THE HEALTHY DIET

While at camp I had occasion to observe Junior boy who only ate the cake off his plate. On another occasion he hadn't eaten anything. When I asked why he was hungry his friends told me he ate junk food all day. This same book lacked energy to compete or even to stay awake during services.

When we lived in Tennessee we knew a young woman who rarely, if ever, ate fruits and vegetables. As a result of this deficiency in her diet every three or four weeks she would go through excruciating pain as her digestive system fought to do its work without the proper tools. I remember on one occasion she was very upset with a male classmate who misdiagnosed her condition as being a problem limited to the fairer sex. Indeed, her problem is common to those who do not regard the seriousness of their diet as a matter of some spiritual import.

I. SOME BIBLICAL FACTS ABOUT FOOD

1. Man was originally a Vegetarian [Gn. 1:29-30] Note-Animals too!

2. Meat was added to the diet after the fall & the flood [Gn. 9:1-3] Note-nothing subtracted.

3. Vegetarians are not more spiritual than omnivores [I Tm. 4:1-5] Note-maybe less so

4. Dietary deficiencies can cause physical problems [1 Timothy 5:23] Note-not the intoxicating variety [scurvy, rickets, brittle bones, hypoglycemia, diabetes]

II. MAN NEEDS THE RIGHT SPIRITUAL FOOD AS WELL

1. He needs Milk for growth early on [1 Peter 2:2]

As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby:

2. Lack of Steady growth is Unnatural [ Hebrews 5:12-13]

For when for the time ye ought to be teachers, ye have need that one teach you again which be the first principles of the oracles of God; and are become such as have need of milk, and not of strong meat. For every one that useth milk is unskilful in the word of righteousness: for he is a babe.
1 Corinthians 3:1-3 And I, brethren, could not speak unto you as unto spiritual, but as unto carnal, even as unto babes in Christ. I have fed you with milk, and not with meat: for hitherto ye were not able to bear it, neither yet now are ye able. For ye are yet carnal: for whereas there is among you envying, and strife, and divisions, are ye not carnal, and walk as men.

Faculty- something has always bothered me for years and I've wanted to say it- I'm going to say it today. I've been around here a long time and there have been people who've come through here on faculty and some haven't enjoyed going to church here and it was mostly in Dr. Roberson's era-- it's not been recent era, but the same kind of mentality is there, and I heard this kind of statement, "All Roberson ever preaches is sin, salvation, and service- prayer, read the Word, that's all he ever preaches. I need something to feed me! I need something to feed me not just preach Gospel to people all the time." I heard that from faculty a lot. You know what I thought? Faculty, we are leaders who are training leaders. Somewhere, somewhere, somewhere- I should know how to get things from God for myself without having somebody give it to me all the time... that's the wrong attitude. "I've got to be fed." What are you, a baby? If you are a baby resign from the faculty because we need leaders and mature faculty we don't need babies trying to train leaders. so please resign. And leaders have enough discipline to say, "It's my job I'll do it it's right." ...Yes you need to be fed and you should know how to go to God's Word and get some feeding. -Dr. Roger Stiles, 12-6-1993, TTU president

3. Don't Limit your Spiritual Diet - Read all the Word [2 Timothy 3:16]

All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: