1 Then the Pharisees and some of the scribes came together to Him, having come from Jerusalem.
2 Now when they saw some of His disciples eat bread with defiled, that is, with unwashed hands, they found fault.
3 For the Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat unless they wash their hands in a special way, holding the tradition of the elders.
4 When they come from the marketplace, they do not eat unless they wash. And there are many other things which they have received and hold, like the washing of cups, pitchers, copper vessels, and couches.
5 Then the Pharisees and scribes asked Him, "Why do Your disciples not walk according to the tradition of the elders, but eat bread with unwashed hands?"
6 He answered and 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 And in vain they worship Me, Teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.'
8 "For laying aside the commandment of God, you hold the tradition of men--the washing of pitchers and cups, and many other such things you do."
9 He said to them, "All too well you reject the commandment of God, that you may keep your tradition.
It is a sad truth that far too many churches have become legalistic, steeped in traditions, blind to the truth and teaching these traditions as if they are the commands of God. Following I am going to list several things many congregations would consider sacred. God has used some of these traditions. That does not mean they are His commands held on equal footing as the scriptures.
1. The 11:00 a.m. worship hour. This one is changing. Many worship gatherings are offered at different times. There are still a good many congregations who gather at 11:00 a.m. It is pretty widely known this tradition began when most people worked in agricultural related fields. They got up early to do their farm chores feeding animals and milking cows. This still gave them time to gather for worship. Yet that 11:00 a.m. worship hour is considered sacred by men even though the majority of our society do not work in agriculture related careers.
2. Sunday school. Many churches no longer use the term Sunday school. They have modernized it by calling it Life Groups, Small Groups, Journey Groups, and Bible Study. It would surprise most Christians to learn such classes were not held until around 1740. Even then there were no divided classes for different age groups. For a long time there was just one class offered for all age groups. Sunday school is another tradition of men. I am not saying it is a bad one. I am not saying God has not used it. I'm just calling it what it is. Some choose to forego Sunday school in favor of home groups. Sunday school is not a command of God. It is a tradition of men.
3. Sunday worship. Jewish people observed Saturday as their Sabbath. Sometime after Jesus resurrected a slow shift came. The Jewish Christians continued to worship on Saturday. Eventually a change occurred. Christians reasoned since God started creation and Jesus rose from the grave on what we know as Sunday they began to worship on Sunday. This was not always the case. Another tradition of men.
4. Youth groups. This is a relatively new tradition in the church as traditions go. The experiment of youth groups has happenedd for decades as opposed to centuries. If you look strictly at statistics the youth group has failed. Studies show that 70% of those involved in a youth group will drop out of any church after high school. What is worse is that out of that 70% who drop out 35% will never return to the church. Yet millions of dollars are spent on youth groups across the nation. There are Bible Studies, Disciple Now, Retreats, Youth Camps, Youth Conferences, and many other resources. I recently heard the sad tale of how several key leaders in one youth group were living in hypocrisy. They were involved in horrific sins in the shadows. Some will be quick to argue that many are saved as a result of youth ministry. I agree that is true. I am a product of that. I still preach youth camps and other youth events. This is still a tradition of men. I challenge you. Show me a youth group in the Bible. I am not saying God cannot use it. He did in my life. It is not a commandment. It is a tradition of men.
5. Order of worship. This always makes me laugh. Do we really think we can box God into an order of worship printed in a bulletin or worship guide? Some time ago I received an invitation to preach in a church. I sat on the front pew praying before the service started. The worship minister approached me. He filled me in on the order of worship. I commented, "How do you know? Are you sure? What if God chooses to show up and do something different?" I meant nothing by it. They were honest questions. He looked bewildered. When he wheeled to leave I heard him muttering under his breath, "How do you know? Are you sure?" Predictably he was not open. The service went on as planned and programmed. Predictably there was no great move of God that morning. You would not have found this pattern in the Acts church. There was freedom in those gatherings. They made room for spontaneity. They embraced the Holy Spirit to move freely in their meetings. This is sadly missing in many churches. Orders of worship are a tradition of men.
6. The sermon. Wait a minute I can hear many shouting. There has been preaching. I don't if it looked like what we do today. When did Jesus stand behind a pulpit? He stood on a beach, on a boat, on a mountain and taught people. Did He stand behind a pulpit? The pulpit is sacred. The sermon is sacred. He preached truth in what we know as the Sermon On The Mount found in Matthew 5-7. Did He allow for questions? Did the apostles? Did they stand to give an oratory? Was it formal and one sided? Was their preaching interactive, engaging and any less effective? Yet we will go to the mat defending the sermon. Preachers want to preach. One lady recently commented that she loves it when I get fired up preaching. She went on to day she grew up on preaching like that. I am flattered but at the end of the day all I care about is does God use it? Did that lady have an encounter with Yahweh? Did God use the message to bring her closer to Jesus? Sermons can be entertaining. Theatrical. A show. A place to display talent and oratory skills. God abhors this attitude. Is the sermon effective? Is there anything wrong with letting people give feedback and engaging them in the sermon? Does the preacher have to stay on the stage. That is a whole other tradition of men. I believe you would be hard pressed to find the modern day sermon in the book of Acts or in the life of Jesus.
7. Business meeting. Another tradition of men. People vote on the will of God for the church. I can think of two times Israel did this and both times they voted NOT TO DO God's will. They voted not to go into the promised land. They unanimously chose as a nation to have a king instead of trusting God their King. Both were not the will of God. Anytime a backslidden hypocritical church member can have an equal vote as the most godly person in the congregation something is wrong. Look through the scriptures. Do you see business meetings there? Sure there were meetings to make decisions and wrestle with doctrinal issues. These meetings were not business meetings in the sense we know them.
I have many others. These sacred traditions held so tightly they are taught like they are the commands of God. We had better be really careful in substituting any tradition of men trying to put it on the same ground as the commands of God.
To break up traditions or to call them what they are is dangerous. It shakes things up. It rocks the boat of the religious establishment. The religious establishment is suffocating the work of Jesus. The Holy Spirit is grieved and quenched. The power of God long ago departed many of our religious gatherings but does anyone notice?
There is so much more. God wants to do more in His church. He still transforms lives. New believers come in on fire and the flames are soon dowsed by apathetic tradition bound legalists. God help us to see truth and light. Help us to break free from traditions that bind us and keep us from all that Yahweh desires for us. May we hunger for His commands and not the traditions of men.
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