# "Eat what is set before you"



## InSlaveryToChrist (Jul 7, 2011)

Luke 10:8 And into whatsoever city ye enter, and they receive you, *eat such things as are set before you*:

Okay, my parents and grandparents like to use this passage of Scripture to justify their demand that we are to eat anything that is set before us (no matter how unhealthy), when we are on a visit to someone. Actually, my grandmother gave a chocolate bar to my little sister and expected her to eat it, because "it says in the Bible," she said, "that eat whatever is set before you." I and my little sister don't eat chocolate bars (we do eat chocolate beans occasionally), just because of all the artificial sugar that is mixed in it.

So, if I gave you a butter packet, would you eat it? Obviously, this is not how we should use the passage in question. It needs to be explained in its right context. Could you explain it for me, please?


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## Joseph Scibbe (Jul 7, 2011)

Be gracious for what you are given. If you visit a house, sometimes you might get steak and other times you migh get rice and lentil soup. Eat what you are given and be glad for ther provision of God. Is your family a band of traveling missionaries? Do they follow all the other instructions given here? IF not then they are picking a verse waaaay out of context and abusing it to do what they please.


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## Jack K (Jul 7, 2011)

The travelling workers are also commanded not to bring sufficient money, shoes or luggage one would expect to need for the journey. The context is about contentment with what God provides and trust in his care for his Kingdom workers. The worker should not be checking out the food in other houses, looking for the best place to stay while in town. Rather, he ought to be happy with what God is providing for him at the moment and confident that, whatever sort of food it is, it is good for him to eat and deserved due to his Kingdom work.

It's about contentment, not being greedy, trusting God... all in the context of those proclaiming the Kingdom. It is not about being polite to your hosts.


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## Contra_Mundum (Jul 7, 2011)

Jesus is telling his disciples to accept the hospitality of strangers. It is being given to them on Christ's behalf. They should not refuse what is offered, as though it was undeserved and should therefore be declined.

This is not a command to "eat your brussel sprouts, like them or not." You might want to be careful not to insult your host, but if you can't eat dairy because it makes you violently ill, you shouldn't "test the Lord," or believe that he will surely make your disease harmless because you "obeyed the command" and ate something that isn't good for you.


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## Jack K (Jul 7, 2011)

Many a parent has tossed around Bible verses out of context to pressure kids to conform to manners the parent believes are important. The parent generally means well, but ought to be more forthright about why they expect such manners to be observed. All of us who are parents can learn from this not to treat the Bible that way. 

If it's happened to you, you're hardly alone. Try to remain repectful toward mom and dad.


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## christiana (Jul 7, 2011)

My mother quoted that for years to me when I was a small child. She would say, 'Now eat what is set before you and ask no questions'. I really had a hard time with that when she fixed liver or turnip greens!

She also reminded me of all the starving children in China and how I should appreciate the liver and turnip greens. Didnt work.


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## J. Dean (Jul 7, 2011)

Yeah... I don't think Jesus was intending for this verse to be primarily applied to finicky children. 

That being said, I was once on a mission trip to Mexico city, during which the host church families had a dinner waiting for us. I loved it, but quite a few of the other mission trip members turned up their noses in a rude way, and the heads of the mission trip turned around and grilled them about it afterwards.


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## InSlaveryToChrist (Jul 7, 2011)

Contra_Mundum said:


> Jesus is telling his disciples to accept the hospitality of strangers. It is being given to them on Christ's behalf. They should not refuse what is offered, as though it was undeserved and should therefore be declined.
> 
> This is not a command to "eat your brussel sprouts, like them or not." *You might want to be careful not to insult your host, but if you can't eat dairy because it makes you violently ill, you shouldn't "test the Lord," or believe that he will surely make your disease harmless because you "obeyed the command" and ate something that isn't good for you.*



Well, excess of sugar (for example) does make the body "_violently_ ill" _in the long run_. It is _poison_ in that sense.


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## pianoman (Jul 7, 2011)

Yeah, "make a happy plate" was often told to me. so, from the ages of 8 to 13, I was a "fatty" lol haha. My parents never used that scripture though. they always said that God provided it so we had to be thankful and eat it all.


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## Notthemama1984 (Jul 7, 2011)

InSlaveryToChrist said:


> Contra_Mundum said:
> 
> 
> > Jesus is telling his disciples to accept the hospitality of strangers. It is being given to them on Christ's behalf. They should not refuse what is offered, as though it was undeserved and should therefore be declined.
> ...



A single chocolate bar is not in excess and not in excess for the long run. 

Eating anything in excess can kill you. So should you avoid all foods?


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## InSlaveryToChrist (Jul 7, 2011)

Chaplainintraining said:


> InSlaveryToChrist said:
> 
> 
> > Contra_Mundum said:
> ...



It can be, considering that we usually get our necessary intake of carbohydrates from other sources, such as fruits, juices, milk, bread and so on. Moreover, _white_ sugar, that is used in chocolate bars, is a poor, unhealthy choice of the source of carbohydrates.



Chaplainintraining said:


> Eating anything in excess can kill you. So should you avoid all foods?



True, but that doesn't nullify the fact that some foods are healthier than others (consider _white_ sugar above).


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## Rufus (Jul 7, 2011)

A Christian family I know was taught to eat every last bit of food on there plate, I went to there house when I was 8 or so and I hated that peanut butter and jelly so much I couldn't finish it....they made jokes about it for years.


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