Category Archives: Health

Health, Politics, Religion, Social Topics

The State Is Not Your Shepherd

No comments

Why Christians Must Reject Welfare and Government Dependency

In our age of moral collapse and bureaucratic bloat, the godly man must ask a pressing question: Who is my provider? Is it God, or government? Is it the household, or the welfare office? Is it the family, or the bureaucrat?

The answer cuts to the heart of The Great Order. A people cannot serve two masters. A man cannot declare Christ as King and Caesar as provider. A household cannot be ruled by the Spirit of God and subsidized by the spirit of Mammon. The time has come to declare war on every form of statist dependence that has poisoned the modern Christian household.

I. The Biblical Order: Family First, Church Second, State Last

From Genesis to Revelation, Scripture paints a clear picture of responsibility and provision. God did not design the civil government to feed, clothe, educate, or shelter His people. He gave that task to fathers, mothers, extended families, and local churches. The household, not the bureaucracy, is the backbone of civilization.

“But if any provide not for his own, and specially for those of his own house, he hath denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel.” – 1 Timothy 5:8

In God’s economy:

  • The father is the head and provider of his house.
  • The mother is the manager and nourisher of the home.
  • The church is the safety net for widows, orphans, and the truly destitute.
  • The state is the sword-bearer to punish evildoers, not the cradle of economic provision (Romans 13:4).

When a man abdicates his provision to the state, he is not just making a financial decision—he is committing spiritual treason. He trades the glory of fatherhood for a government handout. He forfeits his role as king and priest for the pity of politicians.

II. Government Welfare Is a False Gospel

At its core, welfare is not just a system, it is a rival religion. It preaches a gospel of dependency, promises salvation through taxation, and delivers counterfeit mercy through coercion.

Instead of calling men to repentance and labor, it pays them to remain idle. Instead of rewarding marriage and family order, it penalizes it. Instead of honoring multi-generational households, it fractures them. Instead of strengthening churches, it replaces them.

“The borrower is servant to the lender.” – Proverbs 22:7

Dependency on the state is slavery in slow motion. Every welfare check is a chain. Every food stamp a leash. Every subsidy an invitation to forget the God who gives bread in the wilderness.

The state offers welfare the same way Pharaoh offered leeks and garlic, at the price of freedom. It is a bribe to keep men quiet, families broken, and churches irrelevant.

III. Welfare Destroys the Household Economy

Welfare does not empower families, it destroys them. In the United States, federal welfare programs exploded in the 1960s with the promise to help the poor. But instead of lifting up the needy, they shattered the most vulnerable institution: the family.

  • In 1965, Black illegitimacy was around 25%. Today, it is over 70%—driven by fatherless homes, subsidized by welfare.
  • Welfare incentivizes single motherhood, discourages marriage, and punishes intact households through income-based penalties.
  • Men are driven out of the home so that women can qualify for more benefits.
  • Children grow up under the authority of social workers, not fathers.
  • The church, once the pillar of community charity, has become silent and sidelined.

This is not compassion. It is conquest. It is the intentional dismantling of Biblical order through dependency economics.

When God’s design for provision is reversed, families suffer, masculinity withers, and matriarchal welfare bureaucracies fill the vacuum.

IV. Early America: Strength Without Subsidy

The myth of government provision is a modern delusion. For most of human history, people survived—not through the state, but through strong households, churches, and communities.

In colonial and early American history:

  • Fathers worked land, ran shops, or practiced trades to feed their families.
  • Mothers cultivated gardens, made bread, and taught their children at home.
  • Children worked alongside parents, contributing from a young age.
  • Churches provided for widows, hosted communal meals, and cared for the poor directly—without a dime from Washington.
  • Communities helped each other in times of need without expecting bureaucratic intervention.

These families were poor by today’s standards, but they were rich in faith, discipline, and self-sufficiency. They raised warriors, not wards. They built churches, not case files. And when hard times came, they pulled together—not to vote for handouts, but to work, pray, and rebuild.

No Social Security. No food stamps. No unemployment insurance. And yet—they survived. Because they believed in God, not government.

V. Welfare Undermines the Fear of God

A man who fears God will work, give, and take responsibility. A man who trusts in the state will drift, consume, and make excuses.

Government dependency erodes moral character. It teaches men to expect something for nothing. It enables sloth. It undermines discipline. It feeds entitlement.

“If anyone is not willing to work, let him not eat.” – 2 Thessalonians 3:10

This is not cruelty. It is mercy. God’s law commands compassion—but it never authorizes laziness. The man who chooses idleness over labor should feel hunger—not because society is heartless, but because the hunger will drive him to repent and work.

Government support short-circuits this repentance. It allows a man to remain in sin while avoiding consequences. It teaches him to blame systems instead of fearing God.

A household built on government subsidy is not neutral—it is spiritually compromised.

VI. What About the Truly Needy?

Some will object: What about the widow? The orphan? The disabled?

Scripture answers clearly: such people are to be cared for by families first, churches second.

“Honor widows who are truly widows… But if any believing woman has relatives who are widows, let her care for them. Let the church not be burdened…” – 1 Timothy 5:3,16

This is God’s triage:

  1. Let sons and daughters care for their parents.
  2. Let extended family support the weak.
  3. Let the church provide charity with accountability.
  4. Only in the most exceptional of circumstances should civil aid even be considered—and never through centralized, pagan, tax-funded systems.

We must rebuild these structures. Let the church revive the diaconate. Let households create storehouses of food and savings. Let brothers and sisters bind together in mutual aid.

The answer to poverty is not more government—it is more order.

VII. Why Modern Christians Compromise

So why do so many professing Christians continue to feed at the government trough?

  • Fear: They fear hardship and don’t trust God to provide through family or labor.
  • Laziness: They prefer ease over effort.
  • Deception: They’ve been told welfare is a form of “justice.”
  • Worldliness: They no longer think like the Kingdom of God but like the kingdoms of men.

But in every case, the underlying problem is a failure of faith. They trust the bureaucracy more than the Bible. They believe the promise of politicians more than the promises of God.

“Cursed is the man who trusts in man and makes flesh his strength, whose heart turns away from the Lord.” – Jeremiah 17:5

The curse of statism is not just national—it is personal. It erodes a man’s soul, weakens his household, and places his children under the thumb of a rival authority.

VIII. Restoring Biblical Provision: The Path Forward

So what must be done?

1. Patriarchs Must Provide

Every Christian man must repent of passivity and take up the mantle of provision. He must labor with his hands, work with dignity, and build a household economy that does not need the state.

Even in hardship, he must refuse dependency. He must teach his sons to produce, not consume. He must store, save, plant, and build—so that his household is resilient and righteous.

2. Wives Must Rule the Kitchen, Not the Debit Card

Many modern women are complicit in statism through consumerism and waste. A godly wife must learn to stretch meals, preserve food, garden, and practice old-world frugality. She must reject the lie that government benefits are a form of “help” and embrace the glory of true provision under her husband’s leadership.

