From: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
daily devotional
Evening ...
2 Samuel 9:8
What is thy servant, that thou shouldest look upon such a dead dog as I am?
If Mephibosheth was thus humbled by David's kindness, what shall we be in the
presence of our gracious Lord? The more grace we have, the less we shall think
of ourselves, for grace, like light, reveals our impurity. Eminent saints have
scarcely known to what to compare themselves, their sense of unworthiness has
been so clear and keen. "I am," says holy Rutherford, "a dry and withered
branch, a piece of dead carcass, dry bones, and not able to step over a straw."
In another place he writes, "Except as to open outbreakings, I want nothing of
what Judas and Cain had." The meanest objects in nature appear to the humbled
mind to have a preference above itself, because they have never contracted sin:
a dog may be greedy, fierce, or filthy, but it has no conscience to violate, no
Holy Spirit to resist. A dog may be a worthless animal, and yet by a little
kindness it is soon won to love its master, and is faithful unto death; but we
forget the goodness of the Lord, and follow not at His call. The term "dead
dog" is the most expressive of all terms of contempt, but it is none too strong
to express the self-abhorrence of instructed believers. They do not affect mock
modesty, they mean what they say, they have weighed themselves in the balances
of the sanctuary, and found out the vanity of their nature. At best, we are but
clay, animated dust, mere walking hillocks; but viewed as sinners, we are
monsters indeed. Let it be published in heaven as a wonder, that the Lord Jesus
should set His heart's love upon such as we are. Dust and ashes though we be,
we must and will "magnify the exceeding greatness of His grace." Could not His
heart find rest in heaven? Must He needs come to these tents of Kedar for a
spouse, and choose a bride upon whom the sun had looked? O heavens and earth,
break forth into a song, and give all glory to our sweet Lord Jesus.
Morning ...
Romans 8:30
Whom He justified, them He also glorified.
Here is a precious truth for thee, believer. Thou mayest be poor, or in
suffering, or unknown, but for thine encouragement take a review of thy
"calling" and the consequences that flow from it, and especially that blessed
result here spoken of. As surely as thou art God's child today, so surely shall
all thy trials soon be at an end, and thou shalt be rich to all the intents of
bliss. Wait awhile, and that weary head shall wear the crown of glory, and that
hand of labour shall grasp the palm-branch of victory. Lament not thy troubles,
but rather rejoice that ere long thou wilt be where "there shall be neither
sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain." The chariots of fire
are at thy door, and a moment will suffice to bear thee to the glorified. The
everlasting song is almost on thy lip. The portals of heaven stand open for
thee. Think not that thou canst fail of entering into rest. If He hath called
thee, nothing can divide thee from His love. Distress cannot sever the bond;
the fire of persecution cannot burn the link; the hammer of hell cannot break
the chain. Thou art secure; that voice which called thee at first, shall call
thee yet again from earth to heaven, from death's dark gloom to immortality's
unuttered splendours. Rest assured, the heart of Him who has justified thee
beats with infinite love towards thee. Thou shalt soon be with the glorified,
where thy portion is; thou art only waiting here to be made meet for the
inheritance, and that done, the wings of angels shall waft thee far away, to
the mount of peace, and joy, and blessedness, where,
"Far from a world of grief and sin,
With God eternally shut in,"
thou shalt rest for ever and ever.
Romans 14:14
(14) I know, and am persuaded by the Lord Jesus, that there is
nothing unclean of itself: but to him that esteemeth any thing to be unclean,
to him it is unclean.
Go to this verse on Bible Tools
In Romans 14, the subject is not clean and unclean foods but
eating meat verses vegetarianism (verse 2). Paul admonishes Christians not to
pass judgment on others for eating meat or for eating only vegetables (verse 3).
The question that confronted Paul was not that God's people were
suggesting that somehow unclean animals had now been made clean, but the belief
of some that no meat-even meat that had been created to be eaten with
thanksgiving-should be eaten at all. The apostle points out that it would be
wrong for the vegetarians to eat meat if they had doubts about it, as it would
defile their consciences (verse 23). He concludes, "For whatever is not of
faith is sin."
Verse 14 is a proof text used by the world to conclude that all
meat is now fine to eat: "I know and am convinced by the Lord Jesus that there
is nothing unclean of itself; but to him who considers anything to be unclean,
to him it is unclean." This is another verse that has been poorly translated to
conform to preconceived notions.
The problem is with the word "unclean," which does not appear in
the Greek text. To mean "unclean," Paul would have used akarthatos, but
instead, the text reads koinos, which means "common," "ordinary," "defiled," or
"profane (as opposed to holy or consecrated)." Peter uses both "common" and
"unclean" to describe meats in Acts 10:14, so there is obviously a difference
between the terms.
We know that the Bible defines "unclean" meat in Leviticus 11 and
Deuteronomy 14, but when is meat considered "common"? The only circumstances in
which clean meats are common or defiled are when a clean animal dies naturally
or is torn by beasts (Leviticus 22:8) or when the blood has not been properly
drained from the meat (Leviticus 17:13-14; 3:17). Such animal flesh was called
common because it could be given to strangers or aliens in Old Testament times
if they wished to eat it (Deuteronomy 14:21). Similarly, in Acts 15:20, 29, the
apostles forbade the Gentiles to eat the meat of a strangled animal or meat
that had not been drained of blood.
In the case of Romans 14:14, it is likely that "defiled" would be
the best term, as the meat under discussion was probably that offered to idols
then sold in the marketplace for public consumption. To paraphrase, then, the
verse should read: ". . . there is nothing defiled of itself; but to him who
considers anything to be defiled, to him it is defiled." The meat was not
defiled in fact, just in the minds of various church members, whom Paul had
earlier called "weak" (verse 2). These "weak in the faith" Christians believed
that, because the meat had been offered to a pagan idol, it had become
spiritually defiled.
Paul explains in I Corinthians 8:4-7 that the demon behind the
idol is nothing, for "there is no other God but one" (verse 4). Thus, there is
no "spiritual" taint to the meat.
However, there is not in everyone that knowledge; for some,
with consciousness of the idol, until now eat it as a thing offered to an idol;
and their conscience, being weak, is defiled. But food does not commend us to
God; for neither if we eat are we the better, nor if we do not eat are we the
worse. (verses 7-8)
So we see that in these verses that Paul is not in any manner
doing away with God's laws concerning clean and unclean meat. The topic does
not even come up! He is discussing meat defiled or profaned due to its
association with a pagan idol.
John O. Reid
From Did God Change the Law of Clean and Unclean Meats?
.
