Breakthrough Spirituality
Brad Bailey – February 25, 2007
(Much of the ‘commentary’ notes used in prep for this message are from or adapted from Don
Williams, KingdomRain website study on Gospel of Mark Such commentary was never read but
merely serves as ideas that were drawn on and paraphrased in part.)
Have you ever found yourself entering into a spiritual activity such as worship or prayer…
when your heart really wasn’t all there? Have you ever felt like there was a disconnect between
what you proclaimed to believe and value…and what the state of your heart really held?
Have you ever felt like a spiritual hypocrite?
> Good news… Jesus understands… and he came not to condemn us… but to call us out… from
outward religion to real life and relationship with God.
As we prepare to enter this Lenten season…our series brings us to some particularly timely
words from Jesus…. Words which call us out…
Mark 7:1-23
The Pharisees and some of the teachers of the law who had come from Jerusalem gathered
around Jesus and 2saw some of his disciples eating food with hands that were "unclean," that is,
unwashed. 3(The Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat unless they give their hands a ceremonial
washing, holding to the tradition of the elders. 4When they come from the marketplace they do not
eat unless they wash. And they observe many other traditions, such as the washing of cups,
pitchers and kettles.)
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So the Pharisees and teachers of the law asked Jesus, "Why don’t your disciples live according
to the tradition of the elders instead of eating their food with ’unclean’ hands?"
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He replied, "Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you hypocrites; as it is written:
" ’These people honor me with their lips,
but their hearts are far from me.
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They worship me in vain;
their teachings are but rules taught by men.’
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You have let go of the commands of God and are holding on to the traditions of men."
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And he said to them: "You have a fine way of setting aside the commands of God in order to
observe your own traditions! 10For Moses said, ’Honor your father and your mother,’ and, ’Anyone
who curses his father or mother must be put to death.’ 11But you say that if a man says to his father
or mother: ’Whatever help you might otherwise have received from me is Corban’ (that is, a gift
devoted to God), 12then you no longer let him do anything for his father or mother. 13Thus you
nullify the word of God by your tradition that you have handed down. And you do many things
like that."
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Again Jesus called the crowd to him and said, "Listen to me, everyone, and understand this.
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Nothing outside a man can make him ’unclean’ by going into him. Rather, it is what comes out of
a man that makes him ’unclean.’ " 16
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After he had left the crowd and entered the house, his disciples asked him about this parable.
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"Are you so dull?" he asked. "Don’t you see that nothing that enters a man from the outside can
make him ’unclean’? 19For it doesn’t go into his heart but into his stomach, and then out of his
body." (In saying this, Jesus declared all foods "clean.")
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He went on: "What comes out of a man is what makes him ’unclean.’ 21For from within, out of
men’s hearts, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, 22greed, malice,
deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly. 23All these evils come from inside and make a
man ’unclean.’ "
Backdrop…. ‘Kingdom of God’…. he embodies and enacts as a fulfillment. But the expectations
had become more nationalistic… after all… when you are a nation whose very existence and
identity lie in the calling out by the Creator of the universe… and now you are under occupation
by a pagon nation… the most powerful on earth… Roman Empire…you naturally reduce this a
need for God to send a super king again… to restore the days of David…. The good to rise up and
conquer the evil ones. This reflects a tendency that God has been confronting forever… the
tendency to make others all bad and we all good… or vice versa.
What comes with Jesus is a cosmic showdown…. which is personified with the religious leaders.
(Below from Don Williams)
Clearly the news about Jesus continues to reach Jerusalem.
Now a delegation from Jerusalem reenters the picture. It gathers around Jesus. He is under
observation. Again, we have already seen this when Jesus forgives the paralytic and then
heals him (Mark 2:6), when Jesus eats with tax-collectors and sinners (Mark 2:16), when Jesus
allows his disciples to work (2:24) and when Jesus heals a man with a shriveled hand on the
Sabbath (Mark 3:2). Mark concludes: “Then the Pharisees went out and began to plot with the
Herodians how they might kill Jesus.” (Mark 3:6) The dye is cast.
In light of the above, we are not surprised that the religious leaders from Jerusalem gather around
Jesus. (verse 1) Their issue now is the failure of his disciples to ceremonially wash before
eating. This means that they and their food are unclean. It is not kosher. (verse 2)
In verses 3-4 Mark gives a commentary on the dispute for Gentile readers. The Pharisees
and all Jews wash ceremonially before eating. In this they follow “the tradition of the elders.”
Moreover, they follow many other traditions including washing vessels for drinking and cooking.
Pious Jews were passionate to keep the Law of Moses. At it’s heart this was life-giving. (10
Commandments … they outline the basic parameters that protect human life… they come in the
midst of a deteriorating pagan world … and offer redemption from depravity to dignity.
But how are we to know how to apply the law as circumstances and culture change? The
answer is to build tradition around the law that interprets it for our times. Schools arose as a
result and Rabbis differed in their opinions. Thus the “tradition of the elders” was produced
and became authoritative. This became more and more detailed and, therefore, more and more
burdensome.
