12/06/11

Veg or Non-veg, clean or unclean

Romans 14:22 - Do you have faith? Have it to yourself before God. Happy is he who does not condemn himself in what he approves.


One of the debates in Christian circles which catches like bush fire is about food, what to eat and what not to eat.

Have you ever given a thought, could not have God made man like the plants getting nourishment from the sun, water and soil? Think of it we would not have had all this food problems and many would not have had to work! Do you think God did not give it a thought? Did someone need to suggest that to God?

Look at the other spiritual benefits it would have had. We would not have had the problem with the spirit of obesity which most fight against or are casualties of. Another spiritual problem area would have been the desire of the tongue to taste. The tongue is not only a dangerous weapon when it is let lose to talk but also dangerous for our spirit when it is let lose to taste. The desires of the tongue can destroy the spiritual amour and well as the being if not controlled. There are many other numerous benefits had man been made like the plants.

Firstly we need to understand God made man an eating being with purpose as to understand spiritual matters pertaining to our permanent residence Heaven. In the Garden of Eden God instructed man to eat of the plants and trees with reason so as to train man to know how to manage his eternal life which God put forth for him. Later we see when sin came into man God indirectly caused man to kill and eat of the animal so as to train him to accept his eternal sacrifice of redemption and to be free from sin. God made all things for man and when He made them He said everything is good, yet we see some trees and even some animals carry poison within themselves and if eaten man can die.

We need to understand every variety of animal, plant, creature and even the universe is made to understand the spiritual world and beings of the spiritual world. Like God made man in His image similarly God made other creatures in this creation in the image of things of His Kingdom and in the image of the kingdom of darkness which opposes His Kingdom. So even though all things are good yet they behave differently or have different characteristics because of the image they were created in. To give an example of how to discern the spiritual image, God called some animals clean and some unclean. Once the full understanding of these images comes unto man and he learns to discern them fully even nature would be under man’s control meaning will abide by man's authority.

So what we eat and what we do not eat is only due to the knowledge or understanding we hold or lack (which is linked to our faith). So do not force someone to be a veg or non-veg but open their minds to the knowledge and understanding of God’s spiritual Kingdom and he or she would know all things are good and for the purpose of man, he or she would also know what, how and when to eat.


[ Prayer Starter ]
Lord, You made this world in your awesome wisdom. You made all things good and with purpose. You knew the plans each plant, grain of soil, animal, bird would play in your grand story of man's salvation. Due to the lack of knowledge man is not able to build faith and have authority. Lord, open our minds to your Kingdom and pour out your knowledge, wisdom and understanding into us. Help us overcome our weak faith...

This prayer we make in Jesus' Name, Amen.


[ Reference Scripturesr ]
Genesis 1:11-12,21,24-27,29-31
11 And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed, and the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself, upon the earth: and it was so.
12 And the earth brought forth grass, and herb yielding seed after his kind, and the tree yielding fruit, whose seed was in itself, after his kind: and God saw that it was good.
21 And God created great whales [monsters], and every living creature that moveth, which the waters brought forth abundantly, after their kind, and every winged fowl after his kind: and God saw that it was good.
24 And God said, Let the earth bring forth the living creature after his kind, cattle, and creeping thing, and beast of the earth after his kind: and it was so.
25 And God made the beast of the earth after his kind, and cattle after their kind, and every thing that creepeth upon the earth after his kind: and God saw that it was good.
26 And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.
27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.
29 And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat.
30 And to every beast of the earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to every thing that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is life, I have given every green herb for meat: and it was so.
31 And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. And the evening and the morning were the sixth day.

Genesis 3:21
21 Unto Adam also and to his wife did the LORD God make coats of skins, and clothed them.

Genesis 4:3-4
3 And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the LORD.
4 And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the LORD had respect unto Abel and to his offering:

Genesis 7:1-3,8-9
1 And the LORD said unto Noah, Come thou and all thy house into the ark; for thee have I seen righteous before me in this generation.
2 Of every clean beast thou shalt take to thee by sevens, the male and his female: and of beasts that are not clean by two, the male and his female.
3 Of fowls also of the air by sevens, the male and the female; to keep seed alive upon the face of all the earth.
8 Of clean beasts, and of beasts that are not clean, and of fowls, and of every thing that creepeth upon the earth,
9 There went in two and two unto Noah into the ark, the male and the female, as God had commanded Noah.

