The teachings of men and worship made vain

We are reading Matthew weekly and discussing our way through this gospel. Some of us are already discussing chapter 15.

Then some Pharisees and scribes came to Jesus from Jerusalem and said, "Why do Your disciples break the tradition of the elders? For they do not wash their hands when they eat bread."
(Mat 15:1-2)

Notice that "they came to Jesus from Jerusalem" Jesus did not seek out the Pharisees and scribes in order to straighten them out. He did not go to Jerusalem and jump in their business. He did not confront them. Jesus corrects them as they come out to confront Him. This fits with what we have read in Matt. 12:13-21 where Isaiah was quoted:

"BEHOLD, MY SERVANT WHOM I HAVE CHOSEN; MY BELOVED IN WHOM MY SOUL is WELL-PLEASED; I WILL PUT MY SPIRIT UPON HIM, AND HE SHALL PROCLAIM JUSTICE TO THE GENTILES. "HE WILL NOT QUARREL, NOR CRY OUT; NOR WILL ANYONE HEAR HIS VOICE IN THE STREETS. "A BATTERED REED HE WILL NOT BREAK OFF, AND A SMOLDERING WICK HE WILL NOT PUT OUT, UNTIL HE LEADS JUSTICE TO VICTORY. "AND IN HIS NAME THE GENTILES WILL HOPE."

The Pharisees and scribes had an agreed-upon-tradition handed down to them which they were certain made clear that which was not made clear enough in the Scriptures. At the point they want to confront Jesus for violating, not the word of God, but their tradition, Jesus informs them that this very thing makes their worship vain (empty, meaningless); that they are "...teaching for doctrines the precepts of men".

And He answered and said to them, "Why do you yourselves transgress the commandment of God for the sake of your tradition? "For God said, 'HONOR YOUR FATHER AND MOTHER,' and, 'HE WHO SPEAKS EVIL OF FATHER OR MOTHER IS TO BE PUT TO DEATH.' "But you say, 'Whoever says to his father or mother, "Whatever I have that would help you has been given to God," he is not to honor his father or his mother.' And by this you invalidated the word of God for the sake of your tradition. "You hypocrites, rightly did Isaiah prophesy of you: 'THIS PEOPLE HONORS ME WITH THEIR LIPS, BUT THEIR HEART IS FAR AWAY FROM ME. 'BUT IN VAIN DO THEY WORSHIP ME, TEACHING AS DOCTRINES THE PRECEPTS OF MEN.'" (Mat 15:3-9)

We know that men teach, but when what we teach (and apparently try to enforce) are the precepts of men, our hearts are adrift.

The Reconstruction of Faith

Over 50 Years ago a man named H.Richard Niebuhr wrote a helpful book called "Christ and Culture". More recently some of his work has been released in a book called "Faith on Earth." I have not read the newer book but yesterday I read an excerpt called "The Reconstruction of Faith" which I thought was very good, especially for someone coming from Niebuhr's environment. As Paul told the Corinthians, when we consider our calling, there are not many wise, not many powerful, not many well-born. This has everything to do with our following the crucified messiah. Yet It is a refreshing thought that God might also be merciful even to some who were once thought of as among an elite class...to bring them in humility to a place of loyalty to Jesus. Is that what I am reading about here? Read this excerpt by clicking:"The Reconstruction of Faith".

Don't confuse thy niebuhr.
A name I have sometimes confused with H. Richard Niebuhr is that of Reinhold Niebuhr and come to find out they where brothers. They both held positions at respected schools in the 1930's. H.Richard at Yale University and Reinhold at Union Theological Seminary. They engaged in what might be called a public debate on "just war" and real christianity through alternating articles published in the Christian Century magazine of that time. These article have been reproduced with an informative introduction to their historical setting. There are some interesting thoughts on basic Christianity represented in the articles that you can access in the first 3 links at the bottom of this page.

Logical inferences are not fool proof, but loyalty to Jesus Christ is.

But Jesus answered and said to them, "You are mistaken, not understanding the Scriptures nor the power of God (Mat 22:29).

