Divine healing?
Religious philosopher William Dembski is also a loving dad who wants whatever help he can find for his autistic son. In this Baptist Press story, Dembski gives an enlightening (and very personal) look at how one rich and famous "healer" (and, sadly, there's more than a few of these hustlers out there playing the crowds) conducted his show.
In reading Dembski's experience, I was reminded of a "Vital Signs" radio commentary I did several years ago which dealt with this matter. I print the transcript of that brief program below:
Faith Healing VS Divine Healing
There is an important and very distinct difference between faith healing and divine healing.
That’s what I said – these are not synonymous terms.
Faith healing is a phenomenon known even in the general culture for it centers upon the actions of the sick person himself or, in some cases, upon the person who claims to have special gifts or a unique connection to higher powers. The field of faith healing thus includes psychotherapy, hypnosis, placebos, positive thinking, and the theatrical productions that glorify celebrity healers.
But divine healing is radically different. Divine healing is God supernaturally reaching down and healing someone. And when God heals, it is He and He alone Who gets the glory. There’s no human healer on stage standing in the glare of a spotlight to confuse the issue.
Furthermore, God doesn’t need you to somehow work up enough faith (or money) to get Him on the job. When God heals, He does it in His way, in His time, and, make no mistake about it, for His glory alone.
And despite the unbiblical claims of many prosperity preachers, God frequently (I would even say usually) decides not to heal. Remember the Scripture – “It’s appointed unto men once to die”? That’s all men. "The wages of sin" inescapably involve decay and death. But this simple truth is frequently forgotten in many Christian circles and the results are disastrous.
Whether it’s the heartbreak of someone like Joni Eareckson-Tada being pushed out of healing crusades still in her wheelchair, the dangerous confusion which results when believers seek miraculous manifestations more than they do their daily responsibilities to live in holiness and compassion, or the dishonor brought to Christianity when the world discovers the many frauds in the faith healing biz – we’ve clearly got things out of whack.
It’s way past time to quit making up our own religious doctrines and get back to diligently studying the Good Book…serving Jesus by His rules, His priorities, and for His glory.
(H/T to this Pearcey Report post for drawing my attention to Dembski's moving story.)
