Why Do Faithful Believers Still Get Sick?
1) Direct Answer
Faithful believers still get sick because we are living in mortal bodies in a fallen world. Sickness is an enemy and often an oppression of the devil, but God sometimes permits it as a test, a chastening, or a platform for His glory. Healing is in the atonement and we are commanded to pray and believe, yet the full redemption of the body is future at the resurrection; until then, even the righteous may face infirmity.
2) Scriptural Explanation
- Our bodies are not yet redeemed: “We… groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body” (Romans 8:23). “The outward man perisheth; yet the inward man is renewed day by day” (2 Corinthians 4:16).
- Sickness is an oppression of Satan: Jesus “healed all that were oppressed of the devil” (Acts 10:38). The woman was “bound by Satan” (Luke 13:16). Job was smitten by Satan though he was upright (Job 2:7).
- Not all sickness is because of personal sin: The man born blind—“that the works of God should be made manifest” (John 9:3).
- God provides healing now: “By His stripes we are healed” (Isaiah 53:5; fulfilled in Matthew 8:16-17). “Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders… the prayer of faith shall save the sick” (James 5:14-16).
- Yet choice servants still faced infirmities: Timothy’s “often infirmities” (1 Timothy 5:23). Trophimus left sick (2 Timothy 4:20). Epaphroditus was sick nigh unto death, but God had mercy (Philippians 2:27). Paul’s “thorn” remained so that God’s grace would be magnified (2 Corinthians 12:7-9).
- Final, perfect health is at the change: “This mortal must put on immortality” (1 Corinthians 15:53-54).
3) Simple Clarifying Logic
- New birth changes your soul; the Holy Spirit dwells in you. But the body remains mortal until the resurrection. That’s why a Spirit-filled believer can still get sick.
- Healing is provided by the cross. We stand on the promise, pray, lay on hands, anoint with oil, and believe. Sometimes God heals instantly, sometimes progressively, and sometimes He reserves the perfection of it for the resurrection.
- Sickness is not always a sign of unbelief. If it were, why were Timothy, Trophimus, and Epaphroditus sick, and why did Paul carry a thorn? The Bible says God used those circumstances for humility, mercy, and testimony.
- God may allow sickness for chastening (Hebrews 12:6-11) or for His works to be revealed (John 9:3). But we never glorify sickness—we resist it as an enemy and trust God for deliverance.
- Even those who were healed eventually died; that shows present healing is real but temporary, while the eternal cure is the body change.
4) Reinforcing Statement
Now notice, the same Lord who forgives your sins is your Healer. Stand on His Word, call for prayer, keep confessing His promise, and rest in His wisdom. You see, we fight the good fight now, and we will have the final victory when this mortal puts on immortality.
Ask a Follow-up Question
What did the Laodicean Church Age (our age) Angel (- messenger) Say about this?
Ranked passages from the local William Branham sermon and Church Age Book database. Relevance is relative, not a statement of doctrinal certainty.
God's provided way of healing
54-0719A §57
...l." There ain't enough devils out of hell can break it then. That's right. That woman will go home. She'll feel good for a few days; the life's gone out. There's the cancer still there. She'll feel good for few days, and she'll go on rejoicing; and the first thing you know, that corruption (The wither begin from the root.)... What was it? That tiny little germ that went in there, first, that caused that cancer, that life has gone out. Casting out devils. Hallelujah! That devil is gone. And when it's gone, the belie...
Greater than Solomon is here
63-0605 §95
Well, then, after it lays there so long, like a little animal, dog, being run over on the street, laying in the sun---it begins to swell. Then it gets bigger than it was in the first place. The patient, then, will begin to get sick after about seventy-two hours, when corruption sets in. They'll begin to say, "Oh, I'm worse than I was. I've lost my healing." And, "when the unclean spirit's gone out of a man he walks in dry places, returns back again," see. And if you don't really believe, no matter how much is took...
Faith cometh by hearing
54-0320 §29
...inder faith. Now, hope looks for something, way off. But faith claims it right now, see. Faith says, "God said so and it's mine." That settles it, see. "I don't care if I'm still crippled, I'm still blind, if I'm still sick; that don't have nothing to do with it. I believe it anyhow. It's mine right now! God said so and that settles it," see. That's faith. But hope says, "God said so and I'm expecting to get it, someday," you see. "I'm expecting, someday." And as long as Satan can put you off to another day, that's...
Proving His Word
64-0816 §134
Now, what if He would give me a vision, and tell this woman something to do? That, well, I believe then if I laid my hands upon her, she'd get well. Do you believe that? But what if He didn't give the vision? What would the vision do? Only give me faith. Transmitting my faith, the unseen power of God. See? Now, if you, every one of you die right this minute, you'd never see ... you leave your body. All your mental faculties, all that you are would leave, but you'd never see it go. See? It'd be an un... the force th...
A testimony on the sea
62-0720 §10
And Brother Borders explains that; then how that after that prayer has been made over this demon disease that you've got (and all sickness is of the devil); and then when that prayer has been made, it's impossible for it not to happen, as long as you believe that it does happen. Now you go to doubting it, "When the unclean spirit's gone out of a man, he walks in dry places, then he returns back with seven other devils worse than he was at the beginning." Now, people, watch that. They say, "Oh, well, I got worse." N...