My Beloved be in Good Health Continues

Be Sexually Clean
God tells us what to eat and what not to eat, and this bothers some people. Even more, He gets into our bedroom and tells us what sexual practices are healthful and right, and which are wrong. He has the right to do this because He created our bodies and wrote the instruction book, the Bible.
Incest, homosexuality, and bestiality are abominations to the Eternal, Leviticus 18. But sexual health laws do not end there. Another prohibition is having sexual relations with a woman during her menstrual period, Leviticus 18:19, 20:18, 15:24.
Today, there is a war going on against the Biblical health practice of circumcision, Genesis 17:12; Leviticus 12:3. The Jerusalem council of Acts 15 did not do away with circumcising male babies eight days old. The decision was that circumcision was not a requirement for baptism and entering the Church. See our free article, The War Against Circumcision, Study No. 176. Circumcision is an important law of health, both for the man, and for his wife. Any person with the Holy Spirit of God will naturally want to conform to His laws of health, including circumcision. A loving relationship in the marriage of one man and one woman for life, is the best recipe for sexual, physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual health. God made it that way!
Cleanliness IS Next to Godliness!
Water is Gods tool for cleansing and giving life. The carnal washings involved in the sacrifices and ceremonies of the Levitical priesthood should teach us the value of water to cleanse and purify. The famous American Civil War General, Stonewall Jackson, knew the value of hydrotherapy. He traveled far and wide to obtain good quality water. A bath can be a relaxing and refreshing way to cleanse your body.
Dont forget the value of fasting occasionally to rid the body of toxins, as well as to get closer to God. Afflict your soul [body] and clean up your body.
Today, we have become lax on basic health habits, and if we continue on our wayward ways, such habits will lead to disease and an early death. Many men do not wash their hands after going to the toilet. Forgetting basic health laws puts us at risk.
Avoiding polluted chemical foods is probably the number one thing we can do to keep us clean. To do this requires research and diligence. The Nutrition Action Health Letter is an excellent source to help you do this. In everything we do, let us glorify our bodies, the Temple of the Holy Spirit.
Divine Healing
In spite of our best efforts, we occasionally get sick. We are all going to die sometime, but our actions will usually have a major role in determining the manner and timing of our death. We have a wonderful Savior, who shed His blood that we might have forgiveness of sins. He also was beaten so that with His stripes we are healed, I Peter 2:24. Do we avail ourselves of healing from the Divine Healer?
Herbert W. Armstrongs excellent booklet, Does God Heal Today? contained in our book, Early Writings of Herbert W. Armstrong ($9 suggested donation), is a classic on the subject of divine healing. The 241-page book, Christ the Healer, by F. F. Bosworth covers many aspects of healing from the Bible. It is available free, as funds are available, from Giving & Sharing, Box 100, Neck City, MO 64849.
The day of miracles is not past. Hebrews 13:8 and John 14:12 show that Christ will continue to perform miraculous healings, in our day. It is not true that God has changed, and works through medical science today.
Diving healing began with Gods Old Testament Church. Divine healing is a miracle from Almighty God, as a result of believing prayer. The same conditions of obedience and faith for divine healing existed during the Exodus, and still do today, Exodus 15:23-26; I John 3:22. God is our healer, the doctors are not. Any honest doctor will admit that drugs, medicines, or knives cannot heal. Only God can heal!
Scripture labels other modes of healing IDOLATRY. For centuries, Israels only means of healing was faith in God. Later, they departed from God, and turned to heathen medicine. King Asa of Judah forsook God, and sought the physicians instead. He died, II Chronicles 16:12-13. Herbert Armstrongs son, Garner Ted Armstrong, wrote in a Good News magazine article (June, 1964, pages 4, 22), To rely on any foods, supplements, medicines, drugs, knives, or even on fasting, for healing (and none of these can, ever have, or ever will heal!) is to break the commandment against idolatry!
