Mark 7:1-13
Introduction
Good morning! Today we consider a topic I think is super relevant to the last few years of Christianity in America. The topic can be helpful or extremely dangerous. What is the topic? Look with me at the Gospel of Mark, chapter seven.
While you get there, let me ask you a question. What would be some of your fondest memories of going to church? If you were being nostalgic for a moment, what would you think of when you think of going to church? Maybe you would think about Sunday school and flannel graphs and then heading to the main service with everyone and finding your usual spot on the pew. Maybe you would think about the smell of coffee and sneaking some mints from the bowl in the foyer. Maybe you would think of men in coats and ladies in dresses with big Bibles under their arms. Maybe you would think about hymns and the unique sound of the organ calling the church to worship. Or maybe your mind would turn to holiday memories: Easter mornings with extended family, everyone dressed up in spring-colored outfits. Or maybe you would think of a Christmas Eve service and the lighting of candles as everyone sings “Silent Night.” These are all wonderful memories and associations, and many of them are mine, but do you know what they all have in common? Every example I just mentioned is a tradition, a religious tradition. And that is our main topic today, which can be good and also very dangerous: Religious traditions.
Religious traditions are often good. I think of the opening scene of the musical The Fiddler on the Roof. The main character addresses the audience and says his people are all like fiddlers on a roof, trying to scratch out the tune of their life while keeping their balance. Then he asks, “And how do we keep our balance? I can tell you in one word. Tradition!” And I think he has a good point. Religious traditions can help us stay balanced. They can keep us from swinging to an extreme. They can provide ballast in times of uncertainty. There is something comforting and stabilizing about the religious traditions we’ve settled into. For me, lighting candles every Christmas Eve is a good tradition because it reminds me hope has entered the world with the arrival of Jesus. That is a good tradition. Religious traditions can be good. But they can also be very dangerous.
Religious traditions can be very dangerous to you and to others. And I said this topic is super relevant because there are many people leaving the church today, not because of something Jesus or the Apostles did or said but because of religious traditions that have been developed and enforced. So, this is an important topic for us to consider.
So, what exactly are religious traditions, and how can they become so dangerous? Those answers we will find in Mark seven. Let’s work through the passage now. Let’s start with verses 1-5, which introduce us to the topic…
Introduction to Religious Traditions
[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?”
So, here is our opening scene and the introduction to the topic at hand.
We meet the main characters: the Pharisees and scribes. To use modern language, we might say the Pharisees were like a conservative denomination within Judaism. They were interested in keeping the Torah very carefully. As for the scribes, they did not represent any one viewpoint, but they were religious experts. And both groups had come from Jerusalem to investigate this new rabbi, Jesus.
We see then the presenting issue: handwashing. Some of the disciples would eat without washing their hands. Now, for modern readers, we need to clarify the concern is not about hygiene (Edwards, 2001). It’s not that the disciples have dirt all over their hands. The issue is ritual purity. They could have had completely germ-free hands, but the issue was they did not follow the religious tradition of ritually washing their hands before meals.
That brings us to our main topic: religious traditions. What is a religious tradition? A religious tradition is any practice or interpretation that develops around the commands of God but are not the commands of God. So, for example, we are commanded to have communion. Taking communion is not a tradition. But we do not have commands on the exact frequency or procedure of taking communion. So, whether we walk down front or pass plates, that’s tradition which has developed around the explicit command but is not the command itself. Now, I would tell you the traditions we have around the Lord’s Supper are wise and biblically based. But they are still traditions because we do not have a Bible verse that says “Thus saith the Lord, on Sunday mornings after two songs and announcements, ye shall peel back the cellophane wrappers and partake of 1.5 fluid ounces of grape juice.” You can see from this example religious traditions are often navigating these gray spaces, and they’re often attempting to provide helpful, stabilizing, well-intentioned, even wise and biblical recommendations on how to proceed when you’re not sure how to proceed but want to honor the Lord as best you can. And these kinds of religious traditions had popped up all through Judaism. And that’s what’s going on here.
