Four Fatal -Ignored- Sins

"It seemed good to the Holy Spirit, and to us, to lay upon you no greater burden than these NECESSARY things: that you abstain from things offered to idols, from blood, from things strangled, and from sexual immorality." -Acts 15:28-29

Most Christians of our day have absolutely no idea that they are committing fatal sins, and no wonder, because throughout the modern Protestant, Catholic, and Orthodox Churches, I have only ever heard one of these four fatal sins mentioned as being an actual sin.

Regardless of the fact that the preachers of our day never seem to mention three of these four fatal sins (or, at least I have never heard all four of them covered by a modern preacher), they are unquestionably vital commandments which should be held just under the two Greatest commandments (Mark 12:29-31).

Indeed, these were four things that all of the assembled Apostles thought absolutely "NECESSARY" to new converts of the Christian Way.

It is unfortunate that many so-called teachers of our day actually preach that these things are UN-NECESSARY for Christians to observe. In fact, some actually teach that there is no problem eating foods offered to idols, rare meat containing blood, or wring-necked fowl. In an age of deceit, who do you choose to believe -these so-called teachers, or the Bible? I choose the Bible!

Let us now explore these four "NECESSARY" ordinances:


1. ABSTAIN FROM THINGS POLLUTED BY IDOLS
"Known to God from eternity are all His works. Therefore I judge that we should not trouble those from among the Gentiles who are turning to God, but that we write to them to abstain from things polluted by idols, from sexual immorality, from things strangled, and from blood." -Acts 15:18-20

I like Indian food. Spicy chicken tika masala served with fresh-out-of-the-oven naan is one of my favorite meals. Unfortunately, most Indian restaurants are filled with idols and, as the Bible clearly states, Christians cannot eat food that has been "polluted by idols." Indeed, it is not possible to be a person that eats at the Lord's Table (partaking of holy Communion) and who ALSO eats at the table of demons (food offered to idols), as it is written:

"You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons; you cannot partake of the Lord’s table and of the table of demons." -1 Corinthians 10:21

Unfortunately, Christians today eat foods polluted by idols on a regular basis. They dine at Chinese restaurants where little statues of fat buddhas pollute the foods that are cooked near them without even the slightest care. They eat at Indian restaurants where Hindu demon-gods pollute the foods. They eat at Mexican restaurants where idols of "Mother Mary" or other "Saints" are present. If you are a Christian, I warn you now that these things are sin.

But how do foods become "polluted by idols"?

-Foods become "polluted by idols" when idols are present in either the preparation, distribution, or the consumption of food and when someone who believes those idols "bless" or otherwise devote said food to false gods. It does not matter if you believe the idol is anything or not, if someone else believes that idols are anything your food has been "polluted by idols."

There is, however, an exception to this command: If you are unable to determine that food has been polluted by idols you may eat of it without committing sin, as it is written:

"Eat whatever is sold in the meat market, asking no questions for conscience’ sake; for “the earth is the LORD’s, and all its fullness.” If any of those who do not believe invites you to dinner, and you desire to go, eat whatever is set before you, asking no question for conscience’ sake. But if anyone says to you, “This was offered to idols,” do not eat it..." -1 Corinthians 10:25-28a

If you see idols (statues to whom people ascribe worship) present where food is either being prepared, distributed, or consumed, or if someone tells you that it has been offered to idols "Do not eat it" (1Cor 10:21).

Some would argue that Christians are, in fact, permitted to eat things polluted by idols "if it does not bother them." They claim that Paul the Apostle inevitably concludes that a Christian CAN INDEED eat things polluted by idols as long as their consciences are not bothered by it, based upon what Paul wrote in the following verses:

"Therefore concerning the eating of things offered to idols, we know that an idol is nothing in the world, and that there is no other God but one. For even if there are so-called gods, whether in heaven or on earth (as there are many gods and many lords), yet for us there is one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we for Him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, through whom are all things, and through whom we live. However, there is not in everyone that knowledge; for some, with consciousness of the idol, until now eat it as a thing offered to an idol; and their conscience, being weak, is defiled. But food does not commend us to God; for neither if we eat are we the better, nor if we do not eat are we the worse. But beware lest somehow this liberty of yours become a stumbling block to those who are weak. For if anyone sees you who have knowledge eating in an idol’s temple, will not the conscience of him who is weak be emboldened to eat those things offered to idols? And because of your knowledge shall the weak brother perish, for whom Christ died? But when you thus sin against the brethren, and wound their weak conscience, you sin against Christ. Therefore, if food makes my brother stumble, I will never again eat meat, lest I make my brother stumble." -1 Corinthians 8:4-13

These teachers will say, "See, Paul here clearly shows that a Christian is 'eating in an idol's temple,' this proves that a Christian may even eat in an idol's temple as long as they are not offending a 'weak' brother!" -This is absolutely absurd.

