Mark 7:1-8
Introduction
In the last two studies we have seen Jesus involved in two remarkable miracles. But in today’s study we come back to an ongoing issue for Jesus – His conflict with the religious leaders. We first saw this in chapter 2 and now the Pharisees are at it again.
And in this study, we are going to learn about something that is very important for us as Christians. The key verse in this passage is verse 5.
Bear all of this in mind as we examine today’s passage.
Verses 1 to 4
The Pharisees have come a long way (about 90 miles) from Jerusalem to Galilee to confront Jesus. The Pharisees have come with a complaint about the disciples eating bread with unwashed hands. The complaint was actually directed at Jesus. Notice the words ‘His disciples’. They were holding Jesus responsible for the behaviour of His disciples.
Let’s examine the Pharisees’ complaint carefully. At first sight it might look like the complaint was about personal hygiene but it wasn’t. The clue is in the words ‘impure hands.’ The complaint was actually about ritual cleansing and ritual defilement. We last saw this issue in chapter 2 if you remember.
In the Law of Moses in the Old Testament there are all sorts of ritual cleansing
laws. The Law of Moses is the 600 plus commandments and regulations written down in the Torah; that is, the first 5 books of the Old Testament. The Law of Moses is also known as God’s Law or the Written Law. There is no requirement in the Law of Moses for ordinary Jews to ritually cleanse their hands before eating bread. Just to note; from now on I will refer to the Law of Moses as the Written Law.
What laws or regulations are the Pharisees talking about then? They are talking about the tradition of the elders. We see this in the key verse – verse 5. So, what does the ‘tradition of the elders’ mean? The Pharisees were talking about the Oral Law.
Let me explain what this is. The Oral Law is known today as the Mishnah. The Oral Law consists of a collection of regulations produced by a succession of Rabbi’s that were accumulated over hundreds of years and passed on orally. The Rabbi’s took the Written Law and developed their own laws from it. This was known as the Oral Law and over a period of time the Oral Law became equal in authority to the Written Law. However, by the time that Jesus was on the earth, the authority of the Oral Law exceeded the authority of the Written Law according to the Pharisees. That’s why they used the Oral Law to accuse Jesus.
All of the examples of ritual cleansing found in verses 3 and 4 come from the Oral Law not the Written Law. The written laws were easy to follow but the oral laws were excessive and hard to follow. An example of the excesses of the Oral Law is found in verse 4. When a Jew came away from the market place, they had to wash their whole body. Each time they bought a loaf for instance they had to have a bath. Image that!
The oral laws imposed heavy restrictions on the freedom of ordinary Jews and they gave the Pharisees enormous control over the people. And Jesus was opposed to this as we will see.
The modern term used to describe the practise of imposing man-made regulations on God’s people is called ‘Legalism’ and it’s very damaging. Legalism comes in many forms in the life of God’s people. It leaves God’s people bound up when they should be free. Legalism is a subtle form of idolatry because it elevates what is human above what is divine.
Verses 5 to 8
The Pharisees asked Jesus why His disciples do not walk/live according to the tradition of the elders, but eat their bread with impure hands. Because of what we have already learnt, verse 5 makes more sense than it might have done otherwise.
And then in verses 6 to 8 Jesus gives the Pharisees a stinging rebuke. Notice how Jesus uses God’s word to rebuke them and not the Oral Law. Why does Jesus, through Isaiah, call the Pharisees hypocrites? The answer is found in the first part of Isaiah’s prophecy. The lips represent the outward appearance of a man and the heart represents the very core of a man. The Pharisees put on an outward show of righteousness when in reality they were spiritually dead inside. That is why Jesus called them hypocrites.
The first part of verse 7 tells us that their worship was futile because it was superficial. True worship comes from the heart. And the second part of verse 7 tells us that instead of teaching from God’s word the Pharisees taught man-made ideas. They were false teachers.
In verse 8 Jesus gets to the fundamental issue He had with the Pharisees. Verse 8 tells us that the Pharisees had rejected God’s Law, the Written Law, and replaced it with the Oral Law. Notice how Jesus associates the Written Law with God and the Oral Law with men. This shows that Jesus rejected the Oral Law and only accepts the Written Law.
What This Means for Us Today
This whole passage is about the contrast between God’s word and the traditions of men. Jesus is telling us that we are to obey God’s word and reject the traditions of men. So, what does this mean for us today in the Church? Think about it.
And Finally
I would like to encourage you to start rejecting the traditions of men in the Church. Remember that the traditions of men are any teachings or practices that men have introduced into the Church that are not in the scriptures.