A Godly Rebuke of Really Dumb Traditions.
Notes
Transcript
Opening:
Good morning again Connection Church. I am so glad that you decided to come out and worship Christ together with us. It is a beautiful thing to gather together on the Lord’s day. We gather together this morning with the express purpose of worshipping God. This means that this morning is not about you. We are here to lift up praise and obedience to God. The mission of the church is to worship God and to see the world worshipping God. This is why I am glad you are here, and I hope you will invite others to come worship God with us!
Introduction of the Text:
At this time, I would ask that you open your Bible’s to Matthew 15:1-20. If you do not have a Bible, we have Bible’s on the table by the door. If you do not own a Bible, please keep that as our gift to you. As you turn there, a little bit of context. Matthew has just walked us through several events in Jesus’ life. Matthew wrote on the teachings of Jesus, the death of John the Baptist, Jesus’ feeding of the five thousand, and Jesus’ walking on the water. Jesus and disciples have just traveled across the sea of Galilee to the area of Gennesaret. Jesus has healed many in that area and is now going to be confronted by the Pharisees.
If you remember well, this is not Jesus’ first encounter with the Pharisees. He has had several run ins with this group before. The Pharisees hate Jesus and have begun to plot to have Him killed. This plot will result in the crucifixion. Here again we see the animosity between Jesus and this group. The Pharisees were the teachers of the Law, but we have seen that these men did not uphold the Law of God. Again and again Jesus has confronted them for their twisting and adding to the holy Scriptures that they were to teach. Jesus has no patience for this group who have twisted and corrupted their position as teachers of His Law.
Reading of the Text:
With this in mind, would you stand with me for the reading of sacred Scripture.
Matthew 15:1-20 Then Pharisees and scribes came to Jesus from Jerusalem and said, 2 “Why do your disciples break the tradition of the elders? For they do not wash their hands when they eat.” 3 He answered them, “And why do you break the commandment of God for the sake of your tradition? 4 For God commanded, ‘Honor your father and your mother,’ and, ‘Whoever reviles father or mother must surely die.’ 5 But you say, ‘If anyone tells his father or his mother, “What you would have gained from me is given to God,” 6 he need not honor his father.’ So for the sake of your tradition you have made void the word of God. 7 You hypocrites! Well did Isaiah prophesy of you, when he said:
8 “ ‘This people honors me with their lips,
but their heart is far from me;
9 in vain do they worship me,
teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’ ”
10 And he called the people to him and said to them, “Hear and understand: 11 it is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person, but what comes out of the mouth; this defiles a person.” 12 Then the disciples came and said to him, “Do you know that the Pharisees were offended when they heard this saying?” 13 He answered, “Every plant that my heavenly Father has not planted will be rooted up. 14 Let them alone; they are blind guides. And if the blind lead the blind, both will fall into a pit.” 15 But Peter said to him, “Explain the parable to us.” 16 And he said, “Are you also still without understanding? 17 Do you not see that whatever goes into the mouth passes into the stomach and is expelled? 18 But what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this defiles a person. 19 For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false witness, slander. 20 These are what defile a person. But to eat with unwashed hands does not defile anyone.”
The Word of God, let’s pray.
Prayer:
Dear Heavenly Father, we thank you that we can come together and worship you. It is such an incredible privilege to be able to freely worship you. May we not take this for granted. May we worship with joy and a passionate heart for the wonderful blessing you have given us.
Lord, I pray that we would avoid the sin of the Pharisees. May we not be guilty of putting our traditions up in place of the Scriptures. May we have a passion for the Word of God. May we see our savior’s example and emulate it. May we learn how to do this today. May we see the proper place of rebuke and even satire in this passage. May we use what you teach us in wisdom and reverence.
Lord, may our passion for the truth of Scripture inspire us to evangelize our community. May we reach this community with the gospel. We long to see people saved. Help us to share the hope that we have. Help us to stand up for the truth of your word, and may you draw people to yourself through this.
