Enrichment Material for You
A Prophet In Israel
Hampton Roads Seventh-day Adventist Church
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"A Prophet In Israel"
Rhoda Kanna
Health Emphasis - Sabbath January 22, 2011
Four months ago, Dr. Michael Roizen of the Cleveland Clinic in Cleveland, OH was asked this question by a news reporter [Let’s Move It, 9- 23-2010]– “How Much Caffeine is Too Much in One Day?” Here was his response. And I quote, “ Too much caffeine is when you have one of the side effects of caffeine; and there are 4 of them:

1.Migraine headache
2.Heart arrhythmia – abnormal heart rhythm
3.Gastric upset
4.Anxiety

If you don’t have one of those, then the more caffeine you have the better. It decreases Alzheimer’s disease, decreases Parkinson’s risk, decreases ovarian cancer, liver cancer, and even diabetes. So more caffeine is even better. “ End of quote.

Is that reasonable advice? Do you believe Dr. Roizen? Afterall, he’s a physician at the prestigious Cleveland Clinic. Is he teaching true science? Does caffeine decrease the risk all those diseases he mentioned? I don’t know, and if it does, should you consume it?

Let’s look at another piece of medical advice, written March 20, 2009 by the staff at the Mayo Clinic – another well-known medical institution. Again, I quote:  “Red wine, in moderation, has long been thought of as heart healthy. The alcohol and certain substances in red wine called antioxidants may help prevent heart disease by increasing levels of "good" cholesterol and protecting against artery damage.

“While the news about red wine might sound great if you enjoy a glass of red wine with your evening meal, doctors are wary of encouraging anyone to start drinking alcohol. That's because too much alcohol can have many harmful effects on your body.” End of quote.

Well, that advice doesn’t seem quite so reckless. At least the Mayo Clinic is wary about suggesting alcohol consumption because of its harmful effects, though, in their analysis, it appears to have some benefits. Again I ask, in spite of the touted benefits of red wine, should you consume it?

Here is one last example of current medical advice. A few weeks ago, I was sharing with a physician in Williamsburg that I had lost nearly 20 lbs. several years ago by beginning a daily exercise program and limiting my meals to two a day. She asked which meal I had eliminated and I told her it was the last meal of the day. She proceeded to tell me that eating several small meals throughout the day is easier to control caloric intake and so people find it easier to lose weight in this manner than restricting themselves to two meals a day.

So, what say you? Was this doctor giving me good medical advice? Almost every day there is medical information presented by the news media. We gain information by reading medical literature, or on our visits to the doctor. How do we know what we hear or read, to be true science? How do we sift through the plethora of scientific knowledge and end up with truth? I propose to you this morning that it is essential for us to know this truth. God has not called His end time people to a life of holiness and perfection, and then left them to flounder and try to figure out on their own what that might entail. God is not simply ‘hoping’ that His “peculiar people,” whom He has commissioned you and me to be, will, by “hook or crook” be ready for translation at His coming. Rather, dear people, we are privileged to have this sure Word of Prophecy, the inspiration of Ellen G. White, to give us solid footing, a steadfast anchor amidst the foolish health advice and practice prevailing today. I submit to you this morning, fellow Seventh-day Adventist believers, that we can have confidence in the preparation of body, mind, and soul for the imminent return of Jesus. Why can we have this confidence? Because there’s a prophet in Israel.

We’ll begin our study in the Old Testament. Turn with me in your Bibles to 2 Kings 5. Here we find the events surrounding the healing of Naaman, a captain from Syria.

Verse 1 - Now Naaman, captain of the host of the king of Syria, was a great man with his master, and honourable, because by him the LORD had given deliverance unto Syria: he was also a mighty man in valour, but he was a leper.
Here we have an individual, a Gentile who had the dreaded and deforming disease called leprosy. God was giving this Syrian captain victory in battles and raids over His chosen people, Israel, because they had gone after other gods and had turned a deaf ear to the entreaties made by prophet after prophet to repent and turn back to the one and only true God of Israel. The name of Naaman comes up again in the NT by Jesus, where Jesus, referring to Himself, speaks of a prophet not being accepted in his own country. We have a similar problem present in our church today. Luke 4:27 – And many lepers were in Israel in the time of Eliseus the prophet; and none of them was cleansed, saving [except] Naaman the Syrian.
Verse 2 - And the Syrians had gone out by companies, and had brought away captive out of the land of Israel a little maid; and she waited on Naaman's wife.

