63 Sermon Illustrations on Health

During Easter, considering your death will lead you to bright horizons.

________

Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. — 2 Corinthians 4:16-17

At the ripe old age of five years old I came up with my own version of a memento mori. It was totally by chance — there was no real backstory other than a curious (adopted) kid struggling to make sense of his existence. The experience is memorable because it was so traumatic. You can imagine for yourself what happens when a kid lies in his bed and stares into the dark repeating the phrase, “forever, and ever, and ever, and ever, and ever, and ever, and ever...”

If that scenario causes you to feel a pang of sympathy, thank you. I’d exasperate myself to the point of hysteria, jump out of bed and run downstairs and into the arms of my concerned mother. I was inconsolable, babbling on and on about “forever” and “eternity.” This would become a habit, but the first few times were as alarming to her as they were to me. So, with the Andy Griffith show on in the background, my mom would try to answer my one and only question: “What happens when we die?” Like any caring mother, she would mention “heaven” and “God” and “being good” and on and on until I’d finally calm down and go back to bed. Yet, no matter how hard she tried, I never heard an answer that truly satisfied the potent mix of fear and curiosity.

Thankfully, my trips downstairs subsided as time passed, but my obsession with the question did not. It wasn’t until nearly two decades later that I found the answer I sought. It turns out my mom was onto something: a proper understanding of death is undoubtedly linked to the concepts of God and heaven and the Bible — it just takes a lot of searching to get down to the nitty-gritty.

The fact is that people die, dreams die, love dies, habits die, animals die, plants die, even the main character dies. Death is essential: “Kill your darlings” says the writer William Faulkner, “Death smiles at us” say the warriors of Gladiator, “‘Till death do us part” say the lovers on their wedding day. Death plays a major role in every aspect of life so why is it such a profound struggle for humanity to come to grips with memento mori, or, the inevitability of our death?

What is ironic, however, is that while we may flee from the reality of our own mortality, we are obsessed with death. Death in entertainment is big business. We are captivated by stories of serial killers, assassins, vampires, zombies, wars — anything to do with death, whether in a book or on a screen, and we are hooked. Every one of us has a morbid sense of curiosity that fuels a deep-seated subconscious impulse to relentlessly search for answers about death. The paradox lies in the fact that if the conversation is about our own death or that of someone we love, we dodge the subject, but if it’s someone else’s death we’re talking about, we can’t look away.

The fascination with and avoidance of death is not exclusive to the modern era, writers for millennia have been compelled by the subject. In fact, throughout literary history death is often crowned, “the great antagonist.” We have been asking the same question since the beginning of time.

In every culture there are certain elements that limit our ability to have a proper understanding of death. In a culture of affluence, we are often sheltered from death in a unique way. The richer a community, the more we use material possessions to distract ourselves from the things we fear. The inimitable preacher and theologian Charles Haddon Spurgeon once said as he toured the luxurious home of a congregant, “These are the kinds of things that make dying hard.” When we have plentiful resources we can alleviate, or at a minimum, soften the harsh realities of life. When we have no immediate needs, we have no will to investigate deeper things and the last thing we want to do is engage with a concept like memento mori. Why be reminded of the one thing I can’t resolve?

There is certainly nothing new under the sun when it comes to our love-hate relationship with mortality, particularly when it comes to our vanity. We tell ourselves, it’s not what’s on the outside that matters, it’s who we are on the inside. If the health and beauty industry is any indication of where our real values are, then those who have focused a bit more time on the “inside” are way behind. Physical health is certainly very important — however, when our physical health becomes our identity, we lose sight of heaven. There is no subject more threatening than death to someone who is terrified of aging.

Yet, no matter how many miles we run, laps we swim, or how much Botox we inject, there’s no escape: death ultimately finds each of us. Despite all of our efforts, mortality knocks on our door: our eyes dim, our hair thins, our waist thickens, our muscles shrink, we sag more, sleep less, and remember very little. As we age we feel the temperature drop and the air pressure increase, we hear the leaves quake as the tempest called death looms on the horizon. The Psalmist describes it as “anguish of the grave,” writing of the great and incomprehensible abyss where “the cords of death entangled me / the anguish of the grave came over me; / I was overcome by distress and sorrow” (Ps. 116:3).

