I recently listened to an old lecture by Dallas Willard at Denver Theological Seminary. He talked about three main ways people can turn away from God’s purposes. The first is the flesh, which means our natural tendency to live in rebellion against God. The second is the world’s system, made up of people driven by their flesh, and the way it complements personal rebellion against God. The third temptation is the devil himself, who works behind the flesh and the world’s system.
One student asked Dallas Willard what he thought about the devil. Willard explained that the devil mainly attacks our thinking.
When the devil appeared to Eve in the garden as a serpent, he attacked God’s character and questioned His word. In the first verses of Matthew 15, the scribes and Pharisees are attacking Jesus’ character and the truthfulness of His words.
They are being used by the devil to put wrong thoughts into people’s minds. In this section, Jesus addresses these concerns to help the crowd understand how to think about Him properly.
“Then he called the crowd to him and said to them, ‘Listen and understand: it is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person, but it is what comes out of the mouth that defiles.'” (Matthew 15:10-11)
This conversation comes after the Pharisees accused Jesus of letting his followers eat with unwashed hands. In response, Jesus told them that their traditions, like washing hands before eating, were made by humans and not part of God’s law.
Now, Jesus explains why it’s okay for His disciples to eat with unwashed hands.
We can assume the crowd is still there. The disciples asked Jesus why He said it’s not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person, but what comes out. Jesus is addressing not just His close followers, but also those in the crowd who might be undecided, guiding them toward faith.
Offended Religious Leaders
Before Jesus could explain to the people about what goes into the mouth versus what comes out, he had to answer a question about the religious leaders being offended. What’s interesting is that they likely got even more offended by his response to the disciples.
“Then the disciples approached and said to him, ‘Do you know that the Pharisees took offense when they heard what you said?’ He answered, ‘Every plant that my heavenly Father has not planted will be uprooted. Let them alone; they are blind guides of the blind. And if one blind person guides another, both will fall into a pit.'” (Matthew 15:12-14)
A friend from my seminary days loved going to the horse races in New Orleans. There’s an old expression for horse racing: “You don’t beat a dead horse.” It means if your horse is down, using the riding crop won’t help; it’s not going anywhere.
This applies to Jesus and the Pharisees too. They were listening to his response. What he said was meant to provoke them. He knew they weren’t spiritually dead, and like a jockey using a riding crop to push the horse to run faster, He wanted them to examine their lives. Were they leading people into a pit? Would they be uprooted by the Father?
He likely did this to give them a chance to repent. He does the same thing with us to spur us to greater devotion to the Lord.
What Your Words Reveal
I hope when you read the Gospels, you’ll notice how Jesus trained his disciples. It’s comforting to know they also had to learn, even though they spent all their time with Jesus, listening to him and seeing him in action. If they had to learn, so do we.
This is the interaction between Peter and Jesus, spoken for the benefit of the crowd, the religious leaders, and the other disciples.
“But Peter said to him, ‘Explain this parable to us.’ Then he said, ‘Are you also still without understanding? Do you not see that whatever goes into the mouth enters the stomach and goes out into the sewer? But what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this is what defiles. For out of the heart come evil intentions, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false witness, slander. These are what defile a person, but to eat with unwashed hands does not defile.'” (Matthew 15:15-20)
The list of things that come from our heart can be linked to the commandments God gave his people when he handed Moses the tablets on Mount Sinai.
Contrary to popular belief today, the biblical understanding of the heart is not just about emotions. It is actually the center of our intellect and will. When our mind focuses on what is wrong, it affects us inside and shows up in our actions as well.
Reflections
Remember when Mike Tyson bit off part of Evander Holyfield’s ear during a heavyweight title match? Tyson had a flimsy excuse, basically saying he really wasn’t like that. But during the lecture at the Denver Theological Seminary, Dallas Willard pointed out that it was exactly who Tyson was; his act revealed his true self.
Now, let’s reflect on our own hearts and the words we use. Do we sometimes say, “It’s not me?” If so, we might need to consider what Jesus said: What comes out of our mouths reflects who we really are.
To change what we say and how we act, we need to change our heart, that is, our mind and will. It might help to think about what Paul said to the Romans as we reflect on this today.
“I appeal to you therefore, brothers and sisters, on the basis of God’s mercy, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your reasonable act of worship. Do not be conformed to this age, but be transformed by the renewing of the mind, so that you may discern what is the will of God—what is good and acceptable and perfect.” (Romans 12:1-2)
YouTube Discussion
Rudy Ross, Bruce Kirby, and I discussed this passage on YouTube today.
Real Voices 