First let us read Acts 15:20-29 as seen below.
“But that we write unto them, that they abstain from pollutions of idols, and from fornication, and from things strangled, and from blood. For Moses of old time hath in every city them that preach him, being read in the synagogues every sabbath day. Then pleased it the apostles and elders, with the whole church, to send chosen men of their own company to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas; namely, Judas surnamed Barsabas, and Silas, chief men among the brethren: And they wrote letters by them after this manner; The apostles and elders and brethren send greeting unto the brethren which are of the Gentiles in Antioch and Syria and Cilicia: Forasmuch as we have heard, that certain which went out from us have troubled you with words, subverting your souls, saying, Ye must be circumcised, and keep the law: to whom we gave no such commandment: It seemed good unto us, being assembled with one accord, to send chosen men unto you with our beloved Barnabas and Paul, Men that have hazarded their lives for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. We have sent therefore Judas and Silas, who shall also tell you the same things by mouth. For it seemed good to the Holy Ghost, and to us, to lay upon you no greater burden than these necessary things; That ye abstain from meats offered to idols, and from blood, and from things strangled, and from fornication: from which if ye keep yourselves, ye shall do well. Fare ye well.”
Here as the early church was forming there was confusion as to how much of the Law the gentile believers needed to keep. There were some Jews who were demanding too much of the gentile believers, they were demanding carnal ordinances - circumcision and the keeping of the ceremonial laws. In the passage above we see the “necessary things” which the early believers were instructed to abstain from. There are two common misinterpretations of these instructions today. The first mistake is the failure to realize that these instructions apply to us yet today. The second mistake is to think that these are the only commandments for Christians today. These four items of instruction must be interpreted with an understanding of the Law, and by consideration of all that is taught in the New Testament Epistles; this is what we will examine.
Things Offered Unto Idols
The eating of meat which was offered unto idols is clearly discussed by the Apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians 8:1-13 and 1 Corinthians 10:19-33.
“But to us there is but one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we in him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we by him. Howbeit there is not in every man that knowledge: for some with conscience of the idol unto this hour eat it as a thing offered unto an idol; and their conscience being weak is defiled. But meat commendeth us not to God: for neither, if we eat, are we the better; neither, if we eat not, are we the worse. But take heed lest by any means this liberty of yours become a stumblingblock to them that are weak. For if any man see thee which hast knowledge sit at meat in the idol's temple, shall not the conscience of him which is weak be emboldened to eat those things which are offered to idols; And through thy knowledge shall the weak brother perish, for whom Christ died? But when ye sin so against the brethren, and wound their weak conscience, ye sin against Christ. Wherefore, if meat make my brother to offend, I will eat no flesh while the world standeth, lest I make my brother to offend.” –1 Corinthians 8:6-13
In these verses we learn that there is nothing wrong in itself with eating meat offered to idols, because we know that all meat is good and created by God to be eaten. But, Paul warns us that we should not eat it if we offend a weaker Christian. For instance, a weaker Christian may not realize that it is provided by God and acceptable to eat with thanksgiving. The weaker Christian may simply associate it in his mind with idols – and therefore be offended, having their conscience wounded if they would eat it, or if they see other Christians eat it. Therefore, we are to abstain from meat offered to idols for the sake of our weaker brothers and sisters in Christ, that we let not our freedom become a snare in the building of their faith, or the maturing of their Christian walk. Fortunately, the selling of meat offered unto idols in the present day is a rare occurrence so far as I am aware; however, this fact does not make this commandment any less pertinent. The principle here is still relevant and manifest to us. The lesson is – do not weaken another’s faith by what you yourself have the liberty to do. For example, don’t drink alcohol in the presence of those who do or are tempted to abuse it.
From Blood
After the flood in Genesis 9:3-4 when God first ordained that mankind should eat meat he gave with it the commandment which seems to teach both to abstain from the eating of blood and of raw meat. Prior to the flood mankind was only permitted by God to eat plants and things other than animal flesh (Genesis 1:29). This command was given to Noah and thereby to all mankind, which is why it remains for Christians today, while the ceremonial laws given specifically to Abraham and the Israel of the flesh for a time regarding clean and unclean meats are no longer applicable (1 Timothy 4:4, 1 Corinthians 10:18, Romans 2:28-29, 2 Corinthians 3:3, Jeremiah 31:31-32, Hebrews 8).
Below are some more verses which help us understand the evils of the consumption of blood of which the Holy Ghost forbids us in Acts 15:28-29. Notice that this was not only a law for the Israelites but for “the strangers that sojourn among” them. Notice in Numbers 9:14 and Numbers 15:14 that keeping the Passover and offering sacrifices to the Lord was optional for “the strangers that sojourn among” them, but draining the blood of animals was a requirement for all people (Leviticus 17:13). Notice also that the eating of blood is listed along with practices of witches in Leviticus 19:26. Below are some more verses on this subject.
