Commands Of
God
The
Pharisees and some of the teachers of the law who had come from Jerusalem
gathered around Jesus and saw some of his disciples eating food with hands that
were "unclean," that is, unwashed. (The Pharisees and all the Jews do
not eat unless they give their hands a ceremonial washing, holding to the
tradition of the elders. When they come from the marketplace they do not eat
unless they wash. And they observe many other traditions, such as the washing
of cups, pitchers and kettles.)
So the Pharisees and
teachers of the law asked Jesus, "Why don't your disciples live according
to the tradition of the elders instead of eating their food with 'unclean'
hands?"
He replied, "Isaiah
was right when he prophesied about you hypocrites; as it is written: "
'These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. They
worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men.' You have let
go of the commands of God and are holding on to the traditions of men."
And he said to them:
"You have a fine way of setting aside the commands of God in order to
observe your own traditions! For Moses said, 'Honor your father and your
mother,' and, 'Anyone who curses his father or mother must be put to death.'
But you say that if a man says to his father or mother: 'Whatever help you
might otherwise have received from me is Corban'
(that is, a gift devoted to God), then you no longer let him do anything for
his father or mother. Thus you nullify the word of God by your tradition that
you have handed down. And you do many things like that."
Mark 7:1-13
There is something
appealing about loopholes, we look for them wherever there is a command we
don’t want to obey.
Jesus addressed this
problem with religious leaders who thought they had found a loophole in their
religious laws. Instead of honoring their parents with financial or material
support, they dedicated all their possessions to God, thus limiting their use.
Although their disobedience was not blatant, Jesus said their behavior was unacceptable.
Whenever we
start looking for loopholes, we stop being obedient.
Even though
we make excuses for not obeying God, He still calls it disobedience.
Our Daily Bread –