God's Will

Let all that I am praise the LORD; with my whole heart, I will praise his holy name. Let all that I am praise the LORD; may I never forget the good things he does for me. He forgives all my sins and heals all my diseases. He redeems me from death and crowns me with love and tender mercies. He fills my life with good things. My youth is renewed like the eagle’s! [Psalm 103.1-5]

Why would anyone who knows the Bible say it is God's will that they suffer and/or die of disease? Psalm 103.1-5 is just one of many Bible passages that reveal God's character as "forgiving, merciful and good."

If a person genuinely believes that God's will is (or even could be) for them to suffer and/or die from a disease or other tragedy, then that person, in all good conscious, should declare Psalm 103.1-5 a lie and rebuke anyone who would dare to propagate it in any way!

Conversely, how can a person who declares belief in the Bible read Psalm 103.1-5 (and the many other scriptures that say the same thing) and still believe God would randomly bring tragedy to his or her life as a matter of His will?

It is insincere to claim belief in the Bible while completely ignoring its prevailing revelation of God's forgiving character that brings healing, restoration and every good thing.

But it gets worse. Among those who believe it is (or may be) God's will that they experience "x" disease or tragedy, should they not have reservations about seeking medical help? Is it not the purpose of Medicine to heal and restore? To say sickness or disease is (or might be) God's will, and then, to take treatment to fight it is no different than saying, "I know what God wants (or might want), but I am actively fighting against it one way or the other!" To do so, as lovingly as I can say it, is not only hypocritical, but disobedient!

If we are going to be dogmatic about God's will, then we need to get God's will directly from the Bible (any other source is risky at best)! Indeed, God punishes disobedience, but He is ON RECORD in the Bible as being forgiving. And there it is... the subject of repentance and faith (see Who God Is):

There is forgiveness of sins for all who repent. [Jesus - Luke 24.47b]

The ugly truth is, even in the midst of rampant curses for disobedience (all the bad things described in Deuteronomy 28), very few want to repent or even consider that repentance might be in order. It has become more popular to proudly declare the tragedies as "God's will" while hypocritically resorting to human reasoning/accomplishments for remedy.

As I prayed yesterday...

Father, may I be found repentant and full of faith in the forgiveness of Jesus Christ. May my lifestyle of humble repentance before You, Holy Father, be viewed as an overbearing and unrelenting rebuke to the enemy and his lies. So be it.

And furthermore...

May Your people, Father, know and believe (obey) Your Word as Your will!