Tradition: Honouring the Past Without Losing the Truth
An inherited pattern of belief or behaviour can carry faith from one generation to the next — or quietly hollow it out. This article examines how to honour what has been handed down while keeping Scripture, not custom, as the final authority.
What Tradition Is
An inherited pattern of thought or action that has survived the test of time, linking us back to something our culture has valued in the past. ‘Things have always been done this way’ is an entrenched, set pattern of unquestioningly following procedures of the past (maybe even with no understanding of how they developed), yet this doesn’t necessarily make it right. Traditions often have their roots in the observance of significant events; however, they are often progressively distorted over time.
Discover the deeper meaning behind your traditions to keep them alive
Ceremonies that once commemorated meaningful ‘life’ experiences, helping keep the memory alive, can revert to dead rituals and forms, devoid of enthusiasm and any resemblance to the original. Repeated without understanding or heart engagement, they become lifeless rituals — outward forms that continue long after their inner significance has been forgotten, leaving participants going through the motions with nothing real at the centre. Consequently, we should check whether the spiritual traditions we follow agree with Scripture; if there is a discrepancy, hold to truth rather than tradition (Deut 18:9; Jn 17:17; Acts 17:11; 1 Tim 4:7; 1 Pet 1:18). Although they may of themselves be neither right nor wrong, traditions can help or hinder, reinforce or mask something of value.
When Tradition Overrides Scripture
The religious leaders in Christ’s day followed their own teachings ("the commandments of men"), while ignoring the commands of Scripture; consequently, the power of God was void and ineffective because of their slavish commitment to distorted traditions, with their worship of God pointless (Mt 15:2-9; Mk 7:3-13). Do our Christian traditions agree with the Bible, or are they also warped? We must maintain a clear distinction between what is binding (God’s commands) and what is not binding (human tradition). Error comes when we don't know what the Bible teaches (Mt 22:29).
The teachings of the Bible must take precedence over tradition and ritual
Mark 7:13 pinpoints exactly what happened: "making the word of God of no effect through your tradition which you have handed down". Their tradition did not merely sit alongside Scripture — it nullified it, cancelled out its authority in practice. The 'Corban' rule (Mk 7:11-12) sounded devout — dedicating money and possessions to God — yet it became a religious loophole for evading the clear command to honour and support one's parents (Ex 20:12). Human reasoning, dressed up in spiritual language, was allowed to override a written command of God, and the result was worship that was empty and hearts that were far from Him (Mk 7:6). The danger is rarely a deliberate rejection of the Bible; it is the subtle replacement of it — when our customs, preferences, denominational habits and 'how we've always done it' carry more practical weight in our decisions than what Scripture plainly says. Any tradition that contradicts, displaces or dulls the effect of God's Word must be discarded, however long-standing, respected or sentimental it may be, for truth has precedence over tradition. The test is simple: does this practice submit to Scripture, or does Scripture have to give way to it?
Keeping Tradition in Its Place
Are we set in our religious traditions, expecting God to only work in specific ways? Traditions should be helps, not hindrances to our ongoing, deepening faith in Christ. It is the responsibility of those who know the genuine facts to accurately pass them on by explaining their significance so they affect and govern the lifestyle of future generations (Ex 12:24-27; Josh 4:6-7). Even our family traditions should be reviewed to gauge if they are still relevant or if they are just baggage from the past, meaningful then, but now an unnecessary hindrance. However, as we all have different values for observing special occasions, don’t let others force their views on you (Col 2:16).
The focus and emphasis of our practices should not be on any outward observance but on a heart response to Christ. In our worship, traditions and ceremonies can bring us closer to God, but don’t criticise those who do things differently to us, for the Bible doesn’t so much define how we should worship as who we should worship. The Bible warns us to be on our guard so that no one leads us astray through the traditions of men and human reasoning, away from the truth that is only found in Christ (Col 2:8). Timothy was told to stay strong in the Word of God (2 Tim 4:2-5). Through the power of the Holy Spirit, it is God’s Word that is our weapon against Satan and the deceptions of this world (Eph 6:17; Heb 4:12). This is the weapon "It is written..." that Jesus used against Satan's attacks (Mt 4:1-11).
Through tradition, the dimension of intimacy can be lost
The New Testament traditions that were passed on had their beginnings in Christ’s teaching and the message was to withdraw from those who claim to know Christ but are not living by those principles, for these traditions are not human ideas or a distortion of the truth (Lk 1:2,4; Act 2:42; 1 Cor 11:2,23-26, 15:3; 2 Thes 2:15, 3:6; 2 Pet 1:16, 3:16).
Paul had been zealously dedicated to the religious traditions of his predecessors when God revealed Jesus to him, and his testimony was that he had abandoned them all, considering them worthless because he found the reality, the One whom the traditions had misrepresented (Gal 1:14; Phil 3:4-9).
Reflection and Application
- Review the traditions you keep — family, church and cultural — and test each one against Scripture.
- Learn the purpose and ‘inner meaning’ behind what you practise, so tradition stays alive rather than sterile.
- Distinguish between what is binding (God’s commands) and what is not binding (human tradition).
- Focus your worship on a heart response to Christ rather than outward observance, without criticising those who do things differently.
See also: assumptions, culture, family line, habits, heritage, ritual, teaching.