There is no death in heaven. Sickness and death have resulted from the sin of our first parents, and are among the evils which God has promised to destroy. Shall we, then, pray for health, and ask the Lord to save the lives of those near and dear to us who may have been stricken with serious illness? Yes, but always with the understanding that we want the Lord’s will to be done, and with the knowledge that it may not be his will to grant health and life to those for whom we pray until these blessings are made available for all during the thousand years of Christ’s kingdom.

We know that all diseases will then be cured. “The inhabitant [in that day] shall not say, I am sick,” wrote Isaiah. (Isa. 33:24) Describing some of the blessings of Christ’s kingdom, Paul wrote that Christ will reign until all enemies are put under his feet, and that the last enemy to be destroyed is death. (I Cor. 15:25, 26) When in vision the Apostle John saw the kingdom of God established on the earth, he discerned that as a result there would be no more death, “neither shall there be any more pain.” – Rev. 21:4

So when we pray for health and life, let us grasp the meaning of this larger provision the Creator has made to grant these blessings, not merely to us and to our loved ones, but to all of mankind who will seek them through humility and obedience during the thousand years of Christ’s reign. This we do when we pray, “Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven” –Matt.6:10