Chapter 55
THE LAW OF FOODS
Matthew 15:11-20
Before we begin our study let us pray.
Dear Heavenly Father,
We come before You in the name of Your only begotten Son, Jesus Christ. Father God, we ask You to please bless this study and use it to help us better understand Your Word and the great gift You have given us through You son Jesus Christ. To this end, please open our ears, our eyes and our hearts so we can truly hear, see and comprehend what we are about to read and study.
Amen
INTRODUCTION
In our previous study, chapter 54 titled: “For the Sake of Tradition”, we found that in an attempt to discredit Jesus, the Pharisees and scribes (who were the teachers of the Law) challenged Him by asking: “Why did His disciples violate the tradition of the Jewish faith?” The specific issue was the tradition imposed by the elders that no one was to eat without first washing their hands.
To refresh our memories, let us read from,
Mark 7:1-5
[1] Then the Pharisees and some of the scribes came together to Him, having come from Jerusalem. [2] Now when they saw some of His disciples eat bread with defiled, that is, with unwashed hands, they found fault. [3] For the Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat unless they wash their hands in a special way, holding the tradition of the elders. [4] When they come from the marketplace, they do not eat unless they wash. And there are many other things which they have received and hold, like the washing of cups, pitchers, copper vessels, and couches. [5] Then the Pharisees and scribes asked Him, “Why do Your disciples not walk according to the tradition of the elders, but eat bread with unwashed hands?”
(As a side note, according to Vine’s “Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words,” the word “couches” refers to a couch used for reclining during the meal.)
We also discovered that this issue of washing of hands and utensils was not about good health. To see this let us read God’s command with respect to this subject as recorded in,
Leviticus 11:44
[44] For I am the Lord your God. You shall therefore consecrate yourselves, and you shall be holy; for I am holy. Neither shall you defile yourselves with any creeping thing that creeps on the earth.
The issue raised by the Pharisees and scribes was that of not obeying the tradition imposed by the leaders and elders of the Jewish faith. This particular tradition was developed with the belief that somehow eating with unwashed hands would defile them. According to the book: “The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah1” this tradition was an unscriptural extension and exaggeration of the command to keep one’s self holy The thinking was that during the day to day activity one might have accidentally had contact with a ceremonially unclean animal or substance. Thus, if this residue of a ceremonially unclean animal or substance was ingested by eating with unwashed hands or utensils then that person would become ceremonially unclean and therefore abhorrent to God. Consequently, in the eyes of the Pharisees and scribes their charge against Jesus and His disciples was considered to be a serious matter.
Unfortunately, in developing these types of traditions or man-made rules, the Pharisees and scribes either forgotten or ignored what God said in,
Deuteronomy 12:32
[32] “Whatever I command you, be careful to observe it; you shall not add to it nor take away from it.
To be sure that the people of Israel and now us truly understand how a person becomes defiled, Jesus called the multitude to teach them. To read what He said let us go to,
Mathew 15:10-11
[10] When He had called the multitude to Himself, He said to them, “Hear and understand: [11] Not what goes into the mouth defiles a man; but what comes out of the mouth, this defiles a man.”
Peter still did not quite understand what Jesus had said. Consequently, Peter came to Jesus and asked Him to explain the parable. To see this we go to,
Matthew 15:15-16
[15] Then Peter answered and said to Him, “Explain this parable to us.” [16] So Jesus said, “Are you also still without understanding?
Before we become too critical of Peter, let us not forget that Peter was born and raised in the traditions of the Jewish elders. In other words, the Old Testament Law and Jewish traditions were a major part of Peter’s life.
With this in mind let us now read Jesus’ explanation of the parable of foods as it is recorded in,
[17] Do you not yet understand that whatever enters the mouth goes into the stomach and is eliminated? [18] But those things which proceed out of the mouth come from the heart, and they defile a man. [19] For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies. [20] These are the things which defile a man, but to eat with unwashed hands does not defile a man.”
As one reflects upon Jesus’ explanation; the question arises as to: “Why, in the Old Testament, did God institute the Law of Foods?”
