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Mark 7 - Devotion · The Five Minute Bible Podcast

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  Welcome to Five Minute Bible in our journey through the New
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  Testament. In each episode, we take just a
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  few minutes to focus on one chapter of the New Testament,
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  exploring the truths God is teaching us through His Word and
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  expanding our view of who He is. Before you listen, make sure
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  you've gone straight to the source, either by reading
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  today's chapter of the Bible yourself or listening to today's
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  read along episode in this podcast feed.
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  If you haven't done that yet, feel free to pause and do that
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  now. When you're ready, let's dive
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  into God's Word together. In Mark Chapter 7, the Pharisees
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  and scribes come to Jesus with an accusation after seeing His
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  disciples eating without first washing their hands.
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  Verse 3 tells us that the Pharisees and all the Jews do
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  not eat unless they carefully wash their hands, thus observing
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  the traditions of the elders. Now keep in mind the keyword of
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  that verse tradition. We're going to hear that word
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  four more times in this short section of Mark Chapter 7.
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  The Pharisees and scribes approach Jesus in verse 5 and
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  ask, why do your disciples not walk according to the traditions
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  of the elders, but eat bread with impure hands?
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  Now listen to Jesus response in the next 4 verses.
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  And he said to them, rightly did Isaiah prophecy of you
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  hypocrites, as it is written, This people honors me with their
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  lips, but their heart is far away from me.
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  But in vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrines the
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  precepts of men, neglecting the commandment of God.
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  You hold to the tradition of men.
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  He was also saying to them, You are experts at setting aside the
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  commandment of God in order to keep your tradition.
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  Jesus tells the Pharisees and scribes that they have neglected
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  God's commandments in order to keep their own tradition.
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  In other words, they've laid aside what God actually said in
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  order to follow their own way of doing things, ignoring the
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  Scriptures in favor of religious tradition.
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  Moses didn't command all the ceremonial washing that the
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  Pharisees and scribes were trying to hold Jesus disciples
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  to. God didn't command that.
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  That was the instruction of men over and above God's law.
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  And in that process of obeying the religious tradition, the
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  Pharisees and scribes had gotten it twisted.
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  They'd elevated man's teaching above God's.
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  They traded true worship for vain worship.
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  They traded true doctrine for human teaching and tradition.
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  Now in the 21st century, it may not be hand washing that we
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  elevate to the level of doctrine, But I wonder how often
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  we, whether purposefully or unknowingly, how we as
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  Christians substitute our own customs, our own preferences for
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  what God has commanded. For example, God has commanded
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  that the church fellowship together.
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  We see that throughout the New Testament, but He hasn't given
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  us the format, schedule, menu, and table setting for a church
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  fellowship. So if we raise any of those
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  things to the level of God's command to fellowship, we're
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  following in the Pharisees footsteps.
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  Another example, God has commanded that we praise Him
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  through song. But if we allow our musical
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  preferences to let us ignore His command to bear with one another
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  and love one another, then we've missed the point.
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  We've traded real doctrine for human tradition, so search your
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  own heart. Where have you allowed your own
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  preferences and traditions to take too high a place?
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  And what of God's instruction to you?
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  Is it causing you to miss? Don't let man's precepts replace
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  God's good commands for His people.