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Season 3 Ep 9 Making Art: The 7 Deadly Sins- Gluttony
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Transcript
Introduction to Rootleg Faith's Mission
00:00:02
Speaker
Hi, I'm Ruth Schwank and I'm so thrilled you're listening in with us at Rootleg Faith. It is our deepest desire to encourage and equip men and women to be rooted in God's Word, transformed by the love of Jesus, and moved by His mission and the power of the Holy Spirit. Nothing is more important.
Exploring Seven Deadly Sins in Art Series
00:00:19
Speaker
Well today we are continuing our series called Making Art. It's a series we've been doing through the season of Lent and we're in the middle of the series right now. We've been exploring the seven deadly sins and why pursuing holiness or virtue actually frees us to love God and others as we should. We started with pride.
Focus on Gluttony During Lent
00:00:38
Speaker
We've talked about pride, greed, lust, envy, and this week we are talking about gluttony.
00:00:44
Speaker
And as we've said from the beginning, Lent is a season where we are intentionally drawing closer to Jesus to be more like Jesus. And so we hope and we pray that today's episode continues to help you in that journey. All right.
Personal Story of Food and Love
00:00:59
Speaker
So, okay. We're going to talk about gluttony and honey. Um, this is kind of a hard one. I absolutely love.
00:01:05
Speaker
food. I do too. We live in such a great town for food. We live in Ann Arbor or the Ann Arbor area and there's just so many great restaurants and I feel like that you're like a food expert. I remember one of our very first arguments when we got married was actually on our honeymoon. It was over food. I know we've written about this in the past but you had asked me where I wanted to eat and I started listing
00:01:26
Speaker
different restaurants. We were honeymooning in Traverse City, Michigan, and it became very clear that everything I was suggesting that we go, the kinds of food I was interested in eating, was not what you were interested in. I think I remember that sort of led to a little bit of an argument.
00:01:43
Speaker
Nothing that has anything to do with what we're talking about today. Well, I mean, we're talking about food, and I love food, too. I would definitely, like, I love food. Like, I have memories of, a meal will have, like, I remember things from years ago because of a meal. Like, I remember exactly what I ate. Oh, man. Or, you know what I mean? Yeah. I mean, I- I just think about growing up, all the, you know, my mom was from the South, both my mom and dad were born in Kentucky, and my mom just,
00:02:11
Speaker
Made incredible southern dishes. I mean cornbread and beans and pot pies and just also See that doesn't sound very good to me, but that's why I haven't gotten cornbread in Honey well once or twice. Yeah, anyway, I'm doing okay But I do I do love Ann Arbor because it's full of amazing Restaurants that are local and yeah, I feel like it's really hard to find
Understanding Gluttony and Temperance
00:02:35
Speaker
places like that now
00:02:35
Speaker
Anyways, it's funny to think about like we've been talking about these seven deadly sins We you know, we said from the beginning that you know God created us for a relationship or friendship, you know with himself that that he made us for life and truth and goodness and beauty and and sin interrupts that and separates us from him it it Enslaves us and and so as we've been talking about these seven deadly sins, they're called seven deadly sins
00:02:58
Speaker
not because this is an exhaustive list, but because every other sin that we struggle with really stems or flows from these seven sins. I mean, that's kind of been the understanding of the church for a long, long time. And so we've been looking at these, both the negative side, the seven deadly sins, but then spending just a little bit of time of the positive
Biblical Teachings on Gluttony
00:03:17
Speaker
side. And so today we're talking about that vice of gluttony, but then on the positive side, it's really temperance or self-control when it comes to food or drink. And so,
00:03:26
Speaker
As we get started, it's just interesting to me. We've been in a series at our church, at Grace Bible Church, where I serve over the last couple of months, called At the Table, and we've been talking about how when you read the Gospels, you just notice that Jesus is either
00:03:42
Speaker
you know, coming from a meal at a meal or on his way to a meal. I mean, there's so much that Jesus does and says and teaches about the kingdom of God around food and drink. And yet he oftentimes, you know, warns against gluttony as well and drunkenness. I mean, not just in the gospels, but you see that in the New Testament and
Cultural Issues: Food Addictions and Disorders
00:03:59
Speaker
the Bible as a whole. But maybe as we began, just a really simple definition for what gluttony is, is it's a disordered desire for food or drink. And so very simply, when we think about gluttony
00:04:10
Speaker
or drunkenness, or when we think about gluttony as one of the seven deadly sins, we're really talking about this disordered desire for food or drink. Yeah, and I think it's an important thing to talk about because I think, especially in our culture today, we see
00:04:26
Speaker
So many issues around food and drink. I mean you have addictions obviously to alcohol, but then you have addictions. I mean food addictions or eating disorders. And it's so real and it's so rampant. And so I think it stems from this disorder desire for food or drink, which we can actually trace back to the Bible.
