"For, behold, the Lord will come with fire ... and by his sword will the Lord plead with all flesh: and the slain of the Lord shall be many. They that sanctify themselves ... eating swine's flesh, and the abomination, and the mouse, shall be consumed together, saith the Lord." Isaiah 66:15-17.
Recent scientific studies have confirmed the fact that most heart attacts result from a high cholesterol level in the blood - and that the use of "fats" that are found in meats is largely responsible for this high level. It looks like the Lord knows what He is talking about after all, doesn't it? Thats why nowadays many doctors actually prescribe for their patients to eat from meatless products made from soy proteins and vegetables.
Sincere Christians will bring their lives into harmony with God's rules at once, because they love Him. They know that His rules greatly add to their happiness and protect them from the devil's diseases (Acts 10:38). In the past, people didnt realize that eating meat caused diseases, but now they do. God's counsel and rules are always for our good, just as good parents' rules and counsel are best for their children. And once we know better, God holds us accountable. "To him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin." James 4:17. If God expects and even commands us to preach the gospel to the world and some will be lost if they dont hear the message... are we not responsible for willfully taking years off our lives by eating harmful foods? Its a fact that on the average, vegetarians live 7 years longer than meat-eaters. By eating unhealthful foods we are cutting years off our lives and therefore robbing who knows how many people of hearing the gospel message.... and doing it willfully... just to satisfy our lusts for meat.
"Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth." 3 John 2.
"Eat ye that which is good." Isaiah 55:2. "Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God." 1 Corinthians 10:31
Daniel, what did he eat? pulse... which is vegetables, and it made he and his comrades much more alert mentally and physically than those who ate "the king's meat". I really do believe that Daniel represents God's people in these last days...
Matthew 15:11 says, "Not that which goeth into the mouth defileth a man; but that which cometh out." How do you explain this?
Answer: The subject in Matthew 15:1-20 is eating without first washing the hands (verse 2). The focus is not eating, but washing. The scribes taught that eating any food without a special ceremonial washing defiled the eater. Jesus said the ceremonial washings were meaningless. In verse 19, He listed certian evils - murders, adulteries, thefts, etc. Then He concluded, "These are the things which defile a man: but to eat with unwashen hands defileth not a man." Verse 20.
But didn't Jesus cleanse all animals in Peter's vision, as recorded in Acts 10?
Answer: No! In fact, the subject of this vision is not animals, but people. God gave Peter this vision to show him that the Gentiles were not unclean, as the Jews believed. God had instructed Cornelius, a Gentile, to send men to visit Peter. But Peter would have refused to see them if God had not given him this vision, because Jewish law forbade entertaining Gentiles (verse 28). But when the men finally did arrive, Peter welcomed them, explaining that ordinarily he would not have done so, but "God hath shewed me that I should not call any man common or unclean." Verse 28. In the next chapter (Acts 11), the church members criticized Peter for speaking with these Gentiles. So Peter told them the whole story of his vision and its meaning. And Acts 11:18 says, "When they heard these things, they held their peace, and glorified God saying, Then hath God also to the Gentiles granted repentance unto life."
"And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed ... and every tree ... yielding seed." "Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat." Genesis 1:29, 2:16 Meat-eating was only permitted after sin came to the earth. But God is leading people to realize it's harmfulness. Gradually He is bringing them once again to the state of holiness that existed before sin entered the world... in heaven there wont be violence or killing. Just as God allowed polygamy in old testament times ..though it was wrong... and shed light upon His people gradually and then held them responsible for that light... the same goes for today... He leads us onward so that we can have clear minds to discern His will. Physical abuse of our bodies tends to cloud our minds as well. Our bodies and our health is a gift from God. Don't abuse it.
Claudia
[ January 31, 2002: Message edited by: Claudia Thompson ]
