Clean and Unclean Meat
Clean or unclean meat
Shall we bow our heads, Father in Heaven as we study about the eight laws of health that you established at the very beginning of human history; We ask for the guidance of your spirit, help us to understand them and give us the power to implement them in our lives. We pray this in the precious name of Jesus Your beloved Son Amen. Clean or unclean meat
In our lecture today we are going to study about the eight laws of Health
in the book of Genesis, and basically we’re going to look at the eight laws of
health in five different periods of human history. Clean or unclean meat
The first period is of course at the very beginning before sin came into the world.
The second stage where we’re going to look at the these eight laws of health
is between the fall, and the flood. Clean or unclean meat
The Eight Health Secrets in Genesis Cracking The Genesis Code
Clean and Unclean Biblical Meat Walter Veith
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The Eight Health Secrets in Genesis Cracking The Genesis Code
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Clean and Unclean Biblical Meat Walter Veith
The third stage that we’re going to take a look at is the period between the flood and today. Clean or unclean meat
And the fourth stage is as things are of course today. Clean or unclean meat
And then the final stage that we are going to deal with is how the eight laws of health will be practiced among God’s people once sin is eradicated from the universe. Clean or unclean meat
So we’re going to study the eight laws of health from the way they were at the beginning, from the fall to the flood, from the flood till today. Clean or unclean meat
We’re going to say a few things about between now, and the end of time, and how those laws of health apply eventually in God’s everlasting Kingdom. Clean or unclean meat
Now we’re going to deal with three points in each one of these five sections, we’re going to first of all take a look at the environment which existed at these different stages, secondly we’re going to take a look at the eight, laws of health at each stage, and finally we’re going to look at how life could be prolonged during each one of those stages.
Now let’s begin at the very moment that God created this world at the beginning man was created with a perfect body and he was placed in a perfect environment, the ecosystem was in perfect balance, the air was crystal clear, the water was pure and refreshing, the earth was absolutely fertile with no pests, no weeds, no thorns, and no thistles.
Animals did not eat animals for food, there was no death, there was no disease in the world, in other words the environment at creation was perfect for the preservation, and for the prolongation of life.
This is the reason why in Genesis 1 in verse 31 we find at the conclusion of creation that
‘God saw everything that He had made, and behold it was very good, and the evening and the morning were the sixth day. ‘
In other words God made at the very beginning a perfect environment in which Adam and Eve lived, secondly at creation God established eight laws to preserve health. Clean or unclean meat
Now those eight laws are the following
Number one: Sunlight; now if you look at the story of creation you’ll find that light was created the first first day, and of course we are told that the Sun was made the fourth day, and I’m not going to get into how the light was made the first day and the Sun was made the fourth day because right now our interest is that God made light, sunlight, because he knew that man would need sunlight in order to preserve life. Clean or unclean meat
Secondly: God made fresh air, he made the atmosphere, he did this the second day of creation indicating that man was supposed to breathe that fresh air, after all God gave man lungs to breathe. Clean or unclean meat
In the third place, God made fresh water, also on the second day he placed water under the earth,
they’re known as the fountains of waters, and that indicates that man was supposed to partake of that fresh water to sustain his life. Clean or unclean meat
On the third day God made plants and he made trees with fruit, indicating that he expected man to enjoy the vegetarian cuisine that he had made, in order to sustain and perpetuate his life.
God also explained the law of temperance in the Garden of Eden, in other words to abstain from that which is detrimental, or bad for your health, and God taught this lesson by placing in the garden, the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, and he was teaching man to abstain from that which he had forbidden. In other words we have the principle of abstemiousness, or temperance to abstain from that which causes harm. Also during creation week God made the day and the night by making the night he was indicating that man needed to rest, he needed to sleep. Clean or unclean meat
God also established exercise, we’re told in Genesis chapter 2 and verse 15 that God placed Adam in the Garden of Eden to tend, and to keep it. In other words he wanted man to get exercise, and finally God, by creating the Sabbath tried to teach man that he was supposed to trust in the divine power of his Creator. In other words at creation God made eight laws of health that man was to live by in order to preserve his health in a perfect environment.
