July 12, 2024 Devo

It’s funny to me how we often get so carried away in our thinking. For example, we think of Jesus as being a Revolutionary. And in many ways, He is. But taking that to the extreme means we think Jesus came to tear down anything traditional. He didn’t. He embraced and celebrated the traditional because many of the traditions of the Jewish faith were rich in meaning.
In our passage today, we find Jesus returning to Jerusalem yet again for one of the “holy days.” We’re not sure what feast or festival it might have been, but what we do know is that ALL of the celebrations that God gave them had significant meaning and importance. Jesus didn’t come to Jerusalem to protest them. He came to honor them just like everyone else did. He just didn’t let the traditions, and especially the man-made tag-ons to the traditions, become an end in themselves. Because when we do that, we’re worshipping the method, not the Maker.
This happens in church all the time. We take a program, or an event, or a methodology that is effective, and we make it an end in itself rather than realize it is simply a means to an end. Sunday night services were a wonderful tradition. Bus ministries were incredible ways of reaching kids from families who didn’t go to church. Revivals were a powerful means of evangelizing friends and family. But there came a day when all of these things stopped being effective. Big, bulky bibles gave way to an app on our phones. Hymn books gave way to words on the screen. Piano and organs gave way to bands with electric guitars. Door-to-door canvassing gave way to websites and live-streaming services. What was hard for many of us to get past was none of these things are sacred. The Word of God is sacred…not the leather-bound cover. Worship is sacred…not what mode we read the words or what kind of instrument we play. Reaching people far from God is sacred…not our method of connecting with them.
Jesus loved the traditions of His people. As long as the traditions pointed towards God. When the traditions became an end in themselves, they became idols, and God is not big on idols. So embrace your traditions. Let your holy days and holy ways remind you of what an amazing God you have. Holding traditions lightly and Jesus tightly keeps us handing off the baton of faith from one generation to the next. That’s God’s Word for you today.