Matthew 15:6-10

Mat 15:6 (KJB)
And honour not his father or his mother, he shall be free. Thus have ye made the commandment of God of none effect by your tradition.

In the most favorable of circumstances, a pledge to the temple was voluntary while the caring for the parents was a commandment. People had conveniently used traditions to avoid what God expressly commanded in His law. The traditions of the elders had pronounced a person free of helping their parents which was in total opposition to the word of God. These traditions had a double delusion and that was first, people thought that they were obeying the commandments of God and it also led people to disregard the plain teachings of the word of God. This is something which Christians must be on the guard for today. There are many teachers in the world with their own religious systems and the majority of them are against the word of God. The Pharisees had used the oral law to override the written law of God and as a result, it cancelled out the effect of the commandment of God which was obedience to God’s law over and before anything else. The other delusion is that because a person does not obey God’s law and chooses to obey a false system, they are still accountable for the laws they fail to obey.

Mat 15:7 (KJB)
Ye hypocrites, well did Esaias prophesy of you, saying,

All the other people had addressed them as Rabbi or some other name of rank but here Jesus knew exactly what they were and that was hypocrites. A hypocrite is one who puts on a false face or virtue or religion. This is why no one will be able to hide anything at the Great White Throne Judgment because Jesus knows the hearts of all men. (John 2:24 KJV) But Jesus did not commit himself unto them, because he knew all men, Jesus goes back to the Hebrew Scriptures and begins to quote from Isaiah. It is interesting that Jesus states that Isaiah prophesied of the Scribes and Pharisees as if Isaiah wrote his book recently. It shows how the Scriptures never lose their freshness and are always up to date.

Mat 15:8 (KJB)
This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me.

Just as in the time of Isaiah, the same thing is repeated here. (Isa 29:13 KJV) Wherefore the Lord said, Forasmuch as this people draw near me with their mouth, and with their lips do honour me, but have removed their heart far from me, and their fear toward me is taught by the precept of men: This describes false religion to a tee. The words are all there but the actions are steeped in disobedience. (Isa 30:10-11 KJV) Which say to the seers, See not; and to the prophets, Prophesy not unto us right things, speak unto us smooth things, prophesy deceits: {11} Get you out of the way, turn aside out of the path, cause the Holy One of Israel to cease from before us. Just as the false prophets were prophesying what the people wanted to hear by removing God from the equation, the Scribes and Pharisees were also attempting to shroud God and His law by their own traditions which could be adjusted any time they wanted and especially for their benefit. When God states that their heart was far from Him, it is another way of saying that these people are unsaved. Just as the people in the time of Isaiah wanted to hear nice things and not the law of God, the people in the time of Jesus were the same way as they learned from their leaders. If the people were obeying the traditions, they were happy because they believed they were pleasing God.

Mat 15:9 (KJB)
But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.

The Apostle Paul in Colossians had dealt with the same type of situation. (Col 2:20-22 KJV) Wherefore if ye be dead with Christ from the rudiments of the world, why, as though living in the world, are ye subject to ordinances, {21} (Touch not; taste not; handle not; {22} Which all are to perish with the using;) after the commandments and doctrines of men? They were following the teachings of men and those teachings of men were but vanity. They had taught them as if they came from the hand of God but were the works of men. How many of these types of books do we see today? The following books are the extant works of men but are taught as if they were handed down by God: The Book of Mormon, The Divine Principle by Moon, Urantia Book, Aquarian Gospel of Jesus the Christ, etc. Many religions teach the works of men as if they were the words of God. If what these people teach cannot be found in the Scriptures, then they are to be totally rejected. The Pharisees had such a system of beliefs that sounded good but was in opposition to the word of God. Much of their writings began back in Babylon during their captivity so they had over 500 years to destroy truth.

Mat 15:10 (KJB)
And he called the multitude, and said unto them, Hear, and understand:

Up to this point, Jesus was speaking to the Pharisees and Scribes in response to their accusation that the disciples did not wash their hands according to the tradition of the elders. Then Jesus calls the multitude as He begins to explain what has just transpired and to warn them against the false religions and their methods of disobeying God. He wants them not only to hear, but to hear and understand so they will not be taken in by these hypocrites. They need to understand the eternal consequences in following false religion. The opponents did not say anything else but the fact that they were offended would be enough to raise their ire.

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