The Bible uses God’s sovereignty to explain why some people cannot have faith in the gospel, and therefore cannot receive the promise of God (John 6:44, 65, 10:26, Romans 9:18). They are doomed. They will not be saved. The Bible never uses God’s sovereignty to teach that some people could have faith in the promise — but because of the will of God — still cannot receive the promise. God withholds faith from the reprobates, but he never withholds faith to his chosen ones, and he never withholds his promise to those who have faith.

The promise is that we can receive healing for ourselves and command healing in others by faith, and faith itself comes under the sovereignty of God. But God denies faith only to the reprobates. Therefore, a person cannot claim to accept the Bible’s teaching on healing, but at the same time excuse himself and claim that God does not give him faith for it. Since faith is under God sovereign control, his chosen ones are guaranteed the ability to have faith in all of his promises.

The fact that God is sovereign over faith itself destroys all excuses to reject the gospel promise of healing. In fact, we find that God often sovereignly infuses us with even more faith than we usually possess, to receive and to command even greater miracles than we thought we were able. Miracles come by faith, and the will of God denies faith only to reprobates. Therefore, the more someone claims that he does not receive the promise of God because of the will of God, the more he insists that he is reprobate, made for damnation, and reserved for everlasting torture in the fires of hell.

*Adapted from Vincent Cheung, “The Screech of Satan“