Diet Language
Whether it’s high-fat, low GI, carbs, protein, calories or kilojoules, it’s all Greek to him!
Reference: v.11 “Phinehas son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron, the priest, has saved the Israelites from my anger. He hates sin as much as I do. Since he tried to save my honor among them, I will not kill them. (TNIV Bible)
Explore: Unlike myself, my husband has not grown up dieting. Whether it’s high-fat, low GI, carbs, protein, calories or kilojoules, it’s all Greek to him! So when it comes to choosing healthy meals, he finds it quite difficult to determine what’s good and what’s not. He can understand that fried food, chips and lollies are in the bad category, but as soon as you start talking about creating a balance of all the healthy foods his eyes glaze over!
Application: I often find that sin can have a similar hazy line as well. Some people would say that smoking is a sin, and yet many Christians smoke without conviction. Sixty years ago religious people would have considered dancing a sin, and yet now we incorporate it into our worship services. While there certainly seems to be some grey areas out there, I believe there are some firm statements about some sin that would not be refuted. Worshipping God, and only God, is a clear commandment that has been unchanging throughout history. It’s like the fried food of dieting, everyone knows it’s a no-no. When the Israelites started worshipping Baal, God became very angry. There were many laws for them to follow, but this was a clear command they had broken. The people knew it was sin and yet they continued anyway. There is a great deal of grey in our lives, and it’s important for us to be open to God’s convictions so that we can work through those areas. And yet there are some very clear actions that cause us to sin against God. Just as a dieter needs to stay away from fried food, so too, Christians need to stay away from that which separates us from God.
Prayer: Lord, often we know what is right and what is pleasing to You. Help us to be true to our convictions and make decisions that only bring us closer to You. Amen.
What sin do you find hard to resist?
This article was written by Linda Bailey
Linda started theological studies in 1999 in Australia. After working for ten years in various church ministries, she now works as the breakfast producer at 89.9 LightFM - the Christian radio station in Melbourne, Australia. She writes blogs every day about passages she is currently reading in the Bible. Follow her on Google Plus +Linda Bailey or Facebook by clicking the like button on the right of this page.
3 comments:
Hi Linda,
It’s very interesting how in today’s culture we are so exposed to things that cause us to become desensitized. Even as a christian, unless we keep ourselves in check we can find ourselves allowing things to creep into our lives that shouldn’t be there.
Keeping vigilant, and being true to our convictions is something we have to work at.on a daily basis.
Keep up the good work and thank you.
Moira 🙂
Thanks Moira,
It’s a fine balance between being desensitized and yet needing to move on with our lives too, isn’t it?
Keeping vigilant is certainly a good perspective.
Thanks for the encouragement.
Linda.
Linda this was very insiteful because this is something that I think all believers suffer with. We have to refuse to allow that Spirit of Compromise to creep into our lives. As followers of Christ it is time to call black- black, white – white and get rid of all the gray areas!! Because the gray represents the fog that the devil hides in.