Genesis 8:18-22
18 And Noah went forth, and his sons, and his wife, and his sons’ wives with him:
19 Every beast, every creeping thing, and every fowl, and whatsoever creepeth upon the earth, after their kinds, went forth out of the ark.
20 And Noah builded an altar unto the LORD; and took of every clean beast, and of every clean fowl, and offered burnt offerings on the altar.
21 And the LORD smelled a sweet savour; and the LORD said in his heart, I will not again curse the ground any more for man’s sake; for the imagination of man’s heart is evil from his youth; neither will I again smite any more every thing living, as I have done.
22 While the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease.

Leviticus 10:9-11
9 Do not drink wine nor strong drink, thou, nor thy sons with thee, when ye go into the tabernacle of the congregation, lest ye die: it shall be a statute for ever throughout your generations:
10 And that ye may put difference between holy and unholy, and between unclean and clean;
11 And that ye may teach the children of Israel all the statutes which the LORD hath spoken unto them by the hand of Moses.

Leviticus 11:1-23
1 And the LORD spake unto Moses and to Aaron, saying unto them,
2 Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, These are the beasts which ye shall eat among all the beasts that are on the earth.
3 Whatsoever parteth the hoof, and is clovenfooted, and cheweth the cud, among the beasts, that shall ye eat.
4 Nevertheless these shall ye not eat of them that chew the cud, or of them that divide the hoof: as the camel, because he cheweth the cud, but divideth not the hoof; he is unclean unto you.
5 And the coney, because he cheweth the cud, but divideth not the hoof; he is unclean unto you.
6 And the hare, because he cheweth the cud, but divideth not the hoof; he is unclean unto you.
7 And the swine, though he divide the hoof, and be clovenfooted, yet he cheweth not the cud; he is unclean to you.
8 Of their flesh shall ye not eat, and their carcase shall ye not touch; they are unclean to you.
9 These shall ye eat of all that are in the waters: whatsoever hath fins and scales in the waters, in the seas, and in the rivers, them shall ye eat.
10 And all that have not fins and scales in the seas, and in the rivers, of all that move in the waters, and of any living thing which is in the waters, they shall be an abomination unto you:
11 They shall be even an abomination unto you; ye shall not eat of their flesh, but ye shall have their carcases in abomination.
12 Whatsoever hath no fins nor scales in the waters, that shall be an abomination unto you.
13 And these are they which ye shall have in abomination among the fowls; they shall not be eaten, they are an abomination: the eagle, and the ossifrage, and the ospray,
14 And the vulture, and the kite after his kind;
15 Every raven after his kind;
16 And the owl, and the night hawk, and the cuckow, and the hawk after his kind,
17 And the little owl, and the cormorant, and the great owl,
18 And the swan, and the pelican, and the gier eagle,
19 And the stork, the heron after her kind, and the lapwing, and the bat.
20 All fowls that creep, going upon all four, shall be an abomination unto you.
21 Yet these may ye eat of every flying creeping thing that goeth upon all four, which have legs above their feet, to leap withal upon the earth;
22 Even these of them ye may eat; the locust after his kind, and the bald locust after his kind, and the beetle after his kind, and the grasshopper after his kind.
23 But all other flying creeping things, which have four feet, shall be an abomination unto you.

Acts 10:9-16
9 On the morrow, as they went on their journey, and drew nigh unto the city, Peter went up upon the housetop to pray about the sixth hour:
10 And he became very hungry, and would have eaten: but while they made ready, he fell into a trance,
11 And saw heaven opened, and a certain vessel descending unto him, as it had been a great sheet knit at the four corners, and let down to the earth:
12 Wherein were all manner of fourfooted beasts of the earth, and wild beasts, and creeping things, and fowls of the air.
13 And there came a voice to him, Rise, Peter; kill, and eat.
14 But Peter said, Not so, Lord; for I have never eaten any thing that is common or unclean.
15 And the voice spake unto him again the second time, What God hath cleansed, that call not thou common.
16 This was done thrice: and the vessel was received up again into heaven.

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