To answer this question and further amplify Jesus’ teaching we will,
1. See that before the Law all foods were clean.
2. Review why God, through Moses, instituted the Law.
3. Find the Law of Foods was imposed to teach the Israelites to be aware of the difference between good and evil.
4. Discover that true believers in Jesus Christ are no longer under these Laws and Traditions. Instead, we are under God’s provision of His Grace and Mercy.
With the above introduction in mind let us now see that,
BEFORE THE LAW ALL FOODS WERE CLEAN
In reading the Book of Genesis we find that,
ALL PLANTS WERE GIVEN FOR FOOD
This is recorded in,
Genesis 1:29-30
[29] And God said, “See, I have given you every herb that yields seed which is on the face of all the earth, and every tree whose fruit yields seed; to you it shall be for food. [30] Also, to every beast of the earth, to every bird of the air, and to everything that creeps on the earth, in which there is life, I have given every green herb for food”; and it was so.
Let us notice the following verses,
29 … The plants were given as food for us.
30 … Likewise the plants were given as food for all the beasts, birds and creeping creatures.
Secondly, in the Book of Genesis we find that after the flood,
EVERY MOVING THING THAT LIVES WAS GIVEN AS FOOD
To see this, let us read one of the things God said to Noah after Noah left the ark to repopulate the earth. The passage of interest is in,
Genesis 9:1-4
[1] So God blessed Noah and his sons, and said to them: “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth. [2] And the fear of you and the dread of you shall be on every beast of the earth, on every bird of the air, on all that move on the earth, and on all the fish of the sea. They are given into your hand. [3] Every moving thing that lives shall be food for you. I have given you all things, even as the green herbs. [4] But you shall not eat flesh with its life, that is, its blood.
Let us notice the following verses,
2c … All the beasts of the earth, birds of the air and fish in the sea were given into the hands of Noah.
3 … In addition to the green things, which are the plants, every moving and living thing was to be our food.
4 … However, they were not to eat flesh with its blood. The reason for this is given in the following Scriptures,
Leviticus 17:14
[14] for it is the life of all flesh. Its blood sustains its life. Therefore I said to the children of Israel, ‘You shall not eat the blood of any flesh, for the life of all flesh is its blood. Whoever eats it shall be cut off.’
In the above verse we read that; the blood sustains the life. This is why the life of every creature is represented by its blood.
This was the nature of things until God called Moses up on Mount Sinai. It was on Mount Sinai where God gave Moses the Law, which was/is the Ten Commandments. Also, at this time the Ceremonial Law was given for the entire sacrificial system, the feasts, the Tent of Meeting services, and along with other laws such as the Law of Foods was also given.
THE PURPOSE OF THE LAW
To understand the reason why God, through Moses, imposed the Law, it is important for us to realize that before Moses, there was no law. Specifically, the Bible teaches us that the Ten Commandments and the Ceremonial Law were not imposed by God until approximately 430 years after Abraham. To see this let us read from,
Galatians 3:17
[17] And this I say, that the law, which was four hundred and thirty years later, cannot annul the covenant that was confirmed before by God in Christ, that it should make the promise of no effect.
Hence the question of: “Why the Law?” Perhaps a better way to state this question would be: “What was God’s purpose in giving the Law?” The answer to these questions, we will find that God gave the Law for at least the following three reasons,
1. Because of Israel’s constant transgressions against Him, God gave them His Law and commandments.
2. Through the Law, we now know what sin is and its consequence.
3. The ultimate purpose for the Law was to lead all of us to Jesus Christ.
First of all, it is important to understand that,
THE LAW WAS ADDED BECAUSE OF ISRAEL’S TRANGRESSIONS
After God miraculously delivered the nation of Israel from their cruel bondage to Pharaoh and the Egyptians, God began to lead them through the wilderness to the Promised Land. However, throughout their journey the people of Israel constantly mumbled, grumbled and complained about their living conditions. They even accused God of purposely bringing them out in the wilderness to put them to death. To see just three examples of this, we begin by reviewing a snapshot of what occurred at,
The Red Sea
This incident occurred after God, to convince Pharaoh to release the Israelites from his enslavement, had performed many miracles. As the Israelites headed to the Promised Land they came to the shores of the Red Sea. In the meantime, Pharaoh had another change of heart and sent his army to either bring back the Israelites or kill them. With this short background in mind, let us now read an excerpt of what happened at the Red Sea. To do this we go to,
Exodus 14:10-14
[10] And when Pharaoh drew near, the children of Israel lifted their eyes, and behold, the Egyptians marched after them. So they were very afraid, and the children of Israel cried out to the Lord. [11] Then they said to Moses, “Because there were no graves in Egypt, have you taken us away to die in the wilderness? Why have you so dealt with us, to bring us up out of Egypt? [12] Is this not the word that we told you in Egypt, saying, ‘Let us alone that we may serve the Egyptians’? For it would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than that we should die in the wilderness.” [13] And Moses said to the people, “Do not be afraid. Standstill, and see the salvation of the Lord, which He will accomplish for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall see again no more forever. [14] The Lord will fight for you, and you shall hold your peace.”
