In Exodus 20:8–11 we read: “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God; in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates: For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day, and hallowed it.”
The Sabbath is the memorial of creation. It is the day in which God rested from all His work and saw that it was good. As we worship God on the day that He has designated, we acknowledge that He is the living God that made the heavens, the earth, the sea, and the fountains of waters—it acknowledges that we accept God as the Creator.
As I studied the fourth commandment more closely, I noticed that God’s command was not only for us to rest from labor on His holy day, but also, as it states in verse nine, “Six days shalt thou labor and do all thy work.” Rarely do I hear much said on this part of the fourth commandment, yet, I believe it was no accident that God admonished us to be physically active.
In Genesis 2:2, 3, the Bible says, “And on the seventh day God ended His work which He had made; and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had made. And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it He had rested from all His work which God created and made.” Three times the Bible uses the word work, denoting that the Lord was active on the first six days of the week.
God’s work included the creation of all living things, of which Adam was the crowning act. Adam was the first man and God placed him in a garden. “In this garden were trees of every variety, many of them laden with fragrant and delicious fruit. There were lovely vines, growing upright, yet presenting a most graceful appearance, with their branches drooping under their load of tempting fruit of the richest and most varied hues. It was the work of Adam and Eve to train the branches of the vine to form bowers, thus making for themselves a dwelling from living trees covered with foliage and fruit. There were fragrant flowers of every hue in rich profusion. In the midst of the garden stood the tree of life, surpassing in glory all other trees. Its fruit appeared like apples of gold and silver, and had the power to perpetuate life.” Patriarchs and Prophets, 47. [All emphasis supplied.]
“. . . But God placed Adam in a garden. This was his dwelling. The blue heavens were its dome; the earth, with its delicate flowers and carpet of living green, was its floor; and the leafy branches of the goodly trees were its canopy. Its walls were hung with the most magnificent adornings—the handiwork of the great Master Artist.” Ibid., 49.
“To the dwellers in Eden was committed the care of the garden, ‘to dress it and to keep it.’ Their occupation was not wearisome, but pleasant and invigorating. God appointed labor as a blessing to man, to occupy his mind, to strengthen his body, and to develop his faculties. In mental and physical activity Adam found one of the highest pleasures of his holy existence.” Ibid., 50.
God appointed Adam his labor. He was the caretaker, or groundskeeper, of the most beautiful garden on earth. His brain, his heart and all his strength were brought into his labors. “When in counsel with the Father before the world was, it was designed that the Lord God should plant a garden for Adam and Eve in Eden and give them the task of caring for the fruit trees and cultivating and training the vegetation. Useful labor was to be their safeguard, and it was to be perpetuated through all generations to the close of earth’s history.” Child Guidance, 345. God appointed Adam labor or physical exercise as a safeguard. Exercise is one of the eight laws of health and one of God’s true physicians, which if consistently practiced, will help keep our bodies in a healthful condition and our minds alert.
Not only did Adam exercise in the garden of Eden, he also practiced all the eight natural remedies. He practiced good nutrition, because the Bible says in Genesis 1:29, “And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat.” He also drank pure, fresh water, because the Bible says in Genesis 2:10, “And a river went out of Eden to water the garden . . .” He ate an abstemious diet of natural foods (raw foods), for the Bible says in Genesis 2:9, “And out of the ground made the Lord God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight and good for food.” He trusted in divine power, because the Bible says in Genesis 2:21, 22, “And the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and he slept: and he took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh . . . And the rib, which the Lord God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man.” Thus, God provided “an help meet for him.” Adam enjoyed daily sunshine, for the Bible says in Genesis 1:16, “And God made two great lights; the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night.” He enjoyed the fresh air also, because the Bible says in Genesis 1:8, “And God called the firmament Heaven [the atmospheric heavens]. And as God did, Adam also rested on the Sabbath day from all his labors. The Bible says in Genesis 2:2, 3: “And on the seventh day God ended His work which He had made . . . And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it He had rested from all His work which God created and made.” “Pure air, sunlight, abstemiousness, rest, exercise, proper diet, the use of water, trust in divine power—these are the true remedies. Every person should have a knowledge of nature’s remedial agencies and how to apply them.” The Ministry of Healing, 127.
