Why does God give people cancer or ALS & then not intervene to help?

lordjeff said:

Very troubling issue for me. For the last year it seems I've been attending wake after wake. The cancer thing bothers me in that it escapes cure & its ugly & we it in all ages people shriveled to bones. What is gained from this? The ultimate struggles of these people. ALS, struggling with my sister-in-law's recent passing? Ugly disease. Gone too soon. What's more I've seen 4 friends in the last 15 years lose their life to this. I'm just so bewildered. My brother is still struggling over this.

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God does not give people cancer. Why would you imagine that he does? He is the Lord that heals all our diseases. My youngest brother died of a brain tumour about 15 years ago, way too young. He was aggressively atheist and would not allow me to pray for him. Of course I did anyway. It was if he wanted to die.

Sickness is the twin of sin. Satan is the originator of all sickness and disease. God may allow sickness in some situations, but the point is to bring us closer to Himself, not to kill people. Satan is the murderer. God is the author of life.

I am sure we all have these feelings about any life-shortening or potentially fatal medical condition if they affect us. God knows that, so the answers are in your Bible.

Praise to the God of All Comfort
2 Corinthians 1:3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, 4 who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God. 5 For just as we share abundantly in the sufferings of Christ, so also our comfort abounds through Christ. 6 If we are distressed, it is for your comfort and salvation; if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which produces in you patient endurance of the same sufferings we suffer. 7 And our hope for you is firm, because we know that just as you share in our sufferings, so also you share in our comfort.

Paul’s Thorn
2 Corthinthians 12:8 Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. 9 But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. 10 That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

I'm Christian, but my beliefs are a little more abstract when it comes to this sort of thing. I don't think there was ever a time when we never existed - and we all know that Jesus bought us an afterlife , so all of this "living on Earth thing" is just one part to a process, in the universal scheme of things. Our "our" story.

Cancer for all of its evilness DOES yield inspiration: the people I've met who have had it seem to develop this supernatural spirit that empowers everyone around them. Some of these people (a dear friend of mine being one of them) knew that their death was certain, but they never faulted away from this drive to inspire. And seeing that seriously changes lives - my life certainly did from the moment I met her. Literally everything I've gone on to achieve in life can one way or another be traced back to her spirit.

The world is a difficult, upsetting and complicated place. Which is we - as members of the human race, need to keep working together. Unify, raise awareness, and fund raise to help doctors and scientists fulfil their purpose of curing it. It's a sad truth, but until we stop being so egotistical, superficial and selfish then none of the really important stuff will ever really be dealt with. If everyone donated 10% of their salary to research then we'd see a marked difference within months (assuming that the money isn't siphoned off to fund Dr Patel's new Ferrari.)

I wish I had a better answer, but I'm just like everyone else here on this planet. I'm just giving it my best guess. The answers all wait for us at the other end.

Cancer has taken my mom, my first wife, my sister, my oldest daughter, and countless friends.

God does not give cancer.

Cancer exists because sin exists. Sin exists because it was brought into the world because of Adam and Eve. One could blame them for all of this of course, but we probably would have bitten the apple to. We only assume we wouldn't because it is after the fact and we know the results.

God doesn't give anyone cancer. It just happens. Just as people dying early happens. Children starving to death in third world countries....etc. If anything God weeps with everything that goes on. I can't even begin to imagine the sadness He must feel seeing what goes on down here.

A month ago we had a medically confirmed healing from cancer in the Thyroid.

The Hospital was bewildered.

Details on my testimony thread Jesus's Ministry Post #66.

I can email Hospital report if anyone doubts.

lordjeff said:

Very troubling issue for me. For the last year it seems I've been attending wake after wake. The cancer thing bothers me in that it escapes cure & its ugly & we it in all ages people shriveled to bones. What is gained from this? The ultimate struggles of these people. ALS, struggling with my sister-in-law's recent passing? Ugly disease. Gone too soon. What's more I've seen 4 friends in the last 15 years lose their life to this. I'm just so bewildered. My brother is still struggling over this.

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God doesn't give people cancer. But what about the blessings he bestows on evil people? It's interesting that the good things are not charged to God's account but the cancer and the car wrecks are always attributed to him.

What you're struggling with, everyone struggles with. It's valid and understandable.

But remember that what caused Adam and Eve to sin was their belief that there was something better than what God had already given them. In spite of their lush environment, the devil came along and told them that God was holding back something. Something that would be even better than what they already had.

