Concerning unclean meats, Mark 7 is a good example of "shadows and types".
Judaizers will argue about this passage regarding the interpretation of Mark 7:19....they will say that Jesus did not cleanse all meats. There is some evidence that the parenthetical remark "thus he declared all foods clean" could be rendered in a manner that indicates that it is the intestines which purge all foods.
Regardless of that, though, verse 15 says this:
[SUP]15 [/SUP]There is nothing outside a person that by going into him can defile him, but the things that come out of a person are what defile him.”
In essence, Jesus said that nothing we eat defiles us in a spiritual sense, so it's not a spiritual issue. This is PLAIN. It is not ambiguous. Even a piece of dirt in food will not defile anyone.
And, what does unclean meat reduce to? Let it rot and it will turn to DIRT eventually.
Consult the original thread post for my explanation of the "bookends" approach. It mentions that the phases of God's work with mankind are Creation, Fall, Rescue (Jesus), and Restoration.
When Jesus was here on earth, part of his work was to reverse the works of the devil involved in the Fall and the resulting curse. Healings were a manifestation of that, as well as casting out demons. I believe reversing the unclean state of meat was also part of this. It was part of the "Restoration" which was breaking through during his lifetime.
Do I think Mark or the apostle he was writing for knew this at the time? No, I think the parenthetical remark was a later reflection as the Gospel was being written. I don't think Christ ate any unclean meat, because he fulfilled the Law and part of the Law involved the unclean laws. However, since he was God, he could have reversed the laws at that time..I don't know.
What I do know is that eating unclean things doesn't defile anyone spiritually. This is plainly stated in the Scriptures.
Additionally, the verses relate eating unclean things to immorality in terms of thought. Christ was showing us that the true meaning of the unclean laws related to moral purity. Unclean laws were a shadow or type of spiritual morality, and were not the spiritual reality themselves. God said "Be holy, as I am holy" (Leviticus 11:45). Israelites were given a teaching tool to learn that we are to be holy like God is holy. It isn't the reality; it is only a shadow or type that spirit-led believers can learn from. And Jesus elaborated on the true meaning when he talked about thoughts that defile us spiritually.
I will take the same approach with Acts 10 later. Acts 10 shows, after the resurrection, which is when the Mosaic Covenant ended, that "unclean animals" had been cleansed. Judaizers deny what Scripture plainly says in these verses. Acts 10 also illustrates one other thing...the Jews considered Gentiles unclean or spiritually defiled, in part, because of the food that they ate. The dream revealed two things; that the foods were no longer unclean and that the Gentiles, who ate them, were no longer unclean.
The purpose of the unclean laws related to physical separation between the Jews and the Gentiles. God gave some of the laws of the Mosaic Covenant to create a social barrier between Jews and Gentiles, so that idolatry would be avoided. And, food laws were a part of that. If you don't eat another's food, then social interaction is hindered, especially in the ancient world. Read Ephesians 2:13-15 in this light.
I am speaking to spiritual people and not trying to change the hearts of Judaizers. I doubt if they will listen, but the information might be helpful for seekers, and it may help them to avoid their false doctrines.
Consider this too..Paul used an example of the unclean laws in II Corinthians 6:14ff. He related one spiritual application to a situation where believers were apparently dining with nonbelievers in a pagan temple. Pagan temples often had a separate room where trade guild members held fellowship meetings. Believers were sharing with them in their revelries within the temples. Paul said to come out from amongst them and be separate from them, and touch no unclean thing (verse 17). So, in essence, he was applying the intention of unclean laws to a situation where they were being compromised morally by their fellowship with unbelievers.
Instead of seeing spiritual realities, though, the Judaizer sees only the two dimensions rather than the three dimensions. They do not apply the spiritual intention, but only the shadow God gave ancient Israel for illustration. They don't understand that the true intention was moral filthiness and not about meats.
