Saturday, March 19, 2022

The Calm Before the Storm. “Examine Yourselves.” How to Increase Your Life Expectancy 12 to 14 Years.

.

The Calm Before the Storm

“There is a saying, “There are decades where nothing happens, and there are weeks when decades happen.” Looking at events in the world right now that certainly seems true. The global order we have known for many years is unraveling. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is forcing European nations to reconsider their defenses. The world we have known is changing day by day.

First the COVID-19 pandemic. Now war. What is next? Famine? Very possibly. We could see shortages in wheat and corn as war comes to a critical region that grows vital grain supplies for the world. It will be the developing nations of Africa and Asia that will suffer most when they are not able to obtain needed grains for their people.

War in a place like Ukraine has ripple effects far beyond its borders. Wherever you live there is likely to be mostly peace and stability. But I have a feeling this war will have implications for all of us in the coming months. Something big in the world has changed. We are living at a dangerous moment, and we need to understand.

When I was a young man, my mentor was fond of saying, “Prepare now for the trouble to come.” He would say it so often you grew tired of hearing it. That phrase has come back to me in recent days. We should be preparing for a period of increasing world trouble that will come to our doorstep.

We are to be children of light and not darkness. When we focus on the light, we can reach a calm and confident state of mind. We can fight off anxiety and fear that comes with the news of the day. This is time for a disciple of Jesus Christ to focus on preparing for the time beyond the troubles of this age. We who live now have before us the opportunity and challenge to prepare now for the coming age of Christ’s reign on earth. The wise will understand and seize the moment.

Beyond the tumultuous times of today lies the promise of a transformed world of peace and plenty—the age of Christ's glorious reign on the earth. This chapter from our study guide, You Can Understand Bible Prophecy, titled, “The Millennial Reign of Jesus Christ,” gives you hope and understanding. Please take a moment to read it now.”

Until next time,

Darris McNeely     


Darris McNeely
Beyond Today presenter

_______

“Examine Yourselves”

2 Corinthians 13:5

“Examine yourselves as to whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Do you not know yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you are disqualified.

Examine yourselves as to whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Do you not know yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you are disqualified (2 Corinthians 13:5).

The apostle Paul encouraged the Christians in Corinth to examine themselves, to test whether they were allowing Jesus Christ to live in them. Self-examination should be a regular part of the Christian life of change. It is a vital aspect of the conversion process.

For more about self-examination and conversion, see the articles in the section on “Christian Conversion.”

“Examine Yourselves”: What Does It Mean to Be Disqualified?

“Paul told Christians to examine themselves before the New Testament Passover. How should we interpret his warnings about disqualification and unworthiness?

“Examine Yourselves”: What Does It Mean to Be Disqualified?

The testing of Roman coins helps us understand the word Paul used for examine. The coins were expected to pass the test, and so are we.

Coin is Volume 90%

It’s one of the more intimidating verses in the entire Bible:

“Examine yourselves as to whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Do you not know yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you are disqualified” (2 Corinthians 13:5).

Today, these passages can be cause for serious concern for any Christian in progress. We each know our own flaws and shortcomings better than anyone. We know the sins we struggle with. We know how many times we’ve had to pray for forgiveness. We know how far we are from where we want to be.

And for so many of us, there are the questions—the ever-present questions that assault us in moments of quiet introspection:

Am I disqualified? Am I unworthy? Is Jesus Christ really in me? Have I failed to discern the Lord’s body?

Let’s talk about that.

(Learn what the Passover is and why it matters in “Passover: What Did Jesus Do for You?”)

Understanding the words Paul used

When Paul wrote, “Test yourselves,” he used a form of the Greek verb dokimazo. He used the same verb when he wrote, “Let a man examine himself.”

Something important gets lost when we translate that verb from Greek into English. In English, when we decide to examine or test something, it might be because we’re suspicious of it—because we suspect there’s something wrong with it.

That’s not how dokimazo works.