3. Churches Must Recover Charity and Discipline

The early church cared for its poor through structured accountability (Acts 6). The modern church must stop outsourcing compassion to Caesar and reclaim the ministry of mercy. That includes screening needs, requiring repentance, involving families, and calling men to responsibility.

4. Reject the Idolatry of Safety Nets

The Christian life is not safe. It is sacrificial. The patriarch must embrace risk, toil, and the potential for difficulty. He must teach his children that God provides through His order, not through the welfare state.

Let your household be known for its strength—not its benefits.

IX. Final Charge: Choose This Day Whom You Will Serve

It is time to draw a line in the sand.

You cannot build The Great Order with one hand in God’s Word and the other in the government treasury. You cannot preach Christ’s lordship while living off Caesar’s crumbs. You cannot restore patriarchy while letting the state nurse your children.

“Choose you this day whom ye will serve… but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” – Joshua 24:15

This is not just a spiritual declaration. It is a material separation. It means walking away from dependency. It means breaking ties with the state. It means building real provision through faith, labor, family, and the church.

Let the world call it foolish. Let your peers call it extreme.

But when the next collapse comes—when the digital IDs are issued, the food supply is choked, the money is controlled, and the freedom to dissent is revoked—it will be the man who trusted God and ruled his house who will stand firm.

His barns will be full. His children will be secure. His conscience will be clear. And his legacy will remain.

Because he did not bow to Pharaoh. He did not sell his household to the state. He did not wait for permission to obey God.

He stood.

Let that man be you.

Health, Religion, Social Topics

Sons of Responsibility, Daughters of Duty: Why Children Must Do Daily Chores

No comments

In a world collapsing under the weight of entitlement and indolence, there stands one simple, potent, and often overlooked discipline that once built civilizations and now could restore them: daily chores for children.

Yes—chores. The ancient, sacred act of children participating in the labor of the household, of being given tasks not as punishment, but as preparation. In former days, this was assumed. Today, it is scandalous.

But make no mistake: the decline of children doing chores is not just a minor cultural shift—it is a root cause of social decay. Where there is no training in labor, there will be no love of labor. Where there is no love of labor, there will be no builders, only consumers. No stewards, only dependents. No leaders, only idle, effeminate men and distracted, disorderly women.

Let the modern world scoff. Let soft parents protest. Let the child psychologists complain. As for us, we will return to the ancient paths, where children labored alongside their fathers and mothers—learning duty, order, responsibility, and the ways of God.

I. God’s Design: Children as Workers Within the Household

From the earliest pages of Scripture, work is not a punishment, but a purpose. Genesis 2:15 tells us, “And the Lord God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it.” Before the fall, there was labor. Man was created not for luxury, but for dominion.

That dominion mandate extends to the household. A Biblical home is not a vacation resort, but a training ground—a miniature kingdom under the rule of a patriarch, where all members contribute according to their capacity.

Children are not excluded from this. Proverbs 20:11 declares, “Even a child is known by his doings, whether his work be pure, and whether it be right.” God does not consider children exempt from moral and productive labor. From their earliest years, they are to be formed in work and order.

Deuteronomy 6 commands fathers to teach the Law “diligently unto thy children,” not merely in words, but in lifestyle. And the Law included rhythms of farming, feasting, stewardship, and sacrifice. All of this required participation—daily, disciplined, dutiful involvement. Children were not idle. They labored.

II. The Decline of Chores: A Timeline of Cultural Collapse

Historically, chores were not optional. For thousands of years, children performed essential work to sustain the family economy.

In agrarian households from ancient Israel to colonial America, children were expected to rise early, tend livestock, gather wood, fetch water, weed gardens, grind grain, and more. These tasks were not busywork—they were survival.

But as industrialization took hold in the West, especially post-Industrial Revolution (circa 1760-1840), the role of the household shifted. Work moved to the factory. Families moved to cities. The household was no longer the center of production—it became a center of consumption.

By the 20th century, with the rise of public schooling, mass media, and child labor laws (many of them necessary in abusive contexts but overextended), children were increasingly detached from real, meaningful work. In 1900, over 80% of American children did regular household chores. By 1970, that number had dropped below 50%. Today, less than 30% of children in the United States are assigned consistent, daily chores (Pew Research Center, 2019).

And the consequences are devastating.

III. What the Research Says: Work Builds Character

Modern psychological and sociological studies confirm what Scripture has always taught: children need work to mature.

A long-term study by the University of Minnesota found that the single best predictor of adult success—financial, relational, and emotional—was whether that child had done chores regularly beginning by age 3 or 4 (Rossmann, 2002). Not IQ. Not athleticism. Not schooling. Chores.

Harvard University’s Center on the Developing Child notes that “responsibility-based training” such as chores builds executive function skills: impulse control, time management, problem-solving, and resilience. These are precisely the skills modern young people lack.

Dr. Marty Rossmann’s research showed that children who had regular chores were more likely to have successful careers, strong marriages, and avoid drug use and entitlement attitudes.

Why? Because work humbles. It grounds. It shapes the soul to obey reality. In doing dishes, scrubbing floors, and feeding chickens, children learn that the world is not about them. They learn to serve, to sweat, and to obey. This is sanctification in miniature.

IV. Biblical Examples: Training Through Task

Joseph learned administration not in Pharaoh’s court, but in his father’s fields. David became a man after God’s own heart while watching sheep and defending them from lions. Ruth’s character was proven in the fields of Boaz. Jesus Himself—God incarnate—was not spared work. Mark 6:3 refers to Him as “the carpenter.” He learned labor under Joseph before teaching doctrine in the synagogue.

This is not accidental. God’s pattern is always to prepare leaders through labor. Chores are not beneath a child—they are essential to their exaltation.

Proverbs 22:6 commands us to “Train up a child in the way he should go.” Training is not lecturing. It is forming. It is discipline. It is day after day of doing. And it includes work. Proverbs 12:11 adds, “He that tilleth his land shall be satisfied with bread: but he that followeth vain persons is void of understanding.” Children who are not trained in real labor will follow vain persons—and they do. They follow influencers, gamers, celebrities. Why? Because they were not taught to work.

V. The Modern Rebellion: Why Parents No Longer Require Chores

Several lies have infected modern parenting, each contributing to the erosion of work ethic in children.

1. “Let them be children.”
 This sentimental lie separates play from responsibility. But in Biblical cultures, children were expected to contribute early—not crushed under burdens, but trained into productivity.

2. “They’ll learn later.”
 No, they won’t. Habits form early. Waiting until 16 to teach work is like planting seed in winter. Proverbs 13:24 warns that “he who spares the rod hates his son.” Neglecting discipline—whether correction or chore—is hatred disguised as love.

3. “I don’t want them to feel burdened.”
 Burden is not the enemy. Sin is. Sloth is. Pride is. Our ancestors survived famines, plagues, wars, and exile. Today’s children weep when told to vacuum. This is shameful.

VI. The Choreless Generation: Cultural Consequences

The decline of childhood labor has led to a generation unfit to lead, unable to serve, and unwilling to sacrifice.

