Did Christ remove or change anything dealing with the laws or system set up which was instructed within the first tabernacle? Were the Israelites the only ones eating clean meats (or instructed to eat clean meats) and was there any other nation abiding by this?
Answer:
First off, I would like to say that God’s people have understood the distinction between clean and unclean meats since the beginning of time. Noah lived prior to the flood (LONG before there was ever a Jew) and understood the difference between the animals.
Gen 7:1-2 And the LORD said unto Noah, Come thou and all thy house into the ark; for thee have I seen righteous before me in this generation. Of every CLEAN beast thou shalt take to thee by sevens, the male and his female: and of beasts that are NOT CLEAN by two, the male and his female.
In order for Noah to have known this, the distinction would have existed before the flood and after. Just as the ten commandments were understood and existed before the Jews.
Rom 5:13 For until the law sin was in the world: but SIN IS NOT IMPUTED WHEN THERE IS NO LAW.
Gen 4:7 If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, SIN LIETH AT THE DOOR. And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him.
Note:
If there was not a law when Cain slew his brother, it wouldn’t have been imputed for sin. But he broke the commandment which states “thou shalt not kill.” This is evident by the verse in Gen 26:5 “Because that Abraham obeyed my voice, and kept my charge, MY COMMANDMENTS, my statutes, and MY LAWS.”
Note:
Abraham lived before any Jew existed. And BECAUSE he obeyed the ten commandments, which has always been God’s covenant with His true followers, God made His covenant with him; and thus we have the Jewish nation as a result of his faithfulness. Keep in mind this happened long before Mount Sinai. (The event were Moses received that ten commandments)
You see each of these things were in place before the Jews. A similar example would be Tithing… Not only did Abraham obey the ten commandments and not eat unclean meats, he paid tithe according to Hebrews 7.
Heb 7:1 For this Melchisedec, king of Salem, priest of the most high God, who met Abraham RETURNING FROM THE SLAUGHTER OF THE KINGS, and blessed him;
Heb 7:2 To whom also ABRAHAM GAVE A TENTH PART OF ALL; first being by interpretation King of righteousness, and after that also King of Salem, which is, King of peace;
Note:
And the next two verses as well share that Abaraham paid his tithe to Melchisedek the High Priest after returning from the slaughter of the kings.
When did Abraham slaughter the kings?
Gen 14:18 And Melchizedek king of Salem brought forth bread and wine: and he was the priest of the most high God.
Gen 14:19 And he blessed him, and said, Blessed be Abram of the most high God, possessor of heaven and earth:
Gen 14:20 And blessed be the most high God, which hath delivered thine enemies into thy hand. And HE GAVE HIM TITHES OF ALL.
Note:
So again Abraham lived before any Jew existed. God taught the world the law of Tithes as early as the 14th chapter of the Bible. That’s really early but the fact of the matter is, God’s people have been paying tithes even before Abraham.
We have the example of Jacob as well.
Verse 16-22
Gen 28:22 And this stone, which I have set for a pillar, shall be God’s house: and of all that thou shalt give me I will surely give the tenth unto thee.
Note:
After Jacob had His famous dream of “Jacobs ladder” where angels were going up and down Christ to and from heaven, (Christ is the ladder that connects fallen man to a holy God, that’s another subject) he desired to make a covenant with the God of heaven. He then went to pay tithe. Because he understood as a follower of the God of his fathers there was a requirement to pay a tithe, tenth, 10% of all his increase to the Lord. When he returned to God he paid tithes. This was before there was ever a Jew born.
So the Laws of God, the clean and unclean meats, and tithing have all be in place since the beginning. They were passed down verbally from family to family. We can see by the patriarchs actions what was taught from God before Moses or any Jew.
It wasn’t until after the Israelites had gone into Egyptian captivity for over 300 years, where they were forbidden to worship God and make sacrifices according to God’s precept that they had to be reeducated. The reason: Egyptians believed in reincarnation. If you die you will be reincarnated into another life form. Thus they worshiped the Golden calf, sheep, dog/people. The ruler of the nation and inhabitants of Egypt believed the Pharaoh had the power of the Sun god, and that in fact he WAS the incarnate of the Sun god. Therefore he was worshiped as God. Basic Paganism…
Have you ever read where the Bible says the Shepherd is an abomination unto the Egyptians?
Gen 46:34 That ye shall say, Thy servants’ trade hath been about cattle from our youth even until now, both we, and also our fathers: that ye may dwell in the land of Goshen; for every shepherd is an abomination unto the Egyptians.
Note: It’s because they believed by killing sheep they were slaying the lives of incarnate people. But in reality the sheep represented Jesus and the plan of Salvation. It was a foreshadowing of how he would come, and like a lamb and die without resistance in our place, so we wouldn’t have to bear the guilt of breaking the law which is sin.
For those several hundred years that the Israelites were in Egypt they did not worship their God in the ways He instructed His people before the flood and in the days of Abraham.
Example:Ten commandments, tithing, clean and unclean meats.
So when God called Israel out of bondage He had to go through a process of reeducating them in the ways of the Lord.
