Growth Is keeping your Body Fit an Acceptable Sacrifice to the Lord?

[Sandy Zalecki]

“I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present you bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, Which is you reasonable service.” (Romans 12:1) NKJ

Obesity rates in America continue to climb. One third of Americans are now obese and nearly eighty percent of all Americans are overweight. We are at a crossroads when it comes to our health.

Obesity carries with it a list of chronic diseases that are very preventable if we actually take care of ourselves. The list includes type 2 diabetes, sleep apnea, heart disease, increased risk of stroke, hypertension, increased risk of cancer, high cholesterol levels, pack pain, and infertility just to name a few. What is the cost of all of this? In 2008 the cost of obesity related disease was a staggering $147 BILLION dollars. Obesity is has overtaken smoking as the number one killer by a preventable disease. Other countries in Europe and the Western World are following behind us and are actually catching up with us.

Is presenting your over weight, chronic disease ridden body an acceptable sacrifice to the Lord? Is this the temple that the Holy Spirit wants to occupy? I don’t believe it is. Our bodies consist of three parts. We have the physical body, the mind, and the spirit or soul. When one part is weak the other parts become weak. When our bodies are weakened by disease and obesity the spirit is also weak. The Lord requires a strong spirit in order to serve Him the way we should.

I know that people have diseases that infest their bodies that aren’t their fault. Because of sin and our fallen world we will experience disease, but if it is something that we can do something about, Christians should do everything they can to correct this issue.

In our world today we are plagued with chronic disease. Much of it is caused by our contaminated food supply. Food manufactures add chemicals such as msg, salt, and sugar to preserved food in order to make it taste good and add to the shelf life. Food not only keeps us from being hungry it is also our medicine. Highly preserved food is stripped of all the minerals and vitamins needed to maintain a healthy body. This is one of the main contributors to obesity today. Lack of exercise also contributes to our obesity problem.

It is our job as Christians to know what to put into our bodies and do what is best for it. This is our “reasonable service” to Him.

 

[Paul1965]

I am in the process of writing an article on this very topic for my own site.

Here are the opening couple of lines:.
"......God created us in His image. Who here thinks He looks like the Michelin man? Pillsbury Dough boy? C'mon show of hands please......No one?
Didn't think so......."

....."We must keep our bodies, minds, hearts and souls fit for Him. He gave us the complete package and we should do our best to preserve it or as my own case, restore it.".......

Copyright 2014 www.hisnarrowpath.com

 

[Northman]

Who hid the ten-foot pole?

 

[JLB]

Who hid the ten-foot pole?

You weren't going to touch it anyway...

 

[Sandy Zalecki]

I am in the process of writing an article on this very topic for my own site.

Here are the opening couple of lines:.
"......God created us in His image. Who here thinks He looks like the Michelin man? Pillsbury Dough boy? C'mon show of hands please......No one?
Didn't think so......."

....."We must keep our bodies, minds, hearts and souls fit for Him. He gave us the complete package and we should do our best to preserve it or as my own case, restore it.".......

Copyright 2014 www.hisnarrowpath.com

I am glad you are writing a book like that. The church needs to be aware of what we are doing to our bodies and our witness for Christ. And yes we do look like the Michelin man and the Pillsbury Dough boy.

 

[Angel]

What other ways can we apply this verse?

 

[agua.]

What other ways can we apply this verse?

By committing our selves to God's service and not sinning.

 

[Gary]

What other ways can we apply this verse?

Our body is a representation of a temple and the heart is the inner chamber of that temple. We defile the temple when we allow sin to reside within the inner chamber.

Matthew 15
19 For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies.
.

 

[Sandy Zalecki]

What other ways can we apply this verse?

That is very true, however, is letting out bodies become overweight, out of shape, and unable to serve the Lord in the way we should a sin? The other thing that we can say is if we worship our bodies and put toning and working out before our worship of the Lord, that is also a sin. Now, I'm not talking about the things that we can't control. We will have disease because we live in a fallen world, but if our state of health is our fault isn't it a sin not to do something about it?

 

[iLOVE]

1. Make sure we do things for the right reasons or they become works.

 

[Sandy Zalecki]

1. Make sure we do things for the right reasons or they become works.

Exactly!!

 

[Sandy Zalecki]

Our body is a representation of a temple and the heart is the inner chamber of that temple. We defile the temple when we allow sin to reside within the inner chamber.

Matthew 15
19 For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies.
.

Many peoples temples look like megachurches.

 

[farouk]

What other ways can we apply this verse?

Yes, it's not just about doing a workout at the gym. In fact it's far more about what we do while we live on earth in these bodies: are we doing it to the glory of God?

Blessings.

(In fact, for lots of people who do gym workouts, God is far from their thoughts.)