Clearly such debates and traditions produced a rich field of study which is now enshrined in the
Mishnah and Talmud (the Babylonian Talmud itself is bound in about 30 volumes). Here
are the laws and stories of the elders.
In this context, we see how radical Jesus and his message of the kingdom is. He has not
come to take sides in tradition disputes. Neither has he come to contribute further to its wild
growth. But this offends the religious system that has a vested interest in maintaining and
developing the tradition. Jobs are at stake. These Jerusalem elders (Pharisees and teachers of
the law [Scribes]) now ask Jesus why his disciples don’t follow their tradition. They eat with
“unclean hands.” (verse 5)
Jesus confronts his accusers and breaks through their objections by quoting the very
Word of God from Isaiah the prophet. Here is absolute truth, rather than the relative
discussions of scholastics on to how to keep the Sabbath.
> It is a matter of the heart.
Jesus harkens back to the Isaiah prophesies about this moment and these men.
“Hypocrites” are actors. They put on a face to hide their hearts.
In the Sermon on the Mount, they pretend to care for the needy, but they really give alms for
human recognition and approval: “So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with
trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by men. I tell
you the truth, they have received their reward.” (Matthew 6:2) In other words, their reward is
exactly what they are looking for – the praise and approval of others. They are archetypal “people
pleasers.” They don’t care about the poor and they don’t value doing God’s will – they want
applause and they get it. There will be nothing more for them coming from God.
So in this text, Isaiah speaks of this moment when he prophesies: “These people honor
me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.” (verse 6, Isaiah 29:13) There is no
congruity with them. They say one thing but mean another. They mouth the praises of
God, but their hearts are hard and distant. Isaiah’s rebuke needs to arrest us as well as
Jesus’ hearers. The prophet goes on: “They worship me in vain…” (verse 7)
True worship must be from the heart. True worship must be the expression of the whole
person. True worship engages us, body, soul and spirit. False worship is simply going
through the motions, limping through the liturgy, mouthing the songs while our emotions
and minds are elsewhere. (DW)
Example of the use of the word ‘Corbin’ (vv. 8-13)
To know the Law of God is to know the will of God. Keeping the laws (such as prohibiting idols
and honoring the Sabbath) sets God’s people apart from the pagan nations. But now the Law is
clouded by tradition. The teaching of the elders not only interprets it, it perverts it. The command
to honor father and mother is turned upside down by tradition.
To be free from caring for parents, all their children need do is pronounce “Corban” over
their resources. (verse 11) This word is a transliteration of the Hebrew word meaning
“offering.” In the Old Testament it is always used of offerings made to God. Once Corban
is pronounced, the asset belongs to God (and the temple). Jesus uses the example of a
man saying, “Whatever help you might have received from me is Corban.” (verse 11) This
makes all the assets that could have helped his parents sacred. But it was not necessary
for the gift to be made immediately to the temple. Children could use it for themselves as
long as it was withheld from the person (parents) specified in the vow.
Jesus concludes that once the vow is made, “Then you no longer let him do anything for
his father and mother,” because all has now been dedicated to God. In effect, there is
nothing left. But, as we have seen, children can continue to use the asset. What a
mockery! How many parents suffered in old age because of this charade? As in the case of
hand washing (external cleansing from dirty hearts), so now in cheating parents, Jesus
concludes, “Thus you nullify the word of God by your tradition that you have handed down.”
(verse 13) Moreover, he says he could add further examples: “And you do many things like that.”
1. The Kingdom (reign of God) Jesus brings evaluates our religious ‘traditions’
(patterns and practices) and exposes our hearts.
Our ‘traditions’ (patterns and practices) can become a new covering (fig leaf)
for trying to hide our shame and subsequent distance from God.
When the kingdom of God is “at hand,” “within reach,” all tradition is challenged. Much is
under judgment – especially when it feeds our egos and covers up the intention of our
hearts. The kingdom brings exposure. We see who God is in his power and glory and we see
who we are – broken and naked before him. The tradition, meant to help us do his will and keep
his law, has become a cover-up for our spiritual emptiness. So the King exposes us. He also
liberates us from hypocritical actions that protect the greed and lust in our hearts. If we
don’t want this, we need to stay distant from the King.
God’s concern is not with unclean foods and unclean (unwashed) hands. His concern is with our
hearts turned away from him, covering up sin and selfishness with hypocrisy.
The “tradition of the elders,” whether Jewish or Christian, easily becomes our religious
hiding place from the radical Word and will of God. Performance Christianity plagues the
church. As we become more and more distant from God, we multiply the rules and
procedures. We wash our hands, our cups, our pitchers and kettles. We engage in the
signs of cleanness and purity while our hearts harbor sin and rebellion.
What is our equivalent of hand washing? How do we show our external purity or
sanctification?
What are things you are doing or not doing that perhaps have become externalized
patterns or practices …where we hold onto an outward choice defined by what we’re
against… but our hearts aren’t fully given to what we’re for?
