Promises To Saints

As you read about the promises to saints that keep and do the sayings found in the Word of Wisdom, and walk in obedience to God's commandments, keep in mind that all things in heaven and earth bear witness of Jesus Christ and that every temporal blessing or promise is a type and shadow of a far greater spiritual blessing. President Boyd K. Packer taught that the spiritual blessings associated with the Word of Wisdom far outweigh the temporal blessings. In the commentary that follows, we strive to help you more fully discover the greater spiritual promises that are associated with this doctrine called The Word of Wisdom.

Health in the Navel and Marrow in the Bones

18 And all saints who remember to keep and do these sayings, walking in obedience to the commandments, shall receive health in their navel - Health in the Navel is a promise of constant nourishment to body and spirit. An infant in the womb is fed through its navel from conception to becoming a whole person. So, too, the Holy Ghost is our umbilical connection to the Lord through the veil. As we live the laws of obedience, sacrifice, gospel, chastity, and consecration (or keep all God's commandments) our spiritual ascension is made possible, and we are nourished grace for grace with God’s light and knowledge until we receive a fulness of his glory. We thus become sanctified and are made perfect and holy, in Christ.

and marrow to their bones; Marrow creates red blood cells that carry life-giving oxygen to our cells for each breath we take. This is a type and shadow of God’s promise to sustain the breath of life in us until we achieve our allotted time on earth. Marrow also creates white blood cells that protect the body from harmful bacteria, antigens, and pathogens, which is a type of God’s promise to give us power over mortal enemies and spiritual principalities of darkness that seek to destroy us. Marrow also creates progenitor cells that become replacement cells for worn out cells, which is a type of God’s promise to renew, regenerate, and recreate us as we ascend in grace to become like him. As the nourishing, protecting, renewing, and life-sustaining strength of marrow is centered in the innermost part of the body, so, too, is God’s spirit centered in our innermost core and nourishes, renews, and protects us during our ascension in grace to become his heirs.

You Shall Find Wisdom and Knowledge

19 And shall find wisdom... The Holy Ghost is our source of wisdom, light, knowledge, power, judgement, and innumerable gifts of the spirit. Under his influence we are led to counsel with each other in wisdom, which leads to successful outcomes. In contrast, without the influence of the Holy Ghost, we are left to our own wisdom, and our counsels often lead to failure. For example, when husbands and wives do not enjoy the constant companionship of the Holy Ghost between them, it can lead to the destruction of family, to bondage of hostile relationships, to debt, and to diminished happiness. Similarly, when ancient Israel fell into apostasy they were driven from their lands, scattered, smitten, and carried away into captivity (bondage). The Holy Ghost leads us to be stable, prosperous, and happy individuals, couples, families, and nations. In his absence, when left to our own wisdom, successful outcomes are less likely to occur. 

and great treasures of knowledge, even hidden treasures; The Holy Ghost is also our conduit for receiving treasures of knowledge that are hidden behind our veil of unbelief. Unbelief is all that we disbelieve which is true and all we believe to be true that is false, including the false dietary traditions of our fathers. Unbelief causes our view of things and the way we think, feel, and act toward them to be different from God’s views, thoughts, feelings, and actions. To receive the light and knowledge we need during our ascension in grace to become Gods heirs, we must give away all that is false in us in order to make room for the further light and knowledge that awaits us beyond our veil of unbelief. We have been invited to eat like Daniel, or to eat fruits, vegetables, and grains, particularly wheat, and to forebear eating animal products, except when they are needed to save our lives, such as in times of famine and excess of hunger. This is the eating pattern God ordained for us to best sustain our constitution and nature. If you would become a pure vessel of the Lord, like Daniel, then believe God, and obey him with exactness.