Lord, I ask for myself also. May I have wisdom in how to teach and train up this people. Please give me wisdom and passion. Help me to be able to discern how to helpfully use tradition and how not to use it. May I always be primarily concerned with your glory and your word. Guard over my tongue and please help me not to speak against you.
We ask this in Jesus name, Amen.
Transition:
As we open this passage, we see the pharisees confront Jesus.
The Pharisees Confront Jesus.
The Pharisees Confront Jesus.
Explanation:
As I explained earlier, Jesus has had multiple run ins with the Pharisees before. Their hatred for Him is so strong that they are plotting His death. Even in the opening verse we see the hatred these people had for Christ. It says that the Pharisees and scribes came from Jerusalem to confront Jesus. It is clear that they were not here as benevolent observers. They were here out of hatred and anger towards Jesus. They traveled a long way to confront Him. Jerusalem is over 60 miles from Gennesaret. They likely would have walked there. This is a long walk. On average, this would have taken 15-20 hours of walking. That is a long trip.
When the Pharisees and scribes arrive, they confront Jesus about how His disciples are not washing their hands before they eat. This may seem like a strange thing to get angry about and confront someone over, but to them this was a massive issue. The key is really in the phrase “the tradition of the elders.” The tradition of the Pharisees was to wash often and especially before one ate. This was no mere custom but a tradition.
Illustration:
This brings to mind the entire premise of the masterful classic, “Fiddler on the Roof.” One can almost hear Tevye begin to sing the refrain of the entire movie, “TRADITION!” Tradition was vital to these people. The entire movie sees the value and the breakdown of tradition.
This is almost as strong as the Pharisees saw tradition. But this was no mere tradition. It was a tradition of the elders. The Pharisees appeal to the ancient nature of this particular tradition. They hold it dear to their hearts. Again one can hear Tevye speaking to the camera, “Why do we do it? Because it is tradition!”
Argumentation:
The disciples were breaking none of the Old Testament laws. Had they been living in violation of God’s Law, Christ would have rebuked them. However, they were not breaking the Law of God. They were breaking the tradition of the elders, and this was more than the scribes and Pharisees could take. Spit in the face of Scripture, but in no way violate the tradition! Break God’s Law and they would turn their eyes away, but refuse to keep one tradition and they watched like ravenous birds of prey. Ignore the heart of Law and they could not be bothered, but speak against the traditions and they would plot your death.
Christ and the disciples had done the unthinkable. They had openly ignored and then spoke against the blessed tradition of the elders! How could they! This tradition is old! It must be held to! But perhaps you think I am being a little too harsh on their position. Listen to these accounts that Matthew Henry sites in his commentary on this passage. “Rabbi Joses determined, “that to eat with unwashen hands is as great a sin as adultery.” And Rabbi Akiba being kept a close prisoner, having water sent him both to wash his hands with, and to drink with his meat, the greatest part being accidentally shed, he washed his hands with the remainder, though he left himself none to drink, saying he would rather die than transgress the tradition of the elders. Nay, they would not eat meat with one that did not wash before meat.”
Transition:
No, this is a tradition that must never, under any circumstance be broken. But how did our Lord respond? Jesus rebukes the pharisees!
Jesus Rebukes the Pharisees.
Jesus Rebukes the Pharisees.
Explanation:
Jesus does not suffer these fools. He quickly answers them back and demonstrates the folly of these men. He asks them why they break the commands of God for the sake of their precious tradition. One can almost hear the objections raised, but Jesus does not wait for them to speak. He gives them a clear example of how they openly commit the charge He has brought against them. He clearly states the fifth commandment found in Exodus 20, “Honor your father and mother.” Then He clearly states the consequence for breaking this command found in Exodus 21 and Leviticus 20, “Whoever reviles father or mother must surely die.” Then Jesus contrasts what the Pharisees teach. They say that if a child says to their parents, “Whatever you would have gained from me is given to God,” then they need not honor their father or mother. This is in clear violation of God’s command.
