Soon the news reached the apostles and other believers in Judea that the Gentiles had received the word of God. But when Peter arrived back in Jerusalem, the Jewish believers criticized him. “You entered the home of Gentiles and even ate with them!” they said. [Acts 11.1-3]
Why, when Peter had the vision of the sheet and all manner of animals, were there all manner of animals in the sheet and not all manner of people, if indeed Peter was to understand that he was to take the Gospel to the Gentile people?
The thing that supposedly "defiled" Gentiles was what they ate! They were not subject to the laws of the Jews regarding what they ate and how they ate it within their homes. Consequently, they and their homes were seen by the Jews as defiled and were therefore off limits. It might have been said of the Gentiles, "You are what you eat."
We might do well here to consider what was accomplished by God's laws for the Jews regarding what they could or could not eat. While we might correctly assume that these laws had to do with holiness, we might also incorrectly assume that holiness was imparted by the actual food instead of by the distinction of obedience in what foods were eaten (and how they were eaten). God demands obedience. Obedience distinguished Israel as God's. Israel pointed the way to Messiah. Once Messiah came, the obedience that pointed to Him (laws about ceremonial foods) were no longer necessary. And so...
In addition to the vision that landed Peter in Cornelius' house, he had only to remember a conversation he himself had with Jesus regarding this very same topic of food:
Then Jesus called to the crowd to come and hear. “Listen,” he said, “and try to understand. It’s not what goes into your mouth that defiles you; you are defiled by the words that come out of your mouth.” Then the disciples came to him and asked, “Do you realize you offended the Pharisees by what you just said?” Jesus replied, “Every plant not planted by my heavenly Father will be uprooted, so ignore them. They are blind guides leading the blind, and if one blind person guides another, they will both fall into a ditch.” Then Peter said to Jesus, “Explain to us the parable that says people aren’t defiled by what they eat.” “Don’t you understand yet?” Jesus asked. “Anything you eat passes through the stomach and then goes into the sewer. But the words you speak come from the heart—that’s what defiles you. For from the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, all sexual immorality, theft, lying, and slander. These are what defile you. Eating with unwashed hands will never defile you.” [Matthew 15.10-20]
The vision Peter had was proof positive that Peter (and the other disciples) had, in fact, not grasped what Jesus taught them earlier (Matthew 1.10-20).
The fact that Peter "went" to Cornelius' house at the direction of the voice from heaven confirms Jesus' command to "go" in what we know as the Great Commission. Likewise, the gift of speaking with tongues, that was given to the Gentiles in Cornelius' house, confirmed that Gentiles also were called and equipped to go to all the world. And, with this in mind...
Jesus came and told his disciples, “I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth. Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” [Matthew 28.18-20]
When Jesus' followers were commanded to "go" they were also commanded to "teach." And, what does teaching require? It requires something to come out of our mouths - out of our no longer defiled but regenerated hearts - the Good News of Jesus Christ.
If we can (or will) see it, Jesus' discussion in Matthew 15.10-20 and Peter's vision both confirm that we should not be paying attention to what we eat, but instead what we declare with our mouths that comes from our hearts. Concern for what we eat is self-centric - it is idolatrous. Concern for what we say is other-centric - it is the ministry of Jesus Christ.
Concern for what we eat is representative of everything people do in their own way to preserve their own lives.
Concern for what we say is representative of everything we do to take up our cross and follow Jesus - to "go" and have an explanation (the Gospel message) for why we are going.
Then Jesus said to his disciples, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me. [Matthew 16.24]
We must decide whether we "live" today because of what we eat or because of what we say. One "life" is carnal while the other "life" is spiritual. We should intentionally know and understand which one we are "living" for.
Father, as scattered as my words here may be, they make sense to me. I see that all my focus on "living" needs to be spiritual. May I be found giving up my own way, taking up my cross, and following Jesus. So be it.