Let us notice the following verses,
10 … When the Israelites saw the Egyptian army they were terrified.
11–12a … The Israelites actually accused God of bringing them to this place to die. They also brought to Moses’ attention that even while they were still in slavery, they told Moses to leave them alone to serve the Egyptians.
12b … Now the Israelites told Moses it would have been better to serve the Egyptians than to die in the wilderness.
13-14 … Moses told the people to not be afraid for they were about to see another miracle of God’s salvation.
In reading further, we discover that God parted the Red Sea into two parts. This made a path for the nation of Israel to cross over the Red Sea on dry ground. However, when the Egyptian army followed the people of Israel, God collapsed the two parts and the entire army drowned.
Our second example takes place in,
The Wilderness of Sin
Approximately one and one half months after leaving Egypt and miraculously passing through the Red Sea, the people of Israel became very hungry. To read what happened let us go to,
[1] And they journeyed from Elim, and all the congregation of the children of Israel came to the Wilderness of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai, on the fifteenth day of the second month after they departed from the land of Egypt. [2] Then the whole congregation of the children of Israel complained against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness. [3] And the children of Israel said to them, “Oh, that we had died by the hand of the Lord in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the pots of meat and when we ate bread to the full! For you have brought us out into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger.”
Let us notice the following verse,
3 … This time the people accused God of wanting to starve them to death. In fact, they now longed for their days of slavery.
Our third and last example occurred at,
Rephidim
To find out what happened at Rephidim we go to,
Exodus 17:1-3
[1] Then all the congregation of the children of Israel set out on their journey from the Wilderness of Sin, according to the commandment of the Lord, and camped in Rephidim; but there was no water for the people to drink. [2] Therefore the people contended with Moses, and said, “Give us water, that we may drink.” So Moses said to them, “Why do you contend with me? Why do you tempt the Lord?” [3] And the people thirsted there for water, and the people complained against Moses, and said, “Why is it you have brought us up out of Egypt, to kill us and our children and our livestock with thirst?”
Let us notice the following verses,
2 … Moses told the people that they were not only contending with him but were also tempting God.
3 … Again, the people accused Moses, who was following God’s command, of wanting to kill them, their children and their livestock.
It must be pointed out that after the above events occurred is when God told Moses to come up Mount Sinai. It was here, on top of Mount Sinai, that God gave Moses the Ten Commandments. Moses was then to go back down the mountain and teach the people of Israel God’s Laws and Commandments.
With this background in mind let us now read the following excerpt from Paul’s letter to the church in Galatia. In this excerpt we will discover that it was because of Israel’s transgressions, that God gave the Law. The Scripture of interest is in,
Galatians 3:19
[19] What purpose then does the law serve? It was added because of transgressions, till the Seed should come to whom the promise was made; and it was appointed through angels by the hand of a mediator.
Let us notice the following verses,
19a … The Law was added because of the transgressions.
19b … It was added until the Seed of Promise would come. As we continue we will discover that the Seed of Promise was and is Jesus Christ.
19c … The Law was appointed through a mediator. This is speaking of Moses. During this period of Israel’s history, God had spoken through Moses to the people and the people would ask Moses to speak to God on their behalf. Thus, Moses was the mediator between God and the nation of Israel.
The second reason God gave the Law was so that,
THROUGH THE LAW WE KNOW WHAT SIN IS AND ITS CONSEQUENCES
To see this let us read from,
Romans 3:19-20
[19] Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God. [20] Therefore by the deeds of the law no flesh will be justified in His sight, for by the law is the knowledge of sin.