Like most civilizations, the Roman Empire had to deal with counterfeit currency. The easiest way to counterfeit a Roman coin was to make a duplicate out of a cheaper metal (like copper), then coat the outside with a more precious metal (like silver).

The easiest way to identify these counterfeit coins was to gouge them with a chisel, exposing the inside. An official coin tester in the marketplace would make these gouges to prove that coins were, in fact, genuine. Coins that passed this test were dokimos—approved, genuine. Coins that failed were adokimos—disqualified, counterfeit.

The expectation is that you will pass the test too.The unique thing about dokimazo is that it implies an expectation. The focus of the test was not to expose something as counterfeit, but to verify it as genuine. HELPS Word-studies explains that dokimazo “is done to demonstrate what is good, i.e. passes the necessary test,” adding that it “does not focus on disproving something (i.e. to show it is bad).” While some coins would not pass the test, the expectation was that they would.

Which means the expectation is that you will pass the test too.

Self-examination should not leave us uncertain

People are a lot like those ancient coins. Everyone can see what you are on the outside. But only you and God know who you are at your core. Only you and God know your deepest thoughts and desires. Only you and God know if you’re truly serious about and dedicated to this way of life.

But it shouldn’t be a mystery to us. Paul’s question, “Do you not know yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you are disqualified,” implies that we should know ourselves. We should know whether Jesus Christ is in us. We should know whether or not we’re disqualified.

Does your core match up with your outer layer? Are you the same person in private as you are in public? Are you committed, or are you just pretending?

Are you dokimos or adokimos?

Self-examination will not reveal perfection

This isn’t about being perfect.

You can’t be perfect. Not in this life.

The sacrifice of Jesus Christ is what makes us worthy—not anything we could possibly do. When the baptized men and women of the Church of God come together this year to eat the bread and drink the wine of the New Testament Passover, none of them will be worthy of it. The sacrifice of Jesus Christ is what makes us worthynot anything we could possibly do.

What we can do is eat and drink it in a worthy manner. To come to the Passover with a deep gratitude and respect for the body and the blood of Jesus Christ—to take those symbols with an understanding of what it took for us to be justified in the eyes of God—to know that our “right to the tree of life” (Revelation 22:14) was not earned but given through a sacrifice we could never deserve.

(Read more about that sacrifice in “Why Jesus Had to Die.”)

When we repent, when we are baptized, when we accept that who we are right now is not who God wants us to ultimately become, we commit ourselves to a lifetime of change—a lifetime of overcoming this world’s influences and our own human weaknesses.

That is to say, a lifetime of not yet being perfect.

A lifetime of genuinely striving, with God’s help, but not yet living up “to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ” (Ephesians 4:13).

That’s not the same as being disqualified. That’s just what it means to be human in pursuit of living like God. Being disqualified is about being counterfeit—about passing ourselves off as Christian when, in fact, we have no intent or desire to even try to live that way of life.

You know if that’s you. And you know if that’s not you. That’s what the testing and the examining are about.

Paul told Timothy, “Be diligent to present yourself approved [dokimos] to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth” (2 Timothy 2:15).

No Christian in progress should go through the process of self-examination and still be wondering if he or she is secretly disqualified. If you are seeking God, if you are repenting of your sins and striving to replace them with godly character (no matter how bumpy the road), if Christianity is more than just a show you’re putting on for the benefit of others, then you are dokimos.

And if you are dokimos, you are a worker who does not need to be ashamed.”

Check that all there at: https://lifehopeandtruth.com/life/christian-living/christianity-in-progress/examine-yourselves-disqualified/

________

How to Increase Your Life Expectancy 12 to 14 Years

What can physicians do to promote healthy, life-extending, lifestyle changes?

Transcript of YouTube: https://youtu.be/dGSMiKuqaY8

Below is an approximation of this video’s audio content. To see any graphs, charts, graphics, images, and quotes to which Dr. Greger may be referring, watch the above video.

