3rd John 1:2 Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospers.
During the last two years, as the covid pandemic in America and elsewhere took the lives of millions, and sent millions more to the hospital, it was found that certain groups of people were more adversely affected than others, and the reasons for this must be addressed, understood, and where necessary, a change in outlook and practice should ensue.
Among those who were deeply affected by the virus were the immunocompromised, the elderly and the segment of the population who had any preexisting conditions. As it pertains to the elderly, there is only so much one can do to stave off disease, for as folks grow older the conventional wisdom states that the body’s ability to fight off infectious disease is greatly diminished.
That wisdom, though true in most cases, has to be taken with a pinch of salt, because there are things that one can do to live a quality life well into one’s golden years. In fact, a study done in Europe, which followed the health and wellbeing of older athletes, found that aging cyclists who rode regularly, in their seventies and eighties, had the same ability to fend off infections, as those in their twenties and thirties.
Testosterone levels in older men who exercise, are also found to be significantly higher than those who lead a strictly, sedentary lifestyle void of meaningful physical activity. This truth is borne out in the Bible where we will observe that many physically, active individuals such as Caleb, and Abraham were still “Busy” well into, what folks describe as retirement age. Let’s read:
Genesis 21: 5 And Abraham was one hundred years old, when his son Isaac was born unto him.
Genesis 23:1 And Sarah was an hundred and seven and twenty years old: these were the years of the life of Sarah.
Sarah was actually 91 years of age when Isaac was born, and since Abraham was 100 years old at that time, then the simple math would tell us that there were 36 years which elapsed, between Isaac’s birth and Sarah’s death. That would then put Abraham squarely on the other side of the hill as it pertains to the evening of his days.
At this age we would be expecting him to be frail or weak, and at the very least his days of busyness had long been over. According to the X-Perts, he would be crunching numbers as it pertains to his will, with only an occasional bout of golf.
But not according to the wisdom of God, for we discover that he was still fired up and ready to go, at 136 years of age, and he wasn’t infertile as some would be prone to believe. In fact, according to the scriptures, Abraham continued to have children for several years after Sarah died. Let’s read:
Genesis 25:1 Then again Abraham took a wife, and her name was Keturah.
2 And she bare him Zimran, and Jokshan, and Medan, and Midian, and Ishbak, and Shuah.
That is six children after the age of 136, and that is why we caution persons who read and quote from the X-Perts, who often leave God out of the picture. Caleb was not slack, as some men count slackness either, for he too conflicted with the conventional wisdom on aging. Let’s read:
Joshua 14: 6 Then the children of Judah came unto Joshua in Gilgal: and Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenezite said unto him, you know the thing that the Lord said unto Moses concerning me and thee in Kadesh-barnea.
7 Forty years old was I when Moses the servant of the Lord sent me from Kadesh-barnea to spy out the land; and I brought him word again as it was in my heart.
8 Nevertheless my brethren that went up with me made the heart of the people melt: but I wholly followed the Lord my God.
9 And Moses swore on that day, saying, Surely the land whereon thy feet have trodden shall be thine inheritance, and thy children's forever, because thou hast wholly followed the Lord my God.
10 And now, behold, the Lord hath kept me alive, as
he said, these forty and five years, even since the Lord spoke this word unto Moses, while the children of Israel wandered in the wilderness: and now, lo, I am this day fourscore and five years old.
11 As yet I am as strong this day as I was in the day that Moses sent me: as my strength was then, even so is my strength now, for war, both to go out, and to come in.
Again, we have the historical facts on Gideon, who was a full-grown man when the angel of The Lord, said unto him: “Go in this thy might, and thou shalt save Israel from the hand of the Midianites: have not I sent thee?”
But lo and behold, we discover that Gideon went on to have a multitude of children, well into his golden years, hence the reason why we stated earlier, that the conventional wisdom on the elderly and aging must be taken with a pinch of salt. Let’s read:
Judges 8:28 Thus was Midian subdued before the children of Israel, so that they lifted up their heads no more. And the country was in quietness forty years in the days of Gideon.
30 And Gideon had threescore and ten sons of his body begotten.
32 And Gideon the son of Joash died in a good old age, and was buried in the sepulchre of Joash his father, in Ophrah of the Abiezrites.
Thus, in addressing the issue of Diseases, Causes, and Cures, we must distinguish clearly between the causes which trigger diseases in the first place, and the cures that are endorsed by God. The causes will be divided up into two main categories:
[1] Physical or natural causes, which deal with the laws of cause and effect in the physical realm.
