Tradition Learned By Rote
I love the way the NASB translates Isaiah 29:13, because I see the same thing over and over again today. The Lord saw that His people only drew near to Him with their words in lip service, but their hearts were far from Him. Then, He explained the reason for this to Isaiah and the people. It was because their reverence for the Lord consisted of "tradition learned by rote." There is so much to be learned from those 4 words.
Many people have religion based on tradition. The way they worship is just how their parents taught them to worship, but the reason their parents worshiped that way was that their parents did the same thing. It is a result of traditions that may or may not have been grounded in the Word of God. They may have had a good reason for them at one time, but that reason is no longer valid. However, since that is how they learned it, they stick to those things. They do not like change, so no matter what the Bible says, they are not swayed away from their tradition.
However, the main point is that they learned their reverence for God or their worship "by rote." That means they just memorized what someone told them. They did not logically or spiritually think it through. They simply heard or saw what to say and do, and they did it just as they were told, no questions asked. That may be a good way to learn irregular verb forms or words that are difficult to spell in English, but it is not the right way to learn reverence to God. Our worship must come from our hearts. It must be done because of our understanding of His nature and His Word. Then, we worship, and we draw near to Him in all we do, not just in words or with lip service.
Tomorrow, I intend to read Isaiah 30-33.
Many people have religion based on tradition. The way they worship is just how their parents taught them to worship, but the reason their parents worshiped that way was that their parents did the same thing. It is a result of traditions that may or may not have been grounded in the Word of God. They may have had a good reason for them at one time, but that reason is no longer valid. However, since that is how they learned it, they stick to those things. They do not like change, so no matter what the Bible says, they are not swayed away from their tradition.
However, the main point is that they learned their reverence for God or their worship "by rote." That means they just memorized what someone told them. They did not logically or spiritually think it through. They simply heard or saw what to say and do, and they did it just as they were told, no questions asked. That may be a good way to learn irregular verb forms or words that are difficult to spell in English, but it is not the right way to learn reverence to God. Our worship must come from our hearts. It must be done because of our understanding of His nature and His Word. Then, we worship, and we draw near to Him in all we do, not just in words or with lip service.
Tomorrow, I intend to read Isaiah 30-33.