Why Am I Sick? Reason #1: For God’s Glory

Can God Be Glorified In My Sickness?

Some people are sick simply for the sake of God’s glory. It may be difficult to understand why God would allow people to suffer for His glory. However, we know this can be the case because the Bible gives us more than one example.

Sickness Is Not Always A Direct Result of Sin

Look at John 9:1-3.

In this passage, the disciples ask Jesus, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he would be born blind?"

The disciples assumed, like most people of their day, that sin was the primary cause and potentially the exclusive cause of all physical suffering. There is an overall sense that this is true; suffering entered the world when Adam sinned (we will discuss this more later). But at an individual level, a person’s specific sin does not have to be the immediate cause of illness (we will discuss some exceptions later).

We see the same false reasoning from Job’s friends Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar when they assume Job’s suffering was because of his unrepentant sin.

You can read about Job in the Old Testament book with the same name.

Looking back at John 9:1-3, we see Jesus responds to the disciple’s false assumption that all physical suffering is caused by an individual’s sin. Jesus tells the disciples that this man’s blindness was not a result of the man’s own sin, or his parent’s sin, but rather so that God could display His power through the man’s blindness. It pleased God that this man be born blind. His blindness was to God’s glory. Jesus healed him to display His glory.

Lazarus

Lazarus is another example of a man who was sick to God’s glory. His sickness was unto death, but Christ raised him from the dead. God could have healed Lazarus prior to death, but He chose to allow him to die, so that He could receive glory by raising him back to life.

The story of Lazarus can be found in John chapter 11. Take note of verse 40.

The two above examples resulted in healing, but not all sickness unto God’s glory results in healing. All things in this world should bring glory to God, and eventually will. This means that whether God chooses to heal or not, He deserves glory. And it is our responsibility to give God the glory He is due in all of our circumstances, including ill health.

I am reminded of a video clip from a Word Pictures video series on the topic of The Sovereignty of God where a man was bedridden with a debilitating birth defect.  Then in his 30’s or 40’s, he had been completely dependent on his parents since birth.  It was a struggle for the man, who had all mental faculties, to even talk. However, this man was thankful for his illness. He recognized that because of his condition, he came to know the Lord Jesus Christ. He understood that he was not suffering because of his sin, but God was using his testimony to bring Himself glory through his circumstances. This man was indeed suffering for the glory of God.

Applications

First, it is a mistake to act like Job’s friends, or the disciples, and ascribe to anyone that they are suffering because of their sin. We have no right to judge another in this area.

Second, we should consider how we can bring glory to God in our illness whether God chooses to heal and when He chooses NOT to heal.

Psalms 84:11 reminds, “For the Lord God is a sun and a shield; The Lord gives grace and glory; No good thing does He withhold from those who walk uprightly.”

If we walk uprightly and God allows us to suffer, as with Job, the blind man from John 9:1-3, and the man with a debilitating birth defect, we need to accept that God has a purpose. We may discover that purpose in this life, or we may have to wait until we reach Heaven's gate.

But this we know according to Romans 8:28, “…that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.”

Our part is to apply God’s principles to our life in an effort to achieve optimum health, so He can receive the glory no matter the results.

Suffering and illness can be for the sole purpose of bringing God glory. But unless we rule out every other possibility, we will never know.

Next: Why Am I Sick? Reason #2: For Testing and/or Instruction

Return To: Biblical Health Study