Wash Hands

WASH HANDS
Matthew 15:1-11
v.8: “These people honor Me with their lips, but their hearts are far from Me.”

Tanesha cupped her hands around her mouth whispering into Nakeo’s ear, “Molly didn’t wash her hands after going to the bathroom.”
“Really?”
“Yeah, positive. We were the only two girls in the restroom.”
“Euooo! How gross!” Nakeo said, making a face.

You never know who doesn’t wash their hands after using the toilet. We shake people’s hands upon meeting. We show friendship by hugging. We share pencils, pens, phones, desks, books, pass papers, and borrow each other’s iPods. The latest pandemic of Swine Flu motivated President Obama to advise, “Wash your hands!”

Even back in Jesus’ time, people were supposed to wash their hands before eating. (Matthew 15:2). Jesus wanted to show the Pharisees and teachers of the law the difference between God’s commandments and man-made laws.

He said, “What goes into a man’s mouth does not make him ‘unclean’, but what comes out of his mouth, that is what makes him ‘unclean.’” Out of the heart proceed evil thoughts,...blasphemies. These are the things which defile a man. (Matthew 15:19-20).

Looking good doesn’t reveal what’s in people’s hearts, and we never know what’s on their minds. We’re not telepathic. (Tel-e-PATH-ik). But there was one guy who could read minds. He blew the whistle on men who looked holy on the outside, but were spiritually defiled.

Jesus accused the Pharisees of prioritizing man-made laws ahead of God’s. He reminded them that righteousness is not achieved by working from the outside-in. Spiritual health is attained only through God’s transforming a person from the inside-out. The Pharisees made a point to look good in public, but Jesus knew that their hearts were messed up, diseased. Jesus talked straight to these holy men, knowing what they were up to: They wanted to catch Jesus’ disciples in a sin, breaking God’s law. Breaking religious tradition by not washing hands before eating may be unsanitary, but it’s not a sin.

God provided us wondrous bodies, and we can fight off most germs. What we eat goes to the stomach and travels out of the body. But what comes out of the mouth originates inside the heart.

How does a heart display itself when a mouth spews out hurtful, filthy words?

Did you ever gossip about someone like Tenesha ratted out Molly to Nakeo?

Take Home Nugget

Spiritual health has no connection to how we look on the outside. How we live broadcasts what’s inside our heart.

Hypocrites are famous for not walking their talk.
Psalm 139: 23-24 asks God to search our heart and lead us to victory.

J.D. Griffith

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Written for Bible Study for Kids.