“A pivotal paper published in Europe more than a decade ago, entitled “Healthy Living Is the Best Revenge,” found that adhering to just four simple healthy lifestyle factors compared to none could potentially have a strong impact on the prevention of chronic diseases. We’re talking nearly 80 percent less chronic disease risk––slashing diabetes risk by 93 percent, dropping heart attack risk by 81 percent, cutting stroke risk in half, and cancer by 36 percent.

Think about what that means. The potential for preventing disease and death is enormous. In the U.S. alone every year, there are a half million heart attacks, a half million strokes, a million new cases of diabetes, and a million new cancer diagnoses. The message is clear: adopting a few healthy behaviors can have a major impact. What are those four fabled factors? Never smoking, not being obese, averaging about a half hour of exercise a day, and adhering to healthy dietary principles, like lots of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains, and less meat. Follow those four simple rules and boom! Enjoy nearly 80 percent reduced risk of major chronic diseases.

What does that mean for mortality risk? A similar batch of four health behaviors combined predicted a four-fold difference in total mortality, with an estimated impact equivalent to 14 years in chronological age, meaning the individuals were dying at such a reduced rate that it was as if they were 14 years younger. “Finally, a Regimen to Extend Human Life Expectancy.” This commentary was in reference to this study, where a similar analysis of the impact of healthy lifestyle behaviors on life expectancies was made, but this time it looked directly at the U.S. population, which is particularly important, since Americans have a shorter life expectancy compared with residents of nearly all other high-income countries. The researchers concluded that adopting a healthy lifestyle could substantially reduce premature mortality and prolong life expectancy in U.S. adults. Okay, but by how much? They estimated that adherence to a low-risk lifestyle could prolong life expectancy at age 50 years by 14.0 years in women and 12.2 years in men. So, if you’re 50 right now, instead of only living to 79 if you’re a woman, and 75½ if you’re a man, taking even just basic care of yourself could propel you to an average life expectancy of 93 if you’re a woman and 87½ if you’re a man.

The bottom line is it’s never too late to turn back the clock. A midlife switch just to the basics, like at least five daily servings fruits and vegetables, walking even like 20 minutes a day, maintaining a healthy weight, and not smoking results in a substantial reduction in mortality even in the following few years. We’re talking a 40 percent lower risk of dying in the subsequent four years. So, making the necessary changes to adhere to a healthy lifestyle could be considered extremely worthwhile, and middle age is certainly not too late to act.

As an aside, realizing the 12 to 14 years of added life study was based on data from health professionals, that got me excited about all the potential knock-on effects. If health professionals start getting healthier, they can become role models for more healthful living and potentially save more lives than just their own. But that may have just been wishful thinking. Practicing what you preach can sometimes backfire. Evidently, “displays of excellence can paradoxically turn off the very people they are trying to inspire.”

You’d assume that not being a hypocrite and trying to walk the walk would just lead to positive consequences, inspiring confidence in others. Don’t you want a dance instructor who can dance, a music teacher who can play, and a health professional who’s healthy? But this simple intuition fails to take into account concerns about making other people feel inadequate. Like you know how vegetarians are the targets of a surprising amount of hostility and ridicule. That’s because they may come off as morally superior and make people feel like they’re being looked down upon.

There was an elegant demonstration of this phenomenon in this study where “Principled deviants who take the high road threaten others’ moral self-worth.” This is what they did. Research subjects were asked to complete a racist task by an experimenter, and those moral rebels who refused to obey were cheered by observers but were disparaged by participants who had themselves gone through with it, and for whom the rebel’s stance thus an implied indictment of their spinelessness. Isn’t that interesting?

So, when doctors portray themselves as “the picture of health,” patients might think they’re being holier-than-thou and unintentionally alienate people, potentially turning off the very patients who most need their help. You can see how someone with a weight issue might feel threatened and judged by a physician triathlete. But what are we supposed to do? We want healthy practitioners.

Physicians who smoke are less likely to tell their patients to quit smoking, physicians who are overweight are less likely to counsel their patients about weight, and physicians who don’t work out are less likely to talk about exercise. What we can do to make patients more comfortable is emphasize that our role is to help people meet their own personal health goals, whatever they may be. Studies show that when doctors do this, taking this approach, it increases the appeal of fitness-focused physicians to overweight patients. So, we can then display exemplary behavior, while at the same time not inadvertently alienate the very people who would benefit most from our guidance.” From: https://nutritionfacts.org/video/how-to-increase-your-life-expectancy-12-to-14-years/?

