And the Lord will take away from thee all sickness, and will put none of the evil diseases of Egypt, which thou knowest, upon thee, but will lay them upon all them that hate thee. Deuteronomy 7:15
Good health is something that the world really does not know much about. Despite better medications, great advances in scientific knowledge, exciting new treatment equipment, and even increasing longevity, people are still getting sick, doctors are still becoming wealthy, and hospitals of all types are doing a steadily growing business. Wouldn’t it be nice to be free of all these diseases? It’s possible.
God promised Israel that as individuals and as a nation they could be free of all the evil diseases and sickness that they had known during their sojourn in Egypt. They had a wonderful opportunity, although they never took God up on His offer. This seems incredible to us, when we think about how good health is one of the greatest of all human blessings.
Bible students and scientists have calculated that if we followed the rules that God provided concerning food and separation, we too could free ourselves of most if not all of the diseases that afflict us today. Ancient time people could not understand the principles related to germs, sanitation, and isolation. So, God in His perfect wisdom and His grace, placed within their ordinances and commandments those things that would protect them from contamination and unhealthy practices. The same protection still applies today.
Unfortunately, life in the 21st century makes adherence to these laws and ordinances all but impossible for us. However, if we look to the spiritual message behind all these, we can free ourselves from the spiritual diseases afflicting mankind. Just as the ancient Israelite was to physically keep himself from contact with the sickly and depraved people living outside Israel’s borders, so we, as Christians, need to separate ourselves from the evil doctrines and behaviours of the world. We need to avoid contact with moral filth and ungodly associations. We need to cleanse our souls daily with regular and plentiful applications of the Word of God.
Read the Word today. Get alone with God. Be blessed! -Jim MacIntosh