How You Can Test Your Traditions

Our lives are saturated with traditions. 

Those traditions express cultural values.

What are traditions? Are they positive, negative, or just value-neutral? How can we test our traditions? 

Let’s begin by asking: What is a tradition? 

What is tradition?

The Greek word translated as “tradition” in the New Testament (NT) is paradosis. In a literal sense, this conveys the concept of “handing down, or handing on,” understandings and practices to others.

This is consistent with the English meaning of “the handing down of information, beliefs, or customs from one generation to another: a belief or custom handed down by tradition.”[1] 

Traditions are present in virtually everything we do, from how we speak and act (e.g., etiquette), to what and how we eat (e.g., fingers, forks, or chopsticks), to dealing with the sick, the aged, and the dead.  

In the NT, the word paradosis appears 13 times. Some traditions are condemned by Jesus and the apostles (Mark 7:1-13; Galatians 1:13-14; Colossians 2:8), whereas other traditions are approved (1 Corinthians 11:2; 2 Thessalonians 2:15; 3:6).

Let’s consider two traditions. You judge whether they are positive, negative, or value-neutral.

Two Traditions

What do you think of these traditions?

Vehicles in North America drive on the right side of the road; in the United Kingdom, on the left side. Is North America ‘right’ and the UK wrong? 

I would say this tradition is value-neutral. Whether it is the right or left side, it doesn’t matter as long as it is agreed. Different cultures develop different traditions to deal with road safety. 

Here is another tradition. 

Sati or suttee is a practice in which a Hindu widow burns alive on her deceased husband’s funeral pyre.[2]

What do you think of this tradition? Is it negative, positive, or value-neutral?

Hindus might see this as positive, whereas Christians will see this as negative. Why the difference, and how can we intelligently judge the difference? 

Pharisees vs. Jesus 

We gain insight into traditions from a confrontation between Jesus and the Pharisees on the issue (Mark 7:1-23; Matthew 15:1-20). Here is the text of Mark 7:1-13 (NIV). As you read, can you see how Jesus determines the value of a tradition? 

(1-5) The Pharisees and some of the teachers of the law who had come from Jerusalem gathered around Jesus and saw some of his disciples eating food with hands that were “unclean,” that is, unwashed. (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, pitchers and kettles.) So the Pharisees and teachers of the law asked Jesus, “Why don’t your disciples live according to the tradition of the elders instead of eating their food with ‘unclean’ hands?”

(6-8) 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.” 

(9-13) And he said to them: “You have a fine way of setting aside the commands of God in order to observe your own traditions! For Moses said, ‘Honor your father and your mother,’ and, ‘Anyone who curses his father or mother must be put to death.’ But you say that if a man says to his father or mother: ‘Whatever help you might otherwise have received from me is Corban’ (that is, a gift devoted to God), then you no longer let him do anything for his father or mother. Thus you nullify the word of God by your tradition that you have handed down. And you do many things like that.”

Let’s look at this text a little more closely.

A Brief Analysis

Here is a brief analysis of Mark 7:1-13.

Verses 1-5 give us the setting for this confrontation. The Pharisees are condemning the disciples for their lack of ceremonial washings. This is not about basic hygiene; it is about religious ritual.

In verses 6-8, Jesus shifts to the real issue. In general terms, he reveals their hearts using a quotation from the prophet Isaiah. He then states this issue is between God’s commands and men’s traditions. 

In verses 9-13, Jesus reiterates the issue:

“You have a fine way of setting aside the commands of God in order to observe your own traditions!”

Next, he gives a specific example. An adult has plenty of money. That adult’s aging parents might be in desperate need: they do not have a decent place to live and miss many meals.

Through some technicality of tradition, the adult child can declare his or her money a ‘gift’ to God (corban). As a result, the money does not have to be used to alleviate the poverty of his or her parents—the child can continue enjoying it without obligation.

On one hand, God commands children to honor their parents. On the other hand, Jewish tradition enables them to avoid God’s command.

Again, Jesus declares: 

“You nullify the word of God by your tradition that you have handed down. And you do many things like that.”

Weighing Traditions

Jesus weighed a tradition by whether it nullified the word of God, as in the case of corban.

As a follower of Jesus, Paul taught traditions. For instance, he writes:

So then, brothers [and sisters], stand firm and hold to the traditions [paradosis] that you were taught by us, either by our spoken word or by our letter. (2 Thessalonians 2:15 ESV)

Apostolic traditions do not nullify the word of God; they are a way of obeying and expressing the word of God. 

In 1 Corinthians 11:2, Paul also writes:

Now I commend you because you remember me in everything and maintain the traditions even as I delivered them to you.

What follows are apostolic teachings about the relationship of men and women in the church community (11:3-16) and communal participation in the Lord’s Supper (11:27-34). That teaching laid out the word of God. How was it to be practiced?  

A church community should rightly ask, how can we express that teaching to the fullest, and how do we avoid nullifying that teaching? 

In the context of 1 Corinthians 11: 

• What is the obedient expression of the roles and relationship of men and women in our Christian community? Does our practice or tradition nullify the word of God, or does it honor and express it?
• What is a God-honoring way to celebrate the Lord’s Supper? Does our tradition express the instructions of the Lord, or does it contradict his instructions?

Those are not idle questions, especially today in the Western churches, where forces of culture can subtly infiltrate and corrupt the word of God and how we express it in practice.

Reflection

Take some time to reflect on some of your traditions. 

For instance, what traditions do you or your church community have concerning baptism, the Lord’s Supper, or gender roles? Are these traditions expressing or contradicting what the Bible teaches followers of Jesus?

Don’t stop there. Consider other practices and traditions of your Christian community and your own life. What are those traditions? Why do you practice them? What Bible texts form the foundation of your traditions? Are there changes that you need to make in your practices? 

Here are a few other practices and traditions to examine:

• How you deal with the poor and marginalized in your community (help, avoid, etc.). 
• How you dress in public (e.g., 1 Timothy 2:9 – modesty). 
• How you care for the environment. 
• How you conduct your business (customers, employees, etc.). 
• How you speak about others, whether friends, enemies, or strangers. 
• How you care for your parents or the elderly.

Are any of your traditions contradicting, ignoring, or limiting what the Lord desires? 

How can you develop traditions in your life, family, and community that allow for a complete and honest expression of what God wants?

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BACK TO When Culture Is Against Christ

Notes:

[1] Merriam-Webster Dictionary (accessed May 5, 2025). 
[2] Sati (practice), https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sati_(practice), (accessed May 5, 2025).

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