00:04:50
Speaker
Yeah, on the surface you're kind of, what's the big deal? What's the big deal with food? And yet, as we're gonna talk about, there's an awful lot that, again, goes back to what it is that we really desire, what we're looking to for our comfort, how we're trying to control our lives. And there's a couple places in the Bible that maybe we can just begin.
Church History on Gluttony
00:05:10
Speaker
In Luke chapter 21, verse 34, we read, watch yourselves lest your hearts be weighed down with indulgences and drunkenness, Jesus says.
00:05:18
Speaker
The Proverbs talk an awful lot about gluttony as well. One example is in Proverbs 23 verses 19 through 21 where the writer says, here my son and be wise and direct your hearts in the way. Be not among drunkards or among gluttons, eaters of meat for the drunkard and the glutton will come to poverty and slumber will clothe a man with rags. And so there's just a variety of places.
00:05:47
Speaker
Two examples, there's been, you know, we could quote all sorts of people throughout church history that have talked about this as well. And so it is, there's a lot that can be said about gluttony. Let me give you just a couple examples throughout church history that I think are worth noting. You know, Gregory the Great, who lived in the sixth century, said this, unless we first tame the enemy dwelling within us, namely our gluttonous appetite, we will have not even stood up to engage
00:06:14
Speaker
in the spiritual combat. And really what he's saying is that if you can't learn self-control with what you eat and drink, good luck when it comes to fighting your spiritual adversary. And so just a reminder that as we talk about this particular sin, we're talking about the struggle, that disordered desire for food or drink, but on the flip side, on the positive side, is really this idea of temperance or self-control.
Connecting Physical Hunger with Spiritual Longing
00:06:39
Speaker
Yeah, and there's such a parallel there, right, with this isn't, this really goes, this is so much deeper than a longing for food. And I think that's what is really, really important to understand.
00:06:54
Speaker
Yeah, that is so true. One of the things that's interesting about the scriptures is that you read this language over and over again in the Bible about how we are a hungry people and we're a thirsty people. So the scriptures talk about this idea of humanity, men and women being hungry or desiring.
00:07:13
Speaker
You know, one example is Isaiah 55 verses 1 through 2, where the writer says, come, all of you who are thirsty, come to the waters and you who have no money, come buy and eat, come buy wine and milk without money and without cost. Why spend money on what is not bread and your labor on what does not satisfy? Listen, listen to me and eat what is good and you will delight in the richest
00:07:38
Speaker
of fair and so one of the things is we're just thinking about this particular sin during this Lenten season and again we've been looking at each of these sins and really saying let's focus in on each of those every week you know leading into Easter and so
00:07:53
Speaker
As you're thinking about that this week in preparation for Easter, I mean, one of the things to just keep in mind is that gluttony really reveals the deeper longing of our soul and not just our stomach. And so it's what you were talking about earlier, that the big deal with food or drink and just that struggle to practice moderation when it comes to what we eat or drink is that food and drink always in some way are pointing to that deeper longing of the soul.
Food as Comfort and Control
00:08:22
Speaker
And so really that's what the scriptures is talking about, that we're a hungry people, we're a thirsty people, and we ultimately don't find the satisfaction for our deepest longing and our deepest thirsting apart from God, that we were made to know Him and to love Him and to serve Him, to glorify Him.
00:08:38
Speaker
And people spend their entire lifetime trying to satisfy that hunger and that thirst in all of the wrong ways. It's kind of that famous quote from St. Augustine who says, my heart is restless until it finds its rest. And Augustine was just commenting on what we all know what the scriptures teach.
00:08:56
Speaker
that we are a hungry people, a thirsty people, and we try to satisfy it with pleasure or with food or with drink or with success or material possessions. And again, as we're talking about today, food is yet another one of those things. It's just revealing a deeper longing of the soul. And so it's so much bigger than just the aching of our stomach.
00:09:18
Speaker
Yeah, and I think that there's two things really that we could boil it down to that we're looking for, that we're longing for. And so let's talk about those two things. They're comfort and control. Or comfort or control. Either or and.
