Finding the 8 Laws of Health in the Bible

Have you ever wondered where the principles behind the eight laws of health came from? For those who may not be familiar with the 8 laws of health, they are the following: Nutrition, Exercise, Water, Sunshine, Temperance, Air, Rest, Trust in Divine Power. Are these just man made rules or opinions? I believe that God was the one who revealed these principles to his people in these last days because he knew that disease and decay would increase manifold. If this is so, then we can logically reason that the eight laws of health should be found in the Bible. And not just anywhere in the Bible, but in the very beginning, in Genesis, which is the book of origins. This book holds fundamental truths upon which everything else regarding humanity and salvation lies upon.

In the scene of creation, it makes sense that God would instruct his creatures of their purpose and design and how they are to take care of themselves. In other words, we can logically predict that God gave to man an “instruction manual” to instruct him on how to live a healthy life. Let us find the principles behind each law of health that we have listed above.

Nutrition- Before sin, God instructed what man should eat, Genesis 1:29: Grains, seeds, fruits, nuts. After sin God made an addition to man’s diet Genesis 3:18: Vegetables. Let us make a note here, the food which God gives us does not come in plastic packages, or scrambled up in some fancy concoction. There is no such a thing as a tree that grows veggie-meats, or gluten steaks. Fruits and vegetables should be eaten in their natural state as much as possible, meaning fresh and raw. Grains should not be refined or bleached, but whole when made into flour or cereals.
The best rule for a healthy diet is to eat as natural as possible and to follow the diet which was given to us after sin entered the world. Avoid highly processed foods altogether, if possible. Aim to eat between 50 % to 80 % raw, depending upon the availability of produce. Living foods are what keeps us alive.

Another important point is that in order to keep or gain health, we must not only know the proper fuel to put in our bodies but we must also have an understanding of how our body works. We need to know the answers of questions like: How much fuel does my body need? or how long does it take for the fuel to be used up?

Pure Air – Where was man put after he was created? “And the LORD God planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there he put the man whom he had formed” (Genesis 2:8). God put Adam in the garden of Eden, in the beauty of God’s creation. This was the environment intelligently designed to meet man’s needs physically, mentally, and spiritually. In examining the home which God created for man we will see his wisdom in providing for all of man’s needs and there we can find many of the laws of health to keep man healthy and happy. We can be sure that in this garden the purest air ever filled its atmosphere. How does pure air benefit us? All our body parts need oxygen to be able to develop and grow properly. Pure, unpolluted air has the greatest percentage of oxygen. Oxygen cleanses the blood from wastes that result in processes, like exercise, or just the simple functions needed to be alive. We can go without food and water for a lot longer than we can without oxygen. This is why proper posture, and proper clothing, so that the lungs can breathe deeply, is important in keeping the body oxygenated and healthy.

Sunshine – God created the sun on day four (Genesis 1:16), and so we know that the home which he designed for man was meant to have plenty of sunshine, which would be available to man. How does sunshine benefit us? Science has recently found that Vitamin D plays a major role in the body – it affects the bones, the immune system and many other functions. Vitamin D is made in the body when sunshine makes contact with the skin. Sunshine is a purifier – it kills bacteria and fungus. Sun bathing has been observed to help regulate blood sugar, and high blood pressure.

Exercise – The home that God gave Adam required his time and energies. What was the work that God gave to Adam? “And the LORD God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it” (Genesis 2:15). The work that God gave man involved good physical labor and he was to do it every day of the week, except on the 7^th day, or the Sabbath. So here we find the principle of exercise and how often we ought to do it. The benefits of exercise are evident and could certainly take a long time to enumerate but we can mention a few: It strengthens every single part of our body, including our bones and therefore it prevents osteoporosis. Our brains are also strengthened! It increases the capacity of our lungs to breath in air. It keeps our joints lubricated and mobile, and it keeps us young!

Rest – In Genesis 2:1-3 we read about the Sabbath institution, which was not established because God was tired, or because Adam and Eve were to be tired in the same way that we get weary, but it nevertheless shows us the principle of rest, both in spiritual and physical matters. When I mean spiritual, I am referring to the mind, our thoughts. We know that as God ceased from his works so are we to cease from our work.

Before sin Adam had no need for sleep, but after sin this all changed, as we are all well aware. The body needs appropriate sleep every night to heal and restore. Not getting proper sleep will injure the whole system. The brain, which is the communication center of the body, is affected the most.

The hours of sleep before midnight are the most beneficial. One hour of sleep before midnight equals to 2 hours of sleep after midnight. Meaning that the quality of rest before midnight hours are double than the hours after midnight. Certain hormones in the body are not produced when proper rest in the right hours are not maintained … To be continued.

Seventh Day Home Church Fellowships is an association of Sabbath-keeping groups, which through web & tele-conferencing provides means for study, fellowship, and jointly organized missionary projects.

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