Traditions of men vs. Gospel of Christ

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 but rules taught by men.'  You have let go of the commands of God and are holding on to the traditions of men."  And he said to them: "You have a fine way of setting aside the commands of God in order to observe your own traditions!  (Mark 7:6-9)

It is amazing, how easy, as disciples, we could slip back to observe our own culture and traditions.  What, after all, is a culture?  Is culture for or against the gospel?  I lived in the United States for 10 years as an impressionable teenager.  I can say that I have experienced both the American and Chinese culture up-close and personal.  While there are many admirable values within each culture, I also see many traditions within each.  My conclusion through the bi-culture experience and my study of the word of God is that a culture[1] is not neutral to the Gospel, but hostile and enemy to the very Spirit of God!  While his conclusion might be shocking and offensive to some, but upon closer inspection, we might realize that culture is formed through the repetitive practice of the desires and habits of a group of people!  When God says, (and many parents would readily concur), in Genesis 8:21, “every inclination of his heart is evil from childhood,” we can’t help but identify culture, (as originated and reinforced through the desires and habits of the masses), is hostile to the gospel of Jesus Christ.  As disciples, are we aware of many of the influence our culture has on ourselves?

Since the last time the word kadash[2] was mentioned, I am glad that more and more disciples are re-examine their spiritual life in the context of being set apart and being different from the world—counter-cultural.  Let’s take singles as an example.  The dating in the Chinese culture can be full of insecurities, mind-games, and impure motives.  We, as a church, can live out a kadosh single life, having pure, healthy, and open friendship with our brothers and sisters in Christ!  In the past couple of months, I have been getting with many Dating Shepherds in the church to plan the “Ji-Sum Pair,” (Hong Kong version of the Taiwan “Pre-go”), a daring counter-cultural event for the singles in June.  The singles in the world are scared by the divorce statistics, greedy to make more money, fearful of making a commitment, and unable to embrace vulnerability have resulted in either no friendship with the opposite sex, or dysfunctional relationships.  I believe this “Ji-Sum Pair” event could show the world a kadosh friendship with someone we might want to get to know better.  With extra bit of faith and courage, who knows, we might be a step closer to the blessings that God has all along been waiting to grant us!

While we congratulate the singles in the church having this opportunity to kadash our dating life, as marrieds or students, how can we take kadesh to our everyday lives?  Can I be different in the way I think?  Can I be different with how I react to events?  Can I be purposefully different to show the non-Christians around me that I have been set apart for God for a holy purpose?  Let us re-evaluate the things we do and the thoughts we keep and strive to glorify Him in our choices!

Lead Evangelist,

Steve Chin