God's Dietary Laws, Part 2

Thank you, Mr. Faye. Good afternoon to everyone.

Many of you may remember that in mid-July I gave a sermon entitled God's Dietary Laws, and that was part one. We did have several families who were traveling that weekend, so if you did miss the first part and you're interested, you can find that on the church website. Today we're going to examine part two on the same topic. When I next have the opportunity for a sermon, we will conclude the series with part three on God's Dietary Laws. There's a lot there. I would like to thank many of you who gave me some comments after the first message and some many helpful suggestions as well, and I have tried to incorporate several of those into the second and the third parts. Well, in the first part, we examined God's rules regarding clean and unclean land animals in Leviticus 11, and we looked at verses 1 through 8. And we also looked at some methods that food companies use to slip substances from unclean animals into a variety of our prepared foods on the grocery shelves. But today, let's begin by going back to Genesis. Genesis chapter 2. And we'll look at verses 15 to 17.

Genesis chapter 2. Many of the world's church organizations insist that Christians are no longer obligated to concern themselves with biblical dietary laws. Even in the church of God community, some seem to believe that these laws are of minor importance. After all, is God really concerned with what we put in our grocery carts or with what we order at a restaurant? I find it very informative that in Genesis, the very first recorded law against doing something is a command that God gave to Adam about food. Genesis chapter 2 and verse 15 are probably familiar with the story. Then the Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to tend and keep it. And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat, but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat. For in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die. In other words, his life would come to an end. Just think of all the elements of God's laws that God could have presented to Adam first, and the first legal instruction is a restriction dealing with his diet. Let's continue in Genesis 3 and verse 1. Genesis 3 and verse 1. Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And it said to the woman, Has God indeed said, You shall not eat of every tree of the garden? And the woman said to the serpent, We may eat the fruit of the trees of the garden, but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God has said, You shall not eat it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die. Then the serpent said to the woman, You will not surely die.

For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil, deciding for yourself what is good and what is evil. So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, it was pleasant to the eyes, a tree to be desirable to make one wise. She took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave to her husband with her, and he ate. So apparently, after Eve had been created, Adam must have instructed Eve on the law about the forbidden fruit, or God had repeated it again, this time also in Eve's presence. Well, so what? They ate a little fruit that was on the bad list. No big deal, right? Well, of course, we know the rest of the story. God was not at all pleased with their failure to follow His simple and straightforward test commandment. They knowingly disobeyed God, preferring to make their own decisions about what was good to eat. Now, we don't know if there was any physical difference between the fruit from that tree and the fruit from the other trees that they were permitted to eat. The issue wasn't necessarily the fruit itself. The issue was disobedience. If God tells us to do something and we refuse to do it, that is a sin, and we need to repent of that choice. If God tells us not to do something and we deliberately choose to do it anyway, that is also a sin, and we need to repent of that choice. Let's go to Matthew 4.

Matthew 4. We'll start in verse 1. It is true that the dietary laws of Leviticus are not spoken by Jesus Christ in any of the recorded passages in the Gospels. There are many of God's commandments that are not specifically restated in the New Testament, but Jesus Christ was very clear about all of the laws of God still being in effect. And the Jewish leaders never accused Christ or his followers of violating the laws of clean and unclean meats. And had Christ taught such things, they certainly would have condemned Jesus for that. Matthew 4 in verse 1. Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil, and when he had fasted 40 days and 40 nights, afterward he was hungry. Now when the tempter came to him, he said, if you are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread. But he, Jesus, answered and said, it is written, man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God. Satan was trying to get Jesus Christ to disobey God, to put his own will ahead of the Father's will. But Jesus was not even tempted to consider disobedience to his Father. Christ's reply to Satan was perfectly clear. God's servants are called upon to live by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God. It is not our place to rank God's words and decide to only obey the ones that are convenient to follow, or only those that make sense to us. So let's pick up where we left off last time in Leviticus 11. We had gotten through the land mammals.

