Is Eating Cheese a Sin? Understanding Health Reform

Whether eating cheese is a sin is not to be presented as a test of fellowship or a sin in the same sense as tea, coffee, tobacco, or alcohol2MR 107.1+1. While the Word of God has given specific tests, such as the keeping of the Sabbath, the question of eating cheese, butter, or meat is a matter for education and showing the evils of these things rather than a test of one's standing in the church2MR 107.1+2.

Classification of Habits

• Sinful Indulgences: Tea, coffee, tobacco, and alcohol must be presented as sinful indulgences that are to be discarded entirely rather than used moderately2MR 107.1+2.

• Objectionable Items: Meat, eggs, butter, and cheese are placed on different ground; they are not poisonous narcotics and should not be treated the same way as sinful indulgences in our message to others2MR 107.1+2.

• A Progressive Work: Health reform is a progressive work, and the Lord does not require His messengers to present these truths in a way that will prejudice minds or bring men to a premature testEv 262.4+1.

The Deleterious Nature of Cheese

• Wholly Unfit for Food: Despite not being a test of fellowship, cheese is described as being wholly unfit for human food and should never be introduced into the stomachCD 368.5+2.

• Effect on the Mind: Cheese, along with flesh-meats and butter, works to derange the stomach, excite the nerves, and enfeeble the intellect, making it difficult to discern sacred thingsTSDF 12.5+2.

• Moral and Physical Impact: The use of cheese is deleterious, as it helps to fever the blood and arouse animal propensities, which can weaken the moral and intellectual powersCTBH 46.3+2.

Tact and Wisdom in Education

• Not to be Driven: Those who gather up the subject of diet and drive it upon others as a test do not know what work they are doing2MR 107.1+2.

• Education over Compulsion: We are to educate the people on the evils of cheese and show that it is objectionable, leading them gradually to a simpler diet2MR 107.1+2.

• Context of the Poor: In preaching to the poor, we cannot yet prescribe the strictest diet or forbid things like milk and eggs, as they must be led along as they are able to respond to instructionTSDF 49.7.

Ultimate Goal of Temperance

The ultimate goal for every Christian is to "do all to the glory of God" 1 Corinthians 10:31. While cheese is not a test, the Lord desires His people to cleanse their appetites and practice self-denial to stand before Him as a perfect peoplePH128 1.1. We are to use our reason to select the articles of food that will make the best blood and keep our minds clear to comprehend spiritual things2MR 107.1+2.