They had blessing on top of blessing and could not, as Noah did, "find grace."

Noah looked around and saw God's grace everywhere even in the most sinful time of earth's history. I find the grammar there so instructive.

7 So the Lord said, “I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth, both man and beast, creeping thing and birds of the air, for I am sorry that I have made them.” 8 But Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord.

The verb, the action, in verse eight is attributed to Noah, not God. Noah recognized the grace he was already given. This recognition of God's already existing grace and the actions it inspired were what motivated God to provide "grace on top of grace" by rescuing him from the world.

It's really easy to look at the bad things that happen in the world and be disappointed in God. Jesus said that when bad things happen, it's not because God caused them and is punishing people. He does allow these things but it is our job to find God's grace and live our lives accordingly because some day we're going to die, be it through a catastrophe or gently passing in our sleep in our old age.

4 Or those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them, do you think that they were worse sinners than all other men who dwelt in Jerusalem? 5 I tell you, no; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish.”

God blesses us every day that we have breath. Count your blessings. You have more than you know. God's grace, even apart from the gospel, rains on believers and unbelievers alike, every single day.

I pray that you are comforted in these hard times and that you find God's grace in your life every day.

lordjeff said:

Very troubling issue for me. For the last year it seems I've been attending wake after wake. The cancer thing bothers me in that it escapes cure & its ugly & we it in all ages people shriveled to bones. What is gained from this? The ultimate struggles of these people. ALS, struggling with my sister-in-law's recent passing? Ugly disease. Gone too soon. What's more I've seen 4 friends in the last 15 years lose their life to this. I'm just so bewildered. My brother is still struggling over this.

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Struggle is not the enemy and painless bliss is not the remedy for man. We need to avoid the idea that we are in Paradise and our lives should be free of evil and pain in order to be Godly. Christians suffer, as Jesus demonstrated for us. The entire purpose of this world is to remind us that we are not in Paradise. How many people would have faith in God if we were born onto fluffy clouds and ate manna for our entire lives? God's only interest is our spiritual health. That's why we all die. It's only fitting for us to do so.

God doesn't give people cancer and disease
BUT
It is hard to accept that He chooses to heal some people and not others, especially those who have so much intercession on their behalf. I know we don't see the big picture but that doesn't make sickness and loss any easier.

God does not give anyone cancer etc. We are human. Weak, frail and flesh. Prone to illness and diseases.

God is always there in our corner when we are suffering. God is loving and merciful.

Life can throw anything at us. Its our true love of God that is needed on our walk through these valleys that we live through. When we suffer.

God is always there with open arms. Like a loving father.

Trust in God.

I don't believe any god exists, so it doesn't give anyone cancer.

God controls everything, well except cancer and miscarriage and being killed by a bus but god controls everything. GET IT!

Most cancer is environmentally caused, by what we eat drink, breathe, smoke or whatever, in our environment. Many unbelievers cure themselves of cancer through specific diets or other means. How we live, is not healthy and not in accordance with how God created the earth for us.

Lazarus Long said:

God controls everything, well except cancer and miscarriage and being killed by a bus but god controls everything. GET IT!

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Yeah, He does, even Satan. I'm thoroughly confused with the responses I've seen in this thread.

bmjackson said:

Most cancer is environmentally caused, by what we eat drink, breathe, smoke or whatever, in our environment. Many unbelievers cure themselves of cancer through specific diets or other means. How we live, is not healthy and not in accordance with how God created the earth for us.

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So your god hasn't created everything? Isn't that blasphemous?

JohnAshton said:

Cancer has taken my mom, my first wife, my sister, my oldest daughter, and countless friends.

God does not give cancer.

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Some people think everything unfolds according to God's plan. That means everything.

bmjackson said:

Many unbelievers cure themselves of cancer

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Please define many and their religious beliefs.

Lazarus Long said:

Please define many and their religious beliefs.

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I get on the natural healing forums and read the books written by those who have beaten cancer. Try reading Ty Bollinger. The ones l have come across rarely mention their faith. Christians are a pretty blind in this matter though there is an Christian organisation who run a farm and cure people on a vegan diet. Will try to remember the name.

Lazarus Long said:

So your god hasn't created everything? Isn't that blasphemous?

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It is to people who don't understand the nature of God, yes.