Law and Grace (18) Cultural Markers

The Torah, and especially the book of Leviticus, prescribed cultural markers that would distinguish Israel from the surrounding nations. The laws of justice and crime and the instructions for economic life could not distinguish Israel, because God intended the nations to copy them (Deut 4:5-7). The surrounding nations would not copy the cultural markers like the Sabbath and food laws.

One example of a cultural marker is wearing tassels on garments.

Throughout the generations to come you are to make tassels on the corners of your garments, with a blue cord on each tassel (Num 15:37-40).

The tassels would be a reminder not to “chase after the lusts of their hearts and eyes (Num 15:39). The tassels would not give them a new heart, but they would remind them of who they are and mark them off from the surrounding nations in the same way as a sports uniform distinguishes a sports team. The tassels with blue cords were the original “labelled sweater” showing everyone in the world that they belonged to God.

Judging by Jesus challenges, the Pharisees and teachers of the law had focused on the cultural markers and neglected the more important aspects of the Torah.

Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices—mint, dill and cumin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former (Matt 23:23).

Jesus requires his followers to focus on justice, mercy and the love of God.

Many Christians are getting into Jewish stuff in a big way. However, they seem to focus on the feasts and the sabbath. These are things that Jesus fulfilled. They also pick up some cultural distinctives like Jewish dancing that come from early Jewish communities in Eastern Europe, but are not in the Old Testament. Yet they ignore the really important stuff in the Torah, like the justice system and the instructions for economic life. Their focus seems a bit odd.