The Proclaimer

Tradition

Tradition affects our lives.  We tend to be creatures of habit.  The traditions of culture dictate a certain behavior.  This can be good or bad depending upon a number of things.  To be sure there are those traditions that have their origin with God.  Paul writes, “Now I praise you, brethren, that you remember me in all things and keep the traditions as I delivered them to you” (1 Cor. 11:3).  What Paul had delivered to them was the commandments of God, even as he writes, “Therefore, brethren, stand fast and hold the traditions which you have been taught, whether by word or our epistle” (2 Thess. 3:15). There are also those traditions that are human in origin and are not instructions from God, but the result of trial and error or the preferences of men.

On one occasion the Pharisees were critical of Christ’s disciples for not following their traditions in the ceremonial washing of their hands.  “But He answered and said to them, ‘Why do you also transgress the commandments of God because of your traditions?’” (Matt. 15:3).  The mistake the Pharisees made was to place their traditions equal, or even superior to the commandments of God.  They treated their human traditions as if they were divine in nature.

While the Pharisees were wrong, we must remember that not all human tradition is bad.  We do some things a certain way because the past has told us that it is the expedient, accommodative and prudent thing to do.  Nevertheless we must not treat these human traditions as if they were the only way to please God.  It is imperative that we do not raise human tradition to the level of divine instruction.

There is, however, another way that God’s word is perverted by the use of tradition.  Modernism has always tried to trivialize the word of God and, therefore, reduce divine authority and its necessity.  Today this is done as some in the church are attempting to take that which is a part of divine instruction and turn it into “Church of Christ” tradition. This is done for the express purpose of reducing God’s instruction to just one choice among many rather than the only alternative to pleasing God.

For instance, in an attempt to justify the use of instrumental music, some brethren are saying that traditionally the music in the worship services of the Church of Christ has been a cappella (singing only).  But the instrument is not used in the worship services of the church not because it is a human tradition, but because it is not authorized.  God commands us to sing thus excluding instruments of music (Eph. 5:19; Col. 3:16).

In an attempt to justify women preachers, others try to make the use of men as leaders in the church purely a part of church tradition. But Paul says, “Let your women keep silent in the churches, for they are not permitted to speak; but they are to be submissive, as the law also says” (1 Cor. 14:34).  Some would even argue that according to Church of Christ tradition baptism is by immersion.  But this is just not so.  There is but “one baptism” (Eph. 4:5), and that one baptism is immersion in water in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins (Acts 2:38; 8:36-38; 22:16; etc.).  In fact, if there is no immersion, there is no baptism for the very word itself means, “to dip or plunge or immerse.”

May God help us to distinguish between His law and the traditions of men, and to give His word its rightful place of preeminence in our lives.    

                                                                                                  -- Clark Dugger

The Proclaimer