Building on the Foundation

Many Christians today point to a handful of New Testament passages to claim that God has declared all animals good for food. But if God’s word stands forever, as He says, then those claims must be tested carefully; otherwise, we run the risk of accusing God of contradicting Himself.  The answer to this question is actually quite grave, because as we saw in this post , God says He will harshly judge those who eat pork, and the answer can't be both things. So if God's word does not stand forever, then we have some major problems with our faith.  God is the one constant in a world of continual quaking and shifting, and if we can't trust what He said to be true, where does that leave us? Let's take a look at the main passages that are used to say that all animals are now good for food. The first passage we'll examine is Peter's vision, where Peter states, years after the crucifixion, that he has never eaten anything unclean, which shows he didn't believe Jesus m...

In previous posts, we examined the various laws regarding cleanliness and uncleanness and concluded that the rituals involving uncleanness no longer apply to us. They deal solely with physical uncleanness,  and since we are a spiritual people, temples of the Holy Spirit, physical uncleanness cannot separate us from God. The sacrificial system pointed to Jesus' sacrifice, and since He died, He is the one sacrifice for all time. The various other rituals were superseded by baptism.  Hebrews 9:9 NKJV - It [was] symbolic for the present time in which both gifts and sacrifices are offered which cannot make him who performed the service perfect in regard to the conscience-- Hebrews 9:10 NKJV - [concerned] only with foods and drinks, various washings, and fleshly ordinances imposed until the time of reformation. Paul is talking about all the various offerings, the washings, and other sundry things that went along with the sacrifices and the temple system. All of those things pointed ...

Do you think women would be offended if I told them to stay home while they were on their period? What if God told them to stay home?  Chances are, the answer is yes, it probably would make women very offended to be told this. Well, that's exactly what God told them to do in the books of Exodus, Leviticus, and Deuteronomy. These practices are considered old and to be valid for some people other than ourselves, but what if they aren't?  As we explored in the previous two posts, everything God gave us in His law was given to us for a reason, and it's up to us to study and learn just what that reason is. Granted, some of those laws pertained to a society governed by a leader who served God, and a people who followed suit. Following those laws and enforcing them is not possible for us as a society or even as an isolated group because we no longer have a society like that, but the principles remain for us as followers of God.  Following God requires a lot of us not just physic...