So take heart, our problem isn’t that we experience fear in light of death — everyone does. The potential for harm and good is in how we respond to this fear. A healthy view of death can be very helpful in the way we view this life. As we embrace our mortality, our ability to see changes. Our dimming earthly eyes actually become clearer as they focus on eternity. Memento mori fosters that kind of vision. As the apostle Paul put it: “So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal” (2 Cor. 4:18).

When I consider my traumatic “death quest” as a youngster, I am so deeply grateful that at 19 years old I found an answer that changed me and the course of my life. Some of the fearful unknowns about mortality have never fully gone away — in fact, I can still feel dread when I try to wrap my head around “forever.” However, today the focus of my attention is first, a confession; second, a new question; and third, a request. The confession is simple: “Lord, I am worried about what I have, I am concerned about how I look, and I’m anxious about my future.” The question is practical: “Lord, how shall I live today in light of spending eternity with you?” And the request: “Lord help me actually see what is truly important so I can do what’s most important in your sight.”

This Easter, as you experience the world around you, our hope is that you consider the day of your death. We trust that the theme of memento mori will lead you to new places with bright horizons. After all, what is hovering out on that horizon isn’t a storm, but rather the throngs of saints who have gone before us, waiting to welcome us into eternity.

________

Reflection Questions:

1. Have you ever had a startling experience coming face to face with your own mortality?

2. What fears can you confess to God? What concerns can you bring to the cross?

3. As you consider your life and death, do you sense any stirring about what the Lord sees as most important in your life?

________

Erik Petrik is the chief creative officer at Christianity Today. He and his wife Kelli have five grown kids and live in Edwards, Colorado.

During Easter, considering your death will lead you to bright horizons.

________

Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. — 2 Corinthians 4:16-17

At the ripe old age of five years old I came up with my own version of a memento mori. It was totally by chance — there was no real backstory other than a curious (adopted) kid struggling to make sense of his existence. The experience is memorable because it was so traumatic. You can imagine for yourself what happens when a kid lies in his bed and stares into the dark repeating the phrase, “forever, and ever, and ever, and ever, and ever, and ever, and ever...”

If that scenario causes you to feel a pang of sympathy, thank you. I’d exasperate myself to the point of hysteria, jump out of bed and run downstairs and into the arms of my concerned mother. I was inconsolable, babbling on and on about “forever” and “eternity.” This would become a habit, but the first few times were as alarming to her as they were to me. So, with the Andy Griffith show on in the background, my mom would try to answer my one and only question: “What happens when we die?” Like any caring mother, she would mention “heaven” and “God” and “being good” and on and on until I’d finally calm down and go back to bed. Yet, no matter how hard she tried, I never heard an answer that truly satisfied the potent mix of fear and curiosity.

Thankfully, my trips downstairs subsided as time passed, but my obsession with the question did not. It wasn’t until nearly two decades later that I found the answer I sought. It turns out my mom was onto something: a proper understanding of death is undoubtedly linked to the concepts of God and heaven and the Bible — it just takes a lot of searching to get down to the nitty-gritty.

The fact is that people die, dreams die, love dies, habits die, animals die, plants die, even the main character dies. Death is essential: “Kill your darlings” says the writer William Faulkner, “Death smiles at us” say the warriors of Gladiator, “‘Till death do us part” say the lovers on their wedding day. Death plays a major role in every aspect of life so why is it such a profound struggle for humanity to come to grips with memento mori, or, the inevitability of our death?

