The Null Effect: When Tradition Cancels Truth

There is a sobering statement Jesus made in Scripture that should cause every believer to pause and reflect.

He said:

9 He said to them, “All too well you reject the commandment of God, that you may keep your tradition. 10 For Moses said, ‘Honor your father and your mother’; and, ‘He who curses father or mother, let him be put to death.’ 11 But you say, ‘If a man says to his father or mother, “Whatever profit you might have received from me is Corban”—’ (that is, a gift to God), 12 then you no longer let him do anything for his father or his mother, 13 making the word of God of no effect through your tradition which you have handed down. And many such things you do.”— Mark 7:9–13

Think about that carefully.

The Word of God is powerful.

It heals, restores, renews, guides, protects, and transforms. Yet Jesus shows us that there is something capable of neutralizing its effect in a person’s life.

Tradition.

This is what I would call the null effect—when truth is present, but its power is cancelled because human beliefs, assumptions, and inherited ideas have taken its place.

Many believers are not lacking access to God’s Word. They are lacking freedom from traditions that oppose it.

When What You Were Told Becomes Stronger Than What God Said

Tradition is not always bad. Some traditions are harmless, helpful, or culturally meaningful.

But tradition becomes dangerous when it begins to hold more authority in our hearts than Scripture.

This often happens quietly.

We hear something repeatedly.

We inherit a belief from family.

We adopt a popular Christian saying.

We accept a cultural mindset.

And over time, we begin to treat it as though it came from God—even when it did not.

One classic example is the phrase:

“God works in mysterious ways.”

Many people quote this as if it were Scripture.

IT IS NOT.

There is no verse that says this phrase in the way it is commonly used. Yet this idea has shaped the faith of many believers.

Because of it, some conclude:

• suffering must be God’s hidden plan

• tragedy must be His mysterious design

• confusion must be His will

• destruction must be part of His secret purpose

But when beliefs like this become our lens, we distort the character of God.

The Difference Between Sovereignty and Confusion

Yes, God is sovereign.

He is supreme, all-wise, and above all.

But sovereignty does not mean unpredictability.

It does not mean cruelty.

It does not mean random harm.

It does not mean that everything painful is His direct hand at work.

Sometimes we paint a morbid picture of God—as though He casually decides wars, natural disasters, plagues, accidents, and heartbreak according to mood.

That picture is not rooted in the revealed heart of God through Christ.

Jesus said:

“He who has seen Me has seen the Father.”— John 14:9

If you want to know what God is like, look at Jesus.

Jesus healed.

Jesus restored.

Jesus delivered.

Jesus comforted.

Jesus fed the hungry.

Jesus calmed storms.

Jesus did not move through the world creating destruction to teach lessons.

God Is Bound by His Word

One of the most powerful truths in Scripture is that God honors His own Word.

In His sovereignty, He chose to exalt His Word and remain faithful to His covenant.

God is not two-faced.

He does not establish promises with one hand and violate them with the other.

If in Christ we have been brought into covenant relationship with God, then we must learn to interpret life through covenant truth rather than through inherited fear.

That does not mean believers never face difficulty. Clearly, we do.

But difficulty should not automatically be interpreted as God attacking us.

Sometimes what appears to be confusion about God is actually the collision of two systems:

• what Scripture says

• what tradition taught us

And where those two conflict, many believers suffer inwardly.

They mistrust God.

They become disappointed with Him.

They struggle to pray with confidence.

Not because God changed—but because their beliefs about Him were flawed.

The Null Effect in Wellness

This principle does not stop at theology. It reaches into health and wellness too.

Many people live under traditions that cancel truth in the area of health.

They may believe:

You cannot get real exercise unless you go to the gym.

The only good protein comes from animal foods.

All carbohydrates are bad.

Everyone in my family is obese, so I must be obese too.

A larger body always means health and strength.

These beliefs can become strongholds. Not because they are true—but because they are repeated.

Just as religious traditions can make God’s Word ineffective, wellness traditions can make sound health principles ineffective.

A person may know movement matters, yet never walk because they believe exercise only “counts” in a gym.

Another may know whole foods nourish the body, yet remain confused because they believe every carbohydrate is harmful.

Another may feel doomed by family history and never attempt change because they inherited the belief that their future is fixed.

This is the null effect in health.

Truth is available.

But tradition blocks transformation.

Examine the Evidence

When it comes to wellness, ask:

What evidence supports this belief?

Is this medically sound?

Is it based on outcomes or assumptions?

Is it truth—or simply what people around me repeat?

And when it comes to faith, ask:

What does Scripture actually say?

Not what was commonly said.

Not what was emotionally persuasive.

Not what was passed down unquestioned.

What did God reveal in His Word?

Let the Word Have Full Effect

God never intended for traditions to govern your life more than truth.

Jesus confronted tradition not because He disliked culture, but because He loved people too much to let falsehood imprison them.

The goal is not rebellion for rebellion’s sake. The goal is freedom through truth.

So bring your beliefs into the light.

Test them.

Refine them.

Replace what is false.

Whether in your spiritual life or your health journey, do not allow old ideas to cancel present truth.

Let the Word of God have full effect in you.

Let evidence shape your wellness decisions.

Let covenant truth shape your view of God.

And where tradition has spoken loudly, allow truth to speak louder still.

I love you,

Oyin