Testing Traditions: How I Learned to Weigh Everything Against Scripture

Asking Where a Practice Came From

One of the things I’ve always tried to do is learn the history and purpose of a belief or practice. As I encountered Jewish and Messianic traditions, I began asking where they came from and how the communities practicing them understood their meaning.

I learned that Jewish observance cannot be traced to one source alone. Practices may be shaped through the Written Torah, rabbinic interpretation, halakhah, liturgy, communal history, and local custom. Messianic and Christian communities also develop traditions, and practices vary within every faith community.

The Bible itself does not use the word tradition as though it were always negative. In Mark 7, Jesus challenges a specific practice that was being used to undermine the command to honor one’s parents; the passage should not be turned into a rejection of all Jewish tradition. In 1 Corinthians 11:2, Paul positively refers to traditions being maintained. First Thessalonians 5:21 offers the principle that became important to me: test everything and hold fast to what is good.

So I began asking more careful questions: Is this a biblical command, an interpretation, a community custom, or a personal devotional practice? What does it mean to the people who observe it? If I am considering it for my own Christian discipleship, does it align with Scripture and draw me toward faithful love of God and neighbor?

Appreciation Without Appropriation or Obligation

There were moments when I tried to adopt certain traditions because they were meaningful or beautiful. I wanted to honor what I was learning and remain open. Some practices became life-giving rhythms for me; others did not feel like something I was called to carry.

I also learned that difficulty alone is not a reliable test of truth. A meaningful discipline can require patience and growth. Instead of treating discomfort as proof that a practice was wrong, I needed to understand its purpose, seek wise counsel, consider its context, and honestly examine why I wanted to adopt it.

That realization helped me distinguish appreciation from obligation—and appreciation from appropriation. I could respect a Jewish practice, learn why it mattered, and participate when appropriately invited without assuming it belonged to me or judging its value by whether it pointed to a Christian conclusion.

Holding Fast With Humility

Testing traditions against Scripture became part of my discernment, but I no longer wanted “testing” to mean approaching another community’s faith with suspicion. It meant studying carefully, listening to people within the tradition, recognizing the limits of my understanding, and deciding responsibly what I believed God was asking of me.

For my own Christian practice, Scripture remained central. At the same time, I could acknowledge that Jewish communities understand the relationship between Written Torah, Oral Torah, and halakhah within their own living tradition. Respect did not require pretending our frameworks were identical.

Not every inherited practice is harmful, and not every practice belongs to every person. Discernment asks us to seek what is true while remaining humble about people whose faithful path looks different from ours.

Have you ever studied a tradition more carefully and discovered that its meaning was richer—or more complex—than you first assumed?

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