I’d like to read a statement that we find in the book the “Ministry of Healing” page 127, this is from the great health reformer from the 19th century Ellen White. I would recommend this book to everyone, it is a tremendous book on health principles and she says this. Clean or unclean meat
Pure air, sunlight abstemiousness (we don’t use that word in English very much anymore, it means to abstain from that which is harmful)
“Pure air, sunlight, abstemiousness, rest, exercise, proper diet, the use of water, trust in divine power-these are the true remedies. Every person should have a knowledge of nature’s remedial agencies and how to apply them.”
I find it interesting that this health reformer mentions the very eight laws of health that we find in Genesis, that God made during creation week, which we have already referred to. Clean or unclean meat
Now not only did God place Adam and Eve in a perfect environment, not only did God give Adam and Eve eight laws for the preservation of health, but even with a perfect environment, and with the eight laws of health, the life of man still needed something else in order to be prolonged, and that was what God placed in the Garden of Eden, a tree which is mentioned in Genesis chapter 2 and verse 9.
It’s called the tree of life, we’re told in Genesis 2 verse 9 that
out of the ground made the Lord God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the site and good for food,
and we’re told there that he made the tree of life, also.
Now we need to understand that the tree of life is like a battery charger, in other words God gave man a certain constitutional force, a certain supply of vital energy, and even though he lived in a perfect environment, even though he lived in harmony with the eight laws of health, that battery in the course of time would deplete, and so it was necessary for man to continue eating from the tree of life to continually charge his vitality, his vital force, or his energy to function.
So we find at creation, man created in a perfect environment; God gave him eight laws of health to preserve his health, and in the third place God put a battery charger to refurbish his life. Clean or unclean meat
But then of course sin came into the world and all three of these things were affected by sin.
The environment was greatly impacted by sin, notice what we find in Romans chapter 8 and verses 20-22; here we find the impact of the fall upon creation it says there in verse 20
“For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, (that’s because Adam sinned) but because of Him who subjected it in hope; because the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God.”
now notice verse 22
“For we know that the whole creation groans and labor’s with birth pangs together until now.”
Notice that nature after sin was in travail, it was moaning and groaning in pain according to this passage.
The environment was impacted by sin, first of all the earth began producing thorns and thistles, also we’re told in the Bible that animals commenced to eat other animals, and death appeared in the world.
In other words the environment was impacted by the sin of Adam and Eve; now between the fall and the flood, the creation or the environment wasn’t was not greatly impacted, the big impact would come in consequence of the flood, and yet the environment was impacted to a certain extent.
Now we also know that between the fall and the flood, human beings violated the laws of God, the moral laws of God, as well as the laws of their constitutional body. We know that because in Genesis chapter 6 and verse 5 we’re told about the wickedness that existed in the earth Genesis chapter 6 and verse 5 says this.
“Then the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually (and notice verses 11 and 12) the earth also was corrupt before the Lord God, and the earth was filled with violence, so God looked upon the earth, and indeed it was corrupt for all flesh had corrupted their way upon the earth.”
And so we find that not only was man living now in an environment which was no longer perfect, but also he was violating the eight laws of health, the physical laws that God had established, and obviously also the moral law of God, and also man no longer had access to the battery charger.
Notice Genesis chapter 3 verses 22 to 24 man was barred from the battery charger, we’re told there in Genesis chapter 3 and verse 22
“Then the Lord God said, “Behold, the man has become like one of Us, to know good and evil. And now, lest he put out his hand and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live forever”-therefore the Lord God sent him out of the Garden of Eden to till the ground from which he was taken. So he drove out the man; and He placed cherubim at the East of the Garden of Eden, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to guard the way to the tree of life.”
And so man no longer had access to the battery charger, so you see three changes as a result of the fall, an imperfect environment, violation of the eight laws of Health, and no access to the battery charger to refurbish the life, and yet the constitutional energy which God gave originally to Adam must’ve had been immense.
And and you say why?
Because of the life spans of the people that lived between the fall and the flood.
