Whereas Adam, Eve, and the children of Israel in the wilderness failed when they were tempted in the dietary realm of their lives, praise God our Lord was victorious when He was similarly tempted. Though He “had fasted forty days and forty nights,” still He did not give in to the devil’s temptation of Him to meet His legitimate physical need for food in an ungodly manner (Matt. 4:2-4). Our Lord won His victory through His use of quoting Scripture to the wicked one to overcome him.
We, too, must depend upon the Word of God to give us victory in the dietary realm, as well as in all other realms. We must stop looking to the world and its wisdom for answers to problems in the health/fitness realm, as well as in all other realms of our lives.
We especially should not look to secular dietary authorities for help in being godly in our eating and activity practices. In spite of all the knowledge and multitudes of plans the world has, the incidence of obesity is increasing in the US. Though multitudes know they should be physically active, how many are as faithful as they could be?
Praise God that we have what the world does not have to be successful—we have been given “all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue” (2 Peter 1:3).
If you’re having struggles in the dietary realm, you should consider memorizing Proverbs 30:7-9 and praying through that passage each day, asking the Lord to give you victory by His Spirit:
“Two things have I required [asked] of thee; deny me them not before I die: Remove far from me vanity and lies: give me neither poverty nor riches; feed me with food convenient [Heb. of my allowance] for me: Lest I be full, and deny thee, and say, Who is the LORD? or lest I be poor, and steal, and take the name of my God in vain.”
In brief, when we pray this prayer, it will be an acknowledgment by us that the Lord must provide for us the proper amount of food each day. Too much or too little food will lead us into wickedness. (Secular experts say that eating smaller portions is a key to effective weight management, but they are unable to give any lasting help in how to deny self to do so).
Only His strength is sufficient to give us victory over the flesh—no amount of self-discipline will be sufficient. As He gave the children of Israel just enough manna in the wilderness for their daily needs (Exod. 16:18), so will He “give us day by day our daily bread” (Luke 11:3), when we ask Him.
It is only as we depend on Jesus that we will be triumphant through our Lord who “gave [H]imself for our sins, that he might deliver us from this present evil world” (Gal. 1:4)!
Copyright © 2011-2024 by Rajesh Gandhi. All rights reserved.