00:09:34
Speaker
And let's talk a little bit about the things, as far as comfort goes, let's start there. What do we turn to most often to find comfort? And I think that's something for the listener to think about as we're kind of talking through this. Ask yourself, as we're talking through this, kind of think about what is it that I turn to most often to find comfort? And maybe that's a relationship.
00:09:59
Speaker
Maybe it's entertainment. I know what's your go-to snack me before we continue being so serious here I just am curious like what is your go-to snack number one remember when I was young and healthy and I would eat Nachos and cheese every night before bed. Do you remember that?
00:10:15
Speaker
Oh yeah, you shredded cheese on nachos. Oh, that was the best. I would get nacho cheese, shred that, or cheddar cheese, shred it, and sprinkle it over tortilla chips, put that in the microwave, and just, it was like heaven on earth. Well, the other thing we used to always have were brownies and vanilla ice cream. Well, chocolate mint chip.
00:10:37
Speaker
Well, I just liked the vanilla. Yeah. You like the chocolate mint. Well, I guess I would have some chocolate mint, but the warm brownies out of the oven with. Yeah. Yeah. No, I know. I know. I know. It's what we're trying to. Yeah. I was just curious because I like. And honestly, I probably was turning to that for comfort at times. Well, yeah, probably.
00:10:56
Speaker
You know, I mean, let's just be honest, there's things and that's what we're talking about. So what is it that you turn to for comfort? Yeah, one of the important things we're thinking about just the longing of the soul and as it relates to food is that when we are eating or drinking is really asking that question. It's what you're getting at is what is it that I'm really looking
00:11:16
Speaker
to for comfort, right? And all of us, you know, we look for ways to soothe ourselves when we think about just, you know, the stress that we face or difficult things that we're walking through, whatever it is, that oftentimes, you know, like you were saying, people will turn to relationships for comfort, they'll turn to a husband or to a wife or to a friend, to a coworker. And so oftentimes we turn to relationships, we can turn to entertainment.
00:11:41
Speaker
and just sort of numb out and watch show after show and just, you know, begin binge watching a show on Netflix or Disney Plus or whatever it is now nowadays that folks are watching. We can turn to alcohol, we can turn to drink or drugs and certainly people do that with work.
00:12:00
Speaker
They comfort themselves with just sort of that distraction of going into the office or just working long hours. And then of course what we're talking about today is we do that with food. And so again, the deeper issue is that oftentimes we use food to really satisfy in some way that longing to be comforted. To be sued. Well that's why it's called comfort food. And that's why it's called comfort food. And so we run into that.
00:12:29
Speaker
The things we ought to do as we're thinking about this particular area of our life is ask that question, in some way are we using food or drink to comfort us in a way that we ought to be going to God for, to be comforted.
Beauty and Misuse of Food
00:12:42
Speaker
Right, and that's the bottom line and I think that's really important to mention right now because
00:12:46
Speaker
I mean, we should delight in food. That is food is a beautiful, amazing creation by God. I mean, just the amount, all the different varieties of food and sitting around a table. I mean, God talks about that all the time. We should delight in that. But I think it's when we've turned it into something in place of God.
00:13:08
Speaker
Yeah, it is interesting. I remember one, you know, having COVID back in November. And one of the bizarre things that everybody talks about that has COVID and, you know, almost everybody that that has it loses their taste and smell and like in a really unique way. I mean, you know, obviously lost taste and smell before with colds or whatever, but it is very, very unique with COVID. And that was one of the things that was so strange about eating like like just the joy of eating, the pleasure of eating.
00:13:38
Speaker
without your taste and smell. Eating was just, well, I'm just going to finish it off and fill my stomach. And that was about it. And so you really think about how unnecessary it is that food tastes the way that it does or has the texture or the color. All of those things point to just how good God is, how beautiful God is, that food looks pretty. It looks beautiful. It's different colors and different textures. Full of nutrients. Full of nutrients. You're right.
00:14:04
Speaker
is a good God, and there is pleasure in eating, and yet we can misuse that just as we were talking about in the previous episode. You know, the same thing is true when it comes to sex and our sexuality. When we take a good thing and distort it, it can lead to all sorts of bad things. And so again, I think one of the challenges as we're looking at food is, am I in some way using food or drink in a way that is really providing comfort that only God should be providing? And am I using it in a disordered way?
