What is the meaning of Matthew 15:20? These are what defile a man Jesus has just listed what flows from the heart: “evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander” (Matthew 15:19). • “These” sins are moral, not ceremonial. They spring from within and corrupt the whole person (Mark 7:20-23). • Scripture always traces uncleanness to the heart: “Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues of life” (Proverbs 4:23). • The prophet confirms the same: “The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure” (Jeremiah 17:9). • Paul echoes the principle: “To the defiled and unbelieving, nothing is pure, but both their minds and consciences are defiled” (Titus 1:15). In every age, God’s verdict is consistent: inner sin, not external circumstance, separates us from Him. but eating with unwashed hands The Pharisees accused the disciples of breaking “the tradition of the elders” (Matthew 15:2), a man-made ritual added to God’s Law. • Mark notes the custom: Jews “do not eat unless they wash their hands ceremonially, holding to the tradition of the elders” (Mark 7:3-4). • Luke shows how offensive it seemed when Jesus ignored the practice (Luke 11:38). • Such traditions promised a sense of control, yet Colossians 2:20-22 warns against “submit to regulations… according to human commands and teachings.” Jesus exposes the emptiness of ritual when the heart remains unchanged. Hygiene is wise, but it carries no spiritual merit. does not defile him Outward acts—apart from clear commands of God—cannot make a person spiritually unclean. • Peter learned the same in a vision: “What God has cleansed, you must not call common” (Acts 10:15). • Paul affirms, “I know and am persuaded in the Lord Jesus that nothing is unclean in itself” (Romans 14:14). • Again, “Food will not bring us near to God; we are no worse if we do not eat, and no better if we do” (1 Corinthians 8:8). • Everything created by God is “good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving” (1 Timothy 4:4-5). Jesus shifts the focus from ritual purity to heart purity, preparing His followers for the once-for-all cleansing achieved at the cross (Hebrews 9:13-14). summary Matthew 15:20 teaches that true defilement is moral and spiritual, springing from an unredeemed heart, not from external habits like eating with unwashed hands. Man-made traditions may polish the outside, but only repentance and faith in Christ cleanse the inside. By exposing empty rituals, Jesus calls us to guard our hearts and live in the transforming purity He alone provides. |
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