Are any foods prohibited from consumption by the New Testament?  I once visited a church where the members were debating whether eating rare beef was prohibited because of the presence of blood.  Is this splitting hairs?  Is it merely cultural that we do not eat certain animals such as horses, or is there Biblical basis in this?  I believe I'm recalling Old Testament Law which specified eating only animals with "cloven hooves"?

Sincerely,
Nom Nom Nom

Dear Nom Nom Nom,

The Old Testament laws concerning what could and could not be eaten can be found in Lev. 11, but there is only one type of food that christians cannot eat – blood (Acts 15:29).  When an animal is killed, some cultures will strangle the animal so as to keep the blood in the meat, as opposed to draining the blood out.  It is probably a misunderstanding on what it means to eat the meat with the blood that caused the discussion that you mentioned over rare beef.  Things like blood sausage, blood soup, blood stew, etc. are popular dishes in some countries, but eating them is wrong.  All meat is clean for New Testament christians (Mk 7:19), but blood is not.

I have a friend who speaks about the Bible having figurative language in it.  How would you respond to this comment?

Sincerely,
Mr. Metaphor

Dear Mr. Metaphor,

The Bible does use figurative language, but so do you.  Every time you say, “I’m dead on my feet”, “That guy really missed the boat”, or “I’m as happy as a lark” – you are using figurative language.  Figurative language is a normal part of human conversation.  The Bible uses it just like you do.  The important thing to remember is that speech can only be considered figurative in certain circumstances.

1. If the writer or speaker specifically tells you that the language is figurative.  For example, Rev 1:1 says that the things in the book are ‘signified’, a word in Greek that means ‘symbolized’.
2. Context demands that it be considered figurative… like when Jesus says that we are “the salt of the earth” (Matt 5:13).  It wouldn’t make sense if He were trying to say that people are literally made of salt.

Bible writings should be considered literal unless there is a reason to believe otherwise – just like normal writings.  There is nothing wrong with saying the Bible uses figurative language; it is just important that we don’t assume something is figurative.  Always assume literal unless proven otherwise.

Did Jesus modify the Old Law, the Ten Commandments, and the Torah when He said, "I have come to fulfill the law {the ten commandments}"?

Sincerely,
Pending Change

Dear Pending Change,

Jesus didn't modify/change the Old Testament - He fulfilled it (Matt 5:17).  Jesus' life, death, and resurrection are the fulfillment of everything of which the prophets of old spoke (1 Pet 1:10-12, Acts 3:20-21).  Moses said that there would come a day when a Messiah would come... and that when He came, the Jews were to follow Christ instead (Acts 3:22-24).  Jesus fulfilled the Old Testament by being the Messiah and paying the price for mankind's sins.  The Old Testament was a tutor to lead us to Christ (Gal 3:24), but now that Christ is here, He has fulfilled the law, and we are no longer bound by its laws (Gal 3:25).

I am confused on the story about the missing day.  I heard that there is a story about God stopping the sun for a day, so that someone (sorry I am not sure who it was; Joshua, I think) could win a battle.  I have read that NASA has confirmed that it is true that they have found what they have called a “missing day” which would prove the story to be true.  I am confused about this story and the NASA findings.  If you google NASA and the lost Bible day, you will see what I am talking about; thanks for the help.

Sincerely,
Marking Time

Dear Marking Time,

The Bible story is found in Josh 10:12-13, but the NASA story is an urban legend.  As unbelievably cool as it would be if it were true, NASA never found that the solar system was missing a day in its rotations.  The whole story is based off of scientists finding an error while calculating the positions of the sun, moon, planets, etc.  The story has an exciting ring to it, but it is false.  Christians are supposed to love the truth (2 Thess 2:10) and only speak the truth (Eph 4:15).  As appealing as it might be to tell you this story is true, we here at AYP have to be honest and tell you that it is a hoax.  The sun really did stand still for Joshua, but this urban legend isn’t proof.

This is a follow-up to the "Big Boned" question I asked.  Why was that a bad thing then that the people were together?  Is it like when the Jews were only to wed people from their tribes, no one outside of that?

Sincerely,
Average Height

Dear Average Height,

We aren’t completely sure what you are asking, so if we don’t answer your question, feel free to e-mail us at askyourpreacher@mvchurchofchrist.org, and we’ll try and clarify things via e-mail.

We think that what you are asking is why it was wrong for the Nephilim to intermarry with other people in Gen 6:4.  The answer is – it wasn’t wrong.  Gen 6:4 is simply stating that these larger people intermarried with the normal-sized people in the days of Noah.  The Bible isn’t saying it was wrong; it is simply stating what happened.  It is, and always has been, perfectly fine for tall people to marry short people.