Luke 2:52 — And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man.
This is a clear indication that Christ showed physical growth and development. As He increased and developed in mind, so He increased in the stature of His body. He was proper — adhering to strong morals and social standards as well as to physical health. The health of His body and the health of His mind worked harmoniously, symmetrically, with each other until He died.
Physical health is an essential part of holistic growth
3 John 1:2 — Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth.
- Health of body and mind
- Spiritual health
- Temporal affairs
These three things are necessary for human development and a prosperous life. Everyone should earnestly seek to prosper in these blessings.
The mind and the body
The relation that exists between the mind and the body is very intimate. When one is affected, the other sympathizes. The condition of the mind affects health to a far greater degree than many realize. Many of the diseases from which men suffer are the result of mental depression. Grief, anxiety, discontent, remorse, guilt, distrust, all tend to break down the life forces and to invite decay and death.
— The Ministry of Healing, page 241
Courage, hope, faith, sympathy and love promote health and prolong life. A contented mind and a cheerful spirit are health to the body and strength to the soul.
Proverbs 17:22 — A merry [rejoicing] heart doeth good like a medicine.
In the treatment of the sick, the effect of mental influence should not be overlooked. Rightly used, this influence affords one of the most effective agencies for combating disease.
An equal and steady growth
In Christ there was an equal and steady growth in both His mind and His body.
Luke 2:40 — And the child grew, and waxed strong in spirit, filled with wisdom: and the grace of God was upon him.
This is the result of an ideal life
- Physical health — “he grew, and waxed strong in spirit.”
- Intellectual and moral development — “filled with wisdom.”
- The grace of God was upon Him without measure from a child, helping Him to will and to do of God’s good pleasure, which helped Him to be a recipient of favour constantly.
Three stages of growth are indicated in this brief record of His infancy and youth. From a child, Christ grew and waxed strong in mind and in bodily health. He had a natural physical body just like ours, and it needed to be trained and developed into maturity. It is therefore not beyond the reach of any of us.
A holistic approach
Bodily health needs careful attention and nurturing that will help it reach its optimum level of function. The heart also needs great reform and transformation. Everyone should take a holistic approach to supporting the heart and the body — and a holistic approach means considering the mind, the body and the spirit operating as one cohesive unit.
It means considering the other factors that affect healthy growth: social health, attitude and behaviour, family life and community engagement. Confidence, temperance, and self-preservation against every harmful habit.
It means diet and nutrition, exercise, sleep and the everyday physical activity that promotes physical health and development.
What the body is built from
Our bodies are built up from the food we eat. There is a constant breaking down of the body’s tissues; every movement of each organ involves waste, and that waste is repaired through proper, healthy habits.
Each organ of the body requires its share of nutrition. The brain must be supplied with its portion; the bones, the muscles and the nerves demand theirs also. It is an amazing process that transforms food into blood and uses that blood to build up the varied parts of the body — constantly supplying the body with life and strength, in each nerve, muscle and tissue.
The original diet consisted of fruits, nuts, seeds and grains, and vegetables, with no artificial or unnaturally processed food whatever. No form of animal flesh or dairy product was added until after the flood, and that was the result of sin.
Present your body
Our Lord increased in physical health, and we should do likewise.
Romans 12:1 — I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.
- Present your body unreservedly to God.
- Run the Christian race, and exercise its virtues with patience.
- Fight the good fight of faith.
- Grow daily in Christ.
Ephesians 4:13 — Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ.
We must reach up to the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ. We must yield our members as instruments of righteousness unto God.
This is the second of four. Luke 2:52 names wisdom, stature, favour with God and favour with man. If you have not read it, the first dimension works through wisdom and the mind; the remaining two will follow in this series.
To go further now, The Sanctuary is the surest way to become acquainted with Christ Himself, and getting to know Jesus works through the law, sin and saving grace.
If any of this raises something you would like to talk through, the team reads every message: ask a Bible question, or send a prayer request.
Continue studying
Growing Stronger, Wiser and Better Every Day
Martin Luther King Jr. taught that a complete life has three dimensions — length, breadth and height. Luke 2:52 gives us four, and it does not begin where he began.
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