Are Afflictions the Result of Disobedience?
“…Disease is an effort of nature to free the system from conditions that result from a violation of the laws of health. In case of sickness, the cause should be ascertained. Unhealthful conditions should be changed, wrong habits corrected. Then nature is to be assisted in her effort to expel impurities and to re-establish right conditions in the system.
Ministry of Healing 127.1
I’ve shared of how God has health laws, just as He has moral laws. There is an acronym to help us remember the laws: New Start.
Nutrition (whole-food, plant-based)
Exercise
Water
Sunshine
Temperance
Air
Rest
Trust in Divine Power
When we break God’s health laws, we become ill/diseased.
When we break God’s moral laws, we become ill/diseased.
3 John 2 ‘Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth.’
There are numerous verses in the Bible that link obedience to God with good health.
Currently, I’m reading through the Psalms. I’m on Psalms 119. There are some verses that shouted out to me recently. I wanted to share some thoughts regarding these verses.
Vs 67, ‘Before I was afflicted, I went astray; but now I have kept Thy word.’ [Affliction = sickness = disobedience.]
Vs 71, ‘It is good for me that I have been afflicted; that I might learn Thy statutes.’ [Affliction = sickness.] This verse says that it is through affliction (sickness) that he learned to obey.
Vs 73, ‘Thy hands have made me and fashioned me: give me understanding, that I may learn Thy commandments.’ [Body linked to the need to understand God’s law.]
Vs 75, ‘I know, O Lord, that Thy judgments are right, and that Thou in faithfulness has afflicted me.’ [Affliction comes from being judged. This leads to the understanding that judgment results from breaking of law. God ‘afflicts’ (or allows consequences of our choices) to bring us back to Him.]
Vs 92-93, ‘Unless Thy law had been my delights, I should then have perished in my afflictions. I will never forget Thy precepts (collective law): for with them Thou has quickened me (revived me). [If the author had not returned to the law and enjoyed ‘obedience,’ then he would have perished from the affliction.’
I find it very interesting that many Christians today think they can eat whatever they want, practice whatever lifestyle choices they wish, no matter how their choices affect their bodies, and God is ok with that.
Paul tells us in 1 Cor 3, 16-17, ‘Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are.’
1 Cor 6: 19-20, ‘What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s.’
In Exodus, God promises not to put the diseases of the Egyptians on the children of Israel if they will obey His law. [Ex 15:26, Deut 7:15]
For every one of God’s promises, there is a condition. For the promise of health, there is a condition of obedience.
For every one of God’s truths, satan has a counterfeit. God has health laws. Satan has a disease management system fashioned under ‘Big Harma.’ [I recommend watching the docu-series, ‘The Cult of the Medic.’] Health cannot be injected. It cannot be restored by popping pills month after month.
Health is restored when we walk in obedience to God’s laws (health and moral).
God does promise restoration for those who have returned to His way and start to follow His law. I have personally experienced this. I know it works. We must have faith that God will bless our efforts when we walk in obedience to His word.
In God’s word, He is very clear on the conditions and promises. He is also very clear on what happens when people choose not to obey.
We have a world filled with the results of that disobedience.
In Phil 3:19, Paul warns what happens when we allow appetite (god of the belly) to rule us. It leads to destruction. We are warned that gluttony is a sin. Appetite was the sin that led to Adam and Eve being removed from the Garden of Eden. Appetite was the first temptation Christ had to face in the wilderness.
God can give us victory over appetite if we seek His strength. It’s our choice. Do we choose to obey His law so we can reap the blessings? Or will we allow our appetite to rule us, leading to disease and destruction?
Something to think about.