Day 15 | March 18 | Mark 7:1-23

Did you wash your hands before you ate?

As we journeyed through the requirements of COVID in the past couple of years, we often were cautioned to be certain that we thoroughly washed our hands; even being given special instructions as to the correct way to do that.

Today’s Scripture passage follows the account of the many powerful works, and growing popularity of Jesus, in the Jewish region. Mark tells us that this stirred up his adversaries, the Pharisees and scribes, who came down from Jerusalem to try to find something with which to confront him. As they gathered around Jesus they noticed that some of his disciples were eating but had not washed their hands. Just as we were given specific instructions for washing our hands during COVID, the Jewish elders had made handwashing into a ceremony involving many steps.

Jesus then addressed their question about “washing of hands” by explaining that true defilement has to do with what comes from the heart – not from outside the body. Jesus then states that Isaiah was correct when he referred to them as “hypocrites.”
In verses 6- 7, he quotes from Isaiah 29:13:
“These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men.”

Have we been guilty of the same thing? Have we developed “traditions of men” and substituted them for the Law of God? To stress man-made rules and laws negates the Spirit of Christ. The people of God are not set apart by their traditions, but by a purity that emanates from the heart – manifesting love for others.

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.” Galatians 5:22-23.