Our nation is obsessed with dieting. Have you heard of Weight Watchers? Atkins? Mediterranean? Keto? Vegan? Gluten-Free? Nordic? Mayo Clinic? Jenny Craig? Nutrisystem? SlimFast? Grapefruit? Cabbage Soup? Military? Egg? Smoothie? Low-Carb? South Beach? Blood Type? Cookie? Subway? Low-Sodium? etc., etc.?
Just be aware that there is another diet that ensures every goal will be reached—every time. That’s good news, but there is another “diet” that fails and is always fatal. Every person who has followed it has died. Keep reading.
It is remarkable how often the Bible mentions eating. It begins in the Garden of Eden, and after the flood there was prohibition of eating blood. At Mount Sinai, God forbade the Jews from eating any animal which died in unusual ways and then there was the restriction of eating any unclean animals. All of those restrictions were for the children of Israel, for after Pentecost, the distinction between clean and unclean animals ended.
There is nothing wrong with following any of the diets in the list we mentioned, but there is definitely a spiritual diet God wants us to follow. In reply to Satan’s first temptation, Jesus said than man was not live by bread alone, “…but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of the Lord” (Matt. 4:4). One’s spiritual life is determined by whether one feasts on every word which God has given. There is no restriction and this diet ensures that anyone who lives by what God has said will live eternally. You will not find that promise with any earthly diet.
We are born into the family of God, and spiritual growth begins by feasting on the simple principles of living given by God. As we are spiritual, we can then partake of deeper truths. Far too many Christians fail to change from the “milk” of the word to the “solid food” of eternal truths (cf. Heb. 5:12-14). That “milk” of the word is described as knowing what God says about “…repentance…faith…baptisms…laying on of hands…resurrection of the dead and of eternal judgment” (Heb. 6:1-2). If you have been a Christian for many years and are still feasting on these fundamental truths, God has a strong admonition He gives to you and His expectation of your greater growth in Hebrews 5:12-14. Read those verses and think about this!
Now the fatal “diet” many follow is to never become one who seeks to find what God says, but their life consists of living totally in a secular world (which is what Jesus calls, “living on bread alone”). God is concerned about what you eat—are you?