Leviticus 11, and we'll begin in verse 9. These are words that God spoke to Moses and Aaron. Leviticus 11 and verse 9. These you may eat of all that are in the water. Whatever in the water has fins and scales, whether in the seas or in the rivers, that you may eat. So salt water, fresh water, doesn't matter. It's the same rule. It has to have fins and it has to have scales. Verse 10, but in all the seas or in the rivers that do not have fins or scales, those creatures, all that move in the water, or any living thing which is in the water, they are an abomination to you.

They shall be an abomination to you. Didn't you get it the first time? I'm saying it again. They shall be an abomination to you. You shall not eat their flesh. You shall not regard, but you shall regard their carcasses as an abomination. Even the dead bodies avoid them. That's strong language. It seems like God is really taking this seriously. Eating unclean meats is an abomination to God. Even touching their dead bodies. Verse 12, whatever in the water does not have fins or scales, did you miss it the first two times? That shall be an abomination to you. That word in Hebrew means filthy.

That's what the word means. Filthy. Don't eat filth, God says. God says. Now, on my last visit to the doctor for a physical, it was recommended that I take a fish oil supplement. They said I needed omega-3 in my diet for heart health. So I went to the store, and there's a whole shelf, several shelves, fish oil products. Well, the first problem is that many of them don't identify what types of fish oil are in the product. And since most people don't care, what kind of fish oil doesn't matter to them. Much of it, however, is derived from krill, k-r-i-l-l, krill oil. But krill is unclean. They're like micro shrimp. Even products labeled with a specific type of clean fish oil, if you look at the fine print, it says, and other fish oils. All right, so they stretch it. It takes time to find acceptable options, but they do exist. Now, we're not going to go into a long list of clean fish in this message, and unclean fish. There are lists available. If you would like to see a more detailed list, you can go online to the United Church of God website and search for the book, What Does the Bible Say About Clean and Unclean Meats? That's our church's publication. What does the Bible say about clean and unclean meats? And in fact, much of the information that I'm presenting to you today is derived from that publication. So let's continue in verse 13. Some people like to eat birds, I hear. Well, God did not forget about our flying friends. Verse 13, And these you shall regard as an abomination, filth among the birds. They shall not be eaten. They are an abomination. The eagle, the vulture, the buzzard, the kite, the falcon, after its kind, and the list goes on. Discussing birds that are mainly either predatory birds or birds that exist by scavenging carcasses. On the other hand, birds such as ducks, geese, chickens, and turkeys are not listed and are considered to be clean and acceptable for food. Let's go down to Leviticus 11, verse 20. Verse 20, God even has something to say about insects. He's very, very thorough.

Of course, as the creator of all these creatures, God knows which ones are fit for human consumption and which are not. For a moment, I thought Mr. Talbot in the sermonette was going to get into the thousands and thousands and thousands of species of insects on our planet, too. We don't even know how many there are. God does, and he's got names for them, and he knows which ones aren't good to eat. However, it's important to remember this point. While it is likely that there are health reasons why some creatures are clean and others are unclean, many people eat all of those creatures and live to ripe old ages in relatively good health.

Now, while there are most probably great health advantages in avoiding unclean meats, God's people do not eat unclean meats because God said not to eat them. Even if we don't understand the science, God's people do their best to live by every word of God, just as Jesus said. Verse 20, all flying insects that creep on all fours or creeping insects is another way to put it, shall be an abomination to you. Yet these you may eat of every flying insect that creeps on all fours, those that have jointed legs above their feet and which leap on the earth. These you may eat, the locust after its kind, the destroying locust after its kind, the cricket after its kind, the grasshopper after its kind. But all other flying insects, which have four feet, shall be an abomination to you. Now, obviously, we don't have to eat any insects if we don't want to. There is no feast the days of insects or anything. I certainly have no desire even to eat the ones I'm able to eat.