This captured young girl served Naaman’s wife. Jesus said of Himself, “… even the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many.” Mark 10:45. God has positioned people all around us who need our help, our expertise. Do we know how to minister unto them?
Verse 3 - And she said unto her mistress, Would God my lord were with the prophet that is in Samaria! for he would recover him of his leprosy.

From this passage we draw the obvious conclusion that the parents of this young child comprehended the tremendous responsibilty of “training up a child in the way he should go.” She was taught in her home about the true God of Israel and His great power working through his prophet, Elisha. Miracles such as the Shunammite woman’s son being raised to life; or of the widow whose endless supply of oil made enough money to pay her creditor, were no doubt familiar to her. This young girl knew if God’s prophet could do these great things, then healing Naaman was easy. For she says, Elisha “would heal him of his leprosy.”

In the vernacular of today, we would say that the young girl was a medical missionary. Do we even know what a medical missionary is or what he does? We need to know, because Mrs. White tells us that it will be the medical missionary work that we will be able to do when our religious freedoms are being squeezed. We are all called to be medical missionaries. It is our duty to know God’s laws of health and to understand the simple remedies to relieve sickness. It is when we are ministering to suffering souls in this manner, that we can most effectively introduce them to Jesus. These laws of health will be practiced in our own lives, as well, as a witness.

Verses 4-7 - And one went in, and told his lord, saying, Thus and thus said the maid that is of the land of Israel.  5 - And the king of Syria said, Go to, go, and I will send a letter unto the king of Israel. And he departed, … (skipping down to verse 6)  6 - And he brought the letter to the king of Israel, saying, Now when this letter is come unto thee, behold, I have therewith sent Naaman my servant to thee, that thou mayest recover him of his leprosy. 7 - And it came to pass, when the king of Israel had read the letter, that he rent his clothes, and said, Am I God, to kill and to make alive, that this man doth send unto me to recover a man of his leprosy? ...

Have you ever thought why an idea from a “little maid” would even be considered by the general of the great Syrian army? Something this young girl said convinced her mistress and the general that the prophet in Israel had power to heal leprosy. To be healed of leprosy? That was unheard of. Naaman now has a glimmer of hope where there had been no hope. Don’t you see him rushing to the palace to tell Ben-hadad, the king, that a cure has been discovered for leprosy? The king of Syria is persuaded by the girl’s testimony, too, and with enthusiasm says, “Go to, go!”  In haste the king formulates a letter to Jehoram, king of Israel, and Naaman is on his way!

But the letter isn’t received with the same enthusiasm. King Jehoram, son of Ahab, tears his royal robes, and exclaims, “Am I God?” King Jehoram, was doing as did many of his predecessors – persisting in idol worship after the customs and ways of the surrounding heathen nations. He knew he wasn’t God Who could heal. But what he forgot is far more important, and bears witness against us today – he forgot that there was a “prophet in Israel.”
Friends, do you and I persist in following after the customs of the world by eating whatever we please, watching whatever we please, living however we please. Are there “idols” in your life that must be “broken down?” Have we forgotten that there’s a prophet in Israel who was given a message of health reform specifically for us, God’s end time church? If we have forgotten, I’m here to tell you, it’s at our eternal peril. God will not wink at our ignorance, for there is no longer room for ignorance. Many of us have only a vague idea of what the words “health reform” mean. I encourage you to take the SOP books off your shelf, and read them. I am profoundly sobered every time I read her teaching on health reform, realizing how little I know and do. Statements such as this one, and many others, validates for me the weighty importance of this message and that I follow it to the best of my ability. Quoting from 6 Testimonies p. 369-70 – “Our bodies are Christ’s purchased property, and we are not at liberty to do with them as we please. … Through perverted appetite its organs and powers have become enfeebled, diseased, and crippled. … Because man has sinned against his body, and has corrupted his ways, God is dishonored.

“When men and women are truly converted, they will conscientiously regard the laws of life that God has established in their being, to avoid the physical, mental, and moral feebleness. Obedience to these laws must be a matter of personal duty. We ourselves must suffer the ills of violated law. We must answer to God for our habits and practices.”
And another in Counsels on Diet and Food p. 17 – “It is as truly a sin to violate the laws of our being as it is to break the ten commandments. To do either is to break God’s laws. Those who transgress the law of God in their physical organism, will be inclined to violate the law of God spoken from Sinai.”
Let us do better than King Jehoram. Let us cast away the inclination to follow after the ways of the world, having as our gods, appetite, entertainment, and unprincipled living. Let us know the teachings divinely given to our prophet, Ellen White, for us, spiritual Israel.