  • Entitlement replaces gratitude. If a child never labors for anything, he will expect everything.
  • Laziness replaces initiative. If a child is not expected to finish a task, he will never start one without being begged.
  • Rebellion replaces obedience. If a child never submits to chore commands, he will not submit to divine commands.

A 2022 study from Psychology Today found that over 70% of college students suffer from “learned helplessness”—the belief that they cannot change their situation or do hard things. These are the fruit of choreless homes.

Historically, societies that neglected work collapsed. Ancient Rome, during its decline, turned from disciplined agriculture and civic service to bread, circuses, and dependency. So too in modern America, where young adults are more likely to be living at home, playing video games, and avoiding responsibility than starting families, working the land, or building households.

VII. The Household Economy: Chores as Economic Training

Biblical households are economic engines. As we’ve noted in The Great Order, the family was not merely for emotional comfort—it was the unit of production, inheritance, and dominion.

Daily chores are the first taste of this. They teach a child that his hands matter. That his labor contributes. That his existence has weight.

  • Boys should learn to chop wood, mow fields, stack hay, clean barns, fix fences, build shelves, wash tools.
  • Girls should learn to cook, clean, sew, garden, organize, care for siblings, and manage the home.

These are not outdated roles—they are divinely ordered. Titus 2:4–5 calls young women to be “keepers at home.” 1 Thessalonians 4:11 commands men to “work with your own hands.”

Children who do chores are being inducted into this sacred economy. They are not slaves. They are sons and daughters—learning to rule their future domains.

VIII. Restoring the Chore: Practical Steps for the Patriarch

How can you restore this divine order in your home? Here are ten actionable principles:

  1. Start young. Even a two-year-old can put toys away.
  2. Be consistent. Daily chores must be daily. Random tasks do not build discipline.
  3. Tie chores to identity, not rewards. Avoid bribing. Instead, say: “You are a son in this house. Sons serve.”
  4. Model the work. Let them see you labor joyfully. There is glory in sweat.
  5. Increase difficulty over time. Don’t baby teenagers. Prepare them for dominion.
  6. Train before you command. Teach how to sweep before assigning sweeping.
  7. Connect it to Scripture. Regularly quote verses like Colossians 3:23: “Whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord.”
  8. Honor their work. Praise a job well done. Not with rewards, but with recognition.
  9. Correct laziness immediately. Sloth is sin. Tolerating it is fatherly failure.
  10. Link chores to calling. Remind them: “This is how God prepares you for leadership.”

IX. The Fruit of Labor: From Households to Nations

The patriarch who trains his children in daily labor is doing more than running a tidy home. He is raising civilization builders. The world may laugh—but when their towers fall and their youth collapse under fragility, it will be the disciplined sons and daughters of order who rise to lead.

Let us not aim merely for clean floors. Let us aim for clean hearts—hearts trained by work, shaped by order, and anchored in the fear of God.

X. Conclusion: Let the Children Rise

The Great Order is not built on theories, but on actions. And the first battlefield is the home. Daily chores are weapons in this war for culture. They are tools of sanctification. Instruments of wisdom. Pathways to dominion.

When children rise early, perform their tasks with diligence, and return to the table satisfied with honest labor, the Kingdom advances.

Let them scrub. Let them plant. Let them fold. Let them serve.

And let the fathers not grow weary in training them. For in due season, we shall reap—if we faint not.

“For even the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister…” – Mark 10:45

If the Lord Himself embraced labor, how dare we withhold it from our sons and daughters?

Let the choreless generation be replaced by a chosen generation—trained, tested, and triumphant.

Let the Great Order rise.

Soli Deo Gloria.

Future, Health, History, Holidays, Politics, Polygamy, Religion, Social Topics

Announcing the Forthcoming Release of “The Great Order” by Lord Redbeard

No comments

Bold Foundations for Biblical Patriarchy, Masculinity, and Household Dominion

> “If the foundations be destroyed, what can the righteous do?”

— Psalm 11:3

We stand at the precipice of a collapsing world. The nations rage, the families crumble, the church is compromised, and the people groan under the weight of disorder. Men are passive, women are rebellious and children are untamed. The covenantal design of God’s order has been all but forgotten.

Yet from the ashes, a trumpet has sounded. A clarion call not of man’s wisdom but of divine truth — bold, ancient, and uncompromising.

That trumpet is The Great Order.

This book is not merely a work of writing. It is not a collection of random thoughts. It is a declaration. One forged through the fires of spiritual warfare, personal experience, obedience, and relentless pursuit of the Kingdom of God.

And now, by the providence and grace of the Most High, it is almost here.

A Work Birthed in Fire and Revelation

There are books that entertain, books that educate and books that simply pass the time. The Great Order is none of these. This is not a journalistic commentary on the state of the culture. This is not a casual opinion piece about the family.

This is a blueprint for dominion!

Every word in this book has been wrought through struggle, failure and triumph. Each sentence has been borne through prayer, sharpened through Scripture, and written through conviction. I did not merely choose to write this book, I was compelled, burdened and gripped by the Spirit of God with a vision too weighty to ignore.

> “The word of the Lord was in my heart as a burning fire shut up in my bones…”

— Jeremiah 20:9

I have lived these words, while often failing. I have been humbled by them, corrected by them, and built by them. They were not written in an ivory tower but forged in the trenches of real fatherhood, real household government, and real spiritual war. The Great Order is not theoretical, it is incarnational. It is truth that has been lived, tested, and proven by patriarchs since the beginning of written history. 

This book has not been filtered for cultural acceptance. It has not been softened for fragile ears. It is a sword, a plumbline, a trumpet blast for men to rise, women to embrace sacred roles, and families to become embassies of heaven.

 Why This Book Is a Threat to the World and a Balm for the Faithful

The world hates order, it mocks patriarchy, it despises submission and tears down hierarchy. This is no accident, Satan’s war has always been against God’s design. At the heart of that design is the household, governed by man, under Christ, filled with fruitful labor, and advancing the Kingdom through generations.

The Great Order is a threat to every demonic stronghold because it restores the very structure the enemy fears most,the Biblical family.

But this book is more than just a rebuke of the present. It is a balm for the faithful, a comfort to the remnant, a light to those wandering in the darkness of feminism, fatherlessness, and confusion. Many have felt the stirrings in their soul that things are not right, that the modern way is broken and that there must be more.

This book puts language to what the Spirit of God has already whispered in many hearts. It is a framework, a vocabulary,a standard.

In a generation that knows the truth instinctively but lacks the words to defend or articulate it, The Great Order gives voice to the righteous yearning buried in every God-fearing man and woman. It bridges the gap between conviction and communication, between the groaning of the soul and the clarity of truth.

Truths We Know But Cannot Articulate — Until Now

There are times when a man knows something is wrong, even though he cannot explain it. He sees a woman preach, and something in him recoils. He watches a child disobey his mother, and he feels disgust, he sees a home led by a career-focused wife and feels instinctively — this is disorder.

But if pressed, he cannot explain it. He cannot defend it, he cannot express it to his wife, to his children, to his church, to his peers. The conscience bears witness to God’s design. But the vocabulary has been stolen.

