[The following is a manuscript of my sermon delivered on Sunday morning, the 21st of May, 2017. Look for the video on our Vimeo channel: http://vimeo.com/pilgrimreformedchurch.]
In Bible Study the last few weeks, we’ve been working through some of Jesus’ teachings as recorded by the Apostles Matthew and Luke in their Gospel accounts. We noticed that a lot of what Jesus tried to impart was that the letter of the Law is not more important than its intent.
The Jewish religious leaders of His time focused more on what the words given to Moses by God said, while pushing aside what God meant in those words. This may have been due to their reliance on the scribes, the professionals on the Law, who best knew and supposedly understood God’s law enough to quote it and interpret it for the Pharisees and Sadducees. Since Jesus kept telling the people that what God meant in His commandments was more important than what the leaders ascribed the Law to be, this just gave the Pharisees even more reason to work against Him.
Listen and follow along to an exchange between Jesus and some Pharisees regarding the dangers of putting man’s traditions ahead of God’s commandments, from the Gospel account of the Apostle Mark, chapter 7 verses 1 through 16, and I’ll be reading both from the New King James Version of our Holy Bible.…
The Jewish religious leaders of His time focused more on what the words given to Moses by God said, while pushing aside what God meant in those words. This may have been due to their reliance on the scribes, the professionals on the Law, who best knew and supposedly understood God’s law enough to quote it and interpret it for the Pharisees and Sadducees. Since Jesus kept telling the people that what God meant in His commandments was more important than what the leaders ascribed the Law to be, this just gave the Pharisees even more reason to work against Him.
Listen and follow along to an exchange between Jesus and some Pharisees regarding the dangers of putting man’s traditions ahead of God’s commandments, from the Gospel account of the Apostle Mark, chapter 7 verses 1 through 16, and I’ll be reading both from the New King James Version of our Holy Bible.…
1 Then the Pharisees and some of the scribes came together to Him, having come from Jerusalem. 2 Now when they saw some of His disciples eat bread with defiled, that is, with unwashed hands, they found fault. 3 For the Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat unless they wash their hands in a special way, holding the tradition of the elders. 4 When they come from the marketplace, they do not eat unless they wash. And there are many other things which they have received and hold, like the washing of cups, pitchers, copper vessels, and couches.
5 Then the Pharisees and scribes asked Him, “Why do Your disciples not walk according to the tradition of the elders, but eat bread with unwashed hands?”
6 He answered and said to them, “Well did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written:
‘This people honors Me with their lips,
But their heart is far from Me.
7 And in vain they worship Me,
Teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’
8 For laying aside the commandment of God, you hold the tradition of men — the washing of pitchers and cups, and many other such things you do.”
9 He said to them, “All too well you reject the commandment of God, that you may keep your tradition. 10 For Moses said, ‘Honor your father and your mother’; and, ‘He who curses father or mother, let him be put to death.’ 11 But you say, ‘If a man says to his father or mother, “Whatever profit you might have received from me is Corban” — ’ (that is, a gift to God), 12 then you no longer let him do anything for his father or his mother, 13 making the word of God of no effect through your tradition which you have handed down. And many such things you do.”
14 When He had called all the multitude to Himself, He said to them, “Hear Me, everyone, and understand: 15 There is nothing that enters a man from outside which can defile him; but the things which come out of him, those are the things that defile a man. 16 If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear!”
--Mark 7:1-16 (NKJV)
Let us pray… Father God, Your Son Jesus met with so much resistance and hostility from the religious leadership of His day, yet He never wavered in speaking Your message to the people who needed to hear it. Speak to us now, Father, through Your Holy Spirit directly into our hearts, that we might receive, understand, and obey Your message this morning. Help us to not let religion interfere with our worship. In the blessed name of Jesus we pray. Amen.
During a service at an old synagogue in Eastern Europe, when the Shema prayer was said, half the congregants stood up and half remained sitting. The half that was seated started yelling at those standing to sit down, and the ones standing yelled at the ones sitting to stand up. The rabbi, learned as he was in the Law and the commentaries, didn’t know what to do. Some in his congregation suggested that he consult a home-bound 98 year old man who was one of the original founders of their temple. Perhaps the elderly gentleman would be able to tell him what the actual temple tradition was.
So the rabbi went to the nursing home with a representative of each faction of the congregation. The one whose followers stood during Shema said to the old man, “Is the tradition to stand during this prayer?” The old man answered, “No, that is not the tradition.” The one whose followers sat asked, “Is the tradition to sit during Shema?” The old man answered, “No, that is not the tradition.”
