Why Am I Eating a Pork Chop?

[nolidad]

It clearly states in Deuteronomy 14:8 that we’re not to eat pork. In fact, Deuteronomy and Leviticus clearly state a lot of things that we don’t adhere to.

13:6 through18: We’re instructed to kill without mercy -even your own family members- anyone who tries to convince you to worship other gods.

17:2 through 13: Kill anyone who does evil-such as worshipping the stars- and violates the covenant. And if you’re not sure if the party is guilty, take it to court and if the Judge finds the party guilty and you refuse take part in stoning the defendant to death, then you should be killed too.

21:18: Kill your own son if he is rebellious.

Thou shalt not kill, but Deuteronomy, Leviticus, and Exodus is full of examples like this where we are to kill people for sinning. What about “as we forgive those who trespass against us”? I seem to have made executing people the theme here, but there are instructions/laws on other topics as well that we don’t follow, I’m assuming because they just don’t seem consistent with our faith.

So why is it OK to have a pork Bratwurst at the church fundraising event these days when God clearly forbids it?

You could argue that things were different back then and don’t apply today. But that would nullify the Ten Commandments. These laws I’m referring to were issued on the same day. They just didn’t make the top ten list.

Lots of answers so I hope this is not too repetitive.

The 613 Laws (Mosaic Law including the ten) were given to Israel as a theocratic nation! Also so they would be different from other nations.

There is nothing inherently evil in eating pork, but god called Israel not to to be different. The Olds Covenant was fulfilled by Jesus and thus rendered obsolete! So enjoy the bratwurst! we are not Israel, we are not living in the covenant land . We are the church and follow the commands to show we are righteous that are laid out in the New Testament and not the old.

 

[Hammster]

So it’s ok to sin?

No, but it’s also not to call something a sin that’s not a sin.

 

[The Liturgist]

,

God knows what is best for us since He is our Creator. There is science that supports why the clean foods are healthy vs the ones we shouldn’t eat. God actually intended for us to only eat nuts, fruits and vegetables until sin.

Here is a video on this topic if you want some good information.

Program Archives | Revelation Now

I am familiar with that and I disagree fairly emphatically. Our omnivorous nature and our intellect differentiates humans from apes.

 

[The Liturgist]

Lots of answers so I hope this is not too repetitive.

The 613 Laws (Mosaic Law including the ten) were given to Israel as a theocratic nation! Also so they would be different from other nations.

There is nothing inherently evil in eating pork, but god called Israel not to to be different. The Olds Covenant was fulfilled by Jesus and thus rendered obsolete! So enjoy the bratwurst! we are not Israel, we are not living in the covenant land . We are the church and follow the commands to show we are righteous that are laid out in the New Testament and not the old.

The 613 commandments are based on Rabinnical, Pharasaical interpretation. I imagine the Karaite Jews and the Samaritans would give us different numbers; it might be interesting to ask them. I have an English translation of the Samaritan Defter, or prayer book, equivalent to a Siddur, which is so rare its like the Hope Diamond for a liturgiologist like me.

 

[lismore]

So why is it OK to have a pork Bratwurst at the church fundraising event these days when God clearly forbids it?

Pork is carcinogenic.

God Bless

 

[The Liturgist]

Not really. We are in a global pandemic which started by eating an unclean animal.

Actually that view is increasingly disputed including by the Chinese. There are many ways the virus could have started, including mutation of SARS over time in the wild followed by zooenetic transmission, and more probably, a containment accident at the Wuhan Virology Institute (note that I do not subscribe to the theory that it was a bioweapon; I think an accident involving poor engineering of the ventilation systems or an undisclosed needlepoint accident is probably responsible).

No, I am working on it. I only eat the clean meats though. Many members of our church are vegan.

Veganism has long been popular in SDA circles.

And He said to them, “Are you so lacking in understanding also? Do you not understand that whatever goes into the man from outside cannot defile him, because it does not go into his heart, but into his stomach, and is eliminated?” (Thus He declared all foods clean.)
— Mark 7:18-19

Precisely. And then there was St. Peter’s dream in Acts.

