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What About Our Traditions? Introduction: A lot of times we can be rather harsh in our judgment of others. We point out religious error in other places and not see some problems we have with the Bible. Some of those problems deal with "traditions." Are traditions inherently bad? Can they be good? How do we know if a "tradition" is good or bad? We often hear of "non-traditional services" or "traditional songs verses contemporary songs. These are questions that arise from time to time. We need to guard against human traditions. I) Traditions In Religion Today A) Special Holidays taking on religious importance 1. Christmas being celebrated as the birth Day of Jesus. 2. Easter taking on special importance. B) The wearing of religious titles or the misuse of terms used in the Bible 1. Calling men reverend, or priest or father, are terms used to establish a clergy/laity mentality. Jesus spoke against that in Matthew 23.8-10 2. Pastor used to refer to the preacher when it is used to refer to the elders or shepherds of the flock in the New Testament. C) What about our traditions? 1. Are we just as "traditional" as our religious neighbors? 2. Do we condemn them for what we are doing? 3. What if we find our practices are wrong? 4. Those advocating changing a "tradition" often want to replace it with another tradition. II) Traditions That Takes the Place of God’s Word, Matthew 15.3-9 A) Comes from man and not God, Mark 7.8 1. Contradicts God’s commandments by either adding to it or subtracting from it. 2. They tend to change gradually over a period of time further away from God. B) Problem is many do not realize their traditions are not in the Bible 1. December 25th being the birth day of Jesus is not in the Bible. 2. Easter services as a "special Sunday" is not in the Bible. 3. Those traditions lead others away from God. III) Traditions That Are Based Upon God’s Word, 2 Thess. 2.5 A) Traditions come from God, 2 Thess. 3.14 1. Paul mentioned the traditions of his fathers, Galatians 1.14. a. The word "tradition" means that which is handed down. b. The difference is whether it is handed down from God or man. 2. The Apostles taught the Gospel of Christ, they handed it down and instructed others to hand it down to others. 2 Timothy 2.2 B) The problem comes when we observe these traditions without thinking about them. 1. Some will accept Sunday as the day of worship, the Lord’s Supper every 1st Day of the week, singing without instrumental music, etc. without having Bible knowledge. 2. We observe the Lord’s Supper every 1st day of the week because we have the example in Acts 20.7. 3. We sing songs of praise to God and do not have a piano or any other instrument is because we are told to sing, Ephesians 5.19. 4. For a person to be a Christian they must hear the Gospel, believe Jesus is the Son of God, confess Jesus as the Christ, repent of their sins, and be baptized for the remission of sins, it not of human origin but divine. This is what the Bible says. 5. Elders overseeing the local congregation is not a matter of human tradition but God’s word. 6. It is possible to be doing the right think for the wrong reasons, 2 Timothy 2.15 IV) Human Traditions That Do Not Contradict God’s Word A) Those things we do in obeying God’s commands 1. Time of Services; number of songs; timing of the Lord’s Supper; translation of the Bible, etc. a. We are told to assemble but not told when b. We are told to sing but not told how many songs c. We are told to remember the sacrifice of Jesus and we see they did so on the 1st day of the week but we are not told to do this before the preaching or after or in the middle of. 2. Usually they were established as a manner of convenience 3. These "traditions" often help us to have order in our services, 1 Corinthians 14.40. B) Problems with these traditions 1. When we equate them to God’s commands a. We judge congregations that meet at 5 o’clock as unscriptural b. Have to have three songs, prayer, another song, and then the Lord’s Supper c. We have to read from a certain translation of the Bible 2. When we are doing the right thing but not knowing the difference between human traditions and God’s traditions. V) A Call To Go By God’s Word A) To be only a "Christian" Acts 26.28 B) To speak where the Bible speaks and be silent where the Bible is silent, 1 Peter 4.11 C) To have no creed but the Bible, 2 Timothy 3.16-17 Conclusions: Tradition says everything is right and do not bother to examine the Bible. If it is wrong we need to go back to the word of God; if it is based on God’s word we need to defend it; if it is neither right nor wrong we need to be flexible and not equate it to God’s word. D.T. @ Westside Church of Christ 12.09.07 |