Tradition!?

Matthew 15:1-39

One of my favorite musicals is Fiddler on the Roof. The story is about a group of Jews living in Russia during the Bolshevik Revolution. In it the main character Tevye struggles against changing times in his family and his country. He wants everything to stay the same-because it is \"Tradition!\" Although the story is a fiction, the truth behind it goes back centuries, and it actually kept the Jews of Jesus\' time from recognizing their Messiah.

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1 - 9

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These men had come from HQ for the Jews in Jerusalem. Pharisees were the most powerful political/religious party of the day and focused on strict adherence to the Law and the many rules that had been written after the Babylonian exile. They believed these \"traditions\", written down as the Talmud in the third century BC, had the same authority as God\'s Word.

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The washing of hands was born in God\'s Law as a ceremony to be performed by the priests before service (Exodus 30:17-21) but the Pharisees had extended it to all the people. It had nothing to do with cleanliness; they didn\'t know anything about germs or passing pathogens into the body through contaminated hands. This was strictly a ceremony to wash off something that the person had accidentally come in contact that that would make them unclean.

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They were basically saying \"if you were a REAL rabbi you would know how important it is to adhere to these traditions as well as the Law.\"

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Jesus turns it on its head-showing them an example of how they had actually made their traditions MORE important than God\'s Word. Notice Jesus didn\'t even answer their question here-He gets to it after dismissing the Pharisees and teachers of the Law.

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First Jesus cites Moses-the leaders claimed the oral traditions went all the way back to him. Exodus 20:12 is one of the Ten Commandments. \"Honoring\" meant to be respectful.

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He goes on to show how their oral tradition actually invalidates this commandment. The Pharisees had allowed people to donate money to the temple that would have been used to help support their parents in later life. Vowing to God is not bad (Deut 23:21-23) but when it is used as an excuse not to follow God\'s commands, then you set up a fight for authority-the tradition vs. what God says.

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We look at this and think, \"We would never do that!\" But in the church many traditions have been created that at times have the same force as God\'s Word. Some of them include: which version of the Bible you use, behavior of Christians regarding smoking, playing cards, dancing, or going to movies, and even type of dress. Each of these had some base in a verse of Scripture, but applied generally and universally, they work to obscure the gospel and actually keep people out of the kingdom and from growing as a disciple.

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Traditions also distract us from what God is really about in our lives-transformation of our character. They become an external legalistic structure we can use to feel good about our righteousness, just as the Pharisees felt good about their vow of Corban and then didn\'t need to worry about supporting their aging parents.

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That\'s why Jesus quotes Isaiah 29:13. We naturally go to external facing obedience to avoid giving God access to our inner character. Sadly, we can be a lot more like the Pharisees than we would admit!

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10 - 20

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The Pharisees had already stated that to eat with hands that were not ceremonially washed would defile a person. They had it all turned around, thinking that if a person was clean on the outside it made them clean on the inside. We do the same thing. As long as we dress, smell, and act in a socially acceptable manner then we must be acceptable to God as well. But Jesus points out that we are sick at heart-we are all infected with the terminal disease sin which comes from who we are, not what we eat. What comes out of our mouth simply reveals what is already going on in our hearts.

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This thing about not eating unclean foods or not washing properly for ceremonial reasons was a big thing, even for the disciples, after Jesus rose and ascended. Peter had to be told by God twice that all foods were clean, then he stumbled on that very point later on, separating himself from the Gentile Christians because of the food they ate.

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In fact, Mark adds a little note that by saying this, Jesus declared all foods clean (Mark 7:19). The Pharisees were offended by this, but it was because they had already rejected Him as the Messiah. They were like weeds in a wheat field. It becomes plain as Jesus goes on that offending the Pharisees is the last thing He is concerned about!

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Jesus then goes on to list some of the acts that proceed from an evil heart-they defile us, or make us unable to approach God, not what foods we eat.

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21 - 28

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The area of Tyre and Sidon were about 30 miles north - they were port cities with a long Canaanite history. Word of Jesus\' miracle power had reached the area and this woman comes and, as Mark tells us, fell at Jesus\' feet. She calls Him \"Son of David\" which says she has accepted His identity as the Jewish Messiah.

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The disciples simply want Jesus to send her away. As a nation they had been infected by the Canaanites through much of their history and regarded them as evil. Jesus had other plans, but not before teaching an important lesson about faith.

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Jesus explains to her that His first mission was to go to the Jews, who were to then share about Him to the rest of the world. Mark (Mark 7:25) adds to Jesus words \"Let the children be fed first.\" He\'s trying to see if she really believes He is the source, and if so, she will not give up.

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The \"dogs\" Jesus refers to are not wild scavenger dogs, but pets. He is telling her that He must \"feed\" the children of Israel and then after that the Gentiles. But she wisely points out that in His parable, kids often slip morsels of food to their pets at the same time they are eating so why can\'t she get some \"crumbs\" off of the Master\'s table too?

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Jesus is obviously pleased. She has acknowledged who Jesus is, the nature of His mission, and has totally engaged in His parable yet understanding a way for Jesus to touch her daughter.

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29 - 31

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The phrase at the end of his account, that they \"glorified the God of Israel\" shows us that this was a gentile crowd. Yet what Jesus did was right out of Isaiah:

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Isa 35:5-6 Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf?? unstopped; 6? then shall the lame man leap like a deer, and the tongue of the mute sing for joy. ?For waters break forth in the wilderness, and streams in the desert;

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So as it turns out, Jesus ultimate plan was to not just hand out His blessings one crumb at a time but would \"pour\" them down on Jew and Gentile alike!

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32 - 39

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What kind of man is this? Most people of power and significance are not worried about whether people will low-blood sugar out and grow weak. This was a mixed group of Jews and Gentiles. The wording here indicates that whatever provisions they had brought were used up. The disciples question Jesus, perhaps because they wondered if He would perform the same miracle He did for the 5,000 for a mixed crowd.

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After completing the miracle, Jesus returns to the western shore of the Sea of Galilee and Jewish territory.

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Conclusions

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The main conclusion from this chapter is to recognize the difference between tradition and doctrine-and don\'t confuse the two. Plus realize that though tradition may seem to exclude you in the eyes of some, Jesus excludes no one!

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