1 Timothy 5:23
Drink no longer water, but use a little wine for thy stomach’s sake and thine often infirmities.
This verse almost feels like a quiet aside in the middle of Paul’s instructions to Timothy. After speaking about leadership, discipline, and purity, Paul suddenly gives a very personal piece of advice.
Take a little wine for your stomach.
Earlier in the letter Paul had warned that an elder must not be given to wine. Yet here he tells Timothy, who is himself a leader, to use a little of it. That might seem contradictory until you notice the difference between abuse and use.
Paul is not talking about indulgence.
He is talking about medicine.
In the ancient world water was often contaminated, and wine was commonly used in small amounts for medicinal purposes. Timothy apparently had ongoing stomach problems and frequent physical weakness. Paul’s advice is practical and caring. Take what helps your body.
But there is something deeper happening in this verse.
Paul was a man through whom God worked remarkable miracles. The book of Acts records people being healed through his ministry in extraordinary ways. Yet Timothy, his close companion and spiritual son, was still dealing with regular sickness.
Why?
It was not because Paul lacked faith. It was not because God was unable to heal him. The Lord simply had a different timing and a different method.
That reminds us of something important.
God is the One who heals.
Prayer does not heal by itself. Medicine does not heal by itself. The human body does not heal by itself. All of these are simply tools the Lord may choose to use.
Sometimes He heals instantly. Sometimes healing unfolds slowly. Sometimes it does not come until the day a believer steps into heaven.
Think about a skilled physician. The patient may receive a prescription, a surgery, or a therapy plan, but behind all those methods is the doctor guiding the process. In the same way, whether healing comes through prayer, medicine, rest, or time, the true healer is always the Lord.
So Paul’s advice to Timothy carries quiet wisdom.
Pray.
Trust God.
And do not despise the practical helps He provides along the way.
Because the God who heals is wise enough to choose both the method and the moment.