From time to time you meet people who think that Christians should always be frugal, especially in their eating habits. Is that really true? What does the Bible have to say about it? As someone who enjoys a good meal, Pastor Reinder Bruinsma is on the case.
Text by Reinder Bruinsma
Around 1988 I attended a meeting of African church leaders in Kinshasha, the Congolese capitol. At the time I was employed in Africa, and had a coordinating role in Adventist publishing work on the continent. The leader of the world church publishing department introduced me to the audience, and told them something of my background. Casually, he suggested that if there were ten good restaurants in the city, I would have found at least seven by the end of the week.
I am still not quite sure how I developed this reputation, but for one reason or another it has stuck. My reputation was apparently the reason the editors of Advent asked me to write this article. ‘You like the good life,’ they told me. ‘You’re just the person for this topic.’
I fear that this label is somewhat exaggerated, but I do enjoy finding a good place to eat, especially with friends. I am also absolutely convinced that healthy living and eating are not incompatible with good living and eating.
Food is Important
Unfortunately, we live in a society where many people rarely take the time to eat well. In most families there are any number of reasons reasons – often very reasonable ones – why sitting down together for a meal is the exception rather than the rule.
Healthy living and eating are not incompatible with good living and eating.
In general, however, we realise that eating good, healthy food is important. We know that an eating disorder can ruin our lives, and we cannot forget that having enough food is still a luxury in many parts of the world. In our own country the numerous food banks speak volumes. Newspapers and television remind us that hundreds of thousands die of starvation every year.
None of this changes the fact that food remains at the top of the list of important social activities in most cultures, both now and in the past. A shared meal is an important part of every important event, from weddings to funerals, state visits to village festivals. When the family has something to celebrate, the question ‘Shall we go out to eat?’ soon follows. Even important business deals are often closed with a dinner. Fancy cooking has even become a favourite pasttime for many men.
Good Meals
It is not difficult to find examples of good meals in the Bible. When Abraham was visited be three strange men, Sara got straight to baking, and Abraham laid out ‘a calf, tender and good’ (Genesis 18:1-8). When Abraham’s servant was sent to find a wife for Isaac, he arrived at Nahor’s household. Nahor’s daughter Rebekah was prepared to return with him. A warm welcome, including a large meal for Abraham’s servant, was an important part of the process (Genesis 24:32-54) Jacob very memorably received a blessing from his father Isaac, but not before he had prepared a delicious meal (Genesis 27).
The further you page through the Old Testament, the more special meals you come across. The exodus from Egypt was marked by a shared meal that would become the basis for the Jewish Passover feast (Exodus 12).
Good Food and Lots of It
‘Good’ and ‘lots of it’ are words that immediately spring to mind then we read any of the many Bible stories about dinner parties. 1 Kings 4, 22 and 23 lists the supplies needed for the meals at King Solomon’s court. Besides large amounts of flour and meal, the daily list includes thirty cows, a hundred sheep and goats, and then also ‘deer, gazelles, roebucks, and fatted fowl’. Psalm 23:5 describes God’s generosity towards humanity in culinary terms: ‘You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows’.
The New Testament continues in the same vein. In the parable of the Prodigal Son, when the youngest returns to beg, ‘the fatted calf’ is immediately slaughtered (Luke 15:23). Jesus began his public ministry at a wedding in Cana (John 2:1-11). He is also frequently a guest at meals, to the extent that he is even accused of being ‘a glutton’ and ‘a drunkard’ (Luke 7:34).
A Meal with Believers
It says much that Jesus’ second coming, the beginning of a new world, will be celebrated by a meal at which all believers are welcome (Revelation 19:6-10). Even now we have Jesus’ promise that he will ‘eat with’ anyone who opens the door of their life to him (Revelation 3:20).
The Adventist Lifestyle
The average Adventist would probably not be accused of ‘living the good life’. Even since the Adventist pioneers – and especially Ellen G. White – put healthy living on the church agenda as a Christian duty, we have tended to take a rather negative approach to our diet. Seventh-day Adventists are sooner known for what they refuse to eat and drink (pork, shellfish, alcohol), and for their rejection of popular stimulants (tobacco), than they are for a more creative and attractive interpretation of the ‘healthy living’ theme. Vegetarianism was not simply promoted as a health option; many saw it as a way to become a ‘holier’ person. This often led (and leads) Adventists to get caught up in a legalistic system, with all kinds of rules. In this light, ‘enjoying’ what you eat seems almost sinful.
Not a Contest
The Creator didn’t give us taste buds for nothing.
It would be a great shame for Adventists to throw their health tradition overboard, especially in a time where consideration for a good diet and lifestyle is so widespread. At the same time, there is every reason to resist a legalistic, sometimes even obsessive, approach to that tradition. We are genuinely able to live in the freedom Christ has given to us. Following Biblical precepts is part and parcel of this life. That includes the principle of stewardship over your body, and co-stewardship over the world, but the reason behind it should not be because we think we can earn some extra bonus points with God.
Adjusting Our Arguments
It’s very strange when you meet someone who will barely glance at the labels of the products they buy in the supermarket, who will buy the cheapest kind of chicken without a thought, and who will regularly stuff themselves with junk food, but who won’t eat pork on principle. It is also hardly principled to anxiously avoid certain kinds of meats while failing to ensure you get enough exercise, or keep a good balance between work and leisure.
There are good reasons to be a vegetarian, but we need to adjust our arguments for it. Vegetarianism is not something you should just choose out of self-interest, but because it’s good for the world. There are good reasons to keep rejecting alcohol, but our arguments must be justified. The fallacy that Jesus turned water into alcohol-free grape juice is counterproductive.
Eating Together
Shared meals are good for building togetherness in families, but also for life in your local church. Some of us are no doubt a bit tired of the traditional potluck. It may be time for us to experiment with new forms of eating together, but this practice may be more important now than ever before. Practice has shown that eating together can even play a key role in church growth programs!
Enjoy Responsibly
Christians should handle their bodies carefully. God wants us to be well, in body and soul (3 John 2). After all, we are a temple for the Holy Spirit, who lives in us (1 Corinthians 5:19). This is a distinct responsibility, but it does mean our meals should be boring, or that we should turn down every gourmet experience. On the contrary.
A Christian can (must) enjoy every bit of the goodness God offers us. The message scattered throughout many pages of the Bible is that delicious food forms a very concrete part of that goodness. It may be a while before we can say that the average Adventist lives the good life. I am still not so sure that I deserve this description myself. Gratefully enjoying the good things of this earth with each other is certainly not a sin, though. The Creator didn’t give us taste buds for nothing, and his son also set a good example in this respect.
Reinder Bruinsma is a retired pastor for the Adventist Church, and a member of Advent’s editorial board.