Verse 8 - And it was so, when Elisha the man of God had heard that the king of Israel had rent his clothes, that he sent to the king, saying, Wherefore hast thou rent thy clothes? let him come now to me, and he shall know that there is a prophet in Israel.

Somehow Elisha learns about the visitor from Syria and Ben-hadad’s request. “Send him to me, King Jehoram. Have you forgotten that there’s a prophet in Israel?” Jehoram, breathing an immense sigh of relief, sends Naaman on his way to Elisha, hoping for a positive outcome, I’m sure.

Like ancient Israel, so it is with us, spiritual Israel. God is looking for a people through which He can work to relieve suffering in this world and to bring His end time message to a world steeped in sin. We are the conduit of His grace. “… Health reform … is the Lord’s means of lessening the suffering in our world, and of purifying His people.” --Letter 48, 1902

I have been reading a fantastic book entitled, The Story of Our Health Message, by D.E. Robinson, given to me by Jeannie Howard. It’s an old book, first published in 1943, but no longer in print. This book provides the backdrop into which our health message came. It is true that the general population had horrific habits of health in Ellen White’s day, herself and family included. For the most part, each physician ‘did what was right in his own eyes,’ with little rhyme or reason to what he administered to the patient or how much of it. In those days it was safer to stay clear of a physician when you became ill, then to go and see one. Quoting from Jacob Bigelow, M.D.  writing in 1858 regarding the rational of medicine, he says this: “Confinement by disease, which might have terminated in a few days, was protracted to weeks and months, because the importance of the case, as it was thought, required that the patient should be artificially ‘taken down’ and then artificially ‘built up.’” Put more simply, the patient was made sicker before an attempt was made to make them well.

“When carried to its ‘heroic’ extent, artificial medicine undermined the strength, elicited new morbid manifestations, and left more disease than it took away.” The Story of Our Health Message, p. 16  With that kind of treatment, you were lucky to survive.
A question then begs to be asked, “If the general principles of health reform were being promoted, what then did God give to Ellen White that was specifically for the Seventh-day Adventist Church?” Continuing with the quotation he says, “But we do claim that by the method of God’s choice it [referring to health reform] has been more clearly and powerfully unfolded, and is thereby producing an effect which we could not have looked for from any other means.
Did you catch that? Our health message is as much present truth as is the third angel’s message? Why? Because it’s the means, not a means, but the means whereby we can overcome sin and be fitted for translation.

“Under divine guidance she [Ellen White] took these revealed truths [the truths espoused from the health reformers then living] and wrought them into the warp and woof of the advent message as an aid to attaining that holiness of character to which those are called who expect to be translated at the coming of Jesus.” The Story of Our Health Message 84.
Here’s what Ellen White herself says. “The remnant people of God must be a converted people. The presentation of this message [subject of health reform] is to result in the conversion and sanctification of souls. We are to feel the power of the Spirit of God in this movement. This is a wonderful definite message; it means everything to the receiver, and it is to be proclaimed with a loud cry. We must have a true abiding faith that this message will go forth with increasing importance till the close of time.” –9 Testimonies p. 154
Where are we in this world’s history? Are we nearing the close of time? Is the health reform message present truth in our day? It needs to be if it isn’t. Is it intended to prepare a people for the 2nd coming of Jesus? Absolutely, if we believe our prophet.

But what does all this mean for you and me right now, January 22, 2011? Let’s return to the Biblical account of Naaman and see if we can find our answer.

Verses 9-12 - So Naaman came with his horses and with his chariot, and stood at the door of the house of Elisha.  10 - And Elisha sent a messenger unto him, saying, Go and wash in Jordan seven times, and thy flesh shall come again to thee, and thou shalt be clean.  11 - But Naaman was wroth, and went away, and said, Behold, I thought, He will surely come out to me, and stand, and call on the name of the LORD his God, and strike his hand over the place, and recover the leper.  12 - Are not Abana and Pharpar, rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel? may I not wash in them, and be clean? So he turned and went away in a rage.

In these few verses are captured the heart and soul of health reform. Naaman expects royal treatment, but doesn’t get it. He expects instant healing, and doesn’t get it. He becomes enraged. His character is being severely tested, and he is unaware.

God is no respecter of persons. Our status and rank in this world mean nothing to Him. But what is of paramount importance to God is our surrendered hearts, our willingness to trust in His divine instructions, and our unquestioning obedience to them. God is fully capable of instant healing. His words spoke the worlds into existence; but He’s more interested in our cooperation.