Now, this is a big oversimplification, but here’s my summary of the issue in Mark seven. There is no commandment from God about ritually washing your hands before every meal, but there are commands about staying pure. So the question is how do you stay pure? The Pharisees answer, “Here’s a religious tradition we’ve found very wise and helpful: Wash your hands before every meal. That way you’re on the safe side. That way if you accidentally bumped into an unclean person in the market without realizing it, you’re covered.” It all seems innocent and well-intentioned, and so the Pharisees and scribes, perhaps sincerely, ask Jesus, “Why do your disciples not walk according to the tradition of the elders, but eat with defiled hands?” (v. 5).
And with that question, our work today really begins. Jesus says, “You want to talk about religious traditions? Let’s talk about religious traditions.” And with that, Jesus begins to unpack the dangers of their religious traditions and the danger of religious traditions in general, dangers that many of you have encountered and perhaps have even been burned by. So as we pick back up with verses 6 and 7, we begin to encounter the dangers of religious tradition. Verses 6-7, danger number one…
Danger 1: You can honor religious traditions without honoring God.
“[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.’”
Jesus says with all these religious traditions you’ve found a way to honor me with your lips yet not with your heart. You’ve found a way to worship God that is all about vanity. And so he calls them “pretenders.” The word here is “hypocrites,” but that is what the word means in the Bible: pretenders. Today, we often use “hypocrite” to describe someone who doesn’t practice what they preach. But in the Bible the term refers to those who pretend to be something they aren’t. So Jesus says all these religious traditions have just become a way to pretend you’re religious. And that’s the danger of religious traditions. You can fool others and you can fool yourself. You can keep all these religious traditions and yet have a heart that is far from God.
I remember reading an article in the Reader’s Digest years ago about the danger of recycling cans. Now, what could be dangerous about recycling cans? Well, the article said the danger is that recycling cans is only one small drop in the bucket of stewarding our resources well, but when people do this small act, they tend to check the whole box for stewarding the environment. Now, I’m not trying to make a point about how best to steward creation. The point is (and why the article stuck with me) these little rituals and traditions, even good ones, ironically, can undermine the heart of the thing they represented. Performing the little tradition can start to replace the bigger heart behind the tradition. You can honor the little tradition of recycling cans without really honoring the bigger point of recycling cans: stewarding the creation well. So you can pretend to care or even trick yourself into thinking you care without actually caring. The little traditions can distract from the bigger truths. And this can happen with religious traditions.
Religious traditions can be kept without keeping the original heart behind them. You can honor a tradition and yet still not honor God. Some examples. Written prayers. Written prayers are great; they can help develop our prayer vocabulary, but they can also become a substitute for actually praying. You can honor the rote prayer without honoring God. Devotionals. It is a good tradition to read a devotional every morning, but you can read a devotional without being devoted to God. Southern religious traditions. In the South, just church stuff in general can supplant actual discipleship. One country song says, “Buy dirt. Find the one you can’t live without…Do what you love but call it work. And throw a little money in the plate at church.” That’s not bad advice (and I like the song), but there’s a danger there. It’s describing discipleship as a kind of minimal tradition: Throw a little money in the plate at church. That’s great, but in the South, the problem is people do only that: they give a little money at church and check the box for religion in their life without actually giving their whole live to Jesus. And the southern list is long: hang ten commandments on the wall, dress up for church, own a big Bible, get a new outfit for Easter, sing in the choir, get attendance badges. Now, hear me: These are all fine religious traditions, but they can all be honored without honoring God.
So Jesus says to the Pharisees, “Wake up! You’ve missed the heart. You’re just a bunch of pretenders!” So this is danger number one. Religious traditions can be honored without honoring God. You can wash your hands without caring about real purity. You can pretend with traditions. So beware! Then he moves to the second danger…
Danger 2: You can start to prioritize religious traditions over the commands of God.
“[8] You leave the commandment of God and hold to the tradition of men.” This is the real issue. Not only can religious traditions distract from the main thing, they can become the main thing. For the Pharisees, the traditions had not just distracted from the commandments of God, which the traditions were meant to support; the traditions had become the commandments of God. They had become the priority.
I know a church in our area that had implemented a particular program at their church. What they were doing was really good and helpful, but the pastor would be quick to tell you that what they were doing was not handed down from God. It was a ministry method used to accomplish what God had commanded, namely, discipleship. So, in other words, they had developed a religious tradition in the name of trying to honor what God had commanded, and like so many religious traditions, it was a good, well-intentioned, biblically-based religious tradition. But like so many religious traditions, it was double-edged. And I remember the pastor once commenting that, unfortunately, for some of his congregation, the method had become the main thing. He said, sadly, for some folks they wouldn’t care if he was preaching heresy so long as they did this one program. And that’s the danger. We can fall in love with the tradition, believe in it so deeply, that we utterly forsake the commands of God that the tradition was meant to support.
