Mark 7:8-9 Holding On To Human Traditions

 

Mark 7:8-9

"You have let go of the commands of God and are holding on to human traditions.” And he continued, “You have a fine way of setting aside the commands of God in order to observe your own traditions!"

What human traditions was Jesus criticizing?

Does His criticism apply to celebrating Christmas?

Resources:

Let's talk Christmas with Chaplain Kevin Betton

https://www.youtube.com/live/r7ET5L0V6oI?si=rj73BaZRWF-z4AHf

Christmas isn't pagan and here's why

https://youtu.be/5zcaQlBbk6s?si=1v5A1btFOEjB8UnG

T'is the Season for Faith and Family

My Dear Friend,

     A common question I am asked is how to speak with family members about the Lord Jesus and the New Covenant.  There is a normal increase in these questions during this time of year, Thanksgiving and Christmas.  It is a time when a lot of people visit with family, in-laws and outlaws.  I get more questions from parents wanting help with their children than children wanting help with their parents, but they tend to be similar.  A resurrected believer in the Lord Jesus will grow to have concern for the salvation of those who do not know Him, but there is normally a special desire for those who are closest to us.

     For those of you who do not have many relatives who agree with you when it comes to the most significant matters of your faith, you probably have noticed that those who do not agree with you don't enjoy being around you as much as you would like.  It turns out that when you have something people do not want, they will not likely want to be around you very much.  You will find yourself being partially excluded from conversations and get the sense that some of them just don't like you at all.  What I would like you to consider is that when you talk with family members about your faith, this obvious exclusion is going to probably be very important to them.  They are going to look at the people around them and you, and the larger group of people will have an influence on them.  The thought will come to mind that if they agree with you, they will be rejected by the, "family" just like you are.  That is a consequence of taking a position on who is Jesus and what did He accomplish.

     Most of what I teach is from my own personal experiences in life, failures and successes.  If you find yourself feeling alone often, I want you to know that the Lord has numerous people who feel the same way.  I have a small group of friends who I spend time with outside of my work in the ministry who are like minded in faith, but I have no family other than that, with whom I am able to rest with like I can with them.  For thirty years now I have been sharing the Gospel with people and it has always been that way since I came to know the Lord Jesus.  Some may be discouraged by this, desiring more, but I have come to know that the Lord does more work growing His kingdom when it is more difficult for us to assemble together as often as we would like and in larger numbers.  He continues to use us to reach into people's lives who do not know Him, by sometimes making it difficult for us to just meet with each other instead.  While we may want, "more," do not forget that through not having, "more," the Lord uses us so He can have, "more" through our being in the lives of others who do not yet know Him.  Do not forget that He will go with you wherever you go and will see through your eyes, hear through your ears, touch with your hands and speak with your mouth.

     Do remember that there is a cost for believing what you believe.  Most others will not be willing to pay that cost because there will be things more valuable to them than the truth.  They certainly will never tell you, confess or admit it, because doing so would clearly expose a poor decision.  However, exposure to the truth gives the Holy Spirit additional opportunities to convict a person in their hearts and they will reconsider when no one is looking.  This is one of the advantages of radio broadcasting.  People normally listen to the radio programs in their cars and homes when no one is around.  I talk with a lot of people who are wrestling with what I am teaching them.  Some of them return after a year or two and others believe privately and try not to let others know about what they are learning from me.  After a while I hear back from them because they just can't hold it in anymore and they start telling others about what they know to be true.  Being a part of the work of the Lord is not just a project to be completed, but a life to be lived.  You and I working together like this through Living God Ministries is a way for us to do more than what we could do individually.  You and I are participants in the creation of life through telling others about the love, grace, justice, mercy and wisdom of God.

     The apostle Paul often went to the Synagogues to speak with the Jews, and this was a time of meeting with his, "relatives."  There was and always will be a unique bond with Jews that we are a tribe, a family of families, and the relational dynamics in a synagogue are similar to those found in small churches or a large get together of family members during holidays.  Some encouragement I often get is through being reminded of what happened with Paul when he was in Corinth (Acts 18:1 - 17).  In frustration, Paul shook his clothes and stormed out of the synagogue, "Your blood be upon your own head; I am clean.  From now on I will go to the Gentiles."  He left and went next door to visit with his friend Justus, but his absence created a noticeable vacuum in the lives of the people at the synagogue.  Right after he left, the head rabbi, Crispus, converted and believed the Gospel.  Crispus left his position in the synagogue, he paid the price for believing the truth and Paul had a victory after what felt like a failure.  The Lord told Paul in verse 9 and 10, "Do not be afraid, but speak, and do not keep silent; for I am with you, and no one will attack you to hurt you; for I have many people in this city."  I'm sure Paul wanted to know who they were, but that is not normally the way the Lord works.  Through the conversion of Crispus, Paul was inspired to continue to reach out to the Jews and even take a vow that would enable him access to the temple in Jerusalem to preach the Gospel there once again.