“Moreover ye shall eat no manner of blood, whether it be of fowl or of beast, in any of your dwellings. Whatsoever soul it be that eateth any manner of blood, even that soul shall be cut off from his people.” – Leviticus 7:26-27
“And whatsoever man there be of the house of Israel, or of the strangers that sojourn among you, that eateth any manner of blood; I will even set my face against that soul that eateth blood, and will cut him off from among his people. For the life of the flesh is in the blood: and I have given it to you upon the altar to make an atonement for your souls: for it is the blood that maketh an atonement for the soul. Therefore I said unto the children of Israel, No soul of you shall eat blood, neither shall any stranger that sojourneth among you eat blood. And whatsoever man there be of the children of Israel, or of the strangers that sojourn among you, which hunteth and catcheth any beast or fowl that may be eaten; he shall even pour out the blood thereof, and cover it with dust. For it is the life of all flesh; the blood of it is for the life thereof: therefore I said unto the children of Israel, Ye shall eat the blood of no manner of flesh: for the life of all flesh is the blood thereof: whosoever eateth it shall be cut off.” – Leviticus 17:10-14 (also see 1 Samuel 14:33, Deuteronomy 12:16, Deuteronomy 12:23, Deuteronomy 12:27, and Deuteronomy 15:23).
Things Strangled
Here Christians are taught not to eat things which are strangled to death. Why? This relates again to the verses above. When an animal is strangled it becomes saturated in its blood. Strangling animals is both a cruel and an unlawful way to kill them since it is torturesome and their blood is not properly drained. It is impossible to properly bleed an animal that has been strangled to death. This is perhaps the commandment of the four which more Christians are most ignorant of.
Fornication
Here is a sin which is impossible for any Christian to, reasonably speaking escape ignorance of. It is warned against throughout the scriptures and is described as the only sin which one commits against his own body (1 Corinthians 6:18). Below are two portions of scripture which perhaps best present to us the nature of this particular sin.
In 1 Corinthians 6:15-20 we read - “Know ye not that your bodies are the members of Christ? shall I then take the members of Christ, and make them the members of an harlot? God forbid. What? know ye not that he which is joined to an harlot is one body? for two, saith he, shall be one flesh. But he that is joined unto the Lord is one spirit. Flee fornication. Every sin that a man doeth is without the body; but he that committeth fornication sinneth against his own body. What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's.”
In Galatians 5:19-25 we read - “Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit."
Another point to consider in this day and age in which we live is the acceptance of this sin by many who call themselves Christians. There are many who seem to think that the commands to avoid fornication only apply to young people and not to those “mature” enough to “handel” it. The observing of this attitude shows how the acceptance of the doctrines of devils and the influence of the spirit of antichrist has evaded the “church,” but the true Church remains pure. I believe that a part of this attitude stems from the way many newer bibles translate “fornication.” Fornication is a more clearly defined word. In Bibles such as the N.I.V. what should be translated “fornication”, is instead translated “sexual immorality.” You may say what is the difference? The difference is that “sexual immorality” is, in the eyes of some open to interpretation. This leaves them “wiggle room” and invites loose standards, contrary to the more “cut and dry” definition of fornication. This is one of the examples of how modern Bible translations are deceiving Christians, and preparing them for a fuller acceptance of antichrist doctrine.
A Defense
I now will address some of the objections to the fact that these four commands are still binding upon Christians. I realize that the majority of commentaries say that the commands to abstain from blood and things strangled do not apply to us today. However, their reasoning for attaining that conclusion is reached using false premises. Often they reason that eating blood is only mentioned because it related to Idolatry. Often they reason that these four things were more offensive to jews than anything else so these were the necessary things for the gentiles to abstain from to be acceptable in the sight of the jews. This I consider most absurd, if that was true I’m sure eating swine’s flesh would also be on the list. Rather, these four things do not reflect jewish ceremonial law, but basic commands which God desires all men to follow. Often they reason that since abstaining from blood is not mentioned anywhere else in the New Testament, that it was only a temporary command and no longer applies. It should be observed that these reasons are not given in scripture, and that a reason is given in scripture. The reason given is “it seems good to the Holy Ghost” and “these necessary things.” Nowhere in the New Testament are these commands spoken of as being nullified. I am fully aware of verses such as Mark 7:15, Matthew 15:11, and Romans 14:17. I agree with these verses entirely. If someone slips some blood into my meat and I consume it unawares I know that I shall be forgiven in the same way I am forgiven for any other accidental sin. Another principle taught by both Paul and our Lord Jesus Christ is that we are not to be overly concerned with fleshly things, for in so doing we neglect the spiritual things which are of far more importance. The command to abstain from blood remains in effect if we are to believe the scriptures, for they give us no word otherwise. We should desire to obey all things God commands because of our love for Him.
Also see the following quote and the links below for more on this subject;
"There was room for no other conclusion than the one which James deduced, that they should impose on the Gentiles, so far as the class of restrictions under consideration were concerned, only those necessary things which were necessary independent of the Mosaic law. Idolatry, with all the pollutions connected with it, was known to be sinful before the law of Moses was given; and so was fornication. The eating of blood, and, by implication, of strangled animals, whose blood was still in them, was forbidden to the whole world in the family of Noah. Gen. ix. 4. In the restrictions here proposed by James, therefore, there is not the slightest extension of the law of Moses, but a mere enforcement upon the Gentiles of rules of conduct which had ever been binding, and were to be perpetual. They are as binding to-day as they were then. To deny this would be to despise the combined authority of all the apostles, when enjoining upon the Gentile world, of which we form a part, restrictions which they pronounce necessary."
- J. W. McGarvey from
http://www.ccel.org/ccel/mcgarvey/acts.ch15.html
also see
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