THE ELDERS TRADITION AND GOD'S OUTLINED WAY OF LIFE
The traditions of the elders weigh heavily in the life, thought pattern and entire practice of people.
Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD and whose Law Giver is the Maker of Heaven and Earth!
Reflective in every nation and people is the tradition of its ancestral practice and beliefs. Many nations where the Name of the LORD is proclaimed are yet overshadowed by the belief of its ancestors so much that the Word of God comes only far behind after the ancestral views have been satisfied. Hence, God's Word rebukes such as people who keeps God only on their lips but their hearts are so far away from Him.
Give unto Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what belongs to Him is one of the most misunderstood/misinterpreted phrases in the Bible; either willingly or by unfortunate and undone men who, trying to interpret and apply the Word, make a complete compromise of the entire blessed Word. Many had said Caesar in this phrase means the elders' tradition and the gods or idols of the land, which we know are nothing but demons and other categories of evil spirits who will do every thing to receive a worship from God's only created image -man. People therefore pay homage to demons and worship other fallen beings just because someone has successfully made the Word of God of non-effect and brought down the standard of the precious Word of life. Such persons, no matter who they may be are truly not guiltless before God!
Our LORD cried out again and again to the blind, evil minded teachers of the blind that you are the ones who render the Word of God of non-effect because of the traditions of your elders and you teach men to do so. We must therefore get the clear understanding of who and/or what Caesar represents. Let us bear in mind that the LORD told the men to bear a piece of coin and to tell Him whose image was on the money and they replied Him that the image was Caesar's. He advised them then to give to Caesar the money that bears his image; that is they should pay their tax as demanded by the law of the land to Caesar, who was the Governor of that region at that time. So, Caesar represented the government and God is God, the Creator of Heaven and Earth, the Creator of Caesar!
Caesar did not and, presently, does not represent any traditional, ancestral belief or sacrifices to the dead or certain deities. These are traditional practices that are fast killing the undone Christian. We must watch and run away from such. Christ maintains here that we must carry out our duties to the government and to God. 'Giving to Caesar what belongs to him' therefore means carrying out our civic responsibilities and 'giving to God what belongs to God' is simply carrying out our Christian duties as unto God; that is don't serve God without Him and His love in your focus.
Many people are greatly deceived even on the altar of God's service because they are yet to have a firm understanding of the Word and ways of God. Some are even confused, trying to blend men's traditions and the Word of God together. They struggle so much to do so, not knowing that the Word of God can not be helped, it must stand alone before it can manifest its potency. No matter how much sense the tradition of the elders makes, we must understand that it originates from the flesh or from the wisdom of men, silently influenced by some unheard voices which even the elders themselves may not be aware of, especially when it has to do with some religious rites.
These traditions differ from one place to the other; in some places men will never touch money until they have washed their hands. In some other places no body wears a white cloth or colorful cloths, but black upon black when a loved one dies. So many are they! but painful amongst all these are the religious beliefs which seek to nullify God's Word; such as a sacrifice of goat or ram to certain deities for every male child at birth, otherwise the child may die before a certain age. And despite their confession of Christ's Lordship, many Christians still believe in these and practice them. Because these believe strongly in this unfortunate tradition, their belief works against them.
However, true liberty is gained by the correct understanding of the Word of God and the grace found in it and through it. No man can celebrate the Word of God along with the elders' traditions and get God's attention. A man's distraction does not and can never attract God's favor and blessings. So, you must choose one! Either you continue to celebrate the frail men with their thoughts and end up where they ended or you drop men and all their ideas to turn and concentrate on God Almighty. He is waiting, but not for ever.
Lastly, I must emphasize that God's Word is the only guide from God unto man. Every other thing God gives or does is simply to confirm His Word and without the Word, God does nothing! Let the Word of God dwell richly in you; this is the advice given to all Christians by the Apostle. Now, what effort are you making to ensure that the Word of God is fully established in your life. The entrance of the Word of God into any man's life brings light and through understanding, this Word eventually overcomes all forms of shadows and darkness with their evil manifestations like sickness, curses and other experiences of evil oppression. The word of God then enlarges its territory in and through that person in whom it/He dwells. On the other hand, belief in the elders tradition does a lot of havoc in the Christian's mind and understanding of the Word that gives true life. What then do you stand for? Elders' mind and thoughts or God's Word! The choice is yours.
