In 1 Timothy 4:1–5, Paul warns against a kind of false holiness that focuses on rules, appearances, and denying things God has created rather than allowing God’s grace to transform our hearts. In today’s reflection, we look at the early church’s debates over food, Jewish dietary laws, and food sacrificed to idols, and then consider what holiness really means. As a Wesleyan Christian, Andy understands holiness ultimately as perfect love—the grace of God transforming us so that we love God and love our neighbors. The goal isn’t to look like a super-Christian; it’s to actually become more like Jesus.
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Good morning, friends. I hope you’re doing well today as we continue together in our daily reflections through 1 Timothy, 2 Timothy, Titus, and then probably Philemon.
If you’re watching this on YouTube or Facebook, you may be thinking, “Why is Andy in the Bahamas?”
I’m not.
I’m at T-Bones in Hattiesburg, Mississippi.
As you know, I record early, so it is actually Tuesday afternoon as I’m recording this. I came down to Hattiesburg early today to work out of a coffee shop. My daughter has a concert tonight at 6:00 at Southern Miss, so I decided to get up early, get started, and drive down here.
Instead of wasting the day, I figured I’d come on down and work. That’s why God gave us laptops and the internet, right?
I’ve been working here, and now I’m recording outside on the porch at T-Bones.
I also got a Willie Nelson record today for about fourteen dollars, so I’m pretty excited about that.
I’m going to head over to Southern Miss in a little while, watch my daughter’s concert, and then head home tonight. So Wednesday morning, I’ll be back at church, bright-eyed and bushy-tailed.
Well, maybe.
You may hear Hardy Street in the background. And if you hear some other noises, well, that’s part of the joy of recording outside.
So today we’re in 1 Timothy, chapter 4. We’re going to read verses 1 through 5.
Paul says that the Spirit has made it clear that, in later times, some will turn away from the faith by following deceptive spirits and teachings. He talks about people who forbid marriage and require people to abstain from certain foods—things God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and know the truth.
And then Paul makes this statement: everything created by God is good when it is received with thanksgiving, and it is made holy through God’s word and prayer.
Now, food is a constant issue in the early church, and there are really two major reasons for that.
First, you have the Jewish dietary laws.
In the Old Testament, particularly in the Levitical laws, there were certain things that people could and could not eat. These laws were connected to holiness—to being set apart.
God is holy, and God’s people were called to be holy. So there were practices that distinguished Israel from the people around them.
And many Jewish people today, particularly Orthodox Jews, continue to observe kosher dietary laws.
I remember a story my late friend Sam Morris used to tell about taking a group of pastors to Israel. And, of course, there’s not much that we like better in the South than a good sausage biscuit.
Well, you’re not going to find a lot of sausage biscuits in Israel.
The group had an opportunity to ask a rabbi some questions, and one of the pastors asked, “Why can’t we have sausage and biscuits?”
The rabbi said, “Because we keep kosher.”
And the pastor said, “Well, what’s wrong with sausage and biscuits?”
The rabbi said, “Nothing.”
And he said, “Well, then why can’t we have them?”
“Because we’re Jewish.”
And I think that’s actually a helpful way to understand the issue.
The sausage itself isn’t evil.
The food isn’t inherently sinful.
The point was that Israel was set apart. The dietary laws were part of the way God’s people were distinguished from the people around them.
Then you get into the Gentile context, where you have another food issue: food sacrificed to idols.
This comes up repeatedly in Paul’s writings.
Food could be offered to Roman gods as part of meals, trade guilds, or various other social and religious practices. And Christians had to wrestle with whether they should eat that food.
Paul’s basic argument was that idols aren’t really gods, so the food itself isn’t magically changed by being associated with an idol.
But Paul also says that we have to be careful about how our freedom affects other people.
So again, the food itself isn’t really the point.
The question is: What does this mean? What is the purpose? What is the intent?
And that’s what I think Paul is getting at here.
He talks about people who “forbid marriage and abstain from certain foods.” My Bible calls this false asceticism—the idea that denying yourself certain things somehow makes you more spiritually holy.
And I think God is much more concerned with us actually being holy than with us appearing to be super holy.
Our holiness, our sanctification, our faithfulness, isn’t something we do for the eyes of other people so that we can look impressive.
It’s not about appearances.
Jesus talks about this in the Sermon on the Mount. When you pray, don’t pray simply so other people will see you praying. If you’re doing something for the praise of other people, then their praise is your reward.
And I think Paul is making a similar point here.
Don’t focus so much on the things that make you look holy.
Don’t focus so much on religious legalism that you can check off a list and then convince everybody else that you’re a super-Christian.
That’s not what holiness is.
Holiness is about receiving what God has given us with thanksgiving and allowing God’s grace to transform us.
And, as a United Methodist and a Wesleyan, I understand holiness ultimately as perfect love.
The grace of God is shed abroad in our hearts. That grace transforms us so that we love God and love our neighbor.
That’s holiness.
It’s not simply perfect outward behavior.
It’s not legalism.
It’s not religious optics.
It’s love.
Paul says it beautifully in 1 Corinthians 13: If we can speak beautifully, if we have incredible faith, if we can do amazing things, but we don’t have love, then we’ve missed the point.
Love is patient. Love is kind.
That’s the kind of holiness God is after.
So everything God created is good when we receive it with thanksgiving and allow it to be sanctified through God’s word and prayer.
And I think that’s an important word for us today.
If you want to listen to K-Love, great.
If you don’t, that’s fine, too.
If you want to wear Christian T-shirts and Christian products, great.
If you don’t, that’s okay.
If you want to post a Bible verse on Facebook, great.
If you don’t, that’s okay.
Those things may be good things. But they aren’t the measure of your holiness.
Your holiness isn’t ultimately seen in the outward optics of looking super Christian.
Your holiness is seen in the perfect love of God being poured into your heart, transforming you so that you love God and love your neighbor with everything you have.
So let’s keep the main thing the main thing.
Let’s not become so focused on the optics of holiness that we miss holiness itself.
Instead, let’s allow God’s grace to transform us—to make us more like our beautiful God and Savior.
Thanks for being with me today. I hope you enjoyed the motorcycle that just went flying past me.
That’s the joy of recording outside.
We’ll be back in our normal space tomorrow.
Have a great day, friends.
See you!