Setting Traditions of Men Above the Commandments of God (Matt. 15:1-9)

Introduction

After spending a short time in Nazareth, being run out of town by the very people Jesus grew up around, we now find Jesus and His disciples, in the Galilee region, having traveled to Bethsaida. It was here the Jesus fed the 5,000 and healed many people. And in typical fashion while Jesus was ministering to the people, we see both Pharisees and Scribes once again trying to disrupt Jesus’ ministry.

It is interesting that this particular group of Scribes and Pharisees was from Jerusalem, NOT Bethsaida. These Scribes and Pharisees were citizens of Jerusalem who were experts in law and academia. Some scholars suggest that these men may have been requested to make the trip to Bethsaida to stop Jesus from preaching and disrupt his ministry.

Today I want us to look at 5 hypocritical actions of the Pharisees as they try to trap Jesus but these actions we as Christians are guilty of as well:

Accusing Others of Not following Tradition - One of the first actions of the Pharisees in this passage was their accusing the disciples of NOT following the Jewish Traditions

Keeping Tradition and Rejecting God’s Commandments - To many times we tend to keep and put to much weight on the traditions created by man in the name of religion to the point they supersede God’s commandments.

For God Commanded - Christ’s rebuttal to keeping man’s religious traditions over God’s commandments

The Pharisees Loophole - Man’s religious traditions are borne from self-centered idolatry, pride, and greed.

The Doom of Hypocrites - Hypocrites sow the wind and reap the whirlwind; they trust vanity, and vanity will be their recompense! (M. Henry)

Accusing Others of Not following Tradition

The attacks on Jesus are now becoming more and more heated. For now the Scribes and Pharisees are focusing their attention on Jesus’ followers, specifically His disciples.

A. The Scribes and Pharisees accuse the disciples of not following the “traditions of the elders” (V.2). They alluded to the regulation imposed by former Rabbis and handed it down to the present generation.

B. Specifically, the ritual of cleansing of the hands before and during eating a meal.

These traditions were very important to a Jew. Various rules, decisions, and opinions had been handed down from the past (past as in the Old Testament).

Thus, the “tradition of the elders” was regarded as being equally binding as God’s law itself since, according to the Scribes, they showed what the divine law really meant and how it should be applied to everyday life.

C. The Scribes here were in gross error as these judgments (tradition) went beyond anything demanded by God’s law and failed entirely to do justice to the real requirements of that law.

The tradition that the Scribes and Pharisees were referring to was from the Old Testament specifically Leviticus 16:26 “And he who released the goat as the scapegoat shall wash his clothes and bathe his body in water, and afterward he may come into the camp.” and Leviticus 16:28 “Then he who burns them shall wash his clothes and bathe his body in water, and afterward he may come into the camp.” To be clear, they are referencing the priests, before performing various sacred functions; they must bathe.

Further, under certain specified conditions, the law prescribed hand-rinsing for the people in general (Leviticus 15:11 “And whomever the one who has the discharge touches, and has not rinsed his hands in water, he shall wash his clothes and bathe in water, and be unclean until evening.” ). But God’s law NOWHERE prescribes ritual hand-rinsing for EVERYBODY in connection with EVERY meal. So as the Pharisees so distorted this law, a tradition of the elders”, it was nothing but a twisted, warped tradition made by man that was unsupported by any divine ordinance or command.