Perhaps Jesus’ example is a little bit confusing to you. This is understandable because we do not live in the same time and culture, and beyond that, our current culture does not teach the biblical view of honoring parents. The scribes and Pharisees were teaching that a person could give their support to them rather than to their parents. In that day, parents (specifically aging parents) would require aid from their children. It is the child’s job to respect and honor and care for their parents as their parents cared for them as children. This is part of the command to honor your parents. But if the child gave money to the temple or priests or pharisees, they would exempt them from their scriptural command to honor their parents.
In practicality this was a bribe or indulgence given to the priesthood to get the kids out of the commitment to caring for their parents. This was a despicable practice and Jesus is right to harshly call out the pharisees for this practice. For the sake of their tradition, they were violating the Law of God. Jesus then quotes from Isaiah
“ ‘This people honors me with their lips,
but their heart is far from me;
9 in vain do they worship me,
teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’ ”
This is a harsh but very accurate rebuke. The scribes and Pharisees were teaching as doctrine the commands of men.
Argumentation:
The fundamental contrast here is between tradition and Scripture. The Pharisees were at fault because they had a low view of Scripture while having a high view of tradition. Jesus is here harshly correcting them. Jesus is not nice.
Transition:
Jesus continues on and speaks to what defiles a person.
What Defiles a Person.
What Defiles a Person.
Explanation:
The Pharisees were up in arms over the disciples breaking of the tradition of the elders. They believed that to eat with unwashed hands would defile you. There were things that would ceremonially defile you according to the ceremonial parts of the Law. But this was not a blanket command. It does not mean that because you do not wash, you are defiled before God.
For the sake of you wives and mothers, I will say that it is good and right to wash before you eat! Children, remember that passage about how a child who dishonors their parent should be put to death? Disobeying your mom when she tells you to wash is a form of dishonoring her. God commands that you listen and obey your mom and dad. If you do not wash your hands when they tell you to, you are not just disobeying your mom and dad; you are also disobeying God! So wash your hands! Husbands, remember how you are to love your wife and Christ loved the church? Wash your hands before you eat. Love your wife and don’t exasperate her by not washing your hands before sitting down at the table to lead your family in prayer and food.
However, Jesus makes the excellent point of showing that this is not a law of God. Jesus separates tradition and Law. He teaches the people that what goes into a person is not what defiles them. This offended the Pharisees greatly, but Jesus does not care. He continues on. What comes out of the mouth is what is defiling, not what goes in. Mark makes the point that this is Jesus declaring all food clean, but Matthew is focused in on the contrast between the Pharisees and Christ.
Jesus makes it clear that true defilement is not from a failure to adhere to manmade tradition. True defilement comes from the corruption of the heart. What comes out of the mouth is from the heart. “Out of the heart comes evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false witness, slander. 20 These are what defile a person. But to eat with unwashed hands does not defile anyone.”
Argumentation:
Sin comes from the corrupted heart of man. Jesus is here communicating the Biblical idea of what is known as “Total Depravity.” This means that man is not mostly good or even sort of good. Man is completely corrupted. Out of the center of his being flows sin. Obviously Jesus is not using the word “heart” to mean the organ that pumps blood. He means “heart” as the center of man, the truest part of man. Jesus is saying that man is completely sinful. His nature is sinful, his mind is sinful, his actions are sinful, even his very will is sinful.
The main point of Jesus’ argument could be stated like this, “The problem is not unwashed hands but an unwashed heart.” Food comes in and goes out, but the heart is irremovable from the man. One cannot escape his very nature. It is who you are, and who you are is sinful. Unregenerate hearts are slaves to sin. The prophet Ezekiel speaks of the unregenerate heart as a heart of stone. This heart is dead and must be removed. He prophesies of the coming day of salvation in chapter 36. Listen to these verses!
“26 And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. 27 And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules.”
The problem is not unclean hands but an unclean heart.
Transition:
But what of the debate between Jesus and the Pharisees? What can we learn from this? How do we balance this fight? What do we do with Scripture vs tradition?
Scripture vs. Tradition.
Scripture vs. Tradition.