This is the plight of our generations, men and women raised without the theological framework or historical wisdom to articulate what they sense in their souls. We know disorder when we see it. We feel its destruction, but we have been robbed of the language to name it, and the courage to confront and profess it.

The Great Order restores that language. It articulates what you’ve always known, it puts steel in your spine and precision in your mouth. It enables fathers to teach their sons, it enables husbands to lead their wives, and enables shepherds to guard the flock. This book is not abstract,  it is accessible, practical, and potent.

It accomplishes the seemingly impossible: giving form to formless conviction, giving words to what was once only felt. It is the bridge between inner clarity and external boldness.

IV. The Structure of the Great Order: A Manual for Reconstruction

This is not a book of feelings. It is not a devotional. It is a war manual.

The Great Order is organized into chapters that walk step-by-step through the rebuilding of Christian civilization:

Biblical Patriarchy — restoring God’s government in the home.

Masculinity — dominion, not indulgence; strength through sacrifice.

Christian Polygyny — a weapon of revival and fruitfulness.

The Role of Women — sacred submission, homemaking, and generational building.

Family Government — fathers as kings, priests, and judges.

Household Economy — families as productive units, not consumers.

Education — indoctrinating children in righteousness.

Resistance — rejecting feminism, statism, and cultural apostasy.

The Church and the Household — integrating worship and dominion.

It doesn’t simply teach why we must return to Biblical order, it shows how. It is intensely practical, designed to be implemented. The principles in this book already form the foundation of households that have rejected compromise and chosen to live by the Law of God.

The Fruit of the Great Order: Revival, Peace, and Restoration

Revival will not come from stadiums, celebrity pastors, or emotional altar calls.

Revival begins at the dinner table!

It begins when a man takes his place as head of his home. When a woman repents of autonomy and embraces her role with joy. When children are trained in obedience, fear of God, and discipline. When homes become churches, the Sabbath is kept, and Scripture governs life.

The Great Order is not just about family. It is about national restoration.This book declares what few are willing to say: that peace cannot come until patriarchy is restored. That harmony cannot come until hierarchy is obeyed. That blessing cannot come until the household is ruled by God’s order.

This is not nostalgia, politics, or moralism, this is covenantal. When men obey the order of heaven, the result is peace on earth.

Children flourish.

Wives rejoice.

Men lead.

The poor are cared for.

The land is healed.

The nations tremble.

This is how we rebuild civilization — not by electing the right leaders, but by raising them in our homes.

 A Book for the Centuries to come:

The world writes books for entertainment, and the church writes books to sell but The Great Order was written to last, to stand the test of time.

This is not a trending topic, but a timeless template. It will be as relevant in five hundred years as it is today, because it is built on eternal truth. As long as the Word of God stands — and it will stand forever, this book will be a plumbline for the faithful.

When governments fall, the households guided by this book will remain!

When seminaries apostatize, the sons trained by this book will become shepherds!

When feminism collapses, the daughters raised by this book will rebuild homes!

The Great Order is not a one-generation manual. It is a multi-generational standard. It is written to be passed from father to son, from elder to disciple, from patriarch to patriarch. It is the blueprint for God’s covenant people to restore the ancient paths (Jeremiah 6:16). This book will outlast trends. It will outlast empires. Because it is built on the Rock.

Who This Book Is For

This book is not for everyone. It is not for cowards. It is not for cultural Christians. It is not for women who want to control men or men who fear responsibility.

This book is for fathers ready to rule their homes, wives ready to be crowned with honor, 

sons ready to build legacies, daughters ready to prepare for homemaking. It is for shepherds ready to reform their flocks, remnant believers ready to live counter-culturally, and seekers ready to repent and submit to God’s order.

If you are tired of the lies. If you know there’s more. If you feel the conviction but lack the clarity. If you want to plant trees under whose shade your great-grandchildren will sit — then this book is for you.

What to Expect in the Coming Release

The release of The Great Order will be more than a publication. It will be a launch. A declaration of war. A rallying point for households across the earth who are tired of compromise and ready to build.

The book will be released in softcover initially, with hardcover, audiobook, and digital formats planned for the near future. This is more than a book. It is a movement.

The website LordRedbeard.com will serve as the command center — featuring articles, updates, resources, and an ever-growing library or resources for covenant households.

Let the Patriarchs Rise

We are not waiting for revival, we are building it. We are not waiting for the world to wake up, we are establishing households that shine as light in the darkness. We are not waiting for permission, we have a mandate.

God is raising up a remnant of men — fathers, brothers, sons — who will not bow to Baal. They will not kneel to feminism, and will not compromise with the world.

They will build, marry, multiply and they will reign!

And when the Lord returns, He will find not a scattered, weak, feminized people — but an ordered people. A governed people. A glorious bride.

The Great Order is the trumpet.

The time for excuses is over.

Let the patriarchs rise.

Let the women rejoice in their submission and glory.

Let the children be trained as arrows.

Let the households become kingdoms.

Let the dominion begin.

Are you ready?

The Great Order is coming, get your house ready, train your sons, teach your daughters, insure that your name is found among the builders!

Prepare your household, clear your calendar, sharpen your mind and fortify your heart.

The time has come.

The standard has been raised.

The restoration has begun.

Let the Great Order rise and be restored!

Soli Deo Gloria.

Health, Religion, Social Topics

The Keeper of the Table: A Wife’s Duty in Nourishment, Frugality, and Dominion Over the Household Food Economy

No comments

The table is not just a place of eating. It is a place of worship, formation, and covenantal joy. The aroma of daily bread, the sight of a garden harvest, and the discipline of wholesome meals are not secondary to Christian living—they are vital expressions of order, stewardship, and feminine strength.

In a godly household, the wife is the keeper of the table. She governs not only the aesthetics of hospitality but the substance of nourishment. Her duties in food, nutrition, and frugality are not mundane tasks—they are holy responsibilities entrusted to her by God to bless her husband, raise strong children, and honor the covenantal home.

I. Food Preparation as a Sacred Ministry

From the earliest pages of Scripture, food preparation has been a domain of feminine care and virtue. Abraham’s wife, Sarah, “quickly kneaded three seahs of fine flour” to serve their angelic guests (Genesis 18:6). The Proverbs 31 woman “brings her food from afar” (Proverbs 31:14) and “rises while it is yet night to provide food for her household” (v.15). She is not idle, and her hands are diligent in feeding those under her care.

Food preparation is not a secular task. It is a form of love. When a wife prepares nourishing meals, she is doing more than satisfying hunger—she is building the bones and minds of future generations. She is creating an atmosphere of peace and stability. She is turning raw ingredients into sustenance for warriors and worshippers.

“She looks well to the ways of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness.” – Proverbs 31:27

This ministry of nourishment is daily. It is repetitive. It is sacrificial. But it is glorious. A wife who governs the kitchen with wisdom and joy brings strength to her home, honor to her husband, and delight to her Creator.

