Family Tradition

Matthew 15:1-6

Then came to Jesus scribes and Pharisees, which were of Jerusalem, saying, Why do thy disciples transgress the tradition of the elders? for they wash not their hands when they eat bread. But he answered and said unto them, Why do ye also transgress the commandment of God by your tradition? For God commanded, saying, Honour thy father and mother: and, He that curseth father or mother, let him die the death. But ye say, Whosoever shall say to his father or his mother, It is a gift, by whatsoever thou mightest be profited by me; And honour not his father or his mother, he shall be free. Thus have ye made the commandment of God of none effect by your tradition.

Thought for Today

Is our declaration of “Jesus is God” Biblical or traditional? Is the declaration of Jesus being the second person in the Godhead Biblical or traditional? Is believing in God at all Biblical or traditional? What would you say are some of the traditions you hold to that you may feel are true and that you don’t want to let go of? In some instances, tradition can be bad for you, especially if it goes against the Word of God. The Scribes and Pharisees asked Jesus why his disciples went against the tradition of the elders by not washing their hands before they ate bread. I guess this is one of those traditions that our parents picked up, as they always say, “Go wash your hands before you eat.” But Jesus asked the Scribes and Pharisees a question, too. And that question was, “Why do you transgress the commandment of God by your tradition?” If we are not careful, we can assume that something is based on the Word of God because we’ve heard it for so long, or because our parents and others did it, when it may just be a tradition that is not based on God’s Word at all.

Two things can destroy a person when it comes to religion. One is basing salvation on non-biblical, man-made traditions: and two, seeing a Biblical truth and remaining unchanged. So how much of what you are doing is church tradition and how much is real Biblical truth? Solomon tells us, "Buy the truth, and sell it not; also wisdom, and instruction, and understanding" (Proverbs 23:23).