FAITH AND DOCTORS -- Monday, New Series:
Matters of health are not as simple as they may appear -- like ONLY consult doctors versus NEVER consult doctors. Faith, as you already know, cannot be turned on or off like a light switch. That is because it comes from God. In our text, for example, Paul confronted a man who had "faith to be healed" (Acts 14:9). When he saw the man, and knew he had faith to be healed, he shouted out, "Stand upright on thy feet. And he leaped and walked." That incident shows us that such faith is special, and not always found in those who are children of God.
On another occasion, Paul referred to Timothy's chronic illnesses. He called them "oft infirmities." Paul wrote to Timothy. "Drink no longer water, but use a little wine for thy stomach's sake and thine often infirmities" (1 Tim 5:23). The "wine" was not for satisfaction, but for his health. Even then, it was to be taken in small quantities, lest an appetite for it develop.
Another example is Luke, the writer of the Gospel of Luke and the book of Acts. He was actually a doctor, and he traveled extensively with Paul. Paul called him "Luke, the beloved physician" (Col 4:12). That is all he said about the matter, but it was enough to confirm that doctors are not moved out of their occupation when they become believers. The fact that Paul called him "beloved" suggests he had helped Paul. He also spoke of his own "infirmities," declaring he would boast in them, because when he was weak, then he was actually strong (2 Cor 11:30; 12:5,9-10).
When he was ruler in Egypt, and his father died, Joseph "commanded his servants the physicians to embalm his father" (Gen 50:1). Notice, the physicians were "his servants," indicating that they did not conflict with his faith.
Jesus sanctioned physicians when he said, "They that are whole need not a physician; but they that are sick" (Matt 9:12; Mk 2:17; Lk 5:31). In that particular reference, He paralleled the situation to Himself coming to save sinners. If physicians were wrong, the comparison would not have been made.
In times of sickness, our FIRST resort must be to the Lord. Should it become evident that a physician is in order, we must not put our trust in the physician, or rely upon him as though he is God. An example of someone who did NOT resort first to God was Asa, a king who did some very good things in Old Testament times. Yet, in the close of his life, this is what was said of him. "And Asa in the thirty and ninth year of his reign was diseased in his feet, until his disease was exceeding great: yet in his disease he sought not to the LORD, but to the physicians" (2 Chron 16:12).
In summary, God does not give us hard and fast rules about doctors. It is something that is left to the conscience of each believer. Just as we pray for our daily bread (Matt 6:11), then work to obtain it, so there are times when we pray for health, then take the means that are necessary to maintain it.
PRAYER POINT: Father, in the name of Jesus, deliver me from religious extremes. Help me to be able to properly assess matters relating to my health.