Jesus will wash us clean | Isaiah 29:13-21, Mark 7:1-23

Good morning everyone. Before I begin I'm going to pray for us so please join

with me. Father as we come to hear your word this morning please give us soft

hearts, hearts ready to hear. May it go into our mind and then in deep into our

hearts so that we may seek to live following you, trusting in you each day.

Amen. Well good morning everyone. As has already been said my name is Scott. I'm

normally at Vic Park Presbyterian. I do kind of two days a week there primarily

with children's ministry and so if I use my hands a lot that's that's why. We're

gonna be primarily looking at Mark chapter 7 so if you could have that open

Mark 7 · chapter mention

in front of you that'd be great. Last year my wife and I we watched a rather

horror documentary. This is one of the ones where I talked to you about it but I

really don't want you to go and watch it. So it was called shiny happy people. It

was a documentary. It kind of traced the rise and fall of a homeschooling

curriculum and kind of a family particularly attached to it. I know

it's the Duggar family. I mean it was like a really brutal watch. It kind of

gave me a glimpse into like the worst parts of American Christianity and it

was a culture of rules, kind of strictness, large families as kind of the

necessary thing to do as a Christian and homeschooling as the only option was

their kind of big thing. They had a TV show kind of following them as they had

19 children and it kind of they had more after the start of the show and the TV

show kind of always presented them as good people, godly people, kind of shiny

and bright, kind of the ones that you wanted to be but there was a documentary

that kind of traced their rise and like definite fall and the documentary

pointed out that actually what was what looked like obedience was fear. What

looked like godliness was kind of just the perfect family was actually just a

cesspit of cover-ups and greed. They were always trying to protect this

outer image that kind of their TV show kind of depended on that kind of

everything's okay here while actually their children suffered and so many

families in America and from around the world kind of bought into it, bought into

the system that they were promoting and why? Because from what everyone could see

they had it all together right. How could that family be anything other than just

like perfect and godly? You know with all their 19 or 20 children kind of clean

smiling playing violin it looked like they all just loved Jesus. How could that

be anything but godly? And their program the home schooling thing kind of came

with all the promises. You know if you join us if you follow our curriculum if

you buy in then you too can be just like us. We've got the discipline right we've

got the schooling right kind of all of our church priorities and ducks are in a

row but clearly that was not actually the case. Kind of this system where they

sell you the promise is not new for Christians it's the same system again

and again that we see in our culture. Purity culture is the same thing the

anti-alcohol movement it's the same thing anti-dancing movements kind of it's

just again and again it's the same system if you join us if you put these

barriers in place you will be safe. They have all the promises but nothing to

change the heart. It's the pattern from the beginning where human rules was what

will make you right with God. It's about what you can do or not do that affects

your relationship with God. Jesus in our passage this morning is going to

vehemently oppose that. Mark records that for us so that we can see clearly that

the heart needs to change and Jesus knows this in Mark records because in the

first century second century third century kind of and it's going to be

the same until Jesus returns the same kinds of things are going to pop up

that will tempt you to put your hope in something other than Jesus. So let's come

look at our passage this morning we're gonna look at it in three big points

some people have like points where they all start by the same letter that's just

too complicated for me mine are just gonna rhyme so the first one is Jesus

gonna warn us about traditions that compare secondly tradition sorry you know

and secondly traditions that ensnare and then thirdly that actually real

defilement is in there. So let's go verse one have a look at that with me kind of