But some of us are already eating unclean insects, and we don't even know it. So, if you check those food labels again, look for these two words. carmine, c-a-r-m-i-n-e, and cochineal, c-o-c-h-i-n-e-a-l, carmine and cochineal. Carmine is a red dye taken from the crushed bodies of Mexican scale insects, known as cochineal bugs.

The natives of Mexico used the reddish goo from the crushed bugs to dye cloth red. But the food industry uses it as a natural coloring to dye your food and beverages red. It's used in some brands, some brands, not saying all, some brands of red applesauce, some fruit cocktails, some bakery goods, some meat and fish products to color the meat, and to color certain spices. Now, if you see these on a product label, just read it as bugoo. And choose another product. Let's go to Leviticus 11.41.

11.41. And every creeping thing that creeps on the earth shall be an abomination. It shall not be eaten.

Whatever crawls on its belly, it shall not be eaten. It shall not be eaten. Whatever crawls on its belly, whatever goes on all fours, or whatever has many feet among all creeping things that creep on the earth, you shall not eat, for they are an abomination. You shall not make yourselves. Now, this is the reason now. Why is God so concerned? You shall not make yourselves abominable. You shall not make yourselves filthy with any creeping thing that creeps, nor shall you make yourselves unclean with them, lest you be defiled by them. Why does this matter so much to God? Why should we as God's people take great care to avoid unclean meats? Well, God tells us plainly in verse 44, For I am the Lord your God. You shall therefore consecrate yourselves, and you shall be holy, for I am holy. Neither shall you defile yourselves with any creeping thing that creeps on the earth, for I am the Lord who brings you up out of the land of Egypt to be your God. You shall therefore be holy, for I am holy. This is the law of the animals and the birds and every living creature that moves in the waters of every creature that creeps on the earth to distinguish between the unclean and the clean, between the animal that may be eaten and the animal that may not be eaten.

Let's go briefly to Deuteronomy 14.

Deuteronomy 14. This is a repeating chapter of the list of clean and unclean meats. Deuteronomy 14. And we'll just look at verses 2 and 3. We see the same principle set out by God. Deuteronomy 14 too. For you are a holy people to the Lord your God, and the Lord has chosen you to be a people for himself, a special treasure above all the peoples who are on the face of the earth. You shall not eat any detestable thing.

Now there's another important command regarding the eating of animal flesh, and it's found in Leviticus 3 verse 17. So let's turn there.

Just when you thought it was safe to go back into the kitchen, Leviticus 3, 17. This shall be a perpetual statute throughout your generations in all of your dwellings. You shall eat neither fat nor blood. Oh boy, I had you up until this one. Now some of you have started making for the exits.

What does this actually mean? How can we eat any meat without eating some fat in it? What about dairy fat? No more cheese or butter? Is that where this is going? Is that what God means? Let's let God explain himself. It's usually best. Let's go to Leviticus 7, 22. Leviticus 7, 22. In order to thoroughly understand any Bible topic, we know we must search the scriptures. One passage is often explained by others. Leviticus 7, 22.

And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, "...speak to the children of Israel, saying, You shall not eat any fat of ox or sheep or goat." This is interesting now. We have a clarification. What is it about ox and sheep and goats? Well, those are animals that were sacrificed to the Lord. And the fat of an animal that dies naturally, and the fat of what is torn by wild beasts may be used in other ways, soap, candles, whatever. But you shall by no means eat it, even of clean animals. You're not supposed to eat fat that was torn. Verse 25, "...for whoever eats the fat of the animal of which men offer as an offering made by fire to the Lord, the person who eats it shall be cut off from his people. Moreover, you shall not eat any blood in any of your dwellings, whether of bird or beast. Whoever eats any blood, that person shall be cut off from his people." Now, the matter of consuming blood is very clear. God tells us never to do that. There are many cultures that delight in preparing blood pudding, blood sausage, blood soup, and other such dishes. It's almost like the Bible says it. We'll do the opposite.