What is ironic, however, is that while we may flee from the reality of our own mortality, we are obsessed with death. Death in entertainment is big business. We are captivated by stories of serial killers, assassins, vampires, zombies, wars — anything to do with death, whether in a book or on a screen, and we are hooked. Every one of us has a morbid sense of curiosity that fuels a deep-seated subconscious impulse to relentlessly search for answers about death. The paradox lies in the fact that if the conversation is about our own death or that of someone we love, we dodge the subject, but if it’s someone else’s death we’re talking about, we can’t look away.

The fascination with and avoidance of death is not exclusive to the modern era, writers for millennia have been compelled by the subject. In fact, throughout literary history death is often crowned, “the great antagonist.” We have been asking the same question since the beginning of time.

In every culture there are certain elements that limit our ability to have a proper understanding of death. In a culture of affluence, we are often sheltered from death in a unique way. The richer a community, the more we use material possessions to distract ourselves from the things we fear. The inimitable preacher and theologian Charles Haddon Spurgeon once said as he toured the luxurious home of a congregant, “These are the kinds of things that make dying hard.” When we have plentiful resources we can alleviate, or at a minimum, soften the harsh realities of life. When we have no immediate needs, we have no will to investigate deeper things and the last thing we want to do is engage with a concept like memento mori. Why be reminded of the one thing I can’t resolve?

There is certainly nothing new under the sun when it comes to our love-hate relationship with mortality, particularly when it comes to our vanity. We tell ourselves, it’s not what’s on the outside that matters, it’s who we are on the inside. If the health and beauty industry is any indication of where our real values are, then those who have focused a bit more time on the “inside” are way behind. Physical health is certainly very important — however, when our physical health becomes our identity, we lose sight of heaven. There is no subject more threatening than death to someone who is terrified of aging.

Yet, no matter how many miles we run, laps we swim, or how much Botox we inject, there’s no escape: death ultimately finds each of us. Despite all of our efforts, mortality knocks on our door: our eyes dim, our hair thins, our waist thickens, our muscles shrink, we sag more, sleep less, and remember very little. As we age we feel the temperature drop and the air pressure increase, we hear the leaves quake as the tempest called death looms on the horizon. The Psalmist describes it as “anguish of the grave,” writing of the great and incomprehensible abyss where “the cords of death entangled me / the anguish of the grave came over me; / I was overcome by distress and sorrow” (Ps. 116:3).

So take heart, our problem isn’t that we experience fear in light of death — everyone does. The potential for harm and good is in how we respond to this fear. A healthy view of death can be very helpful in the way we view this life. As we embrace our mortality, our ability to see changes. Our dimming earthly eyes actually become clearer as they focus on eternity. Memento mori fosters that kind of vision. As the apostle Paul put it: “So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal” (2 Cor. 4:18).

When I consider my traumatic “death quest” as a youngster, I am so deeply grateful that at 19 years old I found an answer that changed me and the course of my life. Some of the fearful unknowns about mortality have never fully gone away — in fact, I can still feel dread when I try to wrap my head around “forever.” However, today the focus of my attention is first, a confession; second, a new question; and third, a request. The confession is simple: “Lord, I am worried about what I have, I am concerned about how I look, and I’m anxious about my future.” The question is practical: “Lord, how shall I live today in light of spending eternity with you?” And the request: “Lord help me actually see what is truly important so I can do what’s most important in your sight.”

This Easter, as you experience the world around you, our hope is that you consider the day of your death. We trust that the theme of memento mori will lead you to new places with bright horizons. After all, what is hovering out on that horizon isn’t a storm, but rather the throngs of saints who have gone before us, waiting to welcome us into eternity.

________

Reflection Questions:

1. Have you ever had a startling experience coming face to face with your own mortality?

2. What fears can you confess to God? What concerns can you bring to the cross?

3. As you consider your life and death, do you sense any stirring about what the Lord sees as most important in your life?

________

Erik Petrik is the chief creative officer at Christianity Today. He and his wife Kelli have five grown kids and live in Edwards, Colorado.

A few weeks ago, I was astonished to find Time magazine exposing how the collapse of marriage harms women, children, and the poor. No Christian could have made the prudential arguments for marriage more impressively.

