It’s About People, Not Meat
Peter Did Not Run Out for a Ham Sandwich
The argument goes: Kefa’s dream announced all animals are now approved for eating. I believed this myself when once presented in a sun-day gathering by a sincere preacher. Back then, I followed along, bahahah’d with the other sheeple, amen-ing and hallelujah’ing at all the right times. Then went out for baby back ribs at Chilis. (Not really, I never cared for ribs. An oversized bacon-cheeseburger and fries at Red Robin, you betcha!)
I wore my Jesus coat well. All was fine — provided — the speaker fit what was right in my own eyes, even if I did not believe it in my spirit (I never really liked pork, just bacon and pepperoni). I did not study the old dusty books on the shelf (and I always had a bunch, even back then).
I was one of the MANY.
I practiced religion — by rote — because that was what I was given by my father, and his father, and so on. < Jer 16:19> I arrived every sun-day for the service, participated actively, taught sun-day school, led junior church and adult Bible studies. I sang with my hands up, prayed with my eyes closed, tithed my 10% (electronically for a while!). I was a model millennial-60s husband-father-churchgoer — the image I was raised with. All the falsehood, futility, and worthlessness. (Please see my special note at the end!)
In Acts 10 we meet a Roman, a captain of the guard in Caesarea, visited by an angel. He was righteous, studied the Torah, attended synagogue where the Torah was taught. He prayed only to Elohim, was faithful in work and fair to the Israelite people. He already believed in the coming Messiah (promised in Torah and the prophets) and likely had already heard about Him in Jerusalem. He wanted the details. He believed Torah and the promise of the prophet to come. <Deut 18:18–19> He was rewarded for his faithfulness. <Acts 10:1–10>
He immediately sent THREE MEN to bring Kefa.
The Father has sent His Spirit to disperse the disciples and new taught ones to “go out into the world,” which they had not started doing yet. They spent years studying — as Acts 6 demonstrates — and the Father gave them the time they needed to write it to their hearts. Times was up and they were dispersed. Remember a recent lesson when I explained that the Father uses even those who are not His? Like Pharaoh, Pilate, Yehudas, even modern day men like Hitler, Stalin , and Mao. His purposes are far greater than we can imagine. He used the threats of violence leveled against the sect of the Natzarins to disperse them out into the world — as they were commanded by Messiah.
But how far were they really willing to go? Kefa went as far as Joppa (a day or so walk from Jerusalem if I measured correctly). He was praying on the rooftop porch. Kefa is here, alone in Joppa. While praying, he had a dream:
Acts 10:11–12 — 11) 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, 12) in which were all kinds of four-footed beasts of the earth, and wild beasts, and creeping creatures, and the birds of the heaven.
→ Click for an Important History break
The Oral Traditions
The “oral tradition” is a real problem for Kefa. That is what his dream is about.
“You are still stuck in your oral traditions, Kefa.”
Food instructions are from YHVH <Leviticus 11; even Noach knew them — Gen 7:2> they ARE NOT part of the oral traditions. (See: What Is TORAH)
Acts 10:13–20 (in segments) — 13) And a voice came to him, “Rise up, Kĕpha, slay and eat.”
“Break out of the trance” of religion (the oral traditions) by thinking about things Spiritually.
Instead, initially Kefa misunderstands the dream.
… 14) But Kĕpha said, “Not at all, Master! Because I have never eaten whatever is common {G2839 — koinon} or unclean {G169 — akatharton}.”
→ Question for those of you who think this has anything to do with “meats:” Does Kefa race down to the deli and buy a ham sandwich? At any point in Acts 10 does he mention that the instructions of Leviticus 11 have been “annulled?” Does Kefa — even later in the future at the times of Galatians — sit down to eat a meal of pork fried rice? Kefa KNOWS from the start that the dream is no approval to eat whatever he wants.
NO!
I can hear the voice of the messenger sigh…
“Let’s try this again.”
… 15 And a voice came to him again the second time, “What Elohim has cleansed you do not consider common.” {He does NOT say unclean} 16 And this took place three times, and the vessel was taken back to the heaven.
