“The Head of the Class”
BIBLE TRUTH: Don’t allow tradition to violate the
spirit of the Law.
Matthew 15:1-11; King
James Version (KJV)
1 Then came to Jesus
scribes and Pharisees, which were of Jerusalem, saying
2 Why do thy disciples
transgress the traditions of the elders? For they wash not their hands when
they eat bread.
3 But he answered and
said unto them, Why do ye also transgress the commandment of God by your
tradition?
4 For God commanded
saying, Honour thy father and mother: and, He that curseth father or mother,
let him die the death.
5 But ye say,
Whoseoever shall say to his father or his
mother, It is a gift, by whatsoeverthou mightiest be profited by me;
6 And honour not his
father or his mother, he shall be free. Thus ye have made the commandment of
God of none effect by your tradition.
7 Ye hypocrites, well
did Esaias prophesy of you, saying,
8 This people draweth
nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their
heart is far from me.
9 But in vain they do
worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.
10 And he called the
multitude, and said unto them, Hear and understand:
11 Not that which
goeth into the mouth defileth a man; but that which cometh out of the mouth,
this deflieth a man.
Matthew 15:15-20; King
James Version (KJV)
15 Then answered Peter
and said unto him, Declare unto us this parable.
16 And Jesus said, Are
ye also yet without understanding?
17 Do not ye yet
understand, that whatsoever entereth in at the mouth goeth into the belly, and
is cast out into the draught?
18 But those things
which proceed out of the mouth come forth from the heart; and they defile the
man.
19 For out of the
heart proceed evil thoughts, murderers, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false
witness, blasphemies:
20 These are the
things which defile a man: but to eat with unwashed hands defileth not a man.
We’re at an
interesting place in the Scripture. Let’s allow history to take us centuries
back, when the Jews were captured and enslaved by the Babylonians. They no
longer had a temple, but they still had the Law of God through the ministry of
Moses. Some so called “spiritual” elders wrote a check list of things that a
devote Jew must do in order to make sure the Jews were keeping the Law. Over
time, the elders’ instructions turned into a whole new religion! Somehow, the
true Law had become convoluted and severely overlooked. Now, Jesus shows up to
call them on it.
Only the proper
sacrifices were able to be offered in the temple. Elders were “inspecting”
these offerings and being a tollgate which decided whether or not the sacrifice
would be accepted, or if they needed to sell the worshipper an acceptable one.
This leads up to Jesus’ outrage in Matthew 21, where we’ll find Jesus running
them out of His Father’s house!
Side Note: Have you
noticed those who treat church and service to God as if it is a chore or job?
They seem content in going through the motions of it all, to please human eyes,
and to hear their praise! Don’t they know that when their heart is not
committed, to align with their works, they entire act is of none effect!
Jesus was not
impressed with this form or fashion. He warned the people against going through
the motions and checking items off a list to say that they “completed” their
obligations to worship in the eyes of men.
Peter comes to Jesus
afterwards and asks Jesus to explain the parable that He spake of moments
earlier. Jesus explained that we shouldn’t fear the things that we eat as food,
but rather the words that come from our mouths because they are a direct
reflection of our heart and mind. Then, Jesus began going down the list of all
of the sins that begin merely as a thought, eventually festers and morphs into
a desire, until our inner man is driven to perform that very sin. So, it’s the
heart that is wicked! Jesus taught them to humble themselves, be cleansed, and
saved from themselves so that God could truly use them.
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