Not to be outdone, the New York Times has just run a piece announcing that divorce can make you sick — sometimes for the rest of your life.

The Times described the findings of a study of more than 8,600 people in their 50s and 60s. The study sought to determine how divorce, widowhood, and remarriage affected their health. The authors’ conclusion: “The physical stress of marital loss continues long after the emotional wounds have healed.”

Among the divorced and widowed, men and women alike reported “about 20 percent more chronic health problems” including diabetes, cancer, and heart disease, than people who stayed married.

Even when people remarried, they had 12 percent more health problems than those who stayed married to their first spouse. The study revealed that “most married people who became single never fully recovered from the physical declines associated with marital loss,” the Times said.

The study was authored by University of Chicago sociology professor Linda Waite, an expert on marriage and divorce. Waite is the co-author, with Maggie Gallagher, of the book, The Case for Marriage: Why Married People Are Happier, Healthier, and Better Off Financially. In this book, the authors note that divorced, single, and widowed people are “far more likely to die from all causes,” including stroke, car accidents, murder, and suicide. Perhaps this is part of the reason God says in Malachi, “I hate divorce.”

The Times is quick to claim that staying in a bad marriage can lead to physical problems, too. But it’s good news that major news outlets are writing articles like this. For decades, they have trumpeted the idea that divorce harms nobody, that children do just fine without fathers, and that we should all just do whatever makes us happy, maritally speaking, that is.

But now the problems of marital breakdown — and failure to form families in the first place — have become so severe that not even news outlets hostile to Christian teachings can deny it.

Articles that reveal the damage of living outside of God’s design for us offer a great opportunity for the Church. I have long taught that only Christianity offers a reasonable system for how we are to live in the real world. Every day, it seems, we have more tragic evidence of the truth of that belief — provide by believers and non-believers alike who violate God’s design.

You and I need to reach out to neighbors who have been taken in, and harmed, by secular teachings about marriage and divorce. We should befriend them, find ways to meet their needs, and invite them to church.

Those who have suffered the consequences of false worldview teachings may well now be open to Christian teachings — and how well they match up with health and happiness. And having learned this, they may be open to learning more about, and following, the loving Maker of these rules.

The test of any worldview is, can you live with it? When it comes to marriage, we now have scientific evidence that living outside of God’s plan can literally make us sick.

________

Copyright (c) 2009 Prison Fellowship Ministries. Reprinted with permission. "BreakPoint with Chuck Colson" is a radio ministry of Prison Fellowship Ministries.

Eula Weaver left the hospital following a severe heart attack at 77. “The doctor told her, “Mrs. Weaver, you have two ways you can go. You can go to bed and let somebody feed you with a spoon. Or you can go home, get out of bed, and walk.”

Eula went home to walk. But it wasn’t easy. Sometimes when she walked only fifty feet her leg muscles would cramp, and she would have to be carried home. It took grit and a change in diet to bring success to her exercise program. All her life Eula had eaten just about what she wanted to, mainly fatty meats and fried foods. Now she ate fruits, whole cereals, green salads, and vegetables.

Beginning with one block a day, she increased her walk during the first six months to seven blocks, three times a day. By the end of eighteen months she was running a quarter of a mile a day. When the neighbors saw Eula in jogging clothes, hobbling along, they thought she was losing her mind.

“At first,” Eula said, “I couldn’t jog half a block before I’d be clean out of breath. Then I’d have to drag myself home and rest. But I kept jogging every day and following my diet, and before long I got so I could jog a mile.”

Within two years Mrs. Weaver was getting up at five-thirty every morning to trot several blocks to a high school and jog a mile around the track. If she couldn’t get to the track, she rode the stationary bicycle in her bedroom as far as twenty miles, often reading the newspaper while she pedaled.

When Eula was 85 she was invited to run in the Senior Olympics. A gold medal awarded to her in that race.

