Mark 7:1–13
1 Now when the Pharisees gathered to him, with some of the scribes who had come from Jerusalem, 2 they saw that some of his disciples ate with hands that were defiled, that is, unwashed. 3 (For the Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat unless they wash their hands properly, holding to the tradition of the elders, 4 and when they come from the marketplace, they do not eat unless they wash. And there are many other traditions that they observe, such as the washing of cups and pots and copper vessels and dining couches.) 5 And the Pharisees and the scribes asked him, “Why do your disciples not walk according to the tradition of the elders, but eat with defiled hands?” 6 And he 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 in vain do they worship me,
teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’
8 You leave the commandment of God and hold to the tradition of men.”
9 And he said to them, “You have a fine way of rejecting the commandment of God in order to establish your tradition! 10 For Moses said, ‘Honor your father and your mother’; and, ‘Whoever reviles father or mother must surely die.’ 11 But you say, ‘If a man tells his father or his mother, “Whatever you would have gained from me is Corban” ’ (that is, given to God)— 12 then you no longer permit him to do anything for his father or mother, 13 thus making void the word of God by your tradition that you have handed down. And many such things you do.”
One thing I appreciate is a person who is direct in conversation. Typically, they don’t hesitate to state their point in the conversation.
One of the great things about Mark’s Gospel is its fast pace, often getting to the point quickly. We see this in the conflict between Jesus and some of the religious leaders.
We know that Jesus has been proclaiming the inbreaking of the kingdom of God in His presence, and amazing things have been happening along the way. Crowds have been coming to see Jesus, to be healed, and to hear about the kingdom of God.
This has brought Jesus into conflict with the religious leaders. The religious leaders expected the kingdom of God to break into the world on their terms, but the kingdom’s arrival with Jesus looks radically different than what they expected. In fact, rather than celebrate what God is doing over the last couple of chapters, the religious leaders see what Jesus is doing as a dangerous movement, and so they are looking to bring Him down. It’s interesting to note that the Pharisees and scribes travel all the way from Jerusalem to confront Jesus. In all likelihood, they are trying to get control of Jesus as fast as possible.
The point of the religious leaders seems minor. They argue that Jesus’ disciples are breaking tradition by not washing their hands before meals, which violates the purity codes. As the religious leaders see it, Jesus and His disciples are violating tradition.
However, Jesus doesn’t see it that way, and we’re a little caught off guard by how quickly and directly He slices through their argument and exposes their hearts. Jesus doesn’t pull any punches here. He tells the Pharisees that their human traditions are completely off, they are gutting scripture, and in the process, they are keeping people from a relationship with God.
Jesus draws their attention to one of the Ten Commandments, the one regarding honoring your parents, which meant caring for and respecting them always, and looking after them into their old age. The Pharisees would not disagree; however, they had a tradition that allowed someone to give a monetary gift to the Temple equivalent to what they would have spent on their parents in their old age, and then that person would be excused from providing any further support for their parents. That tradition undermines the commandment, and it exposes the hearts of the Pharisees. Their hearts were centered on their own selfish desire to maintain their status and position rather than helping the people to know and love the Lord.
Our lives and the lives of our churches are filled with traditions. We see these traditions most often around Christmas and Easter; specific meals are prepared, decorations must go up in specified locations, there is a set of songs that must be sung on specific days, and so the list goes on.
Just to be clear, I’m not opposed to any tradition if it helps people to center their lives on Jesus. However, if a tradition keeps people from encountering Jesus, it must be examined and re-evaluated. What matters is that we constantly immerse ourselves in the story of God and His great love for us. We must know that story, to understand it, be reminded of it, be made unsettled by it, and to be encouraged by it so that our hearts are always oriented where they should be, on Christ alone.
In doing so, we’ll be able to enjoy those traditions that encourage us in our relationship with Jesus, and at the same time, we’ll be able to discern what traditions exist just for the sake of themselves and lay them aside.
What traditions encourage you in your relationship with Jesus? What traditions are you observing just because you’ve always done it that way?
God bless you and know that you are constantly in my prayers!
Scott