Explanation:
There is nothing wrong with washing your hands. In fact, washing your hands is a good thing. By all study and science, we should wash our hands. So what is the big deal? The Pharisees were holding to a tradition that was good. Why does Jesus respond so harshly? The problem is not that the Pharisees were teaching a helpful tradition. The problem is that the Pharisees had a low view of Scripture. This is the conflict between Jesus and the Pharisees. Jesus has a high view of Scripture, the pharisees have a low view of Scripture.
Argumentation:
Isn’t it strange how we tend to get that backwards. So often in our modern church culture when someone brings up how we are to be obedient to the commands of God they are booed and called “Pharisees!” But here we see Jesus taking the position of obedience to God’s commands, while the Pharisees are the ones who are advocating for changing what Scripture said. The Pharisees were the progressive ones and Jesus is the one who is advocating for a conservative view of the Law of God.
We must not miss this. The “Pharisees” are not the ones who are saying we should live obedient lives to God. No, in truth the Pharisees are the ones who are advocating for adding in their own thoughts and opinions as equal or superior to scripture. This is a common trend in the church. Inevitably someone comes in with no Scriptural backing and says, “We must do this and if you don’t, it’s a sin!” Or they say “We must not do this and if you do, then it is a sin!” Then without fail some poor sucker stands up and says, “Excuse me, but that is not what Scripture says.” or “That is actually in violation of Scripture.” That man is booed and called “hateful, bigot, pharisee, bible thumper.” It’s a common story. Those with a correct view of Scripture are seldom loved.
But I can hear your objections. “Wait just a minute! Jesus did away with part of the Law here! He did away with the dietary restrictions! There, that proves that the Law is gone and we no longer have to live according to God’s commands.” Wow, I hadn’t thought of that. Well, I suppose we had better live however we want. I guess God doesn’t care about His commands anymore. Let’s go ahead and just go sin it up. Turns out nothing is sinful anymore.
Of course I am being ridiculous. What our astute objector has rightly pointed out is that this is Jesus doing away with the dietary restrictions. We can now eat bacon, clam chowder, or bacon rapped poodle if we want. But perhaps I could make a couple observations before we go and start looting the shops in Lead because the Law is gone.
First, Let’s not forget that Jesus said Himself “17 “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. 18 For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished. 19 Therefore whoever relaxes one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. 20 For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.” Matthew 5:17-20
Second, Jesus is saying one specific command is no longer binding, but a few verses up He made clear that a different command is still binding. Yes, we can now deep fry ousters and ham in bacon grease, but according to the same passage, children are still to honor their parents. This is what is commonly described as the distinction between the moral law and the ceremonial law. Jesus fulfilled the ceremonial law for it was all pointing ahead to Him. This is why we no longer travel to Jerusalem to make atoning sacrifices for our sins. Jesus did that and it is fulfilled. However, the moral law is still binding. We are to obey it and keep it.
Transition:
I wish I had more time to cover the ceremonial law and the moral law, but I hope that clears things up a bit. Either way, the central focus of this passage is to show that when tradition is elevated over Scripture it is heretical and hypocritical. So let’s look at how Jesus handles this. Let’s look at a godly rebuke hypocrites.
A Godly Rebuke of Hypocrites.
A Godly Rebuke of Hypocrites.
Explanation:
Jesus is not kind to the Pharisees. He does not abide the way that they have added their tradition as equal or superior to God’s word. Jesus sees this as the abomination that it is. And He responds appropriately. Jesus starts by being very direct and calling out their sin. He is clear and gives an example. Then He makes the clear charge, “So for the sake of your tradition you have made void the word of God.” Jesus then calls them hypocrites and shows that Isaiah had even prophesied about them. And this is not a sunshine and roses prophesy either. Jesus uses Scriptural backing to call these people hypocrites and heretics.