II. Whole Food for Whole Families: Rejecting Industrial Poison

In modern times, food has been hijacked by industry and perverted by convenience. Processed sugars, chemical preservatives, seed oils, and hyper-palatable junk have replaced the God-given simplicity of grains, vegetables, legumes, and fresh produce. This shift has not only sickened bodies—it has weakened wills, dulled minds, and sapped the energy of Christian homes.

A godly wife must resist this tide. She must take dominion over the kitchen, not by outsourcing it to fast food or microwaves, but by returning to whole food principles that nourish rather than harm.

  • Replace sugar with honey and fruit.
  • Replace refined flour with whole grains.
  • Eliminate junk snacks, sodas, and boxed meals.
  • Cook from scratch with rice, beans, seasonal produce, and clean meats.

The goal is not gourmet extravagance—it is wholesome simplicity. Meals built from God’s earth. Meals that are filling, healing, and strengthening.

“Whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.” – 1 Corinthians 10:31

The body is a temple (1 Corinthians 6:19). Feeding that temple with poison is an act of defilement. A godly wife understands this. She treats food not as a comfort drug or a hobby, but as a sacred trust.

III. Frugality and Creativity: Dominion Without Debt

The wise woman is not only a good cook—she is a skilled economist. She manages the food budget with shrewdness and foresight. She does not chase trends or waste money on convenience. She learns the art of frugality—not out of poverty, but out of purpose.

“She perceives that her merchandise is profitable.” – Proverbs 31:18

In a time of inflation and supply chain instability, the wife who knows how to stretch meals, avoid waste, and creatively repurpose leftovers is a treasure. She buys in bulk. She plans meals in advance. She stores surplus. She prepares for lean seasons.

This frugality is not scarcity—it is abundance through wisdom. The family that eats rice and lentils for lunch, fresh bread for dinner, and garden vegetables for supper is eating better than the household living on frozen pizza and debt.

Such a wife becomes the financial gatekeeper of the home, ensuring that dominion is built not only through income, but through intelligent consumption.

IV. Supplementing with Gardening: Cultivating Eden at Home

In an era where even food is politically weaponized and biologically manipulated, many families are returning to gardening—not as a hobby, but as a necessity. A wife with a garden is a wife who brings Eden into her backyard. She becomes a producer, not just a consumer.

  • Lettuce, kale, and spinach for fresh greens.
  • Tomatoes, zucchini, and beans for seasonal staples.
  • Herbs like basil, oregano, and rosemary for flavor and health.
  • Potatoes, carrots, and onions for long-term use.

Gardening builds resilience. It teaches children responsibility. It reduces dependency on globalist systems and empowers the home to feed itself.

The Proverbs 31 woman “considers a field and buys it; with the fruit of her hands she plants a vineyard” (v.16). Likewise, the modern Christian wife should reclaim gardening as an act of dominion. Whether in pots on an apartment balcony or rows in a country yard—let her plant, harvest, and glorify God.

V. Preserving and Storing: Wisdom for Times to Come

In addition to daily meals, the virtuous woman thinks seasonally and strategically. She does not wait for winter to prepare. She preserves food. She stores dry goods. She builds a pantry as a bulwark against uncertainty.

“The wise store up choice food and olive oil, but fools gulp theirs down.” – Proverbs 21:20 (NIV)

This includes:

  • Canning fruits, vegetables, and sauces.
  • Dehydrating herbs and meats.
  • Freezing harvests and broths.
  • Stockpiling rice, beans, flour, and salt.

This is not fear—it is foresight. Noah built the ark before it rained. Joseph stored grain before the famine. Likewise, the godly wife builds a food reserve—not to hoard, but to provide, even in times of trouble.

A home with shelves of home-canned peaches, dried herbs, buckets of oats, and fresh bread is a home that testifies to wisdom and love.

VI. Bread from Her Hands: The Daily Offering

Among the most ancient and powerful acts of feminine provision is the baking of bread. The Proverbs 31 woman “brings her food from afar,” and “her hands hold the spindle.” She is industrious in nourishing her household.

Daily bread is not merely food—it is a symbol of divine provision. Christ taught us to pray, “Give us this day our daily bread” (Matthew 6:11), because bread represents the essentials of life—humble, sustaining, fresh.

When a wife bakes bread daily, she embodies this principle. The home is filled with aroma and warmth. Children grow up with the memory of kneading dough beside their mother. Husbands are strengthened by their wife’s labor.

Simple loaves made from flour, salt, water, and yeast become sacraments of love. They are cheaper than store bread, healthier, and laden with meaning.

VII. Lessons from Early America: Strength Through Simplicity

Modern families could learn much from the agrarian households of early America. In the 1700s and early 1800s, meat was a rare luxury, not a daily staple. Sugar was scarce, used sparingly if at all. Meals consisted of:

  • Porridge and cornmeal mush
  • Root vegetables like turnips and potatoes
  • Beans, lentils, and seasonal greens
  • Bread made at home
  • Apples, preserved fruits, or wild berries

Despite the simplicity, these families were stronger—physically and mentally. Obesity was rare. Disease was less rampant. Children were hardy. And meals were sacred events, not hurried inconveniences.

Modern science confirms this. Diets high in sugar and processed food are linked to inflammation, heart disease, obesity, and depression. Returning to simple, whole foods is not nostalgic—it is righteous stewardship.

A wife who learns from the past is not regressive—she is wise. She sees that the way forward may mean reaching backward to principles that sustained generations before us.

Conclusion: The Hand that Feeds Rules the Home

The wife is not just a cook—she is a nourisher of nations. Through her hands, children grow strong, husbands are blessed, and guests are welcomed. Through her wisdom, the budget is guarded, the pantry is filled, and health is preserved.

She does not need a professional degree to rule the kitchen—only fear of the Lord, joy in her calling, and skill in her hands. She sees food not as a chore, but as a ministry. She understands that feeding the family is a matter of worship, not mere routine.

In this age of dietary chaos and culinary idolatry, let the Christian wife rise and take dominion over the kitchen. Let her plant, cook, preserve, and prepare—not just meals, but warriors, worshipers, and wise women.

Let her say with joy each evening, as her husband blesses the food, her children gather around the table, and the bread is broken:

“This is the portion the Lord has given me to tend—and I will do it with strength and love.”

Health

Corona/Virus Treatment and Prevention

51 Comments

Last night I was handed a flyer by a good friend of mine originally written by a respiratory therapist that included some common sense things we can do to combat the Corona virus.

After reading the flyer I realized that many people simply were never taught many of the things that I once considered to be common knowledge. In addition many people are regularly administered treatments (often by medical professionals) that actually prolong or even worsen the flu/virus.

Using this handout as a guide whilst adding additional information I have learned over the years I have compiled a list of 10 helpful things every human should know and understand before making decisions about treating viral symptoms, and even preventing them.

Fevers

Fevers in general are irrationally feared by most people, mostly due to a lack of understanding exacerbated by liability concerns of medical professionals. When you contract a virus your bodies immune system identifies that intruder and destroys it while building specific anti-bodies to combat it better in the future.

