“Then the Pharisees and scribes asked Him, “Why do Your disciples not walk according to the tradition of the elders, but eat bread with unwashed hands?” He answered and said to them, “Well did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written: ‘This people honors Me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me. And in vain they worship Me, Teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’ For laying aside the commandment of God, you hold the tradition of men the washing of pitchers and cups, and many other such things you do.” He said to them, “All too well you reject the commandment of God, that you may keep your tradition.”
Memory Verse: ‘And in vain they worship Me, Teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’ Mark 7:7
Not every good intention is good neither are all worships pleasing to God, though it’s understandable that this fact may take a while to digest considering what some of us already classify as true worship to God. The idea of worshipping God from our experience as a child is absolutely different from some of the things they should be as we have already embraced traditions set in place by spiritual leaders for the word of God.
Even more painful is how some Christians have completed swapped studying the word of God and hearing from God for what their spiritual leader has to say.
Start a conversation with some people about faith and before you blink, all you hear are phrases like, my Pastor said, the prophet said, it’s done like this in my Church and a host of others. In none of those conversations will you hear anything relative to “what God said”, what the bible says, the prompt and leading of the Holyspirit or what they have learnt from the word of God themselves. The bible clearly tells us that if we have a relationship with God, there are things He will show to us that even our spiritual leaders desires, Luke 10:24. “for I tell you that many prophets and kings have desired to see what you see, and have not seen it, and to hear what you hear, and have not heard it.”
In today’s bible verse, we see the Pharisees and Scribes engage in a very interesting conversation. What’s even more interesting is that they loved the idea of serving and didn’t mean to find themselves in such fixes of being vain worshipers. As far as they were concerned, they were worshipping God because that’s how they knew how to worship but unfortunately, they were working more in tradition made by human and using those as guideline for worshipping God; literally they didn’t have a personal relationship with God
The rituals that they had to perform like washing of hands were purely traditional and not scriptural and we see Jesus speak so strongly about this because they were far too concerned about the trivial things instead of focusing on true worship, fellowship and relation with God; all from their hearts. The word of God this becomes less effective in their lives when true worship is absent.
Many of us are not any better than those Pharisees, we constantly put the word of God aside for the interest of fulfilling human pronouncement or desires and that’s why many Christians today can be called “hypocrites”.
Our service is to God and not man and everything we fail to focus on the word of God, no matter how much we go to Church, contribute money in church, work in church and the rest alike, we are doing it all in vain.
True and acceptable worship is having a relationship with God and using His word and the Holyspirit as our daily guide. It’s about where God is on our priority list, it’s a matter of the heart expressed through a lifestyle of holiness.
PRAYERS
- Father I thank you for your goodness and blessing experienced every day of my life
- I am grateful for your grace and leading me to live a purpose driven life
- Help me Lord to worship you in spirit and in truth. Help me to have a true relationship with you
- Bring me back to the paths I have strayed away from, let me from today be spiritually minded, know my purpose, walk in it and not allow carnal things to define me
- Thank you for being a good father, one I can deliberate with and fully trust in
- Help me Lord not to try reason you out, but surrender all occurrences in life to you and believe that you have it all under control and are able to change all circumstances for good
- Help me to wait upon you in spirit and in truth, getting instructions and directions from heaven and walking solely with the Holyspirit while I fast and pray
- Forgive me Lord of all my iniquities, bless me abundantly and make me a blessing unto others, in Jesus mighty name I pray, Amen
