680 The Spiritual Man
Let us return to the positive teaching of the Bible concerning our
body. One verse in Scripture which can completely overthrow the
idea some have is 3 John 2: “Beloved, I pray that all may go well
with you and that you may be in health; I know that it is well with
your soul.” This is a prayer of the Apostle John as revealed to him by
the Holy Spirit, so it expresses the eternal thought of God in regard
to the body of the believer. God has no intention for His children to
be sick throughout their lives, unable to serve Him actively. He
wishes them to be in bodily health even as their souls are well.
Accordingly, we can conclude beyond doubt that prolonged illness is
not God’s will. He may chasten us temporarily with sickness, but He
has no pleasure in protracted sickness.
Paul’s word in 1 Thessalonians 5.23 additionally confirms that
inordinately long illness is not God’s will. As the spirit and soul are,
so should be the body. God is not satisfied to have our spirit and soul
sound and blameless while our body remains weak, sick and racked
with pain. His purpose is to save the whole man, not just a part of
him.
The work of the Lord Jesus also reveals the will of God
concerning sickness, because He did nothing but the will of God. In
the healing of the leper He especially unveils to us the heart of the
heavenly Father towards the sick. The leper pleaded, “Lord, if you
will, you can make me clean.” Here we see a man knocking at the
gate of heaven inquiring if it is God’s will to heal. The Lord
stretched out His hand, touched him, and said, “I will; be clean”
(Matt. 8.2-3).Healing often represents God’s mind. He who thinks
God is reluctant to heal does not know His will. The earthly ministry
of the Lord Jesus included “healing all who were sick” (v.16). How
can we arbitrarily claim that He now has changed His attitude?
The aim of God for today is for His “will (to) be done on earth as
it is in heaven” (Matt. 6.10). God’s will is carried out in heaven: is
there sickness there? No! God’s will is altogether incompatible with