Introduction

There is a need for careful distinction between tradition and traditionalism. The word “tradition” appears six times in Mark 7:1-23. Jesus is teaching about what healthy tradition looks like versus the unhealthy traditionalism promoted by the Pharisees. When the Pharisees complain that Jesus’ disciples do not wash their hands according to the tradition of the elders, Jesus responds with four points about tradition.

Four Points on Tradition

First, traditions become sinful when they “leave” the commandment of God

Jesus is criticizing pharisaical traditionalism. Notice the particular characteristics that invite Jesus’ disapproval.

Mark 7:8 “You leave the commandment of God and hold to the tradition of men.”

Mark 7:9 “And he said to them, “You have a fine way of rejecting the commandment of God in order to establish your tradition!”

Mark 7:13 “thus making void the word of God by your tradition that you have handed down.”

What is the defining characteristic of Pharisaical traditionalism? It leaves the commandment of God (vs. 8). It rejects the commandment of God (vs. 9). It makes void the Word of God (vs. 13).

Notice that in each of those verses Jesus specifically contrasts the Pharisees tradition with the commandment of God. Their traditions “leave the commandment of God,” which means their traditions push away God’s commands. Their traditions “void the word of God,” which means their traditions invalidate the authority of God and refuse to recognize the force and power of God’s commands.

Second, traditions become sinful when they confuse obedience

Mark 7:9-13, “And he said to them, "You have a fine way of rejecting the commandment of God in order to establish your tradition! 10 For Moses said, 'Honor your father and your mother'; and, 'Whoever reviles father or mother must surely die.' 11But you say, 'If a man tells his father or his mother, "Whatever you would have gained from me is Corban"' (that is, given to God)— 12then you no longer permit him to do anything for his father or mother, 13thus making void the word of God by your tradition that you have handed down. And many such things you do.”

Jesus is giving a specific example of how the Pharisees are, “rejecting the commandment of God in order to establish…tradition.”

Commandment of GodTradition of the Pharisees“Honor your father and your mother'; and, 'Whoever reviles father or mother must surely die”(vs. 10)“If a man tells his father or his mother, "Whatever you would have gained from me is Corban” (vs. 11)

The command of God is from Exodus 20:12 and 21:17. To honor your father and mother was to care for them financially as they got older and were unable to provide for themselves. However, a tradition had developed which allowed that money originally dedicated to the care of parents could be declared, “Corban,” that is, “given to God.” Per the Pharisees' tradition, this meant the person who was caring for his parents was no longer required to obey the commandment of God to “honor” his parents by providing for them financially. Instead, they could dedicate their financial resources to the temple.

That could sound like an honorable thing, couldn’t it? Who is more important, your parents or God? It’s easy to see how the Pharisees' tradition confused what obedience required. They made temple-giving a substitute for caring for their parents.

Why would the Pharisees sow such confusion? Notice that this issue revolves around money. What are the Pharisees' hearts devoted to? Money! The Pharisees are “lovers of money” (Lk. 16:14). The Pharisees are “full of greed and self-indulgence” (Mt. 23:25). In all the thorough-going traditions they love money more than God. That’s why Jesus, quoting Isaiah, said of them, “Their heart is far from me” (Mk. 7:6). So it’s not just that traditions are sinful when they sow confusion. It’s also that the love of money confuses loyalties.

Third, traditions become sinful when they focus merely on the outside

Traditions may appear to be accomplishing a righteous purpose when in fact they stand in opposition to the Word of God.

Mark 7:6-7, “And he said to them, ‘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; 7in vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’”

Jesus calls them hypocrites. This refers to an actor who would put on a mask and pretend to be something he was not. That is what these Jewish traditions accomplished. It made them appear to be honoring God, but in reality, their hearts were far from him. The Pharisees thought of themselves as preserving ancient traditions. In reality, they were preserving the spirit of those Isaiah criticized.

In Matthew 12:34 Jesus says “Out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks.” In Mark 7:6 Jesus says, “This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me.” In Matthew 12:34 Jesus seems to link the mouth and the heart. In Mark 7:6 Jesus seems to say the mouth and heart may go in different directions. What are we to make of this? The point is that what a person truly is, affects what he does and says. When Jesus quotes Isaiah, the point isn’t to de-link the mouth and heart. The point is that true faithfulness deals with the heart first (Mark 7:20ff) and deals with externals second. The Pharisees, in contrast, dealt with the externals first and the heart not at all. The Pharisees made external actions the essence of worship. While external actions matter, they are not the essence of worship or love. Jesus says,

“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” (Mk. 7:15). Then Jesus says, “Whatever goes into a person from outside cannot defile him, 19 since it enters not his heart but his stomach, and is expelled?” (Thus he declared all foods clean.) 20 And he said, “What comes out of a person is what defiles him. 21 For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, 22 coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness. 23 All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person” (Mark 7:18b – 23).