Our first parents experienced great vitality as they exercised in the open air and sunshine. They ate no animal food (dairy, cheese and butter), no eggs or junk food, but the natural, raw products provided by God in the garden. “Adam and Eve, in their untainted purity, delighted in the sights and sounds of Eden. God appointed them their work in the garden, ‘to dress it and to keep it.’ Each day’s labor brought them health and gladness, and the happy pair greeted with joy the visits of their Creator, as in the cool of the day He walked and talked with them. Daily God taught them His lessons.” The Ministry of Healing, 261.
Adam was created upright and glowed in health. He was as obedient to God in following the laws of His being as he was the ten commandments. We, too, should follow Adam’s example of loyalty to his Maker by obeying all the laws (physically and spiritually) that God has given us. Ellen White gave the following counsel many years ago, “To those who desire prayer for their restoration to health, it should be made plain that the violation of God’s law, either natural or spiritual, is sin, and that in order for them to receive His blessing, sin must be confessed and forsaken.” The Ministry of Healing, 228.
Adam and Eve fell by indulgence of appetite in eating what God had commanded them not to. Their sin had its effect and the result was a curse upon all life. The Bible says, “Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field; In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return . . . Therefore the Lord God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from whence he was taken.” (Genesis 3:18, 19, 23). Adam’s physical labor, or exercise, must now increase—for in the “sweat of thy face” he must now till the ground.” God had planted the first garden in Eden, and now Adam must plant the second. Now he would have to plow, sow and raise the crops himself.
Yet there was still a blessing attached to this.
“Exercise in the open air should be prescribed as a life-giving necessity. And for such exercises there is nothing better than the cultivation of the soil. Let patients have flower beds to care for, or work to do in the orchard or vegetable garden. As they are encouraged to . . . spend time in the open air, cultivating flowers or doing some other light, pleasant work, their attention will be diverted from themselves and their sufferings.” The Ministry of Healing, 265.
Since man no longer had access to the tree of life to sustain him eternally, God added to his diet the herb of the field (vegetables) which are filled with chlorophyll, vitamins, minerals, enzymes, and the more recently discovered phytochemicals—powerful cancer fighting chemicals, and increased his exercise. But there was still a blessing attached to the transition for Adam. The added vegetables and increased exercise would benefit his health, add years to his life, and ward off disease. Remember, exercise in the fresh air is God’s prescription.
Let us look at some facts about exercise. Did you know there are over 600 muscles in the body and without exercise they would lose their tone and elasticity, toxins would build up, and depression and illness would set in? Did you also know that the strongest muscle for its size is our heart and it needs exercise too? It beats 2.5 billion times in an average life time, driving five quarts of blood every minute to every cell in the body to cleanse and nourish it. Every part of our body depends on regular physical activity. By exercising, the body responds with better circulation and increased blood flow, sending more blood with nutrients and oxygen to our vital organs. Better circulation will lead to an overall improvement of your whole being: diabetics are helped by burning the extra glucose, overweight people will drop pounds, arthritics notice improvement, lung congestion is alleviated, endorphins (mood elevating hormones) are released to fight depression, stress is reduced, hypertension can be alleviated, and the entire system is strengthened and invigorated.
In fact, the U.S. has classified lack of exercise as a major health risk. “A large proportion of all the infirmities that afflict the human family, are the results of their own wrong habits, because of their willing ignorance, or of their disregard of the light which God has given in relation to the laws of their being. It is not possible for us to glorify God while living in violation of the laws of life. The heart cannot possibly maintain consecration to God while lustful appetite is indulged. A diseased body and disordered intellect, because of continual indulgence in hurtful lust, make sanctification of the body and spirit impossible.” Counsels on Diets and Foods, 44.
Exercise is also necessary for a healthy lymphatic system. Our bodies cleanse the cells in a watery fluid called lymph and unlike the heart, the lymph system has no pump. It depends on motion or exercise, a milking effect, to move the toxins along to the organs like the bowel for elimination. When the system gets overloaded with toxins, adverse reactions can occur within our bodies—such as swollen tonsils and appendices. However, you may not need to cut them out, but only to cleanse the body by changing the diet. Eat simple foods such as fruits and vegetables, drink plenty of pure water, and get outdoor exercise. Also, a high fiber (vegetarian) diet is vital to the bowel and its function of detoxification and elimination. A short fast is the quickest way to detoxify the body.
