21 For the law of Moses has been preached in every city from the earliest times and is read in the synagogues on every Sabbath.”
The Early Church faced an early theological crossroads. Some of the Jewish believers felt that the non-Jewish believers needed to have the outward signs of being Jewish in order to be a believer. For them some outward signs were necessary for their faith to be genuine. The reason there were any restrictions recommended on the conduct of believers is that Moses had been preached. Conduct must come from an inward code, not one imposed from the outside, as the OT had been presented. But it was never the intention of the OT to be a merely outward system. It was originally meant to be an inward system that was demonstrated on the outside. They were covenant kids, and out of that relationship they were to act a certain way. The same is true today. We have a relationship with the Lord, and out of that relationship comes holy living, living that demonstrates the character of our Holy God. The early church did not want to set up an immediate roadblock to the reception of the Gospel by Jewish non-believers. They wanted to be culturally sensitive. In many parts of the world today eating with the left hand would immediately close the door to hearing the message of the Gospel.
The Arnold Journey 