Let us notice the following verses,
19 … The Law was given to expose, to us, our sin and transgressions against God. The Law not only brought to us this knowledge, but it also brought with it the fact that we are held guilty of sinning against God.
20 … By the deeds of the Law, that is by trying to obey all of its demands by our own will power, we can never justify ourselves or render ourselves guiltless before our Holy God. The reason for this is because the Law was given to expose our sin, not take it away. To see this let us move on to,
Hebrews 7:19
[19] for the law made nothing perfect; on the other hand, there is the bringing in of a better hope, through which we draw near to God.
Let us notice the following verses,
19a … The law made nothing perfect. Thus, the Law is not able to make you holy, perfect or without sin.
19b … However, once we are convicted of our sin and guilt, the Law does bring us a hope by which we come to God and ask for His forgiveness and to take away our sin and sinful desires.
This brings us to the third reason for the Law. Specifically,
THE PURPOSE OF THE LAW WAS TO LEAD US TO JESUS CHRIST
This truth is recorded in,
Galatians 3:24
[24] Therefore the law was our tutor to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith.
Let us notice the following verses,
24a … The Law was and is our tutor or teacher to bring us to faith in Jesus Christ and ask Him to save us from our sins and sinful ways.
24b … In other words, by faith in Jesus Christ and what He did on the cross we can receive God’s Mercy and Grace and be forgiven for our sins and trespasses. Hence, through faith in Jesus we are then justified or held guiltless before God the Father.
As we read the Old Testament, we discover that the Ceremonial Law of Foods, which was only one portion of the entire Ceremonial Law, was also instituted as a tutor for the Israelites. Thus,
We now come to the question or topic of this study, which is,
WHY THE LAW OF FOODS?
To address this question we go to Chapter 11 in the Book of Leviticus. Since this ordinance is quite lengthy, we will only read the portion of Scripture that provides us with the purpose for this law. It is recorded in,
Leviticus 11:43-47
[43]””You shall not make yourselves abominable with any creeping thing that creeps; nor shall you make yourselves unclean with them, lest you be defiled by them. [44] For I am the Lord your God. You shall therefore consecrate yourselves, and you shall be holy; for I am holy. Neither shall you defile yourselves with any creeping thing that creeps on the earth. [45] For I am the Lord who brings you up out of the land of Egypt, to be your God. You shall therefore be holy, for I am holy. [46] ‘This is the law of the animals and the birds and every living creature that moves in the waters, and of every creature that creeps on the earth, [47] to distinguish between the unclean and the clean, and between the animal that may be eaten and the animal that may not be eaten.’”
Let us notice the following verses,
43 … God told the people of Israel they should not make themselves abominable or unclean with creeping things.
44a … God reaffirmed to Israel that He is the Lord and their God. Therefore, they were to sanctify or consecrate themselves and be holy, which means to be set apart or separated from sin and sinful ways.
44b … The Israelites were not to defile themselves with creeping things of the earth.
45b … Again, our God instructed the people of Israel to be holy or set themselves apart from sin and sinful ways.
46-47a … In these verses is God’s purpose for the Law of Foods. Specifically, the Lord instructed the people to distinguish between the clean and unclean.
In other words, God was teaching His people to be holy. He was teaching them to know the difference between good and evil. He was teaching them to set themselves apart from the rest of the world and from the world’s evil customs, beliefs and traditions. He used the Law of Foods to tell them what foods were to be considered unclean for eating and those foods that were to be considered clean enough to eat. Notice, the Law of Foods had nothing to do with good health. God instituted the Law of Foods to teach them to always be aware and know there is a difference between good and evil. He was also teaching them to stay away from or separate themselves from the evil practices of the world.
Thus, we come to realize that God was using the elementary things of this world, such as food, as a tutor or guardian, to teach the people to be separate and holy unto Him.
With all what we have covered in mind, the question becomes as to: “How does all this relate to you and me, the born again believers in Jesus Christ?”