00:14:33
Speaker
Has it become more important to me than my relationship with God? Secondly, I think we're longing for control.
Diet Obsession and Control
00:14:43
Speaker
The amount of diets that there are out there I think should just show us that we desire control over how we look, everything about us so we can obsess
00:14:55
Speaker
over a particular diet, over counting calories, all of that. And that's just a real struggle and attention I think that we all carry at times. I mean, I've carried that over the years, you know, feeling like, Oh, I've heard about this diet, and it's supposed to be so good for you. And then this is gonna, if I do this diet, I'm going to feel this way. And I'm going to have some
00:15:19
Speaker
control over how I feel. Of course obviously we do have some control and it is important to eat well and take care of ourselves but I think that we can obsess over this and take it to a completely different level and there again we are trusting the diet or counting the calories or whatever it is instead of trusting God to take care of us. I think there's that balance you know we've talked about in the past that you know that our body is you know a temple of the Holy Spirit that we're called to take care of it and to eat
00:15:48
Speaker
to eat right and to exercise, and yet we can take that too far as well, and that's part of what we're talking about here, is that sometimes we can fall into that trap that if I just eat all of the right things and if I exercise and stay away from these types of foods, then I can live a long, healthy, and productive life.
00:16:09
Speaker
And so we're really trying to control the outcome of our life instead of surrendering that to God and saying, God, I do. I want to honor you with my body and what I eat and how I exercise. I want to take care of the body that you've given me, but ultimately my life is in your hands. Like I can't control certain things.
00:16:26
Speaker
And so food can become an attempt to control our own life instead of surrendering our life to Christ. And surrendering the outcome of our life, the number of our years, or whether we're gonna walk in health or sickness. I think that's been one of the interesting things, even about my own diagnosis. I mean, we were eating very healthy, apart from the nacho cheese and ice cream and brownies a long long time ago.
00:16:49
Speaker
But for the most part in comparison, and yet the reality is that there are things that we walk through. We live in a fallen world. There are things that we walk through in life that we don't understand why God is asking us to walk through certain things that God allows. And there is this in the Christian life, a surrendering of our life and this reminder that our life is not our own, that God gave it.
00:17:10
Speaker
to us that we're called to honor Him in sickness and in health. And so food can for many people become an idol in that way, that we're really trying to control our life, trying to control our health, trying to control the number of our years, instead of surrendering that to God. So I think just really two practical things we can do
00:17:28
Speaker
is look at those two questions and ask ourselves, am I turning to food or drink to comfort me? Am I turning to food or drink to try to control my life? And so those are just maybe a couple of really practical ways for us to look in particular at this sin of gluttony as we move through this coming week.
00:17:48
Speaker
Yeah, and so the vice here, because I always like to mention this about this point in the podcast if you've been following along in this series, the vice here is gluttony and then the virtue. So we want to kill the sin of gluttony and we want to clothe ourself with the virtue of temperance or self-control. And so that's what we really need. We need self-control and we need to go to the source
00:18:16
Speaker
for all hope and all life and and that again in gluttony where we have this longing that we're trying to fill and god's saying no come to me i'm the one who fills every longing
00:18:29
Speaker
I think, again, going back, and I know we sound like a broken record, but from the very beginning of this series, we've been talking about the goal of the virtuous life, living in righteousness, living in holiness, is that we might be free to love God and love others as we should. And so any sin that we're enslaved to really not only hurts us, but it hurts our relationship with God. It hurts our relationship with others. And you think about the damage that's been done to individuals, to marriages, to families because of the sin of gluttony.
00:18:57
Speaker
how many marriages have been destroyed, families have been destroyed, relationships have been destroyed, careers have been destroyed, ministries have been destroyed because somebody didn't know how to control their appetite and who have been given to drunkenness, who've been given to addiction, they've turned to alcohol instead of turning to Christ. And so we could turn to example after example
00:19:18
Speaker
Probably people we know, maybe even people within our family, we've seen the destruction of the sin of gluttony, that disordered desire for either too much food or too much drink. And just how devastating that can be. And again, as we've said, there's so much that's still in our lives that need to be crucified, that we need to put to death. And the goal of the Christian life is to become like Christ. It's to be free. And God desires for us.
00:19:47
Speaker
to live this life where we're truly free to love him as we should and to love others as we should. We wanna give the best of who we are to other people. And when we're given to gluttonous, either disordered appetite for food or drink, we're not able to give the best of who we are. And so as we've said earlier that what we really need is we need true sustenance. We need to abide in Christ who is the one who is the bread of life that truly satisfies our soul, who fills us and empowers us by his spirit.
