Weaponized Traditions

Are traditions, especially in the church, a bad thing? 🤔

Traditions aren’t inherently bad. 

They can actually be a very good thing!

In fact, they shape our society and provide structure. 

But what happens when we start elevating these traditions above the Gospel and God's commandments?

In Mark 7, Jesus challenges the Pharisees who turned traditions into weapons, placing them above God's commandments. 

They were so focused on man-made rituals that they missed the point. 

Their traditions became weapons—used to control, exclude, and overshadow what was truly important. 

When we begin relying too much on the rituals of men, we risk setting them above not just the rituals of God, but the promises of God, too.

Listen to the entire discussion on our YT channel!

Contributor Rev. Harrison Goodman is the Higher Things Content Executive.

Contributor Eli Lietzau is the pastor at Wheat Ridge Evangelical Lutheran Church in Wheat Ridge, CO. 

#lutheran #lcms #higherthings #unculturedsaints #traditions

What is The Uncultured Saints?

We’re told the same thing over and over. Christianity doesn’t fit with today’s culture. The thing is, it isn’t the culture saying it. It’s the church. We’ve done a great job figuring out what we’re not. Sometimes we forget what we are. We’re the saints, washed in the blood of the lamb. We’re sinners Jesus made holy. This defines us. There are places Christianity doesn’t fit with today’s culture because Christianity isn’t bound by culture. We’re free in Christ to be uncultured. Not against it. Not apart from it. Undefined by it, because we’re defined by something greater. Join Pr. Goodman and Pr. Lietzau, the uncultured saints, as we tackle today’s issues through the lens of the Lutheran Confessions and find answers to today’s questions rooted in a timeless truth in Christ.