_______

Sunday, March 13, 2022

Jewish Sabbath? Or Is the Sabbath a Gift for All? Paul’s Sabbath Custom. Cancer-Causing NDMA in Medications (Zantac, Metformin) and MEAT.

.

Jewish Sabbath? Or Is the Sabbath a Gift for All?

Jewish Sabbath or Is the Sabbath a Gift for All“Is the Sabbath God’s gift for all people, or is the Sabbath just a commandment for the Jews? Who does the Bible say the seventh-day Sabbath is for?

Opinions abound on whether the Sabbath commandment is still in effect for Christians today. Some believe it is no longer necessary to keep this commandment. Some think it is only for Jews.

Others think the day has been changed from the seventh day, Saturday, to the first day, Sunday. Some think the New Testament calls keeping the seventh-day Sabbath bondage and that Christians are now free to observe any day of their choosing.

The truth is, the Sabbath of the Bible is on Saturday. It has never changed.

The Sabbath is a gift

God created the Sabbath on the seventh day of creation week. He blessed the Sabbath day and set it apart, setting the pattern by resting on the seventh day (Genesis 2:3). At that time there were no nations—only Adam and Eve, the ancestors of all humans.

More than 2,000 years later, God reminded the people of Israel about His Sabbath. This occurred after He led them out of slavery in Egypt, but before He gave the 10 Commandments at Mount Sinai.

In giving the children of Israel the miracle of manna to eat, God instructed them to gather a sufficient amount to eat each day since it would spoil if kept overnight.

On the sixth day, however, they were to gather twice as much because on the seventh day there would be none, and on this night, unlike the other nights, the manna would not spoil. God said that this was a test to see if Israel would walk in His law (Exodus 16:4-5).

When some of the people went out to try to gather it on the seventh day, “the LORD said to Moses, ‘How long do you refuse to keep My commandments and My laws? See! For the LORD has given you the Sabbath; therefore He gives you on the sixth day bread for two days. Let every man remain in his place; let no man go out of his place on the seventh day’” (Exodus 16:28-29).

From this passage we see that God gave them the Sabbath. It was a gift!

Jesus Christ added, “The Sabbath was made for man” (Mark 2:27).

The Sabbath is a gift for all people—not just the Israelites.

The Sabbath of the LORD; the Lord of the Sabbath

Listed among the feasts of the Lord—the days upon which God’s people are to assemble to worship Him—we note that the seventh day is “the Sabbath of the LORD” (Leviticus 23:3). It is God’s day—not the exclusive day of a single group of people during a particular time.

And so in the New Testament Jesus is rightly called the “Lord of the Sabbath” (Mark 2:28). God’s seventh-day Sabbath is also the Christian Sabbath.

 While some may bristle at the idea that God commands us to do anything other than love Him, the Bible reveals that God gives us these commands for our good. The fact that God intended the Sabbath to be a blessing for all is also illustrated in that God told the Israelites that the Sabbath was to be a day of rest for all the members of their households, their servants, the foreigners living with them and even their animals. (Exodus 20:10).

So the Sabbath is clearly a gift from God that was intended for everyone!

The Sabbath is a command

In addition to being a gift, the Sabbath is also a command.

In Exodus 20:8, God told the ancient Israelites and us today: “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the LORD your God. In it you shall do no work: you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your male servant, nor your female servant, nor your cattle, nor your stranger who is within your gates.

“For in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it” (Exodus 20:8-11).

As God explained to ancient Israel: “Now it shall come to pass, if you diligently obey the voice of the LORD your God, to observe carefully all His commandments which I command you today, that the LORD your God will set you high above all nations of the earth. And all these blessings shall come upon you and overtake you, because you obey the voice of the LORD your God” (Deuteronomy 28:1-2).