Run and Not be Weary and Walk and Not Faint

20 And shall run and not be weary, and shall walk and not faint. The Lord is the creator of the ends of the earth and faints not, neither does he weary in all that he does. In contrast, old and young men grow weary and faint while doing the work God sent them here to do. As we remain true and faithful to our covenants the Lord blesses us in our ascension in grace, until we are endowed with the Lord’s unwearying strength and capacity, as follows (see Isaiah 40:31):

But they that wait upon the Lord: they who press forward in faith with a perfect brightness of hope in Jesus Christ, obeying the Lord’s voice, and being true and faithful to their covenants in all things.

shall renew their strength: they shall enter the strait and narrow path of perfection and shall ascend from grace to grace to receive a fulness of God’s glory (i.e. his light, knowledge, strength, and capacity), until their every weakness is made strong unto them.

they shall mount up with wings as eagles: they shall be endowed with God’s power to be weariless, as an eagle that is raised up to soar effortlessly in the heavens, and to have a perfect view of all things.

they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint:  Saints that ascend in grace to receive light, knowledge, regeneration, recreation, and renewal, as described previously, become endowed with the same power that was given to Enoch, Moses, Elijah, John the beloved, Alma, the three Nephites, and other holy men. The Word of Wisdom is a doctrine that has the power vested within it to enable saints to live God’s highest temporal and spiritual laws, and to thus lay hold upon the highest blessings afforded to man in mortality. True saints are endowed with power to become like God (i.e. exalted), and receive his unwearying state and power. They are magnified in their capacity to a temporal state of existence that is somewhere between mortality and immortality, or as close as possible to becoming translated beings that weary and faint not. Through their obedience, they are qualified by the Lord to do the work they were sent here to do.

The Destroying Angel Will Pass You By

 21 And I, the Lord, give unto them a promise, that the destroying angel shall pass by them, as the children of Israel, and not slay them. Amen. Before Israel escaped Egypt, God gave a mark to be displayed on the door of every home in Egypt that belonged to the children of Israel. Wherever the mark was found, the destroying angel passed by that home, without killing the firstborn child. If you would be similarly protected in your daily walk on earth, and in that great and dreadful day of the Lord when all evil will be cleansed from off the earth, then keep the sayings found in the Word of Wisdom and obey God’s commandments. By so doing you will secure to you all covenant promises (e.g. food, shelter, clothing, protection, renewal, a righteous posterity, and your own ascension unto becoming God's heir, with Christ). You will become a pure vessel of the Lord (like Daniel) and the Holy Spirit of Promise will seal you as one of the Lord’s, the greatest form of security possible to man.

The Word of Wisdom is a saving doctrine. It has power vested in it to bless you temporally and spiritually, to become a bright light that attracts others to Christ. As you lay hold upon the above promises, you will be magnified in your capacity to do good on this earth, and will thereby attract others to the Lord. By accepting Daniel's Challenge, you will come to help to fulfill the prophecy of Daniel, who saw a stone roll forth from a mountain without hands, until it crushed all other kingdoms that came before it. Other kingdoms have come to power through war, conquest, and the arm of flesh, but the kingdom Daniel saw in vision will roll forth by the power of your righteousness (i.e. the power to love and do good), and the collective righteousness of all who forsake the world and bring forth fruits meet for Zion. Without compulsion, the sweet fruits that are associated with coming to live by every law that governs heaven attract others to Christ, until they too come to bear the fruits of righteousness. And thus, God's kingdom will grow without compulsory means until it covers the whole earth and all evil is destroyed through righteousness. 

Special Note: Before engaging in Daniel's Challenge, please study carefully each of its seven parts:

1. Daniel's Challenge - Part 1
2. Daniel's Challenge - Part 2
3. Daniel's Challenge - Part 3
4. Daniel's Challenge - Part 4
5. Daniel's Challenge - Part 5
6. Daniel's Challenge - Part 6
7. Daniel's Challenge - Part 7

Also, it is good to do Daniel's Challenge with a friend or friends who also have great interest in doing so after they read and study these seven different parts. You can use any of the sharing features below to share Daniel's Challenge with them. Also, we are offering Video Conferencing to all who desire further assistance. It important that you make this a permanent lifestyle change, and it is good to have expert assistance from time to time, when it is needed. Best!