Foundations Traditions and Freedom What stresses people During the Holiday Season?

Foundations

Traditions and Freedom

What stresses peopleDuring the Holiday Season?

What if…There's an answerJesus wants to set you free

This morning?

When they had crossed over, they came to land at

Gennesaret and moored to the shore

And when they got out of the boat, the people immediately recognized him and ran about the whole region and began to bring the sick people on their beds to wherever they heard he was

And wherever he came, in villages, cities, or countryside,

they laid the sick in the marketplaces and implored

him that they might touch even the fringe

of his garment

And as many as touched it were made well- Mark 6:53-56

Eyes of Faith: Looking for a reason

to Believe

Not following Protocol/tradition

Jesus is a Rock Star

Not Everyone Loves Rock Stars…

Now when the Pharisees gathered to him, with some of

the scribes who had come from Jerusalem…

80-90 miles

Eyes of Pessimism:

Looking for a reason To be offended

Freebie:We tend to find what

We're looking for

Freebie:We tend to find what

We're looking for

So if I'm often offended…?

…they saw that some of his disciples ate with hands that

were defiled, that is, unwashed

(For the Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat unless they wash their hands, holding to the tradition of the elders, and when they come from the marketplace, they do not eat unless they wash…

And there are many other traditions that they observe, such as the washing of cups and pots and copper vessels

and dining couches)

"Helping God"

"What if we were aroundunclean people or animals?"

"Helping God" gives way toMeaningless Ritual

Besides…Icky Demons and stuff

And the Pharisees and the scribes asked him,

"Why do your disciples not walk according to the tradition

of the elders, but eat with defiled hands?"

"We're offended that your disciples

Aren't following our traditions"

You must not be A very good Rabbi

"Well, guys, the reason is…"?

And he said to them, "Well did Isaiah prophesy of you

hypocrites, as it is written…

"Jesus Christ had no tenderness whatsoever toward anything that was ultimately going to ruin a person in his service to God"

-Oswald Chambers

And he 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; in vain do they worship me…

...teaching as doctrines the commandments of men'

You leave the commandment of God and hold to the tradition of men"

"'This people honors me with their lips, but their heart

is far from me;

The Ritual of Tradition produces:

Actions without Heart

…in vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men'

Teaching Tradition as Commandment produces worship God calls meaningless

You leave the commandment of God and hold to the

tradition of men"

Making rules to help GodAre sin when…

- Become Authoritative- Forced upon people- Judging them by these rules

When human tradition Becomes God's Command

God's Word ceases to be

The Authority

Even with the best of Intentions…

Human TraditionsCan cause God's people

To lose sight of God

When the rules become Authoritative

When they nullify God's Word

We can get so caught up in the "What"

That we lose the"Why"

Word of God:

- Not subject to change- Carries authority and power- Isn't a suggestion

Traditions of Men:

- Transient and changeable- Have no authority- ever

- Are open to individual freedom

Basic Truth:Traditions often come from Good intention, but…

A tradition becomes sin when itSteals freedom or displaces the Authority of the Scriptures

"You have to wash your hands…"

And he said to them, "You have a fine way of rejecting the commandment of God in order to establish your tradition!

For Moses said, 'Honor your father and your mother'; and,

'Whoever reviles father or mother must surely die.'

"Corban"

But you say, 'If a man tells his father or his mother, "Whatever you would have gained from me is Corban"' (that is, given to God)….

…then you no longer permit him to do anything for his father or

mother, thus making void the word of God by your tradition that you have handed down.

And many such things you do"

If a custom causes God's peopleTo cease to follow God in any arena of life

That tradition is sin

And he called the people to him again and said to them,

"Hear me, all of you, and understand:

There is nothing outside a person that by going into him can defile him, but the things that come out of a person are what defile him"

And when he had entered the house and left the people,

his disciples asked him about the parable

And he said to them, "Then are you also without understanding?

Do you not see that whatever goes into a person from outside

cannot defile him, since it enters not his heart but his stomach,

and is expelled?"

(Thus he declared all foods clean) And he said…

"What comes out of a person is what defiles him

The truth of who you areis not outside of you

But insideThat's why we need Jesus

Jesus ends rationalizationfor Poor Behavior…

For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil

thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery,

coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander,

pride, foolishness

All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person"- Mark 7:1-23

Sin is not a result of external circumstances

But of internal nature

According to Jesus…

What's in us Is what defiles us

Jesus shows upduring the Holiday Season…

"Uh…Jesus?"

- Why aren't the disciples shopping for gifts?

- You don't have a tree?!?

- Your family said you're not coming to the annual Christmas Dinner???

- You have to celebrate Christmas…it's Christmas, for crying out loud!!!

Why aren't you followingOur traditions?

You must not be very Christian!

Jesus isn't Gentle

And he says, "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;

"'This people honors me with their lips, but their heart

is far from me;

You're insisting people say "Merry Christmas"

at the stores

But what you're really Focused on is…

How many gifts to buyThe dinner you have to cookThe relatives you gotta see

…in vain do you worship me, teaching as doctrines the

commandments of men'

"I never commanded that you celebrate my Birthday…but that

you honor my sacrifice"

"I never commanded that youput a tree in your house…

But that you remember the tree on which I

bled and died"

"I never commanded that you give gifts to people you love…

But that love your enemies"

"I never commanded that you buy gifts to put under a tree…

But that you freely share the gift of life"

"You leave the commandment of God and hold to the tradition of men…"

"You charge what you can't afford"

"You eat so much you can't move"

"Your kids love Santa but don't know Me…"

Your tradition had a Great Startwith Good Intentions

But it's become a way to Judge people and a culture war

Against the very people I came to seek and save

But Jesus…they're defiling our holiday by writing

"Merry X-mas!"

They make me so mad that I yell at them and write angry emails

If they'd stop, I'd be OK…

"What comes out of a person is what defiles him

No one defiles ChristmasExcept Christians

For from within, out of the heart of man evil thoughts…

coveting…envy…slander…

All these evil things come from within, and they defile

a person"

The Cure is…Christmas!

Jesus coming and dyingTo set you free

The issue is notWhether or not you Celebrate

The issue is notWhether or not you Celebrate…

But whether or not youJudge and enforce what

God has not commanded

And break the Wordto honor it's God

Jesus disciples didn't wash their hands

Because…

Jesus sets us freefrom the traditions of men

Come to me, you who labor and are weary, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me

For I am gentle and lowly in heart. And you will find rest for

your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light

- Matt. 11:28-30

“If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free”- John 8:31-32

What traditions am I following

That I:Hate? Dread?

Stressed out over?Judging people by?

What traditions am I following

That I:Hate? Dread?

Stressed out over?Judging people by? What if…I'm free?

When it comes to TraditionsAll that I have to do

Is what God says:"Love God, Love People"

(the rest is up to me!)

Pray

Questions, CommentsDisagreements

Offering