Our scripture this morning is Matthew 15:8-11.
“This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me; in vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.” And he called the people to him and said to them, “Hear and understand: it is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person, but what comes out of the mouth; this defiles a person.”
Jesus has warned us before that what we say and do is what defines us. It is often the case that what humans say and do are two different things, and this is what leads us into disobedience to God’s law. Jesus makes the point that we do even worse, “teaching as doctrines the commandments of men” (v. 9). We have replaced God’s law with our own.
This straying from the path God intends for us by making wrong choices separates us from Him. While God is always willing to welcome us back, we must recognize our sin and ask His forgiveness. He understands our weakness and longs to help us, but we must first admit our selfishness and return to Him.
God wants the best for us but our free will gives us the ability to do wrong. If this were not so, we wouldn’t have free will. We must always be aware of our capacity for sin and work diligently to avoid it. Sin is easy, faith is hard. Trust in the Lord and He will keep you in His care.
Gracious God, we follow what we want and find ourselves lost among the things of the world. Help us to see Your truth and love in all things and to share that joy with everyone. Amen.