 

[Sandy Zalecki]

Yes, it's not just about doing a workout at the gym. In fact it's far more about what we do while we live on earth in these bodies: are we doing it to the glory of God?

Blessings.

(In fact, for lots of people who do gym workouts, God is far from their thoughts.)

You got that right brother.

 

[Gary]

Being overweight is not a sin.

1 Samuel 16
7 But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not look at his appearance or at his physical stature, because I have refused him. For the Lord does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”


When we judge by appearance, we show partiality. That's not healthy.
.

 

[Sandy Zalecki]

Being overweight is not a sin.

1 Samuel 16
7 But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not look at his appearance or at his physical stature, because I have refused him. For the Lord does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”


When we judge by appearance, we show partiality. That's not healthy.
.

So gluttony is not a sin? I'm not saying that we look at outward appearance and judge, but that the being overweight is an outward manifestation of something going on inside. So God DOES look at the inside and see that something is wrong, doesn't he.

 

[Gary]

So gluttony is not a sin? I'm not saying that we look at outward appearance and judge, but that the being overweight is an outward manifestation of something going on inside. So God DOES look at the inside and see that something is wrong, doesn't he.

Altering ones physical appearance does not automatically alter the condition of the heart. Excessive greed cannot be fixed by simply losing weight. And being overweight is not an indication of excessive greed.

Matthew 11
18 For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon.’
19 The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Look, a glutton and a winebibber, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’ But wisdom is justified by her children.”

John 7
24 Do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment.”

Matthew 5
20 For I say to you, that unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven.


I agree that obesity is a problem that many of us face today, but it's not a problem with the heart. It's a problem with the foods we eat and an inactive lifestyle. 50 years ago one had to go out of their way to find junk food. Today all one has to do is open their eyes. And you can't get to it, they'll bring it to you.

50 years ago 1 in 5 households had a TV and in order to change the channel you had to physically get up and manually change it. Today every household has a TV in every room of the house and changing channels is as easy as pushing a button.

In times past, ma got to stay home and take care of the kids and meals were prepared from scratch. It's not like that today. With the economy like it is, many people are holding down multiple jobs and have to get their meals on the go. They don't have the luxury of sitting down to a nutritious meal. With the vast majority of mothers in the workforce, children are usually left to fend for themselves and their meals come from a can or a box.

There are a variety of reasons why someone is overweight. Possessing a sinful heart is rarely one of them.
.

 

[Sandy Zalecki]

I agree with some of your analysis, but not all of it. I was overweight and it was because of a physical problem that I had. Once the Lord showed me a cure I lost the weight and I have kept it off for almost six years now. Others suffer with physical conditions that keep them overweight. But there are those who suffer from issues of being lazy, putting food before God, and not seeking wisdom from God when it comes to what the put in their mouths. I know, I helped over 200 people lose weight. That is sin. Others have deep seated emotional issues for their weight gain. They don't feel worthy or they feel that their weight keeps them from connecting with others because they have been hurt by others.

Our food supply is a big reason for our obesity epidemic. It is completely contaminated with genetically modified food, chemically laden food, and altered food. Is it a sin to ignore this and continue to eat food that will eventually kill you? I think it is.

There are many reasons for obesity but most of it starts in our heart and that transfers to the mind. It all works together.

 

[Gary]

Being overweight is not a sin, nor is it an indicator of hidden sin.

Matthew 15
10 When He had called the multitude to Himself, He said to them, “Hear and understand:
11 Not what goes into the mouth defiles a man; but what comes out of the mouth, this defiles a man.”


Eating genetically modified food is not a sin. One would be hard-pressed to find anything on the market today that hasn't been modified or altered in one way or another.

If I find a worm in an apple, does that mean all apples have worms in them? Of course not. If I got bit by a dog, does that mean all dogs are biters? If I found one person who's sinful behavior led to their obesity, does that mean all overweight people are harboring sin within their heart?

Judging by appearance is not a good thing. It actually goes against the teachings in the Word.

One would be more inclined to discover heart issues with someone who suffers from Bulimia or Anorexia.
.

 

[Deborah13]

Being overweight is not a sin, nor is it an indicator of hidden sin.

Matthew 15
10 When He had called the multitude to Himself, He said to them, “Hear and understand:
11 Not what goes into the mouth defiles a man; but what comes out of the mouth, this defiles a man.”


Eating genetically modified food is not a sin. One would be hard-pressed to find anything on the market today that hasn't been modified or altered in one way or another.

If I find a worm in an apple, does that mean all apples have worms in them? Of course not. If I got bit by a dog, does that mean all dogs are biters? If I found one person who's sinful behavior led to their obesity, does that mean all overweight people are harboring sin within their heart?

Judging by appearance is not a good thing. It actually goes against the teachings in the Word.

One would be more inclined to discover heart issues with someone who suffers from Bulimia or Anorexia.
.

This last statement is absolutely true.