“If you love Me, keep My commandments”

Should Christians keep the Sabbath command? Yes. Obeying God is how we show our love for Him. As Jesus Christ said, “If you love Me, keep My commandments” (John 14:15). The apostle John added: “For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome” (1 John 5:3).

Jesus, who is in complete agreement with the Father (John 10:30), said, “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven” (Matthew 7:21). Obeying God is not optional for those who wish to be in His Kingdom.

Sabbath for all people

In summary, the Sabbath is both a gift and a command for all people, not just the Jews. Because keeping the Sabbath shows love to God, it is an enduring expectation of God for all those who seek Him.  From: https://lifehopeandtruth.com/bible/10-commandments/sabbath/jewish-sabbath/?

_______

Paul’s Sabbath Custom

Acts 17:2

Then Paul, as his custom was, went in to them, and for three Sabbaths reasoned with them from the Scriptures.

As we saw in Acts 13:42-44, the apostle Paul consistently preached on the seventh-day Sabbath, even to the gentiles.

In Thessalonica, Paul continued this custom, preaching on three Sabbath days and teaching why Jesus Christ had to suffer and die. The Bible shows Christ died for our sins—because we have broken God’s commandments (1 John 3:4-5; 5:3). This includes the Fourth Commandment about remembering to keep God’s seventh-day Sabbath holy.

Many think that the Sabbath was changed. Find out what the Bible says in our article “Was the Sabbath Changed to Sunday?” From: https://lifehopeandtruth.com/bible/blog/pauls-sabbath-custom/?

For further study on the Sabbath, read the article “How to Keep the Sabbath as a Christian.”

The Sabbath: A Neglected Gift from God

RELATED ARTICLES

_______

Cancer-Causing NDMA in Medications (Zantac, Metformin) and Meat

Transcript of YouTube video: https://youtu.be/OXo3mbZpdDA

Billion-dollar drugs pulled from the market for carcinogenic contamination less than that found in a single serving of grilled chicken.

In 2018, one of the bestselling blood pressure drugs, valsartan—sold as Diovan—was found to be contaminated by the “probably carcinogenic” nitrosamine known as N-nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA). It’s believed that approximately 20 million people worldwide were prescribed the drug tainted with this contaminant whose cancer risk has been shown to exceed that of many known potent carcinogens, including asbestos, benzo[a]pyrene, and PCBs.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) estimated that taking the drug for a few years could cause cancer in as many as 1 in 8,000 people, whereas the European equivalent of the FDA estimated the cancer risk could be as high as 1 in 5,000. It is unlikely, researchers wrote in this Spring 2019 paper, that drugs like valsartan are a unique case. And indeed, a few months later, the FDA announced it had found NDMA in ranitidine.

Ranitidine, the acid reflux drug sold as Zantac, is one of the most prescribed drugs on the planet, in addition to being sold over the counter. Give people a single tablet and the amount of NDMA flowing through their bodies jumps up more than a hundred-fold.

Then in 2020, some formulations of metformin, a popular diabetes drug sold as Glucophage, were found to be contaminated. The finding of NDMA in common medicines led the FDA to call for the immediate withdrawal of all Zantac from store shelves, yanking the drug from the market because their testing showed NDMA levels could in some circumstances exceed the acceptable daily intake limit of 96 nanograms per day. It was so bad that the FDA found levels of this carcinogenic contaminant NDMA in Zantac similar to the levels you would expect to be exposed to if you ate grilled or smoked meats!

Wait, what?

NDMA has not only been found in contaminating drugs. It is a known byproduct from pesticide manufacturing, leather tanning, and tire plants, and is found in multiple foods and beverages, including processed meat and beer. Now that we know NDMA can transfer through the placenta, this may explain the relationship between maternal cured meat consumption during pregnancy and the risk of childhood brain tumors. For example, hot dog consumption during pregnancy may increase childhood brain tumor risk by 33 percent or sausage consumption may increase it by 44 percent. Bacon consumption may increase childhood brain tumor odds by 60 or 70 percent. But it’s not just processed meat. Researchers have found it in poultry products as well.

