None of These Diseases

 August 13, 2020

S.I. McMillan, a physician and Houghton College luminary, wrote a book in 1963 entitled, “None of These Diseases,” in which he spoke of the healthy lifestyle promoted by the Levitical dietary laws. This was of course, before many of today’s gurus of healthy living had even been born. The title of his book was taken from Exodus 15:26, where God promises to spare the Hebrews the ravages of the diseases that apparently were common in Egypt at the time. Immediately following this promise, God declares himself to be Jehovah Rophe—The Lord Who Heals.

Many Christians have taken up the Name while forgetting the conditions. we sing about the Lord our Healer, invoke his healing power and claim it in prayer, but neglect the conditions clearly laid out in Scripture. We are over-fed, over-medicated, and over-weight, and cannot understand why we are plagued with heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes, gastric and lung issues. We follow the world’s distorted sexual ethics, poison our bodies with artificial additives, consume “food” that has had all the natural nutrients processed out of it, only to be artificially and chemically added back in. I wonder what would happen if “Bible-believing” Christians would actually begin to believe the parts dealing with our bodies. 

The Lord truly is our healer, but it is up to us to cooperate with his methods. Just as one cannot be saved apart from repentance, so one cannot be healthy apart from the proper choices in life. I am grateful tonight for the healing power of God, and also for the clear instructions in his Word designed to keep us healthy.