Deciphering religious traditions
Jesus spoke of the traditions of men (Matthew 15:2, 6, 9; Mark 7:2-13) in a negative light because it voided the word of God. Other passages in the Bible speak well of tradition. For example, Paul tells the brethren in Thessalonica to hold the traditions that he taught in person or through an epistle (2 Thessalonians 2:15). The original Greek word means the transmission of law and practice that has been handed down from Fathers and elders (cf. 1 Peter 1:18). Clearly, then, tradition is neither good nor bad.
What is critical to the New Testament writers is that we follow the tradition of the Lord and his apostles (2 Timothy 2:2; 1 Corinthians 11:1). This tradition is not established by a hierarchy of men claiming succession all the way back to Jesus. Succession is in the seed (the word, Luke 8:11) - the same seed planted in the first century by the apostles and prophets. Therefore, we should follow the traditions handed down by them and recorded for us in the Bible. To hold fast to the traditions of Christ and his apostles, we must be able to distinguish between their traditions and those of men. The chief priests and elders of the people asked Jesus where he received his authority to do the things he did in the temple (Luke 21:23). Little did they know they were opening the proverbial �can of worms� that they would be unprepared to close.
Jesus exposed their dishonesty as they only pretended to be concerned about �authority� when he asked, �The baptism of John, where did it come from? From heaven or from men?� They couldn�t say without negatively effecting their political position among the people. Today, when we speak of authority and �going by the Bible,� we need to be prepared to give a Bible answer when asked specific questions about our beliefs and practices. Saying, �that�s the way we�ve always done it,� doesn�t necessarily identify it as a tradition of Christ. Furthermore, in matters of liberty, there is no law or tradition of God.
When a practice is followed for many years, tradition develops. These �human traditions� are not wrong if we do not fuse man�s tradition and God�s tradition together like the Pharisees had done. When �our� traditions do not conflict or make void divine tradition, we should not bind our conscience on others but accept the right of each to make their own choices in these matters of liberty. If we hear of someone doing things not in harmony with �our� tradition, we would not assign some negative motive for them. Changing a human tradition should not raise any �red flags� in anyone�s mind. It is critical, therefore, that we distinguish traditions of God and traditions of men. Many traditions are carried down from family to family and from generation to generation. Some may have been good and expedient for the time and situation. As our culture and situation changes, we may choose a more expedient means to carry out God�s will. Remember, this is allowed when God has not spoken. It is in this area alone that we are allowed to change anything. Please, do not confuse changing man�s tradition and changing God�s tradition. Some of my brethren seem to be against any change because they equate change with unlawful human innovation. Changing divine tradition is not nor shall it ever be an option. But, let�s not balk at change until we have identified its source (from God or man). Many denominational bodies are changing their name but that�s just one of many changes that are being made. Once again, we can�t lump all change into the same bowl because some are authorized changes while others are unlawful changes. Are they expedient allow?ances or are they unlawful innovations that lack divine approval? It would be a mistake to assign all changes as departures from the truth or say that it would lead to changes that lack authority from God. This rule applies individually and collectively. Tough challenges are before us to make choices that may be uncomfortable.