Christian Crier
Losing weight is difficult. For those of you that have attempted it, you know just how trying of a season it can be. While your friends go out to eat at your favorite burger place, you’re stuck at home; or worse, you sit at the restaurant and drink water, salivating over everyone else’s food. Many people have rightly pointed out that a diet is really just “die” with a “t” at the end. However, you can reach your weight loss goals, but it will require accountability, determination, and even encouragement. The best place to get encouragement, of course, is the Holy Scriptures. So, here are the top 7 bible verses to help with weight loss.
1 Corinthians 10:31 “Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.”
Before everything else, you must understand that losing weight is not just about you—it’s about God. It may sound a bit funny, but the Bible says that all things should be done to the glory of God, not just some things. All means all. So, you trying to lose weight is another potential area of your life in which you can glorify and worship Jesus. When this is on your mind, weight loss becomes much more meaningful.
1 Corinthians 6:19-20 “Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.”
What a humbling realization; you are not your own! Your body is not just about you. The Holy Spirit takes residence within you, thus you must give it a healthy place to be! If you are carrying too much extra weight around, it will be difficult to certain things, you might be more prone to depression, have loss of energy, and so forth. When all of that happens, it becomes difficult for you to pour into other people’s lives and encourage them. Ask yourself the question: if you were in better shape, could you have more opportunities to spread the gospel and do ministry?
Galatians 5:16 “I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.”
Believe it or not, this is not necessarily taking the verse out of context. The lust of the flesh often includes: selfishness, lack of self-control, drunkenness, envy, wrath, etc. In other words, it is not very disciplined. When trying to lose weight, you have to be extremely disciplined. You cannot afford to continually slip up. Not to mention, the issue and sin of gluttony is very real. Sometimes, people eat a lot of portions and junk food when they are upset. They sincerely want to lose weight, but grief, stress, and anxiousness often work against progress. The Spirit is definitely needed to help with losing weight, because it’s essentially denying the flesh!
Proverbs 23:2 “And put a knife to your throat if you are a man given to appetite.”
This passage is talking specifically about dining with a ruler or king, but a principle can certainly be drawn from it. Many people, especially Americans, have a huge appetite, gluttonous even. And, it wouldn’t be too surprising to learn that those who have a lack of self-control with food have a lack of self-control in other areas of their life too. Show me a disciplined man with food, and I can show you somehow who is more likely to be disciplined in bible reading, prayer, etc. (of course, this is a generalization).
Proverbs 28:7 “whoever keeps the law is a discerning son, but a companion of gluttons shames his father.”
Gluttony can certainly be shameful. Doesn’t it appear that, once you start dieting, your appetite increases and you crave junk food all the time? It can certainly feel shameful at that time, especially for the one going through it! Yet, this verse often shows that you must be careful who you are hanging around when dieting. Hanging out with friends while they eat McDonalds is probably not the best support you could have.
Proverbs 12:1 “Whoever loves instruction loves knowledge, but he who hates correction is stupid”
Don’t be afraid to ask for help! You may have some friends who know a fair amount about what foods to eat or how to perform certain workout routines. Whatever the case is, if you are good at handling instruction, you can go pretty far with your weight loss. If you are terrible at it, however, you will likely experience a very slow weight loss process or even give it up altogether.
Corinthians 9:27 “But I discipline my body and bring it into subjection, lest when I have preached to others I myself should become disqualified.”
Once again, although this verse is not specifically about losing weight, good principles can be taken from it. Above all, in order to reach your weight loss goals, you need discipline. Set a goal, a workable plan towards your goal, track your progress, and stay on track! If you do that, you will be shedding the pounds in no time.
Conclusion
Losing weight is very hard, but these Bible verses can help you stay motivated and encouraged during your diet and exercise season. But remember what 1 Timothy 4:8 says: “For bodily exercise profits a little, but godliness is profitable for all things, having a promise of the life that now is and of that which is to come.”
Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In