three different kinds of sickness…

james here in chapter 5 says we should pray when we are hurting physically.  verses 14-15 (msg), are you sick? call the church leaders together to pray and anoint you with oil in the name of the master. believing-prayer will heal you, and JESUS will put you on your feet. and if you’ve sinned, you’ll be forgiven—healed inside and out.

now the word “sick” in greek, literally means “without strength”.   you are totally wasted, fatigued, bedridden, unable to work.  not just acid indigestion or postnasal drip.  this guy has a serious illness here that is keeping him from actually working.  it’s the word most frequently used for illness.  he’s talking about a serious illness here.

when you’re beyond the help of a doctor, you pray.  the elders of the church are to come and pray over him and anoint him with oil.

the scripture teaches that there are three different kinds of sickness.

first there is the sickness for death.  it’s covered in 1 john 5.16, john 11.4.  that kind of sickness GOD allows to take us on home to be with HIM.  there will be an illness someday that you will never recover from because GOD doesn’t want you to live indefinitely.  if every sickness could be healed by faith then anybody who had a lot of faith would never die.  there is a sickness for the purpose of taking you on home. 

then there’s a sickness for discipline.  the purpose for a sickness for discipline, which is covered in 1 corinthians 11.28-32 where they were abusing the LORD’s supper.  paul said, because they were abusing the LORD’s supper was the reason some of them were sick.  the LORD is disciplining you because you’re out of the will of GOD.  when we sin it does bring sickness into our lives. 

the third kind of sickness is sickness for the glory of GOD. the sickness for the glory of GOD is a sickness that GOD has allowed in your life simply because HE wants to heal you of it and let it be a testimony to the world. 

john 11.4 a man came to JESUS who was ill and blind.  the disciples said, “LORD, who’s sinned, him or his parents?”  JESUS said, “nobody’s sinned, this is a sickness for the glory of GOD.”  then HE healed the guy and it brought glory to GOD.

there are three kinds of sickness:  sickness for death, sickness for discipline, sickness for the glory of GOD.  the last is the kind GOD wants to heal. 

just a thought from the front porch…