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Difference between revisions of "Question: Why doesn't God always heal the sick when they are given priesthood blessings?"
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If God chose to heal all the sick through direct intervention, we would have fewer opportunities to be blessed by charitable service. Perhaps God allows many individuals to suffer without healing so that we can bless them and be blessed by our service to them. After all, "when ye are in the service of your fellow beings ye are only in the service of your God." <ref>{{s||Mosiah|2|17}}</ref> | If God chose to heal all the sick through direct intervention, we would have fewer opportunities to be blessed by charitable service. Perhaps God allows many individuals to suffer without healing so that we can bless them and be blessed by our service to them. After all, "when ye are in the service of your fellow beings ye are only in the service of your God." <ref>{{s||Mosiah|2|17}}</ref> | ||
| − | === | + | ===One purpose of mortality is to learn through our experience=== |
One of the purposes of life is to learn, through our own experience, how to discern between good and evil and to treasure the good. When we accepted the Father's plan, we also accepted the pain, anguish, heartache and suffering that it entails. However, when we act in faith and call upon God, He may take "the burdens which [are] laid upon" us and make them "light." He may choose to "strengthen [us] that [we can] bear up [our] burdens with ease." <ref>{{s||Mosiah|24|15}} </ref> He often does this instead of removing our burdens outright through healing or other means. | One of the purposes of life is to learn, through our own experience, how to discern between good and evil and to treasure the good. When we accepted the Father's plan, we also accepted the pain, anguish, heartache and suffering that it entails. However, when we act in faith and call upon God, He may take "the burdens which [are] laid upon" us and make them "light." He may choose to "strengthen [us] that [we can] bear up [our] burdens with ease." <ref>{{s||Mosiah|24|15}} </ref> He often does this instead of removing our burdens outright through healing or other means. | ||
Revision as of 19:22, 19 October 2016
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Contents
- 1 Question: Why doesn't God always heal the sick when they are given priesthood blessings?
- 1.1 The healing power of faith and the priesthood cannot produce a result contrary to the will of the Lord
- 1.2 The words of the blessing are not essential, and they cannot override the will of the Lord
- 1.3 Sometimes God desires us to be His hand to alleviate suffering
- 1.4 One purpose of mortality is to learn through our experience
- 1.5 Ultimately, total healing will come to all through the atonement and resurrection of Jesus Christ
Question: Why doesn't God always heal the sick when they are given priesthood blessings?
The healing power of faith and the priesthood cannot produce a result contrary to the will of the Lord
As D&C 42꞉48 states, it is not always the will of the Lord for every individual to be healed:
And again, it shall come to pass that he that hath faith in me to be healed, and is not appointed unto death, shall be healed.
Elder Oaks explained this very well:
[W]e must always remember that faith and the healing power of the priesthood cannot produce a result contrary to the will of Him whose priesthood it is. This principle is taught in the revelation directing that the elders of the Church shall lay their hands upon the sick. The Lord’s promise is that “he that hath faith in me to be healed, and is not appointed unto death, shall be healed” (D&C 42:48; emphasis added). Similarly, in another modern revelation the Lord declares that when one “asketh according to the will of God … it is done even as he asketh” (D&C 46:30).
From all of this we learn that even the servants of the Lord, exercising His divine power in a circumstance where there is sufficient faith to be healed, cannot give a priesthood blessing that will cause a person to be healed if that healing is not the will of the Lord.
As children of God, knowing of His great love and His ultimate knowledge of what is best for our eternal welfare, we trust in Him. The first principle of the gospel is faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, and faith means trust.[1]
The words of the blessing are not essential, and they cannot override the will of the Lord
The words spoken in a priesthood blessing may not be fulfilled if they are not in accordance with the will of the Lord. Likewise, a person may receive blessings not stated by the priesthood holder if they are in accordance with the will of the Lord and the faith of the individual.
Elder Oaks:
Fortunately, the words spoken in a healing blessing are not essential to its healing effect. If faith is sufficient and if the Lord wills it, the afflicted person will be healed or blessed whether the officiator speaks those words or not. Conversely, if the officiator yields to personal desire or inexperience and gives commands or words of blessing in excess of what the Lord chooses to bestow according to the faith of the individual, those words will not be fulfilled. [2]
Sometimes God desires us to be His hand to alleviate suffering
Many people ask whether God intervenes in our lives. It is true that he does from time to time. But, perhaps a more important question is whether we are intervening in each others' lives. Should we pray that God will heal the sick? Yes. But, more importantly, are we "visiting the sick and administering to their relief?" [3] Perhaps God is more concerned with what we are doing to intervene in the lives of others than with intervening directly himself.
Spencer W. Kimball stated it this way: "God does notice us, and he watches over us. But it is usually through another person that he meets our needs. Therefore, it is vital that we serve each other in the kingdom." [4]
If God chose to heal all the sick through direct intervention, we would have fewer opportunities to be blessed by charitable service. Perhaps God allows many individuals to suffer without healing so that we can bless them and be blessed by our service to them. After all, "when ye are in the service of your fellow beings ye are only in the service of your God." [5]
One purpose of mortality is to learn through our experience
One of the purposes of life is to learn, through our own experience, how to discern between good and evil and to treasure the good. When we accepted the Father's plan, we also accepted the pain, anguish, heartache and suffering that it entails. However, when we act in faith and call upon God, He may take "the burdens which [are] laid upon" us and make them "light." He may choose to "strengthen [us] that [we can] bear up [our] burdens with ease." [6] He often does this instead of removing our burdens outright through healing or other means.
It is not the absence of opposition that lifts us, but the strength of the opposition, our personal grounding, and God's help that raise us. Consider the kite analogy: The tethered string is our being based in gospel principles, and the opposition is the wind that lifts us. Remove the tether, or the headwind, and we fall.
In that light, it could be argued that those on earth with the greatest challenges are being blessed eternally through their mortal schooling more so than those who seem to walk through life without pain or challenges. But even those of us blessed with relative ease and comfort can rise by going to the aid of those who struggle. It is by helping bear the burdens of our friends, family, and neighbors that those of us with lighter loads can be blessed with the uplift of challenges.
In this light, opposition and heartache is not simply an uncomfortable reality, it is actually a central key to the plan. Therefore, if God were to always heal the sick, he would do so at the peril of his own plan for us.
Ultimately, total healing will come to all through the atonement and resurrection of Jesus Christ
At the time of the resurrection, "the soul shall be restored to the body, and the body to the soul; yea, and every limb and joint shall be restored to its body; yea, even a hair of the head shall not be lost; but all things shall be restored to their proper and perfect frame." [7]
Until then, any medical or miracle healing is only temporary. The ultimate healing was already planned before the foundations of the world and will be brought about through the atonement and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
Notes
- ↑ Dallin H. Oaks, "Healing the Sick," General Conference Priesthood Session (April 2010).
- ↑ Dallin H. Oaks, "Healing the Sick," General Conference Priesthood Session (April 2010).
- ↑ Mosiah 4꞉26
- ↑ "Small Acts of Service," Spencer W. Kimball https://www.lds.org/ensign/1974/12/small-acts-of-service?lang=eng
- ↑ Mosiah 2꞉17
- ↑ Mosiah 24꞉15
- ↑ Alma 40꞉23