God gave apostle Peter a startling vision in of unclean animals lowered to him on a sheet for him to “kill and eat.” The common interpretation of this elaborate and repetitive vision is it’s now permissible for believers in Yeshua (Jesus) as the Mashiakh (Christ) to eat meats like pork that were not on the Leviticus menu.
Another interpretation is there was a much greater lesson for Peter: God has always wanted a the family of Heaven to include both Jews and Gentiles. We’ll explore both views.
This talk is a condensation, with permission, of Tim Hegg’s teaching “Why We Keep Torah: Ten Persistent Questions.” I also would recommend watching 119 Ministries’ video series “The Pauline Paradox,” which goes into this in great detail.
The Church teaches us that we can eat whatever we want because they have thrown out the Torah. If we can break the Torah in one place, we can break it anywhere. It’s true that we will break the Torah but that doesn’t mean we throw away the Torah.
The Church teaches that Peter was “stuck” in an erroneous mode of thinking that keeping the food laws were important for believers to keep and teach to others.
The promise of Abraham was not that Yeshua the Messiah would come just to the Israelites, but the promise was that all people would be blessed by Yeshua. Acts is a history of how the Apostles made disciples for Yeshua among all the nations.
““Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”” (Matthew 28:19–20 NASB)
“He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or epochs which the Father has fixed by His own authority; but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth.”” (Acts 1:7–8 NASB)
Even though Yeshua said He came to the “lost sheep of Israel,” everything He did was to bring salvation to the entire world. Dispensationalism is a dangerous heresy that is commonly taught in Protestant circles that has done much to diminish the relevance of the Torah. Christians say the Torah is good but not good enough to actually follow themselves.
At the first Shavuot after Yeshua’s death and ascension, the Ruach HaKodesh (Holy Spirit) was poured out onto all the believers gathered in Jerusalem. He empowered the disciples to do the work Yeshua hd commissioned them to do and to be His witnesses to the ends of the earth. That mission has been inherited by every believer in Yeshua.
The nation of Israel had carried with her since ancient times the revelation of the Torah, the Prophets and the promise that God would be faithful to her, drawing her back from her wayward ways.
The meeting at Shavuot targeted Jews, both in Israel and of the diaspora who had gathered to Jerusalem for the pilgrimage feast.
There was a second Shavuot of sorts at the house of Cornelius a short time later. The calling of Peter to go to Cornelius’ house sets the stage for the fulfillment of the final element of Yeshua’s promise: the witness would go to the Gentiles.
Peter had to decide whether he was going to really reach out to the Gentiles with the Gospel or if he was going to continue walking in the strict Pharisaical Halacha of his day.
Although Cornelius was a righteous God-fearing Gentile, Peter (before receiving the vision) would have hesitated to meet with Gentiles in their homes because the Pharisee’s taught that the “dwelling place of Gentiles are unclean.”
“As [Peter] talked with him, he entered and found many people assembled. And he said to them, “You yourselves know how unlawful it is for a man who is a Jew to associate with a foreigner or to visit him; and yet God has shown me that I should not call any man unholy or unclean. “That is why I came without even raising any objection when I was sent for. So I ask for what reason you have sent for me.”” (Acts 10:27–29 NASB)
The Torah never taught that the Gentiles unclean. So the vision that God gave Peter was not given to throw out the kosher dietary laws in particular or the Torah in general but to return him to the Torah. God can make the Gentiles fit for His service.
“And behold, at that moment three men appeared at the house in which we were staying, having been sent to me from Caesarea. The Spirit told me to go with them without misgivings. These six brethren also went with me and we entered the man’s house.” (Acts 11:11–12 NASB)
We may presume that by the words “the Spirit told me,” Peter was referring to the vision. God was testing Peter, in a sense. God wanted to know if Peter would follow the written Torah or if he would follow the traditions of men.
We are told that we are not to believe any so-called teacher or prophet who teaches against Torah.
“Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world.” (1John 4:1 NASB)
“In His days Judah will be saved, And Israel will dwell securely; And this is His name by which He will be called, ‘The LORD our righteousness.’” (Jeremiah 23:6 NASB)
When Peter heard “kill and eat” that phrase meant “to sacrifice.” The use of this word raises the level of purity in the command to kill and eat. This command had to be followed to the highest standard of the Torah. Peter has never eaten an unclean meal.
Peter was not rebuked for refusing to eat the animals shown to him in the vision. The voice was not asking him to break Torah but to follow Torah. Where in the Torah did it say to not enter the home of a Gentile? Where did it say in Torah that Peter or any Jew could turn away Cornelius’ request for an audience? It was a pharisaic fabrication. God’s Torah stands above the interpretation of the Sages.
Peter had reasoned correctly that eating something unclean was wrong but he also was following Torah correctly when he accepted Cornelius’ invitation. Peter was never rebuked by God for how he reacted to the vision.
The Torah commands the native born Israelites to treat Gentiles who wanted to join with Israel with hospitality and equality.
Peter realized that the vision was about people not food. It was a powerful vision, that Peter was given and had to confront three times, but Peter understood that it was not about abolishing the commandments regarding clean and unclean foods, but about the separation between Jews and Gentiles that were set up by the Rabbis.
The reason God used the issue of clean and unclean foods was to demonstrate to Pete that the Torah itself, not man-made laws should function as the authority upon which he made halachic decision regarding fellowship with believing Gentiles. There is no command in Torah to remain separate from gentiles who have attach themselves to the God of Israel.
We know that Cornelius was not the only God-fearing Gentile. We also know that many of those Gentiles had to overcome obstacles of discrimination and racism of the rabbis to engage in a relationship with God.
“But the centurion said, ‘Lord, I am not worthy for You to come under my roof, but just say the word, and my servant will be healed.’” (Matthew 8:8 NASB)
The vision was successful in correcting Peter’s halachah so that he willingly went to Cornelius’ house even though this contradicted the prevailing teaching of the rabbis.
Peter also received further confirmation of the truth that God was preparing him and the other Apostles to receive Gentiles into the Kingdom when Cornelius revealed to him that an angel of the Lord had told him to track down Peter and invite him to his home to teach them the Gospel and when all of the members of Cornelius’ household receive the holy spirit in the same way he had received the holy spirit at Shavuot.
Peter willingly subordinated the commandments of men to the eternal, unchanging commandments of God and started the process of reaping a large Gentile harvest for the Kingdom of God because of his obedience.
Banner Photo: Gerbrand van den Eeckhout, Vision of Cornelius the Centurion, 1664.
Summary: Tammy