3 forbidding to marry, and commanding to abstain from foods which God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and know the truth.
In this verse, we find two specifics about how false teachers led believers astray in Ephesus.
3 forbidding to marry,
A skewed conscience leads to the false doctrine of asceticism. False teachers forbade marriage as a form of asceticism. However, marriage is a divine institution of God’s creation.
This error included compulsory celibacy, a demonic idea. It is not a higher level of spirituality. If a person has the gift of celibacy, that is a different issue than compulsory celibacy.
and commanding to abstain from foods
As with marriage, fasting may be valuable at a given time and purpose. However, it does not connote an intrinsic value; it is not a requirement for spirituality. Jesus said it is not what we eat but what comes from within a corrupt soul that defiles a person (Mt 15:11).
which God created to be received [partaken] with thanksgiving
Paul combatted these false teachers on biblical grounds–he went to the principles of initial creation. God created food to be received with thanksgiving. He created it for the good of humanity (1 Tim 6:17). He also created all aspects of marriage, including sex, to enjoy.
Incipient Gnosticism believed that the spirit is good but the body or matter is evil. Any appetite for them was evil. Sexual activity in marriage was evil because it was a pleasure of the body; food was evil because it was enjoyable to satiate oneself with food.
by [for] those who believe and know the truth.
Those who believe and know the truth are deceived by needless and spurious asceticism sponsored by demonic activity. Biblical Christians go to explicit biblical teaching about what is true or not.
PRINCIPLE:
God created food and marriage for everyone’s enjoyment.
APPLICATION:
Creation theology answers questions about the enjoyment of its use. God created food and marriage so that humanity would enjoy them for their benefit. Christians have a high view of creation. If God created something, it is intrinsically or inherently good.
