From: "Jeanette" <Jeanette@truthsearcher.co.uk>

Date: Fri, 18 Feb 2000 08:16:26

To: <WalterMartin@mail.serve.com>

Subject: WM: RE: Trials and tribulations 2

Dave wrote:

God does chasten those He loves...but does not put cancer on them to teach them something. I've never heard such a teaching in the Word! God takes sickness away from us...not put it on us -

Dave, what do you think God does when a man, for example, smokes 20 cigarettes a day, and does not heed the warnings of the press, and the promptings in his own conscience to give them up?! Say that man struggles with this for some time, then discovers he has cancer - brought on by his own foolishness. Now, I am not saying God has done this, no, the man himself has done this, but what will God do? When the man turns to God in repentance and gives up the cigarettes, but still has the consequences - the cancer - is it guaranteed that God will heal him?

What about when a man has cancer through no fault of his own, and prays to God for healing. Does God always heal? I think not. I remember our dear and wonderful brother Roy Castle struggling with cancer, and that man sure had faith in His God. Now God did *not* heal Roy - He took Roy home, but Roy's wife Fiona will testify today that God taught her and Roy many precious things through that experience that they would not have learned otherwise. Of course God does not *give* people cancer! He may allow it, though. On the other side of your statement though - "God takes away sickness from us" - that is not always true, **in this life**, as we can plainly see from many faithful men and women who have died from their sickness - believing in Him 100%!

Dave:

He's Jehovah Rapha...the Lord that heals us. To do opposite would be contrary to His nature. Yes, He permits sickness to come upon us because we are still human. But we can fight off sickness with faith in His Word and prayer.

So why do men who have faith in His Word, and pray, believing in their hearts that they will be healed, still die of their illnesses????? It surely can't be because of their lack of faith, since they believed that they would be healed. And it cannot be because God is a liar! so what then? Why does the Word say "God heals" and believers who are trusting in that promise die of their sickness? Why? If there is one thing to be sure about in this life, it's that unless the Lord returns first, we will all die! I am not putting down God, or faith in God here, just trying to get you to think about this. If it is not lack of faith, and if it is not that God lies, then what could the answer possibly be?

When God says He will heal - He means what He says, but not necessarily that He will heal *now* - in this life. Yes, he *can* heal in this life, but he can also choose to give His promised healing after death! Surely we have to be open to this as a possibility?