But God says to his people not to consume blood. Now, in sermon 1, you don't have to turn there, but we read the words from Genesis 9-4, Genesis 9-4, "...but you shall not eat flesh with its life, that is, its blood." So this principle goes far back even before the time of Moses. Now, it's important to purchase meat from suppliers who slaughter animals properly. Animals that are electrocuted to death, which is actually rather rare now, but animals that are electrocuted to death or strangled are not properly bled, which causes the meat to become rancid very quickly. Government regulations on animal slaughter differ from country to country, but we're in the United States, so I'm going to tell you those. In the U.S., livestock and poultry are supposed to be killed swiftly and bled properly in order to receive USDA certification. If electric shock is used, it is only supposed to be used to stun the animal until it can be quickly killed with a sharp blade to the throat. So the actual death is cutting the throat and then bleeding the animal. As consumers, we should expect that these guidelines have been followed for meats purchased from commercial butchers and retailers. If you want to go a step further, meat certified as kosher and meat certified as halal are also required to be from animals that have been killed swiftly and bled properly. So much for blood. The more difficult issue is what does God mean by not eating any fat? It turns out there is regular fat and there is special fat. I saw a few of you just look down at your tummies to wonder which type you have. Well, the word used in Leviticus 3 and Leviticus 7 for fat is the Hebrew word keleb. I'll spell that for you. The English transliteration CHELEB. And if you want to look that up, because you may not have looked at this before, the Strong's number for a Strong's concordance is H2459 keleb. Sometimes you'll see it CHELEB.

It means the richest or choicest part of the fat. It does not mean all fat. So let's see what God has in mind. This is the explanation given in the chapter on God's food laws in the booklet on the fundamental beliefs of the United Church of God.

God gave other important food laws as well. He declares as a perpetual statute that his people eat neither fat nor blood. The forbidden fat referred to is that of mammals, not birds, also not fish, and is the covering fat that could be removed rather than the fat marbled in the meat. Okay, so there are different kinds of fat when an animal is butchered. In an older Church of God publication by Mr. Herbert W.

Armstrong entitled, Is All Animal Flesh Good Food? Mr. Armstrong wrote in 1958 and then again in the revised 1973 edition on the topic of eating fat. He says, quote, God forbids also the eating of animal fat or blood. Butter, olive oil, and some vegetable oils and shortening are all right, but animal fat should be cut off before eating meat. Listen carefully because I'll qualify this. Cheaper hamburger is not good because it is mixed with much fat and large should never be used, end quote.

All right, so what's the distinction between cheaper hamburger and better hamburger? It's not the price. Is it something we should even be concerned about? Well, Mr. Armstrong thought it was. What did he have in mind in making that distinction? Actually, it goes right back to the meaning of the word kellab.

Kellab refers to sheets of covering fat, the thick, dense fat, in clean animals that was to be burned on the sacrificial altar under the guidelines of the Old Covenant. This fat was not the fat found in and attached to animal muscle, which is what we call meat, but rather the covering fat that surrounds the internal organs and covers the meaty mass of the animal's muscles. Let's go to Leviticus 3 and look at verses 3 through 5, and God will tell us exactly what he means. Leviticus 3 verses 3 through 5.

Again, referring to the sacrifices. Leviticus 3 verse 3, Leviticus 3 verse 3, Then he shall offer from the sacrifice of the peace offering, an offering made by fire to the Lord, the fat that covers the entrails, and all the fat that is on the entrails, the two kidneys and the fat that is on them by the flanks, and the fatty lobe attached to the liver above the kidneys, he shall remove, and Aaron's son shall burn it on the altar upon the burnt sacrifice, which is on the wood that is on the fire, as an offering made by fire, a sweet aroma to the Lord.

