Leap year day is approaching. The elusive day, which appears
once every four years, brings with it some intense memories. Almost 20 years
ago, on February 29, 1996, I was living and working in Peru when a friend and
co-worker lost her life in an airplane accident. She had been in my city,
working with me on a strategy study team, and was returning to her home in
another part of the country. I waved, said “See you next month,” and she got on
a plane and died.
Lynn’s death didn’t affect my daily life to the extent that other
losses have, but on a purely emotional level, it packed an enormous punch. I’ve
never, before or after, experienced denial the way I did when Lynn lost her
life. When I was told that the plane was missing, my immediate thought was “That’s
ridiculous.” I had a dream where Lynn
appeared to tell me the news of her death was a mistake and I replied, “I knew
it was.”
There were two main reasons that Lynn’s death affected me so
deeply. One was that she left behind three children whose gender and ages were
similar to mine and my siblings’ when our own mother died. The second reason is
that her death came at a time when our missionary family had already
experienced much heartbreak and loss. The month that ended with Lynn’s death
began with an automobile crash that left four members of one family gravely injured,
with one still in a coma and not expected to live.
Christians in the United States have widely differing views
of Satan and his influence in the world. Most Christians I’ve known overseas,
however, and most missionaries, have no doubt that we fight a powerful and
relentless adversary. Those of us serving with my mission board in Peru
believed we were engaged in spiritual warfare. Others believed that, too. Baptist
Press wrote an article entitled "Missionaries in Peru Pursue Harvest Amid Satan's Attacks." The article listed some (but not all) of the challenges we had
been experiencing and attributed them to demonic opposition to the move of
God’s spirit in the country.
Many of the challenges listed in the article involved
physical illnesses or injuries. This raises questions about whether or not
Satan can make people sick and what else he may or may not be able to do. What
does the Bible say?
In the Old Testament book of Job, the source of Job’s
illness is made very clear. Job 2:7 says that “Satan left and caused painful
sores to break out all over Job’s body—from head to toe.” (CEV) There are also many
New Testament instances of illnesses or disabilities being associated with
demonic interference. Luke 13:11 refers to a woman “who had been crippled by
an evil spirit for eighteen years.” Matthew
9:32-33 relates the story of a man “who could not talk because a demon was in
him.” How about injuries and other
sorts of disasters? The book of Job tells us that Satan was behind an attack by
a gang of thieves, a fire, and a windstorm that collapsed a house, killing Job’s
children.
The Bible also speaks about illnesses, disabilities and
injuries coming from angels or directly from God. In contrast to the mute man
of Matthew 9, we have the mute man (Zechariah) of Luke 1. When Zechariah
apparently doubted the word of the angel Gabriel, who brought him news that he
would have a son, Zechariah was struck mute until the child’s birth. Job’s skin
disease came from Satan, but the skin diseases that struck King Azariah in 2
Kings 15 and Miriam in Numbers 12 came from God. Genesis 32 tells us of Jacob
wrestling with God and being left with a limp.
Of course, many illnesses, injuries and other disasters can
be attributed to the simple fact that suffering exists in the world because it
is fallen and imperfect. In John 16:33 Jesus says, “While you are in the
world, you will have to suffer.” There
are some who argue that sickness is somehow different from all other types of
suffering, but I certainly don’t think the Bible teaches that. I’ll save that
discussion for another time. I also don’t think there’s generally a one-on-one
relationship between suffering and the personal sin of the sufferer, but I’ll
save that discussion, too, except to mention the words of Jesus in Luke 13. He
responded to questions about a tragedy by saying, “Do you think that these
people were worse sinners than everyone else in Galilee just because of what
happened to them? Not at all!”
So what can we attribute to Satan, what to God, and what to
simply living in a fallen world? I don’t
have an easy rule of thumb to share. I do think it’s probably not quite as easy
as attributing the suffering of others to God’s judgment and our own suffering
to spiritual warfare, a tendency I’ve noted.
There’s a mysterious interplay between God’s will and Satan’s
power. Satan had to ask permission before he could torment Job. Matthew 4:1 tells
us that the Holy Spirit led Jesus into the wilderness so that the devil could
test him. Satan’s reach is limited and temporal, but his desire and ability to
cause harm is real.
In this season of memories, it’s helpful for me to remind
myself that I don’t confront the challenges of this world as effectively as I
could when I forget I have an enemy who “is like a roaring lion, sneaking around
to find someone to attack” (1 Peter 5:8). When I get angry at people in power
who put profits above human health, I need to remember Ephesians 6:12, which
notes,“We are not fighting against humans. We are fighting against forces
and authorities and against rulers of darkness and powers in the spiritual
world.” I’ll try to remember these
things when I pray for the world and when I pray for you, my friends, and I
hope you’ll remember them as well when you pray for me.
