Let us come next to the matter of food.
In Genesis 2 God gave man food to sustain his life. This happened before man sinned. The matter of food is found as early as Genesis 2. Clothing began in Genesis 3, but food began prior to man’s fall. God ordained that man should partake of fruits of every kind. Before man sinned, the God-ordained food for man was fruit.
In Genesis 3, after man fell, God gave man herbs for food and ordained that man would eat bread in the sweat of his face. This was God’s food for man in Genesis 3. When we come to Genesis 4, God put His seal of approval upon Abel but not Cain, even though no ordinance of any kind had yet been instituted. Cain was a farmer, and Abel was a keeper of sheep. Abel shepherded sheep, and God’s seal of approval was upon him. He offered sacrifices to God, and God accepted him. Cain was a tiller of the ground. He brought the produce of the land to God, but God did not accept his sacrifice. Genesis 4 does not say anything about God’s will. But when we come to Genesis 9, God gave the animals to man for food (v. 3), just as He had given fruit to man for food in the beginning.
Why did God give animals to man for food? First, this indicates that man has a need for food. But this is not all. Man’s need for food before the fall was different from his need for food after the fall. We must understand the meaning of food. Food sustains our life. If a man does not eat, he will die. No one can live and survive without eating. In addition to eating herbs, vegetables, and fruits, God ordained that man should take meat in order to live and survive. In other words, God shows us that after sin entered the world, life must be sacrificed to preserve life. There is the need for an animal to lose its life to maintain our life. After sin entered this world, there was a need for the shedding of blood to maintain life. This is the reason that man’s food after the fall is different from his food before the fall. Christians should not be vegetarians; they should be free to take meat.
This does not mean that meat will necessarily do our body any good. Whether or not it is good for our body is a different thing. We are not medical researchers. Researchers claim that animal protein is better than vegetable protein. The basic principle with us is that since sin has entered the world, man can no longer have life without the sacrifice of life. After man sinned, he could no longer receive life without death. Life can only come through death. Without death, man cannot live. In order for man to live, there is the need for the shedding of blood. When we have death, we have life. This is the basic principle of eating after the fall.
Since the time of Abel, and in particular after the flood, God placed this way before men. Being a vegetarian is a subconscious declaration that we can live without death, that we can live without the shedding of blood. By eating meat, we are indicating that we cannot live without death and the shedding of blood. Is this principle clear? This is the reason that God gave animals to man for food after the flood. Man can no longer have life without the loss of life. Thank God! Christ gave up His life. Now we can receive life.
Romans 14 indicates that some people still believed that they could be vegetarians like Adam before the fall. Some of them only ate vegetables. Paul told us not to criticize these ones. He told us not to stop them or to condemn them. Those who eat meat should not judge those who do not, and those who do not eat meat should not judge those who do. However, Paul pointed out one thing: Those who only eat vegetables are weak (v. 2). Do not criticize them for their weakness. But this does not mean that vegetarianism is right. It only means that we do not want to embarrass others over the matter of food.
However, we must realize that Christian redemption involves life out of death. Before there can be life, there must first be death. Vegetables alone are not enough; death must precede life. Life is sustained through death. This is a fundamental Christian principle. Some may be weak in their conscience and may only eat vegetables. We should not expose their weakness. But a Christian’s stand is that meat is needed because it sustains life.