Allow me to mention those lifespans:
Adam lived to be 930 years old (these are in Genesis five)
Seth: 912, Enosch: 905, CainanL 910, Mahalalel: 895, Jared: 962, Methuselah: 969, he was the granddaddy of them all, Lamech: 777, and Noah 950 years old.
what an amount of constitutional energy Adam must have been given at the very beginning of human history, that even by living in a less than perfect environment and living in violation of the laws of health, to a greater or less degree and having no access to the battery charger, people still lived to be almost a thousand years old.
Now what about after the flood; the life spans of people greatly decreased after the flood, allow me to read the ages of the post-flood heroes that are found in Genesis 11: Clean or unclean meat
Shem: 600, Arphaxed: 438, Salah: 433, Eber: 464, Peleg: 439, Reu: 239, Serug: 230, Nahor: 148, Terah: 205, Abraham 175
Drastic decrease in the life spans of those that lived after the flood, and immediately we ask the question why?
Folks the world wide flood totally turned the ecosystem of planet Earth upside down, the environment was thrown out of balance as a result of this worldwide Cataclysm, great regions of the earth became inhospitable, huge bodies of saltwater appeared. Desert and ice caps came into existence, the cosmic rays now penetrated the atmosphere because the layer of water that God placed above the earth was brought down at the time of the flood. Disease appeared and became more prevalent and the land was less fertile because of what happened at the time of the flood. Clean or unclean meat
So the environment greatly depreciated and became unconducive to the sustaining of life. Furthermore human beings continued violating the eight laws of health, they continued depleting their constitutional energy by disobeying the physical laws that God had established.
The Tower of Babel episode illustrates this, you know these wicked individuals were are creating this tower, or building this tower because they wanted to save themselves from another flood, and this is happening only a hundred years after the flood.
The wickedness of the earth was great and they wanted to centralize evil and wickedness as we’ve studied previously in order to lead the world into total and complete rebellion against God.
And so you find an environment which is totally inconducive to the sustaining of life, you have a violation of the laws of health and of course you no longer have access to the battery charger to refurbish the vital force. Clean or unclean meat
And so that’s the reason why the life spans after the flood decreased greatly.
Go with me to Psalm: 90 and let’s read verse 10. what about today what is the life span like today well let’s take a look at what David had to say about this once again the reference is Psalm: 90 and verse 10 there David says
“the days of our lives are 70 years; and if by reason of strength they are 80 years, Yet their bost is only labour and sorrow; For it is soon cut off, and we fly away.”
In other words David is saying the lifespan of man in my day is 70 to 80 years and if you live to be 80 years old, its with aches and pains and sorrows.
Now the question is why did the lifespan of man decrease even more between the time after the flood, and the time of David. There’s no doubt whatsoever that it’s because of environmental factors, violations of the eight laws of Health and having no access to the battery charger.
Now somebody might say but Pastor Bohr, the lifespan today is very similar to the life span which existed in the days of David, why hasn’t it further decreased?
Let me explain why, you see science has eliminated many of the environmental hazards and diseases which deplete the vital force. There is a tremendous and marked emphasis upon hygiene and sterilization, even among the people of Israel, but especially today. Clean or unclean meat
Scientific discoveries have helped reduce the threat of viruses and bacteria, antibiotics and vaccines, have gotten rid of diseases which caused fear and terror in the hearts of people, such as tuberculosis, smallpox, polio and the plague, and medical treatments are able to help people preserve the amount of vital energy or vital force that they have, and yet today we even have a tremendous emphasis upon following the laws of health.
You’ve noticed for example on television they have a lot of diet plans and a lot of exercise plans, and so on, so that people can preserve their health. There’s an emphasis upon getting enough water and getting enough exercise and reading and eating the right kind of foods, and so because of the environmental factors; being not eliminated, but being reduced because of medical science, and because there’s a renewed emphasis on the eight laws of Health and following them. The lives of people have continued to be about the same as in the days of David
But human being still do not have access to the battery charger, and so people live to be 70-80, you know some people as the exception to the rule live 90, some people live to be a hundred, and you know we say wow that person live to be a hundred years old, but what is a hundred compared to 969, certainly not very much, I mean when those people who lived before the flood reach the age of five hundred, they were only entering their middle-age. Clean or unclean meat
You know they still had four hundred or five hundred years to live, and yet today life has decreased drastically from those times, and yet because we live in a world today were environmental hazards to a great degree have been eliminated and because there’s a great emphasis on the laws of health, life has been able to hold quite steady.