A single serving of chicken contains more than 100 nanograms of NDMA. Remember how the FDA said the acceptable daily intake limit is 96 nanograms per day? Half of a chicken breast contains 110.

Now, raw poultry doesn’t have any; it’s the cooking process. In fact, the dry-heat cooking of meat, like broiling or grilling, even creates airborne NDMA, releasing this very potent carcinogenic compound into the air. So, even if you’re only getting a salad or something in a charcoal grill restaurant, just being indoors where meat is being cooked could pose a significant cancer risk.

These nitrosamines are also found in cigarette smoke, and pressure was put on the tobacco industry to try to remove them, arguing that there is simply no logical reason why a removable carcinogen should be allowed to remain in a consumer product. That’s the same reason Zantac was yanked from store shelves.

Okay, so let me get this straight.

One of the best-selling drugs in history was pulled from the market—a drug that brought in billions of dollars—because it contained a probable carcinogen that exceeded the acceptable daily limit, but there may be more of the contaminant in a single serving of chicken! So, my question is: why aren’t they pulling the poultry off the shelves as well?”

Below is an approximation of this video’s audio content. To see any graphs, charts, graphics, images, and quotes to which Dr. Greger may be referring, watch the above video.

_______

Sunday, March 6, 2022

I Just Lost My Spouse. Where Are They Now? The Righteous Requirement of the Law. How to Prevent High Blood Pressure with Diet.

.

I Just Lost My Spouse. Where Are They Now?

A man with his head down appearing to be grieving. “A lost loved one is in the grave, unconscious and waiting for the resurrection to life promised by God, when they will have the chance to be reunited with their friends and family.

Clem Onojeghuo/Unsplash

People who did not know Christ will indeed stand up once more, in a physical life, and have an opportunity to understand who God and Christ are and what their plan for all humanity is.

The apostle Paul explains what happens when a believer dies: “But I do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning those who have fallen asleep, lest you sorrow as others who have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who sleep in Jesus” (1 Thessalonians 4:13-14). Here, we know the term "fallen asleep" is referring to death because he contrasts those who are asleep with "those who are alive and remain" (1 Thessalonians 4:15; compare Revelation 6:9-11). Then those in the faith who are still alive when Christ returns will be resurrected in the next instant after Christ returns (1 Thessalonians 4:17).

What is the kind of life that they will be resurrected to? It is life as a spirit being, rather than as a physical being (1 Corinthians 15:42-51; compare 1 Thessalonians 4:13-17, Revelation 11:15).

What about those who didn’t die “in Christ”? Are these people unsaved and condemned to burn forever in torment? No. For people not in this first resurrection, there is a second resurrection. It is described in Revelation: “I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for their testimony about Jesus and for proclaiming the word of God . . . They all came to life again, and they reigned with Christ for a thousand years. This is the first resurrection. (The rest of the dead did not come back to life until the thousand years had ended.)” (Revelation 20:4-5, New Living Translation).

Notice the phrase “the rest of the dead.” Who are these people who are resurrected at the end of the thousand years? Quite simply, they are all those who are not in the first resurrection. So who is that? It is the vast majority of humanity that has ever lived, who never truly knew or understood who God is, or what his plan for man is. Most significantly, notice that the Bible says these people will live again!

Jesus Christ spoke about this second resurrection as well. In Matthew 12:38-42, Christ condemns the religious leaders of His day, saying: “The men of Nineveh will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, because they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and indeed a greater than Jonah is here. The queen of the South will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and indeed a greater than Solomon is here.” Christ says these people will be resurrected (the word for "rise up" here is the same root word for resurrection we read earlier in Revelation 20:5).

What an amazing concept! People who did not know Christ will indeed stand up once more, in a physical life, and have an opportunity to understand who God and Christ are and what their plan for all humanity is. The only way for this to be possible—for people who lived literally many hundreds of years apart to live again at the same time—is for God to resurrect all of them at the same time.