Mark sets the scene that the Pharisees return with the scribes first one the

Pharisees and some of the teachers of the law had come from Jerusalem gathering

around Jesus and saw some of his disciples with eating food with

hands that were defiled that is unwashed. It's worth saying that there's

something funny here that I think we could like pull out from Mark occasionally

in Gospels you can kind of trace a theme through it you kind of see like

Jesus is clearly king you can see Jesus showing his kingship all the way

through it's a good thread to go let me show you one that's kind of not in any

commentaries or any book that you'll ever read because it's kind of funny and

from me is that yeah this is the kind of the quest for the disciples and food

kind of in Mark there's like threads going through here we get the disciples

and their food that was kind of meant to be a joke maybe that was that's okay I'll

warm you up I'm sure because the disciples they've interacted a lot with

food at this point in kind of Mark twice already in the Gospel of Mark

Mark has recorded for us that actually the crowds are so big there they've

come with all their needs that the disciples have not been able to eat

bread it's already recorded that twice for us in the previous chapter there was

the feeding of the five thousand but we don't kind of don't hear did the

disciples get to eat any of that food after the feeding of five thousand they

quickly jumped in a boat they rode across the lake all night Jesus kind of

meets them on the water but we still don't know whether they've finally got to

sit down and eat bread and kind of at the start of our chapter here finally

they do finally it's their turn to eat they sit down they take out their bread

but they're quickly kind of met with opposition so the Pharisees kind of walk

up and slap it out of their hands kind of going look aren't you forgetting

something and mark kind of knows that we probably don't really understand what's

going on so mark kind of steps in and kind of comments on that for us in verse

3 Mark says the Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat unless they give their

hands a ceremonial washing holding to the tradition of the elders when they

come from the marketplace they do not eat unless they wash and they observe

many other traditions such as the washing of cups pitches and kettles

like for the Pharisees actually what what's happening here with the disciples

not washing their hands they think that this is a serious matter this is not

just about hygiene like my children come in from playing outside with hands that

are a very different color than what they should be and that's not what's on view

here that the Pharisees actually think that this is about worshiping God the

tradition is about being ready through washing to come to God the Pharisees see

that their tradition is that they take God's law so seriously they sign off to

register obey God's law but they've gone further than God's law they've taken up

on themselves to do more washing than what the priests in the temple would even

be required to do because they're ready like externally they're ready to come

and worship God and they then compare with Jesus disciples right here they're

clearly looking down on the disciples they're not following our traditions

they're unworthy to come by looking down on Jesus disciples they're looking down

on Jesus they're thinking that if Jesus was anybody he was anyone actually

important his disciples would be following us in our traditions and so

Jesus can't let that stand Jesus is going to oppose it he quickly responds with

Isaiah 29 that you're washing and your worship are the same that they're merely

external and they're empty see that with me in verse 6 he replied Isaiah was

right when he prophesied about you hypocrites as it is written these

people honor me with their lips but their hearts are far from me they worship me

in vain their teachings are merely human rules it's just external and empty and

there's no substance my school back in year 11 we had like a free sports period

where they kind of forced you to do something other than study and they

would like you could choose a sport you go and do a sport and for the first one

that I got to do was ice skating was like super excited about it it was like

you know kind of don't really know what living in Perth kind of what ice really

is and I was super excited when one of my friends said that he would sell me one

of his ice skate or clearly the pair a pair of ice skates and they looked really

impressive I got them for a bargain and I came to school for the first day for

these ice skating kind of classes with these like professional ice hockey

skates you know they're attached to my bag on the outside I looked like a real

pro good to go until I kind of got to the ice right you know put them on lace

them up step on and you know the arms as you kind of try not to fall over

because you know you know just having ice skates doesn't make me good at ice

skating but actually the story is worse because I was super clever in year 11

the kind of this side of the blades had a little bit of rust on it so I went to

my dad shed I was I can clean this up go get some sandpaper just take off the

side of the blades and I was like oh while I'm here I'll just make the whole

thing really shiny kind of on the sides on the bottom which you know anything

about ice skates is that there's a kind of like a lip on the bottom kind of like

a really sharp part that actually allows you to grip to the ice at all and so not

