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Day 39 Matthew 15:1 Matthew 15:1 Then came to Jesus scribes and Pharisees, which were of Jerusalem, saying, 2 Why do thy disciples transgress the tradition 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, Honor thy father and mother: and, He that curses father or mother, let him die the death. 5 But ye say, Whosoever shall say to his father or his mother, It is a gift, by whatsoever thou might be profited by me; 6 And honor not his father or his mother, he shall be free. Thus have ye made the commandment of God of none effect by your tradition. 7 Ye hypocrites, well did Esaias prophesy of you, saying, 8 This people draws nigh unto me with their mouth, and honors 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 goes into the mouth defiles a man; but that which comes out of the mouth, this defiles a man. 12 Then came his disciples, and said unto him, Know thou that the Pharisees were offended, after they heard this saying? 13 But he answered and said, Every plant, which my heavenly Father hath not planted, shall be rooted up. 14 Let them alone: they be blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind lead the blind, both shall fall into the ditch. 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 enters in at the mouth goes 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, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies: 20 These are the things which defile a man: but to eat with unwashed hands defiles not a man. Everyone has traditions, whether they are something you’ve done since you were born, or handed down from previous generations, or you started yourself, it is something you do all the time. Sometimes People get hung up by their traditions, making them more important than anything else they do. Jesus and his disciples didn’t follow the traditions set down by the Pharisees, who made it law for the people to follow. When confronted by the Pharisees about those traditions, Jesus told the Pharisees they were the ones in error by imposing traditions God never intended for the people. I once saw a Christmas movie about a mother who thought the Christmas star was the most important part of Christmas, and it was lost. Her family didn’t see the importance of the star and were more interested in being together as a family for Christmas and didn’t concern themselves with her tradition. In the end, she saw Christmas wasn’t about the star, it was about family. As Christians, you too can get hung up with meaningless traditions, when the most important thing you need to do is obey God. Nothing else matters. Jesus told the Pharisees his disciples would not be defiled by their traditions. The only thing that defiled a person was what came out of their mouth, which came from the heart of a person, and not the superfluous traditions, which meant nothing. How many meaningless traditions do you have in your life? Have those traditions come between you and what is most important? Or have those traditions brought you together, making you stronger? When you make God and his Word, your tradition, you will become stronger, and will not be swayed by meaningless traditions. Let’s pray: Father, help me see traditions for what they are, and make you my tradition, seeking you first, obeying you, and putting you first in everything I do. In Jesus’ name, I pray, amen. Copyright © 28 May 2018 by Valerie Routhieaux Image courtesy of Pixabay