In a document titled "means of grace" which is linked to at the top of this blog, I said: "The fact that the phrase “means of grace” is not found in scripture makes any doctrine of “means of grace” one very important step removed from being well founded, or at least from being well tested, as a biblical category of thought."

This conservative idea of grasping biblical thought primarily in the words and phrases of scripture shapes what I think is an important doctrinal philosophy. Students of Christianity too often rob verses from their context, stick them in a "logic machine", which then,in their mind, spits out "necessary inferences", which are then confidently asserted as authoritative doctrine.

It's one thing to distort Jesus' teaching to the point that we only recognize a caricature of the true Messiah. It's another thing to augment Jesus' words with inference and speculative presumption to the point that Jesus is no longer the object of our loyalty. What happens then is that the craft-of-men or human-institutions become the objects of our loyalty. And this is a most dishonorable exchange.

In Matthew 22:23-32 we see how the Sadducees found themselves in a cul-de-sac of error.

On that day some Sadducees (who say there is no resurrection) came to Jesus and questioned Him, asking, "Teacher, Moses said, 'IF A MAN DIES HAVING NO CHILDREN, HIS BROTHER AS NEXT OF KIN SHALL MARRY HIS WIFE, AND RAISE UP CHILDREN FOR HIS BROTHER.' "Now there were seven brothers with us; and the first married and died, and having no children left his wife to his brother; so also the second, and the third, down to the seventh. "Last of all, the woman died. "In the resurrection, therefore, whose wife of the seven will she be? For they all had married her." But Jesus answered and said to them, "You are mistaken, not understanding the Scriptures nor the power of God. "For in the resurrection they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven. "But regarding the resurrection of the dead, have you not read what was spoken to you by God: 'I AM THE GOD OF ABRAHAM, AND THE GOD OF ISAAC, AND THE GOD OF JACOB'? He is not the God of the dead but of the living."

When the Sadducees plugged a scripture into their logic machine...specifically, "IF A MAN DIES HAVING NO CHILDREN, HIS BROTHER AS NEXT OF KIN SHALL MARRY HIS WIFE, AND RAISE UP CHILDREN FOR HIS BROTHER." It spit out the logical inference: "there can not be a resurrection". But Jesus said they didn't "see" or "know" or "understand" the scriptures or the power of God. Yes, their logical inference led them down the wrong path on the question of resurrection but what about the other guys? Were the Pharisees who "say" there is a resurrection going to be any better off? No, they really were not any better off. While it is true that the Sadducees mistakenly argue for the "no-resurrection" position, thinking it was a logical and scriptural necessity; their main problem was they missed where God was leading Israel-specifically, to Jesus. What people on opposing sides of many debates actually need is to submit to Jesus. All authority has been given to Him.

Jesus was the one with an authoritative word to take the debaters where they really needed to be. If the Sadducees would just be loyal to Jesus they would be in the right place and the importance of their debate with the Pharisees would fade. Interestingly, the Pharisees needed to do exactly the same thing. being on the right side of the resurrection debate would not make anyone legitimate before God. The most foolish of men can be right with God through loyalty to Jesus. The wisest of Men prove themselves foolish in God's sight when they refuse loyal acknowledgment of Jesus. Loyalty to Jesus is fool-proof.

The Parameters of Roman Virtue are not the responsibility of a martyr/witness

Is it possible that our fidelity to Christ might be better focused on being the witnesses/martyrs to Jesus we are supposed to be if we would not think of ourselves (disciples) as the defenders and enforcers of "Roman virtue"? ...especially as that virtue is shaped through the coercion of political force.

The Parameters of "Roman Virtue" are not the responsibility of a martyr/witness. Why should people in America who are lumped under the heading white-evangelical shoulder the yoke of making common-sense common. It brings confusion to my brothers and sisters as to what their actual mission is. And it probably encourages Americans (not disciples)to be against the maintenance of something which is actually their responsibility.

"Lord, is it at this time You are restoring the kingdom to Israel?" He said to them, "It is not for you to know times or epochs which the Father has fixed by His own authority; but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth."
(Act 1:6-8)


Yours in Christ,
Jeff