Then somewhat confused and more than a little frustrated, the rabbi said to the old man, “The congregants fight all the time, yelling at each other about whether they should sit or stand…” The old man interrupted, exclaiming, “Yes! THAT is the tradition!”
Now that would be a tradition to be proud of, wouldn’t it – fussing and fighting and shouting all the time. We all have traditions of some kind, though. As individuals, as separate and extended families, as church families – we all have traditions that we keep, even if we’ve forgotten why. Often times the reason behind a tradition is a muddled memory at best, if not entirely lost to history.
Our dictionary defines a tradition as a long-established way of thinking or acting. It is the statements, beliefs, legends, and customs handed down from generation to generation, usually only by word of mouth. Among Jews, tradition can be seen as the body of laws and doctrines, or any one of them, that is considered to have been received from Moses and originally passed down orally through the generations. But when we pass something along simply by word of mouth, the meaning can easily change or get completely lost.
Since Jesus is one with God, He would know what God had intended when He gave the Ten Commandments and His Laws to Moses. But by the time Jesus began His ministry on earth, over 1400 years had passed from that day when Moses carried two stone tablets to the people! For more than 1400 years, God’s words were repeated over and over, from father to son, mother to daughter. For 1400 years, laws were added, doctrines modified, meanings changed.
After 1400 years, God’s original intent was muddied by man and his interpretations, ignored and forgotten. After 1400 years, traditions formed, grew, and became firmly established. Is it any wonder Jesus tried to set folks straight?!
One of those traditions had to do with washing one’s hands before eating. Yes, cleanliness is important and God did not want His children to contaminate what they ate with dirty hands. But what the Pharisees complained about here was that Jesus’ disciples did not observe the ceremonial washing that had little to do with cleanliness. They would barely dip their hands in a bowl of water and let it run down to their elbows before drying with a towel that usually was quite soiled from repeated use. It was just a ceremony the religious observed, a ritual washing, a tradition that long ago lost touch with its intended purpose. So of course they complained to Jesus that His followers were not walking in their tradition.
Jesus begins His reply by quoting Isaiah, whose works the Pharisees would be well familiar with. Listen to how Isaiah put it, from chapter 29 verse 13 of his prophesy, and I’ll read from the Contemporary English Version for clarity…
During a service at an old synagogue in Eastern Europe, when the Shema prayer was said, half the congregants stood up and half remained sitting. The half that was seated started yelling at those standing to sit down, and the ones standing yelled at the ones sitting to stand up. The rabbi, learned as he was in the Law and the commentaries, didn’t know what to do. Some in his congregation suggested that he consult a home-bound 98 year old man who was one of the original founders of their temple. Perhaps the elderly gentleman would be able to tell him what the actual temple tradition was.
So the rabbi went to the nursing home with a representative of each faction of the congregation. The one whose followers stood during Shema said to the old man, “Is the tradition to stand during this prayer?” The old man answered, “No, that is not the tradition.” The one whose followers sat asked, “Is the tradition to sit during Shema?” The old man answered, “No, that is not the tradition.”
Then somewhat confused and more than a little frustrated, the rabbi said to the old man, “The congregants fight all the time, yelling at each other about whether they should sit or stand…” The old man interrupted, exclaiming, “Yes! THAT is the tradition!”
Now that would be a tradition to be proud of, wouldn’t it – fussing and fighting and shouting all the time. We all have traditions of some kind, though. As individuals, as separate and extended families, as church families – we all have traditions that we keep, even if we’ve forgotten why. Often times the reason behind a tradition is a muddled memory at best, if not entirely lost to history.
Our dictionary defines a tradition as a long-established way of thinking or acting. It is the statements, beliefs, legends, and customs handed down from generation to generation, usually only by word of mouth. Among Jews, tradition can be seen as the body of laws and doctrines, or any one of them, that is considered to have been received from Moses and originally passed down orally through the generations. But when we pass something along simply by word of mouth, the meaning can easily change or get completely lost.
Since Jesus is one with God, He would know what God had intended when He gave the Ten Commandments and His Laws to Moses. But by the time Jesus began His ministry on earth, over 1400 years had passed from that day when Moses carried two stone tablets to the people! For more than 1400 years, God’s words were repeated over and over, from father to son, mother to daughter. For 1400 years, laws were added, doctrines modified, meanings changed.