Modern medicine originated in paganism. Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron, was a pagan deity of medicine. King Ahaziah of Israel fell through a lattice, was injured, and sought Baal-zebub whether he would recover. Elijah rebuked him for not seeking the God of Israel, and told him he would die. So, he died, II Kings 1:1-17. God did not raise up medical science today, and bless it and work through it. The example of Hezekiah in II Kings 20:1-7 again shows that faith and obedience are required for healing from God. It also shows that upon seeking God, one should also perform whatever physical therapy is required to assist the healing process. Isaiah told Hezekiahs servants to make a fig poultice to lay on Hezekiahs boil.
It IS Gods will to heal; healing is forgiveness of physical sin. Just as God forgives all our iniquities, so will He also heal all our diseases, Psalm 103:2-3. It is Gods will to heal, Ephesians 5:17; Luke 5:12-13. Sickness is generally the penalty of violating physical laws of health. Healing is the forgiveness of this kind of sin, removing the penalty for the sin. None but God can forgive sin, so none but God can heal. When Jesus healed, He showed that He was forgiving sin, Luke 5:18-26; Matthew 9:2-8; Mark 2:3-12. Jesus heals because He paid the penalty for our sin, in our stead, John 3:16; Romans 5:8; Matthew 8:16-17; I Peter 2:24. Jesus suffered scourging to pay the price for our physical transgressions, John 19:1.
We break bread at Passover to symbolize our faith in Christs body, beaten for our healing. We take the broken bread unworthyily, if and when we put our trust in doctors and medicines, instead of in Christ, thus putting another god before Him. See I Corinthians 11:23-30.
There is a need for doctors, to help us to prevent sickness and get in harmony with natures laws. Doctors should concentrate on helping us eat right. Naturopaths and chiropractors are more in line with what doctors should be. Medical doctors, all too often, resort first to drugs and surgery. It is wise to use a doctor to assist in childbirth, setting broken bones, and helping to repair damage. Doctors cannot heal, and often take all of their patients money, Luke 8:43-48. Healing is out of their line, and doctors should not be looked to in faith for healing.
Healing is part of the Gospel Commission, Matthew 9:35; Luke 9:1-2, 10:1, 9; Mark 16:15-18.
The New Testament Church believed in, and practiced, faith healing. See Acts 3:1-11, 4:29-31, 5:15-16, 19:11-12; James 5:14-15.
We should leave the way and the time to God. God promises to heal you. Accept His promise, stand on the promises, expecting an answer, knowing you will get it. But, leave the how and when to God in His way and His time. The Scripture cannot be broken! Who forgiveth all thine iniquities, who healeth ALL thy diseases!
The Lesson of Naaman
What if there were a few simple things you could do to lengthen your life and/or improve your health and quality of life? Would you do it? I have given you a few simple Biblical guidelines that our Creator instituted to give us a good life. Will you follow these rules?
Many people are like the Syrian, Naaman, II Kings 5:1-19. When Naaman came to be healed of Elisha, he thought Elisha would do some grandiose act. Naaman wanted a big public miracle. He was willing to pay a lot of money for such a miracle to heal him of his leprosy. Instead, Naaman was disappointed when Elisha didnt even meet him, but told Naaman to go dip in the Jordan seven times, and his leprosy would be healed. That was too simple for a great military man like Naaman. At first he balked, but at the urging of his servants, Naaman finally did as he was told, and he was instantly healed. His servants said, if the prophet had bid thee do some great thing, wouldest thou not have done it? How much rather then, when he saith to thee, Wash, and be clean? verse 13.
Gods way to good health is simple. It takes a little work, but there is no great price to pay. Lets learn the lesson of Naaman.
Purpose of Good Health
Why should you be healthy? Only to feel good and have a good time in life? Only to eat, drink, and be merry? Certainly, good health produces these things. But, the real purpose for a long and healthy life is for us to be better servants of the Almighty. Each called and chosen child of God has been given spiritual gifts, which enable them to fulfill their part in Gods Work, and to spread the good news of the Kingdom of God to others. Jesus came that we might have a more abundant life (zoe), John 10:10, here and now, and for all eternity. So no matter what kind of physical body you have to work with, follow Gods principles, live life the fullest, always abounding in the work of the Lord, I Corinthians 15:58.
written by Richard C. Nickels W