Do We Model What We See from Others? Or Do We Seek God’s Instruction?

How well do you know the Bible… aka the Word of God? Would you be able to tell whether the words of Mark 7:8 describe you? “For laying aside the commandment of God, you hold the tradition of men….” (Mark 7:8)

In other words, how much of your walk with God (or strivings to live in such a way that honors & pleases God) revolves around God’s own instructions versus what you grew up seeing demonstrated at church or from others?

I Follow What I Grew Up With, Often without Considering God May Ask Something Different of Me

To be honest, most of my life could probably reflect more of following “the traditions of men” versus even having a clue as to what God wanted from me or even bothering to ask Him or seek it out… & I even much preferred that, thinking God’s tall order would be too overwhelming & beyond my willingness &/or ability to maintain.

But what a sad life that creates… empty & void of any true blessings that come from God’s way of doing things.

Test What You Know Against God’s Instruction

One of the vital reasons we need to be in God’s Word daily is that it can be too easy to live based on our personal preconceptions, thinking, “well, this is just the way my church [family, friends, etc.] has always done things.”

This pattern gets us easily looped into an often-unintentional self-righteous attitude of doing “churchy” activities/traditions rather than surrendering to God’s will for each situation & time… trading our worship for tradition… trading God’s lead for tradition.

Avoid the “Good Christian” Check-List Way of Life

On the flip side of this coin, we can get so used to our churchy activities & traditions, that we slip into auto-pilot, neglecting to consider it as our worship to God & instead checking it off our imaginary “good Christian” check-list.

This was reflected in Revelation 2:2-5, where God commends the people on all of their hard work, but says that the one thing He has against them is that they have lost their first love—a cautionary alert to anyone going through the motions of “good Christian work,” while simultaneously forgetting their WHY behind it—worship & grateful service to our Almighty Father.

I Don’t Do It on Purpose!

Now, how can I change that? It is usually not even intentional when I live this way.

God will lead me to something, I then will surrender to His lead & ask for His help in it… I do it… & then pretty soon, my doing becomes just routine/tradition & I forget to pause & ask God for any necessary changes to my course or my work… just checking off my obedience in my routines/traditions, versus consistently following God’s lead, through prayer & doing it out of worship & service to Him.

What Is Your Why?

Are you doing things because it’s the way you’ve always done things or because God is asking it of you? Because it’s the way your family has always done it? Because it’s the way your CHURCH has always done it?

And do you do things to please & honor Him? Or simply to keep up “what good Christians do”?

Do you need to come clean to God & repent? To start fresh again? Renewal & a clean slate?

Do you take time to get to know God’s Word & do as HE leads, both in the Bible AND as He moves your heart in prayer?

Following the Traditions of Men… Or Not So Much… Versus Asking God’s Way Forward for Me

For example, I struggled reading the Bible all the way through my whole life (I became a Christian at 5 & I didn’t read the Bible through completely until about 30 years later) because it seemed boring, unrelatable, not understandable, tedious, etc. & because I had always been told I have to read through it in a year… but as a non-avid reader, this was overwhelmingly daunting, I always fell behind, & then I would just quit.

BUT, when Andrew Murray’s book on PRAYER (highly recommend, by the way!) mentioned our need of God’s help in our obedience, I would pray for God to help me in my obedience, even in my willingness to obey & perspective change… & God encouraged me that nowhere in His Word does He say how many chapters or for how long I ought to be reading each day… just that His Word renews my heart & mind & that I ought to be dwelling on its Truth day & night, sitting & standing & going about my day. (2 Timothy 3:16; Romans 12:2; Colossians 3:16; Joshua 1:8; Deuteronomy 6:6-7)

This revelation allowed me the freedom to just READ without the pressure of “not enough” or “not deep enough,” just walk in obedience by reading it.

How freeing!

And somehow the more I read the Bible, the more I seem to WANT to read & learn… reading His Word invoked that reaction without me trying to force it to happen from the get-go. I simply obeyed in the doing, asking for God’s help along the way in the doing & in the willing to do.

Don’t Rely Solely on Human Teaching… Learn from God Himself

No person is perfect, even pastors, & while God appoints pastors to guide us as our earthly shepherds, we cannot replace our personal need for God & His Word with a pastor.

Traditions start as a benefit, to streamline the how-to, but can often eventually become merely the, “this is how we _____________” … replacing the life-giving, essential step of intentionally & frequently asking God how HE wants us to ________________ this time.

Traditions of Men or Commandment of God?

Don’t rely solely on traditions. Get to know God’s Word & His instruction.

Get to know what honors & pleases God from God Himself, through His Word & through prayer for help & discernment versus depending solely on “the way we’ve always done things.”

Keep your faith fresh this way, seeing God’s lead & work actively in your life & through your life & instead of blindly following the traditions of men, seek the commandment of God. (Mark 7:8)

Shine hope by leaning on the good, pleasing, & perfect will of God.

“Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.” (Romans 12:2)

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart
    & lean not on your own understanding;
in all your ways submit to Him,
    & He will make your paths straight.” (Proverbs 3:5-6)

Coming Next Week

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