April 6, 2018 at 1:53 p.m.
GOOD NEWS FOR KIDS
WASHING YOUR HEART
Jesus, help me "wash my heart clean" by being good and helping other people! Amen.
Some people saw that Jesus' followers weren't obeying one of their laws: They didn't wash their hands before they ate. "Why not?" the people asked. Jesus answered, "You've made laws out of habits. Those laws didn't come from God." Having dirty hands wouldn't hurt, Jesus added: "What hurts people doesn't come from the outside, but from inside their hearts, where they sin."
Does your family have a lot of rules? Some kids come from families where bedtimes are strict, everyone has a list of chores and you know you'd better be doing homework in the evening when your parents check on you, not posting to Instagram.
Even if your family isn't as strict about rules, having any rules at all can make a kid feel resentful. In this week's Gospel (Mark 7:1-8,14-15,21-23), Jesus talks about rules that really matter, and rules that are going too far.
Having some rules keeps families going. If you never had an adult say, "Sit down and do your homework," you'd be tempted to do other things until the last minute. Then your homework would be rushed and full of mistakes, or it wouldn't get done at all.
Jesus didn't object to all rules, just when people made lots and lots of rules and claimed that God wanted it that way. Some people even said it was a sin not to wash their hands before eating! Jesus said it's healthy to wash your hands, but it's not a sin against God if you don't.
Just like you should focus on homework over Instagram, but still have some fun online, Jesus wanted people to focus less on a checklist of rules they thought would satisfy God, and more on the big stuff like praying to God and being nice to others.
Washing your hands is great -- but, if you have to choose, Jesus would rather you washed your heart clean![[In-content Ad]]
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