Hello family! Today I’m going to try and touch on a very sensitive issue. I do not claim to be all-knowing on the matter, but I hope this gives you some insight and clarity.  

Coming from a strong Pentecostal background, I was used to hearing testimonies like, “I have never been to the hospital for 5 years”, and “I was sick and they gave me medicine but I had faith and threw the medicine away and I was healed”. I hoped to be able to share these testimonies one day. Then I graduated from dental school and started working as a Health Care Provider. In no time, I was confronted with some strong evidence that really had me asking a lot of questions.  

So many people come to the hospital claiming to be healed from some chronic illnesses. A woman shared how she was led by her pastor to fast and pray for healing from hypertension and after that she was healed and had no symptoms thereafter. We had to extract a tooth for her so we decided to check her blood pressure just to be sure. Her BP was the highest I’ve ever seen, with the systolic reading over 200 mmHg. And I have countless stories like this. Recently, a woman came to the clinic after herbal medication had failed her. When I asked her why she eventually decided to come, she said her pastor asked her to stop the herbal meds and come to the hospital. That was a first. For many, the narrative is the pastor is asking them to have faith in God over what the medics are saying. The rift between medicine and religion is growing sadly. And when you see people die right in front of you because they had faith and stopped taking medication, you can’t help by asking questions. 

So let’s look at scripture. Now at a glance, one may jump into a hasty conclusion on what scripture says. Most of the mentions of physicians in scripture are frankly not pleasant. In Luke 8:43, the bible shares how a woman wasted all her money on physicians. You’re probably shouting, “It’s the same today!” Healthcare can be expensive. Then in 2 Chronicles 16:12, it’s almost in black and white that King Asa went after physicians instead of trusting God. Also scripture teaches that God gives life and good health. Verses like Exodus 15:26 seem to suggest that sickness is a punitive measure by God, a view that is held by many Christians today. Thus, consulting a physician for help could be construed as denial of the primary role of God and evidence of lack of faith in him, as well as lack of willingness to acknowledge personal sin. 

It was because of this knowledge that in John 9, when the disciples saw a man born blind, they asked whose sin was responsible. That was the understanding at the time the pathogenesis of sickness was SIN. (You’ve heard people talk about COVID like this I’m sure). Jesus’ response was unexpected but very powerful. He said it was so that God’s glory might be displayed. What Jesus did right there, was to destroy the popular view people had about health and religion. This is a game changer and I believe it shows us that there is more to the interpretation of scripture. Later, in the popular parable of the good Samaritan, Jesus actually commends the Samaritan for using oil and wine for the man who was beaten up. Oil and wine were the best medicines they had in their day. Remember Paul told Timothy to take some wine for his stomach? Back then Oil and Wine were like the cure for COVID. Jesus, who is the Word, seem to have a view on religion and health that differed from what people think scripture teaches. Jesus had no problem with physicians and medicine at all. This is why I question any interpretation of Scripture that suggests that taking medicine is a sign of faithlessness. It may sound inspiring, but it is at variance with Jesus’ position on health and medicine. And if your interpretation of scripture varies with Jesus’, one of you is wrong, and it’s definitely not Jesus. 

Jeremiah speaks of a balm in Gilead. There was a balm that had healing properties in Gilead. By inspiration, we understand that Jesus Christ is the real balm of Gilead. The medicine only served as a shadow, pointing and giving glory to Jesus himself. And this is my stance on the matter; Medicine gives glory to God rather than robbing Him of it. It will interest you to know that although the history of medicine is deeply rooted in Greek ideals, the bible shaped the ethos of the practice. Plato taught that people who were chronically ill were useless to themselves and to the state, thus should be allowed to die without medical attention. It was the bible that introduced an element of moral obligation into medical ethics, with teachings that man was created in the image of God, and that we are supposed to love our neighbor as ourselves. As the influence of Christianity grew, western medicine grew alongside.  More than a moral framework, the church also contributed to the training of medics, and spreading medicine to continents, through medical missionaries, building mission hospitals etc. It is strange that we have gotten to a point where our ally is now the enemy.  

In conclusion, I want to urge us to be guided by sound scriptural reasoning and avoid the passionate shouts from some pulpits that are full of enthusiasm but lacking in balance. God is the giver of health. He heals, and He does this through medicine also. May God help us in our search of truth and grant us good health and long life! Xx 

#anadwoadwendwen