God’s laws of life and health are no respecter of persons. If broken, sickness is the sure result. God’s methods of healthful living are simple, as are His recommendations to combat disease. “Nature's simple remedies will aid in recovery without leaving the deadly after effects so often felt by those who use poisonous drugs.” --Loma Linda Messages p. 355 The remedies are as basic as was the command given to Naaman – “go wash.” Though the message may be simple, it may require the surrender of long engendered habits and a commitment to a lifestyle that is in harmony with God’s laws of health. Naaman wasn’t looking to cooperate with God. He was looking for a quick fix, an immediate result. So it is with us. For you see, it’s much easier to swallow a pill to maintain normal blood pressure than it is to exercise everyday. Or it’s much easier to take a pill to maintain appropriate blood cholesterol levels, than it is to make dietary changes. Or is it?
We are impressed with world-renown institutions of learning where flow rivers of knowledge as bountiful as Abana and Pharpar, the rivers of Damacus. We have made ourselves drunk on their advice. But God has something in the waters of Israel that He wishes to teach us. We must, as did Naaman, learn to follow the message of the prophet. “Willing obedience alone would bring the desired result. The faith of Naaman was being tested, while pride struggled for the mastery.” Prophets and Kings p. 249
Verses 13-14 - And his servants came near, and spake unto him, and said, My father, if the prophet had bid thee do some great thing, wouldest thou not have done it? how much rather then, when he saith to thee, Wash, and be clean?  14 - Then went he down, and dipped himself seven times in Jordan, according to the saying of the man of God: and his flesh came again like unto the flesh of a little child, and he was clean.

Just how hard is it to dip seven times into the water, when you’ve been promised a cure? How hard is it to follow the natural laws of health, outlined by God’s messenger, “which if observed, will keep human beings from disease and premature death”? – Counsels on Diet and Foods p. 16 The answer is obvious. We want life, and we want it abundantly, but few of us are willing to set aside well-anchored habits that we know bring about disease and untimely death. As it was a test of faith for Naaman, so it is for us. Following God’s blueprint for healthful living is a test of faith in the Spirit of Prophecy when some in the medical community are telling us something entirely different.
Much good for mankind has come from modern science and there certainly is a place for its use. But as a church, we have trampled underfoot the messages of health reform that have been given to us through Ellen White. She helps us to pinpoint deviations in science that the world may trumpet as beneficial or harmful. Do we more quickly believe the world rather than our own prophet?  Ellen White addresses many areas with respect to health reform and healthful living such as the benefits of fresh air, sunshine, and rest, but by far the great emphasis of her writings on health have to do with appetite, gluttony, and our diet. Why does she have more to say in this arena? Because the Holy Spirit has shown her that "taste has done more to pervert the understanding and becloud the spiritual sky than everything else beside." – That I May Know Him p. 313 She also writes, "Those who search this Word [the Bible] should keep the mind clear. Never should they indulge perverted appetite in eating and drinking. If they do this, the brain will be confused; they will be unable to bear the strain of digging deep to find out the meaning of those things which relate to the closing scenes of this earth's history." 18 Manuscript Releases p. 24
As Naaman rose from the water the seventh and final time, he was clean! He searched for leprosy, but could find none. His flesh was restored; but not just restored. It was restored to the softness and tenderness of a little child. Consider that degree of restoration! God’s laws of health have no side effects. “Drugs never cure disease. They only change the form and location. Nature alone is the effectual restorer, and how much better could she perform her task if left to herself.” – 4A Spiritual Gifts p. 134 -- “It is our work to obtain a knowledge of these principles [of health], and by obedience to cooperate with him in restoring health to the body as well as to the soul.” – Ministry of Healing p. 115
Verse 15 - And he returned to the man of God, he and all his company, and came, and stood before him: and he said, Behold, now I know that there is no God in all the earth, but in Israel: …

We have come full circle in our story. It began with a young maid being a medical missionary. Her actions not only lead Naaman to Elisha the prophet for healing, but to his confession and acknowledgement that “there is no God in all the earth, but in Israel.” This, my dear people, is our divine purpose – to bring people to a saving relationship with Jesus. “The work of health reform is to be bound up with the gospel. These cannot be separated; for God has united them. When these parts of the work are carried forward on correct lines, the third angel's message will be given in accordance with God's purpose." –5 Manuscript Releases p. 134

