Did Paul considered certain foods unclean?

[Ovedya]

Every year we are learning more and more about how the human body functions in its natural state, and much of what we thought we knew has been tossed out the window. Take this Adkins diet, for example. The Atkins diet is probably very close to the way that we were designed to eat. High protein, low carbs is a typical agrarian-type diet. What Atkins really discovered is the origin of ourselves, in a dietary sense. Of course, most physicians scoffed at him, and even ridiculed him. But guess what they're finding out now? Atkins was right!

[Guest Yhudah]

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[Ovedya]

I respectfully dissagree with the sentiment and content of your last post, Yhudah.

You will agree that there are two aspects of what we refer to as the Old Testament. There is the Law and the prophets. The Law refers to the commandments and the religious ordinances. The prophets refer to the prophetic books (among whch there is some contention between certain Jewish sects, I believe).

In the initiation of His ministry Jesus Christ said, "Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets, I have not come to abolish, but to fulfill" (Matt. 5:17). What the Lord meant by this was explained by Him in Matthew 11:13 and Luke 16:16 respectively. Both the Law and the prophets prophesied of the coming Savior, Messiah (Luke 24:44). These were until John, meaning that until John the Baptist came on the scene the law and the prophets prophesied of Christ. As we know, John the Batist heralded the first coming of the Messiah (Typified by Elijah, cf. Matt. 17:12; 11:14; Luke 1:17). Thus, the dispensational period of the law was from Moses (the giver of the Law) to John the Baptist. The dispensational periof of the law and the prophets ended with the coming of John the Baptist, who heralded the coming Christ.

Now, we know that in type Moses represents the law because Moses was the one who received the commandments and ordinances from God. And we know that Elijah represents the prophets. As you are aware Elijah was taken up into heaven by a chariot and horses of fire (1 Kings 2:11). It is he who Malachi prophesied as heralding the coming Messiah. And we read both in Matthew and Revelation that Elijah (first in type, then in reality) precedes both comings of Messiah.

In Matthew 17 the Lord transfigured Himself before Peter, James, and John. Alongside the Lord appeared Moses and Elijah. Peter wated to make three tents for them. But He was rebuked by the Father who said, "This is my Son, the Beloved, in Whom I have found My delight. Hear Him." This situation represented to Peter, James, and John, who were all Jews, that the Law (typified by Moses) and the Prophets (typified by Elijah) were no longer to be heard, but that Christ was the one who spoke for the Father. Thus the law and the prophets ended with Christ (Rom. 10:4).

To summarize, the dispensation of the law and the prophets ended with John the Baptist, and the speaking of the law and the prophets ended with Christ. In reality these two are one, since the coming of Christ put an effective end to the law and the prophets.

Now, does this mean that the commandments must no longer be obeyed? Certainly not. As Paul would write, "heaven forbid!" However, the law is no longer a written word, requiring a vast number of ritualistic practices to redeem oneself from breaking it. The sum total of the law is in Christ. It could be said that Christ embodies the law. Because Christ fulfilled all of the laws and did not break one single law. It has been said that if you break one commandment, you have broken them all. But Christ has never done so. When a person believes into Christ, the law is written on his heart (Heb. 8:10; 10:16; Jer. 31:33). This is the law of the Spirit of life, which varies from the dead letter of the law (Rom. 8:1-2). Read Hebrews chs 8-12 in this light.

Additionally, with respect to the current dispensation, we are no longer in the age of the law, but the age of grace. No longer does God act on account of the law, but He acts on account of Christ. The righteous requirement of the law was that blood must be shed for the remission of sins. No longer. Christ, as the Lamb of God, died once and for all, establishing a better covenant and eternal redemption for those who believe. I disagree with the notion that the new covenant does not render the old invalid. Something that is better always replaces that which is old. The covenant made with Israel and the new covenant are essentially the same in nature, but the new covenant replaces the demand placed upon the house of Israel and supplies it with the grace afforded through Christ's shed blood. In this way the new covenant, which is out of grace, has replaced the old (Luke 22:20; 1 Cor. 11:25; 2 Cor. 3:6; Heb. 8:8, 13; 9:15; 12:24; cf. Heb. 7:12, 18).

[angels4u]

Good post God-man!!

[Ovedya]

God-man I do agree with you ,but I quess we should eat everything in moderation , I agree there is no law against eating meat.

But that pig thing that

Yod explained does not sound appetizing!!

I would venture to guess that if you knew of the way most animals were treated you would probably want to become a vegetarian. Kosher refers to the manner in which an animal is slaughtered and cooked. Kosher food is also blessed by an Orthodox Jewish Rabbi. Also, the Muslims will only eat "Halal" meat, which is basically a Kosher process.

Pig or not a pig, it does not really matter. Whether a pig tastes like a vulture or vice-versa, I will never know, since I have not, nor do I intend to eat a vulture. Wouldn't you have had to eaten a vulture in order to know? Under the law it is forbidden to eat vulture (Lev. 11:13), so how would a Jewish person know?

It all boils down to how you clean and cook your meat, in my opinion. Peter was told he could eat all the unclean animals. So what's the big diff.?

[Guest Yhudah]

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[traveller]

I agree there is no law against eating meat.

But that pig thing that

Yod explained does not sound appetizing!!

Angels, yod may have turned me into a vegetarian!

[angels4u]

haha.... Traveler are you serieus? I do eat little red meat and hardly any pork product..

But I have to confess I didn't buy anymore pork after my conversation with Yod , I heard worms could live on pork even after you cook it!!

[Ovedya]

But I have to confess I didn't buy anymore pork after my conversation with Yod , I heard worms could live on pork even after you cook it!!

This may be a road that you do not want to go down, angels. Some parasites will only survive the cooking process if you do not cook your food thoroughly enough. A well-cooked piece of meat will not have any live parasites in it. However, statistics say that at least 60% of Americans have some kind of parasite already. Some studies have even reported figures as high as 80%. Parasites in humans is mare common than you think.

The most common way of getting parasites is through vegetables. Parasitic worms lay eggs on leafy vegetables such as lettuce, for example, and those eggs are not always washed off. Some are ingested, and the eggs will hatch inside the intestines. You can also get parasites from walking through grass with bare feet.

This is as far as I

[Guest yod]

.