The process of your immune system using good cells to attack and destroy the viral cells cause a release of energy. That energy is absorbed by the surrounding tissue and blood as heat thereby causing your overall body temperature to rise above “Normal” this is the root cause of fevers.

Viruses are also EXTREMELY sensitive to heat. The elevated body temperature (Fever) is very effective in killing the virus (even more effective than the immune system) . When we take pharmaceuticals such as Motrin, Tylenol, Advil, Excedrin and so forth we lower our body temperature allowing the virus to live longer while making it harder for our immune system to eradicate the virus.

It also helps to keep your house warm, wear multiple layers or cover up and stay warm. This will reduce the amount of energy your body needs to produce heat in combating the virus.

Obviously we should use common sense and treat a fever that exceeds a “safe” level. I personally never treat a fever with medication unless it is in excess of 103 degrees Fahrenheit and other methods such as a cool shower have failed.

Pharmaceuticals

Remember medications DO NOT in ANY way make you well or cure any viruses! Every medication merely relives or covers up symptoms. In most cases they only serve to prolong or even exacerbate the virus. Most medications cause more overall harm than good when used to treat viruses!

There certainly are specific cases where medication can be helpful in combating a virus but these cases should be the exception and not the norm.

Dehydration

Not drinking enough water and staying properly hydrated during the colder months is the primary cause of contracting viruses. It also greatly contributes to prolonging the course of a virus once contracted. Our cells need fresh water to combat the virus as well as process the waste.

When it’s hot outside everyone universally knows that you are easily dehydrated and should drink plenty of water. In addition viruses do not survive well outside the body in warmer temperatures. Most people do not realize we should be drinking at least the same amount in the winter. Cold temperatures extract nearly as much moisture from our bodies as hot, just consider what happens to uncovered meat in the freezer – it is completely dehydrated on a matter of days plus viruses survive much better in the cool weather.

Gatorade and other similar drinks work well for re-hydration if you are sick. These drinks have small amounts of real sugar as well at electrolytes. If you go to the hospital the first thing they will do is give you an IV with D5W (Sugar Water) and Saline. Gatorade is cheaper and doesn’t require an IV.

Humans are well equipped to defend ourselves from these viruses. We naturally breath through our noses where we have several lines of defense. First we have nose hair, then mucus in our nose and sinuses followed by our tonsils. All of these serve as filters to protect us from bacteria and viruses but they only function properly when we are well hydrated. When you do not drink enough water and your nose is dry viral cells are not filtered out and go straight to your lungs where it is very easy to enter the bloodstream.

Mucus is our primary filter. It’s sticky consistency filters out most naturally occurring contaminates such as viruses, The mucus ultimately ends up in our stomach where it is very difficult to enter the bloodstream. Most contaminates and all viruses that I am familiar with are easily killed by our stomach acid and processed as waste.

Help Your Body Fight

We were not intended to be primarily indoor creatures and we were certainly not intended to eat primarily processed and pre-packaged foods. Most people should be taking some basic supplements at ALL times. Vitamin D, Vitamin C, Zinc and Magnesium are the most important in my opinion. This can generally by accomplished with a simple multivitamin once a day. I doubt you will notice an immediate change but when you look back over the course of the year you will notice a trend of better overall health and far fewer sick days.

We all should eat considerably healthier on a regular basis but this is exceptionally important when we are sink. Our bodies have an amazing ability to heal themselves if we provide the nutrients necessary.

Keep Moving

This is one of the most important things we can do once we are sick. Move around, this keeps your blood circulating and helps to oxygenate your body. Keep your lungs moist – Take hot showers and breathe in as much steam as possible. Take repeated deep breaths. Chewing mint gum can help with bronchial dilation. Laying around in bed or the hospital is the primary cause of pneumonia. Try coughing into a moist towel, this helps break up phlegm in your lungs.

If anyone has addition tips please leave them in the comments and I will attempt to incorporate them into this blog

Health, Religion

What Does The Bible Say We Should Eat?

6 Comments

What Should We Eat?

The dietary laws about “clean” and “unclean” meats are among the clearest instructions found in the Bible. For thousands of years these laws have been a striking mark of identity separating God’s people from the world (Leviticus 20:25–26). Consequently, for centuries, these same instructions have been a source of controversy and confusion among various religious groups who all claim to get their beliefs from the same book—the Bible. Some have felt that “these laws express God’s will” and as such are wise, reasonable, and beneficial dietary regulations revealing God’s care for the health of His people. This public health focus of those dietary laws was espoused by Maimonides, the great Jewish philosopher of the Middle Ages in Spain and many other notable scholars However, other theologians have openly referred to the Leviticus dietary guidelines as meaningless, repulsive, arbitrary and irrational ideas that originated in primitive superstitions and not in the mind of God. These theologians have confidently asserted: there are no logical explanations for many of the guidelines—that health was definitely not their purpose; that it is a waste of time for Christians to study this section of Scripture. They have asked, What has all this to do with religion? Some have even stated, “The Scriptures do not claim that health is a factor in the dietary laws, though possibly hygiene was a by-product. Yet God said His laws were for our good, prolonging our lives (Deuteronomy 5:29, 33; 10:13). His dietary ordinances were not arbitrary. Their purpose was to benefit us. That being so, why would God later inspire a New Testament that supposedly shows “Christ repealed all the Leviticus regulations on unclean meats and practices” ? Why would an all-wise Creator function in such a contradictory manner? If you have ever pondered such questions, perhaps it’s time you really looked into the subject to determine for yourself what the real truth of the matter is.

Prove All Things:

The God of the Bible challenges each of us to “prove all things; hold fast that which is good” (1 Thessalonians 5:21 KJV). The answers could change your life and immensely impact your health! The Scriptures reveal several important reasons for the dietary laws. In Exodus we learn that God chose the nation of Israel for a special purpose (Exodus 19:5–6). Interestingly, the dietary laws were designed to make the Israelites distinct from other nations. Why? God told Moses, “I am the Lord your God, who has separated you from the peoples. You shall therefore distinguish between clean beasts and unclean…. And you shall be holy to Me, for I the Lord am holy, and have separated you from the peoples, that you should be Mine” (Leviticus 20:24–26). God chose Israel for the purpose of becoming a model nation—a light and example to the world. “Therefore be careful to observe them; for this is your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the peoples who will hear all these statutes, and say, ‘Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.’ For what great nation is there that has God so near to it, as the Lord our God is to us, for whatever reason we may call upon Him? And what great nation is there that has such statutes and righteous judgments as are in all this law which I set before you this day?” (Deuteronomy 4:6–8). God separated Israel from other nations so the results of His laws could be clearly seen by the other peoples and to show the wonderful benefits provided by His righteous ways. The dietary laws were also designed to promote wise management and efficient utilization of the environmental resources that God entrusted to mankind. The instructions about “clean” and “unclean” foods are important in fulfilling the commission given in Genesis 1:28 and 2:15 to “tend and keep” the earth. To rightfully understand the dietary laws, they must be seen in the context of God’s purpose.

