Matthew 15        Wednesday,  January 28

Here's the way I understand it: if we give money to the church as an offering while our parents are in need, we aren't honoring them.  The Bible is very clear: we are to honor our parents.   It doesn't say "honor them if they deserve it"  or  "honor them if they have taken good care of you".     We might be tempted to look good in the eyes of others by making a large donation, while we are actually looking worse in the eyes of the only one who matters.

What the Bible says should always be more important than what our traditions are.

How do people become unclean?   This is really an eye opener.  It's all about what you think about and what you treasure in your heart.   I truly believe that cigarettes are a filthy, unattractive habit.  They harm the body, and should be avoided.   But a cigarette cannot make you unclean.  After reading this passage I wonder if smoking is a sin, or just really bad idea.    I mean, I drink way too much Diet Coke, which is probably bad for my body.   Is that sin?   What if I eat too much chocolate?   And if these things aren't sins....then why did Jesus specifically say "don't get drunk".   Wine goes into the mouth and out of the body.   By this definition it would be okay.

We avoid smoking for the most part because society has convinced us that it is bad for us.   It really is bad for us, and should be avoided.   However we didn't always know that.  There will be people in heaven who smoked like a chimney while here on earth.   I don't think we will smoke in heaven, but I guess you can't be sure.
Societal ques make for enormous pressure.  Teenagers and adults alike want to be "in style" and popular.   They will do almost anything to make it happen.    So avoiding something because it's unpopular isn't the same as avoiding it because the Bible says to.   And, if the Bible doesn't talk about it and Society thinks it's wrong...that doesn't mean it has to be.   Society can be wrong....take abortion for example.

Society would tell us that what we think about is our own business, and we aren't held responsible for it.   It's only once you act that you are punished.    But again, Society would be wrong.   God holds us responsible for our thoughts as well.    Remember, you can't stop temptation, but if you begin to 'let it cook" in your mind, you are in serious danger.   Thoughts count, so face the reality that part of the Christian life is fighting the battle of the mind.

There's much more to see in this chapter, but I'm always doing all the commentary.   What do you see?

PR