I love pork chops on the grill. Pork ribs are even better. Of course I consider bacon a delicacy. As a Christian I see no problem with consuming hogs, but as I read the Bible I see that there are commands in the Old Testament that forbid the eating of pork.
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There are other Old Testament commands that I do not follow either. Does this mean that I think it is okay for Christians to just pick and chose which of God's commands that we want to follow? Not at all! Jesus said, “If ye love me, keep my commandments.” (John 14:15)
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To better understand this issue, let us look at the human history of God's interaction with mankind. First, God gave a simple command to Adam and Eve about not eating from a tree. They could not keep that one simple command. As time went on men ignored God so much that He sent a worldwide flood and only Noah and his family were saved. After the flood God told them that they could eat any animal (Genesis 9:3), but that they could not eat the blood from the animals. Further they were not to murder other humans. The commands to Noah were given in the context of a covenant with him and all his descendants. All humans have descended from Noah, so this applies to all of us.
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As we continue reading the history of the Bible, we come to Genesis 17 and a man named Abraham. God makes a covenant with him and his descendants. With that covenant there was a promise of a land. God then gives a special command that only applies to Abraham's descendants- they are to be circumcised as a token of God's promise to them. The Israelites (Hebrews/Jews) were descendants of Abraham, so this command was important to them.
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God ended up setting the Israelites apart from other nations and dealing with them in a very special way. As we read the Old Testament of the Bible we see the History of God's interaction with them. Moses ends up leading them out of slavery in Egypt and as he does so, he gives them the 10 commandments as well as other ordinances including the restriction about eating pork. This was a new restriction- remember that Noah had not been given this command. Further this command only applied to the Israelites.
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The strict rules that the Israelites were given were important because Jesus Christ- the savior of all mankind- would come from that nation and these rules showed that just like Adam and Eve, all of mankind could not perfectly obey God's rules and therefore needed someone who could pay for their sins. Jesus was the first sinless person to walk this earth because He is God in the flesh. Therefore the rules that God gave the Israelites showed them they needed a savior. “Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith. But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster. (Galatians 3:24-25)
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In other words, after we have trusted Christ there is no more need for the Hebrew law. Other passages such as Romans 10:4; Galatians 2:16; Colossians 2:13-17; and Ephesians 2:15 also show that the Hebrew law is no longer in effect for the Christian. This issue actually came up in the early Christian church and we can read how it was dealt with in Acts 15:1-20. At the end of that passage the Christians are told to abstain from things polluted by idols, from sexual immorality, from things strangled, and from blood. This shows that although the Christian is not under the Hebrew law given by Moses, there are still expectations for the Christian. In fact the Old Testament law given to Noah still applies as we see the continued restriction on blood. Further as we read the New Testament is clear that Christians are not to lie, steal, covet, murder, or commit adultery. Further there is condemnation for gossip, drunkenness and extortion. We are not picking and choosing what we obey, we simply obey the commands of God that apply to us today.
Monday, May 30, 2016
Monday, May 2, 2016
Illustrating for Understanding
I love to watch old westerns. I like to sit and watch “Gunsmoke” with my boys. Festus is Marshall Dillon's sidekick and is one of my favorite western characters. He is actually smarter than he first appears and has a caring side behind his rough exterior. My boys just think he is funny.
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I read the Bible to my boys more often than I watch “Gunsmoke” with them. Recently we have been reading in the book of Acts, and actually came across a man named “Festus.” He wasn't a sidekick, instead he was a ruler. When the Apostle Paul got in trouble with the authorities, he had to appear before this man named Festus. After reading about him, our boys were told that it was a different Festus than they had seen on the cowboy show.
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We actually got a bit of chuckle out of it since these two men seemed so different. One of the biggest differences is that the man we read about in Acts chapters 24-26 was a real man. The one we watch on TV is actually a make believe character played by a real man named Ken Curtis. Still it got me to thinking. My boys actually understand more about the culture and expectations of the make believe world of the old west as portrayed by these movies, then they do about the culture of the Bible times.