[2] Spiritual causes, which will deal with diseases and sickness which are caused by strictly spiritual factors, which have nothing to do with viruses or infections.
Let’s begin with those diseases which are caused by physical or natural factors. There is such a thing as cause and effect, or, as described in the scriptures as sowing and reaping. There are things which folks do that will produce adverse effects on their person if such things are in violation of natural law.
God does not generally interfere with the laws of sowing and reaping, for if He were to do this, He would essentially make His own laws of none effect. Therefore, what many persons think God is doing to them is in fact what they have done to themselves, without any interference or input from God. Let’s read:
Galatians 6: 7 Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.
8 For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting.
As the Wet Markets in Wuhan China sold various exotic meats, and so-called delicacies, the laws of God pertaining to diets and foods were disregarded. In many instances, that word “Exotic” really means forbidden, as it pertains to foods. Civets, Mice, Pork, Snakes, Crabs, Oysters, Monkeys, Shrimp, and yes, man’s best friend, “brother Dog”, were all to be found on the menu.
And it is not China alone that regularly indulges in these violations, they have become a worldwide phenomenon, crossing all borders and all countries where forbidden foods are consumed. And thus, we have the seeds of death already sown in the bodies of billions of people, so that when viruses like covid and his brethren arise, we are already at a serious disadvantage, as far as fighting them is concerned.
These forbidden foods were never intended for the human family to consume; they were black-listed by God, Who created them, and Who best knows their consistency, and the adverse effects they will have on any person who consumes them.
The seeds of death would absolutely be sown in the bodies of those who consume forbidden foods, and even if one works out regularly, and seems to be fit externally, the dirty work of breaking down systems vital organs, and a person’s immunity will continue uninterrupted, while the violations continue. This is a statement of fact that individuals can take to the bank, and cash.
In the New Testament, where we see Christ letting demons go into the herd of swine which was being raised for human consumption, Jesus was not then merely attempting to deprive those farmers of their livestock. He was doing them a great favor in the eventual destruction of the swine, for it was one of the causes of leprosy and other fatal diseases that had plagued folks in that era. Let’s read:
Leviticus 11:4 Nevertheless these shall ye not eat of them that chew the cud, or of them that divide the hoof: as the camel, because he chews the cud, but divides not the hoof; he is unclean unto you.
5 And the coney, because he chews the cud, but divides not the hoof; he is unclean unto you.
6 And the hare, because he chews the cud, but divides not the hoof; he is unclean unto you.
7 And the swine, though he divides the hoof, and be cloven-footed, yet he chews not the cud; he is unclean to you.
8 Of their flesh shall ye not eat, and their carcass shall ye not touch; they are unclean to you.
10 And all that have not fins and scales in the seas, and in the rivers, of all that move in the waters, and of any living thing which is in the waters, they shall be an abomination unto you.
11 They shall be even an abomination unto you; ye shall not eat of their flesh, but ye shall have their carcasses in abomination.
12 Whatsoever hath no fins nor scales in the waters, that shall be an abomination unto you.
13 And these are they which ye shall have in abomination among the fowls; they shall not be eaten, they are an abomination: the eagle, and the ossifrage, and the osprey,
14 And the vulture, and the kite after his kind;
15 Every raven after his kind;
16 And the owl, and the night hawk and the cuckoo,
and the hawk after his kind,
17 And the little owl, and the cormorant, and the great owl,
18 And the swan, and the pelican, and the gier eagle,
19 And the stork, the heron after her kind, and the lapwing, and the bat.
29 These also shall be unclean unto you among the creeping things that creep upon the earth; the weasel, and the mouse, and the tortoise after his kind,
30 And the ferret, and the chameleon, and the lizard, and the snail, and the mole.
31 These are unclean to you among all that creep: whosoever doth touch them, when they be dead, shall be unclean until the even.
46 This is the law of the beasts, and of the fowl, and of every living creature that moves in the waters, and of every creature that creeps upon the earth.
47 To make a difference between the unclean and the clean, and between the beast that may be eaten and the beast that may not be eaten.
But it’s not only diets and foods that are forbidden which contribute to diseases that are proliferating, for the culture of drug dependence, which has now become the norm in so many countries, adds to the toxic mix. When we speak of drugs we aren’t merely referring to heroin, cocaine, and weed.
We are primarily referring to the taking of drugs for any and every reason, without due consideration of counting the cost that would be leveled against the body. There are certain drugs taken which cause the body’s immune system to be compromised, so that when infections occur, the body is already in such a state that would make it difficult to defend itself.
