The Morphing Nature of Judeo Christian Traditions
Without an understanding of the Jewishness of Jesus, it is easy to 'throw out the baby with the bath water'.
Jesus did say in Matthew 15:6b, '...
Thus you nullify the word of God for the sake of your tradition.
' Of course, he was speaking to Jews about their non-biblical traditions.
When we look at Christian traditions today, it is pretty easy to see how far we have distanced our practices from our Jewish brothers.
We should not assume, however, that we see traditions the same way Jesus used the term.
Jewish Traditions When Jesus addressed the Pharisees and teachers, he was speaking specifically about two 'traditions' or practices: the ceremonial hand washing before meals was one.
Not honoring one's parents with a gift meant for God was the other tradition.
These were both traditions that emerged in ancient Judaism, that do not find their origin in the Bible.
In Matthew 15:9 Jesus said, 'They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men.
' The examples that Jesus addressed are both from the Oral Tradition, called the Talmud, not from the books of the Bible.
Torah the Preserved Instruction Today in both the Church and Jewish communities there are many traditions that are observed that are not Biblical.
Israel represents God's sovereign choice of people, his people.
Jews are a very important part of Israel, a remnant.
Jews, as the keepers or preservers of God's instruction, through Moses' Biblical writings, have preserved God's will for his people.
The first five books of the Bible, called the Torah, detail the preferences and dates in regards to God's set times in the Hebrew calendar.
These set times, Feasts, or Holy Days are considered a standard for his people.
That is to say, in the same way that the Jewish scribes preserved God's word, the Jewish community has taken care to safeguard his ordained instructions.
Church Traditions The Church today is considered part of Israel, grafted into the root of Christ Jesus, according to the Apostle Paul.
The Church has swung the pendulum of practices back in the opposite direction, by creating a new set of traditions that originated in the Church of Rome.
Unfortunately, these new traditions likewise have nothing to do with how God instructed his people to worship.
Before Israel entered the Promise Land, they were told to avoid the practices of the Canaanites, in Deuteronomy 12:31.
'You must not worship the LORD your God in their way, because in worshiping their gods, they do all kinds of detestable things the LORD hates.
' Many of today's clergy teach that the instruction given to Israel was for a specific group of people not all believers.
First century believers both Jewish and Christian went to synagogue together on the Sabbath.
The Apostle's Take While most Christian traditions are well meaning, they are not what God prescribed for his people.
Paul wrote in 2Timothy 16-17, 'All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.
' It is important for Christians to acknowledge that when Paul wrote this letter, he was referring to the Old Testament.
Paul's reference was to the Torah writings and the Prophets, there were no established New Testament scriptures when he wrote his letters.
Michael Parros "We will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends.
" - MLK
Jesus did say in Matthew 15:6b, '...
Thus you nullify the word of God for the sake of your tradition.
' Of course, he was speaking to Jews about their non-biblical traditions.
When we look at Christian traditions today, it is pretty easy to see how far we have distanced our practices from our Jewish brothers.
We should not assume, however, that we see traditions the same way Jesus used the term.
Jewish Traditions When Jesus addressed the Pharisees and teachers, he was speaking specifically about two 'traditions' or practices: the ceremonial hand washing before meals was one.
Not honoring one's parents with a gift meant for God was the other tradition.
These were both traditions that emerged in ancient Judaism, that do not find their origin in the Bible.
In Matthew 15:9 Jesus said, 'They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men.
' The examples that Jesus addressed are both from the Oral Tradition, called the Talmud, not from the books of the Bible.
Torah the Preserved Instruction Today in both the Church and Jewish communities there are many traditions that are observed that are not Biblical.
Israel represents God's sovereign choice of people, his people.
Jews are a very important part of Israel, a remnant.
Jews, as the keepers or preservers of God's instruction, through Moses' Biblical writings, have preserved God's will for his people.
The first five books of the Bible, called the Torah, detail the preferences and dates in regards to God's set times in the Hebrew calendar.
These set times, Feasts, or Holy Days are considered a standard for his people.
That is to say, in the same way that the Jewish scribes preserved God's word, the Jewish community has taken care to safeguard his ordained instructions.
Church Traditions The Church today is considered part of Israel, grafted into the root of Christ Jesus, according to the Apostle Paul.
The Church has swung the pendulum of practices back in the opposite direction, by creating a new set of traditions that originated in the Church of Rome.
Unfortunately, these new traditions likewise have nothing to do with how God instructed his people to worship.
Before Israel entered the Promise Land, they were told to avoid the practices of the Canaanites, in Deuteronomy 12:31.
'You must not worship the LORD your God in their way, because in worshiping their gods, they do all kinds of detestable things the LORD hates.
' Many of today's clergy teach that the instruction given to Israel was for a specific group of people not all believers.
First century believers both Jewish and Christian went to synagogue together on the Sabbath.
The Apostle's Take While most Christian traditions are well meaning, they are not what God prescribed for his people.
Paul wrote in 2Timothy 16-17, 'All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.
' It is important for Christians to acknowledge that when Paul wrote this letter, he was referring to the Old Testament.
Paul's reference was to the Torah writings and the Prophets, there were no established New Testament scriptures when he wrote his letters.
Michael Parros "We will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends.
" - MLK
