Sometimes I’m surprised by some of the questions Christians ask. For example, some Christians wonder if it’s okay to meat that isn’t well done because of this verse and verses like it.
Therefore I say to the Israelites, “None of you may eat blood, nor may any foreigner residing among you eat blood.”
Leviticus 17:12 (NIV)
Consider that Leviticus 17:12 is part of the law, and we’re not under the law; we’re under grace. However, some will point to Acts 15:29 as “proof.”
You are to abstain from food sacrificed to idols, from blood, from the meat of strangled animals and from sexual immorality. You will do well to avoid these things. Farewell (emphasis added).
Acts 15:29 (NIV)
The context of Acts 15:29 deals with pagan rituals: sacrificing to idols, blood consumed in sacrifices, strangling and killing of animals, and sexual immorality in idol worship.
It’s also impossible to get all of the blood out of meat. What does Leviticus 17:13-14 say?
“‘ Any Israelite or any foreigner residing among you who hunts any animal or bird that may be eaten must drain out the blood and cover it with earth, because the life of every creature is its blood. That is why I have said to the Israelites, “You must not eat the blood of any creature, because the life of every creature is its blood; anyone who eats it must be cut off.”
Leviticus 1:13-14 (NIV)
Leviticus 17:13 tells us that the blood should be drained out of the animal. This indicates that the Lord wants us to remove all the blood that can be drained by opening major arteries and such. Additionally, most of what we see in fresh meat is myoglobin, not hemoglobin. Myoglobin is what gives meat the red color. Therefore, when you see a bloody red steak, there’s not as much blood (hemoglobin) as one might think.
Even so, Christians are not under the law but under grace, which is why I’m surprised at some of the questions Christians ask because if we follow one ordinance, then we’re beholden to follow them all.
For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it.
James 2:10 (NIV)
Again I declare to every man who lets himself be circumcised that he is obligated to obey the whole law.
Galatians 5:3 (NIV)
There’s nothing wrong with asking questions about our faith. It’s how we learn, however, when people don’t ask questions but instead, lean on their own understanding, we run into problems.
Do you know God? God knows you, and he loves you. He sees you as significant because you are. No one is insignificant to Him. He’s with you today, and he wants you to know him. Jesus died for your sins and mine so we could be free of guilt, freed from death, and live eternally with him. Eternal salvation is just a prayer away.
Pray this prayer with me to accept the gift of salvation:
Lord Jesus, forgive me for all my sins. I repent from my ways. Wash me in your blood and cleanse me from all unrighteousness. I believe that you died on the cross, were buried, and on the third day, God the Father raised you from the dead. Right now, Lord Jesus, I open the door to my heart and receive you into my heart as my Lord and personal Savior. Amen.
If you prayed that prayer, then congratulations! You are on the first step of a brand new life. Allow me to be the first to welcome you to my family, the family of God. There are abundant resources available online for new Christians. You can visit here for more information on what to do next. You can also leave me a comment, and I’ll do my best to help you on the next step of this incredible journey.
Four-Calendar Café 
Hi Jason,
This is an area I have had some interesting discussions on lately. Someone rightly pointed out that idolatry, sexual immorality and abstention of blood predate the Mosaic covenant, which is why they were included in the letter from the Apostles. It’s an interesting point. Consider the verses below, which is the first record of God saying it was OK to eat animals for food.
God bless,
Craig
Gen 9:3 Every moving thing that lives shall be food for you. And as I gave you the green plants, I give you everything.
Gen 9:4 But you shall not eat flesh with its life, that is, its blood.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hi Craig,
Thanks for stopping by.
It’s interesting the things that came before the Mosiac covenant. There was circumcision (Genesis 17:9-14, Genesis 17:23-27) and tithing (Genesis 14:18-20, Genesis 28:20-22), and even polygamy was acceptable. When it comes to what to eat, the first mention is here.
Then God said, “I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food.” Genesis 1:29 (NIV)
We could stop right here, as some do, and say we’re not supposed to eat any meat. Only plants. However, God didn’t stop there.
The next mention of what to eat is given to Noah after the flood, as you pointed out in Genesis 9:3.
Everything that lives and moves about will be food for you. Just as I gave you the green plants, I now give you everything (NIV).
In the next verse, we see the prohibition against eating things with blood still in them.
“But you must not eat meat that has its lifeblood still in it.” Genesis 9:4 (NIV)
The King James version translates Gen 9:4 like so.
But flesh with the life thereof, which is the blood thereof, shall ye not eat.
