Mark 7:15

“There is nothing that enters a man from outside which can defile him; but the things which come out of him, those are the things that defile a man.”
Mark 7:15

There is an old saying, “The devil made me do it!” This is often repeated as a joke, but unfortunately, some within the body of Christ really want to give the devil more credit than he is due. Jesus was speaking to the Pharisees and scribes about their hypocritical teachings. He called them out publicly by saying that they honor Him with their lips, but their hearts are far from Him. Man-made restrictions and reinterpretations of God’s word will usually cause one to become more legalistic than honoring God.

We, too, can be guilty of believing that our actions and our works will make us righteous before God. But as the second part of the verse states, “the things which come out of him, those are the things that defile a man.” The heart of man will cause him to do the most vile and wretched things imaginable unless Jesus is kept at the center of one’s heart. The world can offer you many distractions, but those distractions cannot defile us unless we allow the heart to give in to them and thus spew poison.

Guard your hearts and keep Jesus as your guiding light, and nothing that the enemy tempts you with externally will penetrate your outpouring of glory to God.

God Bless,
Paul Provencio