My grandmother was a full-blooded German. Her maiden name was Krauss. Owing to her ethnicity, grandma enjoyed some cultural foods that would repulse most Americans. One of those was limburger cheese.
This was a favorite Christmas gift we got grandma every year with the stipulation that she wait until we were gone to get into it. Grandma had a bit of a mischievous nature to go along with her passion for limburger. While everyone else was opening gifts, she was finding a way to sneak the container open and slip a sample.
Through the years, I’ve mentioned this to my wife and just the other day, I was reminiscing that I kind of wish I had tried it but wasn’t sure I could get past the stench. Well, my wife surprised me a few days later. Guess what she brought home? A container of limburger cheese. It is made by the Amish, and it says right on the lid, “The Stinky Stuff.” Usually, I’m up to trying most anything but this caused me to pump the breaks a bit.
How can I describe it? Imagine a high school football game played in the early season when it’s hot. After four quarters, one of the players took their sweat-soaked sock, wiped the sweat and body odor from their arm pits, and then put the sock in a warm, humid place for a few days. Now, stick that sock in your mouth and you have a pretty good idea of what limburger cheese tastes like.
Well, I tried a bit of that sock. First, just a spoon full. Then, I put some on a cracker. I assured myself that I had at least given it a try, but this was probably going to get pitched. The next day, though, I gave it a try once again. You know what? That stinky stuff grows on you! It’s not bad once you get over the raunchy, rancid flavor and after taste. In fact, you start to enjoy the after taste.
Now, here’s what’s remarkable. The paragraphs you just read were written on one day. What is to come was written the next day. You might think my description of limburger cheese was a bit vile and disgusting. Doing a bit of research the next day revealed that I was spot on with my description. Keep reading!
“Limburger cheese is named after the region where it was first produced – the Duchy of
Limburg. The Duchy of Limburg straddles the modern-day borders of Belgium, Germany, and the Netherlands… The distinct, pungent smell of Limburger cheese is due to the type of bacteria used in its production process. The key culprit is a bacterium called Brevibacterium linens, which is used during the aging process. Brevibacterium linens is the same bacterium responsible for the smell of human body odor, specifically foot odor. When applied to the surface of the cheese, this bacterium breaks down the proteins and fats in the cheese, producing a variety of strong-smelling compounds.”1 The older the cheese, the stronger the aroma’s become.
Some of you thought I was just being dramatic when I told you what it tasted like. Now, some of you are questioning my sanity! Why would anyone eat this, much less enjoy it? Logic would dictate that to eat something with this description, you must be starving. With so many other foods to choose, why choose limburger cheese? And how in the world can this possibly work into a devotional.
The Bible says in 1 Timothy 4:1-3, “Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils; (2) Speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their conscience seared with a hot iron; (3) Forbidding to marry, and commanding to abstain from meats, which God hath created to be received with thanksgiving of them which believe and know the truth.” According to one commentator, “These are the human false teachers who propagate demon doctrine. [Seared] is a medical term referring to cauterization. False teachers can teach their hypocritical lies because their consciences have been desensitized, as if all the nerves that make them feel had been destroyed and turned into scar tissue by the burning of demonic deception.”2
Ever since childhood, I’ve been repulsed by limburger cheese. But something drew me to it after all these years and I gave it a try. At first, it was repugnant. Then, after repetition, I got used to it. Maybe my taste buds have been seared with a hot iron! Now, I would encourage everyone to try it. I would say, “Go slow at first and build up a tolerance to it. Try it on something else that has a strong flavor like a burger with onions or on rye bread. Before long, you will be able to eat it with the same ease as a slice of American or cheddar cheese.
Isn’t that how it is with false teachers? You hear someone speaking and you are either undiscerning of the error or you hear it and say, “Well, I agreed with most of what they said except for _______ but I liked how they said the agreeable parts.” You listen again and again and before you know it, you are hooked by this false teacher. You went slow at 
first, built up a tolerance to the falsehoods, and before long, you ingested the error with ease.
False doctrines are full of Satan’s bacteria that spreads aggressively. And false doctrines stink far worse than a wedge of limburger cheese. While limburger cheese isn’t going to destroy you, false doctrine will and that’s the goal of false teachers.
Today, let’s practice two passages of Scripture. To make this more memorable, go to the store and get you some limburger cheese. Read the verses while sampling this pungent, aromatic adventure that’s sure to challenge your senses! Let it remind you that false doctrine stinks, it always stinks, and the longer it’s around, the stinkier it gets!
1 John 4:1 Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world.
Hebrews 10:22 Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water.
1https://cheeseorigin.com/limburger/
2John MacArthur commentary e-Sword module, e-Sword computer program, e-Sword.net.
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