only did my arms fail my leg comes out from underneath me because it has no

grip I turned my ice skates into basically button arms I ended up with

useless skates looked impressive on the outside but actually completely useless

the Pharisees with all their extradition here like on the outside it

looks super impressive right they wash after every meal they do so many things

to make themselves look like they're ready to go and meet God it looks so

godly but like me with my sandpaper skates like the shiny happy people from

the documentary the religion of the Pharisees does no work it's worthless

and empty merely external worship is not worship at all there's no love for God

they just love to be seen to be holy and to go hard like I think that's always a

temptation for us in the church we always want to look like we're doing the

right thing and it's so easy for us to get tripped up on traditions which

emphasise only what is external rather one that actually views the heart it's

worth saying that I think actual holiness actual godliness and the path

there is so full of failures when you actually want to fight sin in your life

and you wrestle with it and you fight with it sometimes we win and we make

great strides sometimes if you're actually fighting sin you will fail

sometimes and we come again and we repent but that doesn't look pretty

doesn't look godly maybe externally but it is the fight against sin to

constantly fight it is where true worship and godliness lies Jesus here

warns as he can condemns the Pharisees that our fake worship won't do and Jesus

wants us to understand that further understand the Pharisees and so he gives

us gives his listeners a rather specific example and this is our second point

Jesus warns about traditions that ensnare if you like kind of safe headings

this is the kind of tradition versus God's word as well kind of Jesus brings

in one of their traditions a Jewish tradition and states that actually

following your tradition leads to you breaking God's law like it's funny

because it's like the lawyers are in view here the lawyers are actually

promoting law breaking Jesus example here kind of we need to explain because we

don't often think about Corbin in an everyday life yeah so let's have a look

at what's happening verse 10 he begins with what does God's law says for Moses

said honor your father and mother and anyone who curses their father or mother

is to be put to death begins like suit like pretty clear commandment number 5

in the 10 commandments and then also like a really potent one kind of the one

that you tell your children when they're not obeying you you know Exodus 21 that

anyone who curses their father or mother is to be put to death they're really

clear commands right like God cares about honoring your parents and then Jesus

brings in their tradition kind of the tradition of the elders and asks them

why does your tradition counter that why is it a opposition or actually that

actually prevents children from obeying their parents kind of the evidence is

brought in to the witness stand stands up and it's it's Corbin but let me

explain to you because like again we don't kind of we don't think about

Corbin very much this is a tradition that's primarily about money pledged to

the temple you can imagine kind of end of financial years kind of coming up

still a little bit away but you kind of you've sat down you've done all your

money and your little spreadsheet if you love maths you kind of figure out

actually business is going pretty well like oh end of year is gonna be great and

you go I'll be I'll be generous this year actually God has graciously blessed me

so I I can bless in return and so you call up call up the synagogue or the

church and you kind of go oh I reckon like 40% of my income this year I could

I could give and your elders like oh yeah that's great it's a good idea and

remember we've talked about that Corbin thing yeah I could I could take that

vow I'll pledge that much money right now and your elders like yeah okay that's

good that's good and you kind of you put the phone down things are going well

until like the phone rings again you pick it up and it's your it's your mom and

dad and they just let you know that actually there are time at funds run

dry things didn't go well with investment actually the banks taken the house

they're in desperate need of financial help you're in charge of the family's

money can you can you help and you go of course mom and dad like let me let me

let me call back the church and I'll be right back with you you call them back

the elders and you kind of go oh yeah my parents they're in need the elders go

oh that sounds really hard but you know you kind of promised that amount right

you took the vow you know it's commandments about not lying you don't

want to do that kind of phone call in and you're stuck this tradition of this

pledge kind of this good thing about giving money to the temple or to church

has left this child this adult in this situation unable to love and care for

their parents and that's something that's promoted by the lawyers and the

Pharisees they may have even used that guy's a positive example look he took