After 1400 years, God’s original intent was muddied by man and his interpretations, ignored and forgotten. After 1400 years, traditions formed, grew, and became firmly established. Is it any wonder Jesus tried to set folks straight?!
One of those traditions had to do with washing one’s hands before eating. Yes, cleanliness is important and God did not want His children to contaminate what they ate with dirty hands. But what the Pharisees complained about here was that Jesus’ disciples did not observe the ceremonial washing that had little to do with cleanliness. They would barely dip their hands in a bowl of water and let it run down to their elbows before drying with a towel that usually was quite soiled from repeated use. It was just a ceremony the religious observed, a ritual washing, a tradition that long ago lost touch with its intended purpose. So of course they complained to Jesus that His followers were not walking in their tradition.
Jesus begins His reply by quoting Isaiah, whose works the Pharisees would be well familiar with. Listen to how Isaiah put it, from chapter 29 verse 13 of his prophesy, and I’ll read from the Contemporary English Version for clarity…
13 The Lord has said:
“These people praise Me
with their words,
but they never really
think about Me.
They worship Me by repeating
rules
made up by humans."
--Isaiah 29:13 (CEV)
Jesus knew that the people, especially the religious leaders, praised God with their words, but then never really gave Him full consideration. They thought they were sufficiently worshiping God by simply repeating the rules and doctrines they themselves had made up through their traditions.
Jesus accused the Pharisees of setting aside the commandments of God so that they could be free to hold onto and practice their long-standing traditions. He even went so far as to say that they rejected God’s commandments just so they could keep doing what they’d always done. Their adherence to their traditions rendered God’s word ineffective and nearly meaningless.
These were the religious leaders Jesus just took to task: leaders in the synagogue and the community. In the 1400 years since Moses brought them God’s law, the people built a complex and demanding religion around God’s words. This religion almost took on a life of its own, bending to the agendas of the men who led it. Their religion was, in effect, their tradition.
And because they held fast to the rules and doctrines they created based on God’s original commands, they considered themselves to be religious and pious. James, the half-brother of Jesus, would later speak to men like these, and in a tone that I think Jesus would well have approved. In the 1st chapter of his letter, verse 26, James writes…
James is saying if we let our traditions, even our religion, deceive our hearts, then that tradition, or religion, is useless. The Apostle Paul carries this concept a step further. He warns that deception of this nature can be a risk to our very salvation. In his letter to the Colossians, chapter 2, verse 8 and verses 20 through 23, Paul speaks to the problem of deceit and tradition…
We must not let anyone deceive us into thinking that traditions are always what’s best to follow. For the traditions of man are all founded on the basic principles of the world, and not according to Jesus. The world hates Jesus, so any doctrines based on its principles, even though they may have an appearance of wisdom, they can be ruinous to our eternal lives.
Traditions can’t help us, traditions can’t save us. Jesus tried to explain that. He concluded His discussion with the Pharisees by telling us all that what goes into us does not make us unclean or desecrate us. Nothing that enters a person from the outside will dirty them. It’s what comes out of us that defiles us, soils us, desecrates us.
What’s in our hearts ultimately defines us, and will eventually come out – in our words and our actions. It’s not our traditions, it’s not our religions that make us what we are. It’s what is in our heart.
We are Christians because Christ is in us, and we are in Him. We have His love in our hearts and we share that love with others. That is what makes us Christians, and not any traditions that we observe here at Pilgrim.
Love unites us, love defines us, not traditions. And as Jesus said, if anyone has ears to hear, let him hear. In the glorious name of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Let us pray… Father God, You gave mankind a set of laws to live by. Each one has a specific purpose. Each one is something we need to follow for our own health and well-being. You gave us these rules for our welfare, not to punish us or to keep us from enjoying this beautiful garden You provided for us to live in. But we took those laws and changed them and added to them and kept the ones we thought were easy enough to obey and tossed out or disregarded the tougher one. Your laws eventually became nearly unrecognizable with all we did to them, until they became more like rules we created than commandments You gave. Please forgive us for making tradition of Your Law. Forgive us for losing the intent You originally held, and instead holding fast to the letter of the law as we rewrote it. Forgive us for letting tradition interfere with worshiping You.
