Month: March 2010

Unclean Meats

The SDA Dictionary says: “The expression ‘unclean’ is a rendering generally of the Hebrew tame, “ceremonially polluted,” “defiled,” “unclean, and the Greek akathartos, “impure,” “defiled,” “unclean.” Animals declared by the Law of Moses [as given by God himself] to be unfit for either food or sacrifice. The purpose in distinguishing certain animals as clean and others as unclean was apparently two-fold—dietary and religious.

There are Christians who claim that the prohibition to eat the flesh of animals God classified as “unclean” in the Old Testament was only for the Hebrews and Jews, or that such was “done away with at the cross,” implying that it was part of the ceremonial law. This is preposterous if not absurd. First of all Christ did not die on Calvary in order that “non-Jews” and the so-called “New Testament Christians” may eat the flesh of dead animals that He himself declared as unclean and an abomination! Second, the animals declared as unclean in the days of Moses and Noah, are still the same animals today! That is the reason why the Bible goes as far as to name them specifically. See Leviticus 11 and Deuteronomy 14: 1-20; cf. Genesis 7: 1-3. 

…The wise man said, “Train up a child in the way he should go and when he is old he will not depart from it.” Training up a child, in its fullest sense, is by example and by instruction or teaching. Many Christian parents are either scared, do not know how, or simply balk at the idea of teaching their child what God says in His Word because they themselves need to learn these lessons first. Elgar, the well-known classical composer who, unlike the great composers of his ilk doubled up as music teachers in between composing their great masterpieces, said in disdain, “Teaching is like turning a grindstone with a dislocated shoulder.” Parents may detest the idea of instructing their children of the way of the Lord but it certainly does not excuse nor spare them the certain heartaches later in life.

Such is the lesson conveyed in the example of Manoah and his wife, parents of Samson. But no parent or child need despair. The plan of salvation of the gospel is redemption and deliverance from not only the power of sinful habits and practices but also over hereditary tendencies transmitted from the gene pool from the parents. Jesus said, “My grace is sufficient for you.” Grace and faith, particularly in these last days, are given particularly to those who “hunger and thirst for righteousness” in order that they may overcome all their sins and emerge triumphant in the end.        

Study for the Month of March 2010

Temperance

(The Physical and Natural Laws, Part II)

By Nathaniel Fajardo
Email:[email protected]

Temperance is the last but far from being the least important in the list drawn up by Apostle Paul of the eight “fruits of the Spirit” in Galatians 5: 22, 23. If these fruits actually being manifested in the life of the person, it is the unmistakable proof the Holy Spirit is being allowed to do its appointed work in the plan of salvation.

The popular idea of temperance is “a little of everything won’t hurt” or the abstinence from alcohol and tobacco, and now, drugs. Webster has long defined temperance as “habitual moderation in the indulgence of the appetite or passions; moderation, specifically moderation in, or narrowly, abstinence from, the use of intoxicants.” Temperate is “moderate; not excessive; as a moderate in the indulgence of appetite or passions; abstemiousness in the use of intoxicating liquors.”-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary, 1942 (emphasis mine).

Two words stand out in these definitions, namely, moderation and intoxicating liquors.” Moderate, according to the same source means “kept within due bounds; observing reasonable limits; not excessive; restrained; sparing; temperate; abstemiousness; reasonable; calm; tempered.” As to what and who determines what “due bounds” and “reasonable limits” means are as varied in degrees and range as there as many sets of values in all dimensions of the human society but always tending towards permissiveness, a few on the fanatical but narrow interpretation.