Chew The Cud

Leviticus 11 and Deuteronomy 14 are the primary passages in the Bible that discuss this subject. These chapters give very specific information summarized in simple, easy-to-understand principles. Today, however, the discoveries of modern science are revealing just how practical and important these laws really are. Beginning in Leviticus 11:1–3, we read that “the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying… ‘These are the animals which you may eat among all the beasts’ that are on the earth… whatever divides the hoof having cloven hooves and chewing the cud.’” This describes plant-eating mammals (herbivores) classified as ruminants. A ruminant is “the name given to a grazing animal that has a highly specialized digestive system and splits the hoof’” (World Book Encyclopedia, 1995). These animals have four-chambered stomachs that convert grasses that are inedible to humans and other animals into nutritious, high quality protein products (meat and milk specifically) that humans can then use for sustenance. Examples of such clean animals would be all cattle, sheep, goats, deer, bison, moose, antelope, gazelles, caribou and giraffes. They are all herbivores that obtain their food by grazing or browsing on grasses and other plants. From the standpoint of wise environmental management, these guidelines make a lot of sense. Vast areas of the globe are covered by grasslands (savannas, veldts, pampas), which are often called marginal lands because they do not have enough rainfall to support the production of food crops like corn or wheat. “The only way billions of acres of grassland can be used for human benefit is via ruminants” (Dairy Council Digest, Jan.–Feb. 1973). Grass-fed animals also produce meat that has a lower fat content than grain-fed animals—which we now realize is a health benefit. The clean animals that God permitted His model nation to eat—designated simply by split hooves and cud-chewing—were designed to produce nutritious food in an economical and ecologically sound manner. These guidelines were given long before the sciences of ecology, economics and nutrition. This was one of the benefits that God wanted the world to see through the example of the nation of Israel.

Hold the Hog:

The dietary laws regarding cud-chewing beasts also prohibit the consumption of all carnivorous animals and omnivorous animals for very logical reasons. God created clean animals to provide food and by-products for human use. He created animals unsuitable for human consumption for other purposes. Carnivores, as beasts of prey play an important role in controlling the populations of other animals and rodents. As an example, wolves and mountain lions, which feed on herds of deer, control not only numbers, but also help maintain the health of the herd by culling out older, sick or infirm animals. That’s one reason we shouldn’t eat carnivores. They eat sick and dead animals and transmit diseases to humans. The pig or swine is specifically mentioned as being unclean and not permitted as human food (Leviticus 11:7–8; Deuteronomy 14:8). While some theologians have stated, “We do not know why the swine was forbidden” (Interpreter’s Bible), thousands of other writers and scientist have found numerous logical reasons related to ecology, economics, nutrition and public health. In the wild, swine are often nocturnal animals that root for food. Their nighttime feeding habits should have kept their contact with humans at a minimum. Domesticated pigs, however, have been used for centuries as scavengers around human settlements. Having an omnivorous animal around that could put on weight rapidly by eating anything from garbage to dead animals and human wastes—and that could later be slaughtered and used for food—has seemed like a pretty good arrangement to many peoples. But is it? Today, domesticated hogs are fed a diet composed mainly of corn and grain. However, as non-ruminants with digestive tracts similar to that of humans, pigs are unable to survive on grasses and thus have been ecological competitors with humans for the same types of food grains (such as wheat, corn and barley). In America about 28% of the corn harvested is fed to hogs. Basically, pigs enjoy eating the same types of food that people eat. This is not a wise use of resources. He foresaw that great herds of hogs would take life-sustaining grain out of the mouths of his people. Jesus Christ Himself did not feel it inappropriate to allow an incident that caused the destruction of a herd of pigs! “Now a herd of many swine was feeding there on the mountain. And they begged Him that He would permit them to enter them. And He permitted them. Then the demons went out of the man and entered the swine, and the herd ran violently down the steep place into the lake and drowned” (Luke 8:32–33). Would Jesus have allowed the destruction of someone’s valuable property, without cause, through carelessness or accident?

Let Us Not Eat Bugs!

One of the major diseases transmitted by swine and other unclean animals is trichinosis. It is caused by a small parasitic roundworm that gets into the muscle tissue of animals and humans. The disease has a global distribution and affects about 4% of the world’s population—nearly 240 million people. This is not surprising considering that “people throughout the world eat more pork than any other kind of meat. Americans consume about 80 pounds per person each year. It should be noted, however, that many carnivorous and omnivorous animals are infected with the parasite Trichinella spiralis. Bear meat, walrus and wild pigs have been significant sources of infections in humans for thousands of years. The list could also include squirrels, rats, cats, dogs, rabbits, foxes, horse meat and marine mammals. It is hardly an accident or coincidence that God prohibited the consumption of these animals by His divinely given dietary laws. Tapeworms, which afflict about 3% of the world’s population (about 180 million), are another serious health problem encountered ONLY when pork is eaten. While beef and fish can also contain other tapeworms that can colonize the human digestive tract and cause discomfort, the pork tapeworm is much more dangerous, the larva of the pork parasite, once inside the human intestine, can migrate through the tissues to the heart, eyes and brain—and can eventually cause death. With reference to pork tapeworm disease, the highest rates of infection are seen in countries where pork is a major part of the diet, such as Mexico, Latin America, United States, Spain, Portugal, Africa, India, southeast Asia, and China. Although the general advice for avoiding parasitic infections from pork and other unclean animals is to adequately cook the meat, the most effective way to avoid these diseases is to avoid eating unclean animals that do not have cloven hooves and do not chew the cud—as God instructed Moses and the Israelites 3,500 years ago. If only this portion of the biblical dietary code were applied today, the global burden of parasitic disease could be reduced by 800% within 1 generation!

Don’t Eat The Garbage Man:

Why did God prohibit eating certain foods? Was the Creator being capricious? Why should He be concerned? Is there a rational, logical basis for the Scriptures dealing with which foods are fit for human consumption? After dealing with edible land animals, the second major set of divine dietary instructions concerned aquatic creatures. In Leviticus we are instructed: ‘These you may eat of all that are in the water: whatever in the water has fins and scales, whether in the seas or in the rivers—that you may eat…. Whatever in the water does not have fins or scales—that shall be an abomination to you” (11:9, 12). Numerous and sometimes fanciful reasons have been proposed for these guidelines. While some Bible scholars recognize that the consumption of unclean organisms can be harmful others suggest that organisms without fins and scales resembled snakes and thus are abhorrent to eat (Interpreter’s Bible, 1953). One source stated that scripturally “unclean,” bottom-dwelling organisms were symbolic of living in sin and pollution, and that fins were symbolic of prayers that could lift us out of such situations (The Bible Commentary, Scribner, 1871). The discoveries of science, however, reveal in greater detail the wisdom and benefits of God’s plain instructions about appropriate food. Biblically “clean fish” are generally free swimming in bodies of water. Most “unclean” fish are either bottom dwellers or predatory scavengers. The prohibition against eating scaleless fish protects against the consumption of fish that produce poisonous substances in their bodies. A U.S. Navy survival manual comments, “All the important fish with poisonous flesh… lack ordinary scales…. Instead, these poisonous fish are covered with bristles or spiny scales, strong sharp thorns, or spines, or are encased in a bony box-like covering. Some have naked skin, that is, no spines or scales”. Many sea creatures listed as venomous (four sharks, 58 stingrays, 47 catfish, 57 scorpion fish, 15 toadfish, etc.) do not have true scales. Eels—nocturnal predatory scavengers that eat “almost any kind of food, dead or alive”—would also be considered unclean. Eel blood contains a toxic substance “which can be dangerous if it comes into contact with eyes or another mucous membrane. The biblical guidelines were designed to point people to the safest kinds of fish to eat.

