Jehovah Will Sustain You

SUSTAINED ON A SICKBED

We know from the Bible that in the first century, God enabled some anointed Christians to work miracles.  (Acts 3:2-7; 9:36-42) Among the "different gifts" of  the spirit were "gifts of healing." (1 Corinthians 12:4-11) But those and other gifts, such as speaking in tongues and prophesying would soon come to an end.  (1 Corinthians 13:8)  They are not available today.  Thus, we have no basis for expecting God to perform miraculous healings for us or our loved ones. 

Still, if we are ill, we can look to God for comfort, wisdom, and support, as did true worshippers in the past.  King David wrote:  "Happy is anyone who show consideration to the lowly one; Jehovah will rescue him in the day of calamity.  Jehovah will guard him and keep him alive." (Psalm 41:1, 2)  We know that an individual living in David's day who showed consideration to a lowly one did not keep living without end. Hence, David could not have meant that such a considerate individual would be kept alive miraculously, thus gaining everlasting life. We can take those inspired word to mean that God would help  the loyal considerate  one.  How? David explained:  "Jehovah will sustain him on his sickbed; during his sickness you will completely change his bed." (Psalm 41:3) Yes, an individual who showed consideration to a lowly one could be certain that God was aware of him and his faithful course.  And the recuperative power of his God-given body might help him to get better, to recover from his sickness. 

David spoke from experience;  "I said: 'O Jehovah, show me a favor. Heal me,m for I have sinned against you.' " (Psalm 41:4)  He may have written that regarding the time when Absalom tried to usurp the throne while David was ill and unable to handle the situation. Despite having received his own sin with Bath-sheba and its consequences.  (2 Samuel 12:7-14)  Still, the king was sure that God would sustain him on his sickbed. But was David asking for a miraculous healing and an extension of life?

Years later, God chose to heal King Hezekiah, who "became sick and was at the point of death ."  In that unusual case, God intervene. Hezekiah recovered and lived on for 15 years.  (2 Kings 20:1-6) David, on the other hand, did not pray for God to heal him miraculously. The context suggests that David asked Jehovah to help him in the same way that He would help an individual who showed consideration to a lowly one. That included being sustained "on his sickbed." Because David's sin had been forgiven, he could ask that God would comfort him and that the physical resources of his body might enable him to recover. (Psalm 103:3)  We can do likewise. 

Just as David did not receive a miraculous cure and a greatly extended life, neither did Trophimus, one of the apostle Paul's coworkers.  We know that Paul was on occasion empowered to heal the sick.  (Read Acts 14:8-10) He did so for "the father of Publius [who] was lying in bed sick with fever and dysentery."  Paul "prayed, laid his hands on him, and healed him." (Acts 28:8) Yet, Paul did not do the same for Trophimus, who had traveled with him on a missionary journey.  (Acts 20:3-5, 22; 21:29)  When Trophimus fell ill  and could not continue on with Paul, the apostle did not heal him; he left him at Miletus to recover.  (2 Timothy 4:20) Similarly, when Epaphroditus  fell "sick nearly to the point of death," there is no indication that Paul used some miraculous power to heal his good friend. -Philippians 2:25-27, 30. 

Next time: Jehovah Will Sustain You/TAKE REASONABLE STEPS 

From The Watchtower magazine