MODERN MEDICINE FROM AN ANCIENT BOOK

Presented by

Blake Brown

Eye doctors. Brain doctors. Heart doctors. Ear, nose, and throat doctors. Bone doctors. Stomach doctors. Kidney doctors. Today, if there is a part of your body that is in need of medical attention, you will not have any trouble finding a doctor who can address the problem. In the twenty-first century, we have the best medical technology the world has ever seen. We can use genetic tests to probe your DNA. We can use X-rays to scrutinize your bones. We can use an MRI to inspect your brain, and we can use a CAT scan to examine various parts of your body. Yes, in our day and age we have the most-advanced medical knowledge ever known to humankind.

But did you know that the Bible contains equally impressive knowledge—and it was written almost 2,000 years ago! This should not surprise us, of course, because as Paul pointed out in 2 Timothy 3:16, “All scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness.” The word “inspired” comes from a Greek term meaning “God breathed.” Paul’s point was that the Bible writers’ did not write what they wanted to write. Rather, they wrote what God wanted them to write. In 2 Peter 1:20-21 the apostle Peter said, “No prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation, for no prophecy ever came by the will of man, but men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit.” Peter used the Greek term for “moved” that means “to be borne along by.” His point was the same as Paul’s—that the Bible writers did not write on their own, but instead were “borne along by” the Holy Spirit to say what they did.

Among the many fascinating proofs that the Bible came from God is its unique scientific foreknowledge. From anthropology to zoology, the Bible presents incredibly accurate scientific information that the writers, on their own, simply could not have known. Today, I would like to discuss with you some of the advanced medical information that is found within the Bible, and which shows that it really is God’s Word. Consider, for example, the following items.

First, in Leviticus 17:11-14 Moses told the Israelites that “the life of the flesh is in the blood.” Today we know just how true this statement really is. Red blood cells contain a particle known as hemoglobin, which carries the oxygen molecule that makes life possible. Unfortunately, scientists did not know that in George Washington’s day. And how, exactly, did the “father of our country” die? Doctors bled him to death because they believed that the blood was where “evil vapors” were found, and that getting rid of the “bad blood” would make a person well again. Today, of course, we know that the opposite is true. Think of how often blood transfusions have made life possible for those who would have died without such transfusions. As yourself: How could Moses have known that “the life of the flesh is in the blood”?

Second, the Law of Moses set strict limits on the eating of certain meats. Some meats were “clean,” and could be eaten by the Israelites. Others, however, were “unclean,” and could not be eaten. Leviticus 11:3 informs us that among land-living animals, only those that had a split hoof and that chewed the cud could be eaten. When it came to water-living animals, Leviticus 11:9 informs us that only those with fins and scales were acceptable as food. Birds of prey (like vultures) could not be eaten; nor could most insects. But perhaps the best-known example among unclean animals was the pig. Jews could not eat pork. But why was this the case?

Today we can see that there was good scientific reasoning behind God’s ancient laws. Pigs are scavengers, and will eat almost anything. As they do so, they sometimes ingest a parasite (Trichinella spiralis) that causes a very serious disease in humans known as trichinosis. Pigs also are carriers of other parasites that can cause tumors in a person’s liver and lungs. If humans eat raw or undercooked pork, it can cause them to become quite ill. Pigs can provide safe meat—if they are fed properly, and if the muscle tissue is cooked correctly. But such conditions generally did not prevail in ancient times.

The Israelites had public-health laws that were light-years ahead of their times. In fact, archaeologists have yet to find civilizations as old as the Israelites that possessed regulations rivaling those of the Jewish people in regard to complexity and scientific accuracy. The Egyptians, for example, were brilliant in many respects when it came to medical technology. Yet the Jews had access to medical information that not even the Egyptians possessed.

There are many more examples of this kind of scientific foreknowledge in the Bible. And, in a future sermon, I plan to discuss some of them with you. For now, however, I simply would like to ask you this: How did Moses—an ancient shepherd—know this type of advanced scientific information? Was it “just a lucky guess” on his part? Or, was he “moved by the Holy Spirit” to write what God told him to write? To ask is to answer, is it not?