Continuing with the body, when you think of bones, do you tend to think of them as solid mass? Well they are not. They are living, breathing, porous structures that contain blood vessels which keep the blood flowing through the bone. The more we exercise, the stronger our muscles and bones become and the more calcium is utilized to prevent osteoporosis.
Life depends on the flow of blood in our bodies. One half of the people who die each year die from circulatory problems resulting from a high fat diet and lack of exercise. Exercise greatly increases the effectiveness with which the heart delivers oxygen and other vital nutrients to all the areas of the body. With this increase in efficiency, vital blood pathways are cleaned out and overall circulation is enhanced. This ensures optimum performance of all the organs and keeps them functioning properly—safeguards as God intended.
Cultivating the soil or brisk walking accelerates the heart’s action and increases circulation and oxygen to the whole body. The idea is to get aerobic (oxygen) exercise. Today you have many aerobic sports such as walking, jogging, bicycling, swimming, stair steppers and treadmills. We used to believe that in order to get sufficient exercise we had to beat our bodies for an hour and a half or until we were dripping with sweat. Not true! Science has reported that 25 minutes of accelerating your heart rate is all that you need. The key is consistency.
Consistency was the advice that the Lord gave to us in the fourth commandment. He stated, “Six days shalt thou labor and do all thy work.” Our creator gave the right instructions thousands of years ago and science is confirming it in the twentieth century. If they keep looking hard enough perhaps they will find the other laws of health that were given to Adam in the garden of Eden. God certainly provides for His people!
Ellen White wrote decades ago, “When the weather will permit, all who can possibly do so ought to walk in the open air every day, summer and winter . . . A walk, even in winter, would be more beneficial to the health than all the medicine the doctors may prescribe . . . There is no exercise that will prove as beneficial to every part of the body as walking. Active walking in the open air will do more for women, to preserve them in health if they are well, than any other means. Walking is also one of the most efficient remedies for the recovery of health of the invalid. The hands and arms are exercised as well as the limbs.” Healthful Living, 130.
The fourth commandment not only emphasizes exercise, but commands us to cease from work and to rest on the seventh day—the day God blessed and sanctified. With His own finger He wrote, “But the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God: in it thou shall not do any work.” Exodus 20:10.
It is during periods of rest and sleep that the body repairs itself, re-generates itself, and prepares for renewed activity. It is every bit as essential for life as air, food and water. Its primary purpose is the regeneration of nerve energy and, by it, the vitality of the body is restored. Let us understand that rest is not synonymous with sleep. The Sabbath day is a day to cease from our work, a time to rest, but not a day to sleep away.
What is rest? It is a period of inactivity during which the body can restore expended energy. There are four kinds of rest.
- Physical rest: Sitting or lying down and relaxing.
- Sensory Rest: By quietness and refraining from using the eyes, which curtails a great drain of energy.
- Emotional rest: By withdrawing from the ups and downs caused by personal interaction.
- Mental rest: This is obtained by detaching the mind from all intellectual demands or activity. Like taking morning walks, sitting in a Jacuzzi, or reading scripture. We need both physical and mental rest.
As God’s peculiar people we are pilgrims passing through a strange land, because our home will be Eden restored. “Adam and Eve fell through intemperate appetite. Christ came and withstood the fiercest temptation of Satan, and, in behalf of the race, overcame appetite, showing that man may overcome. As Adam fell through appetite, and lost blissful Eden, the children of Adam may, through Christ, overcome appetite, and through temperance in all things regain Eden.” Counsels on Diets and Foods, 70.
In the book The Great Controversy, Ellen White beautifully portrays through the written word the scene on the great resurrection day. She writes: “The Son of God redeemed man’s failure and fall; and now, through the work of the atonement, Adam is reinstated in his first dominion.
