JUNE 28, 2 Thessalonians 2:15

Traditions are teachings and practices that our ancestors abide by and pass on to future generations. We know of many man-made traditions: no wearing of black clothes during Chinese New Year celebrations; no wearing of red attire during a funeral. Some traditions involve numbers: in Cantonese, the number “4” sounds like “death”; the number “8” sounds like “prosperity”.

In today’s verse, Paul exhorted the church to hold fast to the traditions which they were taught. These traditions were definitely not man-made. What were they? Traditions here were the doctrines taught by Paul, other Apostles and includes the Gospel. The Gospel was proclaimed orally by Christ and the apostles and later, was penned down in the Bible. God’s Word was handed from God to man and passed down to future generations. The Bible is thus an old Book of historic Faith that was passed down to us.

Deviating from Christian traditions is rejecting the old Book and the old Faith. When man wrongly interprets the Bible, like the Pharisees did, they twist the Word of God. What did the Pharisees do? They made their own interpretations and ideas more holy than God’s teachings. They had a ‘form of godliness’, which means they appeared to be holy, but our Lord called them hypocrites. The Pharisees tried to show off their ‘godliness’ but actually were spiritually dead inside; they were not true Christians. Today, this is common in many so-called Christian organisations such as churches, schools, charity organisations, etc. They try to do ‘Christian’ things but they may not be Christians.

A tradition based on the Word of God is a right tradition. Beware of man-made ones. Many have regarded the Word of God as old and obsolete and say it is no longer applicable today. But old is good. The Bible has encountered countless attacks and triumphed over them. It is tested and can be trusted.

Thought: Love the Bible!

Prayer: Heavenly Father, help me to love the Bible, read it, keep it and live by it. In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.