The Pharisees and all the Jews held onto traditions that many began believing were as important as the Law of Moses. They considered these traditions a form of worship. (Matthew 15:9; Mark 7:3) For example, “When they come from the marketplace they do not eat unless they wash. And they observe many other traditions, such as the washing of cups, pitchers, and kettles.” (Mark 7:4)
One day, a Pharisee invited Jesus to eat with him. He noticed that Jesus did not engage in their ceremonial washings. Jesus’s response deserves considerable self-examination.
Jesus replied, “Now then, you Pharisees clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside you are full of greed and wickedness.” God considers what is inside more important than religious ceremonies, traditions, and practices. Love and charity are more important than ceremony.
“What comes out of a man is what makes him ‘unclean.’ For from within, out of men’s hearts, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance, and folly. All these evils come from inside and make a man ‘unclean.'” (Mark 7:20-23)