 

[The Liturgist]

The wages of sin is death according to scriptures.

That refers to human mortality. It is contrary to the Christian faith to burn witches or anyone else at the stake. The Auto da Fe practiced by the Inquisition is a horrible stain on the Roman Catholic Church, but Protestants are equally guilty of such attrocitiesl Actually this is the main reason why I dislike Archbishop Thomas Cranmer; he was one of the best liturgical writers of all time, but he participated in the burning of a Catholic bishop. Ironically he himself was later burned during the reign of Queen Mary. Also, John Calvin lured a heretic to Geneva, with a view to executing him, the city council decided to have him burned af the stake, and Calvin went along with it, so I don’t much care for him either. But I love Peter Waldo (founder of the Waldensians, who were subject to a brutal persecution known as the “Piedmont Easter”) and Jan Hus (who was burned at the stake and is now a saint in the Orthodox Church of the Czech Lands and Slovakia as well as the founder of the Moravian Church).

However, Increase Mather and his son Cotton Mather, and the other participants in the Salem Witch Trials, who I am ashamed to say were forerunners of my own Congregational denomination, although we have changed dramatically since the Puritan era, were the worst of all, because they killed innocent girls and young women on the basis of “spectral evidence” which was no evidence at all. It was evil what they did, and it seems more likely than not that there were no witches in Salem.

 

[Strong in Him]

I think a lot of people will be in for a big surprise to learn when God said something, He actually meant it.

He did mean it.
He taught, and showed, the Hebrews what would happen if they broke his commands and covenant.
But he did not tell Gentile Christians of the NEW Covenant to go and start obeying food and hygiene laws that were not given to us.

He tells us this when He said He changes not. Hebrews 13:8.

But he DOES change the way that he works.
He told Moses to build a tabernacle, later told Solomon to build the temple and the tabernacle was not heard of/used again.
He once told people to offer animal sacrifices to atone for their sin, then he sent Jesus.
It was thought in the OT that if anyone looked at God they would die. What does 1 John 1:1 say - "that which was from the beginning which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked at and our hands have touched".
In the OT the Spirit was given to only a few people and only for a short time; in the NT he was poured out on all believers, so that now God can live IN us.
He told Isaiah that he was doing a new thing, Isaiah 43:19, and Jeremiah that he was going to make a new Covenant, Jeremiah 31:31-34.

It’s the same God in the OT that is in the NT.

His nature is the same, yes.
The way he interacts with, and speaks to, people is not.

When we start putting man made traditions in place of Gods Words, its something to be very weary of.

I'm never weary (tired) of God's word.

 

[Davy]

Deuteronomy clearly states that the ancient Israelite's were not to eat pork.

One because it did not chew cud. These animals represented the surrounding nations. The Gentiles-which were unclean and what we all were if we are not Jewish. God never called Gentiles to follow Jewish law.
It wasn't until God sent Paul out to preach to the Gentiles and gave Paul the vision of the blanket that he said "Do not call anything impure that God has made clean." At this point God said that we the Gentiles were clean and we were at that point brought into God's family.
"There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus"

Two because God knew it was potentially unsafe if not cooked properly due to trichinellosis, a disease that people can get by eating raw or undercooked meat from animals infected with the microscopic parasite Trichinella. These days with high cooking ovens that should not be a worry unless someone is a sloppy cook.

The OT has much to teach us, and many sound principles but not as laws to follow.
"When you build a new house, make a parapet around your roof so that you may not bring the guilt of bloodshed on your house if someone falls from the roof.”
Are you following that? Why not? It's one of the OT laws.

In ancient Israel, roofs were usually flat, and people used them as part of their living and working area so a short wall made sense. God isn't telling you you must go and build a short wall around your roof, which probably isn't even flat. But you can take a way the principle of taking sensible precautions if you or others are on the roof.

