Mark 8:11-15, CEB - The Pharisees showed up and began to argue with Jesus. To test him, they asked for a sign from heaven. With an impatient sigh, Jesus said, “Why does this generation look for a sign? I assure you that no sign will be given to it.” Leaving them, he got back in the boat and crossed to the other side of the lake.
Jesus’ disciples had forgotten to bring any bread, so
they had only one loaf with them in the boat. He gave them strict orders: “Watch out and be
on your guard for the yeast of the Pharisees as well as the yeast of Herod.”
Mainstream Christian theology asserts
that Jesus was at the same time fully human AND fully divine. Millions of pages have been written attempting
to explain this paradoxical concept, but ultimately, it is best to work to
accept it on faith. Unless Jesus is
fully human, He cannot fully bridge the gap between us and God; unless Jesus is
fully God, He cannot save us. Much of
the miracles described in the gospels point to the divinity of Christ, but in
the passage above we catch a glimpse of Jesus’s humanity. Mark recalls Jesus’s “impatient sigh.” Jesus is finding it hard to remain composed in
the presence of the impetuous Pharisees.
Most of us have been there and
understand that kind of exasperation. Someone
or a group of someone’s questions our right to be doing what we are doing. They ask us to prove ourselves even though
they have already seen proof. It seems
they are being confrontational simply to tear us down. We recognize that impatient sigh because it
has rushed from our mouths on multiple occasions.
“No sign will be given,” follows Jesus’s
sigh.
Jesus refuses to play their game
for He knows that it is a losing proposition.
If a sign was given, it would only be followed up with a request for a
further sign. Signs do not result in authentic
faith in those who receive them. They
only placate until a desire for another sign arises. It is faux faith at
best. It is unhealthy dependence on constant
“proof” that our trust in God is justified.
I believe this is one of the
reasons Jesus often tells those He has healed to not talk about it too much. Even
miracles do not produce a healthy faith.
The high experienced when one witnesses the miraculous is short-lived. It will take another miracle to sustain
it. Right before this passage in Mark 8,
the disciples clearly don’t have faith in Jesus’s ability to provide food for
the four thousand even though they witnessed Jesus feed five thousand just days
earlier. They too needed proof that
Jesus could do it again.
The yeast of the Pharisees is this constant
questioning and demand for proof. This
is the basis for Jesus’s scolding of his disciples to avoid this yeast. When Jesus includes “Herod” as part of this
yeast, He is referring to the Sadducees, another group of religious leaders who
were constantly testing Jesus in the same way.
They were often called Herodians because they supported Herod
Antipas. Jesus refers to them as “Herod”
to imply that they were no different than the oppressive ruler himself.
What Jesus is implying by referring
to the Pharisees and Sadducees as yeast is somewhat lost on many modern readers
who aren’t bakers. Yeast is used by
bakers to cause dough to rise and expand.
A miniscule amount of yeast is needed to infiltrate the entire loaf and make
it grow exponentially. What Jesus is saying is that faux faith quickly spreads. A particularly current metaphor that could convey
the same meaning is to call this imposter faith a virus.
As we’ll see in the next
reflection, the disciples are still not getting the message. Mark is hoping that, by telling the story,
the reader will get it. Strive for a
faith deeper than “faith” that requires constant proof. Authentic faith in Jesus based on a relationship
with Jesus Himself serves as “a vaccine” to protect against this Pharisaical
virus.
This is still true today, although the
“virus” has many variants. Faith that
requires answered prayers (defined as getting what I want), success, or any
other condition to be met for that faith to be sustained. The invitation offered to the disciples and
to us is to trust that God will give us what we need when we need it. It is the invitation to trust Jesus’s shepherd-like
compassion for us, knowing he will provide for us. This is hard and all of us seem to catch the
Pharisaical virus sometimes. Hence, Jesus issues the warning to watch out and
guard against it.
Question: Have you
ever caught yourself placing conditions (ie…seeking a sign) on sustained faith
in Jesus?
Prayer: Spirit lead
me where my trust is without borders. Let me walk upon the waters wherever You
would call me. Take me deeper than my feet could ever wander and my faith will
be made stronger in the presence of my Saviour.
Amen.
Prayer Focus: Pray
for people who will be alone on Thanksgiving tomorrow.
Song: Oceans –
Hillsong United (Cover by Hannah Davis)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s-Q1WuWpulY
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