The answer to this question is simply that,
WE ARE NO LONGER UNDER THESE OLD TESTAMENT CEREMONIAL LAWS AND TRADITIONS
To see this let us read the following passage from Apostle Paul’s letter to the church in Colosse. We begin with,
Colossians 2:4-7
[4] Now this I say lest anyone should deceive you with persuasive words. [5] For though I am absent in the flesh, yet I am with you in spirit, rejoicing to see your good order and the steadfastness of your faith in Christ. [6] As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, [7] rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith, as you have been taught, abounding in it with thanksgiving.
Let us notice the following verses,
6-7 … As we have received Christ; in like manner we are to walk in Him. In other words, we received Christ by faith in Him and what He accomplished for us upon the cross. Therefore, we are to live the rest of our lives by faith in Him. Specifically, we are not to try to justify ourselves or to try and make ourselves holy before God by submitting to various religious laws and traditions. Now, as we live the rest of our lives by faith, we are to be continually thankful for the Grace and Mercy God has extended to us through His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ.
As we continue our reading in Colossians we find that,
WE ARE FREE FROM VAIN PHILOSOPHY
To see this let us now read from,
Colossians 2:8-10
[8] Beware lest anyone cheat you through philosophy and empty deceit, according to the tradition of men, according to the basic principles of the world, and not according to Christ. [9] For in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily; [10] and you are complete in Him, who is the head of all principality and power.
Let us notice the following verses,
8 … We are to be careful to not get caught up in the religious traditions of men or according to the basic or elementary principles of this world, such as the law of foods or the tradition of the washing of hands, etc.
10a … We are complete, which means made perfect, in Christ. Therefore, we do not need any religious works or traditions by which we think we can boast before God the Father on how good and righteous we are. In other words, it is only Jesus Christ and the sanctifying work of God the Holy Spirit who makes us holy.
10b … Jesus Christ is the Head and Lord of all!
As we read further in Paul’s letter to the Colossians, we discover that,
JESUS CHRIST HAS SET US FREE FROM THE DOCTRINES OF MEN
This is recorded for us in,
Colossians 2:20-23
[20] Therefore, if you died with Christ from the basic principles of the world, why, as though living in the world, do you subject yourselves to regulations— [21] “Do not touch, do not taste, do not handle,” [22] which all concern things which perish with the using—according to the commandments and doctrines of men? [23] These things indeed have an appearance of wisdom in self-imposed religion, false humility, and neglect of the body, but are of no value against the indulgence of the flesh.
Let us notice the following verses,
20-21 … Now that we have been born again in the Holy Spirit; “Why should we, to boast before God the Father on how good we are, try to obey or follow worldly or earthly traditions, such as do not touch, do not taste or do not handle?”
22 … Remember, these things such as what we should or should not eat or what we should or should not drink, etc. are all according to the commands of the Ceremonial Law and doctrines imposed by man.
23 … We must never forget that all these thingd are of no value to set us right before God the Father. To see this we go to verse,
Colossians 2:23
[23] These things indeed have an appearance of wisdom in self-imposed religion, false humility, and neglect of the body, but are of no value against the indulgence of the flesh.
In other words, all these, commands and doctrines have NO value or power to help us with our fight against our sinful nature. Only the Holy Spirit living within the born again Christian has the power to fight against and overcome the indulgences of our fleshy nature. Hence, our walk of faith is to trust and rely upon Jesus Christ to live His life in and through us. When we do this the Holy Spirit will put to death our sinful desires and bring forth His fruits from within us. This is the example the Apostle Paul gave us to follow. To see how Paul lived, let us read from,
Galatians 2:20-21
[20] I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me. [21] I do not set aside the grace of God; for if righteousness comes through the law, then Christ died in vain.”
This brings us to,
THE TWO MESSAGES OR POINTS OF THE STUDY
The first point or message is recorded in,
Matthew 15:11
[11] Not what goes into the mouth defiles a man; but what comes out of the mouth, this defiles a man.”
The second point or message is provided in,
Mark 7:17-19
[17] When He had entered a house away from the crowd, His disciples asked Him concerning the parable. [18] So He said to them, “Are you thus without understanding also? Do you not perceive that whatever enters a man from outside cannot defile him, [19] because it does not enter his heart but his stomach, and is eliminated, thus purifying all foods?”
In other words, Jesus
declared that all foods were clean.
Shall We Pray?