The point of not eating the blood is that life is in the blood:
because the life of every creature is its blood. That is why I have said to the Israelites, “You must not eat the blood of any creature, because the life of every creature is its blood; anyone who eats it must be cut off.” Lev 17:14 (NIV)
Therefore, the connection between eating meat and blood is that life is also consumed by consuming meat with the blood still in it. The problem with consuming (I prefer consuming since eating it wasn’t the only way it was done) blood is that pagan cultures practiced it. In our vampiric fiction, we see something similar. Drinking blood to stay alive.
(I’m not even touching the teaching about redemption through blood and how sin can be forgiven only through the shedding of blood. Though there must be some relation, wouldn’t you say?).
Let’s consider the context of the letter to the Gentiles in Acts 15.
Certain people came down from Judea to Antioch and were teaching the believers: “Unless you are circumcised, according to the custom taught by Moses, you cannot be saved. Acts 15:1 (NIV)
This is the center point of the action for Acts 15. The conflict in Acts 15. Hence, this is the driving context of everything we read from Acts 15:1-31.
We could stop right here because the driving force is salvation. It’s not whether or not it’s right or wrong to get circumcised. The fact is that getting circumcised isn’t part of salvation, and whether or not a man is circumcised makes no difference. Yet, circumcision came before the law.
If people think they shouldn’t eat meat because the Bible tells them not to (Gen 1:29) and or they shouldn’t have a rare steak for the same reason, then ask them if they got circumcised when they were saved. It’s not following the law. Circumcision came before the law.
Since we’re not discussing the Mosiac Covenant because eating meat and getting circumcised came before it, there’s no need to discuss why the law was needed. Do you see the dilemma? Of course, you do. Yet, like me, you also know the challenge in the discussion. What should we do?
I’ve strayed because we’re talking about salvation. Not the law or any works that predated the law. We’re discussing faith in Christ as the only means to salvation. Every else is about living holy and trying to please God.
What do we do? Well, what did Paul say about those whose faith was weak?
So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God. Do not cause anyone to stumble, whether Jews, Greeks or the church of God—even as I try to please everyone in every way. For I am not seeking my own good but the good of many, so that they may be saved. 1 Cor 10:31-33 (NIV)
Accept the one whose faith is weak, without quarreling over disputable matters. One person’s faith allows them to eat anything, but another, whose faith is weak, eats only vegetables. Romans 14:1-2 (NIV)
But whoever has doubts is condemned if they eat, because their eating is not from faith; and everything that does not come from faith is sin. Romans 14:23 (NIV)
If someone has a problem with eating a rare steak or any meat at all, that is their prerogative. However, it is our duty, to tell the truth. If I know someone has a problem with meat, then I won’t serve meat. Bloody or not. Yet, we still tell the truth as Ephesians states.
Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ. Eph 4:15 (NIV)
I appreciate your comment and this discussion. I appreciate you and look forward to the day when we meet in person. Whether it be here in exile or when we get Home.
God bless you, my dear brother.
-Jason
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hi Jason,
Yes, that’s helpful. It’s an excellent point that circumcision also came before the law. Something to think about all on its own, actually. And I also appreciate the connection to Romans 14. It’s also fascinating how many of the early pagan practices and superstitions live on today in different form and under different names. We have abortion instead of sacrificing to Molech, and the fascination with vampires, etc..
I am 100% clear on salvation being through faith alone and not of works, and there are 1,000 flavors of legalism floating around these days, some more subtle than others. Yet, I am still not fully settled on the apostolic letter to the Gentiles as to whether it was meant as an instruction for the whole New Testament era (not as a condition of salvation, but rather as an instruction for living) or whether it was a temporary concession due to the preponderance of converted Jews in the early churches, as some say. Certainly the aspects concerning idolatry and sexual immorality still apply, so why not the part about abstaining from blood?
Anyway, I appreciate the discussion very much, Jason, and I also to look forward when one day we meet and can rejoice and speak of these things in the kingdom of our Lord.
God bless,
Craig
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hi Craig,
As we read the letter in Acts 15, one thing to consider is that Acts is not a doctrinal book. It’s a history of the Acts of the Apostles. We’re not meant to read it and then follow it as doctrine. Indeed, 2 Tim 3:16-17 give us this insight.
All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God[a] may be thoroughly equipped for every good work. (NIV)
Thus, I suggest that, whenever we consider doctrinal issues in Acts, we consider what doctrine says about those issues. Hopefully, when we examine our doctrine for answers to our questions from historical books like Acts, we will find the answers to our questions.
God bless you,
-Jason
LikeLiked by 1 person