Now I want to talk to you a little bit about the constitutional energy which each of us has, which actually preserves our life and helps us have a good quality of life.
Two doctors, several years ago did some very intensive studies in this area of the constitutional force, which is also called “Adaptation Energy”. Their names Hans Selye and Paul Tanya, They published their research in several books as well as articles in medical journals. They discovered that each one of us is born into this world with a certain supply of what they called constitutional energy, or adaptation energy, it’s also called vital force. They discovered that some people receive more vital energy, and others receive less, we receive it according to the habits of our ancestors, if our ancestors lived in severe environmental hazards, and if they violated the eight laws of health, we receive less constitutional energy. If our ancestors were quite careful in their health habits, and they lived in a better environment they discovered that they pass on a greater supply of adaptation energy, or constitutional energy. Clean or unclean meat
Now when we receive this vital energy it is used to make the physical functions of the body work, in other words the vital force keeps the the heart pumping, and it keeps the brain thinking and it keeps the lungs breathing, it’s kind of like the energizing force for the body. When we receive the vital force it cannot be replenished what we receive must last us a lifetime, it is not going to earn interest, it will not be replaced, as we live, it depreciates, or it gets weaker. We can decide either to preserve the vital force by following proper habits and living in the best environment possible, or we can decide to live in any old environment and violate the laws of health, but this depletes the vital force, and shortens our life and makes us less happy and less healthy.
Allow me to illustrate what I mean, I once saw this cartoon and in the cartoon was this young man he had a big smile on his face and he had a candle in his hand which was burning on both sides, then you have a second frame of the cartoon, and this same young man is old and decrepit, he’s bent over, and the candle is a little stub and the candle is lit but it’s just flickering, about to go out and he has his hand over the flame just begging for the candle to not go out. What did he do with his vital force in his
younger years? He burned the candle on both ends, in other words he used his vital force, his adaptation energy, his constitutional force recklessly, and as a result his life was shortened and made unhappy and unhealthy I might say. Clean or unclean meat
I’d like to read another statement from this health reformer Ellen White in her book “Councils on Health” page 99. She understood this issue of constitutional force much much before Selye and Tanya and those who have done modern research, she says this
Intemperance in eating and drinking, intemperance in labor, in temperance in almost everything, exists on every hand. Those who make great exertions to accomplish just so much work in a given time, and continue to labor when their judgment tells them they should rest, are never gainers. They are living on borrowed capital. They are expending the vital force which they will need at a future time. And when the energy they have so recklessly used is demanded, they fail for want of it. The physical strength is gone, the mental powers fail. They realize that they have met with a loss, but do not know what it is. Their time of need has come, but their physical resources are exhausted. (then she says this) Everyone who violates the laws of health (The 8 Laws that we talked about) must sometime be a sufferer to a greater or less degree. God has provided us with constitutional force, which will be needed at different periods of our life. If we recklessly exhaust this force by continual over-taxation, we shall sometime be losers. Our usefulness will be lessened, if not our life itself be destroyed.
What she’s saying is that if we live in harmony with the eight laws of heath, we will preserve and conserve our constitutional energy for times of emergency, and to prolong our life and our happiness.
But she’s saying that every time that we violate these laws, our energy is depleted, and as a result our life is shortened, our health is impacted and obviously our happiness is impacted as well because nobody can be fully happy when he or she is sick all the time. Clean or unclean meat
So we all receive this vital force or this vital energy, this adaptation energy from our ancestors, some more some less, you know I can’t help but think about George Burns that Hollywood actor who died in his hundreds, some people say look he smoke cigars, and he lived a disorderly life and yet look he lived to be over a hundred years old.
So I guess that means I can do anything with my body and maybe I’ll be lucky and live to a hundred.
The only reason he lived to be a hundred is because of the constitutional energy that he received from his ancestors. They must have had a strong constitution, they must have lived relatively well in harmony with the principles of health.