So before the rest of the sacrifice is going to be offered, these special fats are cut away and burned as a sort of flavorful offering to God. The aroma would go up. God was very clear that his people were not to eat blood or kellab from animals that are sacrificed. That means the types of animals that are sacrificed, the ox and the sheep, right, the kid, throughout their generations. This command is actually very similar wording to the command in Exodus 31.16 about the Sabbath being perpetual.

It's the same word, perpetual. Now, we no longer perform animal sacrifices under the New Covenant. The kellab fat is no longer burned on any altar. You don't have to do that at home tonight. But the statute about not eating kellab fat was given perpetually to be observed throughout all generations. This command is still in effect.

So what does this have to do with cheaper hamburger versus better hamburger? Let's make this practical. Government regulations of the meat industry differ from country to country. In the United States, the U.S. Department of Agriculture sets the regulations for meat production and meat labeling. For meat to be labeled as, quote-unquote, ground beef, it must meet certain standards. So if you see that on a package and it says ground beef, the government has gotten involved. Okay? In this case, it's a good thing.

All right? Ground beef must contain no more than 30% fat. And that fat can only be fat that is directly connected to the animal muscle or be from fat marbled within the muscle. Okay? That's okay. To receive USDA certification covering fats, kelev, the government doesn't use that word, but that's what they're talking about, from other parts of the animal cannot be included in any product labeled ground beef. Okay? But beware of any product that lists ground hamburger instead of ground beef. Okay? It's a different definition or simply says contains hamburger. Ground hamburger still must contain no more than 30% fat, but that fat can come from anywhere.

All right? And it's likely to contain the fat that God said not to eat. So if you're checking the ingredients on prepared foods and you see beef fat listed as an ingredient, the item should probably be avoided because it probably contains kellab. Kosher meat, though difficult to find in most areas of the country, there are some places in the north suburbs and in Chicago that you can, will never contain any kellab fat. It's been the process has been supervised, right? But most of us are not able to shop for kosher meats.

So we must make the best decisions that we can about meat available to us at the markets. Standard ground beef contains 30% regular fat and it's not kellab. Leaner options are also available too for a higher price. If we buy our own steaks or roast directly from the butcher or market, as Mr. Armstrong said, trim off the remaining sheets of fat before we cook the meat.

Most national restaurant chains, including fast food restaurants, have websites that include nutritional facts about their products and they will tell you if you have concerns if whether the restaurants you frequent use ground beef or ground hamburger in their menu items. You can check. And you could even call their informational numbers if you really want to investigate. But in most cases, ground beef is being used in our national chains and restaurants. Now we could go on to discuss whether eating too much of any fat is healthy, but that is not a matter directly addressed by God's dietary laws. Also, even clean meat can contain many environmental contaminants if it is not raised properly. These are matters for individual conscience and not church doctrine.

Again, this is the fundamental belief of the United Church of God. This is their statement, quote, We believe that those meats that are designated unclean by God in Leviticus 11 and Deuteronomy 14 are not to be eaten, end quote. Now let me toss in a little note about kosher food. I've mentioned that word a few times. If you have the choice of buying kosher products, items carrying the symbol of a K in a circle, a K in a star, or a U in a circle, thank you, demergans, for the information, are made in facilities inspected by Urbanical Council. Such items are certified not to contain any unclean meats, unclean animal byproducts, or kellab fat. They are also certified to use only animals that have been properly bled. However, to be clear, I am in no way saying that members of the church should only purchase kosher certified products. That is not the church's teaching. It's just much less to think about if you have that option, because then you don't have to think about what else is in the packaging. If it's got that, somebody's checked for you. But what do we do if we make mistakes? We have dozens of meal decisions every week. We are bound to make mistakes from time to time. What should we do if we discover after the fact that we have accidentally eaten unclean meats, or meats containing blood, or kellab fat? As Christians under the New Covenant, we no longer make trespass offerings, as ancient Israel was required to do. But let's turn to Leviticus 5, 17 through 19, to see what they were required to do. Leviticus 5, 17 to 19. Again, this is under the Old Covenant. Leviticus 5, 17. If a person sins and commits any of these things which are forbidden to be done by the commandments of the Lord, though he does not know it, yet he is guilty and shall bear his iniquity, and he shall bring to the priest a ram without blemish from the flock, with your valuation, as a trespass offering. So the priest shall make atonement for him, regarding his ignorance, in which he erred and did not know it, and it shall be forgiven him. It is a trespass offering. He has certainly trespassed against the Lord. Now let's see the New Covenant replacement for this process in Hebrews 10. Hebrews 10. I will start in verse 4.

