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Message from the Bishop

Some of you may have read in the papers about a couple who was charged for the murder of their son because “God did not answer" their prayers for their son to be healed of a terminal illness. I have felt burdened for some time by the wrong teaching given by some Christians that God must always heal when we pray, and that to take medicine or seek treatment from a doctor means we are lacking in faith. All healing belongs to God. What medicine, doctors or surgery do for us is to provide the environment for the healing to take place. In fact, God has created the human body to defend and heal itself from most of the diseases and infections we encounter each day. When we get an infection, our bodies produce antibodies to fight that infection naturally. Because God is the God of the natural as well as the supernatural, all healing indeed comes from God. Sometimes we need to take medicine to counter an infection when our bodies are too weak to deal with it. That is also part of the general grace of God. The problem may come when we face a serious or “incurable” sickness like cancer. Some of these sicknesses can still be controlled or cured if we catch them early. Is it wrong then to go for surgery when a Christian discovers she has breast cancer? I know of many women diagnosed with breast cancer, who were treated and completely under remission, and who continued to live many fruitful years. Of course we should pray. God can and does heal supernaturally. I also know of people who have had unexplained pains for many years, and the pains completely disappeared after prayer. Because we live in the natural and the supernatural realms, and God is the creator of both, there is no conflict whatsoever to see a doctor and to pray for healing at the same time. In the end, the doctor does not heal; he only provides the medicine or treatment to enable to body to heal. So in that sense God is the source of all healing, be it natural or supernatural. We may be completely misguided, and because of our flawed understanding of the Bible, we may be persuaded by people who teach that if you pray, you must not eat any medicine nor see the doctor. To believe that is to say our God is God only of the supernatural realm. Such people deny God as the Creator of the physical world (including our body). They are bordering on the ancient heresy of dualism, where the natural world and physical realm is considered evil. I want all our members to know the full counsel of God in the Bible. When we know the truth, the truth will set us free. I believe that healing belongs to the church – therefore I pray for healing and train all our clergy and pastor to pray for healing. It is also my view that consulting a doctor is not in conflict with a strong faith in God. So we believe in God's mercy.