What is essential? While external action matters, the seat of worship, the seat of love, is the heart. A tradition that merely dresses up outward appearance is nothing. To be pure or impure is not a ritualistic thing. It is a matter of the heart. When a tradition merely masks the impurity of the heart, it accomplishes nothing useful.

So, if the heart is the essential thing, what about external behaviors? External behaviors are pleasing to God when they flow from a heart that freely delights in God—when they flow from love for God.

Fourth, traditions become sinful when they neglect Jesus’ coming

Mark 7:18-19, “And he said to them, “Then are you also without understanding? Do you not see that whatever goes into a person from outside cannot defile him, 19 since it enters not his heart but his stomach, and is expelled?” (Thus he declared all foods clean.)”

When Jesus “declared all foods clean” he announces that his incarnation changes certain things in regards to the Old Testament law. The Jews used to have ceremonial restrictions on the food they ate. With the coming of Jesus, these restrictions are lifted (See also Acts 10). Now, Christians may eat or not eat according to the dictates that love demands (1 Cor. 10:27; Rom. 14:13f, 19).

The macro point of emphasis is that when it comes to evaluating traditions, we must always account for the fact that Jesus came. Does this mean we can throw away the Old Testament? No! Notice in Mark 7:10 Jesus acknowledges the authority of the Old Testament moral law. Jesus expects his people to obey the moral law. More specifically in Mark 7, Jesus requires that parents be honored, and obedience to this is not a trifle.

Our response to Jesus’ teachings on tradition

How should we respond to these four principles? In particular, what should be our view of tradition? We must start by having a healthy distrust of each tradition. Not a cynical distrust. Not a revolutionary distrust. But a distrust that leads to the sober analysis of each tradition.

Upon analysis, if the tradition stays in accord with God’s word, then distrust transforms into confidence as we participate in that specific tradition. But if upon analysis the tradition leaves the Word of God, confuses the Word of God, merely externalizes the Word of God, or neglects the incarnation of the Word of God, then distrust should cultivate repentance from that tradition.

We should also remember what the Apostle Paul says about tradition. Paul understands, like Jesus, that there is a helpful type of tradition and a harmful type of tradition.

Paul speaks highly of a certain kind of tradition:

1 Cor. 11:2, “Now I commend you because you  …  maintain the traditions even as I delivered them to you.”

2 Thessalonians 2:15, “So then, brothers, stand firm and hold to the traditions that you were taught by us, either by our spoken word or by our letter.”

2 Thessalonians 3:6, “Now we command you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you keep away from any brother who is walking in idleness and not in accord with the tradition that you received from us.”

But Paul also criticizes a certain kind of tradition:

Gal. 1:14, “And I was advancing in Judaism beyond many of my own age among my people, so extremely zealous was I for the traditions of my fathers.”

In Colossians 2:8, Paul goes on to contrast the “traditions of my fathers” with the gospel of Jesus Christ. “See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ.”

Notice that Paul criticizes “human tradition” because it is “not according to Christ.” So Paul criticizes tradition when it departs from the gospel of Jesus Christ; when it departs from that which is “according to Christ.”

More specifically we see in 1 Corinthians 4:6 that Paul insists the church “learn … not to go beyond what is written.” In Acts 17:11, everything Paul taught could be proved from the Scriptures. In 1 Thessalonians 2:13 Paul contrasts the “words of men” with the “word of God.”

So Paul maintains the same distinction as Jesus. There is a helpful type of tradition and a harmful type of traditionalism. The church must embrace the one and reject the other. 

Conclusion

The point is not that traditions are harmful, but that traditionalism is. The point is not to reject tradition, but to reject traditions that take us away from Christ. The point is not to embrace traditions, but to embrace traditions that take us to Christ.

Christians should want traditions that take us to the living God. As Christians, we will always have traditions because we are heirs. A tradition is something that is handed down. Do Christians engage in handing things down? Yes, Jude says, “contend for the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints” (Jude 3).

A tradition is a long-established or inherited way of thinking and believing. Do Christians innovate their beliefs with the times or receive them from God’s Word? We receive it from God’s Word (1 Cor. 11:23, 15:1, 3). So we must learn what a healthy tradition looks like versus an unhealthy type of traditionalism. Jaroslav Pelikan nuanced the difference, “Traditionalism is the dead faith of the living. Tradition is the living faith of the dead . . . And it is traditionalism that has given tradition such a bad name.”[1]

[1] Jaroslav Pelikan, The Vindication of Tradition (New Haven: Yale Univ. Press, 1984), 65.