Jesus said the traditions of men cancel the Word of God (Mark 7:13). The word tradition in Greek is paradosis. It simply means something handed down. Not always bad, but deadly when what men hand down starts carrying the same weight as what God said. That Greek word cancel is akyroo. It means to void something, to strip it of its legal authority. And the frightening thing is that it does not happen through outright rejection. It happens through slow neglect dressed up as faithfulness. You can attend church every week, own several Bibles, know all the right language, and still never allow God’s Word to actually shape how you think, forgive, give, or love. Presence is comforting. Centrality is transformative. And most of us want God present without ever letting Him be central.

James 1:22 says if you hear the Word and do not do it, you are only fooling yourself. And that is the real danger for a lot of people. Not that they do not know what God says. They know exactly what He says. They have heard it preached. They have read it themselves. But knowing and obeying are two completely different things. Unforgiveness stays. Generosity never comes. Pride never gets dealt with. And life never really changes. Not because God was not speaking, but because hearing became a substitute for obeying. The Word was never given to make us more informed. It was given to make us different.

Just a thought,

PSS