May 18
Lesson 12
JESUS’ TEACHING ON THE LAW
DEVOTIONAL READING: Matthew 5:14–20
BACKGROUND SCRIPTURE: Exodus 20; Isaiah 29:13, 14; Matthew 5:17–48; 15:1–20; Romans 3:31
MATTHEW 15:1–11, 15–20
1 Then came to Jesus scribes and Pharisees, which were of Jerusalem, saying,
2 Why do thy disciples transgress the tradition of the elders? for they wash not their hands when they eat bread.
3 But he answered and said unto them, Why do ye also transgress the commandment of God by your tradition?
4 For God commanded, saying, Honour thy father and mother: and, He that curseth father or mother, let him die the death.
5 But ye say, Whosoever shall say to his father or his mother, It is a gift, by whatsoever thou mightest be profited by me;
6 And honour not his father or his mother, he shall be free. Thus have ye made the commandment of God of none effect by your tradition.
7 Ye hypocrites, well did Esaias prophesy of you, saying,
8 This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me.
9 But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.
10 And he called the multitude, and said unto them, Hear, and understand:
11 Not that which goeth into the mouth defileth a man; but that which cometh out of the mouth, this defileth a man.
15 Then answered Peter and said unto him, Declare unto us this parable.
16 And Jesus said, Are ye also yet without understanding?
17 Do not ye yet understand, that whatsoever entereth in at the mouth goeth into the belly, and is cast out into the draught?
18 But those things which proceed out of the mouth come forth from the heart; and they defile the man.
19 For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies:
20 These are the things which defile a man: but to eat with [unwashed] hands defileth not a man.
KEY VERSES
This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me. But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.—Matthew 15:8, 9
JESUS’ FULFILLMENT OF SCRIPTURE
Unit 3: Jesus’ Use of Scripture
LESSONS 10–13
LESSON AIMS
After participating in this lesson, each student will be able to:
1. Summarize the conflict between Jesus and His opponents regarding the nature of “tradition.”
2. Explain how the Pharisees’ attempts to enforce law-keeping actually resulted in nullifying God’s Word.
3. Analyze some personal, family, or church traditions to see whether they need to be discarded or revised in order to keep God’s Word more perfectly.
Nugent, John et al. “Jesus’ Teaching on the Law.” The KJV Standard Lesson Commentary, 2013–2014. Ed. Ronald L. Nickelson & Jonathan Underwood. Vol. 61. Cincinnati, OH: Standard Publishing, 2013. 322. Print.
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