A remark was made several weeks ago that
has had me thinking and studying for some answers; “The obsession for our
health has almost become a religion.”
My next question was, So, is it a
religion? Does God care about our health? Does He care about the food I eat?
Does He care what I do or not do for my physical well being?
The first thing I did was look up
the word, religion, to see if the meaning was used correctly in this context.
The meaning is quite true. It is “something that one believes in and follows
devotedly; a point or matter of ethics or conscience:” Is this a bad thing? Is
it a good thing?
After spending some time in the
scriptures, I came to the conclusion that God is very concerned about our
physical health and wants us to take care of our bodies. In our relationship
with Him, He also cares about what we do physically, not just mentally and
spiritually. We are complete beings and He really does care about it all! What
does He say about it? In 1 Corinthians 3:16, 17 the Lord gets rather passionate
about our physical bodies. Should we not have the same passion?
From the very beginning of time when
He created our bodies out of the dust of the ground, He also prepared the earth
to produce the food that was needed to nourish our physical bodies in order for
them to thrive and be healthy. (Gen. 1:29, 30; Gen. 2:8, 9; Gen. 3:17–19) So
from the beginning of time God provided us the means to physically be healthy.
Plants and trees produce the food that our bodies need to thrive. When man
sinned and Eden was shut down, God told Adam that he would still be able to
provide food, but now man would have to work for it. The food didn’t change,
but the way it was provided changed. We, as humans, now needed to work for our
food in order to sustain life. The responsibility is ours.
When Noah was ready to leave the ark
after the flood, God gave him and his sons some instructions in order for them
to survive on the land. (Genesis 9:3) He told them that anything that moves and
is alive is for food as well as the plants that He had provided at the
beginning of time. So meat was given. Yes, it was used before the flood, but
God just affirms once again the very things that He provides for our physical
bodies.
The Psalmist recognized the
provision of the Lord in Psalm 104:14, 15. Grass was for the livestock and man
was to cultivate the plants so there would be food from the earth. In chapter
145 he talks about food in seasons that God gives to us. This is the way of
life that God created for man to live.
Solomon in all his wisdom directs us
to observe nature around us and take a lesson. He shows us that the ant is our
teacher. We are to consider her ways and gain wisdom from this observation.
(Prov. 6:6–11) Even the ant knows that the Lord provides for us, but we need to
work to bring in the food that God has provided. The ant has no leader or ruler
to command them. Yet she goes and gathers food all summer and brings in the
food at the harvest time to last through the cold winter months. Then he gives
a warning of what will happen if we do not work as the ant does to provide food
for our bodies. He says that our laziness will bring poverty.
In all this searching, being
reminded that my body is a temple or dwelling for the Holy Spirit in my life
has become the key factor. Paul warns us in this scripture that if anyone
destroys God’s temple, then God will destroy him. Now read that carefully and
meditate on that. Am I destroying my own body with my food, my habits, my
lifestyle? God destroys us if we destroy His temple. Is this serious enough to
become passionate about our health? Is it a religion? How devoted are you? We
spend so much time in praying for our bodies when they are sick and we ask God
to heal them. But what if we were responsible for that sickness with how we
treated our bodies? God said He would destroy the very one that destroys His
temple. Isn’t God just keeping His word when our bodies get sick because of
what we eat and how we live? Answer those for yourself as you meditate and ask
God for wisdom.
I have come to the conclusion that
it is more than a religion.
It is a major part of my relationship with Jesus Christ. My physical body is
just as important as my spiritual well being. They are all tied together in
one. What affects one part will affect all the others. Let’s not separate them
and make one more important. God wants all of us, not just one part. How devoted
are you?
Let us pray for wisdom (James 1:5)
as we go forth and search for truth in every aspect of our lives. Truth for the
care and health of our physical bodies. Truth for our spiritual and mental
lives that will affect our physical well being.