Paul is here pointing out a hypothetical, extreme and absurd scenario in order to emphasize a point. First of all, the word "eating" in the phrase "eating in an idol's temple" is not "eating." The Greek word here is "katakeimai," which means "reclining" -NOT eating. Click here to see for yourself. Bear with me now, because I know how people get when when I start going deep.

But before we go too deep there is another thing which the modern, western mind MUST grasp before I continue: Meats offered to idols was so common in the ancient world (especially in Corinth) that just about ANY meat that a common person purchased had been offered to an idol. Therefore, when one of those common people became a Christian and were told by the Church "do not eat things offered to idols," they would assume that eating ANY MEAT was no longer permitted, for, in their reasoning, all meat was always offered to idols.

With that understanding in mind, now look at Paul's statement here:

"Some people are still so accustomed to idols that when they eat such food [i.e. such food as meat] they think of it as having been sacrificed to an idol, and since their conscience is weak, it is defiled" (1 Corinthians 8:7 -NIV 1984).

[Note also that "fish" was not considered "meat" (Greek: "kreas") in ancient Greek]

Do you get it now? No? Okay, look: Some people were so accustomed to the fact that meat was offered to idols that they thought that all meat was offered to idols. Therefore, if they were to see a Christian (who attends the same Church that told them NOT to eat things offered to idols) eating meat, they would believe that it is now fine to eat things offered to idols. Then, if they ate meat that had been offered to an idol they sin.

Then Paul takes the example to an extreme degree to emphasize his point when he says,

"For if anyone sees you who has knowledge RECLINING in an idol’s temple, will not the conscience of him who is weak be encouraged to eat things offered to idols?" (1 Corinthians 8:10 - My translation)

Paul does not want Christians to be encouraged to eat things offered to idols, so he is requesting that mature Christians, who know that the meat they are eating is NOT offered to idol's, to realize that other Christians might believe that they are eating meat that was offered to idols. Since 'weak' Christians could be led to believe that the 'mature' Christians are eating things offered to idols, they may begin to eat foods that are really offered to idols. That would be the same as if one of these 'weak' Christians were to see you reclining in an idols temple; some may think that you were eating there, even if you were not. And if another Christian starts eating things offered to idols because of you, you sin against God and against your brother!

Irregardless of my lengthy explanation, which is made confusing due to poor translations of Scripture, the facts are clear: A Christian may NOT eat things polluted by idols. Any person that continues to eat things polluted by idols is an idolater. Repent!

"Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God." -1 Corinthians 6:9-10

To further solidify this commandment to abstain from things "offered" (which is the same as things "sacrificed") to idols in the minds and hearts of modern Christians, I would remind you of the rebuke of Jesus Christ to the Church of Thyatira in the Book of Revelation:

"Nevertheless, I have this against you: You tolerate that woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess. By her teaching she misleads my servants into sexual immorality and the eating of food sacrificed to idols. I have given her time to repent of her immorality, but she is unwilling. So I will cast her on a bed of suffering, and I will make those who commit adultery with her suffer intensely, unless they repent of her ways. I will strike her children dead. Then all the churches will know that I am he who searches hearts and minds, and I will repay each of you according to your deeds." -Revelation 2:20-23

If you know of any "teacher" that twists 1 Corinthians 8 to excuse Christians from the commandment to abstain from foods offered to idols, flee from them! As the blessed Apostle Peter said of Paul's writings:


"...as also our beloved brother Paul, according to the wisdom given to him, has written to you, as also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things, in which are some things hard to understand, which untaught and unstable people twist to their own destruction, as they do also the rest of the Scriptures. You therefore, beloved, since you know this beforehand, beware lest you also fall from your own steadfastness, being led away with the error of the wicked; but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory both now and forever. Amen." -2 Peter 3:15b-18

DO NOT EAT ANYTHING THAT YOU KNOW, OR EVEN THINK, HAS BEEN OFFERED TO AN IDOL!


2. ABSTAIN FROM SEXUAL IMMORALITY
Please read our full article on fornication and sexual immorality listed on the upper-right side of this page.


3. ABSTAIN FROM THINGS STRANGLED
"Known to God from eternity are all His works. Therefore I judge that we should not trouble those from among the Gentiles who are turning to God, but that we write to them to abstain from things polluted by idols, from sexual immorality, from things strangled [Greek: "Pniktos"], and from blood." -Acts 15:18-20

Some Christians may think that the consumption of strangled animals is a rare thing that does not occur any longer, but they would be wrong. It is actually more common than one might think.

