Built on the Bible

“For the sake of tradition you have made void the word of God.”

Matthew 15:6

Tradition is a topic that would have been a lot more boring for me to write about twenty, even ten years ago. Yet tradition is a very controversial thing in today’s deconstructionist society, where meaning is up to the interpreter. Take for example, the national anthem. Is it morally right to kneel during the national anthem? How about leave your hat on? While you probably did not think about these as traditions or think about it critically like this, tradition is the only reason that kneeling for the national anthem incites national outrage. Because standing for the national anthem is symbolic of respect for the American tradition and history, it is done by respectful citizens who recognize that while America is far from perfect, it is the land God has placed us in, and as such we ought to seek its good. See how complex a simple tradition can be? We as believers need to realize that tradition is not only in the church, but best illustrated by the church.

Good Traditions

First, we are going to look at good traditions. I have kept this article’s structure pretty simple: good traditions, bad traditions, and how to use discernment. As we look at good traditions, we will see how they involve orthodoxy and orthopraxy. Then we will look at how to guard these.

First, let’s look at good orthodoxy. This kind of tradition is passed down most effectively by parents. Deuteronomy repeatedly talks about teaching children God’s Word, specifically the Law (Deut. 4:10, 6:7, 11:19). Traditional doctrine not only guides rising generations in the home, but it also guides rising generations and older generations in the church. Traditional Christian doctrine is time-tested. Has there been wrong church tradition? Yes! Just ask Martin Luther. However, doctrinal traditions that have firm foundations in Scripture are some of the most sacred gifts that believers have.

Second, let’s look at good orthopraxy. In case you have not noticed how the words are constructed, ortho-doxy basically means good doctrine, and ortho-praxy means good or historic practice, or obedience. So how do we judge orthopraxy? A great place to look at orthopraxy is biographies of past Christians. Believers whose faithfulness has been commended by history are an example to God’s people today. We as Christians can look at those who have gone before us and be encouraged by their biblical living. And obviously, the best place to look for orthopraxy was the life of Jesus Christ. Jesus is the ultimate example of obedience and love (1 John 3:16). When we decide how to live and how to make choices, we ought to look to God’s people who have gone before for wisdom in living.

Finally, we must guard good traditions. The first thing that the church can do is create a culture that respects tradition, not reels at it. We live in a society that is increasingly iconoclastic, or repulsed by traditions. Look to the national anthem, or even sports teams visiting the White House after championships, traditions that are questioned by many. This cultural influence is seen in the church too, with some denominations caving in to culture’s demands and forsaking biblical teaching on gender and sexuality. As believers, we must cling to biblical traditions that help us stay faithful in our walk with Christ and teach these traditions to upcoming generations.

Bad Traditions

Next, let’s look at bad traditions. This is what Jesus was calling out in the verse that inspired this article. There are many examples of bad tradition, but for the sake of time I’ll save those for later. As we did when we looked at good traditions, we are going to look at orthodoxy and orthopraxy. While calling these bad traditions “bad orthodoxy” or “bad orthopraxy” is dangerous since “orthodox” means good teaching, I think that you understand what I mean, in that bad orthodoxy (obviously) is not good teaching.

First, let’s look at bad orthodoxy, or faulty doctrine. I alluded to this earlier when I referenced Martin Luther, the face of the Reformation. Martin Luther rightly questioned the bad orthodoxy of the Roman Catholic Church, who taught that Scripture and the church’s teachings were authoritative. Martin Luther is famous for his teaching of Sola Scriptura, or Scripture alone as the authority for the church. Bad orthodoxy must always be identified with Scripture. If God’s people don’t invest in God’s Word daily, they will crumble when pushed by the pressures of false teaching. This is one of the biggest reasons that ABP is so focused on the Bible. The Bible is the only foundation that can withstand the fierce winds of cultural whims.

Second, let’s look at bad orthopraxy, or a failure to live according to God’s Word passed along through generations. One great example of this in the church is views of slavery. Often, pastors and laypeople were complicit in the evil of chattel slavery. Sometimes they even condoned or participated in this wicked practice. While it would be easy to say, “well we can counter this with the Bible,” many in the church used Scripture to defend chattel slavery. This is where orthodoxy and orthopraxy go hand in hand. When we look in the Old Testament, we see God command Israelite slavery to not be permanent, not to mention the other abuses that occurred in chattel slavery. In God’s Law, slavery is a contract or a debt. In a flawed world, slaves are viewed as property. As believers, we must use sound orthodoxy to advocate for sound orthopraxy.

Finally, we must guard from these bad traditions. When we identify bad traditions, we must warn believers, especially younger generations. Not only should we verbally denounce these bad traditions, but we must actively live in a way that shows that God’s Word is the highest priority in our lives, not the traditions of those around us. While oftentimes the traditions around us are good, we must be willing to go against them if God’s Word calls us to.

Using Discernment

To conclude, I’d like to add a brief word on discernment. How are believers to know whether traditions are good or bad? Oftentimes, there is grey area left in Scripture for certain traditions. How should we treat these? First, we must seek to get a whole-Bible perspective on the tradition. While there may not be one verse that specifically talks about a tradition, a whole Bible narrative can help us as our guide. Another help in discernment is the church. The local church can guide us as we seek to conform our lives to the Bible. Finally, we must ask how this tradition glorifies Jesus and points us to Him. If it has the opposite effect, we probably don’t need it.

Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. May not copy or download more than 500 consecutive verses of the ESV Bible or more than one half of any book of the ESV Bible.