But it does not apply to everyone, because everybody receives a different supply of vital energy.
Now allow me to address some habits which deplete and diminish this vital energy that God has given to us; By the way the vital energy not only is for our physical functioning, but also for our mental functioning, the more vitality we have the better our minds will function, and the closer we can draw to God and understand his will.
Allow me to address some examples of habits which deplete this vital energy, not getting enough rest, not sleeping enough. You know when I was a student I used to study all night to prepare for tests, do you know what that’s like? It’s like having your car racing at a hundred miles an hour when it should be at idle. You see at night our engines should be at idle, our bodies still function but the engine is idled. Clean or unclean meat
We’re not supposed to be running full steam day and night, because this depletes our energy and so one of the laws of health is rest, we need to get enough rest, we need to get enough sleep, one thing which I admire about the people in Latin America is they close their stores at noon and they take a siesta, they go home and they eat and they have a good family time. And then at two o’clock they come back and they open up their stores, because they know that rest is of critical importance.
What is another factor that reduces this constitutional energy? Trauma, accidents, we all need to be careful to not have accidents,
I realized that we will have accidents now and then but you see what happens when we have an accident. Is for example we break a bone, the body has to expend additional energy to repair that bone, which would not be expended if we have been careful. Also exercise, a lack of exercise impacts the burning of that vital energy that we have received, you see when we have too much body mass the result is that the heart must pump harder and it must pump more times to get the blood to the additional body mass, and by the way when we are overweight and I’m not criticizing anybody but when were overweight our vessels constrict and it makes it much harder for the heart to get the blood through the vessels.
Because the vessels constrict, they build up cholesterol and the heart has to work harder to push the blood through the vessels. let me give you an example with very little exercise the heart of the normal person beats 80 times a minute, but if people just did a little bit of exercise and let me tell you this before I tell you about the little bit of exercise. At 80 times a minute that means that your heart beats a hundred fifteen thousand times a day. Clean or unclean meat
Okay, but if you do a little exercise you can reduce your heart rate to 60 beats a minute which means that your ticker is saving 29,000 beats a day because it’s only beating approximately eighty six thousand times, and so what are you doing? By exercising, you are reducing the use of the vital energy, you’re preserving your vital force. And by the way the vital force not only lengthens our life, but it also helps us have resistance against disease.
Now let me address certain habits that people have like for example smoking.
What’s the downside of smoking? Well when people smoke the poisons enter their body, for example the kidneys and the kidneys have to work overtime to expel the poisons, the liver also has to work harder and longer to expel the nicotine and the other 30 plus poisons that cigarettes have, and as a result your body is working overtime to expel the poisons and in order to do that it is expanding the vital force which should be used to preserve life. The body also has to repair the damage which is done by the smoking, and so the body is depleting unnecessarily the vital energy that we have received.
Now some people might say, well Pastor Bohr the bible does not forbid smoking.
What do we do when the bible does not specifically address a certain habit, how do we know whether that habit is okay or not okay? Clean or unclean meat
Some people say if the Bible doesn’t say thou shalt not smoke, it’s okay to smoke. Let me tell you that when the bible does not particularly address a habit what we need to do is look for Biblical principles, and apply those principles to a specific situation allow me to take some principles and I’m going to do this very quickly with for example smoking.
There is one of the Ten Commandments, number six that says thou shalt not kill quickly, is that what it says? Thou shalt not kill quickly? No, it says “thou shalt not kill” let me ask you; Is a smoker slowly killing himself is he shortening his life? Of course, so it’s a violation of the principle that says thou shalt not kill. In Revelation 21 verse 27 we’re told that nothing unclean will enter Heaven; Have you ever seen the lungs of a smoker, furthermore in Isaiah 55 in verse 2 it says why do you spend your money on that which is not bred. You know people who smoke cigarettes, they have money to burn, obviously.
It would be better to take the three or four dollar bills that you spend on a packet of cigarettes and just burn the three or four dollar bills, at least you would be burning the money, but you would not be ruining your health.
