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Simple Biblical Guidelines
for Clothing
Don't Muzzle the
Ox
What does an
Ox have to do with clothing? Nothing really, except that it is Old
Testament Law and an understanding of the basic passage will help us in
continuing our examination of guidelines for clothing.
This is an
interesting law (concerning the Ox). Is this is a ceremonial
law, or is it a moral law?
There
certainly isn't any ritual involved with it. On the other hand, is it a
question of morality whether or not you feed an ox while he's actually
working or before he starts working? Of course, if you refrained
from feeding the ox completely, that would be a different story. Certainly,
withholding all food from the animal would be immoral and sinful, but in
questioning the timing of the food, is it moral or ceremonial?
Is it the Law of God or the law of Moses? It's a difficult question
to answer isn't it?
Most people
assume that since this law (concerning the ox) is written in Deuteronomy,
that it is the law of Moses. Allow me to ask you another question:
Was this law
nailed to the cross?
Paul quotes
from this law, and in a letter to the church at Corinth, he uses
this in as an illustration to get the Corinthians to understand a greater
meaning.
Let's
examine
1 Corinthians 9 a bit
closer to get a full understanding of it.
1 Corinthians
9:9-10
"For it is written in the law of Moses, Thou shalt not muzzle the mouth of
the ox that treadeth out the corn. Doth God take care for oxen? Or saith
he it altogether for our sakes? For our sakes, no doubt, this is written:
that he that ploweth should plow in hope; and that he that thresheth in
hope should be partaker of his hope."
To fully
understand what Paul was speaking of here, we must begin at verse 1:
1 Corinthians
9:1-4,
"Am I not an apostle? am I not free? have I not seen Jesus Christ our
Lord? are not ye my work in the Lord? If I be not an apostle unto others,
yet doubtless I am to you: for the seal of mine apostleship are ye in the
Lord. Mine answer to them that do examine me is this, Have we not power to
eat and to drink?"
Now, what
does he mean by this question? Of course they can eat and drink; everybody
has the ability to don't they? What is it then, that Paul is
actually saying? Is it not this: Don't I have the authority, at the
church's expense, based upon the money you gave in offerings, to eat and
drink? (In other words, to buy a meal when he was on church
business? Don't I have the authority to pay my expenses?)
He further
continues:
1 Corinthians
9:6-8,
"…have not we power to forbear working? Who goeth a warfare any time at
his own charges? who planteth a vineyard, and eateth not of the fruit
thereof? or who feedeth a flock, and eateth not of the milk of the flock?
Say I these things as a man? or saith not the law the same also? "
"Don't I and
Barnabas have the authority to be full time in the Ministry and to be paid
for the work we do?" is what Paul is asking (try using that line on
some modern day churches.....just remember, though muzzle not the ox....)
Don't think
for a moment that Paul is trying to appeal to his flesh, He immediately
uses the Word of God from the Old Testament, to support his
statement:
1 Corinthians
9:9-10,
"For it is written in the law of Moses, Thou shalt not muzzle the mouth of
the ox that treadeth out the corn. Doth God take care for oxen? Or saith
he it altogether for our sakes?…"
Now that is a
very interesting statement. Look what Paul is saying: He is
asking, Does God really care for that animal? As long as the animal
had plenty to eat, do you think God cares about whether you feed it
before it works, after it works or during it's work? Or, he
asks, was this scripture written for our sakes? Paul's' answer is:
1 Corinthians
9:10,
"… For our sakes, no doubt, this is written…"
The ox had
little to do with the law when it was originally given. Now some people
plowed with an ox, others plowed with an ass. Others worked in vineyards
and didn't even use animals for anything they were doing, they would carry
their fruit from the vineyards on their own shoulders. And so,
there were people that this law would not have meant that much to when God
gave it to them, but he spelled out the law that said,
“Thou shalt not muzzle the mouth of the ox that treadeth out the corn.”
The
question, then remains, "WHAT IS THE UNDERLYING MEANING OF THIS LAW"?
What is it's purpose?
Paul says
this was written for our sakes. Here, Paul tells the church, and I
might add, this is AFTER anything that was nailed to the cross actually
was nailed there...this law was written for our sakes!
It was not
because God was concerned about so much about oxen, but because, as Paul
plainly writes further:
1 Corinthians
9:10-14,
"…he that ploweth should plow in hope; and that he that thresheth in hope
should be partaker of his hope. If we have sown unto you spiritual things,
is it a great thing if we shall reap your carnal things? If others be
partakers of this power over you, are not we rather? Nevertheless we have
not used this power; but suffer all things, lest we should hinder the
gospel of Christ. Do ye not know that they which minister about holy
things live of the things of the temple? and they which wait at the altar
are partakers with the altar? Even so hath the Lord ordained that they
which preach the gospel should live of the gospel."
God, in such
simple terms in the Old Testament, lays down a principle for the man who
is willing to understand it, that can reach even our generation and
is still applicable in any circumstance.
The
principle is that a man should be paid for what he does.
Now, would
you like to nail THAT law to the cross? If so, then you need to call
your boss, let him know that you no longer require payment (since it would
be the Christian thing to do out of your love for him) for your services.
Let him know that since the law commanding him to pay you was "nailed to
the cross" then he is no longer bound or required to provide you with any
compensation.
There isn't a
single person today who would live according to that theory. You
should then, instead of trying to escape the laws of God, learn to discern
the intent of the laws and begin to live by them.
Now, a
Pharisee would have been very careful about the process of the
work that was being done in his fields, he would have been sure that that
ox was not muzzle, and that he was allowed to eat. He would have
been very careful not to muzzle the ox because it was specified in the
letter of the law that the ox should not be muzzled.
On the other
hand, it was very likely that he would have deprived the man (who followed
the oxen around and swatted him once in a while), of his wages, or cheated
him out of it, and that Pharisee would have still said, “I have obeyed the
law of God.”
James 5:4-6 expresses
the underlying theme of the law also , by condemning the withholding
of the wages of laborers.
What many
people, then and now have failed to understand is that God's Law goes much
deeper than its surface. It is easy for man to read the letter and
to see only what is on the surface and to overlook the deeper and more
profound meaning of the law.
Now, there is
a great deal of law, in the Old Testament, that has no direct
application to the bondservant's of Christ today. This law has no DIRECT
application to us today! For example, we don't
have any oxen and we can't muzzle an ox if we don't have any. I don't know
of anyone that plows with an ox in the entire country.
There are many such laws in the Old Testament.
Who would abide by the laws concerning wives if he didn't have a wife?
There would be no application in such a case!
The Law,
then, much like prophecy, is symbolic. If somebody asks, “Which laws are
applicable to Christians today?”
The answer
is, “All of God's Law is.” You must understand though, that the law
is symbolic.
There is no
truth to be found in asking and answering the misguided questions asked in
today's church such as “Do I have to keep this law to be a
Christian?" or Do I have to do this particular thing to enter
the Kingdom of God?”
The truth is
to be found rather in asking “What is the meaning of this
law?” That is where the truth is to be found. When we understand what it
means, then we will be a lot further along in understanding God,
understanding ourselves, and in knowing how to be a true servant of
Christ.
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