1 Cor. 6:13b -”The body is not meant for sexual immorality, but for the Lord, and the Lord for the body (ESV).”
1 Cor. 6:19b-20 – “You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.”
Col. 1:16-17 – “16For by him [Christ] all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whetherthrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. 17And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together.”
The point of these verses is that our bodies belong to the Lord. Furthermore, Christ is the sustaining source of all life. In light of God owning us and Christ providing all we need in order to live through His creating power and finished work, here are 10 suggestions for eating unto the glory of God:
1. You must not over eat. I realize that this is ambiguous; for, it is meant to be. Do not eat more than you need. “How much food do I want?” Or, “How much food can I fit on my plate?” should not govern how much you eat. Instead, you should ask yourself “How much food do I need in order to be a good steward of this body that belongs to the Lord”? Putting our minds in neutral concerning anything in God’s world is directly forbidden in Scripture, including in how we eat (Phil. 4:8).
2. You must not under eat. I believe many young girls and women struggle with this; however, more and more men are struggling with this sin today as well. You must eat in order to provide nourishment to God’s body. The only time in the Bible that voluntarily abstaining from eating is allowed is whenever we are fasting.
3. You must enjoy the Lord before, during, and after eating. It is not enough to merely pray before you eat, but you should be thankful toward God while you are eating. It is impossible however to be thankful toward God while sinning; for, our sin communicates that we are not thankful toward God. So, if you are over-eating or under-eating, you are not eating with thanksgiving toward God.
4. Pleasure in eating should only be one of your motivations. Pleasure in eating is unfortunately the main reason that humans eat… at least in the West. Oftentimes we enjoy the food so much that we don’t even think about God or His glory. In other words, Christians often eat like Atheists, when they instead should be eating in a way that communicates that Jehovah is their God, and food is not.
5. The desire to be healthy should only be one of your motivations. If we were only meant to eat tree bark and grass, why then did God give us taste buds? We should enjoy our food, but not to the detriment of His body. There is wonder beyond our finite minds that is bound up in the wonderful taste of food that we often take for granted. His glory is revealed as we enjoy Him through His creation: our taste buds and the various foods that satisfy them.
6. What you eat matters to God; so it should matter to you. You cannot intentionally eat foods that are purposefully and blatantly bad for your health; it is impossible to enjoy the Lord through eating an entire meal of chocolate cake. However, we have no reason to believe that we are forbidden to enjoy some cake.
7. We must be good stewards of the food that the Lord has provided us with. This does not mean that we must clean our plates, but it does mean that we should handle His resources wisely. We should plan our meals as well as we can so that we do not waste God’s provision. Furthermore, it’s interesting how we often hear about managing our finances well from the pulpit; however, we often think nothing of the amount of food we waste on a daily basis.
8. Beauty in food should be one of our motivations as well. We should ponder every now and again the wonderful reality that a sweet potato is shaped, colored, and textured like a sweet potato and not like an orange. God’s masterpiece is all around us, and food is part of this masterpiece. “Stopping to smell the roses” in order to enjoy the Lord is a God-honoring endeavor.
9. If we are to enjoy the Lord through eating, then food cannot be an idol in our lives. Thus, food cannot be seen as an end in and of itself; rather, it must ultimately be viewed as an avenue through which we can enjoy the Lord. If at any point, we eat with selfish motives, then we are not truly enjoying food the way that it was intended to be enjoyed. A Christian should enjoy food more than any other person on earth, for we know its Creator intimately through Christ; and eating is merely another avenue through which we can enjoy Him.
10. Finally, in light of food, we should cultivate a love for God in our spouses, children, parents, friends, etc. Each time we sit to eat the goal should be to enjoy the Lord, not to enjoy one another, “the hands that prepared it,” or the feast before us. We instead should enjoy the Lord through enjoying one another, the “hands that prepared it,” and the feast before us. “Isn’t God good”? should be on the tips of our tongues; instead of, “Isn’t family good,” or, “Isn’t food good”?
What are your thoughts about this article?
