1 Peter 1:18-19 For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your forefathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect.

This verse is particularly appropriate in Japan at this time of year. We are in the second day of the annual Obon Festival, which is a time of honoring dead ancestors. Even non-Christian Japanese are likely to acknowledge the absurdity of most of the traditions involved in the festival, but that doesn’t keep them from taking part, because it’s a “traditional, family time.” Even those who follow Christ sometimes have a hard time separating from the idolatry involved, again because it is “family tradition.” The point is, traditions are very powerful, and should not be taken lightly. Many churches have been split over traditions! Traditions are not bad because they are traditions, but they can be risky if we follow them blindly. We are too prone to think that in following our traditions we are following God, when sometimes it is those very traditions that get in the way of our hearing God.

Having been raised in a strongly Christian family, I have been tempted to think all our traditions were unquestionable, but that was indeed a temptation, and as such, not from God. It’s not that our family traditions were bad, it’s that I needed to have the direct relationship with God that generated those traditions, and not rely on the traditions themselves. When we were newly married, it was a major collision between Cathy and me when we came to our first Christmas. Reconciling our differing family traditions took a lot of work! There were reasons for each tradition, and we had to examine not just the tradition but the reason for it. At that point we weren’t so tuned to listening to God, or it would have gone much more smoothly! Our daughters have their own traditions now, and thankfully they have come back to the reasons for some of the traditions they grew up with. As a pastor, I need to help the believers examine not only the sources of their traditions, but also the results of them. Biblical traditions, that is, those that line up with the Bible, will produce not only peace and joy but also a closer walk with God.

Father, thank You for the traditions in which I grew up. Thank You especially for parents and grandparents who loved You so fully. I ask for Your wisdom and anointing as I minister to those who have not been so blessed in their upbringing, so that together we may avoid the traps of the devil and walk in all that You have for us, for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!