Organ transplant recipients in particular, are given certain types of drugs, so that the body would not reject the organ that was transplanted. The reason for this is that the body views transplanted organs as foreign entities, and begins to attack them as such. Thus, in order to prevent this, certain drugs are prescribed.
But one of the adverse side effects of such drugs is that the body’s immune system is weakened in the process, so that such persons become particularly susceptible to infections of all sorts. In addition to organ transplant recipients, persons who are given drugs to treat psoriasis, lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, Crohn’s disease, and multiple sclerosis, will have the same effect of a weakened immune system.
We are not here advising any person to stop taking their medications; we are just stating the bare facts as they are, so that we may be aware of root cause and effect as it pertains to an immunocompromised condition, as a direct result of taking certain drugs.
Wherever possible, the use of any drugs should be avoided, for just like trees in the natural world, God made our bodies with the wherewithal to heal, and regenerate in most cases, together with those God-ordained remedies and treatments as necessary.
If a person’s current medication includes the names of any of the drugs listed below then you can know for certain that adverse effects of a compromised immune system are already at play. Here is a list of the names those drugs, which we will not presume to pronounce:
Corticosteroids: prednisone (Deltasone,
Orasone), budesonide, (Entocort EC) prednisolone (Millipred), Janus kinase inhibitors, tofacitinib (Xeljanz)
Calcineurin inhibitors: cyclosporine (Neoral, Sandimmune, SangCya), tacrolimus (Astagraf XL, Envarsus XR, Prograf),
mTOR inhibitors: sirolimus (Rapamune)
everolimus (Afinitor, Zortress)
IMDH inhibitors: azathioprine (Azasan, Imuran), leflunomide (Arava), mycophenolate (CellCept, Myfortic)
Biologics: abatacept (Orencia), adalimumab (Humira), anakinra (Kineret), certolizumab (Cimzia)
etanercept (Enbrel), golimumab (Simponi)
infliximab (Remicade), ixekizumab (Taltz),
natalizumab (Tysabri), rituximab (Rituxan), secukinumab (Cosentyx)
tocilizumab (Actemra), ustekinumab (Stelara)
vedolizumab (Entyvio),
Monoclonal antibodies: basiliximab (Simulect), daclizumab (Zinbryta)
Now we will move to the spiritual causes, for there are other issues that can affect the immune system, which are not in the physical realm, and yet, could cause persons to be prone to succumb to diseases. Selfishness and a unforgiving spirit, greed, unbelief, depression, remorse, grief, loneliness, lust, laziness, and other adverse conditions of the mind, just to name a few.
Several examples of the spiritual causes for various diseases are given in the scriptures. For instance, a man by the name of Nabal suffered a heart attack, and died as a direct result of selfishness. Gehazi was Elisha’s servant, but he was diagnosed with leprosy because of unbridled greed.
David suffered from osteoporosis, because of deep remorse and regret for his sin with Bathsheba. And Daniel fainted and became sick “certain days” after erroneously believing that the Jewish exile would last very much longer than the 70 years prophesied. Michal, Saul’s daughter became barren for the sole reason of trying to shut down David’s praise.
Miriam came down with leprosy after she coveted Moses’ position, and because of her racial profiling of Moses’ wife. And the list goes on and on, for in the New Testament we have several examples of diseases cause by spiritual factors, which persons suffered from and, in some instances, died.
Ananias and Sapphira succumbed to sudden death syndrome for withholding tithes and offerings. One man became crippled because of sin, whom Jesus healed, and later warned him against retrogressing into the same error, and old Judas became severely depressed, and committed suicide, because of his inordinate love of money.
Some persons died and others became sick because they partook of the holy communion, without the prerequisite preparation. All of these are spiritual causes, issues of the mind, which if left unaddressed often cause very serious illness, disease, and death and in many cases, the body’s ability to heal itself is severely compromised. Let’s read:
1st Corinthians 11: 28 But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of that cup.
29 For he who eats and drinks unworthily, eats and drinks damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord's body.
30 For this cause, many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep.
But one of the causes of diseases, which hardly gets any attention is disease that is caused by a person’s imagination, where folks became sick after believing they were sick, when they actually weren’t. A spirit of unbelief can weaken our immune systems to the point where negative, foreboding thoughts sap our vital forces, and our health becomes compromised.
As a general rule of thumb, if one dwells in the light of God’s promises, the promises tend to be fulfilled. And the converse is true, for when persons adopt a spirit of fear, and unbelief, the after- effects in the physical world often savors of those negatives they were dwelling on. This is one of the reasons given in the scriptures, why Job’s ordeal materialized. Let’s read:
Job 3:25 For the thing which I greatly feared is come upon me, and that which I was afraid of is come unto me. 26 I was not in safety, neither had I rest, neither was I quiet; yet trouble came.
