As promised previously, this week begins a new study and a new commitment. Our new study will be of Islam and will be a multi-part investigation providing a broad overview of the history of Islam and a detailed study of it’s primary components and how they compare to Christianity. The new commitment is one of a personal nature, for today I take the Nazarite Vow which will last 30 days.

The study of Islam will begin in earnest tomorrow, today I want to clarify the Nazarite Vow in case others should wish to join me or to take this commitment at another time. As mentioned during our study in Acts, the Nazarene Vow may be taken by anyone who wishes to set apart a certain amount of time in special service to God.

According to Numbers 6.1-.21 any Jew or convert to Judaism may take the Nazirite Vow. The terms of the vow are three-fold:

1. The avowed may not drink wine or anything made from grapes or eat grapes or any part of a grape (except on the Sabbath and during the Feasts of the Lord).
2. The avowed may not cut his hair.
3. The avowed may not touch a dead body under any circumstance.

To take the vow today requires some modification. For instance, according to the passage in Numbers at the vow’s conclusion the avowed is to shave their head and offer the hair as a sacrifice along with animal and grain sacrifices. Followers of the Messiah of course no longer have need to sacrifice since Jesus became our sacrifice once for all. I will, however, keep the shaving of the head aspect.

Another modification I’ll make to the practice is to avoid any alcoholic beverage, not just wine. Grapes and wine were avoided because they were marks of prosperity, and the Nazarene was to live simply and without such luxuries. So fine dining, cigars and the like are also going to be avoided during this time.

It should also be noted that these restrictions were in addition to normal Jewish dietary laws. Not living in a Jewish culture it will be difficult (if not impossible) to eat kosher at every meal, but I will make every effort to do so whenever possible. This means no pork or shell fish, no mixing of dairy and meat (cheeseburgers are out as are some salads) and that I’ll be eating a lot more chicken and tuna not to mention fruits and vegetables.

The duration of the vow may be variable. In some cases it was a life-long commitment (as in the case of Sampson) or may be as short as an hour (according to Jewish religious texts). The usual time frame was 30 days, which is what I’ll undertake. I’ve timed this to coincide with our study of Islam as it is a topic that deserves a more guarded and intense study than some, especially in light of current events.

If you choose to undertake the vow or not, I would ask for your prayers over the next 30 days. I want to keep my mind and time focused on this special service to God.