Vs. 2, “Why do your disciples break the tradition of the elders? They don’t wash their hands before they eat!” Seeing is believing. The Pharisees and teachers of the law were so focused on the external, that they lost track of the internal. Over the centuries they developed a system of oral tradition (Mishnah) that expounded upon God’s law. This oral law became so prevalent that it was held to the same esteem that God’s law was on; sometimes even higher. Jesus masterfully rebukes them and reminds them of what a clean/unclean person really look like (vs. 1-20). The issue with supposedly honoring the father and mother in their old age by giving the excuse that the adult children devoted their money to God was outright disrespectful on both the parents and to God. They would use their money and possessions and declare it to be set aside to God, as an excuse to help support their aging parents. Sadly, they would still be the benefactors of this declared money & possessions. Jesus and His disciples retreat to Tyre and Sidon (Gentile areas) possibly as a rest before making the long trek to Jerusalem and the cross. The Canaanite woman encounter is a beautiful picture of persistence and grace (vs. 21-28). Remember, Jesus’ mission was to first go to Israel to bring salvation and through Israel, the Gospel would be spread to the Gentiles. But Jesus makes exception to respond to a woman who had such faith. The crumbs of a dog example impresses me for she was quite witty and spiritually aware of the benefit of being a dog (Gentile) and still getting something from the bread. And lastly in our chapter, we see Jesus do another miracle feeding (vs. 29-39). However, this time Jesus does this miracle in the Gentile region.
Regarding application…Are You Clean? Vs. 18, “But the things that come out of the mouth come from the heart, and these make a man ‘unclean’.” Certainly, we are reminded that the determination of what makes a person clean is the condition of our hearts. The religious leaders of Jesus’ time determined what make a person clean was their “righteous” acts. Sadly, their hearts were clogged with sin. It is a stark reminder for us in the church, for we can relate to the religious leaders more than we would like to admit. We have the tendency to fall upon the traditions of man (denominations, church practices, etc.). As people who go to church faithfully all these years, there is the danger of our hearts hardening. But it hardens not only from sin, but also from disappointment. We all know the truth about churches; they are not perfect. Yet the church is a gift from our Lord. It all comes down to our hearts response; we can either become part of the solution or part of the problem. Time to do a heart checkup!