A Different Purpose:

Shellfish, lacking both fins and scales, are clearly excluded by the biblical dietary laws. But why would lobsters, crabs, crayfish and shrimp, which are considered delicacies in many parts of the world, be prohibited? The answer lies in understanding the role they were designed to play in nature. Lobsters are “nocturnal” foragers. They are bottom walkers and predatory scavengers that scavenge for dead animals and other bottom-dwelling organisms and debris. They are usually caught in lobster pots “baited with dead fish. Lobsters have long antennae and tiny hair-like sensors all over their bodies “that can detect specific chemical molecules in the environment (released by decaying organisms), which can help the lobster identify and locate food, even in the dark. Lobsters have been observed to bury a dead fish and then dig it up later, at intervals, to eat a bit more of it. Crabs are referred to as “professional garbage hunters” and as “scavengers” that eat almost anything. The crab prefers dead fish, but will eat any carrion [dead], “putrefying flesh” (International Wildlife Encyclopedia). Common shrimp, a small, delicate relative of crabs and lobsters, live by day in the mud or sandy bottoms of bays and estuaries all over the world. However, they become active at night as predatory scavengers and are “bottom dwelling detritus feeders “eating dead and decaying matter” (International Wildlife Encyclopedia). These organisms were all created for a very important ecological purpose. They are, in essence, the “garbage collectors” or the “cleanup crew” for the bottoms of lakes, rivers, beaches, bays and oceans. They were not intended to be food for human beings. That is also why the consumption of raw, pickled or undercooked crabs, crayfish, snails and shrimp carries a significant risk of parasitic infections like liver flukes, which infect up to 80 percent of some rural populations in Southeast Asia and Africa.

Danger On the Half Shell:

There are also important and logical reasons why God created and then clearly labeled clams, oysters, mussels and scallops as unclean and inappropriate for human consumption. These creatures are found in lakes, streams and coastal areas around the world where they perform specialized roles. As stationary filter-feeding mollusks, they pump large amounts of water over their mucus-covered gills, trapping tiny pieces of food (silt, plant debris, bacteria, viruses) which they then eat. As a result, mussels and other animals feeding on microscopic particles are the ultimate scavengers of the sea. Filter-feeding organisms are the “vacuum cleaners” for aquatic environments. Their role is to purify the water. Once you understand the purpose for which God created shellfish, the reason they are unclean should become obvious. Just as you would be reluctant to make a meal out of the contents of your vacuum cleaner bag, A/C filter or in your septic tank, the decision to eat shellfish should also be considered carefully! Because their method of feeding is “ideal for concentrating bacteria in sewage,” in addition to collecting and concentrating pathogenic viruses, heavy metals and nerve toxins produced by plankton, these shellfish present a serious health hazard to consumers (International Wildlife Encyclopedia). How serious is the threat of disease? The American Food and Drug Administration has stated that “raw oysters, clams, mussels and pork, so savored by gourmets account for 85 percent of all food born illnesses” (FDA Consumer, June 1991). Outbreaks of cholera, typhoid, hepatitis A, Norwalk virus, salmonella and paralytic shellfish poisoning are just some of the health problems frequently linked to the consumption of these mollusks, In addition ALL hepatitis comes from “Unclean” food! Notices have been published that pregnant women, the elderly and “individuals with immune systems weakened by certain diseases (cancer, diabetes and AIDS) should… avoid eating or handling uncooked shellfish”. These dangerous and potentially life-threatening situations can be avoided by understanding and following the biblical dietary laws that prohibit eating marine organisms that lack fins and scales.

Birds to Bugs:

The final groups of organisms covered by the biblical code are birds, insects and reptiles. Essentially all the excluded fowl are either birds of prey or scavengers like vultures and seagulls. Carnivorous birds are important in controlling populations of other animals. Their dietary habits of eating the flesh and blood of their prey make these birds potential agents for transmitting disease. Predatory fish-eating birds tend to accumulate high levels of toxic chemicals in their bodies. Most of these birds are not important food sources for humans. Reptiles are also among the animals listed as unclean for human food (Leviticus 11:29–30; 42–43). Regarding Insects, only those from the locust/grasshopper family are permissible as food. These creatures are distinguished by having “strong hind legs for springing” and have been used, historically, as a food source in the Middle East.

Dietary Laws Abolished?

The biblical dietary laws are simple, rational, practical and profound. Long before human beings knew the details of disease-causing microorganisms, life cycles of parasites or global ecology, God revealed powerful principles that would protect the environment, provide safe, healthful food and prevent the spread of disease for anyone who would be willing to follow these instructions. The intent and benefits of these biblical guidelines have been acknowledged periodically in history. One scholar observed recently that “most of the laws can be clearly seen to tend toward public health. But if these laws are so logical and beneficial to mankind, where did the idea come from that they have been abolished? Why do Bible-believing Christians seem to be in the forefront of promoting this notion? The answer is found in interpretations that are read into scriptures found in Mark 7 and Acts 10. Studying the “evidence” is all the is needed to gain a clear understanding. In Mark 7, Jesus addressed a question about why His disciples ate without washing their hands according to ceremonial traditions followed by the Pharisees. Some Bible translations add words to Jesus’ answer in verse 19, suggesting that He did away with the dietary laws. However, these added words are not found in the original texts. Christ’s point was that orally ingested dirt does not spiritually defile a person since it does not enter the heart to influence attitudes. The dirt passes through the digestive tract and is eliminated. The subject of clean and unclean meats and the dietary laws are not being discussed in this chapter or in Matthew 15:10–20, which discusses the same event. In Acts 10, Peter is given a vision to help him understand God’s future plans for the Church. He was shown a group of unclean animals and told three times to eat. Each time he adamantly declined because he believed it was wrong. Now remember, this was the Peter who supposedly heard Jesus abolish the dietary laws earlier in Mark 7 and who was trained by Christ for 3 1/2 years and yet he was still under the clear impression that eating unclean meats was wrong! He was puzzled over the meaning of the vision (Acts 10:17) until three men came knocking at his door with a request to hear the Gospel explained, Normally Peter would not have associated with these men who were outside of the covenant community, because the Jews considered the Gentiles to be “unclean.” When Peter put the pieces together he concluded: “God has shown me that I should not call any “Gentile” common or unclean”. Peter does not conclude in this chapter, or anywhere else in the New Testament, that the dietary laws were to be abolished. The so-called evidence is simply not there! Neither Jesus Christ nor Peter abolished these God-given guidelines.