Food as God or Gift?

Mike Anderson:

This Thursday you’re probably either going to commit gluttony, or celebrate a feast of thankfulness. It all depends on your heart.

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard the word gluttony thrown around in a joking way—mostly by people who are clinically overweight like myself. It almost feels like an imaginary sin. But it's real. The Bible tells us that our stomach can be our god (Phil. 3:19). Please take the time to reflect on where food stands in your heart. Is it a god or a gift?

Gluttony is eating more than you need with a greedy heart:

• A heart that is seeking satisfaction and fulfillment in the food.
• A heart that just wants more and more.
• A heart that isn’t satisfied.
• A heart that thinks you deserve it.
• A heart that is focused inward on yourself instead of outward on God and others.

Feasting is enjoying a meal with people you love & thanks for God’s provision:

• Enjoying the people that God has brought into your life—even the weird ones.
• Thanking God for providing.
• Experiencing the common grace of delicious food.
• Remembering that God tells us to taste and see that the Lord is good (Ps. 34:8).
• Anticipating the meal that we’ll eat with Jesus at the wedding supper of the Lamb (Rev. 19:9).

Food as God

Food, like money, sex, and power, is often used as a substitute for something only God can give. It can bring satisfaction, comfort, escape, and even a source of identity. It’s a false savior.

Food as Gift

My hope and prayer is that you, and all of the people that you pass this on to, would not feel guilt about food. That would be falling right into Satan’s trap. What I hope you do is go to Jesus, tell him what’s in your heart, and ask for the Spirit to make your heart feel what your head knows—that God is God and food is just a gift.