In fact, God was watching over Job night and day for so many years and His providence protected him for all of his life, together with all that Job owned, and thus, the belief, and the statement that he was not in safety was unfounded, and it savored of unbelief. And guess what, so said, so done. Let’s read:
Job 1: 9 Then Satan answered the Lord, and said, Doth Job fear God for nothing?
10 Hast not thou made a hedge about him, and about his house, and about all that he hath on every side? thou hast blessed the work of his hands, and his substance is increased in the land.
During the course of the pandemic, the constant barrage of bad news, together with covid numbers and daily deaths, caused many persons to go into depression, and as a result, in some cases the bad news actually became a self-fulfilling prophecy.
As some persons crunched the numbers daily, and as some chose to dwell upon the darker side of the crisis, the prospect of coming down with the virus, and the accompanying adverse side effects, scared the living daylights out of some people, and fear in turn, weakened their body’s ability to fight off the dreaded infection.
It is quite possible that some who may just have had a regular cough, or flu, were prone to believe that it must be the virus, and the resulting worry and fear may have driven them to get tested, and retested until they actually came down with it.
Now while it is true that folks simply believing may not prevent disease, harboring a positive outlook of belief in God will often go a long way in setting the stage for resisting disease. And we will discover that our immune systems will be much better prepared to deal with diseases as they arise, for again, as a man thinks in his heart, so is he.
As we confront a new variant, (Stealth Omicron) it is of critical importance for persons to believe God’s promises, even if He may not deliver in your own, particular circumstance, for believing paves the way for health, wellness and recovery, whereas unbelief casts a dark shadow over the body’s efforts to heal and recover. Let’s read:
Matthew 9:27 And when Jesus departed thence, two blind men followed him, crying, and saying, Thou son of David, have mercy on us.
28 And when he was come into the house, the blind men came to him: and Jesus saith unto them, Believe ye that I am able to do this? They said unto him, Yea, Lord.
29 Then touched he their eyes, saying, According to your faith be it unto you.
There is a valid reason why persons are encouraged in the scriptures to cultivate a believing mind, for although this aspect of the human experience may not get the attention it deserves, it could and often affects outcomes.
Therefore, we must pay very close attention to the following statements coming from the servant of The Lord, for they reveal what persons may need to take into consideration, as we consider the prospect of many other diseases, viruses and variants arising as we get closer to Christ’s 2nd coming. Let’s read:
[Ministry Of healing pp 241] The relation that exists between the mind and the body is very intimate. When one is affected, the other sympathizes. The condition of the mind affects the health to a far greater degree than many realize. Many of the diseases from which men suffer are the result of mental depression.
Grief, anxiety discontent, remorse, guilt, distrust, all tend to break down the life forces and tend to invite decay and death. Disease is sometimes produced, and is often greatly aggravated, by imagination. Many are lifelong invalids who might be well if they only thought so.
Many imagine that every slight exposure will cause illness, and the evil effect is produced because it is expected. Many die from disease, the cause of which is wholly imaginary. Courage, hope, faith, sympathy, love, promote health and prolong life. A contented mind, a cheerful spirit, is health to the body and strength to the soul. “A merry [rejoicing] heart doeth good like a medicine.” Proverbs 17:22.
In addressing diseases, causes, and cures our efforts should run the entire gamut from diets and foods to regular exercise, faith in God, and a believing mind, because when these factors are juxtaposed one to another, positive outcomes would become far more frequent, than if we were to take the other beaten path of drugs, inactivity, poor diet, and unbelief.
The health message that God has granted to all who would believe and practice, will become more and more relevant, as new diseases, and variants arise. This knowledge is not to be held only theoretically, it is to be applied across the board, in our everyday experiences, wherever possible, because it’s not the hearers, but the doers of the word who will be most benefitted thereby.
We therefore end with a passage of scripture which would encourage us to cooperate with God in living healthy lives and fending off disease where possible for it is the will of God, that His people be blessed with long quality of life, to serve to the best of our ability, for as long as possible. Let’s read:
Psalms 103: 2 Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits.
3 Who forgives all thine iniquities; who heals all thy diseases;
4 Who redeems thy life from destruction; who crowns thee with lovingkindness and tender mercies;
5 Who satisfies thy mouth with good things; so that thy youth is renewed like the eagle's.
God Bless!