The Scriptures are plain about the fact that all people have only one chance at salvation. However, a second chance at life is not the same as a second chance at salvation. Coming to life again will enable them to have their only chance for salvation. To understand more about what happens after death, read What Happens After Death? and Heaven and Hell: What Does the Bible Really Teach?        From: https://www.ucg.org/bible-study-tools/bible-questions-and-answers/i-just-lost-my-spouse-where-are-they-now

_______

The Righteous Requirement of the Law

Romans 8:4

“That the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.

God is a God of righteousness and justice. His laws are perfect and beneficial, and breaking them is completely opposite of God’s way of love. Sin produces suffering and death.

Fulfilling the righteous requirements of the law includes obeying God’s law with the help of God’s Holy Spirit, through which Jesus Christ lives in us and writes God’s laws on our hearts and minds. Christ also paid the death penalty for our sins, since God’s righteous justice also requires the shedding of blood for sin.”      For more about righteousness, see “Slaves of Sin or Slaves of Righteousness?””    From: https://lifehopeandtruth.com/bible/blog/the-righteous-requirement-of-the-law/?

________

How to Prevent High Blood Pressure with Diet

Transcript of YouTube: https://youtu.be/Eg7DLVYwcDs

To see any graphs, charts, graphics, images, and quotes to which Dr. Greger may be referring, watch the above video. This is just an approximation of the audio contributed by Katie Schloer.

“High blood pressure, the #1 killer risk factor in the world, may be eliminated with a healthy enough diet.

The most comprehensive and systematic analysis of causes of death ever undertaken allows us to answer questions like: how many lives could we save if people cut back on soda? The answer? Our best estimate: 299,521. Soda isn’t just bad because it’s empty calories, so it’s not a health-promoting food. It appears to be an actively death-promoting food. Of course not as deadly as bacon, bologna, ham, or hot dogs: 800,000 deaths every year, killing twice as many women as domestic violence; five times more people than all illegal drugs combined.

But eating more whole grains could save 1.7 million lives every year; more vegetables, 1.8 million lives. If only we ate more nuts and seeds, 2.5 million lives saved. But fruit is apparently what the world needs most (they didn’t look at beans): 4.9 million lives hang in the balance every year, and the cure is not drugs or vaccines; the cure is fruit.

One reason why plant-based diets can save so many millions is because the #1 killer risk factor in the world is high blood pressure, laying to waste nine million people, year after year.

In the United States, high blood pressure affects nearly 78 million—that’s one in three of us, and as we age, our pressures get higher and higher, such that by age 60, it strikes more than half. If it affects most of us when we get older, maybe it’s less a disease, and more just a natural, inevitable consequence of aging? No. We’ve known for nearly a century that high blood pressure need never occur. Researchers measured the blood pressure of a thousand people in rural Kenya who ate a diet centered around whole plant foods. Whole grains, beans, vegetables, fruit, and dark green leafies.

Up until age 40, the blood pressures of rural Africans were about the same as Europeans and Americans, down around 120 over 80, but as Westerners age, their pressures creep up such that by age 60, the average person is hypertensive, exceeding 140 over 90. But what about those not following the Western diet? Their pressures improved with age; not only did they not develop hypertension, their blood pressures actually got better.

The whole 140 over 90 cutoff is arbitrary. Just like studies show that the lower the cholesterol the better, there’s really no safe cholesterol level above about 150. Blood pressure studies also support the “lower the better” approach to blood pressure reduction. Even people who start out with blood pressure under 120 over 80 appear to benefit from blood pressure reduction. But is it possible to get blood pressures under 110 over 70? It’s not just possible; it’s normal, for those eating healthy enough diets.

Over two years at a rural Kenyan hospital, 1,800 patients were admitted. How many cases of high blood pressure did they find? Zero. Wow, so they must have had low rates of heart disease. No, they had no rates of heart disease. Not low risk, no risk. Not a single case of arteriosclerosis—our #1 killer—was found.”     From: https://nutritionfacts.org/video/how-to-prevent-high-blood-pressure-with-diet/

_______