“And a voice came to him again the second time, ‘What Elohim has cleansed you do not consider common.’” – Acts 10:15
Peter’s Vision. Oh yeah, that was about Yahuah telling us that we can now eat pig, lobster, shrimp, and catfish, right? Did the Father change His mind and abolish the instructions He gave in Leviticus 11 and Deuteronomy 14? Do we now have the right to eat whatever we want? At least that is what I used to think. To be honest, I used Acts 10 several times to defend my right to eat pork in the past.
I used to put bacon on everything. I loved my pork chops. Give me a ham sandwich any day of the week. Why did I do this? Because I “learned” that I should not consider anything common that the Father had cleansed.
Boy, was I wrong.
It seems that believers have certain passages in Scripture we use to justify our behaviors. Acts 10 was one of them for me. But what is Acts 10 about and why is it important to truly understand both its context and proper application? Why is it important to us and why does Peter spend much of the following chapter explaining it?
“And he became hungry and wished to eat. But while they were preparing, he fell into a trance, and he saw the heaven opened and a certain vessel like a great sheet bound at the four corners, descending to him and let down to the earth, in which were all kinds of four-footed beasts of the earth, and wild beasts, and creeping creatures, and the birds of the heaven. And a voice came to him, ‘Rise up, Peter, slay and eat.’ But Peter said, “Not at all, Master! Because I have never eaten whatever is common or unclean.” – Acts 10:10-14
You can skim through this chapter and think that the Father is telling Peter to stop following His Torah concerning what is considered food. But is this the case? Peter initially thought this was about food as well. If you notice, the first thing that he says is,
“… Not at all, Master! Because I have never eaten whatever is common or unclean.” – Acts 10:14
And this was about ten years after the Messiah had died. But the sheet drops down three times. And each time Peter refuses to eat. Peter is just hardheaded, right? But Peter walked with the Messiah. He talked with the Messiah. He learned the Torah from the Messiah. He probably spent more time with Yahusha (Jesus) than anyone on earth. He knew the animals that were considered food and those that were not. And this vision bothered him. A lot. So much that Peter even questioned what he was being told after it had happened three times.
“And while Peter was doubting within himself about what the vision might mean, look, the men who had been sent from Cornelius, having asked for the house of Shim‛on, stood at the gate,” – Acts 10:17
So while we might take a quick glance at this vision and instantly say it was about our right to have bacon with our eggs, Peter wasn’t so quick to interpret it that way. He was given the vision THREE times. And while he was doubting within himself, THREE men show up. These are “gentile” men. And the Jews had an “oral law” that forbid them from eating with gentiles. It was not Scriptural. It was not found in the Torah. It was an added command they had created to separate themselves from the nations. And the Father wanted to set Peter straight.
“And he said to them, ‘You know that a Yehuḏi man is not allowed to associate with, or go to one of another race. But Elohim has shown me that I should not call any man common or unclean.’” – Acts 10:28
Peter is interpreting the vision in verse 28. And guess what? It is not about food. He spends much of chapter 11 revisiting the account back in Jerusalem, and it is still not about food. Yahuah was using this vision to teach Peter that he should call NO MAN common or unclean.
If not for Peter’s vision, you and I might not have heard the gospel message. According to the traditions and additional commands found in Judaism (even today), it is “unlawful” to eat with gentiles. And the disciples had fallen into the wrong belief about who could be grafted into the commonwealth of Israel. Peter’s vision is a reminder that the faith is open to anyone. You don’t have to be of a certain bloodline or a descendant of Abraham. You don’t have to be circumcised. You don’t need to speak a particular language.
THE FAITH IS AVAILABLE FOR ANYONE!
But Peter had to explain this story to the brothers back in Jerusalem. And he does so in the following chapter.
“And when Peter went up to Jerusalem, those of the circumcision were contending with him, saying, ‘You went in to uncircumcised men and ate with them!’” – Acts 11:2-3
Peter elaborates on the vision and relates the THREE TIMES the sheet fell to the THREE MEN who came to him afterwards, while the Spirit told him not to doubt about what he had seen.
“And this took place three times, and all were drawn up again into the heaven. And see, immediately three men stood before the house where I was, having been sent to me from Caesarea. And the Spirit said to me to go with them, not doubting at all…” – Acts 11:10-11
Peter had interpreted this vision to mean that people are what we should not call unclean! And after this vision, Peter, Paul, and the other disciples spend a good amount of time in the Book of Acts sharing the gospel message with people they otherwise would’ve ignored. The Acts 10 vision is a pivotal event that allowed you and I to have the ability hear the message, repent, and be grafted into the olive branch of Israel through Yahusha the Messiah…
…And here I thought it had been about a ham sandwich.
FAITH IN MOTION 