Please hear us now, Father, as we silently speak to You from our hearts, acknowledging our belief in Your Son Jesus and our acceptance of Him as our Master, rededicating ourselves to Your service, promising to repent of our disobedience and sin, seeking Your forgiveness, listening for Your voice…
Lord Jesus, time after time during Your ministry, You tried to get us to understand that what God originally intended with His Law as handed down to Moses is far more important that the letter of the law as we tried to interpret it over the centuries. Even when You spoke to us of God’s intent, we ignored You and continued to place a greater emphasis on what for us had become deeply rooted tradition. Forgive us, Jesus for not listening. Forgive us for not hearing. Whenever we try to put tradition ahead of God’s will, please remind us yet again of His intent.
This we pray in Your glorious name, Lord Jesus Christ, our Master and our Savior, the one true Son of God, in whom we place all our hope, all our trust, all our faith. Amen.
Jesus accused the Pharisees of setting aside the commandments of God so that they could be free to hold onto and practice their long-standing traditions. He even went so far as to say that they rejected God’s commandments just so they could keep doing what they’d always done. Their adherence to their traditions rendered God’s word ineffective and nearly meaningless.
These were the religious leaders Jesus just took to task: leaders in the synagogue and the community. In the 1400 years since Moses brought them God’s law, the people built a complex and demanding religion around God’s words. This religion almost took on a life of its own, bending to the agendas of the men who led it. Their religion was, in effect, their tradition.
And because they held fast to the rules and doctrines they created based on God’s original commands, they considered themselves to be religious and pious. James, the half-brother of Jesus, would later speak to men like these, and in a tone that I think Jesus would well have approved. In the 1st chapter of his letter, verse 26, James writes…
26 If anyone among you thinks he is religious, and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his own heart, this one’s religion is useless.
--James 1:26 (NKJV)
8 Beware lest anyone cheat you through philosophy and empty deceit, according to the tradition of men, according to the basic principles of the world, and not according to Christ.
20 Therefore, if you died with Christ from the basic principles of the world, why, as though living in the world, do you subject yourselves to regulations— 21 “Do not touch, do not taste, do not handle,” 22 which all concern things which perish with the using—according to the commandments and doctrines of men? 23 These things indeed have an appearance of wisdom in self-imposed religion, false humility, and neglect of the body, but are of no value against the indulgence of the flesh.
--Colossians 2:8, 20-23 (NKJV)
Traditions can’t help us, traditions can’t save us. Jesus tried to explain that. He concluded His discussion with the Pharisees by telling us all that what goes into us does not make us unclean or desecrate us. Nothing that enters a person from the outside will dirty them. It’s what comes out of us that defiles us, soils us, desecrates us.
What’s in our hearts ultimately defines us, and will eventually come out – in our words and our actions. It’s not our traditions, it’s not our religions that make us what we are. It’s what is in our heart.
We are Christians because Christ is in us, and we are in Him. We have His love in our hearts and we share that love with others. That is what makes us Christians, and not any traditions that we observe here at Pilgrim.
Love unites us, love defines us, not traditions. And as Jesus said, if anyone has ears to hear, let him hear. In the glorious name of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Let us pray… Father God, You gave mankind a set of laws to live by. Each one has a specific purpose. Each one is something we need to follow for our own health and well-being. You gave us these rules for our welfare, not to punish us or to keep us from enjoying this beautiful garden You provided for us to live in. But we took those laws and changed them and added to them and kept the ones we thought were easy enough to obey and tossed out or disregarded the tougher one. Your laws eventually became nearly unrecognizable with all we did to them, until they became more like rules we created than commandments You gave. Please forgive us for making tradition of Your Law. Forgive us for losing the intent You originally held, and instead holding fast to the letter of the law as we rewrote it. Forgive us for letting tradition interfere with worshiping You.
Please hear us now, Father, as we silently speak to You from our hearts, acknowledging our belief in Your Son Jesus and our acceptance of Him as our Master, rededicating ourselves to Your service, promising to repent of our disobedience and sin, seeking Your forgiveness, listening for Your voice…
Lord Jesus, time after time during Your ministry, You tried to get us to understand that what God originally intended with His Law as handed down to Moses is far more important that the letter of the law as we tried to interpret it over the centuries. Even when You spoke to us of God’s intent, we ignored You and continued to place a greater emphasis on what for us had become deeply rooted tradition. Forgive us, Jesus for not listening. Forgive us for not hearing. Whenever we try to put tradition ahead of God’s will, please remind us yet again of His intent.
This we pray in Your glorious name, Lord Jesus Christ, our Master and our Savior, the one true Son of God, in whom we place all our hope, all our trust, all our faith. Amen.
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