The next verses are a CRITICAL LINK in Kefa’s processing.
… 17) And while Kĕpha was doubting within himself…
He is in doubt about what the dream means. Was his mind opened or not? Didn’t Messiah already tell him the dietary instructions were canceled? (That is snarky sarcasm.)
Continuing:
… {doubting within himself} about what the vision might mean, look, the {three} men who had been sent from Cornelius, having asked for the house of Shim‛on, stood at the gate, 18) and calling out, they enquired whether Shim‛on, also known as Kĕpha, was staying there. 19) And as Kĕpha was thinking about the vision…
He is still thinking about it!
Continuing:
… the Spirit said to him, “See, three men seek you. 20) “But rise up, go down and go with them, not DOUBTING at all, for I have sent them.”
The messenger explained the purpose of the dream: three men — whom you might otherwise consider “common” because they are “of the nations” — are here to take you to meet another man — whom you might also consider “common,” especially because he is Roman.
GO WITH THEM!
The purpose of the dream was to get him moving. He ran away from the violence in Jerusalem but stalled before going out to the nations to spread the Good Word of Messiah Yeshua.
…But…
Kefa STILL does not understand the dream completely. All that study and prayer and he still missed the entire point of the dream. He was not being told to go down and eat shrimp salad with some foreigner.
That is doctrine and dogma.
That is a falsehood — a lie.
No dream in Scripture is left unexplained (prophetic visions not included). All dreams in Scripture are explained.
The Father is not an Elohim of confusion and doubt. He is always clear and understandable to those who are open to His Spirit. Those who do things their own way… Not so much.
This dream is no different
Go and read the passage for yourself. I need to save some words here. Kefa leaves the following morning with the THREE men.
Cornelius meets them outside his house and they all go in and Kefa begins to speak, but he starts with this:
… 28) And he said to them, “You know that a Yehuḏi man is not allowed {per the oral tradition < Matt 15:3, Matt 15:9, Mark 7:7–8, Col 2:14, 20, 22>} to associate with, or go to one of another race. But Elohim has shown me that I should not call any MAN< ACTS 10:35> common or unclean.”
He should not call any
MAN
common or unclean. It was not about meat. It was about men.
→ Stop thinking of men who seek Me as being unclean or — especially — as common.
Kefa uses two different words that do not mean the same thing. He is making a distinction between animals identified by the Father as food <Lev 11> in the bundle from heaven that have become common through contact with the unclean animals in the bundle AND, separately identifying the defiling (unclean) animals that the Father identified as “not food.” He is identifying both types SEPARATELY.
A Yehudi man, per Torah, could be made ritually common through contact with that which was considered ritually common or the unclean. Gentiles, non-Yehudim — ACCORDING TO TALMUD/MISHNA, the oral traditions — are common, and because of what they eat (pork, shrimp, etc.) are ritually unclean or impure (and for other reasons: idolatry, whoring, eating blood… remember those 4 pillars?). Therefore, according to Rabbinic tradition, contact of one who is “clean” — for lack of a better term, set apart, purified — with those who are common or ritually unclean, makes the set apart one become common.
Dream explained
It was about MEN, not meat. It was given THREE times so that he would know right away when meeting THREE MEN at his gate. He was taught in one dream — and a bit of time processing — that the oral tradition — the religious rules that made it illegal for him to associate with anyone of the nations — was nothing but the rote practice of man-made religion.
Men are not common once cleansed by the Father. ** (see note below)
How are otherwise common men cleansed? Read on:
Acts 10:34–35 — 34) And opening his mouth, Kĕpha said, “Truly I see that Elohim shows no partiality, 35) but in every nation, he who fears Him and works righteousness is accepted by Him. < Isa 56:4–7; et. al.>
What cleanses a man?
Fear of the Almighty (reverence) AND obedience.
He, the Father, cleanses them.
The Word was given to the Yehudim to demonstrate to the nations with their lifestyle. Messiah said to go out there and show them and tell them. But Kefa and the other disciples and leaders in Jerusalem WERE NOT DOING IT. They needed a wake-up call. First, they were scattered. Only a few remained in Jerusalem at all.