For thousands of years, and in myriad cultures, it has been a common practice for hunters, farmers, and ranchers to "wring" or twist the neck of a chicken, goose, duck, or other fowl in order to kill it. This practice is forbidden to the Christian because doing such is the same as strangulation.

In addition to this, the Greek word (Pniktos) that translators erroneously translate into "strangled" actually does not mean "strangled" exactly, but rather "killed without letting out the blood." Strangling an animal would certainly qualify as killing an animal without letting out the blood, so the translation word "strangled" is not necessarily wrong, it is simply very limited.

Unlike the commandment of avoiding the consumption of things polluted by idols, this commandment to abstain from things "killed without letting out the blood" does not come with the exception of ignorance. In other words, not knowing if you are eating an animal that was killed by strangulation does not release you from guilt. It is your duty as a Christian to make sure that what you and your family are eating has not been "killed without letting out the blood." Therefore it behooves the Christian to research where the meat is coming from that they are buying, or to research the specific farms where the meat they are eating is coming from to ensure that the animal they are consuming has been properly blood-letted in slaughter.

The proper way to prepare an animal for consumption is to cut its throat and turn it upside-down until all of the blood drains out onto the ground and may be buried; as it is written:

"Whatever man of the children of Israel, or of the strangers who dwell among you, who hunts and catches any animal or bird that may be eaten, he shall pour out its blood and cover it with dust; for it is the life of all flesh. Its blood sustains its life. Therefore I said to the children of Israel, ‘You shall not eat the blood of any flesh, for the life of all flesh is its blood. Whoever eats it shall be cut off.’" -Leviticus 17:13-14

Please note, however, that this commandment does not banish hunting. It is perfectly fine to shoot an animal to kill it whether with arrow or bullet (see Genesis 27:3-4), but it MUST BE IMMEDIATELY BLOOD-LETTED right after it falls.


4. ABSTAIN FROM BLOOD
"It seemed good to the Holy Spirit, and to us, to lay upon you no greater burden than these NECESSARY things: that you abstain from things offered to idols, from blood, from things strangled, and from sexual immorality." -Acts 15:28-29

For those "Christians" [a] who prefer their meat rare, I solemnly warn you now in the sight of God and His Holy Angels that you are committing a grave sin and must repent. Rare meat (or any meat except "well-done") still contains small (or large) portions of blood, which is absolutely forbidden for a Christian to consume. As it is written:

"Now they had driven back the Philistines that day from Michmash to Aijalon. So the people were very faint. And the people rushed on the spoil, and took sheep, oxen, and calves, and slaughtered them on the ground; and the people ate them with the blood. Then they told Saul, saying, “Look, the people are sinning against the LORD by eating with the blood!” So he said, “You have dealt treacherously; roll a large stone to me this day.” Then Saul said, “Disperse yourselves among the people, and say to them, ‘Bring me here every man’s ox and every man’s sheep, slaughter them here, and eat; and do not sin against the LORD by eating with the blood.’” So every one of the people brought his ox with him that night, and slaughtered it there." -1 Samuel 14:31-34

It is amazing to me that preachers of our day never cover this very important subject. In fact, I have known several preachers that actually prefer their meat bloody-rare themselves, with not even the slightest thought that they may be committing a sin that will actually get them "cut off" from the Kingdom of God! Behold, it is written:

"And whatever man of the house of Israel, or of the strangers who dwell among you, who eats any blood, I will set My face against that person who eats blood, and will cut him off from among his people." -Leviticus 17:10

Yet, in spite of all the Scriptures in both the Old and New Testaments, people still eat things with blood still in it. In fact, some people actually eat things like blood pudding and blood sausage.

Brothers and sisters, the proper way to prepare an animal for consumption is to cut its throat and turn it upside-down until all of the blood drains out onto the ground and may be burried; as it is written:

"Whatever man of the children of Israel, or of the strangers who dwell among you, who hunts and catches any animal or bird that may be eaten, he shall pour out its blood and cover it with dust; for it is the life of all flesh. Its blood sustains its life. Therefore I said to the children of Israel, ‘You shall not eat the blood of any flesh, for the life of all flesh is its blood. Whoever eats it shall be cut off.’" -Leviticus 17:13-14

Unfortunately, some meat companies that mass produce meats today do not follow this principle. Due to the failure of these companies to properly drain the blood from their slaughtered animals it is easy to spot pockets of remaining blood in meat even after it is cooked.

The next time you purchase a whole chicken see for yourself. If the chicken you have purchased comes from one of the major food distributors in the USA such as Tyson, or Foster Farms, you will be able to spot small pockets of blood in the animal even after the chicken has been cooked. Do not eat it. Even though the blood is cooked, it is still blood and still forbidden. Try to buy pre-cut chicken instead because the blood has drained.

