From my reading in Acts 10:1-23 in the One Year New Testament.

Bacon is my favorite food.

I love bacon everything. Bacon cheeseburgers, bacon bits, bacon and egg burritos, bacon-wrapped shrimp, bacon-etc.  It is really true that just about everything is better with bacon!

But if the Bible forbids the eating of pork, then why do Christians eat it?

The Old Testament dietary laws did prohibit the eating of pork.

“The pig has evenly split hooves but does not chew the cud, so it is unclean.” Leviticus 11:7

Why did God prohibit certain foods?

The Bible Knowledge Commentary gives a good answer,

“Certain hygienic considerations were no doubt part of the reason, at least in the providence of God… But the primary reason seems to have been theological—to teach symbolically Israel’s status as the holy (separated) people of God.”

When Jesus introduced the new covenant, he changed the rules about eating. In Jesus’ ministry, he had already declared all foods clean.

“Food doesn’t go into your heart, but only passes through the stomach and then goes into the sewer.” (By saying this, he declared that every kind of food is acceptable in God’s eyes.)” Mark 7:19

Food was no longer a way God’s the Jews were to separate themselves from others.

Even though Jesus declared all food acceptable, the disciples didn’t get the picture. So God used a vision to get Peter’s attention.

Peter was praying on the roof in the middle of the day and fell into a trance. He saw a sheet come down with all kinds of animals and a voice told him to kill and eat them! Peter resisted but the voice spoke to him saying,

“Do not call something unclean if God has made it clean.” Acts 10:15

I think the purpose of this vision was two-fold.

1. The literal meaning is that all foods are now clean, which Jesus already declared.
2. I think the main message God was trying to get across was that salvation was now open to Jews and Gentiles.

I am so glad God opened up salvation to all people. I am also grateful for bacon!

Next time you bite into a juicy slice of bacon, remember to thank God for the open invitation of salvation for all people.

Also see the follow up article God Shows No Favoritism

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