So I think it is important that we pause from time to time to consider whether any religious tradition has risen to the level of “command of God.”
- Is there something that is really a matter of style or taste that has risen to the level of doctrine in your mind?
- Is there a method that has become the gospel to you?
- Is there a program that has become preeminent in your mind?
- Is there a ritual that is too important to you?
- Is there a habit that has become a commandment for you?
- Has a matter of nostalgia become divine truth in your mind?
- Has a good recommendation become a requirement?
- Has a piece of culture become a command?
And you know, as a church plant, we may need to ask these questions more than other churches. Why? Because in our journey we will start and stop and interrupt and begin and end a lot of traditions. Coming here, you may have had to let go of traditions, and it was difficult, but now you’re getting comfortable with the new ones. But they’re going to change again. As we move into a new building, more traditions still start and stop. As our community changes and grows, our programs and plans and models will need to change, too. So we must be careful to not honor and prioritize beloved traditions to the expense of honoring God and his commands. We must hold even the wisest and most well-intentioned and most beloved with a loose grip.
So we must be careful. This is the danger of religious traditions. Not only can they be honored without honoring God, but they can replace him and his commands altogether. And when that happens, you have a real disaster on your hands. And that leads us to the final two dangers of religious traditions.
Danger 3: You will hurt people if you honor and prioritize religious traditions over God and his commands.
“[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.””
Here, Jesus gives an example of how disastrously their obsession with religious traditions plays out. The example is the tradition of Corban. Now, the original divine command behind it is to live a life consecrated to God and to honor him with your possessions, and so people in Israel, like today, might donate various things to God and his work. But, as is often the case with these kinds of things, there are some gray areas. Like, what if you dedicate it but later change your mind? Or, can you dedicate something in your will but use it in the mean time? So, some traditions develop around these dedications, and those traditions are what Jesus is alluding to with Corban.
And the problem is all these little traditions about dedicating stuff to the Lord become a distraction, and they start to become the main thing. And what happens when religious traditions become the main thing to the exclusion of God and his commands? People get hurt. And in this case, it was the parents of those dedicating their things to the Lord that got hurt. Children are to honor their father and mother, and that included caring for them in their old age, which included helping financially. So, from my reading, it sounds like what could happen with Corban is people might dedicate something to the Lord in their will and once it was in the will it could not be changed, even if their parents needed help (Edwards, 2001). Now, remember, there is no rule from God about this kind of designation; this is just a tradition. It also sounds like people began to deliberately use this Corban designation to avoid helping their parents (Lane, 1974). So the parents get hurt because of this tradition. And this is how it goes…
Religious traditions, when honored and prioritized over God and his commands, hurt people. Even good, well-intentioned, biblically-based, well-reasoned religious traditions, when honored and prioritized over God and his commands, hurt people. And I know we have people here today who could stand up and testify to this. You’ve been clobbered by religious traditions. Or maybe you know someone who has been deeply hurt by the traditions of men. The Lord had gotten a hold of your heart, and you were coming to him just as you were. But you didn’t dress the right way. You had the wrong bible translation. You had the wrong hairstyle. You wore a ball cap to the meeting. Your taste in musical genres was incorrect. You asked questions that people don’t usually ask. You’re family didn’t look like a traditional family. You played a video in youth group instead of using a flannel graph. And people scowled at you. And people whispered. And people shared concerns with the pastor. All over traditions you were breaking. They didn’t care about you or what God was doing in your heart or said in His Word because their traditions had become more important. And you got burned.
I think about this danger when I think about reaching and discipling each new generation. I worked in student ministry for years and years. I love students, and I love student ministry. They are the future of the church and our church. But in student ministry, you often bump into these tensions around what amounts to be just religious traditions. You can have an expensive coffee machine in an adult classroom and service caffeine needs; that’s a fine tradition, but an Xbox in the youth room is unnecessary or extravagant or even ungodly. You can invite an adult to connect and build a relationship over lunch, that’s a fine tradition, but inviting a student to connect and build a relationship over dodgeball is frivolous. But these are all just religious traditions. And if we’re not careful, our religious traditions will hurt and alienate the next generation.
