What for? What is the object? Because eating is necessary to sustain life. Without food we would die. What a wonderful picture. Every time we eat, we praise and thank God, and we acknowledge that he is the provider. He is the sole source of life, both physical life and spiritual life. We know that we would perish without food, and since God is the giver of food, we are reminded of our dependence on him. So every time we eat, we give thanks to God who provides us, who is the provider of all things. We worship him, and, however briefly, we remind ourselves of that.
We also remind ourselves of something else. Food, on the whole, is found by human beings to be enjoyable. We know there are bland foods and necessary foods, and the children eat their greens reluctantly, and so on. We know that not all food is necessarily found to be enjoyable, but much of it is. It is something which is enjoyed. God not only provides for us, but he provides us with pleasures, and with enjoyment. Not only does he do so in food: that is after all only an illustration of much greater things. In all the things that God provides and supremely in the blessings of salvation, he gives us things which are marvellously enjoyable to us, and food reminds us of that. He is a good God, and he is a God who brings happiness and enjoyment to those who love him and acknowledge him. So whenever we eat, we worship and we acknowledge our dependence.
Does this passage contradict other passages given by the Apostle Paul? We read in 1 Corinthians 10:27-28, that there are circumstances under which food is to be refused. That is not because God has laid down that certain food should not be eaten, but for moral reasons. ‘If any of them that believe not bid you to a feast, and ye be disposed to go; whatsoever is set before you, eat, asking no question for conscience sake. 28 But if any man say unto you, This is offered in sacrifice unto idols, eat not for his sake that shewed it, and for conscience sake: for the earth is the Lord's, and the fulness thereof.’ It is quite obvious that if, by eating, you would consolidate somebody in their idolatry, then for that perfectly good reason you would in those circumstances refuse the food. So there are some exceptions, but not for the reasons that the false teachers gave.
Then we could look at verse 21 of the same chapter: ‘Ye cannot drink the cup of the Lord, and the cup of devils: ye cannot be partakers of the Lord's table, and of the table of devils’ (1 Corinthians 10:21). There are certain substances and foods which are associated with evil human practices, whether secular or religious. We cannot have fellowship with them in their religious ceremonies, nor can we partake of their drugs, intoxicants and so on. As a believer you will not want to imbibe the cup of pleasure of this world, the things that this world heralds and holds up as essential to life, because you would be making a statement by so doing. When the apostle writes to Timothy and says that all food which is given by God is good for eating and should be received with worship, he does not contradict himself. There are some moral circumstances under which you may not partake.