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Words of Hope
Are you “clean” or “unclean”?
Never consider unclean what God has made pure.
Adapted from a sermon at First United Methodist Church of Orlando.There’s some strange stuff in the Bible.
When Jesus came on the scene, “the Bible” as we know it today did not exist. The Torah, or the first five books of what we call the Bible, were taught by Rabbi’s. Added to that were writings of the Prophets and other works that would eventually become what we call the Old Testament. These writings contain early humanity’s understanding of their relationship with God.
The early followers of God developed many rules for God’s people to follow. Eating an ox was ok but a pig was not. No bacon or pork for our Old Testament brethren. Also not ok: most birds (though chicken was fine), shrimp, lobster, reptiles, and some bugs. Other bugs, locusts and grasshoppers, were perfectly fine to eat. I don’t know about you, but I’d choose bacon over grasshopper any day. Guess I wouldn’t have made it as a early follower of God…
These early dietary restrictions were a form of covenant between God and humanity. People showed their devotion by only eating food considered “clean” and completely avoiding anything considered “unclean”.