Spending money on cigarettes is a bad stewardship practice, furthermore in Leviticus 19 verse 18 were told that were to love our neighbor as ourselves. Now does second hand smoke show love for our neighbor?
you know they’ve done studies to show that secondhand smoke is just as bad, or sometimes even worse than firsthand smoke, and so when we’re smoking around people, around our kids for example we are not showing much love for them.
Furthermore in Romans 6 verse 16 the Apostle Paul says that we’re not supposed to be enslaved by habits, and of course the biggest motivation is found in first Corinthians 6: 19 and 20.
Where we’re told that our body is the temple of the holy spirit, that we do not belong to ourselves and so if we take these principles even though the bible does not say thou shalt not smoke. If we apply these principles we find that smoking is out of bounds. Now, I don’t want to be critical of people who are caught up in the habit of cigarette smoking, I know it’s a terrible habit some people say that it’s even worse than some hard drugs. I’m not being critical, because God can give us power to overcome anything.
The Bible says I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me but I’m simply making a statement of fact that cigarette smoking depletes the life forces, it reduces the vital energy, it makes us sick. Have you ever heard for example the cough of a smoker? You know it sounds in advanced stages like someone who has pneumonia, you know you can hear that deep cough from the lungs.
Now what about alcohol? You know those Christians that say oh there’s nothing wrong with drinking a little bit of alcohol, well, is that true? Do you know that alcohol no matter what amount you take in kills brain cells, it’s been proven that alcohol causes cirrhosis of the liver and other diseases, it causes tremendous heartache among families,it causes accidents, it clouds the brain so that you’re not able to distinguish between right and wrong, and it takes away also, you’re will power to perform the good, and to reject the wrong. Clean or unclean meat
In other words it affects your powers of discernment, your powers of choice, and your power to do that which is right.
The Bible has a lot of things to say about about the issue of alcohol, you know some people take a text here or text there and they’ll say the Apostle Paul said that a little wine is good for the stomach. Well the word wine can apply to grape juice, or it can apply to fermented grape juice, what we call wine. You have to allow the context to dictate it. Some people say well Jesus made wine at the wedding of Cana, that’s true enough. But do you think that Jesus would make an alcoholic beverage that kills the brain cells that he himself created? I don’t think so, and that causes family strife, and that makes people sick, absolutely not.
Now allow me to mention just some passages from Scripture, and by the way in the handout that you receive at the end of the lecture you’ll have all of these texts so I hope that you look them up.
In Genesis 19: 35 to 38 we find that the daughters of Lot making him drunk, and then committing incest with their own father to have children, and Lot, of course he could think straight, he couldn’t see straight, he didn’t even know they were his daughters because he was under the influence.
proverbs 20 and verse 1 says “wine is a mocker, strong drink is raging:” Solomon knew this, Solomon is not speaking from some ivory tower. Solomon went astray from God in the days of his youth, and you read proverbs ,and you read Ecclesiastes he went out into the world and he became a party animal so to speak. So when he says that “wine is a mocker and strong drink is raging”, Solomon knows what he’s talking about.
Then we have the story in Leviticus chapter 10: Nadab and Abihu who offered strange fire before the Lord. They could not distinguish between holy fire and common fire. Why? Because we’re told there that they were under the influence, they drunk too much wine. You see wine does not allow you to distinguish between right and wrong, and to choose the right and to reject the wrong. Clean or unclean meat
The Apostle Paul in Galatians 5 verses 19 to 21 gives a list of the works of the flesh and he says that drunkenness is one of the works of the flesh, and he says that those who become drunk unless they repent and they change their ways shall not inherit the kingdom of God.
In first Corinthians 6:9 and 10 the Apostle Paul says the same thing. He says those who are drunk will not inherit the kingdom of God. So alcohol, cigarettes are off limits when it comes to preserving the constitutional energy.
