Faith and the False Gospel: What Scripture Actually Teaches

Faith and the False Gospel: What Scripture Actually Teaches

Introduction: What Happens When Healing Doesn’t Come?

In churches across the world, a damaging and deceptive theology is being preached: if you’re not healed, it must be because you lack faith. The so-called "Word of Faith" or prosperity gospel has redefined biblical faith into a tool for getting what you want from God. In this twisted system, faith becomes a transaction, and suffering becomes a punishment for spiritual failure. But Scripture tells a different story.

This article explores what biblical faith actually is, what it is not, and why the prosperity gospel's version of faith is ultimately faithless. We'll examine the Greek terms, the use of faith in healing, and what the Bible says about God’s sovereignty, suffering, and unseen glory.

1. Faith: A Biblical Definition

Hebrews 11:1 (NLT): "Faith shows the reality of what we hope for; it is the evidence of things we cannot see."

The Greek word for faith is pistis (πίστις, pîs-tees), Strong’s G4102. It means belief, trust, or confidence in something reliable. Faith isn’t about forcing outcomes in the physical world—it’s about trusting God when outcomes don’t go the way we expect.

2 Corinthians 4:18 (LEB): "Because we are not looking at what is seen, but what is not seen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is not seen is eternal."

The prosperity gospel contradicts this by making faith about seen things: health, money, and comfort. But biblical faith is anchored in the unseen: God's promises, Christ's return, and eternal life.

2. Faith and Healing: Not Always a One-to-One

Faith is a component in healing, but it is not a guarantee. Sometimes healing didn’t happen because of unbelief (Mark 6:5), but other times it didn’t happen for reasons entirely unrelated to faith.

Jesus Rebuked the Disciples—Not the Sick

Matthew 17:19–20 (NLT): "Afterward the disciples asked Jesus privately, 'Why couldn’t we cast out that demon?' 'You don’t have enough faith,' Jesus told them."

The burden wasn’t on the afflicted—it was on the disciples. Jesus didn’t blame the boy or his father. Today’s prosperity preachers often reverse this.

Paul: Not Healed for a Reason

2 Corinthians 12:7–9 (NLT): "So to keep me from becoming proud, I was given a thorn in my flesh... Three different times I begged the Lord to take it away. Each time he said, 'My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.'"

Paul didn’t lack faith—he had an abundance of it. Yet God allowed the affliction for Paul’s humility and to showcase divine strength.

Timothy: No Faith Rebuke, Just a Prescription

1 Timothy 5:23 (NLT): "Don’t drink only water. You ought to drink a little wine for the sake of your stomach because you are sick so often."

Paul doesn’t scold Timothy for his frequent illnesses. He gives practical advice. If faith automatically healed, this verse wouldn’t exist.

3. Word of Faith Theology is Actually Faithless

True faith is about trusting the unseen; Word of Faith theology demands visible proof. That’s not faith—that’s doubt disguised in spiritual language.

Romans 8:24 (LEB): "For in hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is not hope, for who hopes for what he sees?"

Prosperity preaching turns faith into manipulation: if you just believe hard enough, say the right words, and sow the right seed, God is obligated to respond. But the God of Scripture is sovereign, not subject to our formulas.

4. When God Doesn’t Heal: Other Biblical Reasons

• To Prevent Pride – Paul’s thorn in 2 Corinthians 12.

• To Strengthen the Body – Suffering teaches endurance and maturity (James 1:2–4).

• To Glorify God – The man born blind in John 9:3 was not blind because of sin, but "so the power of God could be seen in him."

• To Call Us Home – Some saints are not healed on earth because God is preparing them for eternity.

5. Encouragement: What Real Faith Looks Like

Real faith holds on when the answer is "no."

Hebrews 11:13 (NLT): "All these people died still believing what God had promised them. They did not receive what was promised, but they saw it all from a distance and welcomed it."

They weren’t healed. They weren’t rich. But they were faithful.

Let this be your encouragement: If you are trusting God in your sickness, you are not failing in faith. You are honoring Him more than those who only trust Him for success.

Final Thought: Faith That Endures

The prosperity gospel is cruel because it burdens the sick with shame. It replaces grace with guilt and turns trust into superstition.

Biblical faith isn’t about forcing God to act. It’s about trusting Him no matter what. Not for what He gives—but for who He is.