The dream was not about the meat, but about the men at the gate. “THREE MEN of the nations” are here to take you to start spreading the gospel of Messiah to the nations — EXACTLY as HE told you to do:
Matthew 28:18–20 — 18) And יהושע came up and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. 19) “Therefore, go and make taught ones of all the nations, immersing them in the Name {what Name do you think the Messiah meant?}, 20) teaching them to guard all that I have commanded you. And see, I am with you always, until the end of the age.”
He told them to go and they hesitated. He scattered them, then started sending the message that they needed to get out there! Sha’ul was picked up along the way to replace the lost 12th man; Messiah’s choice, not that of the 11.
** I wanted this above at the double-asterisks but it would have detrimentally broken the flow. It is critical to recognize with regards to Cornelius and his family on the “ritually common” issue that pertained to Gentiles then:
Acts 10:1–2 — 1) Now there was a certain man in Caesarea called Cornelius, a captain of what was called the Italian Regiment, 2) dedicated, and fearing Elohim with all his household, doing many kind deeds to the people, and praying to Elohim always.
Cornelius was already OBEDIENT to the Father before meeting Kefa. He studied Torah and prayed and rightfully feared (showed reverence and awe to) the Father. This means that Cornelius and his family DID NOT EAT pork or shrimp or cats or bats. They ate a Biblically pure diet (and avoided the other things to remain ritually “pure”). They did not contaminate themselves with the impure or unclean things of the world.
They were not the typical “common” Gentiles expected. Kefa needed a little buffer before he could convince himself to really commit to going into the world. This was a nice little cushioned half-step. Even in Galatians 2:11–21, Kefa is still suffering from being trapped in the old traditions of religion (17-years later!). It is hard to say for certain when, but clearly, he finally broke out of it (after Galatians 2, that is).
This ALSO explains additional context over the argument about circumcision. The oral traditions stated being circumcised was a sign of purity (meaning “not common”).
However, the Father called it a sign between man and Him. One never wants to find themselves on the side of: Men say — when it is countered with: But the Father said.
The believing Pharisees were insisting that new believers must be PHYSICALLY circumcised in order that they not be common. Because if they are common, they cannot fully enter the Temple or synagogue to hear the Torah read. This is NOT Torah. Remember those Four Pillars, again?
But their HEARTS are circumcised by the Spirit of Elohim when they believe and accept the spiritual awl of servatude through their spiritual ear. This is the satisfaction of the command in Torah for circumcision — AND IT IS GIVEN IN TORAH. <Deut 30:6; Rom 2:28–29>
Ya’akov and the others in the Jerusalem Council KNEW this. So, they addressed the issues that ACTUALLY made a person impure — common, contaminated — in the eyes of the Father that prevented them from going and hearing the Torah taught on Sabbath <Acts 15:21>: sexual immorality, idolatry, eating blood, cruelty to animals, see: The Four Pillars of Christianity. These things prevent a person from entering the presence of the Father in the synagogue to hear the Torah read (to learn it — hear and obey, Shema).
In case you are wondering, eating pork (alone) is not a sin punishable by death. It makes one impure.
HOWEVER, and this is a
HUGE HOWEVER -
… once a believer, one who claims to be His, learns the instruction, regardless of how it is taught — even if in a racist manner, i.e.: You don’t have to follow those OLD Jewish things…
… the believer is still aware of His Word and is required to study it for themselves, not just take someone else’s word for it.
It is your personal responsibility to seek out and learn His Word in Spirit and TRUTH. You do not get to stand before the judge and claim it was someone else’s fault you did not know His Word.
So, when a pastor, teacher, preacher, priest interprets something from Scripture…
YOU ARE REQUIRED TO STUDY IT FOR YOURSELF!
Do not take my word for it, study this for yourself. Why do you think I put in all the Scripture and references? Because YOU need them to study it yourself.
What will you do? Can you invest your time in your walk with Messiah or are you so busy with Facebook and TikTok that you cannot spend time in genuine study of His Word?
It is your choice. It always has been.
{cub}Special Message for My Dad (to be posted)
2nd History Break (to be posted)
Originally published at https://aminoapps.com.