“Transported with joy, he beholds the trees that were once his delight—the very trees whose fruit he himself had gathered in the days of his innocence and joy. He sees the vines that his own hands have trained, the very flowers that he once loved to care for. His mind grasps the reality of the scene; he comprehends that this is indeed Eden restored, more lovely now than when he was banished from it. The Saviour leads him to the tree of life and plucks the glorious fruit and bids him eat. He looks about him and beholds a multitude of his family redeemed, standing in the Paradise of God. Then he casts his glittering crown at the feet of Jesus and, falling upon His breast, embraces the Redeemer. He touches the golden harp, and the vaults of heaven echo the triumphant song: ‘Worthy, worthy, worthy is the Lamb that was slain, and lives again!’ The family of Adam take up the strain and cast their crowns at the Saviour’s feet as they bow before Him in adoration.” The Great Controversy, 647, 648.
“Upon the heads of the overcomers, Jesus with His own right hand places the crown of glory. For each there is a crown, bearing his own ‘new name’ (Revelation 2:17), and the inscription, ‘Holiness to the Lord. . . .’ There they behold the Paradise of God, the home of Adam in his innocency. Then that voice, richer than any music that ever fell on mortal ear, is heard, saying: ‘Your conflict is ended.’ ‘Come, ye blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.’ Now is fulfilled the Saviour’s prayer for His disciples: ‘I will that they also, whom Thou hast given Me, be with Me where I am.’ ‘Faultless before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy.’ (Jude 24), Christ presents to the Father the purchase of His blood, declaring: ‘Here am I, and the children whom Thou hast given Me.’ ‘Those that Thou gavest Me I have kept.’ Oh, the wonders of redeeming love! The rapture of that hour when the infinite Father, looking upon the ransomed, shall behold His image, sin’s discord banished, its blight removed, and the human once more in harmony with the divine!’ ” Ibid., 646.
The Garden of Eden is the Paradise of God—it is where God’s throne will be forever. The Bible says, “And he shewed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb. In the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was there the tree of life, which bare twelve manner of fruits and yielded her fruit every month: and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.” Revelation 22:1, 2. Here we have a picture of the new earth where the throne of God, the river of life, and the tree of life are each present. The Bible also states in Revelation 2:7 that, “He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God.” If the tree of life is by God’s throne, and the tree of life is in Paradise, then God’s throne must be in Paradise—the garden of Eden.
“The Garden of Eden remained upon the earth long after man had become an outcast from its pleasant paths. The fallen race were long permitted to gaze upon the home of innocence, their entrance barred only by the watching angels. At the cherubim-guarded gate of Paradise the divine glory was revealed. Hither came Adam and his sons to worship God. Here they renewed their vows of obedience to that law the transgression of which had banished them from Eden. When the tide of iniquity overspread the world, and the wickedness of men determined their destruction by a flood of waters, the hand that had planted Eden withdrew it from the earth. But in the final restitution, when there shall be a ‘new heaven and a new earth’ (Rev. 21:1), it is to be restored more gloriously adorned than at the beginning.” Patriarchs and Prophets, 62.
“For, behold, I create new heavens and a new earth: and the former shall not be remembered, nor come into mind . . . And they shall build houses, and inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards, and eat the fruit of them. They shall not build, and another inhabit; they shall not plant and another eat: for as the days of a tree are the days of my people, and mine elect shall long enjoy the work of their hands. They shall not labour in vain, nor bring forth for trouble; for they are the seed of the blessed of the Lord, and their offspring with them. And it shall come to pass, that before they call, I will answer; and while they are yet speaking, I will hear. The wolf and the lamb shall feed together, and the lion shall eat straw like the bullock: and dust shall be the serpent’s meat. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain, saith the Lord.” Isaiah 65:17, 21–25. Did you notice the words: “plant,” “build,” “work,” and “labour”? In the new earth we will be exercising in the open air and working in our gardens and vineyards growing wonderful vegetarian food (organic raw food)! Figs, pomegranates, almonds, grapes and much, much more. What a feast I long for!
“For as the new heavens and the new earth, which I will make, shall remain before me, saith the Lord, so shall your seed and your name remain. And it shall come to pass, that from one new moon to another, and from one Sabbath to another, shall all flesh come to worship before me, saith the Lord.” Isaiah 66:22, 23.
Have you ever noticed, according to Isaiah 66, that we will be worshipping God not only from one Sabbath to another (every week), but also from one new moon to another (every month)? In the earth made new we will be celebrating and enjoying the fruit of the tree of life, which “bear twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month.” But this time we will be eating it with Adam and Jesus and enjoying the Sabbath for eternity.
“Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: But the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God.” Exodus 20:11.
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