Summary:
Clean and Unclean
Verses 1-20
Some Pharisees and teachers of the law came from Jerusalem to Jesus. They asked Him why His disciples broke the elders' tradition by not washing their hands before they ate. Jesus responded by asking them why they broke God's command for the sake of their tradition.
God tells us to honor our parents and that those who curse them must die. The Pharisees and law teachers told their parents that the help they would have received was instead devoted to God, therefore they were not honoring their parents and they were nullifying God's word for their tradition's sake.
They fulfilled the prophecy in Isaiah 29:13 - " 'These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men.' " (Verses 8-9)
Jesus told the crowd that what comes out of a man's mouth makes him unclean, not what goes into it. The disciples asked if Jesus knew that He'd offended the Pharisees. Jesus said that those not planted by God will be uprooted. Leave them; they are blind guides. They are the blind leading the blind, and all of them will fall into a pit.
Peter asked Jesus to explain His parable. Jesus asked if they were still dull. What enters the mouth goes through the stomach and out of the body. What comes from the mouth came from the heart. The heart produces evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony (lies), and slander. This is what makes a man unclean, not unwashed hands.
Lori's Thoughts:
I imagine the Pharisees and law teachers plotting to deceive Jesus and come up with a legitimate reason to arrest or persecute Him. The best that these educated people came up with was, 'the disciples don't wash their hands before they eat!' Wow. Really?
By accusing Christ, they exposed their pettiness and legalism. They followed the law to a T, but missed the point of the covenant. God was reaching down to us, to connect with us. Instead, these people were trying to be God by being 'perfect' without Him. Jesus came to show us our need for Him and they called Him unclean.
"Surely you desire truth in the inner parts; you teach me wisdom in the inmost place.
"Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.
"You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it; you do not take pleasure in burnt offerings. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise."
~excerpts from Psalm 51
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