TWO CONCERNS
Mark 7:13-16 NKJV
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!"
Jesus was in a running battle with the Pharisees and scribes. Of course, Jesus always won, but it did not stop these religious rulers from arguing and disputing with Jesus.
Jesus uncovered two problem areas with the Pharisees. The first was their adherence to their tradition. They were so concerned with washing and cleansing. They would always wash their hands before they ate and had a special way of doing it according to the tradition of the elders. They may have been keeping the tradition, but they were missing a key point. Jesus called them on keeping tradition and ignoring God's Word. And that is an area of concern. When tradition becomes more important than what God has said, you are heading down the wrong path. Tradition can completely miss people. Tradition will not allow certain people into certain churches. Tradition declares you must dress in a certain way to go to church. Tradition can keep people away from God.
When we started The Ark in 1996, the tradition was that you wore a coat and tie to church as a man, and dresses for the ladies. We started that way. But not long into the formation of the church, we went to casual Sunday as a way to beat the summer heat with our limited air conditioning. The next year, in 1998, we went to casual summer. And we have been in casual summer ever since. By relaxing our traditions, we made it easier for people to come to church and not be concerned with having the appropriate clothing. We made it easier for single moms on a limited budget to come to church without worrying about being judged because of how they dressed. We started reaching more people when we dropped our tradition. And yet we made some people angry, and they left the church. Lord save us from pointless traditions.
The second area of concern for Jesus was the Pharisees' fixation on outside things. Particularly on things being clean and what kind of foods they would and would not eat. Jesus addressed their over concern for outward things. It's not what is on the outside that matters nearly as much as what is on the inside, in the heart. It's not what goes into a person that causes defilement; it's what comes out. The Pharisees wanted their hands to be spotlessly clean, but were unconcerned with the condition of their hearts.
Over the years, I have seen believers get all caught up with having the right kind of diet. I have no problem with eating clean, but it is not nearly as important as what comes out of me. Does kindness and grace and words of faith and love come out of me? If that is the case, then bacon cheeseburgers and French fries are not going to affect my relationship with the Lord. If my main diet consists of burgers, fries, and milkshakes, I may meet the Lord quicker, but food does not affect my heart.
Traditions and outside things pale in comparison with the truth of God's Word and the matters of the heart.
PRAYER
Lord, I purpose that my focus will be on inside things, the matters of the heart, and what is pleasing in Your sight.