Why Does God Heal Some People but Not Others?
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Sorrow cloaked the spark of hope my pastor initiated when he invited those needing prayer to come to the altar. I longed to respond, but past disappointments kept my feet planted. I knew God could heal and had heard numerous stories of those miraculously freed from illness and pain. There’d even been a time when I felt convinced I’d soon have my own glorious testimony to share.
I’ve asked people to pray over me — my husband, my church, my faith group, my friends — more times than I can count. When initially diagnosed, first with colitis, now well-managed by medication, and later, with fibromyalgia, my husband and I nightly asked the Lord, for years, to eradicate my pain, without noticeable effect. This used to swing my emotions from frustration to self-blame. Struggling to understand why all-powerful God refused our requests, and uncomfortable with the anger this stirred within me, I searched my heart for some hidden sin that could explain why He chose to heal others, but not me.
If you’re reading this, I suspect you can relate. Perhaps you bear the soul wounds of years, or decades, of unanswered prayers. Or worse, the condemning words of those more focused on casting blame than remaining present in your pain. If so, may the theological investigation God led me on, back when I sat in that place, comfort and encourage you.
Jesus’ Greater Purpose on Earth
I’ve read the biblical accounts from when the Lord’s Almighty hand freed the spiritually enslaved, cleansed the leper, gave sight to the blind, and opened deaf ears. But I’m also cognizant of the miracles that didn’t occur.
My mind immediately turns to John 5. This passage tells us about a time when Jesus encountered a man who’d suffered an undisclosed infirmity for 38 years. In verses 6-8, we read:
“When Jesus saw him lying there, and knew that he already had been in that condition a long time, He said to him, ‘Do you want to be made well?’ The sick man answered Him, ‘Sir, I have no man to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up; but while I am coming, another steps down before me.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Rise, take up your bed and walk.’ And immediately the man was made well, took up his bed, and walked.”
What a beautiful, life changing moment… for this particular man. But what about those referenced in verses 3:
“Here a great number of disabled people used to lie — the blind, the lame, the paralyzed” (emphasis added).
While we can only speculate, it appears as if, out of all these desperate individuals, the Lord only healed one.
Notice, also, His response in Mark 1. Although this occurred early in His earthly ministry, His authoritative teaching and supernatural power had already gathered quite a crowd, filled with the demonized and sick. On this particular morning, Christ arose early and slipped away to connect with His Father. Sometime after, the disciples awoke to a throng of desperate and needy people, but no Jesus. Later, upon finding Him, they exclaimed,
“Everyone is looking for you!” (Mark 1:37b).
They probably expected Him to rush back to Simon and Andrew’s place, where He’d been staying, to help the men and women gathered there. Instead, He replied,
“Let us go somewhere else — to the nearby villages — so I can preach there also. That is why I have come” (Mark 1:38).
It appears that He left those people in their hardship, not from apathy or ineptitude but rather, because His greatest mission wasn’t to bring humanity comfort. Instead, He came to provide our broken souls salvation. While we may not always understand God’s ways, we can trust His heart, and His promise to use everything we encounter for our good and His glory (Romans 8:28-30).
Unexpected Goodness
However, to quote therapist Lisa Saruga, a recent Faith Over Fear guest, God’s goodness might look quite different than we expect. For some, like the paralyzed man by the healing pool, that means receiving that thing for which we’ve hoped. But for others, like the apostle Paul, God’s goodness reaches beyond external challenges to that place deep within our soul where we connect with our Savior.
While Scripture doesn’t reveal precisely how Paul suffered, it does tell us why. In a passage that has encouraged countless Christ-followers for millennia, he wrote:
“Even if I should choose to boast, I would not be a fool, because I would be speaking the truth. But I refrain, so no one will think more of me than is warranted by what I do or say, or because of these surpassingly great revelations. Therefore, in order to keep me from becoming conceited, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong” (2 Corinthians 12:6-10, emphasis added).
Clearly, strong faith, which Paul possessed in abundance, doesn’t always result in healing. Nor did the Lord ignore or minimize his pain. Rather, God had something greater in mind. He was keeping this first century evangelist from the arrogance and self-reliance that has destroyed numerous ministries and their leaders in the generations since. In increasing Paul’s need for Him, He was placing the apostle in a position to receive supernatural strength.
This reminds us that while God loves us all equally and without condition, He responds to us each individually, according to His perfect knowledge of our unique purpose and everything that might make us stumble, become stagnant, or backslide. In short, He uses whatever necessary to lift our gaze off our circumstances and this world’s temporary trappings and onto the hope of eternity. That is the lens through which we must view our entire lives, and the only lens through which today’s hardships, healed or otherwise, make sense.