One of my seminary professors once remarked that he had found what was gospel for one generation often became law for the next. What was a blessing for one generation often became a burden enforced on the next. For example, maybe when you were growing up, the rock scene represented the height of your depravity. You were not at a good place. And when you got saved and discovered hymns and worship music, it was a breath of fresh air; it was good news to you. And so you gladly swore off all rock music, secular or Christian. And that was no burden for you. You never want to go back to the rock scene and all the darkness it represented in your life. But now you don’t let your kids listen to even Christian rock music. Now, there’s no command from God about musical genres, but you can’t fathom how anyone could listen to rock. And so, well-intentioned, you enforce your tradition: no rock music of any type, Christian or otherwise. And now your kids live under the weight of that tradition. And the youth group at church will live under your tradition. And for the rocker who gets saved at Winter Jam, he will have to live under the weight of your tradition, or not come around. What was good news for you has become a burden to many. What was good news for you is now crushing others. Why? Because that’s what religious traditions can do, however well-intentioned, when they take priority over God and his commands. They hurt people. And if we want to reach people, disciple people, see the next generation get the Gospel, we need to be mindful of what is from God and what is just tradition.
I said earlier that I think this is a super relevant topic for the church today, and I say that because we are seeing people who are deconverting from Christianity, not because of doctrine but because of what is really just religious tradition. Now, of course, there are plenty of people deconverting for doctrinal reasons, but there are many who have just gotten trampled by church traditions. They’ve said if I have to ape that style, adopt that policy, stay mum on that topic, support that platform, then I’m out. Why? Because those things, which are not doctrinal but matters of tradition, have crushed them or they’ve seen others get crushed by it.
But please know, if you or someone you love has been crushed by traditions, that Jesus is your defender. He is upset about this. In fact, he gets really upset with the religious leaders who heap up traditions and rules. Jesus will later say, “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cumin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness” (Matthew 23:23). And he will say you “tie up heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on people’s shoulders” (Matthew 23:4). And: “woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you shut the kingdom of heaven in people’s faces” (Matthew 23:13). So if you’re someone enforcing traditions, hear Jesus saying don’t mess with my kids. And if you’ve been crushed by traditions, please hear Jesus saying stick with me and I’ll take care of this. Jesus came that you might have life through him, not through traditions. You could never keep enough religious traditions to earn salvation, but for any who bet their life on Jesus, not tradition, Jesus offers the free gift of salvation. So see the good news of his welcome to you apart from tradition.
Well, we must conclude, and so here we come to the last danger. We don’t have long, but this is actually the greatest danger, so please listen. Danger four…
Danger 4: You will miss Jesus if you honor and prioritize religious traditions over God and his commands.
This last point is not explicitly in this section, but it’s all around it.
The Pharisees miss their moment. The Messiah, the savior of the world, is right in front of them, and they miss it. Why? Because they’re honoring and prioritizing their religious traditions over God and his commands. And this is the greatest danger for all of us, that we will miss Jesus.
For some, this could be a matter of sanctification. God is at work in your neighborhood, but you’re missing it because it doesn’t fit inside your box. God is at work in your child, but you’re missing it because it doesn’t fit your traditions. God is at work in the church, but you’re missing it because it wasn’t quite what you thought was proper. Friends, don’t honor and prioritize your cherished religious traditions to the point that you miss Jesus.
For others, this could be a matter of salvation. You could be so into the traditions of religion that you miss a true relationship with Jesus. Or perhaps, you so dislike the traditions of religion that you miss the invitation to come to Jesus and be saved. Friends, don’t do that.
As we have said throughout this series, see Jesus and follow him. As we sung last week, turn your eyes upon Jesus; look full in his wonderful face, and the things of earth (the traditions, the hurts, the questions) will go strangely dim in the light of his glory and grace.
May you give yourself to him today and know his saving grace, that cannot be earned or thwarted by tradition. Amen.
Bibliography
Edwards, J. R. (2001). The Gospel according to Mark. Eerdmans.
Lane, W. L. (1974). The Gospel according to Mark. Eerdmans.
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