Eating to glorify God

Loving creativity has me on the Internet often looking for amazing ideas that others post in art, decor, quilts, and photography. With those searches, food menus and ideas for dieting also pop up. Many of them forbid certain foods saying they are not healthy. While this is true of what could be called ‘man-made junk’ it is not true of what is often called ‘real food’ because what might come from my garden is even held suspect by some ‘experts’ in the industry.

I never connected these no-no’s in food with false teachers until this morning when I read this:

Now the Spirit expressly says that in later times some will depart from the faith by devoting themselves to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons, through the insincerity of liars whose consciences are seared, who forbid marriage and require abstinence from foods that God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and know the truth. For everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving, for it is made holy by the word of God and prayer. (1 Timothy 4:1–5)

Actually, I have wondered about fish on Friday, and now wonder about no meat at all, or no dairy, or no whatever, and who gives that advice and where did those ideas come from. Allergies may be a factor, but doing some research is always a good idea.

For instance, the OT tells of Daniel being captured by Israel’s enemies and his refusal to eat the rich food and wine as the Babylonian king ate. His captors decided to test him with only vegetables and water for ten days. After that time, he was “better in appearance and fatter in flesh” than those who ate the king’s food. Some use this as reason to be vegetarians, however it seems more about the quality of the food than its type. A walk through a grocery store picking up only what would be available back then for Daniel would mean skipping canned, frozen and processed food, and eating fresh only.

Is that even possible? Here in the north, many fresh items are trucked from the south or not available. However, locally grown greenhouse veggies are becoming more available. I want to eat real food and also appreciate this promise from Jesus:

Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. (Matthew 6:31–33)

The key to eating right has a spiritual component. Besides wanting to eat right, Jesus wants me to first seek how to live a righteous life. Then He will make sure that good food, created by Him, will always be available — and I will have enough clothing to wear. It is about making Him the priority of life and not worrying about the basics.

I know people who refuse to eat any vegetables. One calls them ‘rabbit food.’ Another will not eat anything that is ‘mushy’ but fills up on salty and sugary snacks. Obesity, diabetes, and other food-related problems are on the increase. While some think this stems from ignorance about food, or other reasons, who would point a finger at a failure to seek God’s kingdom and His righteousness combined with the impetus to run our own lives? Or even connect this problem with a propensity to believe everything we hear that fits our ‘I wants’ — even diet plans that forbid much of the food we didn’t like anyway? Or didn’t want to prepare or cook? One commercial even tells me to take a pill instead of eating broccoli!

PRAY: Jesus, I can crave cookies and chips and all sorts of stuff that are not good for me. You care about my health and I am well aware that I need Your Spirit to enable me to pay attention to, and obey, what You say about all things, even food. So, whether I eat or drink, or whatever I do, may I do all to the glory of God. (1 Corinthians 10:31) You created me and You know what is best for me!

Godly Living isn’t Popular (October 16, 2020)

 

1 Kings 19; Psalm 105; Daniel 1; 1 Thessalonians 2

One of the big questions asks, “What is the purpose of my life?” This is framed in various ways that boil down to “Why am I here?” or for Christians, “What does God want me to do?”

In the OT, the answer came in the Ten Commandments plus the other laws that God gave to His people. While many assume that these were laws defining how they could be saved from sin, this is not the case. Those laws were to define them as God’s covenant people. They were to live differently than the pagans who did not know God and had no relationship with Him.

The NT says the same thing. Those who believe God and are His people through faith in Jesus Christ are to be distinct, living according to the will of God rather than running their lives apart from Him. God’s Word defines the Christian life as well as the life of those who trusted God before Christ came. The difference is that all discovered that they could not fully obey the laws of God. Our sinfulness trips us up and we fall short of His high standards. We need Jesus who became sin for us that we could have His righteousness and be declared just by God.

An OT example of this is Daniel. He was taken captive by Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon and chosen for special duties. He and his friends were fed food and wine daily from the king’s table but this food did not conform to the requirements of God’s Laws. It was prepared by Gentiles rendering it unclean. It may have included items forbidden by the Law. It had also been sacrificed and offered to pagan gods before it was offered to the king. God’s people were forbidden to eat anything sacrificed to pagan gods.

The wine was also a problem. The OT forbade “strong drink” so God’s people diluted wine with water, up to 10 parts of water to 1 part of wine but not so the Babylonians. This made both the food and drink forbidden and since Daniel wanted to please God, he resolved that even though he was in a culture that did not follow God’s laws, he would consider himself under the His Law. He requested a trial diet of vegetables (a word that could include grains) and it resulted in him and his friend appearing healthier than those who were on the king’s diet. Not only does this show how God honors those who trust and obey Him, it indicates how living according to the Word of the Lord means living distinctively, not like the rest of those around us.

A NT example is the church at Thessalonica. Paul was thankful for these Christians and expressed how his life and their lives were different and made a difference:

For you remember, brothers, our labor and toil: we worked night and day, that we might not be a burden to any of you, while we proclaimed to you the gospel of God. You are witnesses, and God also, how holy and righteous and blameless was our conduct toward you believers. For you know how, like a father with his children, we exhorted each one of you and encouraged you and charged you to walk in a manner worthy of God, who calls you into his own kingdom and glory. And we also thank God constantly for this, that when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men but as what it really is, the word of God, which is at work in you believers. For you, brothers, became imitators of the churches of God in Christ Jesus that are in Judea. For you suffered the same things from your own countrymen as they did from the Jews, who killed both the Lord Jesus and the prophets, and drove us out, and displease God and oppose all mankind by hindering us from speaking to the Gentiles that they might be saved—so as always to fill up the measure of their sins. But wrath has come upon them at last! (1 Thessalonians 2:9–16)

Paul lived a blameless life that affected these who believed in Christ. They received God’s Word and followed the godly examples of others. Yet it is important to realize that this life is not always popular! Daniel eventually suffered and nearly died because he followed the will of God. Many Christians experience ridicule, persecution of various forms, and even death because we are living for Christ and not ourselves. As verse 6 says, obedience to God means not seeking glory from people but living so God is glorified.

APPLY: So far, most of the opposition I face is from Satan and his cohorts who have tried all sorts of ways to stop me from prayer and ruin my determination to be a godly person. I’m thankful that the Lord is my refuge and protection, and that He can overcome all that comes against me. I need to remember the courage of Daniel and that godly living does not mean popularity: “Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.” (2 Timothy 3:12)