Nourishing the Soul with God's Word
00:20:17
Speaker
and gives us what we really need. And so we need to nourish our soul with times of rest, you know, in solitude and meditating on God's word and memorizing scripture. All of those things are things that really provide the sustenance and the true satisfaction that we need.
00:20:34
Speaker
Yeah, and I think, you know, if you think about it this way, we wouldn't wake up. We wake up in the morning. Well, actually, well, yes, I wake up first thing in the morning and I need some coffee. OK. And so I wouldn't think of waking up in the morning and just saying, oh,
00:20:51
Speaker
You know, never mind. I'm not going to have any coffee and oh, around, you know, within a couple of hours, oh, I'm not, I'm not going to eat anything and then lunch and I'm not going to eat anything and then dinner and I'm not going to eat anything and then just go throughout the whole day and not just think about, you know, not think about it at all. No, we have to, we have to drink and eat. We can't not think about it.
00:21:07
Speaker
And I think that when we're talking about nourishing our soul, finding true sustenance in God's word, in rest, in solitude, we need to look at those times of rest and solitude and getting into God's word like we look at food, you know, like where I cannot wake up in the morning and go on with my day without this. And I think that's a really, really important perspective to keep.
00:21:33
Speaker
Matthew 5, 6 says, Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be satisfied. And that's where our true satisfaction will come. Yeah, I think again, God uses the language of food and drink to remind us that our deepest need is to find our sustenance, our strength, our pleasure, our comfort, and our satisfaction in Him.
00:21:54
Speaker
him alone. So he uses the you know food as a metaphor really for spiritual satisfaction and oftentimes what we're trying to fill an empty stomach and it's reflection that really that we have an empty soul. And so what we're trying to do is to feed or to fill our stomach when God really wants to satisfy our soul. He wants to satisfy our deepest longing and that can only be done in a relationship with him through Jesus.
00:22:18
Speaker
Yeah, and that's very practical, I think, because I think some of us are searching for the answer, and it's right there in front of us, that our true satisfaction comes by being with him. And of course, there are situations, because we did talk a little bit about addiction and alcoholism.
00:22:36
Speaker
where that needs professional help as well. So I don't want to minimize that. But I do think here practically, if you're listening and you're like, well, how do I really make sure? Because we all need to work on this. You know, how do I really make sure that I'm going to God for my true sustenance?
00:22:52
Speaker
and not food. And I think it's when we can keep going to Him in His Word first. And again, Matthew 5, 6 says, blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness. And that's hungering and thirsting for what God is, what He has, what He's offering for us, and we will be satisfied.
00:23:11
Speaker
Absolutely. I want to just end with the words that we started with early on, Isaiah 55 verses one through two, where the writer says, come all you who are thirsty, come to the waters, all you who have no money, come by and eat. Jesus is saying, come to me. This is ultimately fulfilled in the person in the work of Jesus, come to me. Those of you who are thirsty, those of you who are hungry, I'm the bread of life.
00:23:37
Speaker
And come to me, come put your faith and your trust in me, realize what I've done for you in my life and my death and resurrection. Your heart is restless until it finds its rest, its true satisfaction in him and him alone, recognizing what he's done for you. And so Jesus today is inviting you to come close to him, to believe in him if you haven't before and to keep inviting in him if you've already trusted in him. And he will satisfy your soul, he will strengthen your soul and he will sustain you unlike anything else possibly could.
00:24:07
Speaker
Mmm, that is so good.
Conclusion and Social Media Reminder
00:24:09
Speaker
Thank you so much, honey, for sharing that. That was really powerful. Well, friend, we are so, so grateful you have joined us. I hope you're loving this series as much as we are. Through Lent, be sure, if you have missed any episodes, to go back and listen because there's these seven deadly sins, like Pat talked about earlier, they're all important to understand and learning to kill the sin
00:24:34
Speaker
the particular sin we're talking about and instead clothe yourself with the virtue that we're talking about. Well, if we haven't met yet, we want to get to know you. So be sure to follow us on Instagram at Patrick W. Schwank and at Ruth Schwank or on Facebook. And also don't forget that everything we talked about will be at rootlikefaith.com forward slash podcast. All right, friend, we will chat soon and we hope you have the best week.