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In Mk. 7:1-23, Jesus was visited by the Pharisees and some teachers of the law from Jerusalem. It was an official visit from the Sanhedrin, the Jewish religious ruling council. Jesus had earlier violated their Sabbath tradition (Mk. 2:23-28) and they had come to observe what He might do next. This time, it was the violation of their tradition about the washing of hands. This ritual was not about hygiene and was purely ceremonial to cleanse them from any defilement they might have picked up from the Gentiles or Samaritans. In His engagement with the Jewish religious leaders, Jesus pointed out their hypocrisy. He said that in holding on firmly to the traditions of men, they failed to serve God from their hearts, citing the Corban oath as an example. Under this binding oath, an irresponsible Jewish son could dedicate to the temple his earnings which he would otherwise have to give to his parents to support them.
Besides pointing out their hypocrisy, Jesus exposed the real condition of their hearts. They were not defiled from the outside by coming into contact with the Gentiles or Samaritans, but from the inside because of their sinful hearts. No amount of cleansing on the outside could remove such internal defilement. Even Jesus’ disciples were in the dark as to what He was trying to teach. He had to explain the truth to them in private. It is difficult for people to disengage themselves from religious traditions that have become part of their lives. Traditions are not necessarily a bad thing. However, traditions should not have more authority over God’s Word. Thus, the Apostle Paul gave a warning in Col. 2:8 against obeying man-made traditions and not God’s laws.
The application of this truth is simply: We live in a fallen world and need God’s Word as sole authority. It is complete for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness so that we may be thoroughly equipped for every good work (2 Tim. 3:16-17). We need not support man-made traditions which we know to be wrong.

Christ is all we need, His truth complete –
The world will try to add, subtract, distort;
Cling to what we know, trust God’s Word to lead,
Don’t let ourselves believe a false report. (Tracy Carbaugh, Adapted)

GOD’S WORD: LASTING, PERFECT AND
TRUSTWORTHY FOUNDATION OF LIFE