Start from Inside

“Listen to me, all of you, and understand—there is nothing outside a person that by going in can defile, but the things that come out are what defile.” (Mark 7:14-15 NRSV)

Not everyone who met Jesus was impressed with him. We know that was especially true of the scribes and Pharisees. These men were well educated; they had read and studied the scriptures. They knew the laws. They had strict convictions between correct and incorrect behavior for people who wanted to follow God’s teachings. In fact, they saw it as their privilege and responsibility to pass on the traditions of faith and to teach...