Anne's Note: Probably no other topic on this website is as controversial as whether the Bible prescribes certain foods for us to eat. My personal belief is that we should follow God's commands in Leviticus 11 and avoid certain animal products that God never intended to be food for us. The following link (which will open in a new window) explains well the reasoning behind this:

• http://www.halleethehomemaker.com/levitical-diet/

Another author has contributed the following article for you to think about:

Do the Laws of Moses Apply to Us Today?

by Emily Varela

Yes, Scripture DOES tell us how to eat. For starters, it tells us WHAT to eat and what NOT to eat. Those instructions are timeless and for our benefit to follow. They are found specifically in Levitcus 11 and Deuteronomy 14. ALL interpretations of the New Nestament which try to say that it is now okat to eat things that Scripture declares to be unclean are WRONG. Period.

YHWH (the LORD) makes unclean PEOPLE clean (as shown in Peter's vision of the sheet, Acts 10). He has NEVER changed His mind about which animals are clean and which are not.

Besides telling us what kinds of meats we are not to eat, Scripture lists MANY foods that are GOOD to eat. Some of those are fruits, vegetables, nuts, grains, herbs, spices, honey, dairy products and clean meats (including certain fish and insects). Anyone who says that any of those foods are not good for us is putting himself in the place of the Almighty Creator of the universe and the Designer, Creator, and Sustainer of our bodies. He knows what He made and how it all works together.

We DO face certain obstacles today because much of what Scripture calls food and good for us has been tampered with to the extent that it is no longer of benefit to our bodies, and in many cases is actually harmful. The basic rule of thumb to use is to just stay as close to YHWH's foods and as far away from man's (and Satan's) tampering as possible.

Another problem we face today is that what is commonly called 'food' is actually so far removed from what Scripture calls 'food' that our bodies (at the cellular level) don't even recognize it, and at times, even recognize it as toxic. If we are eating ANYTHING processed, we are poisoning our bodies. If we have a problem with overeating, it may not be because we are idolatrous, gluttonous or lack self-control. It may be that we are mal-nourished and/or addicted to one or more of the toxins in modern 'foods'.

If we have a diet high in processed foods, our bodies are starving for usable nutrients, which causes us to continue to be hungry as our body is trying to nourish itself. If we change our diet to eat foods that are closer to their natural state, our bodies begin to receive the nutrients they need in a form they can use, and we begin to need less food. The problem with this is often that we are so physically addicted to things like sugar, MSGs, hydrogenated oils, etc., that we have a hard time getting away from them (besides the fact that they are so readily available and cheep in our society).

The best way I know of to get back to eating what we need is to remove all poisons from our homes and refuse to eat out for a period of time, until we can rid our bodies of the addictive substances that are there. A cleanse can also be very helpful, as well as certain highly concentrated nutritional products (such as Juice Plus or seaweed and wheatgrass products). I know it's hard if your spouse is not on the health bandwagon, but with prayer, YHWH will help. Remember Paul calls our bodies the 'temple of the Holy Spirit'. We don't want to harm the temple, and our Heavenly Father certainly doesn't want it defiled and will help us if we choose to cleanse it.

May He bless you as you turn your body over to Him.

Emily

(Note: You can write to Emily at dvarela @ twlakes [dot] net)