these vows so seriously he couldn't even help his mom and dad he giving to God a

good thing has morphed into a tradition that hasn't snared the Jewish people

such that they end up breaking God's law as Jesus and the Exodus 21 puts it

cursing our parents

Jesus is really clear what's happening here says it three times verse 8 verse 9

verse 13 you have let go of the commands of God and are holding on to human

traditions and he continued you have a fine way of setting aside the commands

of God in order to observe your own traditions verse 13 thus you nullify

the word of God by your tradition that you've handed down and you do many things

like that it's Jesus's assessment of the leaders of God's people that they

actually prefer human religion than trusting in God's own commands like

there shouldn't have been any competition right you kind of Jesus has set

them both up which one is of more of more value and clearly it's God's

commands by an infinite amount how did this happen how does God's people love

their own traditions more than God's law I think it's worth saying that we can

do we can do this with any good thing as we raise its importance so that it

stands side by side with God's commands our heart produces idols at a

phenomenal rate our heart loves anything that shines that's new it loves the

exciting particularly if other people can see it

Thomas Kramner very old and dead guy has been known to say what the heart

loves the will chooses and then the mind justifies that is what I love is the

real driving force about everything I do it guides my will and then when I want

to do it I then justify doing it I think that's what's happened with the

Pharisees they've probably justified this tradition again and again because of

the external price and of these vows gift-giving in the temple long loud

prayers all that's kind of associated with the Pharisees is all about the

external they love the praise they love the glory and so they choose their will

chooses it and they justify it and that's not just true the Pharisees is it

actually that pattern of us loving our will choosing and us justifying is just

the pattern of my heart with all sin my heart desires my will pursues it and in

that moment I justify it does your heart not also go and you sin you deserve

this no one will know ah how could you expect to hold out for so long and that's

just sin a sin that comes from my heart because my heart is actually the problem

and Jesus knows that and so Jesus tackles that with our last point that real

defilement comes from in here Jesus kind of turns from the Pharisees in our

passage to the crowd and then particularly to his disciples Jesus begins

with the diagnosis in verse 15 you called the crowd to him and said listen to

me everyone and understand nothing outside a person can defile them by going

into them rather it's what comes out of a person that defiles them and then he

explains that in verse 18 and 19 when the disciples kind of asked him what's

happening I are you so dull he says don't you see that nothing that enters a

person from the outside can defile them it doesn't go into their heart but into

their stomach and then out of the body and saying this Jesus declared all

foods clean like because look the problem is not outside of you Jesus says like does food actually make you

unworthy to approach God like does it change your very being does your heart

kind of get like radically transformed by the food that you eat no Jesus says

actually food goes in food comes out the problem is the heart and like as a

side note I think it's worth talking about how big of a deal what Jesus is

saying here like it feels like us because our Christians would be like you

know this has been the thing for 2,000 years but for Jesus in the first entry

like this is a big deal what Jesus is saying because Jesus loves the law right

and the whole Old Testament come versus the traditions doesn't make sense

unless Jesus actually loves God's Word and God's law but Jesus here it's almost

like he's gathering particular parts of the Old Testament law and kind of going

oh yep over there so let me let me rant for a little bit there are such things

as unclean food when Jesus is time there is food that if you ate would make you

unworthy to come to worship before God what's Jesus doing like there are

numerous things outside of a person that could make you unclean like if you

touched or interacted with things make you unclean you find a dead body and you

touch it unclean if you like if you touch any bodily discharged male or

female you're unclean like actually there's so many things in the Old

Testament in the time that Jesus is living that makes you unclean so what is

Jesus doing I think it's all about who Jesus is and what he's come to do because

like all those unclean laws they're all about being ready to approach God come

into his presence and Jesus is God himself Jesus has come to his people

he's clothed himself in humanity the God that radiates holiness has now come so

clear that all those rituals and symbols that pointed to their inability to come

close to him it's as if they melt away all those things that were once unclean

food people there it's as if God himself has come near to bring us so God himself

