Mark 7:14-23
14Then he called the crowd again and said to them, “Listen to me, all of you, and understand: 15there is nothing outside a person that by going in can defile, but the things that come out are what defile.” 17When he had left the crowd and entered the house, his disciples asked him about the parable. 18He said to them, “Then do you also fail to understand? Do you not see that whatever goes into a person from outside cannot defile, 19since it enters, not the heart but the stomach, and goes out into the sewer?” (Thus he declared all foods clean.) 20And he said, “It is what comes out of a person that defiles. 21For it is from within, from the human heart, that evil intentions come: fornication, theft, murder, 22adultery, avarice, wickedness, deceit, licentiousness, envy, slander, pride, folly. 23All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person.”
After feeding the five thousand, Jesus walks on water and quiets the storm, further showing His followers that He has the power of God. They land in Gennesaret and the people bring their sick to Jesus and Jesus heals them.
Then some Pharisees and some scribes from Jerusalem object to the fact that some of Jesus’ disciples were not following the hand-washing rituals before eating. They ask Jesus why His disciples do not live according to the tradition of the elders.
Jesus responds by telling the people from Jerusalem that they are prioritizing the traditions over the intent of God’s commands. The example Jesus sites is that of Corban – Where people go against God’s command to take care of aging parents by declaring that the money that would have otherwise gone to the parents is instead being offered to God.
As far as the hand-washing ritual, Jesus declares that people are not defiled by not following that tradition. In fact, nothing that goes into a person can defile them. Instead, what defiles a person are the things that come out of a person. He lists these things in verses 21-22.
After this, Jesus goes to Tyre where He has an encounter with a Syrophoenician woman. She has a daughter that has an unclean spirit and wants Jesus to cast the demon out of her daughter. When Jesus tells her that His first priority is the children of Israel, the woman stresses that even dogs get to eat the crumbs that the children drop. Impressed by the woman’s faith and persistence, Jesus heals the daughter.
This narrative, combined with Mark’s comment in verse 19 that Jesus declared all foods clean, certainly seems to point to a time when the Gentiles will hear and accept the gospel.
Returning to the topic of traditions verses intent of the Lord’s commands, the Pharisees and scribes from Jerusalem were practicing formalism to the point where they were losing sight of the intent of God’s commands.
Today, churches are not too focused on religious rituals, but each church does have its own traditions, which were established over the years. It might be over things like how often to have communion; timing and method of baptism; infant baptism versus infant dedication; whether to hold Christmas Eve service; whether to have Christmas morning service; how to celebrate Palm Sunday; whether to have children in the worship service; whether to have, and how often to have – after service meals; requirements for membership (or to have memberships at all); what style of songs to sing and how many; whether or not to recite the Lord’s prayer, or Apostles’ Creed, etc. during services and how often.
There is nothing wrong with tradition, if we remember why we stick to them. When traditions become more important than the intent of why we have them, then we act like those men who came from Jerusalem. We end up majoring on the minor and minoring on the major.
It is easy to believe that there are things all around us that can defile us. There are things that entice us that we know would not be pleasing to God. Each of us has weaknesses of some kind and temptation is all around us.
But there is truth in what Jesus says about what truly defiles us. What defiles us does not come from outside of us. What defiles us comes from the human heart – Evil intentions.
So, what to do about all the temptations around us and on the internet? Paraphrasing Martin Luther, “You can’t stop the birds from flying over your head, but you can stop them from building a nest in your hair”. In other words, we cannot stop temptations from being all around us, but we ought not dwell on them nor act on them.
This is easier said than done, especially if we like some of the sins. We need to confess them as sins and ask for help from the Holy Spirit. We are to be under the influence of the Spirit, rather than under the influence of our sinful nature. It is difficult or impossible to resist our nature, but we are to be new creatures who are equipped to serve the Lord. The Holy Spirit is able to help us and will, as long as we are willing to follow His leading.
As for our traditions, let us enjoy them, but not lose sight of their original intent. When we get overly concerned about maintaining traditions, without honoring the content and purpose of those traditions, we are no different than the religious teachers from Jerusalem who questioned Jesus.
(the above is a summary of the message shared by Pastor Shun Takano during our worship on July 26, 2026.)
Japanese Congregational Church 