God didn’t FIRST give the laws of tithing, the ten commandments, & clean and unclean meats to Israel upon mount Sinai. Simply because they had forgotten how to worship their God through the years of bondage and spiritual darkness. God had to WRITE down for the first time & REPEAT them. Remember Moses wrote the first 5 books of the Bible. Before Moses they didn’t have written scriptures. It was all given orally. But after the Jews had forgotten, they needed all things to be written down, explained, and simplified in order to be reeducated in the ways of the Lord.
We answered did any one else not eat unclean meats before the Israelites, but were there others in the New testament?
Act 10:13 And there came a voice to him, Rise, Peter; kill, and eat.
Act 10:14 But Peter said, Not so, Lord; for I HAVE NEVER eaten any thing that is common or unclean.
Note:
Peter declares himself as a Christian, follower of Jesus, and the God of Heaven, yet he has never eaten any unclean animal. Notice no where in His vision after the Angel tells him to eat does Peter actually go forth, kill, and eat any unclean animal. Nor do we find anywhere else in the Bible of an example of Peter eating anything unclean after this account. If all animals and birds were clean after Jesus died on the cross then Peter could not have responded to the heavenly angel as if they were unclean.
Rev 18:1 And after these things I saw another ANGEL COME DOWN FROM HEAVEN, having great power; and the earth was lightened with his glory.
Rev 18:2 And he cried mightily with a strong voice, saying, Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and is become the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit, and a cage of every UNCLEAN AND HATEFUL BIRD.
Note:
Therefore we find the very last book of the Bible still recognizes a distinction between clean and unclean animals. The beginning of the bible, the very first book makes a distinction in Noah’s day. We can safely conclude everything in between does too. From the creation of the world, the antediluvians before the flood, Noah’s day, Abraham’s day, repeated and written down on Mount Sinai, carried forth throughout the whole Jewish dispensation, and passing through the early church apostles, up through history and as far out as the prophetic days of the end of the world are unclean meats an abomination.
Thus at the second coming of Christ, Isaiah prophesies a fearful warning to all those still eating unclean meats when he comes…
Isa 66:15 For, behold, THE LORD WILL COME with fire, and with his chariots like a whirlwind, to render his anger with fury, and his rebuke with flames of fire.
Isa 66:16 For by fire and by his sword will the LORD plead with all flesh: and THE SLAIN OF THE LORD SHALL BE MANY.
Isa 66:17 They that SANCTIFY THEMSELVES, and purify themselves in the gardens behind one tree in the midst, EATING SWIN’S FLESH, and the abomination, and the mouse, SHALL BE CONSUMED TOGETHER, saith the LORD.
Did Christ remove or change anything dealing with the laws or system set up which was instructed within the first tabernacle?
Yes plenty of things. There were 4 main sets of distinct laws that could be listed that the Jews were given/repeated.
1. Law of God = ten commandments
2. Law of Moses = Sacrificial, ordinances, etc..
3. Civil laws = hundreds of laws needed to govern Israel as a nation.
4. Health laws = to keep the diseases and sickness away from His people.
1. We both agree the Law of God or ten commandments was NOT done away with and will be kept in heaven. Including the Sabbath (see Isaiah 66:22-23)
2. The law of Moses was separate and different than the ten commandments as described by Deuteronomy 31:24-26 in that Moses wrote them down by hand, in a book, and set it on the side of the ark of the covenant. God wrote the ten commandments, by God’s finger, on stone, and placed the stones INSIDE the ark of the Covenant. So they are different.
Col 2:14-17 Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, NAILING IT TO HIS CROSS… Which are a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ.
Note: This is saying the sacrificial law of Moses as given “within the first tabernacle” is nailed to the cross. The reason the law of Moses was nailed and finished at the cross was because it was “a shadow of things to come”. They are prophesies of Jesus dying on the cross. For instance the slaying of the lamb was about Jacobs ladder, it was a symbol and prophecy of what Jesus would do on the cross for the salvation of mankind. The feast days pointed to Jesus and what he would do for our salvation. Also circumcision was a symbol of dying to self. Our flesh and sinful nature is represented as falling off. In the same chapter reading from the context above states..
Col 2:11 In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ:
Col 2:12 Buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead.
Note: Jesus replaced circumcision with baptism by dying for our sins and rising from the dead. Because he was not guilty of sin therefore the grave could not hold him. For our example, Jesus himself was baptized to symbolize dying to our old self, taking on a newness of life and being dead to sin. Circumcision and baptism represent the same thing but Jesus replaced the former with the latter.
There are other examples besides the slaying of the lamb, prophetic feast days, and the ordinance circumcision, etc… They were all prophesies and shadows of what Christ would do for our salvation. It was the gospel taught by types and symbols. Now that Jesus FULFILLED those prophesies we no longer have to take part in those ordinances that pointed forward to a coming messiah prophetically. We look back at the ACTUAL event and accept what Jesus HAS done for our salvation, acknowledge it was prophesied so, and continue to look forward at what He IS ACTIVELY doing for our salvation in the heavenly sanctuary.
