Earlier verses in Section 89 pertain to the physical aspects of the Word of Wisdom. Verses 18-21 set forth remarkable promises - spiritual as well as physical. A summary of why one
should heed the Lord's counsel was given by Elder Richard L. Evans during the April 1967 general conference:"It isn't unusual - indeed, it is expected - that the maker of any machine should send a set of instructions on how best to use it, how best to care for it; and this our Father in Heaven has done for us, mentally, morally, physically, spiritually. In the gospel are instructions from our Maker on how to care for and keep ourselves at our best for the purpose for which we were brought into being. As to the physical side: More than a century ago, a prophet of God simply said that some things are not good for man. Now, knowledgeable and intelligent men of science and medicine also say so. But we had just as well have saved all the time and trouble, for the Maker knew it and said it to His servant. And what could be more important than a completeness of health and happiness - happiness and health of the spirit, the body, and the mind of man.
"Some may say there is no moral question on how we physically live our lives. But isn't it a moral question to abuse what God has given? And what a waste to abuse any useful creation of any kind. If someone were to give us a finely working watch, wouldn't it be foolish, indeed irrational, to put into it that which would corrode and defeat its purpose?
"We have only one body. It is irreplaceable, indispensable, sacred. It has to last a mortal lifetime. With it and the spirit within, we think, we plan, we work, we feel, we live our mortal lives.
"It is a miracle and most amazing: the housing for the spirit, the mind, the intelligence of man; the instrument through which we think and plan and pursue life's purpose."