________

Source: CLIMBING JACOB’S LADDER, by Jeanne Larson & Ruth McLin, Copyright 1979 by Review and Herald Publishing Association

*

[Original illustration at this number was a duplicate of HolwickID #9989]

People who experience high levels of despair have a 20 percent greater occurrence of atherosclerosis than people who live with hope. That’s the “same magnitude of increased risk that one sees in comparing a pack-a-day smoker to a non-smoker,” according to the Journal of the American Heart Association.

In other words, with hope we can be 20 percent less likely to suffer from narrowing of the arteries caused by plaque buildup on interior blood vessel walls (atherosclerosis).

But hope in what?

Proverbs tells us that, “A merry heart does good, like medicine, but a broken spirit dries the bones” (17:22). So, what do we do when the dark storm clouds roll in? And what about our final appointment with death?

Will a sunny smile keep death at bay? No! If our hope can’t see us through our darkest days, and through the valley of the shadow of death, it is not true hope.

The disciples of Jesus Christ went through a period of despair. But their hope returned when the condition that caused their despair was reversed by the resurrection of Jesus from the dead.

Let’s see why the resurrection is the only foundation for a life of hope today.

The death of hope

Imagine what the disciples felt the evening after Jesus was taken down from the cross and laid in the tomb.

Several women went to the tomb the next morning to anoint Jesus’ body. But the tomb was empty. An angel told them Jesus had risen from the dead. They ran back to tell the disciples. Peter and John raced to the tomb and, indeed, it was empty. After discovering the empty tomb, they were still terribly discouraged and confused.

What did it mean? “For as yet they did not know the Scripture that He must rise again from the dead” (John 10:9-10). Then the disciples went home. All their hopes for the future had been focused on the Savior. When He died, the disciples’ dreams died.

The rebirth of hope

Only one thing brought life to the disciples’ hopeless hearts -- meeting and communing personally with the risen Savior.

Three days after the crucifixion, two disciples were walking dejectedly from Emmaus to Jerusalem when a stranger joined them. Breaking bread together later, they recognized Him -- Jesus was alive! They raced back to Jerusalem to tell the others.

As the disciples listened to the two tell about seeing Jesus near Emmaus, He appeared in their midst. They thought He was a ghost! (Luke 24:37). As Jesus kept appearing to the disciples, their hope was rekindled and seeds were planted in their hearts for the future (John 21:1-25).

When the future comes alive again, you know hope has been reborn. Within a few more days, the disciples received marching orders from Jesus for world evangelism. They received the Holy Spirit and boldly took a stand against the authorities who had crucified their Lord.

Religion can’t give the hope mankind needs, but the resurrection of the living Savior can.

The life of hope

After seeing the mighty Allies on D-Day, the world gained hope that the war would soon end. When Christ came out of the grave, the war against death was over. When fear of death is gone, the Christian needn’t fear anything. And when fear is banished, hope is set free to embrace the future fearlessly.

Jesus defeated the temptations of Satan. So can we if we are in Him (Matthew 4:1-11). When Christ died, was buried, and resurrected, so were we (Romans 6). The resurrection is the pivotal event of the Christian faith: “If Christ is not risen, then our preaching is empty and your faith is also empty” (1 Corinthians 15:14).

If Jesus were still in His borrowed tomb, we’d be helpless and hopeless. But because of His resurrection, we have hope today and every day.

When someone asks you for “a reason for the hope that is in you” (1 Peter 3:15), tell them Jesus conquered the grave and promised that you will as well. Tell them that hope helps keep you alive.

Health and heaven -- two resurrection-based reasons for having hope!

________

David Jeremiah is pastor of Shadow Mountain Community Church in El Cajon, Calif., and founder and host of “Turning Point for God.” For more information on Turning Point, visit www.DavidJeremiah.org.