Jesus does not stop there. He gathers the people to himself and continues His rebuke by teaching the people the truth of what defiles a person. The disciples tell Jesus that the Pharisees are offended by His teaching. Jesus then calms down and apologizes. He knows that the worst thing one can do is offend people. No! Jesus doesn’t do this. He mocks the Pharisees. He says that they are the weeds that He spoke of in the parable of the wheat and the weeds. Then He really mocks them by calling them blind and that if they lead the other blind people, all of them will fall in the ditch. Jesus is openly mocking them and even telling a humorous parable to do so.
Illustration:
Jesus would have gotten in a lot of trouble in today’s culture and church climate. Had this very public exchange gone down today, I imagine there would be multiple “Christianity Today” and “Gospel Coalition” articles written about how Jesus took things one step too far. The amount of people on Facebook bashing Jesus’ tactics would be innumerable. These are the people I like to call the “tone police.” Can’t you just hear what would be said?
“Jesus in His rebuke of the Pharisees began to belittle and mock them. It wasn’t enough to simply say that He disagreed, the Rabbi began to get aggressive. First He called them names. Jesus openly said that the Jewish leaders were ‘Hypocrites’ and He implied that they were heretics. This is clearly unacceptable behavior.
However, as if this were not embarrassing enough, Jesus then used several examples to openly mock those He did not agree with. Jesus compared the Pharisees with one of His previous parables saying that people are either wheat or weeds. This is clearly a harsh theological stance as it is (please refer to our article on the dangers of Jesus’ reformed theology) but to directly call someone a weed is beyond harsh, it is mean. Then as the icing on the cake, Jesus used the childish act of satire to compare the Pharisees to blind men.” This is highly offensive. We must never stoop so low as to belittle our opponents.”
Then The Gospel Coalition will go on for another 5,000 words explaining that Jesus’ actions were not “Christ-like” and how we must win over our enemies through blowing butterfly kisses at them.
Argumentation:
Jesus here could care less about the opinions of the tone police. He says what He says and He is right. Jesus is infallible, inerrant, irrefutable. He knows all and knows exactly what to say and how to say it. Jesus is God and He is more than justified in using this harsh rebuke. He need never apologize. Jesus says it how it is and is correct. The Pharisees were making void the Word of God for the sake of their traditions. Jesus was right in rebuking them using Isaiah. Jesus was right in calling them the weeds from His previous parable. Jesus was right to call them blind leading the blind.
Transition:
But why did Jesus use such harsh language? Well, let’s look at the use of harsh language in rebuking heresy.
The Use of Harsh Language in Rebuking Heresy.
The Use of Harsh Language in Rebuking Heresy.
Explanation:
First, we must see that Jesus did what was right. He is God and what He did was right. Because of this, we can conclude that the use of harsh words and even satirical examples can in places be correct. This is not to say that they are always correct, but we can see that sometimes they are correct. So let’s look at how Jesus uses these communication devices.
Next, He is accurate. Jesus does not mince words, but He is not making things up. Jesus doesn’t lie to try to make His position stronger and their position weaker. Jesus is not twisting what they have said or done in order to make Himself look good. He is not twisting their position.
There is a term that is referred to as a “straw man argument.” This is when an opponent builds a fake representation of an argument that is easy to disprove just to knock it over and feel good about themselves. They are building a straw man because straw men don’t fight back and they burn so nicely. Jesus is not doing this. He is accurately representing what the Pharisees are doing.
Next, Jesus is clear. He calls the sin what it is. Jesus does not water down their offense, He makes it clear that they are sinning. Jesus is not sheepish or backhanded in His rebuke and language. It is harsh, but clear. He is not using the cowardly tactic of disagreement that twists words to almost sound like you agree. He is confronting their heresy head on. He is bold as an ox in His confrontation.
Next Jesus does not stand on His own authority. Of all people, Jesus could have stood on His own authority in confronting these hypocrites, but He instead appeals to the written word of God. He quotes the fifth commandment and He even appeals to Isaiah for backing in His rebuke. Jesus is God, but He still appeals to the Scriptures. How much more should we appeal to them? We must not think we are more wise than Christ. Do not stand on your own reasoning, stand on Scripture.