We of course understand that Jesus Christ became the ultimate sacrifice, paying the penalty for all transgressions of God's laws if we have been baptized, and if we repent of our transgressions, and accept Christ's sacrifice on our behalf. Hebrews 10 and verse 4. For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and goats could take away sins. Therefore, when he came into the world, he said, sacrifice an offering you did not desire, but a body you have prepared for me. In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin, you had no pleasure. Then I said, Behold, I have come. In the volume of the book it is written of me, to do your will, O God. Previously saying, sacrifice an offering, burnt offerings, and offerings for sin you did not desire, nor had pleasure in them, which are offered according to the law. Then he said, Behold, I have come to do your will, O God. He takes away the first that he may establish the second. Did you notice that? He takes away the first set of sacrifices that he may establish the second. By that will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. And every priest stands ministering daily and offering repeatedly the same sacrifices which can never take away sins. But this man, meaning Jesus, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down at the right hand of God, from that time waiting till his enemies are made his footstool. For by one offering he has perfected forever those who are being sanctified. So let's think of the issue in this context. We know that God's people are instructed not to eat leavened bread during the days of unleavened bread. If you were to slip up and have a bagel on the first day of unleavened bread, you would just acknowledge the mistake and ask God to forgive your error. It is the same thing when consuming unclean meats unwittingly. We simply ask for God's forgiveness and move on, right? Determine not to keep doing it, but we slipped. Something got in. We had a hot dog. We didn't know where it came from.

It does not mean, however, that our bodies will not be subject to possible negative physical consequences of that mistake. But spiritually, we are right with God if we acknowledge the error and move on. Let's go to 1 Samuel 15, 22-23. 1 Samuel 15, 22-23. Now, of course, it's a completely different matter if we knowingly disobey God by choosing to break His laws. See, deliberately eating that bagel, or those donuts, during the days of unleavened bread, or refusing to avoid pork and shrimp, even though we understand the laws of clean and unclean meats, is no different in God's mind than deliberately lying or deliberately violating the Sabbath commandment. 1 Samuel 15, 22.

So Samuel said, Has the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed than the fat of rams, that's the kelep, right, the offering that was supposed to come up to God. To obey is, it smells better to God for us to obey than to burn fat.

Verse 23, For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Mark 7 This is one of a few so-called difficult scriptures regarding God's dietary laws. Many use this passage to argue that Christ judged all meats to be clean, and that Christians may now eat whatever meats they desire. But let's look at that. Mark 7. And we'll start in verse 1.