The safest thing to do, however, would be to only buy "Kosher" or "Halel" meats. Jews and Muslims both slay their animals according to proper Biblical principles. In fact, for a long time throughout history, Muslims used to be able to eat Christian food, as their Qur'an states that Christian foods are clean for them (Surah Al-Maa’idah, 5:5). This is no longer the case due to the fact that "Christian" meats now contain blood because of the improper slaughter of animals.


A BIG MISUNDERSTANDING
After listening to what I have to say on these subjects, most Christians will retort with, "It doesn't matter what we eat, whether things sacrificed to idols, or blood, or things strangled, because Jesus explicitly states: "Not what goes into the mouth defiles a man; but what comes out of the mouth, this defiles a man" (Matt 15:11) and, "Do you not yet understand that whatever enters the mouth goes into the stomach and is eliminated? But those things which proceed out of the mouth come from the heart, and they defile a man. For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies. These are the things which defile a man" (Matt 15:17-20a)."

They are dead wrong. While it is true that whatever we eat does not "defile" us, that does not mean that whatever we eat will not cause us to "SIN!" According to Scripture, defilement and sin are two very different things.

It is written:

"Flee sexual immorality. Every sin that a man does is outside the body, but he who commits sexual immorality sins against his own body. Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own?" -1 Corinthians 6:18-19

As the above passage clearly points out, there are varying levels of sin, regardless of what your Protestant teacher told you. As Paul makes clear in the above passage: "Every sin that a man does is outside the body, but he who commits sexual immorality sins against his own body." In other words; there is a difference between certain kinds of sins and other sins. As the Lord explicitly states in Matthew 15:19-20a, which my opponents will quote, "evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies... are the things which defile a man!"

Eating blood, things offered to idols, or things strangled will never "defile" you, but they are, nonetheless, heinous sins. I think people that wish to quote Jesus from Matthew 15:11 should also start quoting Jesus from Revelation 2:20-23; as it is written:

"Nevertheless, I have this against you: You tolerate that woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess. By her teaching she misleads my servants into sexual immorality and the eating of food sacrificed to idols. I have given her time to repent of her immorality, but she is unwilling. So I will cast her on a bed of suffering, and I will make those who commit adultery with her suffer intensely, unless they repent of her ways. I will strike her children dead. Then all the churches will know that I am he who searches hearts and minds, and I will repay each of you according to your deeds." -Revelation 2:20-23

If you are following a "teacher" that teaches that there is nothing wrong with eating things offered to idols, eating blood, or eating things that were not properly blood-letted, you should flee from them; as it is written:

"“Most assuredly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door, but climbs up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber. But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. To him the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear his voice; and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. And when he brings out his own sheep, he goes before them; and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice. Yet they will by no means follow a stranger, but will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers.”" -John 10:1-5


KOSHER AND HALEL MEATS
I suggest that all Christians begin to buy either kosher or halel meats from the Jews and Muslims because they slay their animals according to proper Biblical standards. If, however, you do not live in an area where kosher or halel foods are readily available, be sure to do research on the companies producing the meats that you eat.

There are some Christians today that claim that Muslim halel meat is, of itself, food offered to an idol. This is due to pure ignorance. What the Apostle Paul said of the Jews is true of the Muslims as well, as he wrote:

"Brethren, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for Israel is that they may be saved. For I bear them witness that they have a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge. For they being ignorant of God’s righteousness, and seeking to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted to the righteousness of God." -Romans 10:1-3

These Christians will, no doubt, argue with me and say, "But Allah is the moon god..." -No. That is not true. "Allah" is the Arabic word that all Arabic-speaking people use for the English word "God."

If you could read Arabic and opened an Arabic Bible, you would find that Genesis 1:1 says, "In the beginning "ALLAH" created the heavens and the earth." And if you understood Arabic and entered a Arab-Christian church, you would find them all using the word "Allah" instead of "God".

In fact, the Hebrew word for "God" in Genesis 1:1 is "Elohim." If you realize the fact that in Hebrew there is no "E", but only the letter "Aleph" (A), and you realize that the "im" of Elohim is the mark of plurality, you will soon realize that the Hebrew Bible itself calls God "Allah."

When a Muslim uses the name "Allah" he is speaking of the One God, the Creator of the heavens and the earth, but, as Paul says of the Jews, "Not according to knowledge."

Do not listen to anyone ignorant enough to claim that halel foods are foods offered to idols.

CONCLUSION
What else can be said of these four sins except that if you have comitted them REPENT! If you continue to comit any of these four major sins you will suffer the consequences and die in your sins. The Lord God has simply sent me as a warner to mankind. You have been warned and my hands are now clean of your blood (Ezekiel 33:8).



[a] The word "Christian" is here put into quotation marks because most people today just claim to be Christian when, in fact, they are not. See 1 John 2:4.