Now let’s talk for a few minutes about diet, basically there’s four types of diets, one is the vegetarian diet, fruits and vegetables. Second lacto-ovo vegetarian those are people who don’t eat flesh foods, they don’t eat meat, but they do eat dairy products. The third type of diet is people who eat clean meats, or clean flesh foods, and the fourth type of diet is a seafood diet, you see it, you eat it. And you don’t think any more about it, as long as it’s edible, ‘so-called’ eat it. Now what is the best diet, what is the diet that preserves, and conserves the constitutional force? Clean or unclean meat
Well folks there’s no doubt whatsoever that the diet which God created is a vegetarian diet, that’s the best diet, that’s plan ‘A’ notice Genesis chapter 1 verses 29 and 30
And God said:
“See, I have given you every herb that yields seed which is on the face of all the earth, and every tree whose fruit yields seed, to you it shall be for food. (and notice the beasts were also vegetarian) Also, to every beast of the earth, to every bird of the air, and to everything that creeps on the earth, in which there is life, I have given every green herb for food; and it was so.”
Human beings and animals were created vegetarians at the very beginning, now there are several principles of diet that I would like to share with you, very quickly. First, our diet should be simple and natural, that means that we should not eat processed and refined foods, eat them the closest to the natural state as possible.
Secondly we should eat a variety of fruits and vegetables, you know God could have made one super food that had all of the necessary nutrients, but God made a buffet, he made different kinds of fruits and different kinds of vegetables that have the same nutritional properties because he is a God of variety, he knows that they’re going to be different tastes so we should have a varied diet,we should have a balanced diet which means that we should have a balance of protein, carbohydrates, minerals and vitamins. We should eat at regular times, in the proper amounts, we should guard against eating junk foods, and an excess of sugar, you know we could take a whole lecture to speak about these principles, but we need in other words to be careful to follow God’s counsel when it comes to diet. Clean or unclean meat
The original diet is the best diet, incidentally eating flesh foods has many down sides, for example they have fat. Fat has cholesterol, and cholesterol causes hardening of the arteries, and causes strokes and it causes heart attacks, furthermore the disease diseases are carried in the blood.
I’m sure you’ve heard about mad cow disease for example, and there are other diseases, so animal food in other words flesh food is not the ideal in these days. Furthermore these days they inject growth hormones many times into the animals, and so when we eat these growth hormones we are impacted, and affected. Furthermore the animals themselves have what are called purines, you know people say if I quit eating meat I feel weak all of a sudden, well the reason why is because meat has certain stimulants in it. You know the animals also have adrenaline like we do, and when we eat the meat we’re eating those hormones which they naturally produce, and so people have a sensation of strength when really it’s an artificial sense of strength, which can be gained by a vegetarian diet as long as we get used to it.
Now some people say well those regulations about clean and unclean foods those were for Israel, those were given by Moses. Well the fact is folks that Genesis 7 verses2 and 3 very clearly shows that their were clean and unclean animals before the flood because God told Noah how to take clean and unclean animals into the ark. Now I realize that many of those who are listening are going to say well pastor Bohr is really raising the bar, you know becoming a vegetarian overnight it might just be possible that some people say I cannot become a vegetarian overnight. Well God has established certain transition points that you can follow in reaching that ideal, you know he allows in the Bible people to eat certain kinds of animal foods and I would say that would be like a step towards God’s original ideal. Clean or unclean meat
You say what standards has God established for the types of meats that can be eaten if I feel like at this moment I cannot survive without eating meat?
Well let me mention just quickly some text here, Deuteronomy 14 verse 6 gives the prescriptions for the land animals which can be eaten.
The land animals must have a cloven hoof, and they must chew the cud (Of course animals that chew the cud are vegetarians) if you look at those two characteristics you’ll find that animals that have a cloven hoof and that chew the cud they are vegetarians, In other words God forbids animals that are scavengers and that feed on other animals. In Deuteronomy 14 verse 8 God forbids the eating of pork, because port is not clean. It says
“Also the swine is unclean for you, because it has cloven hoofs, yet it does not chew the cud; you shall not eat their flesh or touch their dead carcasses.”
Now some people say I don’t see anything wrong with eating pork, that law was for the Jews. Let me ask, is the digestive system of the Jew different than ours, are pigs dirty in other places and they’re clean in Israel, or vice versa? Of course not, the digestive system of man is the same, and the pig is still dirty, and so what applied back then applies just as well today.
Now what about marine creatures, like fish in Deuteronomy 14 verse 9 there’s also two rules
Rule number one: they have to have scales.