So in short, everything given in the time of the first tabernacle was a prophecy/type of what Christ would do for our salvation. The laws of Moses representing transpired events are no longer binding to the Christian. The 10 commandments aren’t shadows or prophecies. They are there for us to recognize God’s authority in all things. The Sabbath definitely isn’t a prophecy but rather a memorial of the creation of the world.
3. Civil laws = hundreds of laws needed to govern Israel as a nation.
Now the Israelites were a nation unlike our countries today. They were under a theocracy. They had no king, president, dictator, pope, or any political leader other than God himself. God spoke to His people directly. He gave them guidance on where to go, what to do, and how to govern the nation. They did not go through a secular governmental legislative process. All answers came from God himself spoken to them through the high priest and prophets.
Because the country of Israel was ran by God he gave CIVIL laws to Moses, to give to the people as a nation. As long as Israel was a nation that was under theocracy these civil laws were in place to govern justice, court cases, death decrees, and other civil matters. There were hundreds of civil laws for hundreds of different situations. Cases would arise when governing a nation. But the fact is, these civil laws were SPECIFICALLY for the governing of Israel under a theocracy. If at any point Israel would cease to be a nation, then the hundreds of laws would no longer apply to anyone.
That’s exactly what happened. Jerusalem was besieged, destroyed, & the Jews were taken captive by Babylon. From this point on the civil laws were no longer binding. There is no longer a country by which the rules were created for under the conditions of a theocracy.
Finally…
4. Health laws = to keep the diseases and sickness away from His people.
God wants to heal and preserve his people from sickness, disease, and premature deaths. The way he designed to do this is through diet and healthful living practices..
Exo 15:26 And said, If thou wilt diligently hearken to the voice of the LORD thy God, and wilt do that which is right in his sight, and wilt GIVE EAR TO HIS COMMANDMENTS, and keep all his statutes, I will put NONE OF THESE DISEASES upon thee, which I have brought upon the Egyptians: for I AM THE LORD THAT HEALETH THEE.
Note:
God wants to heal his people, preserve them from the diseases that plague the Egyptians (which are a symbol of the worldlings). When you google the diseases of the Egyptians you’ll find their mummies that were preserved are ridden with the same health problems we face today.
Examples: Cancer, diabetes, tumors, ulcers, all sorts of others. God did not design for any human to have to go through a stroke, have cancer, or heart attacks. All of these things can be prevented by following the laws God puts in place for our health. God wanted to keep His people from disease.
Now we ask were these laws changed or abolished for the Christians? Let me ask you. Is the body of a Jew different than your body or mine? Are their digestive tracts and immune systems created in some other manner or fashion than our own? What was healthy for them would it not be health for us?
NO.
Act 17:26 And HATH MADE OF ONE BLOOD ALL NATIONS OF MEN for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation;
Note:
All nations of men of any race or ethnic group is effected by harmful foods in the same manner as were the Jews. What was healthy for them did not all of a sudden change what is healthy for us.
To believe this is quite confusing..
Rev 17:5 And upon her forehead was a name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.
Note:
Babylon means confusion. She is the mother of “abominations of the earth” her cup in her hand is full of abominations. In Rev 17:4. One of the abominations that this false system of worship teaches is defined by the bible…
When defining the clean and unclean meats in Leviticus 11 God declares the unclean meats as such…
Lev 11:11 They shall be even an abomination unto you; ye shall not eat of their flesh, but ye shall have their carcases in abomination.
Note: One of the confusing abominations as taught by the mother harlot named Babylon is all meat is now clean. It’s not in the bible but the teaching is spreading around confusing multitudes.
To summarize I want to explain we are not picking and choosing which laws I want to obey and which laws I choose not to obey as if the Bible was a buffet. There are clear and distinct reasons why God’s people TODAY are still required to recognize God’s ten commandments. God owns 100% of our assets and He only requires 10% of HIS money to be “returned” to him. God wants us to be healthy because when we are unhealthy our mind becomes beclouded and our mental capacities are stunted and less able to retain, comprehend, and appreciate spiritual things. We can have good health by obeying the health laws God has set for all of mankind at the beginning of Creation. When God created Adam and Eve He gave them a diet based on plants. In heaven “there shall be no more death” Rev 21:4 which tells me I won’t be able to enter through those gates, find the nearest pig, cut his throat, chop him up and gather my friends and family to have a good old fashion barbecue, with bacon and pork chops on a grill. Let’s be frank with each other. This will not be acceptable in heaven, it wasn’t allowed in the perfect blueprint God created in Eden (Genesis 1:29). Before the flood Man didn’t eat animals. Before the flood man lived to be over 900 years old. After the flood, man was given permission as an emergency diet –because no vegetation was around– to eat flesh meats. I want you to go back and notice the significant decrease in life span as a result of eating meat. People went from 900 to under 200 years old.. All meat eating destroys our health. We won’t be doing it in heaven, why not start now?
There are also clear reasons not to be sacrificing lambs nor is it necessary to cut off the foreskin of our flesh. They were prophecies looking forward to the coming of Christ. We no longer have those obligations.
The several hundred Civil laws of the Jewish nation applied only to the theocratic state of Israel. When they ceased to be a nation God no longer required individual men to follow them through.