I pray this encourages you as it does me,
With Thanks,
Aaron Budjen
www.livinggodministries.net

Celebrating Christmas

"Seventy weeks are decreed upon thy people and upon thy holy city, to finish transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most holy." Daniel 9:24

There are those that do not celebrate Christmas for a variety of reasons. Some do not do it because there is no proof Jesus was born on December 25th. Others do not celebrate it because it is "rooted in Pagan customs." There are those that still celebrate Christmas on December 25th, but do not put up Christmas trees because of those previously mentioned "pagan customs." I have even heard of at least one, so-called Christian, who stuffed pillows in the fireplace to "prevent" Santa Claus from coming down the chimney so their children would not believe in him. To all of this I say, "To each their own." It is not mandatory for a Christian to celebrate Christmas. However, a person is also free to celebrate Christmas as well and shouldn't be condemned by those that do not. We are not under law. Furthermore, While there is no proof that Jesus was born on December 25th, those that do celebrate Christmas are celebrating the fact of His birth, not necessarily the day of His birth. It is true that Christmas is connected to pagan festivals. However, the early church began celebrating Christmas as "a spiritually positive alternative to what they perceive as a pagan celebration," according to one source. It is no different than what we see with other holidays like Halloween where churches have "Harvest Festivals" and other similar events. Also, I have never known anybody to worship trees or anything else considered pagan. Even Santa Claus, also known as Saint Nicklaus, has a Christian "connection" if you are inclined to look it up. Most children, including myself, who grew up in homes that celebrated Christmas, were not negatively affected by believing in Santa Claus, decorating Christmas trees or doing it all on December 25th. I am of the belief you can do more harm than good by trying to take all these precautions to protect your children and others from the so-called "paganism" associated with Christmas. If you really look at it, what traditions do we engage in, outside of Christmas, that don't have their origins in some sort of pagan activity? As one person put it, "Realistically, how could public ceremony exist at all apart from non Biblical origins, since the Bible doesn’t define or prescribe any public ceremonies to speak of ...?" The one thing missing in a lot of this discussion about Christmas, regardless of what side you fall on, is Jesus Christ!

In the book of Daniel, he was praying to God when Gabriel appeared to him and delivered what is known as the "Seventy-Weeks Prophecy." This was a Messianic prophecy detailing the time when Jesus would make His triumphal entry into Jerusalem. In Daniel 9:24,  we see some key components of this prophecy; to finish transgression, to make an end of sins, to make reconciliation for iniquity and to bring righteousness. In short, the prophesied Messiah, Jesus, would forgive sins and give us the opportunity to be in a right standing with God. Prior to the birth of Jesus, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph, who was considering divorcing Mary, and said, "She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins (Matthew 1:21).” This prophecy about the Lord was about who the baby was that Mary was carrying and what that baby would do after His birth. Would it have been okay to celebrate Christmas if the angel had said, "She will give birth to a son, on December 25th, ....."? The day of Jesus' birth is inconsequential. His purpose was to not only save His people from their sins, but, as it turned out, to save the entire world from our sins! Consequently, because Jesus Christ took the penalty for our sins, by His death on the cross, God can give us the righteousness of Christ when we accept Him as our Savior. Jesus Christ, because He was the perfect sacrifice for sins, can now indwell each believer for eternity because our sins are no longer an issue between us and God. We are given Christ's righteousness, which makes us righteous. We are perfect in God's sight because Jesus Christ is perfect. We are reconciled to God because He is no longer counting our sins against us. This is why His birth was prophesied. This is why His birth was so important. This is why we celebrate His birth. The Bible says, "Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God (1 Corinthians 10:31)." Why somebody does or does not celebrate Christmas is between them and the Lord. However, when we get caught up focusing on everything surrounding Christmas, it only serves as a distraction; dividing the Body of Christ and taking the focus off of Jesus Christ. It does not glorify God, but gives the impression we are glorifying ourselves. Whatever you are doing on December 25th, my prayer is that you're doing it for the glory of God. In my opinion, the birth of Jesus Christ is something to be celebrated. God thought it was such an important event that He prophesied about it in His Word. The least we can do is thank Him for doing so by celebrating the day God became one of us, so He could save us. Merry Christmas!

The Reason for the Season

If you are a Christian it is easy to sit back and be upset with the current state of Christmas. We lament how "commercialized" it has become with the focus on how many gifts we can purchase for those close to us so they can feel loved and accepted. We can throw fits about how simply saying, "Merry Christmas" has been all, but outlawed because of political correctness and the fear of "offending" somebody. Personally, I have even gone so far as to say that being with family at this time of year isn't necessarily the true meaning of Christmas.  After all, Jesus is the "reason for the season" we say. While all this is true depending on the perspective you take, there is a sense in which Christmas is all about you; the individual. A friend of mine recently posted a meme that simply read, "Actually, you were 'the reason for the season.' Love God." I thought about it for a moment and thought to myself, "That is true!" In fact, Jesus Christ said it the best when He said, "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life (John 3:16)." The most famous passage in the Bible is, in many ways, all about you. Who is the world? It is you and everybody else. Do an experiment; take out "the world" in the verse and replace it with "you" or your name and see what you get.  "For God so loved YOU that He gave His only begotten Son. that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life." The words of Jesus become a lot more personal and clearer when you read it this way, right? Jesus Christ is the definitely the "reason for the season," but it is His love for you that made it that way.