#014: Before the Flood, Humans Lived 900+ Years. Here's What They Ate

Welcome, Family

This week hit different. Maybe it's because we've been wrestling with a question that's been stirring in the back of our minds since the last Bible study: Is what we eat connected to our spiritual walk? 

And more specifically, is being plant-based salvational?

Before you roll your eyes and think we've gone full health-guru on you, stay with us. Because what we discovered in Scripture this week isn't about earning salvation through salad, it's about understanding God's original design and what happened when humanity chose a different path.

We're not talking about performance-based righteousness. We're talking about stewarding the temple God gave us and asking hard questions about whether our choices align with His heart for abundance, longevity, and care for creation.

🍞 This Week's Bread

• ⏳ THE SIGN: Why the latest longevity research is pointing back to Eden

• 📖 THE WORD: Genesis 1:29-31 and Genesis 9:2-4: God's original diet vs. post-flood concession

• 🌍 THE WITNESS: What the shift from plant-based to meat-eating reveals about human nature

• 🔥 THE WORK: Three questions about stewarding your body as God's temple

• 🙏 PRAYER CORNER: Intercession for health, healing, and heart alignment

⏳ The Sign

The headlines have been impossible to ignore: "Healthy plant-based diets may boost longevity, lower death risk" and "Want to reach 70 without chronic disease? Eat plants and avoid processed food, study says."

A March 2025 study found that following a healthy diet, one primarily plant-based, with minimal ultra-processed food, can raise the chances of reaching age 70 without developing a chronic disease.

But here's what caught our attention: "For adults, plant-based proteins increased overall life expectancy" according to research from the University of Sydney. The science is confirming what many of us have sensed, that our modern diet is literally shortening our lives.

Meanwhile, we're watching our generation struggle with chronic diseases that were rare in previous generations. Diabetes, heart disease, autoimmune conditions—hitting people in their twenties and thirties.

We're living shorter, sicker lives than the generation before us, despite all our medical advances.

The world is waking up to what sounds suspiciously like... God's original design. But instead of rushing to embrace the latest health trend, we need to ask:

What does Scripture actually say about what we're supposed to eat? And does it matter spiritually?

📖 The Word

Here's what we can't ignore: God originally created the world vegan. And it is this vegan world which God proceeds to declare very good. Both humans and animals were designed to thrive on plants. No death. No bloodshed. No violence in the food chain.

But something changed after the flood. In Genesis 9:3 God tells Noah that he is no longer obliged to keep the animals alive but may now kill them and eat the meat. This wasn't a command—it was a permission. And biblical scholars have long debated why.

Some suggest that God reluctantly permitted the eating of animals due to human sinfulness. In other words, God permitted humans to eat non-human animals as a concession to the Fallen state of humanity.

Given the violence and depravity of the generation of the Flood, it was perhaps necessary to allow this concession.

Think about it: humanity had become so violent that God destroyed the world with a flood. Hearts were hardened. The original design of peace between humans and animals was shattered. So God gave permission for something that wasn't His original intent.

But here's the key: permission isn't the same as preference.

When the Israelites demanded a king, God gave them one—but it wasn't His best plan. When they wanted to divorce, Jesus said Moses permitted it "because your hearts were hard"—but "from the beginning it was not so."

The pattern is clear: God sometimes permits what He doesn't prefer because of human hardness and sin.

🌍 The Witness

Look at the lifespans recorded in Scripture. Compare lifespans before and after the Flood (Genesis 5 and Genesis 11). With longer lives, slower growth, and slower aging it follows that lower protein [requirements] were part of God's original design.

Before the flood, when humanity lived on plants:

• Adam lived 930 years

• Seth lived 912 years

• Methuselah lived 969 years

• Noah lived 950 years

After the flood, when meat was introduced:

• Shem lived 600 years

• Abraham lived 175 years

• Moses lived 120 years

• David lived around 70 years

The pattern is undeniable: the introduction of meat coincided with dramatically shortened lifespans. What God designed for longevity was replaced with something that shortened life.

But this isn't just about physical health—it's about spiritual understanding. God originally created men and animals to be plant eaters. God's statement in Genesis 9:3 strengthens this restriction placed on man. Here for the first time God gives man permission to eat meat.

The shift from plant-based eating to meat consumption represents more than dietary change—it represents a move away from God's original design toward accommodation of a fallen world.

🔥 The Work

Before you start arguing about bacon or feeling condemned about your lunch choices, let's get to the heart of this issue with three questions:

1. Am I stewarding my body as God's temple? Your body isn't just yours—it's the temple of the Holy Spirit. Are your food choices honoring that reality? Are you eating in a way that promotes life, energy, and health, or are you slowly destroying what God has entrusted to you?

2. What's motivating my food choices—convenience, culture, or conviction? Be honest. Are you eating what you eat because it's easy, because it's what everyone else does, or because you've actually sought God about how to steward your health? Most of us have never seriously prayed about our diet.

3. If God's original design was plant-based for longevity and health, why would I choose something different? This isn't about earning salvation through vegetables. This is about wisdom. If science and Scripture both point toward plant-based eating for optimal health, what's holding you back from at least exploring it?

⚡ Midweek Power

This Wednesday night (July 30th, 8-9 PM ET), we're praying specifically for wisdom about stewarding our bodies and making choices that honor God—not just spiritually, but physically.

We've been seeing God move in people's hearts about taking better care of the temples He's given us. Whether that's diet, exercise, sleep, or breaking addictive patterns, God cares about your whole person.

Come ready to pray for:

• Wisdom about food choices and health decisions

• Breaking free from eating patterns that don't serve God's purposes

• Understanding the connection between physical stewardship and spiritual vitality

• Those dealing with chronic health issues and believing for healing

🙏 Prayer Corner

We're interceding for:

• Young adults struggling with chronic health issues, believing God for restoration and wisdom about diet and lifestyle changes

• Those feeling convicted about their eating habits but not knowing where to start

• People dealing with food addictions, eating disorders, or unhealthy relationships with food

• Wisdom for our community as we navigate what it means to steward our bodies as temples of the Holy Spirit

Send us your prayer requests about health, healing, and stewarding your body well. We believe God cares about every aspect of your life—including what you eat.

📅 What's Next

Friday, August 1st (8-10 PM ET): Virtual Bible Study on Zoom - Link here

Missed Friday night? Reply "REPLAY" and we'll send you the July 24th session recording.

📣 Take Action

Forward this to someone who's been wrestling with religious hurt or moral confusion.

Follow @mogakaeventsministry on Instagram for daily encouragement and biblical clarity.

DM us for prayer or if you need wisdom about a specific moral decision.

✝️ Final Word

Here's what we need to settle: Your salvation doesn't depend on your salad. Jesus paid the full price for your righteousness, and no amount of kale will add to what He accomplished.

But salvation is just the beginning. Once you're saved, you're called to steward everything God has given you—including your body. And if God's original design was plant-based for longevity, health, and flourishing, shouldn't we at least consider whether we're living in His wisdom or the world's fallen patterns?

This isn't about legalism. It's about love—loving God enough to steward what He's given you, loving others enough to be healthy and available for service, and loving yourself enough to make choices that promote life rather than slowly destroy it.

The question isn't whether being plant-based saves you. The question is whether you're willing to align your choices with God's design for your flourishing.

Maybe it's time to pray about your plate.

With you always,
Mogaka Events Ministry

Come As You Are is a Spirit-led devotional for young adults hungry for God's presence. Written by Ravi Patel and Chris Mogaka.