Revcort's Ramblings

Scripture Focus

“You shall not eat any abomination. These are the animals you may eat: the ox, the sheep, the goat, the deer, the gazelle, the roebuck, the wild goat, the ibex, the antelope, and the mountain sheep.” — Deuteronomy 14:3–5 (ESV)

Devotional Thought

When you begin reading through Deuteronomy 14, it’s easy to get a little stressed about all these dietary laws. God gives Israel very specific instructions about which animals they could eat and which ones they could not. And for those of us who enjoy bacon, shrimp, or crab legs, the immediate question might be, Wait a minute—does this mean I’m not supposed to eat those things?

Before we go any further, I’ll let you off the hook in one sense. Jesus made it clear that these dietary restrictions do not apply to His followers in the same way they applied to Israel under the old covenant. In Mark 7, Jesus explained that food entering the body is not what makes a person morally unclean. Mark even adds the explanation, “Thus he declared all foods clean” (Mark 7:19). Later, Peter’s vision in Acts 10 would reinforce that the old distinctions between clean and unclean foods were no longer binding in the same way.

So yes, your bacon and lobster can stay on the menu.

But that still leaves an important question: Why did God give Israel these laws in the first place? God does not speak without purpose, and even laws that are no longer binding upon Christians can teach us something about Him and about the kind of people He desires us to be.

One thing these laws certainly did was teach Israel to think seriously about holiness. They could not simply eat whatever happened to be available. Every meal required them to distinguish between what God had called clean and what He had called unclean. Their relationship with God affected even something as ordinary as what they put on their plates. God was teaching His people that belonging to Him was supposed to touch every area of life.

We need to be careful not to turn that principle into another kind of legalism. Christianity is not about maintaining a long list of things we don’t watch, listen to, read, say, or do so that God will accept us. We are saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ, not by our ability to keep ourselves morally spotless.

But grace does not mean that purity no longer matters.

In fact, Jesus took the conversation much deeper. He said that what truly defiles us comes from within: “For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery…” (Mark 7:21). Jesus moved the issue from the dinner plate to the human heart.

That should cause us to think carefully about both what we take in and what comes out.

What are we allowing into our minds through the things we watch, listen to, read, and dwell upon? What attitudes and desires are we feeding? And what is coming out of us through our words, actions, entertainment, conversations, and relationships?

The details matter.

Not because getting all the details right earns God’s love, but because sin interferes with our fellowship with the God who already loves us. Moral impurity dulls our spiritual appetite, weakens our sensitivity to God’s voice, and creates distance in our experience of fellowship with Him.

The truth is, believers are most deeply satisfied when we are walking closely with our Lord. That changes the motivation behind holiness. Instead of asking, “How much can I get away with and still be a Christian?” perhaps the better question is, “Is this helping me draw closer to Christ, or is it pulling my heart away from Him?”

Israel once had to think carefully about what went onto their plates. We need to think carefully about what enters our hearts—and what our hearts are producing.

We don’t pursue purity so that God will save us.

We pursue purity because He has saved us, and we want nothing to stand in the way of drawing nearer to Him.

Reflection Questions

1. What are some things you regularly allow into your mind and heart through entertainment, media, conversations, or other influences?
2. Is there anything in your life that may not seem significant but is gradually pulling your heart away from God?
3. When you think about holiness, do you tend to view it as legalism and rule-keeping, or as something that helps you enjoy a closer relationship with God?
4. What is one area of your life where God may be calling you to pursue greater purity—not to earn His love, but because you desire greater intimacy with Him?

Closing Prayer Father, thank You that my salvation does not depend upon my ability to perfectly keep a list of rules, but upon the finished work of Jesus Christ. At the same time, help me never use Your grace as an excuse to tolerate things in my life that pull my heart away from You. Give me wisdom about what I allow into my mind and heart, and show me anything within me that is producing thoughts, words, or actions that do not honor You. Create in me a desire for holiness that grows out of my love for You. I want to walk closely with You and remove anything that stands in the way of that fellowship. In Jesus’ name, Amen.