Then the Pharisees and some of the scribes came together to him, having come from Jerusalem. Now when they saw some of the disciples eat bread with defiled, that is, with unwashed hands, they found fault. For the Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat unless they wash their hands in a special way. Holding the tradition of the elders. Please note that phrase. Holding the tradition of the elders. When they come from the marketplace, they do not eat unless they wash. And there are many other things which they have received and hold, like the washing of cups, pitchers, copper vessels, right, couches. There's a whole list of how to clean things. Then the Pharisees and the scribes asked him, why do your disciples not walk according to the tradition of the elders, but eat bread with unwashed hands? Right? They didn't follow the ritual. He answered and said to them, well did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written, this people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me. And in vain they worship me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men. For laying aside the commandment of God, you hold the tradition of men, the washing of pitchers and cups, and many other such things you do. He said to them, verse 9, all too well you reject the commandment of God that you may keep your tradition. Let's go down to verse 14. Let's go down to verse 14. When he had called all the multitude to himself, he said to them, hear me, everyone, and understand. There is nothing that enters a man from outside which can defile him, but the things which come out of him, those are the things that defile a man. If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear. Understand. When he had entered a house away from the crowd, his disciples asked him concerning the parable. So he said to them, are you thus without understanding also? Do you not perceive that whatever enters a man from the outside cannot defile him? Because it does not enter his heart, but his stomach, and is eliminated, thus purifying all foods. And here's the key phrase that many will take out of context. Thus purifying all foods. And he said, what comes out of a man that defiles a man? Now, in the Revised Standard Version, I've been reading from the New King James, in the Revised Standard Version, they've actually changed the words, and it says, thus he declared all foods clean.

Right? They made that choice. Thus he declared all foods clean. End of story. Barbecue.

But the first thing we should note here is that unclean meats are never actually mentioned in this passage. Jesus is not saying that it's fine to eat pork or shrimp because the digestive system will somehow make them clean, and even though God declared them unclean. The issue here concerns eating foods without first cleaning one's hands or ritual ceremony. It's about dirt.

While it's certainly more sanitary to wash one's hands before eating, there is actually no commandment in the Bible against eating with unwashed hands. But the Jewish religious leaders added rules and rituals against doing so. It is these traditions that Jesus is addressing. That was his focus of these verses.

While we're on the subject of added traditions by the elders, let's turn to Exodus 23.17. Exodus 23.17. We find a curious passage about not boiling meat in milk.

Exodus 23.17. We'll go to verse 19. Three times in a year all your males shall appear before the Lord God. You shall not offer the blood of my sacrifice with leavened bread, nor shall the fat of my sacrifice remain until morning. That's the kelum. The first of the first fruits of your land you shall bring into the house of the Lord your God. You shall not boil a young goat in its mother's milk. Where did that come from? It seems at first very disconnected, right? We're not even talking about dietary laws, and suddenly they throw in, don't boil a goat in its mother's milk. Boom.

Let's go to Exodus 34.26. It's interesting that the context in both of these verses is gathering in the first fruits of the land.

Also notice that it is a specific statement. Do not boil a young goat in its own mother's milk.

The meat of the offspring is in this, whatever ritual it is, is being boiled in milk taken from its own mother. It's very specific. The same instruction, Exodus 34.26. The first of the first fruits of your land you shall bring into the house of the Lord your God. You shall not boil a young goat in its mother's milk. Let's go to Deuteronomy 14.21. There's three times this appears in the scriptures. Deuteronomy 14.21. We see the same topic, but now it is in a context that is connected to unclean meats, so it needs closer attention. Deuteronomy 14.21.

You shall not eat anything that dies of itself. You may give it to the alien who is within your gates that he may eat it, if he wants to, or you may sell it to a foreigner. Hey, I got something special for you. Fido. Don't do it. They can have it if they want it. You don't eat it, for you are a holy people to the Lord your God. You shall not boil a young goat in its mother's milk.