I have to disagree that lack of refrigerators was the reason God said don't eat pork.

A hog is a scavenger, designed to cleanse the earth. Scavenger animals are designed to handle poisons and wastes, and that's what one is eating when they eat scavenger meats. In 1 Timothy 4:3, Apostle Paul pointed to meats that God created to be received. He wasn't pointing to scavenger meats.

But this is not a salvation issue. But we shouldn't try to make excuses for eating scavengers that are unclean, and unhealthy for our body.

Also, the blanket of unclean meats God showed Apostle Peter in a vision, and told Peter to take and eat, that did NOT... mean all of sudden unclean meats are now OK to eat. God was only using that as an example of The Gospel was meant for the Gentiles also.

 

[nolidad]

The 613 commandments are based on Rabinnical, Pharasaical interpretation. I imagine the Karaite Jews and the Samaritans would give us different numbers; it might be interesting to ask them. I have an English translation of the Samaritan Defter, or prayer book, equivalent to a Siddur, which is so rare its like the Hope Diamond for a liturgiologist like me.

Don't care about which sect of Judaism accepts how many laws.

God handed down Moses 613 commands which became known as the Mosaic Law and the Old covenant! All can be listed and their Scripture cited. If others wish to break a law down into two or three Meh! Or if they wish to lump four or five into one , meh!

 

[nolidad]

I have to disagree that lack of refrigerators was the reason God said don't eat pork.

A hog is a scavenger, designed to cleanse the earth. Scavenger animals are designed to handle poisons and wastes, and that's what one is eating when they eat scavenger meats. In 1 Timothy 4:3, Apostle Paul pointed to meats that God created to be received. He wasn't pointing to scavenger meats.

But this is not a salvation issue. But we shouldn't try to make excuses for eating scavengers that are unclean, and unhealthy for our body.

Also, the blanket of unclean meats God showed Apostle Peter in a vision, and told Peter to take and eat, that did NOT... mean all of sudden unclean meats are now OK to eat. God was only using that as an example of The Gospel was meant for the Gentiles also.

there has been much argument as to why God forbade certain foods. As the Bible does not specify why other than eating them would make one ceremonially unclean, everything else is educated guesses.

Jesus said that nothing a person eats makes them unclean. that should be enough for teh church to know there is nothiung other than blood forbidden us to eat.

 

[Davy]

there has been much argument as to why God forbade certain foods. As the Bible does not specify why other than eating them would make one ceremonially unclean, everything else is educated guesses.

Jesus said that nothing a person eats makes them unclean. that should be enough for teh church to know there is nothiung other than blood forbidden us to eat.

It's obvious to anyone with common sense, even in Old Testament times, why God said don't eat vultures, a scavenger. If someone is stupid enough to try and eat unclean fowls like a vulture, then no amount of education in God's Word, or outside of God's Word is going to help them.

 

[nolidad]

It's obvious to anyone with common sense, even in Old Testament times, why God said don't eat vultures, a scavenger. If someone is stupid enough to try and eat unclean fowls like a vulture, then no amount of education in God's Word, or outside of God's Word is going to help them.

So when Jesus said that nothing that enters a man defiles Him, he was mistaken?

There are lots of things I won't eat because they are nasty. But that is not because of Divine Prohibition. Maybe God in wanting Israel to be different from all other nations around them selected critters that were more apt to make people sick- but that is not written so it is only a guess. They couldn't eat animals whose hoof was not split.

But those dietary restrictions as a matter of law were fro Israel alone and not for the Church. If a church member wishes to adopt the dietary laws, that is their freedom to do so, as long as they don't call it sin in the lives of others who enjoy a pork chop and lobster and clams.

 

[Davy]

So when Jesus said that nothing that enters a man defiles Him, he was mistaken?

Is Jesus coming to save our flesh, or our spirit?

Apparently you think He's coming to save our flesh? No, this flesh world is ordained to perish with His coming. Paul said we all shall be changed, in the twinkling of an eye (1 Corinthians 15).

