Leviticus 11:3
3 You may eat any animal that has a split hoof completely divided and that chews the cud.
Recently I have started to eat a traditional Hebrew diet. I haven’t chosen this lifestyle for health reasons, but for Christian reasons. Jesus Christ came to fulfill the law, not abolish it (Matthew 5:17) but today it seems that we’ve decided that He did abolish it, or at least certain parts of it. It seems that we use the law to our benefit most of the time, and when it becomes an inconvenience, we decide that it doesn’t pertain to us anymore because of Jesus’ sacrifice. The Ten Commandments are still good and, of course, tithing is still good, but all of the laws about eating, those are just trivial. Why? We say things like, “It’s not a salvation issue, it’s a faith issue” in reference to tithing. We unapologetically get out there in our Sunday morning best and guilt the guiltless into forking over the cash, but we fly right by the other rules. It’s not a salvation issue if you tithe or not, and it’s not a salvation issue if you eat pork; it’s a love issue!
I’ve realized over the past 3 days since starting this diet that, more than ever, I think about God. In EVERYTHING that I do, shopping, cooking, eating, drinking, I find myself thinking about God’s rules for food and whether or not I’m following them. By following this simple diet, I am putting God’s thoughts first. It’s not hard and it’s not controlling. It’s simple. Perhaps God gave these rules and regulations to us so that we would put Him first. Being that He is the Creator of everything, I guess it’s safe to say He knew that we’d forget about Him and choose ourselves over Him. I guess that He gave His people (which we all are--not just the Jews) specific rules and guidelines so that they’d still remember Him. I guess that from my side, it’s a love issue. Do I love God more than bacon cheeseburgers? Am I willing to think about God and His plans for me, my heart, and my colon, before I eat this lobster bisque with a porter house steak, baked potato with sour cream and bacon bits, and green beans sauteed to perfection in butter? By thinking about the “rules” before putting food into my mouth, I’m forced to think about the Rule Maker. By putting His plans first, I’m worshipping Him.
The rules haven’t changed; our hearts have. By following the rules not out of fear of punishment but by a heartfelt desire to draw closer to God, I feel my heart refocusing on Him. And that’s way better than any bacon cheeseburger.
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