When thou hast eaten and art full, then thou shalt bless YHWH thy God for the good land which he hath given thee. (Deuteronomy 8:10 KJV)

For many of us, the first conscious religious act of our lives was the ritual blessing said before eating: “God is great. God is good let us thank him for the food. Amen.”  It is interesting to note that one of the first commandments given to Adam also involved his diet.

And YHWH God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: ¹⁷ But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die. (Genesis 2:16-17 KJV)

When the disciples of Yeshua began making disciples of all nations the question arose as to what was necessary for the Gentiles to do so that they could fellowship with the brethren.  At a council in Jerusalem the elders of the community of believers once more pointed to the diet as a key part of the life of a believer.

But that we write unto them, that they abstain from pollutions of idols, and from fornication, and from things strangled, and from blood. (Acts 15:20 KJV)

From the beginning of time the Creator has been graciously concerned with man’s diet. Man was created with two natures, a spiritual nature to commune with the Spirit Creator, and a carnal nature to manifest the Creator’s image in the tangible world.  Both natures require feeding.  To this end the Creator designated a tangible diet to support man’s carnal or animal nature.

And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat. ³⁰ And to every beast of the earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to everything that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is life, I have given every green herb for meat: and it was so. (Genesis 1:29-30 KJV)

We have already noted above, that even in the Garden of Eden, there were certain dietary restrictions.  Man could eat of all the fruit of all the trees in the garden except the mixed fruit of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. We should also note that the Creator’s intended died was a vegan diet.  While fruits, nuts, seeds, and herbs were generously provided by the Creator to sustain man’s carnal nature this was not man’s only diet.

And he humbled thee, and suffered thee to hunger, and fed thee with manna, which thou knewest not, neither did thy fathers know; that he might make thee know that man doth not live by bread only, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of YHWH doth man live. (Deuteronomy 8:3 KJV)

But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God. (Matthew 4:4 KJV)

Man was to feed his spiritual nature with the pure life-giving word of God.  Truly the Creator thought of everything. 

Unfortunately, Adam and Havah did not heed the Creator’s dietary laws and found themselves bound in fear to death.  [Isn’t it a shame that so many believers, (I include myself in this statement) do not learn of the connection between diet, sin, and death, until there is a threat to life?]  After the fall of Adam and Havah, death, through sin, entered creation. We are told that the world spiraled downward into corruption and violence, threatening the very existence of human life.  This corruption and violence provoked YHWH to flood the world and begin again with Noah and his family.  Upon exiting the ark, YHWH had to re-establish the sanctity of human life. The Creator accomplished this task by using man’s diet.  Man could now kill and eat animals, but he could not kill and eat human flesh.  YHWH affirmed that though man has an animal nature, he is not to live like an animal—man is to be the image of YHWH!  Later the children of Israel were called and chosen to fulfill this purpose—to manifest the image of YHWH among the nations.  Israel was called to be holy as YHWH is holy.

For I am YHWH your God: ye shall therefore sanctify yourselves, and ye shall be holy; for I am holy: neither shall ye defile yourselves with any manner of creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth. ⁴⁵ For I am YHWH that bringeth you up out of the land of Egypt, to be your God: ye shall therefore be holy, for I am holy. (Leviticus 11:44-45 KJV)

Speak unto all the congregation of the children of Israel, and say unto them, Ye shall be holy: for I YHWH your God am holy. (Leviticus 19:2 KJV)      

To be “holy” means to be “set apart, different from, other than” the common or ordinary.  Israel was sent to be a light to the nations.  To accomplish this “holy” calling Israel had to be different than the rest of the nations.  To this end, YHWH blessed Israel with his self-revelation, the Torah.  By obedience to the Torah Israel would embody YHWH before the eyes of the nations.   Once again, we learn that YHWH used man’s diet to set apart his people.  At Mount Sinai YHWH gave Israel specific distinctions concerning what the children of Israel were to eat and what they were to avoid.  This unique diet set Israel apart and sanctified them from the rest of the nations.  These dietary laws are part of the means by which Israel fulfills YHWH’S commandment to “be holy” as He is holy.  Unfortunately, there are many misguided teachers and preachers who claim to be followers of Yeshua the Messiah, that teach that the Master did away with all of these dietary distinctions. Nothing could be further from the truth.  Yeshua did NOT come to do away with the Torah but to fulfill it, to give it meaning and substance.   

Once more, we as members of the body of Messiah, and fellow citizens of the commonwealth of Israel must recognize the connection between our diet and our faith.  By keeping the distinctions that YHWH established we sanctify our lives.  For many of us, eating is simply a necessity or mundane pleasure.  But in truth, our diet is a means of worshipping, honoring, and glorifying YHWH.  It is important that we learn the connection between our faith and our diet.  We are to love YHWH with our whole heart, mind, and being….this includes our diet. If we are the temp of the Spirit of the Holy One…then we should be mindful of what we put on the altar.  I encourage everyone to study this matter carefully, that we may truly fulfill our calling to be holy as YHWH is holy. 

I have just completed a two hour audio teaching on TORAH AND OUR DIET that will further elaborate on this subject in great detail.  I also address the various “problem” texts in Brit Chadashah or New Testament that have caused many to stumble.  I encourage all of you to listen to this teaching and prayerfully consider what part diet plays in your faith and testimony to YHWH.  Bon Apetite!    Please watch the Market Place page on this web-site for the release of this new audio CD teaching TORAH AND OUR DIET.