Next, Jesus shows the consistency of His argument by comparing them to His previous parable. He is not being inconsistent, but is in line with what He has taught previously. There is a consistency to what He has taught and His arguments. A good argument is consistent.
Finally, Jesus uses a satirical example. While we don’t know the exact tone of Jesus’ voice, this parable seems to be a clear mockery of the Pharisees. He compares them to blind men attempting to lead other blind men. This conjures up ideas of stumbling and bumping and all kinds of mishaps, resulting in the fall into a pit. It is an exaggeration. Clearly the Pharisees were not physically blind. They were spiritually blind. Jesus highlights this and uses it as an example.
Argumentation:
These are the methods that Jesus uses to confront and rebuke the Pharisees. They are not nice or kind. They are harsh and somewhat humorous. But how should we use them?
I want to give some examples of how we should use them, but first a few words of warning. Christ has entrusted us with many things that may be used well or used poorly. There are many sharp gifts that God has given us and we must use them all with wisdom. I think the tongue may be the sharpest. James compares it to a flamethrower. This does not mean that we don’t talk, but it means we use caution. Fire can keep you warm and cook food, but it can also destroy like few other things.
So first, use the tongue with caution. A good rule of thumb is to be quiet. Proverbs speaks again and again to the wisdom of silence. However, wisdom is not always silent. Treat your tongue like the sword that it is. Keep it sheathed, but when you produce it, do so with great accuracy and skill.
Second, as Christians, listen to the conviction of the Spirit. If you are a Christian, you are indwelt by the Holy Spirit. If you are facing conviction to go apologize for something you said wrong, then do so. Make amends for the times you burn someone with that fire in your mouth.
Third, and most important, use the tongue in the fear of the Lord. You will be judged for every idle word that comes out of your mouth. While this should not make you silent, but it should make you cautious and make you fear God. The fear of the Lord will make you speak when needed but it will make you silent when best. Fear God more than man. This will crush cowardliness and cruelness.
Finally, on a practical note, win the people not the argument. This was a piece of advice given to me by pastor Doug Wilson. I watched him give a talk on Biblical sexuality at a hostile secular university. Afterward, he did a question and answer event. He was screamed at, cussed out, and called every name in the book. He kept his cool and used many of the things I have pointed out in this sermon. But I had the opportunity to ask him how he kept his cool while being screamed at for several hours. He said that his father always reminded him to win the people, not the argument. Remember that person in front of you is a soul. They will live forever, in heaven or hell. So in the fear of the Lord, be accurate, be honest, don’t mince words, have fun, but remember that person is a person.
So as we move to our close, let’s put this into practice. Let’s look at a few examples, funny and serious, and do some spiritual target practice.
Illustration:
The difficulty when addressing tradition is the knowledge that tradition is not bad. We must never ever put it on the same level as Scripture, but tradition by itself is not bad. There are sinful and misguided traditions, and those are the ones we must do away with. This is where we are going to practice. Perhaps when talking about tradition it is easy to pick on the Roman catholic church. But let’s come a little closer to home and let’s look at some good old fashioned Baptist tradition, shall we?
1. Card Playing/Gambling
For years and years there have been Baptist preachers who stand behind pulpits and scream and shout about playing cards. Those are the trap that the devil will grab you with! He will take you down the sinful rout of playing cards! If you aren’t careful, you may end up even committing the grave sin of gambling! And the whole church screams in terror.
Now, let me ask you this, where in scripture does it say that we should not play cards? No where! Believe it or not, there is not Bible verse that says “Go fish” is the devil’s game. Although I suppose that parents who are forced to play ten million hands of go fish have some justification in thinking it is the devil’s game. What about gambling? surely gambling is addictive and unwise to get caught up in, but there is no Prohibition on playing rock paper scissors over who gets to buy lunch. If you are addicted and being a poor steward of your finances, then you are living in sin. But there is no scriptural backing for calling the monthly guys Texas hold-em tournament a wretched abomination.
