DID YOU KNOW: Acts 10 and Kosher

In Acts 10, Peter has a vision having to do with food.

About noon the following day as they were on their journey and approaching the city, Peter went up on the roof to pray. He became hungry and wanted something to eat, and while the meal was being prepared, he fell into a trance. He saw heaven opened and something like a large sheet being let down to earth by its four corners. It contained all kinds of four-footed animals, as well as reptiles of the earth and birds of the air. Then a voice told him, "Get up, Peter. Kill and eat."
"Surely not, Lord!" Peter replied. "I have never eaten anything impure or unclean."
The voice spoke to him a second time, "Do not call anything impure that God has made clean."
This happened three times, and immediately the sheet was taken back to heaven.
Acts 10:9-16

The logical question comes to mind, what is this all about? Why should God care what Peter is eating, and why should Peter care if God offers up an impromptu picnic?

In Old Testament Law, there were a number of rules and regulations about what a Jew can and can not eat. The law is called "Kosher" in English or Kashrut in Hebrew. This is a very strict set of guidelines which goes beyond something as simple as "Don't eat meat on Fridays." Shellfish could not be eaten, only animals with a split hood which also chews cud could be eaten, and the preparation of food was as important as the food itself. A proper animal improperly prepared was as unclean as an improper animal.

Why did God require these things of the Jews? Some aspects were clearly for their own protection, as they enforced hygiene and cleanliness in an age before soap. Some aspects were to make sure the Jews remained set apart from other peoples, so that they were always God's distinct people. And some were purely an obedience to God.

So what did Peter's vision mean? Was God saying that "eating kosher" was not a good thing? No. Instead, it was an illustration of how the Law of Christ was different from the Law of the Old Testament. In the OT, separation and cleanliness were the name of the game. In the NT, we see Christ being our way to being clean and we see God reaching out to all people, regardless of their pasts or how "clean" the rest of the world say them.