Simon J. Kistemaker suggests that the lesson God taught Peter in this vision is that "God has removed the barriers he once erected to separate his people from the surrounding nations." Kistemaker argues that it means Peter has to accept
Gentile believers as full members of the
Christian Church, but also that God has made all animals clean, so that "Peter with his fellow
Jewish Christians can disregard the
food laws that have been observed since the days of
Moses." As the Book of Acts makes clear, Christians are not obligated to follow this holiness code. This is made clear in Peter's vision in Acts 10:15. Peter is told, 'What God has made clean, do not call common.' In other words, there is no
kosher code for Christians. Christians are not concerned with eating kosher foods and avoiding all others. That part of the law is no longer binding, and Christians can enjoy shrimp and pork with no injury to conscience.
Luke Timothy Johnson and
Daniel J. Harrington write that this episode heralds a radical change in Peter's "identity as a member of God's people," but also that "the implication is that all things God created are declared clean by him, and are not affected by human discriminations." and not one about food. The United Church of God argues that this is an "often-misunderstood section of the Bible", and that "the puzzling vision could not be annulling God's instructions." ==Artistic depictions==