...who exchanged the truth of God for the lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen (Rom. 1:25)
f you are an American woman,
you live in a culture that not only idolizes health
and youth and beauty, but actively promotes the fear of disease and disability
and old age. The ultimate goal for modern man is to be achieved through health
and fitness, for only the healthy and fit have fun!
Whenever the worship of the creature replaces the worship of the Creator God, many truths about the nature of man and the nature of God are necessarily suppressed and replaced with false ones. Lies are the prerequisite for idolatry . This is why the Christian woman must be prepared and alert to ward off the subtle and not-so-subtle attempts to deceive her. What are these lies? What forms may they take?
When man ceases to live for the glory of God and lives to glorify himself, death and disease are the great and obvious enemies. The problem for modern, pleasure-seeking, God-hating man is "How can I worship my body and its pleasures for the longest period of time without the intrusion of sickness, disease, or that ultimate party-killer, death?" As J.C. Ryle points out in his booklet Sickness (Gospel Mission Press, 1990), neither the atheist nor the deist has a satisfactory answer for the problem of disease. Only the Christian has a true answer: the world is fallen through sin; the wages of sin is death.
The Christian woman must resist the world's attempt to hold her hostage through fear. Women seem to be the target of much of the media's fear tactics -- all in the name of "empowering" women. Perhaps this is because modern women are prime targets for the media. Whether it is through magazine articles, news programs on television, ads and commercials, or the ever-present video in the doctor's office, we are constantly encouraged to fear. Sometimes this fear is used to get us to buy something. A beautiful, gray-haired woman is shown slipping and crashing to the ground. Osteoporosis. They want us to dash out and buy calcium pills. Other times it may be a philosophical argument that we are asked to buy. "You are in charge of your own body," we are told. "You are a new, modern woman who is self-sufficient and independent. You make your own decisions regarding your body. You have a right to know the facts." (I am not making this up. I saw a video like this in a doctor's office just a week ago.)
Now what is wrong with this? It is humanistic, obviously. It removes God from the picture. Imagine, instead, a video like this: "You are a creature. Your Creator God has made your body, and it is a marvelous creation. Your body is not your own; it is a gift from God. It is fallen and therefore susceptible to sickness and disease. Be a good steward of this gift, and serve God with your body." Wouldn't this be a shocker, given our humanistic mindset? Try to imagine it as a pharmaceutical commercial on television!
Once a Christian woman succumbs to the fear of cancer and heart disease and menopause, the fear, like cancer , spreads. She fears for herself, and because she is compassionate, she begins to fear for her family members. Perhaps statistics are high for multiple sclerosis in your part of the country. Oh no. What can you do? Your state has a high incidence of childhood cancer. Should you move? Your great aunt died of cancer. This puts you in the high-risk category. Your cousin had a brain tumor. Does it run in the family, or was it just a fluke? This is the stuff fear is made of. If I watch my diet and do aerobics, I won't die of a heart attack. Very good. What will I die of then?
Obviously, nothing can keep all sickness and disease away for good. We are all going to die -- each and every one of us. And we are all going to die of something . But for the Christian, there should be nothing to fear in this.
"Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? . . . neither death nor life . . ." (Romans 8:35,38). When Christian women get sucked into the fear trap, they are forgetting this important truth as well as some other important ones. Review your theology to deal with these fears. Sound theology is the cure for fear. Consider that God is in complete control of His entire creation. Do you believe this? Remember that sickness is one of the means God can use to teach His children patience, endurance, compassion, trust, gratitude, contentment. It can be a refining tool in God's hand. If you are God's child, you can know that He will work all things together for good, and this includes sickness, disease, and death.
Even though you may be the one in the family who makes the appointments with the pediatrician, remember that you are not capable of ensuring the perfect health of your family. You are just a creature too. God may need to remind you of your own finitude.
Of course, the Christian woman can honor God by seeing that the children get their shots and medical check-ups and learn about hygiene. God can use these things to protect your family. So much is simply godly prudence and Christian stewardship. But do not rest in these externals; rest in Christ.
Accept the fact that God does allow sickness for His own good purpose. Do not be afraid. Keep away from stories or documentaries that are set-ups for fear. Always evaluate what you are being told. Is it true? Is it being presented in a way that is biblically accurate? Does it take the Creator/creature relationship into account? Because the world worships the creature, this distinction is seldom made. Do not be afraid, but fear God.