• Worship that is accepted because we come and offer our songs in a wonderful
worshipful atmosphere… but don’t really face the ever penetrating call of making God
the central influence of all we do?
• Giving that is outwardly consistent… but inwardly we aren’t really establishing the
reality that all we have belongs to God?
• Sexually purity in outward ways … but not in mind?
• Kindness that is outwardly expressed… but lacks deep love and respect for others?
2. The Kingdom (reign of God) Jesus brings the power to establish true
righteousness (right living) from the inside out.
What the Law itself had done to establish a reflection of God’s standards and
expose our sin… would lead to a new work of the Spirit.
Jesus brought the fulfillment of a new wa…covenant.
Jeremiah 31:33 (NLT)
"But this is the new covenant I will make with the people of Israel on that day," says the LORD.
"I will put my laws in their minds, and I will write them on their hearts. I will be their God, and
they will be my people.
Ezekiel 11:19 (NLT)
And I will give them singleness of heart and put a new spirit within them. I will take away their
hearts of stone and give them tender hearts instead,
Ezekiel 18:31 (NLT)
Put all your rebellion behind you, and get for yourselves a new heart and a new spirit.
For us, it is not a question of keeping the law; it is a question of how to keep the law.
Romans 8:3-4 (Amp)
For God has done what the Law could not do, [its power] being weakened by the flesh
[the entire nature of man without the Holy Spirit]. Sending His own Son in the guise of
sinful flesh and as an offering for sin, [God] condemned sin in the flesh [subdued,
overcame, deprived it of its power over all who accept that sacrifice],
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So that the righteous and just requirement of the Law might be fully met in us who
live and move not in the ways of the flesh but in the ways of the Spirit [our lives governed
not by the standards and according to the dictates of the flesh, but controlled by the Holy
Spirit].
Inside – out !
The religious priority makes the regulations an end in themselves. But disciplines… such as our
Lenten season ahead… must be understood as means to an end. It is service to God and human
kind.
For example:
“A downtown business man liked to have his shoes shined every day. he always had the
same little boy do it. The shoe shine boy always did a good job. One day the man asked
him, ’How come you are so conscientious about your work?’
The boy was quite pleased with the compliment. In answer to the question, he looked up
and said, ’Mister, I’m a Christian and I try to shine every pair of shoes as if Jesus Christ
were wearing them.’"
This was a person who understood the heart of the matter. Could rules have been designed to
make him a good shoe shiner? Sure… polish in a particular direction… use a particular product…
talk respectfully to your customer. But none could create and contain the heart of what he said and
held inside.
Holiness is a matter of the heart
• If we love God with all our heart… and others…. All the rules and regulations will get
worked out best.
• If our hearts are right, then our behavior will reflect them.
And this reflects the nature of disciplines… they don’t make us right… if we can pursue
them not simply out of a goal to do right thing… but as a means to cultivating the right
heart… and BEING the right person… wonderful.
3. The Kingdom (reign of God) Jesus brings calls for an inventory of our
‘hearts.’
This Lenten season is an opportunity to take an inventory of our hearts.
An inventory involves going into the storehouse to see what’s been stored up. So this season we
can begin by going into the storehouse of our hearts… to see what is there. The front shop may
look a certain way… maybe even impressive… but this is an opportunity for an inner honesty that
will allow God to work on cleaning out what’s within.
All foods are “clean” because the issue is the heart not the stomach. This shifts the battle
from externals to internals.
Having established his thesis, Jesus then offers a brief exposition: from unclean hearts
come unclean things.
What Jesus offers as examples makes for a pretty good list to reflect upon…
• Evil thoughts (All that we give our minds to that we know to be destructive)
• Sexual immorality (Any thoughts or behavior that violates the personal and commitment
dimension of our sexuality)
• Theft (Taking anything that is not rightfully ours)
• Murder (Causing harm and ultimately potential loss of life to another)
• Adultery (Lust… the desire to engage another who we are not in lifelong oneness with)
• Greed (The desire have more at the expense of others)
• Malice (Contempt… the desire for the harm of another)
• Deceit (Any means by which we misguide the truth of matters with others)
• Lewdness (Drawn to what is offensive and crude without shame)
• Envy (A jealous desire of resentment towards what others have)
• Slander (Speaking disrespectfully of others)
• Arrogance (Thinking more highly of ourselves than others)
• Folly (An impulsiveness that ignores the implications of our actions)
I want to leave us with a promise that was given to Daniel… but I believe is extended to all of
us…
Daniel 10:12 (NIV)
Then he (a messenger from God) continued, "Do not be afraid, Daniel. Since the first day that
you set your mind to gain understanding and to humble yourself before your God, your
words were heard, and I have come in response to them.
SET your mind…. Intentional directing of the mind
> God doesn’t say…. Maybe one day… I’ll do something…. He says “Since the first day’….
More than willing… God WANTS to meet with us.