So again, it seems like where does that come from? What is it about boiling a young goat in his mother's milk that makes you not a holy people to the Lord your God? Verse 22. See the context. You shall truly tithe all the increase of your grain that the field produces year by year. From the produce of your fields, don't forget God, your God. And you shall eat before the Lord your God in the place where he chooses to make his name abide. The tithe of your grain and your new wine and your oil. Of the first born of your herds and your flocks, that you may learn to fear the Lord your God always. And while the statement is not is about not boiling a goat in its mother's milk, it does follow a list of unclean meats. But it's used as a direct clarification of what it means to be a holy people who have who behave differently than unholy people. It's directly connected to the idea of worshiping God through tithes and offerings that you may learn to fear the Lord your God always. God's people are to praise the true God for their good crops and abundant blessings. Now, within Judaism, numerous regulations have been developed over the centuries which prohibits the eating of dairy products with meat. And those regulations are all based on the desire of Jews to not somehow violate this commandment. Yet, if you look closely, it is the ritual of boiling a kid in its mother's own milk that is addressed, not the eating of the meat. It nowhere mentions eating. It never says anything about people eating or not eating the meat that is boiled in that milk. Now, I have learned over the years two different interpretations of this scripture within the church of God. One is that the scripture is really saying that we should not kill and eat young calves or little lambs that have not yet been weaned off of mother's milk. This interpretation rests on the idea that God wishes us to have concern for the mother and offspring and the bond between them, and that it would be cruel to rip an unweaned calf or lamb away from its mother, which is probably a good idea not to do that. This interpretation, however, rests on the premise that this verse is a dietary law. It also presumes that this command applies much more generally than the words actually state. But there is another interpretation that many commentaries suggest, and this interpretation seems to fit much better with the context of the three verses. Archaeologists have discovered that in ancient Canaan and Syria, there actually was a pagan fertility ceremony in which a young goat or kid was cooked in its own mother's milk, and the broth was then sprinkled over the fields in a ritual to ask their gods for abundant harvests. In the year 1195, the Jewish religious scholar Maimonides wrote in his guide to the perplexed, I should get a copy, he wrote, as for the prohibition against eating meat boiled in milk, it is my opinion not improbable that in addition to this being undoubtedly very fattening food and very filling, idolatry has something to do with it. Perhaps such food was eaten at one of the ceremonies or their cult or other festivals. Well, in 1929, a French archaeologist actually found a clay tablet in Syria that described a Canaanite festival dedicated to the god Baal, and in it he read about a ritual of cooking a kid in milk. Now, for those children, a kid does not refer to you. A kid is a young goat or lamb, not a human child. You're safe tonight.

So that would seem to fit, wouldn't it? In the context of where that verse appears, God wants his people to thank him for the harvest, the abundance, to offer their tithes, and to make their offerings. But, of course, Abraham and Isaac and Jacob grew up over in Canaan. They would have seen this ritual, and God perhaps here is telling them, I don't want you to do the same thing. Don't do this ritual to their gods. You sacrifice and make offering to me, the Lord your God. Let's turn, finally.

To Deuteronomy 6. Deuteronomy 6 and verse 1.

We know that God called Abraham his friend because Abraham obeyed his voice. Abraham did what God asked. Deuteronomy 6 and verse 1. We should remember this as we think about this topic. Now, this is the commandment, and these are the statues and judgments which the Lord your God has commanded to teach you, that you may observe them in the land which you are crossing over to possess, that you may fear the Lord your God to keep all his statutes and his commandments, which I command you. You and your son and your grandson all the days of your life, and that your days may be prolonged. Therefore, hear, O Israel, and be careful to observe it, that it may be well with you, and that you may multiply greatly as the Lord God of your fathers has promised you a land flowing with milk and honey. Let's pause there briefly.

Many leaders of Judaism make the distinction between not eating dairy and meat together out of fear that somehow that milk may have come from the mother of the animal that's being killed. Within the United Church of God, this is one place where we differ from kosher laws. We do not have a teaching that meat and milk may not be eaten together. If you grew up in a community, a Jewish community, where that was an issue, certainly there is no law against separating the two if it is a matter of conscience. The church doesn't teach that. In fact, we even see Abraham, when he meets with the three visitors, serves them butter and milk and meat together. You can look that up back in Genesis. So even the Lord, the creator of the universe, had them all for lunch. Deuteronomy 6, verse 4, 1. Hear O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength. And these words, all those things we've talked about and all the others from our other messages, are going to motivate us to obey God. Verse 7, you shall teach them diligently to your children. You shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up. So in part 3 of the series, God willing, we will conclude our examination of the scriptures relating to God's dietary laws.