Yesterday we found the Pharisees criticizing the disciples for not observing ceremonial washing before eating. Jesus called them hypocrites because they were ignoring laws of God and observing laws made by man. He continues His charges against them today and He explains to us what truly defiles a person.
"And He continued, 'You have a fine way of setting aside the commands of God in order to observe your own traditions! For Moses said, 'Honor your father and mother,' and, 'Anyone who curses their father or mother is to be put to death.' But you say that if anyone declares that what might have been used to help their father or mother is Corban (that is, devoted to God)---then you no longer let them do anything for their father or mother. Thus you nullify the word of God by your tradition that you have handed down. And you do many things like that." (Mark 7:9-13) Jesus is making the statement here that the laws handed down to the people by Moses were given to Moses by God. But over the centuries the Pharisees and teachers of the law had invented ways to circumvent God's commandments.
Corban means "that which is brought near", meaning an offering brought to the Lord. The vow to bring this offering was irrevocable, for the religious leaders would not allow a person to recant. If a son did not want to take care of his parents in their old age, he could declare corban over the moneys or goods that could have been used to support them. If that son later regretted his vow and wished to devote the moneys or goods to his parents rather than to the temple, he would not be permitted to do so. This is yet another example of the Pharisees and teachers of the law giving greater importance to rules made by man than to rules given by God. These leaders are essentially saying, "Our tradition of declaring corban supersedes the commandment to honor your father and mother. You can't take back your vow. Your vow must be kept even if it breaks a commandment."
"Again Jesus called the crowd to Him and said, 'Listen to Me, everyone, and understand this. Nothing outside a person can defile them by going into them. Rather, it is what comes out of a person that defiles them.'" (Mark 7:14-16) Jesus is addressing the accusations of the Pharisees concerning ceremonial washing. These men consider the disciples defiled because they ate without washing first. But Jesus points out that what truly defiles a person is the wickedness in his heart. That wickedness comes out in both words and deeds, which is why He states that it is "what comes out of a person that defiles them". He isn't saying that we can't harm ourselves physically by taking in substances that are bad for us, but He's saying that what defiles us spiritually is having an attitude that is contrary to God's.
"After He had left the crowd and entered the house, His disciples asked Him about this parable. 'Are you so dull?' He asked. 'Don't you see that nothing that enters a person from the outside can defile them? For it doesn't go into their heart but into their stomach, and then out of the body.' (In saying this, Jesus declared all foods clean.)" (Mark 7:17-19) In the New Testament we find the Jewish Christians being allowed to eat all meats, even those which were previously considered unclean. Some Bible scholars believe that the distinction between clean and unclean meats in the Old Testament symbolizes the distinction between Jews and Gentiles. Following the death and resurrection of Christ, all the Jews and Gentiles who believe in Him belong to the same family and no distinction is made between them. They are all "clean" in the eyes of God. Therefore, when the Lord tells the Apostle Peter to preach the gospel to the Gentiles, He sends him a vision in which He states that all meats are clean for him, symbolizing His intention to add the Gentiles (formerly considered too unclean to associate with) to the family of God. From that point on, the Gentiles who convert to Christianity are not forced to follow Jewish dietary laws, and the Christian Jews are not required to continue to observe the dietary laws if they do not wish to. This allows Christian Jews and Christian Gentiles to freely eat together and to enjoy each other's company. This allows Christian Jews and Christian Gentiles to visit each other's houses in friendship and to be considered equals as they work together for the kingdom of God.
Jesus now provides a list of things that do defile us, and they are things that proceed from wickedness in the heart. "He went on: 'What comes out of a person is what defiles him. For it is from within, out of a person's heart, that evil thoughts come---sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly. All these evils come from inside and defile a person.'" (Mark 7:20-23) If we eat food with dirty hands, the dirt enters our bodies along with the food and eventually makes its way out. It cannot make our souls dirty. But sin makes our souls dirty. It's the wickedness we think up in our minds and the wickedness we commit with our hands that makes our souls dirty.
I've thought things, said things, and done things that have made my soul dirty. But thanks be to God, through the Lord Jesus Christ I can be considered clean again in the eyes of God. I can be considered clean because faith in Christ has regenerated me on the inside, thus making me clean on the outside too. Jesus cleans us from the inside out, because it's the inside that really matters, as He points out when discussing the washing of dishes, "First clean the inside of the cup and dish, and then the outside also will be clean." (Matthew 23:26) If we are clean on the inside, our outward lives will show it. I'm still a work in progress, as we all are. God works in us daily to conform us to the image of His Son. (Romans 8:29) But as we walk through this life with Christ, we are ever becoming more like Him and less like our former selves. He is making our hearts more and more like His.
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