Proverbs 23:3
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Be not desirous of his dainties: for they are deceitful meat.
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The time past of our lives - before we were converted - should be enough of their lifestyle. We now reject lasciviousness, lusts, excess of wine, revellings, and banquetings. And though they think our strictness strange, we know judgment is coming (I Pet 4:3-5).
Context is generally minor in Proverbs, but here we have some. Our context is lunch with a ruler (23:1). Wisdom warns you to consider carefully (23:1), for fine living can deceive you, especially if you are a man with a desire toward it (23:2-3). Don't be fooled into wanting his lifestyle, for it is vanity and soon flies away (23:4-5). Fine dining and flattering words do not prove a man's heart, so watch out (23:6-8)!
The lust of the flesh is a powerful and common temptation (I John 2:16). It caused our first mother to take the forbidden fruit, when she saw that it was good for food (Gen 3:6).
Fine dining is dangerous for wise men. If you love to eat, put a knife to your throat (23:2). You must be very disciplined (Matt 18:8-9). It can lead to surfeiting - gluttony, so our Lord warned against it (Luke 21:34). As saints of the day, we must be awake and alert, not infatuated and dulled by high and excessive living (Rom 13:11-14; I Thes 5:6-8). We eat to live; we do not live to eat. We rule our appetites; they cannot rule us.
Fine dining is seductive for wise men. The pleasure and atmosphere of such food and lifestyle is enticing. It easily leads to a fixation on income, pleasure, and fine things; when our priority must be the love of God over pleasure (II Tim 3:4). Godliness with contentment is great gain, but there is little contentment at a ruler's table (I Tim 6:6-10).
Fine dining is deceitful for wise men. Fine food and wine lead men to relax their guard and be ensnared. Many sins are planned over lunch. Fine food breaks down resistance, like wine and strong drink. Women have been taught the fastest way to a man's heart is through his stomach. Men seduce women through fine dining. Much business is done over lunch, as salesmen have unlimited expense accounts to seduce clients. Watch out!
We must keep our body under to win the race we have entered (I Cor 9:24-27). Our Lord did not have a place for His head. You don't need a five-star anything! We cannot make provision for our flesh, for we are at great enough risk without encouraging it any further.
Be very careful of the good life! The Preacher warns to restrain our appetite and desire for the lifestyle of the upper class, for it is deceitfully dangerous. Lifestyles of the rich and famous? No! Lifestyles of the dead and damned! Do not be deceived by them!
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