“Physical Failings”

Thursday, May 02, 2019

     A lady told me her preacher had a stroke.

1. Was this illness from God?
2. If the preacher was a true christian, why did God not answer the preacher’s prayers for 100% recovery?
3. Did God have apostles that were handicapped?
4. This lady was questioning the preacher’s christianity.  How can I answer her using the Bible?

Sincerely,
Far From A Physician

Dear Far From A Physician,

We can’t tell you whether or not this preacher is a faithful man, but we can tell you that his stroke doesn’t mean he isn’t a christian.  The best passage to show this lady is 2 Cor 12:7-9.  The apostle Paul had a “thorn in the flesh”, some sort of illness that vexed him deeply.  Paul, being the faithful apostle that he was, prayed to God three times that the sickness would be removed.  God said, “No.”  Paul accepted the illness as part of his life and went on to preach very successfully in spite of it.

Good people suffer, too, and God blesses the faithful even through trials (Rom 8:28).

Share