03 Valley Of Sickness Series

The Valley Of Sickness – 22nd February 2009 am

John 11:1-15

Another of the greatest of valleys that a Christian goes through is that of sickness. Prolonged sickness or infirmity is a devastating valley because of its negative effect upon our spiritual walk with the Lord. There are many false concepts concerning sickness, but the Bible is full of it and both saved and lost are affected.

When In The Valley Of Sickness…..

…It Is Much Harder To Pray. It is hard to pray for others when you are so sick and hurting. All you can say is “Lord, please help me!”

…It Is Much Harder To Study Your Bible. When we’re sick we sometimes say that it would be a good time to catch up on our Bible reading – feel sorry for ourselves.

…It Is Much Harder To Be Faithful To God’s House.

…It Is Much Harder To Have Our Priorities Right. All we think about is how sick we are.

Before we get into the valley let’s look at some misconceptions about sickness – some so called Christian leaders have made a living out of this valley – If only Benny Hinn took his so called gift to the hospitals…..

Sickness is a result of the curse, but not all sickness is a result of personal sin! The first mention of sickness is found in Genesis 48:1 And it came to pass after these things, that one told Joseph, Behold, thy father is sick: and he took with him his two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim. This sickness had nothing to do with wrongdoing. Some people will tell you that all sickness is the result of personal sin and that a lack of healing is a lack of faith. Children, who are innocent and have faith, get sick and sometimes even die.

Sickness happens to those who the Lord loves John 11:1-3 Now a certain man was sick, named Lazarus, of Bethany, the town of Mary and her sister Martha. (It was that Mary which anointed the Lord with ointment, and wiped his feet with her hair, whose brother Lazarus was sick.) Therefore his sisters sent unto him, saying, Lord, behold, he whom thou lovest is sick. The Lord could have easily prevented or healed this sickness.

Some sickness is the result of the chastening of the Lord 2 Samuel 12:15 And Nathan departed unto his house. And the LORD struck the child that Uriah’s wife bare unto David, and it was very sick. The sickness of chastening may well affect loved ones.

Some sickness can lead to death 2 Kings 13:14 Now Elisha was fallen sick of his sickness whereof he died. And Joash the king of Israel came down unto him, and wept over his face, and said, O my father, my father, the chariot of Israel, and the horsemen thereof. Elisha was a great prophet of the Lord. Lazarus, whom the Lord loved, died.

There are times when the Lord chooses not to heal John 11:6, 15, 39 When he had heard therefore that he was sick, he abode two days still in the same place where he was…And I am glad for your sakes that I was not there, to the intent ye may believe; nevertheless let us go unto him… Jesus said, Take ye away the stone. Martha, the sister of him that was dead, saith unto him, Lord, by this time he stinketh: for he hath been dead four days. Good, godly people have died of sickness in the Lord’s perfect will.

God can still heal when He chooses John 5:3 In these lay a great multitude of impotent folk, of blind, halt, withered, waiting for the moving of the water. The Lord did not heal all of these, only the one.

God can get glory out of sickness John 11:4 When Jesus heard that, he said, This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God might be glorified thereby. Others see our sufferings and continuance in faith and good works for God’s glorification.

HOW TO BEHAVE WHEN SICK! 2 CORINTHIANS 12:7-12

1. Make sure sickness is not the result of sin – Verse 7

The Lord knows how to balance our lives. If we have only blessings, we may become proud; so He permits us to have burdens as well. Paul’s great experience in heaven could have ruined his ministry on earth; so God, in His goodness, allowed Satan to buffet Paul in order to keep him from becoming proud.

Paul tells us about the nature of the valley he endured by the two words he uses to describe it: thorn and buffet. Whose had a splinter or been pricked by a thorn? You know the piercing, nagging pain it can produce. The word “thorn” comes from a word which refers to “a sharp wooden stake to torture or impale someone”. The word “buffet” means “to strike with the fist, to mistreat”.