Principle 3: Faith Under God’s Design

What is faith?

According to the Noah Webster 1812 Dictionary, faith can be defined: Belief; the assent of the mind to the truth of what is declared by another, resting on his authority and veracity, without other evidence.

This definition serves as a perfect example of the type of faith that God expected of the Old Testament Israelites concerning their health. God prescribed a way to live through the O.T. law and declared, “ If you will give earnest heed to the voice of the LORD your God, and do what is right in His sight, and give ear to His commandments, and keep all His statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you which I have put on the Egyptians; for I, the LORD, am your healer [Exodus 15:26].”

God did not tell the Israelites the details of how this would happen. He did not give them a diagram of the human body explaining how the immune system worked, or the digestive system, or the integumentary system, or the lymph system, cardiovascular system, etc.

God simply does not provide this information. It was not necessary for them know the details in order for them to obtain proper health, and they probably would not (fully) understand it anyway. God asked them to simply trust Him, to have faith.

It was the responsibility of the Israelites to discover, learn, and obey the law that God had revealed. God would do the rest.

Our approach to biblical health should be similar. Our focus need not be on the complex details of the workings of the body. The body is so complex that man will never fully understand how it functions, but God knows perfectly. If we simply apply the “simple” principles that God has clearly written or provided as inference in His Health Book, our complex bodies will follow suit of their creator and function at their best. Therefore, our focus should not be on the complexity of the body, or the hordes of research, but on the Creator and His guidebook, the Word of God – which we must obey in faith.

We must view God’s Word as the authority for healthy living; every other source must subordinate to God’s Holy Word.

An Illustration

Recently, my husband asked a co-worker to create a website for a project that he was working on. The orders trickled down from the boss, and a deadline was given to have the website completed by the end of the week. Having no other orders, the webmaster began the project. The next day, it came to my husbands attention that the project was put on hold because a second order had come in. This order was from the boss’ daughter.

My husband had only been on the job for a few weeks; the boss’ daughter, well let’s just say, she had a lot more seniority. The webmaster followed the order from the higher authority.

Now, what if the boss had come with a different order? Obviously, my husband and the daughter would have been trumped. He is the ultimate authority in the work place. It is his business. He created it. He owns it. He knows how to best operate it.

And so it is with God. He has created us; He owns us; He knows best how we operate. When God gives us a design (an order) for healthy living – we need to obey it, even if we do not understand all the details of why He is asking us to do these things. However, in all my research, I have found that God’s ways always have a good reason, but the good reason must not be our reason for obeying. Our reason for obeying needs to be trust (faith) in our designer.

Yes, His Word does have the answers. And no, it is not a legalistic following of the ceremonial laws of Moses – though there is great wisdom to be gleaned there. Our responsibility is to discover, learn, and obey. We must have faith and trust that the Creator does have the answers. It is the only thing that makes sense. Would God create man and then leave him alone to discover how to live a healthy life? No!

Leviticus 18:5: So you shall keep My statutes and My judgments, by which a man may live if he does them;

Why?

I am the Lord.

Lev.18:30 – Thus you are to keep My charge, that you do not practice any of the abominable customs which have been practiced before you, so as not to defile yourselves with them; 

Why?

I am the LORD your God.

Isaiah 66:1,2  –  Thus says the LORD,

Heaven is My throne and the earth is My footstool. 
Where then is a house you could build for Me? 
And where is a place that I may rest? 
For My hand made all these things, 
Thus all these things came into being

declares the LORD. 

But to this one I will look, 
To him who is humble and contrite of spirit, and who trembles at My word.

To this one God will look – he who trembles at His Word!

Next: Designer Principle #4: Systemic Wellness Under God’s Design

Return To: Biblical Health Study

Disclaimer:

Reformed Health exists so you can take control of your own health and be all that God has designed you to be. The information shared on Reformed Health is the sole opinion of the author and is not meant to diagnose or treat any illness. None or our claims have been evaluated by the FDA or any other government organization. We are not medical doctors, nor do we have any medical doctors on staff. If you are having a health emergency, please call 911, contact your doctor, or visit a local emergency room. Always consult your doctor before engaging in any new exercise regime.

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Scripture quotations taken from the NASB.

Copyright:

© 2017 Mischelle Sandowich
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