Purity

Does the New Testament require Gentiles to eat kosher? We have looked at a couple of passages ( here and here) which are frequently misconstrued to teach that God declared all foods clean. Upon closer examination we discover these two passages do not teach what many people think they teach. God did declare all foods clean, but not in Mark 7 or Acts 10. 

Some people say that an event recorded in Acts 15 shows that the leaders of the early church required Gentiles to eat kosher. The Hebrew word “kosher” (כָּשֵׁר‎) means “to be suitable, fit to use.”¹ Kosher is a word applied to food which is considered ritually clean and therefore fit to eat. 

Did the conclusions of the Jerusalem Council of Acts 15 result in orders for Gentile Christians to eat only kosher foods? This is one possible interpretation, but it is not the only one. There is a lot going on in Acts 15, therefore, we need to understand the background.

In the not so distant American past, even those who were not religious refrained from swearing in the presence of women and children. As our nation has grown more secular and profane, so has our use of language; some women and children have worse potty mouths than men! God’s people have never been immune to the corrupting influence of society. Consequently, it’s becoming more and more common to encounter “cussing Christians.”

God expects us to leave the bad habits and sins of the world behind when we become His disciples. God has always commanded his people to be different from the rest of the world. Peter, quoting Leviticus 11:44-45, said, “it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy” (1 Pet. 1:16 ESV). Likewise, Paul said, “For God did not call us to be impure, but to live a holy life” (1 Th. 4:7 NIV).