When You Don’t Get Healed

Bill Brinkworth

Paul was a man used greatly of God. With God’s helping hand this evangelist survived shipwrecks, beatings, persecutions, imprisonments, and other ill treatment. With God’s miraculous help, this man was used in healings, revivals, and many miracles.  However, as used of God as he was, Paul still had a personal ailment (II Cor. 12:7).

Commentators have strained at attempting to name Paul’s “thorn in the flesh.”  God has chosen not to make it clear to us what it was. No matter what it was, Paul made it evident that it was an infirmity he faced.  Three times Paul pleaded with God to remove the malady from him (vs. 8). God’s answer was “… My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness …” (vs. 9).

Here was a man that had seen glorious things in the third heaven (II Cor. 12:2-4), and had been delivered from many horrible things; yet God wanted Paul to experience this physical problem. God could have easily healed his body, but His answer was that God’s grace was enough for him to live with the problem; and that Paul’s infirmity would be a vehicle to make him spiritually stronger.

If God would allow one of His great spiritual warriors to face such a battle, we too should not be surprised if we face health problems. As it is with most trials, we can do one of two things, when going through a testing.  We can either shake our fist at God and be angry with him, which is not the wise thing to do when we need Him the most; or get close to Him and rely on Him to get us through the challenge.

Paul chose not to be foolish and get angry with God, as some do. He decided if God allowed him to go through the problem, then he was going to have a good attitude about it (II Cor. 12: 10) and give God the glory. In doing so, Paul was learning exactly what God wanted him to learn; that when he was weak, he was the strongest through God’s help!
 

Some cry, “Why me?” when they go through a trial.

My question to them is, “Why wouldn’t it be you? Are you something special that you shouldn’t have problems, or sicknesses?”  God promises eternal life in Heaven to the saved.  He never promised anyone he would not have problems on this Earth
.

This article was featured in The Bible View #525.

  The Fundamental Top 500