The Deadly Lures of Legalism

Not all traditions are bad. They become bad when we put them on the same level as Scripture or in the place of Scripture. It is a “Bible-plus” kind of religion. In adding to the Bible, you for all practical purposes make void the Bible and nullify its truth and power in your life (v. 13). Jesus makes this crystal clear as He moves into round two with the Pharisees. Again, it is no contest. The “beat down” is ugly! And the exposure of sinful hearts is painful.

A. T. Robertson noted “the strong contrast here between the command of God and the traditions of men” (Word Pictures, 322). They think they are establishing the command of God, protecting it. In actuality they are rejecting God’s commands, and in the process they establish their traditions as if they were God’s commands. They set aside what is the revealed Word of God and replace it with “made up” traditions of men. How ludicrous! How insane! How human.

Man-made rules and regulations become the object of obedience while God’s commands get set aside. “The constitution and bylaws have the final word in this church.” I have seen it. I have heard it with my own ears. Warren Wiersbe says, “We must constantly beware lest tradition take the place of truth. It does us good to examine our church traditions in the light of God’s Word and to be courageous enough to make changes” (Be Diligent, 71).

We foolishly push away the only trustworthy and infallible source of authority. It is an act of pure spiritual suicide. Have you seen the sad progression? First, they teach the commands of men (v. 7). Then they leave the commands of God (v. 8). Next they reject the commands of God (v. 9). And finally they make void the Word of God (v. 13). And if we are not careful, we will fail to see our own hypocrisy in this progression. Oh, we know it is possible to be a hypocrite. We see it so clearly in others. It is when it is in us that we go spiritually deaf, dumb, and blind.

Jesus now gives His own example that settles the issue. The verdict will not please the religious elite. He goes to the Scriptures, the writings of Moses, pointing out what they clearly teach. Exodus 20:12 and Deuteronomy 5:16 both contain the fifth commandment: “Honor your father and mother.” Exodus 21:17 and Leviticus 20:9 show the punishment for breaking this command: “Whoever curses his father or his mother must be put to death.” The principle is clear: God calls children to honor and respect their parents. However, the Pharisees created a theological loophole. They simply declared what they would have given to their parents “Corban,” a Hebrew term referring to “a gift dedicated to God.” This allowed them to dishonor their parents by neglecting their needs, but they still feel good about it because it was done in service to God. “I serve God by disobeying His expressed command to honor my parents.” What kind of logic is that?!

Jesus tells them that kind of reasoning makes void the Word of God, sets up man-made traditions over God’s commands, and opens the door for many more such actions (Mark 7:13). That kind of reasoning reveals the hardness of our hearts, the hypocrisy of our worship, and the disobedience of our actions, all in the name of religion! These are not atheists and secularists. These are the religious and spiritual leaders of Israel.

They had positioned their traditions in the place of Scripture and themselves in the place of God. The heart truly is an idol factory, and religious traditions are some of its best tools. This truth should concern us all. I may be as guilty as the Pharisees of Jesus’ day and not even see it.

Mark 7:14-23

Every human heart has the root of every human sin in it. It is entirely possible to look nice on the outside while being dead on the inside. The most deadly contamination is not what I touch. The most deadly contamination is what is in my heart.

Jesus charges all who are listening in on the theological debate to pay attention and understand. He then delivers a little parable. When His disciples155 ask the meaning of this parable, Jesus once again (cf. 6:52; 8:17-18) chides them for their lack of understanding. This is one of the most critically important spiritual lessons in the whole Word of God. Jesus explains that corruption is not external but internal. Impurity is not a matter of the stomach but of the heart. Defilement is not what goes in but what comes out.

Jesus’ words are spiritually revolutionary! He is saying that the real issues of religious and spiritual faith are internal not external. Sin always proceeds from within. Food ends up in the stomach, but sin begins in the heart. Food is eaten, digested in the stomach, and expelled. Sin, however, remains in the heart and then produces all manner of defilement and death. The basic problem of fallen humanity is not what we do but who we are! Real filth, impurity, and defilement are inside and unseen, but eventually they will show themselves, as verses 21-23 make clear.

By the way, note Mark’s editorial comment in verse 19: “As a result, He made all foods clean.” I believe the study note in the ESV Study Bible (emphasis in original) captures the meaning succinctly:

The point is quite simple: it was always about the heart.

Mark Dever calls verses 21-23 “the fingers of sin” (“Jesus and Filth”). They are evidence of a corrupt heart. Inevitably, sin’s root will produce sin’s fruit. And it is an ugly, destructive crop to behold. Jesus provides a selective list of sin’s fruit. He highlights no less than 13 characteristics of the evil actions that flow naturally from a sinful heart—actions that always result in sorrow, harmful behavior, and death. The list has a strong Old Testament grounding.

157These evil actions arise from one’s heart, which is the source of sin that condemns.

There are basically only two approaches to religion, each of which can be summed up in a single word: do or done. The world says the problem is out there, and the solution is to answer the question, What can I do? The Bible says the problem is inside of us, and the answer is what Christ has done! You see, in legalism we think better of ourselves than Jesus does. But in salvation we think the same of ourselves as Jesus does: we are hopeless, helpless sinners in desperate need of a Savior.

First Samuel 16:7 says, “Man does not see what the Lord sees, for man sees what is visible, but the Lord sees the heart.” When the Lord examines your heart, what does He see? Does He see a self-righteous legalist trusting in what “I do” or a humble sinner trusting only in what Jesus has done? The difference is of eternal significance.