Many of man’s traditions are in direct opposition to scripture. God’s servants who have pledged allegiance to the scripture cannot in good conscience accept these unscriptural traditions. During the earthly ministry of the Lord Jesus, the religious leaders laid aside (Mark 7:8) or rejected (Mark 7:9) the commandment of God in order to hold (Mark 7:8) or keep (Mark 7:9) the tradition of men. By doing so, the Lord said they made “the word of God of none effect” (Mark 7:13). One who loves the Lord examines every tradition through the lens of scripture to ensure that it does not oppose scripture. He does not accept the commandments of men knowing that God is the source of ultimate truth.
The believer is to allow no place for bitterness within his life. The book of Ephesians directly associates bitterness with the sins of wrath, anger, clamour, evil speaking, and malice. Each of these sins grieves the Spirit of God and ought to grieve the believer. As such, Christians are admonished to put away all bitterness. As bitterness shows itself in the depths of our hearts, we ought to immediately seek the Lord and plead for His help in removing it by its root. In a similar passage (Colossians 3:8), we are admonished to “put off” many of these other sins mentioned. Always keep in mind that bitterness does not edify the believer or those around him, nor does it glorify the Lord. Simply choose to obey God by putting away and putting off bitterness.
