Author of Change

The Pharisees and some of the scribes who had come from Jerusalem gathered around Him. They observed that some of His disciples were eating their bread with unclean-that is unwashed hands. (For the Pharisees, in fact all Jews, will not eat unless they wash their hands ritually, keeping the traditions of the elders. When they come from the marketplace, they do not eat unless they have washed. And there are many other customs they have received and keep, like the washing of cups, jugs, copper utensils, and dining couches.)

Then the Pharisees and scribes asked Him, "Why don't your disciples live according to the tradition of the elders, instead of eating bread with ritually unclean hands?"

Jesus answered them, "Isaiah prophesied correctly about you hypocrites, as it is written:

These people honour Me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me. They worship Me in vain, teaching as doctrines the commands of men."

Disregarding the command of God, you keep the tradition of men." Mark 7:1-8

The crowds are milling and wanting to touch the tassels of his garments so they can be healed and these nit-pickers can only find fault with how the disciples eat. How out of touch, arrogant and hard of heart!

When God is present who are we to tell Him how to perform? If we hold our church meetings as sacred and honour the ritual above the presence, we are undone!

Isaiah nailed it with his prophesy. We indeed are only honouring with our lips and not our hearts.

Again and again we are seeing Jesus challenges hearts to stay soft and be open to Him, willing to change and to believe.

Jesus was an author of change, are we? What are we challenging? Or are we accepting the happenings in our culture, as normal and acceptable? Are we settling for ritual?

Have mercy Lord! Set us free! Amen!