King Jehoram didn’t reach out and take the baton passed on to him by Little Maid and continue to point Naaman to the true God of Israel. He chose to ignore the truth – that there was a prophet in Israel to guide himself and those that seek restoration of body, mind, and soul. A crisis, such as never was, is about to break on the world. Are you preparing for that crisis? As we have seen today, our health message, so divinely given to us by our faithful prophet, Ellen White, is not incidental to that preparation process. The common assertion that passes the lips of many, well-meaning Seventh-day Adventists, the saying that it is not a moral issue to it do such or eat such, is an untruth. “It is not safe or pleasing to God to violate the laws of health, and then ask Him to take care of our health, and keep us from disease, when we are living directly contrary to our prayers.” --E.G. White Letter 4, 1863
I ask you this morning, why don’t we care more about what she says, when our eternal future is in jeopardy? I say we don’t care, because by appearances, we’re not carrying out her counsel as we ought, in our lives. “Temperance in all things has more to do with our restoration to Eden than men realize.”  --Ministry of Healing p. 129
I began this talk by citing three current case studies. The first was a recommendation by a physician from the Cleveland Clinic to drink as much caffeine as you safely can. The second, from the Mayo Clinic, suggested that red wine in moderate amounts is good for the heart. The Bible tells me in Proverbs 23:31-32, “Look not thou upon the wine when it is red, … At the last it biteth like a serpent, And stingeth like an adder." “Let Christ's followers abstain not only from alcohol, tobacco, tea, and coffee, but also from every other harmful thing that beclouds the brain.” --2 Sermons and Talks p.196 Whose advice will you follow?
And finally case 3 – Is it advisable to eat several small meals a day? No. SOP says: “The stomach must have its regular periods for labor and rest, hence, eating irregularly between meals is a most pernicious violation of the laws of health.” – 4A Spiritual Gifts p. 129-30
So, my friends, we are not without a compass on this road to holiness and perfection of character as we prepare for translation; but we must not ignore the reading of the compass, or we will surely get off course. When the compass reads to remove flesh foods from our diet, we must choose to do it. When we are told that cheese is wholly unfit for food, we must believe it and set it aside. When we are counseled to limit the consumption of sugar in our diet and not combine it with milk, we must choose to know why and follow the advice. When we learn that inactivity and lack of exercise “causes debility of body and feebleness of mind,” – 2 Testimonies p. 524 -- then we will choose to become active.

“In the judgment we shall see how seriously God regards the violation of the laws of health. Then, as we take a retrospective view of our course of action, we shall see what knowledge of God we might have gained, what noble characters we might have formed, if we had taken the Bible as our counselor.  –Counsels on Diet and Foods p. 40

In closing, I’d like to return to our scripture reading that came from Isaiah 52. Embedded in these verses can be seen the union of the gospel and health reform. Verses 7-9 begin with the presentation of the gospel, the good tidings that bring salvation and peace to those who embrace it. Verse 10 refers to God’s holy arm, the arm of the health message that brings power to the gospel, resulting in the conversion and sanctification of souls. In verse 11 we see God calling us to a life of holiness and character perfection – “Be ye clean, that bear the vessels of the Lord.” And finally in verse 12 is the endorsement from the Lord God of Israel to give us success when we acknowledge His ownership of our lives. He brings up the rear, protects us, supports us, and picks us up when we fall.

If, this morning you have been convicted in your heart that God’s laws of health are as important to follow as the divine Decalogue, and that you want to covenant with God to follow those laws, by His power, so that you may bear a clean vessel before the Lord, then I invite you to join me at the front while we sing our closing hymn and we will have a prayer of consecration together.

While the health habits of Americans were deplorable and the practice of medicine by many physicians was, in reality, “survival of the fittest” for the patient, God had already paved the way by others for the delivery of His special health message to His last day church. Health reform was already being taught by others, prior to the vision of health given to Ellen White in June 1863. J.H. Waggoner, one of the founding pioneers of our church wrote in the Review and Herald August 7, 1866 – “We do not profess to be pioneers in the general principles of the health reform. The facts on which this movement is based have been elaborated, in a great measure, by reformers, physicians, and writers on physiology and hygiene, and so may be found scattered through the land.”
“As mere physiological and hygienic truths, they might be studied by some at their leisure, and by others laid aside as of little consequence; but when placed on a level with the great truths of the third angel’s message by the sanction and authority of God’s Spirit, and so declared to be the means whereby a weak people may be made strong to overcome, and our diseased bodies cleansed and fitted for translation, then it comes to us as an essential part of present truth, to be received with the blessing of God, or rejected at our peril.”