So what part of the man was Lord Jesus referring to then? Our spirit of course, that is the part He was pointing to about what comes out one's mouth is what defiles man's... toenails? No, one's spirit that is inside... their flesh that will be loosed at either flesh death, or at His coming.

There are lots of things I won't eat because they are nasty. But that is not because of Divine Prohibition. Maybe God in wanting Israel to be different from all other nations around them selected critters that were more apt to make people sick- but that is not written so it is only a guess. They couldn't eat animals whose hoof was not split.

But those dietary restrictions as a matter of law were fro Israel alone and not for the Church. If a church member wishes to adopt the dietary laws, that is their freedom to do so, as long as they don't call it sin in the lives of others who enjoy a pork chop and lobster and clams.

God's list of healthy and unhealthy meats is part of His law of creation for this world. Sorry, but none of us can get around it.

If you eat scavenger meats, your flesh will not be healthy. That doesn't mean our spirit won't be saved, but in the meantime while here on earth our flesh will not be healthy. It's not a spiritual matter, it's a matter of God's science for this present world per His Word.

The difference is this then: 'whatever you do, eat or drink, do all to the glory of God' (1 Corinthians 10:21). This still does not hide the fact that many that eat whatever we want are unhealthy because of it. God told Israel to not eat the 'fat', that the fat was His. Come to find out medically, eating a lot of fat clogs one's arteries. It's science per God's laws of His creation, not spiritual philosophy.

 

[Carl Emerson]

Study Bible
Warnings against False Teachers
2 Tim 4
…2influenced by the hypocrisy of liars, whose consciences are seared with a hot iron. 3They will prohibit marriage and require abstinence from certain foods that God has created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and know the truth. 4For every creation of God is good, and nothing that is received with thanksgiving should be rejected,…

 

[Davy]

Study Bible
Warnings against False Teachers
…2influenced by the hypocrisy of liars, whose consciences are seared with a hot iron. 3They will prohibit marriage and require abstinence from certain foods that God has created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and know the truth. 4For every creation of God is good, and nothing that is received with thanksgiving should be rejected,…

And point out Paul said meats "created to be received".

What meats did God create to be received? Not scavenger meats.

It's science, not religion.

 

[BNR32FAN]

It clearly states in Deuteronomy 14:8 that we’re not to eat pork. In fact, Deuteronomy and Leviticus clearly state a lot of things that we don’t adhere to.

13:6 through18: We’re instructed to kill without mercy -even your own family members- anyone who tries to convince you to worship other gods.

17:2 through 13: Kill anyone who does evil-such as worshipping the stars- and violates the covenant. And if you’re not sure if the party is guilty, take it to court and if the Judge finds the party guilty and you refuse take part in stoning the defendant to death, then you should be killed too.

21:18: Kill your own son if he is rebellious.

Thou shalt not kill, but Deuteronomy, Leviticus, and Exodus is full of examples like this where we are to kill people for sinning. What about “as we forgive those who trespass against us”? I seem to have made executing people the theme here, but there are instructions/laws on other topics as well that we don’t follow, I’m assuming because they just don’t seem consistent with our faith.

So why is it OK to have a pork Bratwurst at the church fundraising event these days when God clearly forbids it?

You could argue that things were different back then and don’t apply today. But that would nullify the Ten Commandments. These laws I’m referring to were issued on the same day. They just didn’t make the top ten list.

The dietary laws are for the Jews not Gentiles. This is why Gentiles are allowed to eat meat offered to idols while Jews are not.

 

[Carl Emerson]

And point out Paul said meats "created to be received".

What meats did God create to be received? Not scavenger meats.

It's science, not religion.

Maybe you could comment on verse 4...

 

[Jaxxi]

Jesus was Jewish.

Exactly! That is my whole point. Aren't we also except we believe in Jesus?

 

[mama2one]

What Are the Health Benefits of Pork Chops?

contains protein, B vitamins, & zinc