Is Custom Our King?

“Up to this word they listened to him. Then they raised their voices and said, ‘Away with such a fellow from the earth! For he should not be allowed to live.’”—Act 22:22 ESV

As he compiled the first thorough study of world history, Herodotus (writing in the fifth century BC) was struck by the dominance of traditions. He concluded, “Everywhere custom is king.”

We see this pattern during the ministry of Jesus and the early church. Determined to protect their heritage and the purity of their faith, religious leaders allowed customs and traditions to dominate their lives and shade their interpretations and beliefs.

Over and over, audiences were closed to the Gospel as presented by Jesus and His disciples. In effect, people were fighting against God and distorting His plans and purposes.

We see this pattern when Paul addressed a crowd in Jerusalem, sharing what God had revealed to him. But the crowd rejected his message. They were closed to the possibility that he was declaring the truth.

Paul himself might have reached the same conclusion earlier in his life. But he could not deny God’s revelations to him. He had been forced to look at God and His Word in a new light.

We can be critical of those people in Jerusalem, but the fact is that the same patterns are true today. We, too, can find our attitudes shaped by customs and traditions. We can be closed to God’s attempts to open our hearts to help us understand His Word more accurately.

Ask God to open your mind and heart to His understanding.

Reflection Question: Do you find yourself stuck instead of being open to the Spirit’s leading?