And rule number two: they have to have fins.
And God had a reason for that.
You know if you look at the marine creatures you’ll discover, (and there are exceptions to this rule) you discover that most of them that don’t have fins or scales are scavengers, and they feed on other fish.
For example the shark: Does the shark have our scales? No Clean or unclean meat
Catfish: Does catfish have scales? Absolutely not. Do you know what catfish eat? Well I better not tell you because you might be going from here to supper so I better not tell you what catfish eat, because you already know. They go around the bottom of the lake, or of the river and they’re really the garbage disposal if you please, and so God says don’t eat them.
Also so God gives prescriptions about the birds that we can eat, he doesn’t say this is this characteristic, or that characteristic he simply says every clean bird you shall eat, and then it gives a list of birds that cannot be eaten, and as you look at that list of birds every single one of them is a scavenger, or feeds on other birds. So I guess that would mean that birds that feed mostly on a vegetarian diet, like chickens and birds like that would be edible according to the prescription that God has given. Although chickens will also eat roaches and they’ll also eat worms, even they have degenerated. I don’t know whether you are aware of this or not Clean or unclean meat
So folks God has given us these simple rules, 8 Laws of health. I mentioned some of them, you know the need for rest, and I’ve mentioned diet, and I’ve mentioned smoking, and I mentioned our alcohol, mentioned the importance of exercise, I’ve only mentioned some of them. But God has given us these laws so that as we live them, we are healthy, we are holy, we are happy and we prolong our life. Clean or unclean meat
Now allow me to close this lecture by talking about motivations for living healthfully. what should be our motivations for living healthfully? I have six that I have written down. Clean or unclean meat
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Number one and this is the motivation of most people: good physical health, less medical bills, and a more enjoyable life.
There’s nothing wrong with that but that’s not the best motivation for obeying the laws of Health.
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Second motivation: The Apostle Paul says that we are not our own, our body belongs to God by creation, and by redemption. So if our body is not our own. Is it imperative for us to take care of that which is not our own? Certainly a good motivation.
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Third motivation: Do you know that Leviticus 11 after God gives the list of animals that can be eaten, and the animals that cannot be eaten? He says to Israel, you shall be Holy for I am Holy, in other words being Holy like God has a lot to do with our physical habits, after giving this list. God says be Holy for I am Holy so the desire to be Holy as God is Holy is a good motivation for living in harmony with God’s laws of health.
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Number four: Jesus said that we’re supposed to serve the Lord with all our might, our mind and our strength. How can we serve God with all of our might and all of our mind and all of our strength if we’re depleting our mind and our strength by bad habits?
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Number five: When we practice the laws of health we have a clear mind to discriminate between good and evil, to choose good over evil, and to live good instead of evil, when our body is affected by bad habits our mind is also affected by those bad habits, and the will of God becomes blurry in our minds. Let me ask you does drinking affect your capacity to communicate with God after you have a great big meal? Do you feel like reading a book and doing some serious thinking? Of course not, because what affects the body affects the mind, and so a very important motivation for living in harmony with these eight principles is to have a clean body with a clear mind that can discern, choose, and implement the will of god.
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Finally: this is the greatest motivation of all. The Apostle Paul says in first Corinthians chapter 10 and verse 31
“Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God”
These are the best motivations for living a healthy lifestyle, now we’ve studied about the environment, we’ve studied about the eight laws of health, we’ve studied about the battery charger in all of these stages, at creation, between the fall and the flood, between the flood and the days of David, today, but what about the future? Clean or unclean meat
Well there’s a glorious future awaiting us because what God did at the beginning he’s going to do again, and we’re going to be there, if, we are obedient to God’s principles, because we love God with all of our hearts.
Allow me just to summarize what it’s going to be like in revelation 22 and verse 2, we’re told that God will make a perfect environment again, there will be no curse just like at the beginning, and God, according to 1 Corinthians 15 will give us a new body, immortal, incorruptible, and by nature we will keep the eight laws of health that he has created, and once again we will have access to the battery charger. In other words to the three of life, and we will refurbish our life and live forever and ever in the presence of the Lord. Clean or unclean meat