Trusting God, No Matter What
Throughout John’s gospel, he often referred to Christ’s miracles as “signs.” For example, when discussing a wedding at which Jesus turned water to wine, we read:
“What Jesus did here in Cana of Galilee was the first of the signs through which he revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him” (John 2:11).
The Greek word translated as “glory” refers to God’s essence — who He really is, and His value. Through His seemingly “secretive” act performed during this ceremony, He demonstrated that He cares for every detail of our lives. But more than that, He wants us to know Him and experience Him as He truly is.
He wants us to reach the point where we trust His heart, even when we don’t understand, or can’t see His hand. To phrase it another way, He wants us to place our faith in Him, His wisdom and His ways, not a particular outcome.
In our culture, subtly influenced by the prosperity gospel, we often get this backwards. We assume, perhaps subconsciously, that our faith earns God’s favor, and our struggles, fear, and questions earn His displeasure and discipline.
Scripture, however, reveals a more nuanced truth. Whereas we receive salvation through faith in the person and work of Christ, few, if any of us, will ever reach a completely doubtless existence this side of heaven. Nor is this what God expects. While He never forces a relationship with those who reject Him, He faithfully, relentlessly, and gently pursues the One who feels uncertain, disillusioned, and confused.
God Meets Us in Our Doubts
Consider the Lord’s interaction with Gideon, the terrified man turned warrior in Judges 6. At this point in the nation’s history, the ancient Israelites lived under the oppression of other more powerful people groups who raided their land, ravaged their livestock, and ruined their crops. In their dire state, God’s people cried out for help. He responded by calling Gideon, who happened to be hiding in an old wine press, to lead the people into battle.
“When the angel of the Lord appeared to Gideon, he said, ‘The Lord is with you, mighty warrior.’ ‘Pardon me, my lord,’ Gideon replied, ‘but if the Lord is with us, why has all this happened to us? Where are all his wonders that our ancestors told us about when they said, ‘Did not the Lord bring us up out of Egypt?’ But now the Lord has abandoned us and given us into the hand of Midian.’ The Lord turned to him and said, ‘Go in the strength you have and save Israel out of Midian’s hand. Am I not sending you?’ ‘Pardon me, my lord,’ Gideon replied, ‘but how can I save Israel? My clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my family.’ The Lord answered, ‘I will be with you, and you will strike down all the Midianites, leaving none alive’” (Judges 6:12-16).
Still plagued with doubt, Gideon asked for a sign, for proof, twice. Both times, and without reproach, the Lord gave Gideon the assurance he needed.
Moses, the Egyptian prince turned fugitive turned national leader who freed God’s people from 400 years of slavery, demonstrated even more cowardice, and received even more affirming signs. First, the Lord spoke to him through an enflamed bush that burned without becoming consumed. Then, to reveal His power, He turned Moses’ shepherding staff into a live snake, his hand leprous, and then restored his flesh.
But still, Moses doubted.
He actually told God no and asked Him to send someone else. While the Lord didn’t grant Moses’ request, He also didn’t rebuke him in anger. Instead, He brought Moses support through his brother who, along with their sister, helped him lead the emerging nation.
I Believe, Help My Unbelief
Perhaps the most instructive example, however, comes from Mark 9. This occurred shortly after what scholars refer to as the transfiguration, when Jesus led three of His disciples up on a high mountain to glimpse some of His pre-incarnate glory. They returned to find the other disciples arguing over their inability to help a man’s demonized son.
Jesus called the child to Himself and said to the Father, “If you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes.” To which the man replied, “Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!” (Mark 9:23-24).
Here again, we don’t see God responding with anger or frustration — at least, not for the man or his son. He did, however, rebuke the evil spirit, thereby setting the boy free.
I’m confident the Lord preserved this account, including the father’s tearful cry, to encourage us when we land in that “I believe-unbelief” place. When our fears and doubts increase, He invites us to pray, “Father, increase my faith.”
After all, He alone is the source, and the object, of our faith, and He holds our lives and eternities secure. While the Lord told us to expect trouble this side of heaven, He also promised us a wonderful, hope filled future. As we await that glorious day, we keep praying, hoping, and trusting, knowing whether God heals us today, next month, next year, or when He ushers us to our eternal home, all His children will eventually receive complete healing and unshakable joy.
Photo credit: Pexels/Văn Thắng
Jennifer Slattery is a writer and speaker who co-hosts the Faith Over Fear podcast and, along with a team of 6, the Your Daily Bible Verse podcast. She’s addressed women’s groups, Bible studies, and taught at writers conferences across the nation. She’s the author of Building a Family and numerous other titles and maintains a devotional blog at JenniferSlatteryLivesOutLou
She’s passionate about helping people experience Christ’s freedom in all areas of their lives. Visit her online to learn more about her speaking or to book her for your next women’s event, and sign up for her free quarterly newsletter HERE and make sure to connect with her on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and GodTube.