyed, God would not afflict them with the terrible diseases they had witnessed in Egypt.
God's people had witnessed the diseases that had come upon the Egyptians as a live demonstration of what happens to bodies in rebellion against God. God's Message was clear. "Obey Me and all will go well with you. Disobey Me and things will not go well with you."
Would God Really Hold Us Responsible for Not Obeying Him?
Again, I wish I could say that God would not take it so personally. But read Deuteronomy 28:15-68 to get the flavor of what an angry God would have in mind. It certainly makes me think twice about God's Awesome Power and His Certain Intent that we obey Him!
God Afflicts A King.
In 2nd Chronicles 21:18, we are told of an evil king named Jehoram. Jehoram was in the line of David and the account of Jehoram tells us that God would have just taken him off the throne, but He had made a promise to David that someone in his line would always be on the throne.
What does God not taking Jehoram off the throne tell us? God keeps His Promises. God's Word is His Bond!
Creative Punishment
In a particularly creative move, God afflicted Jehoram with an incurable disease of the bowels. Jeroham suffered for some time before he died. God left him on the throne, but his illness undoubtedly caused him to spend time on that other place some people refer to as "the throne" (the bathroom). Eventually Jehoram died when his bowels fell out of his body. Yuk!
Disease as a Test
What did the people of Egypt and Jehoram have in common? They were in rebellion against God. Some people use these examples to say that those who are sick are being punished by God for their sins. Don't ever get in this mode of thinking! While the Bible is clear that at times, God did use disease as a punishment, it is not true that everyone, who is sick, is being punished for some offense against God. Let's look at the interesting case of a man named Job. Job 1:1 records that Job was blameless and upright: he feared God and shunned evil. So according to what we have learned so far, Job should not have been a candidate for disease, right?
However, this story takes an ugly turn quickly. One day satan came to visit God. God pointed out to satan what a good man Job was. Satan essentially said, "Big deal. You give him everything. Why wouldn't he be loyal to You?" Satan proposed a test. He was betting that if Job lost everything he had, from his family to his possessions, he would turn against God. God said ok!
What? Would God Let Satan Have His Way with Us?
Where is gold refined? In the fire! It is gold to begin with, but sometimes, it needs to be further molded in the fire to get it to come to its full luster. God never left Job and God never lost His Confidence that Job would come out of the fire, as a great nugget of gold.
Job did well in round one. He agreed that God gives and God takes away. He retained his faith and blessed the Name of the Lord. God was pleased. On another day, satan came for a visit. Once again, God noted Job's faithfulness. This time satan proposed a more difficult test. Satan said, "Skin for skin. A man will give all he has for his own life. But stretch out your hand and strike his flesh and bones, and he will surely curse You to Your Face." God said ok.
A Long Illness
Job became very ill. The chapters of Job detail untold miseries and Job's continuing battle to understand where he went wrong and why God would do this to him. Initially he stayed the course and was faithful to God. But after a time of suffering, Job cracked like an egg. By the third chapter of Job, it is recorded, "Job opened his mouth and cursed the day of his birth."
Satan's Major Weapon
One of satan's chief weapons is his persistence. If Christians were as persistent in carrying out their mission as is satan, there would be a lot more evidence of good in the world! When we are sick for just a little while, we stand more of a chance of fighting the good fight, but when the illness goes on and on and only gets worse, we begin to wonder where God is.
When our desert experiences make us feel that God is gone and satan is very present, we often become confused. Jesus, Who felt the totality of our experience, cried out from the cross, "My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?"
OK God, We've Got to Talk Right Now!
God let this scenario go on for chapter after chapter of Job's life until Job demanded a meeting with God. His intent was to present his case of how righteous he had been in his life. From where Job sat, his righteousness should at least be a good down payment on buying his healing. But God never does business on a fee for service basis. God honored Job's request (or rather, demand) for a meeting. But he didn't stop the storm of illness. He spoke from the center of the storm.
Many times we make the mistake of thinking that God will only speak when the problem we are experiencing is over. But God speaks right from the center of our storm, as He did with Job.
God's Answer
I encourage everyone to read Job 38:1 – 42:5. God's Answers far outshone all the things He didn't answer. In fact, God never told Job why this had happened to him. He simply revealed Himself as God. God typically does not answer many of the "why" questions in life; He simply and awesomely reveals Himself as God. By the time God had finished speaking, Job realized that any righteousness he ever had was nothing next to God's Righteousness.
Job could only say, "I had heard of You before ... but now I know You."
God Writes a Great Ending to the Story of Job!
The greatest test of Job's life was over. God restored and multiplied everything Job had lost. Job lived a good, rich life, undoubtedly thankful for his blessings, but realizing that they were gifts from God, not God's reward to him for good behavior.
Healed by the Master
We have looked at disease as evidence of the battle that is occurring in the body, as the forces of God subdue and eject invaders. We have looked at disease as marching orders into a mission field we may have never chosen. We have looked at those for whom God's Gift of healing was so large that it had to be given in a heavenly "room" instead of an earthly "room." We looked today at disease as a plague on the wicked and a test for the people of God.
Next week we will look at the Awesome Power of God's Healing Touch on earth, as demonstrated so perfectly through Jesus!
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