Sometimes they will try to make this into a health issue as well. There may be some collateral health benefits. I personally think that a lot of the alleged health benefits are bogus. Okinawans have eaten pork for centuries and they have one of the longest lifespans on earth. My understanding is that there is a MILD immune response when pork is consumed without being subjected to marinades but it's not a big deal. However, the health issues are irrelevant to whether it is a sin or not.
Judaizers will quote Isaiah 66:17 to indicate that those who eat pork will be consumed at Christ's return. So, they make it into a moral issue. Note that this verse refers to pagan ritualistic idolatrous practices, and not just eating pork. Additionally, Isaiah was addressed to Jews, who were under the Mosaic Covenant, prior to the Babylonian captivity. Christians are not under the Mosaic Covenant despite the claims of Judaizers, and therefore the unclean meat laws don't apply to them. Additionally, Christians are not engaged in pagan idolatry, although the Judaizer begs to differ because often they claim we are neo-pagans. Finally, my position is that the OT prophets, when seeing events occurring in the future, saw them through the "spectacles" of the Mosaic Covenant, and that the vision needs to be viewed in this light. For instance, the consumption of swine's flesh relates to spiritual impurity, rather than eating swine's flesh literally. The unclean laws were a shadow of spiritual impurity, not the spiritual impurity itself.
At any rate, as I've indicated in the initial post, the Mosaic Covenant isn't in effect, and Gentiles were never a part of this covenant.
I intend on continuing to explore similar Scriptures in the future as I have time.
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I don't care what Mark 7:19 says personally..it is irrelevant to the discussion.
Mark 7: 7 Now when the Pharisees gathered to him, with some of the scribes who had come from Jerusalem, [SUP]
2 [/SUP]they saw that some of his disciples ate with hands that were defiled, that is, unwashed. [SUP]
3 [/SUP](For the Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat unless they wash their hands properly,[SUP]
[a][/SUP] holding to the tradition of the elders, [SUP]
4 [/SUP]and when they come from the marketplace, they do not eat unless they wash.[SUP]
[b][/SUP] And there are many other traditions that they observe, such as the washing of cups and pots and copper vessels and dining couches.[SUP]
[c][/SUP]) [SUP]
5 [/SUP]And the Pharisees and the scribes asked him, “Why do your disciples not walk according to the tradition of the elders, but eat with defiled hands?” [SUP]
6 [/SUP]And he said to them, “Well did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written,
“‘This people honors me with their lips,
but their heart is far from me;
[SUP]
7 [/SUP]in vain do they worship me,
teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’
[SUP]
8 [/SUP]You leave the commandment of God and hold to the tradition of men.”
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9 [/SUP]And he said to them, “You have a fine way of rejecting the commandment of God in order to establish your tradition! [SUP]
10 [/SUP]For Moses said, ‘Honor your father and your mother’; and, ‘Whoever reviles father or mother must surely die.’ [SUP]
11 [/SUP]But you say, ‘If a man tells his father or his mother, “Whatever you would have gained from me is Corban”’ (that is, given to God)[SUP]
[d][/SUP]— [SUP]
12 [/SUP]then you no longer permit him to do anything for his father or mother, [SUP]
13 [/SUP]thus making void the word of God by your tradition that you have handed down. And many such things you do.”
[h=3]What Defiles a Person[/h][SUP]
14 [/SUP]And he called the people to him again and said to them, “Hear me, all of you, and understand:
[SUP]15 [/SUP]There is nothing outside a person that by going into him can defile him, but the things that come out of a person are what defile him.”[SUP]
[e][/SUP] [SUP]
17 [/SUP]And when he had entered the house and left the people, his disciples asked him about the parable. [SUP]
18 [/SUP]And he said to them, “Then are you also without understanding? Do you not see that whatever goes into a person from outside cannot defile him, [SUP]
19 [/SUP]since it enters not his heart but his stomach, and is expelled?”[SUP]
[f][/SUP] (Thus he declared all foods clean.) [SUP]
20 [/SUP]And he said, “What comes out of a person is what defiles him. [SUP]
21 [/SUP]For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, [SUP]
22 [/SUP]coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness.
[SUP]23 [/SUP]All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person.”