has come near he will he has brought himself near and will bring us near by

his death for us as all those all that brought us all that separates us is

removed but with God now so close the real problem is seen in such greater

clarity what defiles a person what creates the problem between us and God

that makes us unworthy to approach it's our heart it's all that comes out of us

verse 21

for it is from within out of a person's heart that evil thoughts come sexual

morality theft murder adultery greed malice deceit lewdness envy slander

arrogance and folly all these evils come from inside and defile a person they

all come from inside the problem is me my heart and my love the diagnosis is in

is that we all have a heart problem and it's terminal in 2019 my oldest son got

really sick I was in a cuddling him trying to like comfort him and he ended

up throwing up all over me kind of in that moment I felt really really

unclean he got better I got sick and then slightly better but I got a post

viral infection kind of irritated the lining around my heart and I was dying

which is super serious but that came from outside Jesus here is saying that

our heart is sick it comes from our own heart our heart desires sin so often

called the desires of the flesh and the list that Jesus uses here is not good

right it's like a game of what commandment have we broken how are we

sinning against God today and this is just a list for all of us it's what our

heart naturally produces in thought word indeed this is the Pharisee this is you

and this is me and as we've already seen just making ourselves look clean on the

outside doesn't fool God and Jesus kind of gets to the end of our passage he

condemns us all declares us all unclean and kind of the passage ends but there

is a glimmer of hope salvation just around the corner now our next passage

that wasn't read for us and I will summarize it for us Jesus kind of leaves

the land of God's people gonna moves out to Tyron Tyron Siron on so don't that's

like Jesus going out into the unclean land and in that area Jesus meets a

woman whose daughter is demon possessed that's with an unclean spirit so big

picture Jesus has gone out into an unclean land he's met an unclean woman

whose daughter who is also unclean has an unclean spirit it's like layer upon

layer of uncleanness and Jesus has mercy on her he makes her clean the unclean

spirit is driven out and I think our two passages are put there one after the

other kind of pre-emptive of Jesus's death to see that if anyone can make our

hearts clean if anyone can transform our hearts it's Jesus Jesus is the one who

will wash us clean give us a new heart if you're just here today just checking out

church try figure out what Jesus is all about I think here we get a glimpse into

Jesus's love for the unclean people for all of us and also a glimpse into his

transforming work because if Jesus transforms your heart then from the

inside out you will change Jesus changes actually what you love that'll change

what we want and what we want to do each day Jesus is here to forgive us to wash

us clean from the inside out so if you don't know Jesus he's not the one that

you're trusting and in following come today and be washed clean have your

sins forgiven and your heart transformed and like if you are following Jesus

that's still true for us if Jesus is the one that we trust in and follow and I

think our passage calls us to stop trying to make ourselves clean by our

own power to stop being like the Pharisees we so often just try to make

ourselves clean as we fight sin we just do things we take our computer and we

lock it away we double down on discipline we wake up early with more

alarms that we do more things so that then God will forgive us and love us

then that we think that will be holy but Jesus came and died to actually

wash us clean he showed us his love and his heart he showed us the worth of his

life and through his death how much he has given to transform us if we just

work hard if we don't trust and ask for Jesus's help all we're gonna end up

doing in ourselves in our children in our groups in our church is just to

replace visible sins with internal ones and that's terrifying how good is it

that Jesus's death is all that we need and so we can come to him and pray again

and again and again as we wrestle with sin asking for his help and his strength

knowing that he is the one that is actually able to transform us

Jesus is so gentle each day he wants us to come again and again to him

confessing our sins and seeking his help to live loving him I love Jesus's own

words he says come to me all you who are weary and heavy laden I will give you

rest let's come to him now and pray

father we come and we confess that we are so quick so often to attempt to

change our own hearts by our own strength and Lord we can't change ourselves at all

Lord we need what you have accomplished on the cross we need your saving power

your blood to wash us clean

not just from sin initially but from sin in our heart each day transform us

Lord you are a found that does not cease to which we can come to and drink from

each day

Lord lead us there

amen