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Although we have seen many episodes of “Gunsmoke” we do not actually have a true understanding of what life was like in Kansas during the 1800's. Instead we have a sensationalized Hollywood version of that setting. When we read the Bible account, we are separated by much more time and geography than we are from 1800's Kansas. Still we have an advantage. The Biblical account is real. Still there are large advantages to gaining insight into the culture of that time period and location. Many of the illustrations that Christ used (we call them parables) are better understood once we realize the significance of what He was saying in the day to day lives of those He was speaking to.
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Although we should hold scripture in such high regard that we not change it, we like Christ can use illustrations to help others better understand it. For example I was recently teaching about the encounter that David had with a foolish man named Nabal (I Samuel chapter 25). I was explaining it to a man who watched westerns, so I said that what happened would have been similar to some guys on a cattle drive. David would have been like a cavalry colonel who came across the cattle drive with his men and protected them from being raided by Indians. Since no cattle were lost, at the end of the drive he asked that a steer be given to his men to feed them since they were out of food. Imagine how upset the colonel would have been if the man were rude to him and would not even give him any food. Nabal in the Biblical story was like the rude cattleman.
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A bit later, we were talking about David trying to avoid King Saul who wanted to kill him. David did not want to fight Saul so he went and lived with the Philistines even though they had been his enemies. The young man I was talking to then said, “It would be like him going to live with the Apaches.” Exactly! This new Christian had figured out how to use illustrations to make a connection to real life events. He took something that he understood and used it to help him relate to a culture and time that he was far removed from. The Bible text was not changed, it was simply explained in a way that he could relate to.
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Although our parables cannot compare to Christ's mastery of the illustration, we should not overlook this powerful tool for gaining better insight into the scriptures. At the same time we must be cautious not to carry our illustrations too far so that they distort the original narrative.
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I read the Bible to my boys more often than I watch “Gunsmoke” with them. Recently we have been reading in the book of Acts, and actually came across a man named “Festus.” He wasn't a sidekick, instead he was a ruler. When the Apostle Paul got in trouble with the authorities, he had to appear before this man named Festus. After reading about him, our boys were told that it was a different Festus than they had seen on the cowboy show.
-
We actually got a bit of chuckle out of it since these two men seemed so different. One of the biggest differences is that the man we read about in Acts chapters 24-26 was a real man. The one we watch on TV is actually a make believe character played by a real man named Ken Curtis. Still it got me to thinking. My boys actually understand more about the culture and expectations of the make believe world of the old west as portrayed by these movies, then they do about the culture of the Bible times.
-
Although we have seen many episodes of “Gunsmoke” we do not actually have a true understanding of what life was like in Kansas during the 1800's. Instead we have a sensationalized Hollywood version of that setting. When we read the Bible account, we are separated by much more time and geography than we are from 1800's Kansas. Still we have an advantage. The Biblical account is real. Still there are large advantages to gaining insight into the culture of that time period and location. Many of the illustrations that Christ used (we call them parables) are better understood once we realize the significance of what He was saying in the day to day lives of those He was speaking to.
-
Although we should hold scripture in such high regard that we not change it, we like Christ can use illustrations to help others better understand it. For example I was recently teaching about the encounter that David had with a foolish man named Nabal (I Samuel chapter 25). I was explaining it to a man who watched westerns, so I said that what happened would have been similar to some guys on a cattle drive. David would have been like a cavalry colonel who came across the cattle drive with his men and protected them from being raided by Indians. Since no cattle were lost, at the end of the drive he asked that a steer be given to his men to feed them since they were out of food. Imagine how upset the colonel would have been if the man were rude to him and would not even give him any food. Nabal in the Biblical story was like the rude cattleman.
-
A bit later, we were talking about David trying to avoid King Saul who wanted to kill him. David did not want to fight Saul so he went and lived with the Philistines even though they had been his enemies. The young man I was talking to then said, “It would be like him going to live with the Apaches.” Exactly! This new Christian had figured out how to use illustrations to make a connection to real life events. He took something that he understood and used it to help him relate to a culture and time that he was far removed from. The Bible text was not changed, it was simply explained in a way that he could relate to.
-
Although our parables cannot compare to Christ's mastery of the illustration, we should not overlook this powerful tool for gaining better insight into the scriptures. At the same time we must be cautious not to carry our illustrations too far so that they distort the original narrative.
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