Is there anything you would add or take away? Why or why not?
Chris Roberts (63)
Dave Miller (61)
Bob Hadley (48)
Debbie Kaufman (45)
dr. james willingham (44)
Les (30)
cb scott (29)
Rick Patrick (27)
Bill Mac (26)
Christiane (26)
Gotta be honest Jared, I just had surgery on my stomach and esophogus, so it’s hard for me to eat for the glory of God cause I’m on pretty much a liquid diet.
I think food needs to be placed in context, it’s not hard to look at Americans and see we have an unhealthy relationship with food. We either eat too much, or eat too little, we are either focused on the enjoyment of food, or we are so self-conscious (and vain) that we avoid food, even to the point of an eating disorder.
Food doesn’t make a person clean or unclean, it does what God intended it too do. God made food for man to enjoy, but to enjoy in the context that you presented. Thanks for making me think about the food I can’t eat. Good article. . . still not sure where you come up with this stuff though.
Dan, the source of my articles is just thinking through everyday activities as they relate to Christianity. I usually think of a title first, and then add to it over several days, weeks, or even months. I have over 75 articles right now that have titles but I’ve yet to finish their content.
I hate that you’re on a liquid diet. I imagine that we take for granted what you’re missing at this point. I imagine as well that you’re learning more and more what it means to be content in the Lord concerning food and drink. Hang in there brother.
Thanks, I am happy that my other issues are gone, just trying to be patient in the healing, but that’s another blog.
Jared,
Good thoughts.
David
Thank you David.
Jared,
As usual, a thought-provoking and well-written post. The one problem that I have with it is that you stopped preaching and went to meddling. Stop that!
I don’t like to be hit between the eyes when it comes to food — I am a Baptist pastor, after all. As to the title, are we to eat to God’s glory by ourselves (i.e., alone) or with others? 
Just wondering. Thanks again for the post. God bless,
Howell
Howell, I appreciate the compliments. I struggle with consistently applying the above principles as well. I just found out today for example that my dad has diabetes. My mom also has it; and all of her brothers and sisters. I possibly have a choice about when I’ll get it. I can help keep it at bay longer by eating healthier and exercising, or not. It’s a constant battle; just want to be a good steward. For God’s glory alone (not eating alone
).
I guess when I got my Calvinist membership card I missed the part where Calvinists go on about being overweight almost as much as Southern Baptists consider singing the third verse of a hymn to be a cardinal sin. I mean, seriiously, it’s like if you’re not less than 2% overweight and you don’t drink alchohol then somethings wrong with you. Wow.
Is it a sin to not pray before eating?
Bill, technically, if we’re talking about praying out loud with everyone around, then no, prayer is not required in Scripture before eating a meal; however, if we’re talking about “praying without ceasing,” eating with thanksgiving toward God the entire time we’re eating, then yes, to not pray is a sin.
Suppose we pray once in the morning for what we will have during the day, or once at night, thanking God for what we have had?
Obviously I’m jerking you around a little, and am not suggesting that we should not be thankful to God for our food, since that example is set before us in scripture. But I think it is probably not a rule.
it is not a ‘rule’, no
it is a ‘recognition’
it is an act of love and thanksgiving, yes
if you take a breath, there is a blessing of thanksgiving for the God who gives you the ‘breath of life’
so you may thank Him endlessly and consciously as you breathe
If His Hand were not on you sustaining your life, you would cease to live, so He is worthy of our thanksgiving at all moments
Bill, I think we should be ever thankful. I think that’s what praying without ceasing is; namely, that we’re ever-dependent on God.
I don’t think praying over a meal or praying 3 times a day are rules either.
I mentioned praying before eating in the above article because some Christians think they’re thankful toward God if they pray before a meal in which they gorge themselves.
pray without ceasing . . .
In the time of Our Lord, there were blessings before eating which honored God as the source of the nourishment
Some of these ancient blessings are beautiful and rich in meaning:
For bread: “”Blessed are You, Lord, our God, King of the universe, Who brings forth bread from the earth.”
