Key Verse: "Nothing outside a man can make him
"unclean," by going into him. Rather, it is what comes out of a man
that makes him "unclean."
Mark 7:15
Approximately six hundred years before Jesus, the people of
Judah had sinned so badly by ignoring the word of the Lord that God allowed
them to be punished by being destroyed by the Babylonians. Jerusalem was
completely ruined. Many of the citizens were killed and only a relatively few,
referred to as "the remnant," were carried off to live in Babylon for
70 years before being allowed to return and begin again.
This event proved to be a real wake up call for the people.
The priests and Levites developed an extensive list of rules and regulations by
which the people were to live that would outline very clearly how not to break
the Ten Commandments again, or any of the whole Law, or "Torah," from
Moses in the first five books of the Bible. In all, 603 extra laws were created, referred
to as, "the hedge around the Law," which orthodox Jews still try to
live by today. As time passed, following these man made laws became more
important than worship of God Himself. They thought that they were worshiping
God, but in truth, they were worshiping His law and ignoring God's heart
altogether. This is the issue that Jesus is addressing in today's readings.
"Why aren't your disciples observing the proper
ceremony before they eat?" That is probably a better way to understand the
Pharisees' accusations against the disciples here. The washing was for ceremony
more than cleanliness. It was an outward show, something that could be observed
and criticized if not done correctly.
Jesus, instead, returns to the original intent of the law
that He gave to Moses on Mt. Sinai during the exodus. "You find
your manmade laws more important to follow than God's law itself. While the
fifth commandment says, "Honor your father and your mother," you're
even willing to dishonor your parents by letting them starve for the sake of
these manmade rules that you love so much. You are so blind to the truth! You
only focus on the externals so that you can judge rather than get your heart in
order, where God is focused."
The Pharisees were concentrating on getting the outward
behavior correct so that the world would judge them worthy. What they didn't
understand is that if they could get their heart right, the behavior would
follow.
It's like the difference between a movie and genuine love.
The actors on the screen can do all of the right moves. They can help us
believe that they are in love by their actions, but we all know that when the
camera turns off, all of that changes. They go back to their regular lives, or
the next scene, depending upon what is called for. Genuine love, however, needs
no director to tell the lovers how to behave. They know what to do and want to
because their hearts are committed to act appropriately.
While the Pharisees wanted to condemn for appearing
"unclean," Jesus warns us to begin by being "clean" from
within. It's a heart issue. Each one is responsible for his or her own heart.
Your salvation is not dependent on the world's opinion of you. The world may
see you as a "good person," and not be able to conceive of God seeing
you otherwise. God, however, looks inside at the heart condition. If your heart
is right with Him, then all is right, no matter what the world thinks of you.
Hymn: "Create In Me a Clean Heart"
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