Psalm 21:7 Live Like a King — « Leader information shown in this fashion »

For the king trusts in the LORD, And through the mercy of the Most High he shall not be moved. (NKJV)

A. this is a psalm about the king, by the king — David

1. so, some of it cannot literally be applied to us « – the crown »

2. but, David didn’t start life as King, but as the youngest son, whose chores were caring for the sheep

3. yet a Christian can echo much of what David experienced

4. after all Jesus Christ “… has made us kings and priests to His God and Father …” (Revelation 1:6)

B. and in these words are some measures of spiritual health

1. Verse 1, blessing of joy in the Lord « — your time with God in His word and in prayer »

2. Verse 2, delight in God’s salvation « — contemplating this should be a source of much rejoicing »

3. Verse 3, experience of answered prayer « — meeting needs and desires that become daily more in tune with God’s »

4. Verse 4, a fullness of life

a. « O.T. relates to length of days; »

b. « N. T. relates to depth and breadth of life … Jesus said, “I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly” (John 10:10) »

5. Verse 5, the honours to be found in salvation

a. « the inestimable privilege of being children of God »

b. « the glory that will come with His appearing »

6. Verse 6, eternal blessing and gladness

C. so where do we find the source of all these — see verse 7 «

1. in our own self-efforts? No! … nor in our righteous deeds

2. it comes with trust, the O. T. expression of faith

3. the object of trust is God; it’s basis is His mercy

4. and from such you cannot be moved — this is assurance »

A few weeks ago, I was astonished to find Time magazine exposing how the collapse of marriage harms women, children, and the poor. No Christian could have made the prudential arguments for marriage more impressively.

Not to be outdone, the New York Times has just run a piece announcing that divorce can make you sick — sometimes for the rest of your life.

The Times described the findings of a study of more than 8,600 people in their 50s and 60s. The study sought to determine how divorce, widowhood, and remarriage affected their health. The authors’ conclusion: “The physical stress of marital loss continues long after the emotional wounds have healed.”

Among the divorced and widowed, men and women alike reported “about 20 percent more chronic health problems” including diabetes, cancer, and heart disease, than people who stayed married.

Even when people remarried, they had 12 percent more health problems than those who stayed married to their first spouse. The study revealed that “most married people who became single never fully recovered from the physical declines associated with marital loss,” the Times said.

The study was authored by University of Chicago sociology professor Linda Waite, an expert on marriage and divorce. Waite is the co-author, with Maggie Gallagher, of the book, The Case for Marriage: Why Married People Are Happier, Healthier, and Better Off Financially. In this book, the authors note that divorced, single, and widowed people are “far more likely to die from all causes,” including stroke, car accidents, murder, and suicide. Perhaps this is part of the reason God says in Malachi, “I hate divorce.”

The Times is quick to claim that staying in a bad marriage can lead to physical problems, too. But it’s good news that major news outlets are writing articles like this. For decades, they have trumpeted the idea that divorce harms nobody, that children do just fine without fathers, and that we should all just do whatever makes us happy, maritally speaking, that is.

But now the problems of marital breakdown — and failure to form families in the first place — have become so severe that not even news outlets hostile to Christian teachings can deny it.

Articles that reveal the damage of living outside of God’s design for us offer a great opportunity for the Church. I have long taught that only Christianity offers a reasonable system for how we are to live in the real world. Every day, it seems, we have more tragic evidence of the truth of that belief — provide by believers and non-believers alike who violate God’s design.

You and I need to reach out to neighbors who have been taken in, and harmed, by secular teachings about marriage and divorce. We should befriend them, find ways to meet their needs, and invite them to church.

Those who have suffered the consequences of false worldview teachings may well now be open to Christian teachings — and how well they match up with health and happiness. And having learned this, they may be open to learning more about, and following, the loving Maker of these rules.

The test of any worldview is, can you live with it? When it comes to marriage, we now have scientific evidence that living outside of God’s plan can literally make us sick.

________

Copyright (c) 2009 Prison Fellowship Ministries. Reprinted with permission. "BreakPoint with Chuck Colson" is a radio ministry of Prison Fellowship Ministries.