In
the name + of Jesus.
When Jesus debated with the Pharisees, he
often exposed how their traditions violated God’s word. From that, we might get the idea that traditions
are bad. Traditions, however, can be
valuable and useful. They are even cherished. Tell a Michigan fan that their last game of the
season will be against Maryland instead of Ohio State, and you will get a
lecture on what tradition means. Imagine
a New Year’s Eve without the ball dropping in Times Square. What about a Christmas Eve without singing Silent
Night? If these things happened, they
should not rock your world, but they probably would.
The Church has its share of traditions, as
well. We make the sign of the cross on
themselves. We stand for the Gospel
reading. We kneel for receiving the Lord’s
Supper. The pastor wears vestments when
he leads the service. Now, none of these
save anyone. But whatever traditions a
church uses are supposed to teach the faith.
If you don’t know why we do what we do, please ask. Every tradition is supposed to support
Christian doctrine. Any tradition that
fails to do that is useless or even destructive.
Traditions are usually defended with the phrase,
“We’ve always done it that way.” That
may be true, but it does not explain why we have done it that way. When we defend the tradition rather than
teach the reasoning behind it, the traditions take on a life of their own. They become more important than the teaching they
are supposed to support. That’s what happened
with the Pharisees.
In fairness to the Pharisees, their traditions
were intended to improve the observance of God’s Law. In the case of today’s Gospel lesson, the
issue was ceremonial washings. God’s
word did prescribe ceremonial washings for the priests before going into God’s presence,
for lepers after they were cured, or for pots and pitchers which had contact
with an unclean animal like a lizard. The
Pharisees expanded God’s directives. To
make sure the vessels for eating were ceremonially clean, they were always
to be washed; so also the hands of the people who were eating. So, when Jesus’ disciples reclined at their
table without washing their hands, the Pharisees were mortified. We might tell our children, “Oh, that’s gross! Wash your hands!” For the Pharisees, the rebuke was, “That is
unlawful. You are clearly wicked men!”
Therefore, Jesus rebuked the Pharisees and
corrected their practice. “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; in vain
do they worship me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’ You leave the commandment of God and hold to
the tradition of men.” …And he called the people
to him again and said to them, “Hear me, all
of you, and understand: There is nothing outside a person that by going into
him can defile him, but the things that come out of a person are what defile
him” (Mark 7:6-8,14-15).
The Pharisees’ traditions had trumped God’s
word. They condemned people who were
guiltless. This was not only slander,
but it produced a burden of guilt on people which they never should have
carried. It would be like making too
much out of making the sign of the cross on yourself. If we started to have debates about the proper
way to make the sign of the cross (cross right to left vs left to right, how you
form your fingers when you cross), we would make people fret that they are not
faithful to the Lord unless they get the tradition right. We would put the focus on the ceremony and
forget what it teaches. Making the sign
of the cross is supposed to serve one purpose: It is a reminder that you are a
baptized child of God. If it does not do
that, it is useless.
Jesus turned the meal time conversation to
the dietary laws observed by the Jews.
Now, these laws were divinely given. Some food was declared to be clean, some
unclean. The kosher laws and all the
ceremonial laws were designed to set Israel apart from other the other nations
for the Savior who would come through them.
But now the Savior has come for all the nations. In establishing his new covenant, Jesus stated
that righteousness does not come by what you eat or don’t eat. “There is nothing outside a person that by
going into him can defile him, but the things that come out of a person are
what defile him” (Mark 7:15).
There is nothing outside of you that makes
you sinful or unclean. To be sure, there
is much wickedness in this world. Wicked
men plot wicked schemes. People are rude
and insulting. Authorities abuse power. Liars manipulate, slander, and steal. People sin against you—sometimes
thoughtlessly, sometimes intentionally.
But there is no one in this world who makes you a sinner. There is nothing outside of you which makes
you sin. Sin comes from within you. Sin dwells in you and corrupts your thoughts,
words, and actions. Our confession is correct:
“I confess that I am by nature sinful and unclean.” As Jesus stated, “For from within, out of
the heart of man, come evil thoughts, and so on… All these evil things come from within, and
they defile a person” (Mark 7:21,23).
