A friend and I once visited a tiny evangelical church in my hometown on the world’s longest freshwater beach. We were enthusiastically welcomed and the worship service began. After three songs or so, the Pastor took the mic, asking if there were any prayer requests. For the next 45 minutes, people shared how they, a spouse or another church member had been recently diagnosed with cancer, stroke, heart disease, etc. My friend and I exchanged knowing glances: This church seemed to have more than its fair share of sickness and we wondered why. When the service ended, we attempted to make our exit, but were literally barricaded by three ladies bearing trays loaded with cakes, cookies and squares. We tried to politely decline, but they weren’t having it. Finally, we each took a brownie and backed out the door. As we did so, our well-meaning hostesses continued to advance the plates, insisting we “take one for the road”. We later joked about the fact that you might get out of there without Jesus but not without some sugar.
While this situation was extreme, I have visited literally hundreds of evangelical churches across this great country and it saddens me to report that most seem to have a fondness for junk and processed food. This begs the question, why do so many Christians place little to no importance on what they put into their physical bodies? I have come to believe that this is less due to personal preference and more a result of doctrine emanating from scriptures like 1 Timothy 4:4: “For every creature of God is good, and nothing is to be refused if it is received with thanksgiving”.
Many if not most Christians literally believe that this scripture is proof that God gave them carte-blanche to eat anything and everything, as long as it is blessed. They divorce these scriptures from the cultural context of the time and not even considered the possibility that Paul wrote this to address the false teaching of the Gnostics (https://www.bibleref.com/1-Timothy/4/1-Timothy-4-3.html) and/or Jewish concerns about eating food offered to idols (https://biblicaltruth.net/dietary-law-biblical/1-corinthians-10/).
Thus, the widespread misinterpretation of this scripture has seeped into the collective consciousness of the modern church…and the fellowship hall. As a result, we are seeing unprecedented sickness and disease in the body of Christ. Charismatic Christians believe that God heals and I agree, but the question that remains is, should we expect God to heal us of self-induced sickness?