2. Dancing.
What about dancing? I went and helped play music at a Southern Baptist summer camp in North Dakota a few years ago. It was an awful experience, but that is beside the point. Hanging on the wall of the hall were the rules. One of them was “NO DANCING!” I thought maybe I had stumbled on the town from footloose. That evil sin of dancing must be stopped!
Now here is the question, is a formal waltz a sin? Perhaps a tango? Tango’s get pretty spicy, so it must be that. Or perhaps it is in the move of the hips? how much hip movement must I engage in before the sin kicks in? If I sway them two inches, is that okay? Maybe three? We all know that four inches of sway is where the devil is.
Yes I am mocking. The act of dancing is not by itself a sin. What is the motivation of the heart? Clearly any form of erotic dance is wrong and sinful, but that lies in the heart to incite lust and gain unholy attention. The sin lies in the heart.
3. Smoking and Drinking.
Here we come to two of the big no no’s. Don’t smoke, and don’t drink. While down south smoking has always been fine, drinking was the big sin. You could meat the preacher outside the church with a cigarette in his mouth and hearty handshake ready for you. But whatever you do, do not touch that devil water. Satan lives in the whiskey bottle. Funny, I’ve never found him in one. But there is this thought that somehow any form of alcohol is sinful and evil.
But what does scripture say? Drunkenness is a sin. Do not be drunk with wine. But does that then mean that alcohol is a sin? By no means! It means what it says. Drunkenness is a sin. To say that alcohol is a sin is to say that Jesus sinned when He drank wine. He sinned when He turned water into wine. Please note that Jesus did not just turn water into wine, but into the best wine ever. To say that alcohol is a sin is to commit the same sin that the Pharisees committed in our passage. Do not drink to the point of altering consciousness is a sin. But don’t fear to toast each other with a beer to the glory of God!
This is a sin that Southern Baptists still commit. As a Southern Baptist church planter, I am held to not drink any alcohol. This a rule of Pharisees. While I am grateful to be funded by the SBC, their law here is a tradition of men that is in direct violation of Paul’s command in Colossians 2:16, “16 Therefore let no one pass judgment on you in questions of food and drink, or with regard to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath.” I say this as an open rebuke of a really dumb tradition.
4. Our Traditions.
Perhaps it is easy to look at the fact that we are a church plant and think that we have no traditions. This is just flat untrue. One of the main difficulties of church planting is trying to put in place helpful traditions and weed out the unhelpful. Weather we like it or not, we are part of the American evangelical church tradition. This comes with all the baggage of the traditions, both helpful and unhelpful.
Perhaps I could speak as your pastor for just a moment. From the moment we started meeting in Thomas and Sarah’s house for small group, one of my biggest fights has been the fight of tradition. Modern evangelicalism is guilty of a tradition of congregational idolatry, and shallow faith. What do I mean? I mean that there is a deep rooted tradition of the primary concern being the opinions of the congregation. How can we make the people happy. This is wrong. It is idolatry. We are to come together to worship God, not people. Second, there is the perhaps even deeper tradition of shallow faith. There is a distaste for any form of doctrinal depth. Because of this, we have a generation of Christians who would be unable to even understand the importance of the fact that Christ is truly God and truly man. This is deadly and I think it is one of the reasons the church is in the declining state it is in here in America.
My goal has been since day one to break down these weak and harmful traditions and build healthy traditions in their place. But that is not even true, I am attempting to build a foundation of the Word of God in the place of these traditions. This is why I do what I do. I pray that we as a church will always be shaped by the Word of God. This is why I introduced the singing of the Psalms. I want even our music to be the Word of God rather than simply vain tradition.
As we go from here I pray you examine the why. Ask the question why. “Why do I do this? Why do we do that? Why don’t we do this?” And where you find something not in line with the scriptures, change that. Let’s pray.
Prayer:
Closing Hymn:
Closing Benediction:
Ephesians 6:23-24 23 Peace be to the brothers, and love with faith, from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. 24 Grace be with all who love our Lord Jesus Christ with love incorruptible.