It is not people out there who make us
sin. Sin comes from within us. Sin arises from a heart and mind that are
sinful from the moment we are alive. That’s
why you have wicked thoughts, words, and actions. When someone gets a promotion, wins a contest,
or gets recognized for some achievement, there is nothing wicked about that. It should be a time for everyone to rejoice. Instead, you become envious. Sin comes from within you. When man gazes at another woman and fantasizes
how his life would be better if she ditched her husband for him, the woman did
not do anything evil. That covetous
desire comes from within you. Even when
someone sins against you, they don’t make you sin. If a man defames you or defrauds you, he is guilty
of evil. You have a right to recognize his
sin and call it what it is. But when you
dream of seeing him die or suffer harm, that comes from within you. That’s because we are by nature sinful and unclean.
Sin comes from within us.
The Pharisees tried to fix this with harsher
laws and traditions. Threats and fear
may enforce better outward behavior, but they do not change a single corrupt
heart. Medieval Christians tried to avoid
the wickedness by hiding in monasteries, but they did not escape sin. They brought their own sinful nature in with
them. You can find traditions which curb
your behavior, but traditions will never save you. He who is impure cannot make himself pure. “There is nothing outside a person that by
going into him can defile him, but the things that come out of a person are
what defile him” (Mark 7:15). Sin comes
from within us. It does not come from outside
of us. But salvation does.
Salvation comes from God through his Son,
Jesus Christ. God sent Jesus who is
pure, innocent, and righteous to save us.
When Jesus was baptized in the Jordan, he did it not to receive
forgiveness, but to unite himself to us.
In his baptism, Jesus soaked up all our sins and guilt and made them his
own. This is why Jesus went to the cross
to be put to death. Bearing our sin, he
made himself the sin offering which atones for us. Jesus died as one defiled with all sin. Jesus was sacrificed for those guilty of debauchery
and deception, for envy and anger, for selfish fantasies and foolish
pride. Jesus was consumed in the fiery wrath
of God. In this way, Jesus consumed
death and damnation for you. Jesus took
God’s curse and God’s wrath for you. If
God’s curse and wrath are taken away from you, God has nothing left for you but
peace and love. If death and hell are
conquered by Jesus, they cannot have you.
Jesus has purchased and won you from all sin, from death, and from the
power of the devil.
Sin comes from within us, but salvation
comes from outside of us. Pardon and
peace come from outside of us. They have
to. These things cannot be claimed by
us, they have to be granted by one with authority. It works that way in our world, too. You cannot walk into a court of law, tell the
judge you have acquitted yourself, and walk out. The judge must pass the sentence to grant you
a pardon. So it is with God’s
forgiveness. It does not come by you
thinking you should have it. God must declare
it.
Salvation comes from outside of you. The Lord applies his salvation to you through
preaching and his word. The word is revealed
by God, recorded by prophets and apostles, and related through others. You probably first heard it from your
parents. You hear it preached through
pastors. You are encouraged, or if
needed, admonished, through your fellow Christians. Pardon and peace are a divine
proclamation. Your confidence comes from
God’s decree rather than your own intentions which are not always good and your
reflections which are not always right.
Salvation comes from outside of you. You were baptized into the name of
Jesus. By your baptism, God washed away
your sins, covered you in Jesus’ righteousness, and gave you his Holy Spirit to
drive out the unclean spirit that was in you.
He made you a new creation. He
created in you a clean heart, which is your status before God. Jesus presents you pure and undefiled before
the Father. Jesus also sends his Holy
Spirit to renew in you a right spirit.
The Holy Spirit works in you your desire to live a godly life and to put
to death whatever sinful desire would entice you. So, even the good you and I do is what God
wills and works through us.
Salvation comes from outside of us, but it
is given freely and generously by our Triune God who designed and desires our
salvation. God the Father sent his Son
to save you. Jesus paid the price to
redeem you. The Holy Spirit created and
sustains faith in you. It is all the
work of a holy God rather than an impure person.
For the most part, our traditions are the
inventions of mankind. Good traditions reinforce the teachings of God’s word. Good traditions aid us in our discipleship. Good traditions guide our mouths and our
bodies to say and to do what we believe in our hearts. If they point to Jesus, they are doing what
traditions are supposed to do. But the
traditions themselves do not make us pure, and they cannot save. For, salvation is never our work. Salvation comes from outside of us; and God has
been pleased to plant that salvation in us.
The Lord dwells in our hearts, so our hearts are not only close to him;
they are his.
In the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy
Spirit. Amen.
