Eating pork (among other things)

[Iris]

How about 1 Tim. 4:2-5?

[gunther]

How can you define grace without law for comparison? Is that even possible?
Peter's vision in Acts was interpreted by himself twice in the paragraphs immediately following and he doesn't specifically mention food, rather men. I'm not sure if that is sufficient evidence that all foods were made clean. Are there any more scriptures about this that you know?
It's not about my faith being weakened by eating pork, it's more about parasites and disease. I'm not trying to tell anyone how or what to eat, my interest in beginning this discussion was to examine it from as many viewpoints as possible so I can better explain myself not quite as aukwardly (sp?) as I have in the past when I have turned down pork and been asked why.
I don't see myself as striving to follow the law, rather trying to draw closer to God by understanding His viewpoints about things.
I do believe that Jesus did perfectly follow the Law and it is man's misinterpretation of it that is at fault. It lies somewhere in the difference between the letter and the spirit of it.
As far as eating bugs, I know that when my body had been starved for nourishment in the past, it surprised me how good some things were that I previously wouldn't have eaten.
In 1Tim. 4:2-5, are you claiming that the whole passage is about food? It also speaks about marriage and when it directly talks about food it qualifies it to those who believe and know the truth. When did God specifically change the rules He says were forever and Jesus upholded? If you say in Peter's vision, as I said he interpreted it himself to be about people and I can see it to mean that just because the gentiles ate food that was considered by him to be unclean, he shouldn't reject them.

[AllanS]

Jesus stated categorically that food does not make us unclean.

If you're worried about trichinosis, by all means avoid pork. Another possibility is to cook it. Of course, if God were concerned about parasitic infestation, he would have advised the Jews about hydatids in sheep as well (a 'clean' animal), not to mention malaria, tapeworms and so on.

If you follow a certain diet for health reasons, that's fine by me. Just make sure the reasons are reasonable.

[gunther]

Please enlighten where Jesus stated categorically that food does not make us unclean. I am very interested in the source of this statement.
I can assume that you are referring to Mark in the seventh chapter, but careful reading in context plus looking at the companion verses in Matthew 15 make it plain that what He was talking about was ceremonies and rituals such as hand washing.
This is an isolated passage that many use to make substantial declaration, whereas there is an abundance of scripture that is dedicated to what God declares as clean and unclean. Many unclean animals are high in fat content and make a practice of eating almost anything they can get. I think they were designed to be like the garbage collectors of the world. Clean animals seem to have more of a vegetarian diet.
In Peter's vision in Acts he declares that he doesn't and hasn't eaten unclean food and yet he lived with Jesus and followed His ways. Why would Jesus declare the unclean as clean, yet not partake and why would Peter have this attitude and declaration if he thought otherwise?

[jo]

[AllanS]

[jo]

[AllanS]

[jo]

[AllanS]

[robsia]

[jo]

[AllanS]

[jo]

[AllanS]