Bible Questions and Answers

Whoever told you that you may not eat pork is mistaken.

The Lord Jesus Christ totally removed all dietary prohibitions from his followers. Read what he says:

Mark 7:14-19, "Then Jesus called to the crowd to come and hear. "All of you listen," he said, "and try to understand. You are not defiled by what you eat; you are defiled by what you say and do!" Then Jesus went into a house to get away from the crowds, and his disciples asked him what he meant by the statement he had made. "Don't you understand either?" he asked. "Can't you see that what you eat won't defile you? Food doesn't come in contact with your heart, but only passes through the stomach and then comes out again." (By saying this, he showed that every kind of food is acceptable.)" - New Living Translation.  

Note that the text in brackets is Mark's comment on what Jesus said. So, we don't follow the dietary laws in Leviticus because Jesus fulfilled the whole law and told us specifically that all dietary restrictions, by his authority, have been lifted.

The Apostle Paul echoes the Lord's words in 1 Corinthians 10:25-27 "Eat whatever is sold in the meat market without raising any question on the ground of conscience, for "the earth and its fullness are the Lord's." If an unbeliever invites you to a meal and you are disposed to go, eat whatever is set before you without raising any question on the ground of conscience."

Note the experience of Peter in his vision:

Acts 10:10-15 "He became hungry and wanted something to eat; and while it was being prepared, he fell into a trance. He saw the heaven opened and something like a large sheet coming down, being lowered to the ground by its four corners. In it were all kinds of four-footed creatures and reptiles and birds of the air. Then he heard a voice saying, Get up, Peter; kill and eat. But Peter said, By no means, Lord; for I have never eaten anything that is profane or unclean. The voice said to him again, a second time, What God has made clean, you must not call profane."

If God through His son, has declared all foods to be clean because the lessons of separation and holiness taught by the laws of uncleaness in the Law of Moses, have been fulfilled in Christ, then who are we to insist that such laws should still be binding? As the angel said to Peter, "What God has cleansed, we must not call profane (unclean)."

If the argument is valid that because these restrictions are mentioned in the book of Leviticus that we should still do them, we are making a huge mistake. These things were fulfilled in Christ. They are the shadow pointing forward to him and his work. He is the substance. We no longer need these "teaching aids" (see Galatians 3:24) because now we see the work and person of the Lord in all the glory given to him by His Father.

Leviticus, in 75 verses talks about the law of the burnt offering. Why don't we do that too? In 44 verses it talks about the Tabernacle. Should we be building tabernacles and offering bulls, sheep, and goats too? That's all in Leviticus just like the prohibitions against eating pork. If someone curses their father or mother, the law in Leviticus requires that the guilty child should be put to death (Leviticus 20:9). Should we be doing that because it is in the Law? You can't pick and choose.

Once you decide that obedience to one part of the Law of Moses is essential, you must then keep the entire Law. It's an all or nothing situation. (See Galatians 5:3; 3:10). Clearly, such prohibitions are a thing of the past. We are not under the Law but under grace and the only rituals the Lord requires of us are those of Baptism and the partaking of bread and wine in remembrance of him and his work.

I hope you have found this helpful.

God bless,

Mike