Matthew 16:1-12, The Message - Some Pharisees and
Sadducees badgered him again, pressing him to prove himself to them. He told
them, “You have a saying that goes, ‘Red sky at night, sailor’s delight; red
sky at morning, sailors take warning.’ You find it easy enough to forecast the
weather—why can’t you read the signs of the times? An evil and wanton
generation is always wanting signs and wonders. The only sign you’ll get is the
Jonah sign.” Then he spun around and walked away.
On their way to the other side of the lake, the disciples
discovered they had forgotten to bring along bread. In the meantime, Jesus said
to them, “Keep a sharp eye out for Pharisee-Sadducee yeast.”
Thinking he was scolding them for forgetting bread, they
discussed in whispers what to do. Jesus knew what they were doing and said,
“Why all these worried whispers about forgetting the bread? Baby believers!
Haven’t you caught on yet? Don’t you remember the five loaves of bread and the
five thousand people, and how many baskets of fragments you picked up? Or the
seven loaves that fed four thousand, and how many baskets of leftovers you
collected? Haven’t you realized yet that bread isn’t the problem? The problem
is yeast, Pharisee-Sadducee yeast.” Then they got it: that he wasn’t concerned
about eating, but teaching—the Pharisee-Sadducee kind of teaching.
Back
when we were in Matthew 12, we hear Jesus having almost the same encounter with
the Pharisees – the Pharisees asking for a sign and Jesus scolding them. He tells them again that “the only sign
you’ll get is the Jonah sign.” Here’s
a couple of excerpts from the reflection on Matthew 12:38-45 about what Jesus
is suggesting:
We
need to hear Jesus’s warnings to those who should know better, because the warnings
are for us as well. Don’t continue to demand proof as a basis for
faith when all the proof necessary has
already been given. Only people who have
already steeled themselves against such proof and
betrayed the faith insist on signs being given.
Jesus
says that the only sign that will ever be given for such rebels is “the sign of
Jonah.” Jonah was willingly thrown into the sea by those in peril so that those
in peril might be saved from the wrath
all around them. Long before He is
crucified, Jesus alludes to his ultimate sign;
he will die at the hands
of those who oppose Him, but their “victory” is actually their once-and-for-all
defeat. Truth will prevail in the end. And the “generation” that fought against
truth and brought others down
with them will find themselves in a worse situation than they were in before.
Right after this happens for a second time, the disciples
forget to bring bread to the next place where they and Jesus will be
staying. Jesus says to them, “Keep a
sharp eye out for Pharisee-Sadducee yeast.”
The disciples think Jesus is mad about not having
bread.
We
should note a sad irony here. First, the
disciples have just witnessed Jesus, on two occasions producing enough bread
for thousands of people from meager resources.
It is no wonder that Jesus is incredulous at the pure lack of faith that
He would be worried about not having enough bread. “Teaching!
Teaching! I’m talking about the faithless teaching of the Pharisees, you dolts!,”
is what Jesus seems to be saying.
The
Pharisees are not the only ones missing the signs. Those closest to Jesus can’t seem to see what
has been happening right before their eyes in the time they have been with
Jesus. I find it interesting that
Matthew would be completely honest about his own lack of faith in his telling
of the story. He is one of the disciples
who are clueless about what Jesus has been trying to tell them for months. I think Matthew does this because he knows
that if the disciples struggled to see what God was doing right in front of
them, than his readers will also struggle.
Matthew knows that his struggle is our struggle as well.
I am
currently reading a book that contends that we humans tend to embrace information
as true if we simply hear it enough times or if it already seems to confirm
what we already think. For instance,
what would you say if I asked how you calculate a dog’s age equivalent in human
years? Multiply by 7, right? Unfortunately, there is no science behind
this. It is a saying that has simply
been repeated over and over since the 1300’s.
We embrace it as true because we have heard it represented as truth our
whole lives. This is the warning Jesus
is making to His disciples (and us).
They have blindly embraced the faithless teaching of the Pharisees and
it has caused them to be blind to what is happening right in front of
them. They worry about bread when Jesus
has just supernaturally provided bread to thousands multiple times.
Sometimes,
perhaps even many times, we need to let go of, or at least question, the “truths”
that have been represented to us as “truth and nothing but the truth” so much
that we can’t see truth right before us. The truth is that God is always doing
something right before us, but we often don’t perceive it because we see through
“faithless filters.” You will be
provided for by our Savior and any “teaching” that causes you to doubt that, no
matter how long you have believed it, should be questioned. God is not angered by the frivolous mistakes
we make; he is saddened by our lack of faith.
Question: Are there
any notions (yeast) that you have always accepted as true that are getting in
the way of your trusting God completely?
Prayer: Lord I
believe, help me in my unbelief! Amen.
Prayer Focus: Pray
for the homeless as we move into the colder months of the year.
Song: Oh Me Of Little Faith - Matthew West
