Can I enjoy a little bacon with breakfast? How about ham at Thanksgiving? Is it alright to have that plate of fried catfish? These are questions still being asked by many to this day. Much of the confusion surrounds Leviticus 11 where God laid down the dietary regulations for ancient Israel. Much of what God forbade doesn’t sound very appetizing – the weasel, the mouse, the various kinds of large lizard, the common lizard, the skink, and the chameleon (11: 29 – 30). Sounds like the “Road Kill Café” doesn’t it? Other forbidden foods may constitute significant portions of your weekly diet. Why all the confusion?
Originally there were probably at least two reasons God prohibited the consumption of certain foods. One was hygienic. Some of the meats disallowed were notorious in ancient times for carrying disease. God wanted to protect his people from the illnesses of the nations around them (Deut. 28: 58 – 61). The most important reason for dietary restrictions, however, was holiness. For I am the LORD your God, so you must consecrate yourselves and be holy because I am holy (11: 44). God tells His people that they must be holy because He is holy six times in His Word (Lev. 11: 44, 45; 19: 2; 20: 7, 26; 1 Pet. 1: 16) and the first occurrence of this pregnant thought is in reference to diet (cf. Deut. 14: 21). Things like circumcision and diet doubtlessly had health value to the Hebrews but the ultimate purpose for such requirements was to distinguish God’s people from all other peoples. God’s people were never to blend in. They were to be distinct and dissimilar.
God’s people today must be no less distinct (1 Pet. 1: 16). How can we claim to belong to a holy God when our lives reflect the opposite? A holy God justly demands a holy people. Our holiness must not only be outward but inward as well (1 Cor. 7: 1). Jesus explained: “It’s not what goes into the mouth that defiles a man, but what comes out of the mouth, this defiles a man.” (Matt. 15: 11). In a quick biology lesson Jesus reinforced His point, “Don’t you realize that whatever goes into the mouth passes into the stomach and is eliminated?” (Matt. 15: 17). Although Jesus was addressing a different aspect of Jewish dietary concern, His principle still helps us understand the importance of inward purity.
As to the question of Christians keeping the dietary laws of the Old Testament that issue was quickly settled in the New Testament (Acts 10: 9 -16, 28; 11: 1 – 18; 1 Tim. 4: 1 – 5). One does not need to become Jewish in order to become a Christian. God does not hold us accountable for maintaining His ancient dietary code. Israel’s careful observance of dietary law is a powerful reminder of the importance of taking pains to insure that our lives are the epitome of holiness before God and the world. Remember that the next time you say, “Pass the bacon, brother!”