Would God Really Use Sickness as Judgment?

Some people are sick or suffer because of God’s judgment against their sin. This can be an indirect judgment in the form of general discipline, or a direct judgment for a specific sin. First let’s discuss the issue of discipline.

Church Discipline

God has ordained an order of discipline within the church in order to bring repentance to men or women who have fallen into sin. The purpose for this judgment is the purity of the church.  See Matthew 18:15-17. If a person has fallen into sin and continually refuses to repent, he is to be excluded from the fellowship of believers.

I Corinthians 5:5 tells us to, “…deliver such a one to Satan for the destruction of his flesh, so that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus.”

I Timothy 1:19-20 says that such men have been “…handed over to Satan.”

The essence of this discipline is to remove unrepentant professing believers from the church fellowship. This removes them also from the insulation and protection of the church community and God’s blessing and hands them over to the “god of this world.” Without God’s divine blessing and protection, their flesh may be destroyed according to I Corinthians 5:5. This could result in illness, sickness, or death. Although this may seem harsh to some, keep in mind the rest of verse, which says, “so that his spirit may be saved….” The goal is to bring them into right standing with God.

You can easily tell if you fall into the above category, having been rightly ex-communicated or disciplined from a church fellowship. If this is the case, I would seriously consider repenting before God and the church.

Divine Discipline

A person does not have to be disciplined by the church to be judged by God for their sin. At times, God directly deals with issues of sin through specific judgments of illness or death.

Consider the following brief examples:

• In Numbers 12:1-10, Miriam became leprous after speaking against Moses.
• In II Chronicles 26:3-5,16-21, King Uzziah became leprous due to pride.
• In II Samuel 12:13-18, David’s infant son became sick and died because of David’s adultery and murder. Consider that David’s innocent son died, not David.
• In Luke 1:5-13, 18-20, Zacharias became mute due to unbelief.
• In John 5:1-14, the man at the Bethesda pool was healed and then warned not to continue sinning so that nothing worse would happen to him.

The above examples provide only commentary of scenarios of the past. But there is a warning in I Corinthians 11:27-32 that is valid for the present day, a source of judgment that many people may overlook. This is what the passage says:

27. Therefore whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner, shall be guilty of the body and the blood of the Lord.

28. But a man must examine himself, and in so doing he is to eat of the bread and drink of the cup.

29. For he who eats and drinks, eats and drinks judgment to himself if he does not judge the body rightly.

30. For this reason many among you are weak and sick, and a number sleep.

31. But if we judged ourselves rightly, we would not be judged.

32. But when we are judged, we are disciplined by the Lord so that we will not be condemned along with the world.

If we come to the Lord’s Table (communion, or the Lord’s Supper) with unconfessed sin, we are bringing God’s judgment upon ourselves. Verse 30 teaches that many Christians among the Corinthian church were weak, sick, or dead because of their frivolous attitude towards the Lord’s Supper. Their lack of self examination, repentance, and humility at communion showed an indifference to the Lord himself, that is towards his life and his suffering and death for their sins.

Unrepentant Sin

Each person must examine their own heart to decide if their illness could be a result of unrepentant sin. Please don’t pass judgment on others, but diligently seek God about your own sin. We should be confessing our sin daily. Don’t wait until the Lord’s Supper. But be warned, if you receive the bread and wine in the future with unconfessed sins and attitudes, it could literally be the death of you.

Additional Biblical Evidence

Psalms 32:1-7 describes how David experienced the physical effects of sin that was left unconfessed.  Consider these words of David, “…my body wasted away through my groaning all day long.  For day and night Your hand was heavy upon me; My vitality was drained away as with the fever heat of summer.”

David recognized how the Lord’s hand was upon him, and the guilt of his sin led to his suffering. But when David confessed his sin, he experienced forgiveness and relief, and he acknowledged, “How blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered!”

James 5:14-16 implies that unconfessed sin can bring about sickness.

Is anyone among you sick? Then he must call for the elders of the church and they are to pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord; and the prayer offered in faith will restore the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up, and if he has committed sins, they will be forgiven him. Therefore, confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another so that you may be healed. The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much.

These verses are often used to promote “faith healing”. But notice instead the connection between sickness and sin, particularly verse 16, “Therefore, confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another so that you may be healed.”

Consider finally Proverbs 28:13, “He who conceals his transgressions will not prosper, but he who confesses and forsakes them will find compassion.”

God clearly does not take sin lightly, and none of us is without sin. I John 1:8-10 teaches that if we deny that we are sinners, or deny that we have sin, we do not have the truth at all. God already knows about our sin; it is up to us to confess it. He tells us that He will forgive. If you are seeking healing, closely examine your life to see if you have any unconfessed sin. It could make the difference between good and poor health.

Next: Why Am I Sick? Reason #4: Because of Exhaustion

Return To: Biblical Health Study

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Reformed Health exists so you can take control of your own health and be all that God has designed you to be. The information shared on Reformed Health is the sole opinion of the author and is not meant to diagnose or treat any illness. None or our claims have been evaluated by the FDA or any other government organization. We are not medical doctors, nor do we have any medical doctors on staff. If you are having a health emergency, please call 911, contact your doctor, or visit a local emergency room. Always consult your doctor before engaging in any new exercise regime.

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Scripture quotations taken from the NASB.

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© 2017 Mischelle Sandowich
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