Do the Dietary Laws of the Hebrew Bible Still Apply to Christians?

The claim is sometimes made that we cannot eat certain foods like pork or shrimp because of the the Ceremonial Law found in Leviticus. Is there any truth to this, and does the New Testament actually give us an answer on the common question, "which foods are we allowed to eat?" This controversy is similar to the early Jewish Christian argument over whether or not circumcision was required of Gentiles. St. Paul took the position that baptism was a kind of spiritual circumcision (of the heart), and that God no longer asked individuals to be circumcised. But this very issue divided the early communities, leading to the first council - the Council of Jerusalem around AD 50. St. James, bishop of Jerusalem, commented that Gentiles should not be required to follow these dietary laws. Thus, it was at this council that it appeared settled: Gentiles did not need to adhere to Jewish law. But did this settle the matter for Christians who were converted Jews? In Leviticus 11, God commands the Israelites not to eat creatures such as: camels, hyrax, rabbit, pig, sea creatures that do not have fins and scales, (such as shrimp) eagles, vultures, red kite, ravens, certain owls, hawks, heron, all flying insects that walk on all fours, weasel, rat, monitor lizard, wall lizard, skink, chameleon, and others (Also found in Deuteronomy 14:1-21; Photo credit to: InfoRochester).

If this is so, should these creatures not still be outlawed for consumption? Would we, by eating shrimp, pork, and other unclean foods, be sinning against God, breaking his law? The purpose of the dietary law was to separate Israel from other nations, these laws did not and do not apply to any other nations. Another reason is the functional purpose of the laws. People often wonder about why there is so much war and so many laws in the Hebrew Bible. Consider this: if Israel did not strike down the surrounding nations, would they not have been stricken down themselves, therefore wiping out the bloodline of the Israelites? If they did not have laws to follow, such as abstaining from unnatural sexual impurities, unclean foods, and many other such things, the bloodline would have been polluted even further, and it also may have led to deaths.

God had a reason for all these laws and wars between Israel and its surrounding nations. What was it all for? What end would it meet? Protection. Not just protection for the nation of Israel, but protection for the future birth of King David. If the Israelites did not destroy surrounding nations and did not follow the laws, they would have been wiped out, and King David never born. Consequently, King David was the ancestor of Jesus Christ. If King David was never born, Jesus would have never been able to fulfill prophecy, Jesus would have never been born into the royal line, not born in the City of David, and Israel would have been wiped out, therefore, the Romans would not have had Judea under Roman control, there would not have been Pharisees nor Sadducees, and Jesus would never have shed his blood.

In other words, these laws and wars were for the protection of the bloodline so that Jesus could enter into Creation to die for all of humanity's past, present, and future sins. Had Israel not had guidelines, had the nation been wiped out, we would be without a Savior, without hope. That was the purpose for the many wars of the Hebrew Bible, for the many laws. Now that we understand this, we may also understand that when Jesus died and rose again, he initiated the New Covenant. In fact, God himself declared in the Hebrew Bible that a New Covenant would arise. Jeremiah 31:31-32, "'The days are coming,' declares the Lord, 'when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah. It will not be like the covenant I made with their ancestors when I took them out of Egypt, because they broke my covenant though I was a husband to them,' declares the Lord."

Jeremiah 31:33 concludes, "'This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after that time,' declares the Lord. 'I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people.'" The New Testament reveals several times (for example, Acts 11:18) that this New Covenant was offered not only to the Jews, but to the Gentiles as well: to all of humanity, if we only accept Jesus as Savior. (See entry: "Covenants: Old and New") But what about unclean foods? Does the New Testament reveal the New Covenant's law on foods? Indeed it does. Acts 10:9-16 says, "About noon the following day as they were on their journey and approaching the city, Peter went up on the roof to pray. He became hungry and wanted something to eat, and while the meal was being prepared, he fell into a trance. He saw heaven opened and something like a large sheet being let down to earth by its four corners. It contained all kinds of four-footed animals, as well as reptiles and birds. Then a voice told him, 'Get up, Peter. Kill and eat.' 'Surely not, Lord!' Peter replied. 'I have never eaten anything impure or unclean.' The voice spoke to him a second time, 'Do not call anything impure that God has made clean.' This happened three times, and immediately the sheet was taken back to Heaven."

God has made all foods clean. However, there are those who may not believe that this passage is referring to this. It is not the only reference we find in the New Testament. Mark 7:17 certainly gives us the answer to this question. It says, "...In saying this, Jesus declared all foods clean." The Bible is very clear: Jesus fulfilled the Old Covenant when he initiated the New. (Romans 10:14, Galatians 3:24-26) Under the New Covenant, all foods are clean, including, for example, pork and shrimp. Romans 14 reveals that not everyone is mature enough in faith to believe that all food is clean. Romans 14:20, "All food is clean, but it is wrong for a person to eat anything that causes someone else to stumble." There are those who argue that "God hates shrimp," in the same manner that some argue, "God hates [homosexuals]." Actually, nowhere in Scripture can this be found. The alleged basis for the argument is found in Leviticus, but the argument by both parties is fallacious.

Since Christ fulfilled the Old Covenant, including the Ceremonial Law, those laws no longer apply. (The Ten Commandments still apply, as seen clearly throughout the New Testament.) However, as evident from Romans 1:26-27 and 1st Corinthians 6:9, God does not hate homosexuals..Both the God Hates [Homosexuals] movement and the GodHatesShrimp.org movement are fallacious and demonstrate a lack of understanding in regard to Scripture and the Covenants. The God Hates Shrimp movement was formed to mock Christians who use Hebrew Bible's Mosaic Law to try prove a point about sexuality, when instead we need to look at the entire context. The overall point? Jesus declared all foods clean, so for Christians, we may infer that the Mosaic dietary laws no longer apply.

Troy Hillman