A sound and blameless body

A sound and blameless body is a phrase taken from the Bible; it concerns our well-being.

Clearly it is God's desire that we should be strong in body and sound in mind. But those are attributes that evade many of us; could it be that very often we are ourselves to blame?

Disclaimer

The context of the passage is that the apostle Paul is telling us that the second coming of our Lord will be like a thief in the night, catching many by surprise.

He reminds us that in contrast, we are children of the light; always alert and ready lest we too may be caught out.

He is the God of peace and it is His desire that every part of us, all the way through, Paul emphasizes should be untroubled not only with Him but also ourselves; and one another too.

In this essay I ask is your body ready for his service? It ought to be sanctified, set apart and strong; fit for his sacred use.

Whilst this is the mission of every Christian, many of the great saints have remarked on what a struggle it is; so we should not feel alone. St Francis of Assisi for example described his body as Brother Ass; a useful, sturdy and lovable creature but stubborn as all hell.

What makes up a strong and whole body? In no particular order of merit I would suggest the following to you; plenty of exercise and good food.

• These are the "very good" foods of Genesis, chapter 1.

When we accept Jesus into our lives some things are settled immediately; our sins are completely forgiven and our place in heaven is assured for example. But other issues take many years to accomplish as we slowly grow into the likeness of Christ, ready to spend eternity with God.

Caring for our own bodies is one of these issues that most of us battle with.

Temples of the Holy spirit

A strong biblical teaching is that God does not dwell in churches, cathedrals and temples; he lives in the hearts of Believers.

This Introduction to Caring for the Temple outlines the alternative lifestyle that Christians whose desire is to have a sound and blameless body might contemplate following; a return to more exercise and minimally-processed foods.

Exercise

No Christian that I know has ever described this life as easy. In Pilgrim's Progress the author, John Bunyan, aptly describes the many temptations and pitfalls that he has faced; anyone who has read the book will find him or herself nodding in agreement.

Put on the whole armour of God, is the apostle's cry. Protect your spirit, soul and body from the temptations of the Satan. Should he succeed in bringing down any one of these three, he will have blunted our effectiveness as warriors of the Lord.

Daily exercise of one sort or another should be an imperative for every Christian. That might be taking a walk, digging in the garden or riding a bicycle; or your favourite.

Perceived as an instrument that protects the whole body, we embrace exercise joyfully; in theory but in practice for many it is hard. Brother Ass can be very stubborn.

View taking exercise as an act of obedience to God; worship and wait on Him as you walk or garden. Keep your body strong and free from the wiles of the devil as he seeks to bring you down; and make you less effective as a Christian through pain and sickness.

Just as one is called to protect the soul with the breastplate of righteousness, so exercise contributes to saving our bodies from disease and disability; they both help to keep us "sound and blameless."

Good food

In few areas has Satan been more successful than in making worldly and ruinous meals appear to be the norm for Christians too. He has very effectively seduced us into thinking that fast foods, especially those that are sugary and highly-refined are just fine for Believers.

Yet we intuitively, deep in our spirits and confirmed by strong science know that they can completely undo a sound body, making us weak and less effective soldiers of our Lord; and sucking up vast amounts of money for doctors in the process.

This whole site is about our well-being as Christians so I'm not going to belabour the point here. Just recognise that it is His intense desire that you have a sound and blameless body, sanctified through the Holy Spirit, ready for His command.

These are my top 7 functional-foods for our optimal wellness.

Blameless?

The inference here is that we are often ourselves to blame for the poor state of our minds, souls and bodies. The God of peace will forgive and sanctify us but unwise decisions by Brother Ass can nevertheless leave us permanently marred.

I find it interesting that Satan tempted Jesus to jump from the pinnacle of the temple; suggesting that his heavenly Father would command the angels to save him so that he would not even dash his foot against a stone.

But Christ saw through the wiles of the devil because he himself had created the law of gravity; he would have been completely to blame had he leaped from the heights.

He knew that it was his Father's desire that he should be completely blameless, even when facing the forces of nature.

And so it is also His desire that we too should have sound and blameless bodies. Let us recognise the wiles of the devil for what they are; temptations that will lead to the destruction of our well-being. Swallowing junk food may take a little longer to destroy us, but in the end it will be just as effective as jumping from the pinnacle of the temple.

Blaise Pascal

Blaise Pascal was a famous scientist some four hundred years ago, renowned for several famous inventions such as the syringe; he is revered as the father of Probability Theory. Today he might have been an actuary or a professor of Physics.

Blaise Pascal's Night of Fire describes his conversion to Christ. Alas he did not have a sound and blameless body; he died of stomach cancer at the tender age of 39 having achieved so much in his short life.

A sound and blameless body

A sound and blameless body is surely something we all desire but it means saying a firm "no" to temptation and pleading for mercy when we have slipped.

Life is a mystery

Now we see through a glass darkly; later when we face Him as we all shall, the many mysteries of life will be explained to us. Not for a moment am I suggesting that poor bodily wellness necessarily arises from our stubbornness and stupidity; but much of it does.

I too struggle with Brother Ass but I aim high in my desire for a sound and blameless body; ready for service in the Kingdom.

St. Francis of Assisi was to the first to remark that Brother Ass is so stubborn.

The lost art of milling whole grains

The science is very strong. Whole grains are extremely nourishing for a sound and blameless body; but they are very difficult to find in the average grocery store.

And there is a pack of lies and deceit that goes with it; by international law millers can remove up to 40% of the goodies and still label it "wholemeal." Their profit lies with the germ and bran, most of which are extracted and sold as animal feed. A sound and blameless body is ever more difficult.

The Father of Lies has been very effective in demonizing whole grains; and ensuring that we have great difficulty finding them.

• How corn fell into disrepute as good food for humans

Sugar gets much of the blame for the insulin-resistance that is bringing mankind to his knees; and even more so his children. Obesity, poor health and stunted bodies are the new norm. But interestingly a past president of the American Heart Association is on record as having said that highly refined all-purpose bread flour and cake are even worse contributors to raised blood glucose than sugar.

Carbs in the life of the believer

But starches in general have become despised by so many, only because hardly-processed foods are so hard to find in the modern grocery store; there's little profit in them for the manufacturer.

So what place should there be for carbs in the life of the Believer? Are they straight from the Devil's Pantry, specifically designed to deprive us of sound and blameless bodies?

Should we be shunning carbs?

Old men dream

The apostle Paul in the epistle to the Ephesians tells us we are to sit with God in heavenly places where he will give us a spirit of wisdom that will reveal the work he has prepared for us.

In a dream God showed me that I am to teach the lost art of grinding corn; and prepare the way for 100 commercial mills that will again provide true wholemeal yellow maize to the Zulu people; and particularly pregnant women and their children.

• Why do we choose yellow maizemeal?
  

No longer do they have strong and blameless bodies; nearly 50% of five-year olds in rural villages are permanently stunted in body and mind. They will never be able to read the scriptures with understanding. Ultrarefined maizemeal, devoid of most of the goodness is their staple fare; they have no other option.

I have dedicated the last ten years of my life, God willing, to bring these mills to our people.

• Stunting of children
  

Stunting of children

Malnourished and hungry children have become one of the symbols of this age in rich and poor countries alike. But few societies in the world have allowed the quality of the meals fed to their kids to sink to such a desperate quality that over a quarter of five-year olds are permanently stunted both mentally and physically; and almost a half in rural villages in South Africa.

It could almost be described as a genocide; against our own children.

Is it not time for a mourning about the stunting of children in the whole world? For the affluent kids fed on cornflakes and the poor on super-refined maizemeal?

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