Unlimited: Eat from Faith
Oct 30, 2023 371
But whoever has doubts is condemned if they eat, because their eating is not from faith (Romans 14:23a).
Paul has just told us that we condemn ourselves when we flaunt our liberty in front of our weaker brothers and sisters. Now he tells us that similarly, if you doubt whether you have the liberty to do a certain thing, you likewise condemn yourself if you go ahead and do it. The context here is eating food that the Jews considered to be ceremonially unclean. This didn’t only have to do with the Jewish food laws of Leviticus 11, but also the issue of food sacrificed to idols, which also rendered meat unclean for a Jewish person.
Paul tells believers to eat anything that is put before them, except where it may cause offense.
In relation to food sacrificed to idols, Paul gives similar advice to the Corinthian church as he did to the church in Rome, recorded in 1 Cor. 10:27–29. There, he tells believers to eat anything that is put before them, except where it may cause offense. Paul concludes his argument with the following advice:
So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God. Do not cause anyone to stumble, whether Jews, Greeks or the church of God— even as I try to please everyone in every way. For I am not seeking my own good but the good of many, so that they may be saved (1 Cor. 10:31–33.)
Spiritual Application
Do you follow the Bible’s advice to eat whatever is put before you, except where it will cause offense? Why? Why not?
Ketchakah
Oct 30, 2023
Hello, as with many parables, this section on what we eat has an underlying meaning. Yes it can mean what we consume, as Paul was talking with early Christians who had previously been Jews. But for us in todays world we must look for the meaning that applies to us NOW. Like Jesus was saying at the well in Samaria, he has other food. This food is not a hidden sandwich to feed our bodies, it is the Word of God which nourishes our souls. When we read verses such as Mark 7:15 we have to understand that it is NOT food we are talking about. To me and to my applications, Pauls' writings on this are intended for early Christians-Jews. They were still hung up on food laws. They had not yet learned how to separate their old lives from their new lives in Christ. But we can still glean wisdom from them when we apply them to what Jesus said directly in the Gospels. This is a prime example of why we need to ask Jesus directly what His words mean and not rely on the interpretations of other humans to explain them. Ahoh Ketchakah