For the ‘fruit of the vine’: “”Blessed are You, Lord, our God, King of the universe, Who creates the fruit of the vine.”
And there is a blessing for all that is given to us:
“”Blessed are You, Lord, our God, King of the universe, through Whose word everything comes into being.”
Ancient words of thanksgiving to God.
‘Barukh ata Adonai Eloheinu ‘ . . . Blessed are You, O Lord Our God’
. . . pray without ceasing
A blast from the past…
Lord, I’ve tried for years to whip this problem of obesity. I’ve been on banana diets and eaten red meat. I’ve taken pills and bought reducing belts. I’ve read books, attended lectures, joined clubs, enrolled in courses.
But I’m still fat. I weigh much too much. And I need help. In the Good Book you promise if anyone has enough faith he can say to a mountain, “Go away,” and it will go. There’s a mountain of flesh on me. I’ve been trying to move it ever since I was a boy. I’ve been laughed at. I’ve been ridiculed. I’ve rationalized; I’ve lied. I’ve had times when I cared and times when I didn’t.
I’ve decided to quit and promised I’d be good. Then we were invited out, and this woman makes the best biscuits. I’ve sworn off, and before I knew it, I found myself sitting at the fountain lapping up a milk shake.
Now I mean business. I accept you at your word. Today I say to this mountain, “Get moving.” I have faith that the two of us can move it together. This is the big surrender. I’m turning my body over to you once and for all. I can’t manage it alone. From this day on, I’ll eat what you tell me to eat and live how you want me to live. Amen.
Charlie Shedd
The Fat is In Your Head
Word Books
Copyright 1972
I eat good…and I’m thankful to God for the food I have. When I eat a jumbo BBQ sandwich, fries, and a diet coke at Bozo’s Restaurant in Mason, TN….and maybe share a piece of that incredible, lemon ice box pie they have…I rejoice in God’s provision I eat it for the glory of God.
When I go to Reelfoot Lake in Tiptonville, TN to eat catfish, hush puppies, fries, cole slaw, onion rings, and drink sweet tea….usually I’m too full to have their delicious pie for dessert…then I rejoice and praise God for giving us such delicious food! and such an abundance!
Whenever my taste buds are singing the Hallelujah Chorus, as I munch on Lee’s fried chicken in Milan, TN…along with their wonderful potato wedges and green beans and biscuits….I am truly trhankful.
And, when I go to Loveless Cafe…just outside of Nashville….oh my goodness….well, you just have to be there….
But, yall get the picture….
For those who want to become more thankful for what we have been given, it helps to ‘come down where we ought to be’ and have a meal that is classic and time-honored among the bums and transients in our country, and it is nutritious as well as it is humbling:
A.J. MUSTE MEMORIAL SUPPER: ‘FISH HEADS AND RICE’
Here is the actual recipe as it was originally given to those with few resources. Enjoy. :
“To make this meal, you will need an iron pot to cook a broth (fish stock) made of fish-heads,
so you must first go to the fishmonger and beg for fish-heads.
He will feel compassion for you and will throw in a few pieces of fish with the heads.
Place the fish heads in a netting for boiling the fish stock. If you have no netting, you can put them into a sock and tie it before boiling. This works well, but remember to wash that sock out thoroughly before wearing it again, or cats will follow you around.
After the stock is prepared, DISCARD THE FISH HEADS (this is important);
and then add the following ingredients to the boiling stock:
1. a handful of rice (costs very little)
2. fresh, hand-picked young dandelion greens (always available, because bums migrate to the warmer climates, even in winter)
3. the pieces of fish that were given gratis by the compassionate fish-monger
Boil this up patiently in the iron pot and do not set yourself on fire.
When ready, give thanks to God for all good things and for this meal, and share your food with all around you who are hungry.
Do not waste any of the food.
Clean up properly before departing.”
Sometimes it’s good to be simple. It makes us better people, and more grateful for what we have. We have so much, we don’t realize how blessed we are anymore. It’s good to remember the important things.
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