Restoration (Matthew 18 - P 46)

I have a confession to make.  I have read the verses that constitute our reading today many times.  I know what they say, the content.  But I fear that I have never placed them in their context in Jesus' conversation with his disciples.  In our reading today, Jesus is still in conversation with his disciples, and has been talking about the value of the "little ones" - perhaps little children, perhaps new believers.   He warns against leading or luring them into sin.  Sin is serious ... deadly.  He then talks to them about the incredible value of each one through the parable of the lost sheep.  He describes the lengths to which a shepherd would go to find and bring home a straying lamb.  That's the context.  That's the flow of the conversation ... with that in mind ...

Read Matthew 18: 15 - 20

This is all about restoration of a relationship between believers.  I am helped by this note in the New Living Translation Study Bible:

These are Jesus' guidelines for dealing with those who sin against us.  They were meant for (1) Christians, not unbelievers, (2) sins committed against you and not others, and (3) conflict resolution in the context of the church, not the community at large.  Jesus' words are not a license for a frontal attack on every person who hurts or slights us.  They are not a license to start a destructive gossip campaign or to call for a church trial.  They are designed to reconcile those who disagree so that all Christians can live in harmony.

Remember the parable that precedes this?  The lengths to which a shepherd goes to find a lost sheep?  Well, it is as if Jesus is now speaking about the lengths we are willing to go to in order to restore a relationship within the community of believers that has been damaged ... due to sin.  Ever been there?  Wise principles arise from Jesus' words ... principles for us to apply ... when someone "sins against you" ...

• Level 1 - go to the person for conversation about the matter.  From the IVP Commentary:  "This procedure was standard Jewish custom; the Dead Sea Scrolls, the rabbis and others demand that one begin with private reproof. Publicly shaming someone unnecessarily was considered sinful ..."  Don't talk to your friend.  Don't talk about the person to anyone who will listen.  Don't retaliate by doing something back at her.  And don't communicate through email.  Go TO the person and talk face-to-face.  It takes courage.  It takes love.  It takes being more concerned about the good for both the other person and for the community of faith than being mostly concerned about personal pride and ego and 'rights'.  
• Level 2 - if level 1 fails to restore, move to level 2.  Go talk again ... this time take a couple of people with you.  This additional presence can serve as 'witnesses' if needed, they can provide clarity, they are testimony to your intense desire to have the matter settled.  
• Level 3 - if level 2 fails to restore, move to level 3.  Take the situation to the community of faith in which you both function.  Through prayer and the wisdom of people of the Word of God, restoration is possible.  

That is a lot of work!!  Gossip is so much easier.  But tie it back to the parable of the lost sheep ... it's worth it.  Because restoration to the family is worth it.  Reconciliation of broken relationships is worth it.  Can you love enough to follow these words from Jesus?  Can I?  Perhaps stopping right now for some honest conversation with God about this is pertinent.  Have you failed in this regard in the past?  Is there a situation you are in right now that needs this instruction?  

About the "let them be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector" words ... I know what Jesus cannot have meant.  He cannot have meant that 'Gentiles and tax collectors' are not worth time and effort and love.  To mean that violates everything else Jesus taught.  Jesus drew Matthew, the tax collector, into his fold.  Jesus drew Zacchaeus, the tax collector, into his fold.  So this cannot be an injunction to abandon people.  It may be a challenge - a challenge to win even the hardest of hearts through love.  Jesus did not find the Gentiles and/or the tax collectors hopeless - neither must we.

Is there a Level 4?  I think Level 4 comes in the next set of verses which we will consider tomorrow.  Level 4 is moving into the arena of forgiveness.  Easy to talk about ... hard to live out.  Remember ... the "little ones" and their value ... the effort put into finding the "lost sheep" ... the determination to win back the one who sins against you ... it's all about restoring relationships.  

Lord ... help us ... 

Being Great (Matthew 18 - P 45)

Chapter 18 begins with a very honest question ... a question about greatness.  Jesus' response to the question begins a progression of thought that is hard to break into small pieces.  So, try to ignore the paragraph breaks in your translation ... and read the verses as one continuum.

Read Matthew 18: 1 - 14

There are two possible groups that Jesus calls "little children".  Obviously, there are the physical children among us.  The little ones.  But there are also the young in their faith ... the babes in Christ ... new believers.  And Jesus' words are equally applicable to both groups.  What can we learn?

God's kingdom and the world's kingdoms are polar opposites ... in style, in thought, in philosophy ... in every way you can think of.  What leads to greatness in the world ... does not lead to greatness in the kingdom of heaven.  What leads to power in the world ... does not lead to power in the kingdom of heaven.  

In the kingdom of heaven ... greatness is intrinsically linked to humility.  And humility is dramatically illustrated by a child.  Little children are dependent ... and they know it.  Only as they "grow up" do they begin to fight for independence.  Little children are full of wonder.  Only as they "grow up" do they tend to become callused to the wonder of the world.  Little children trust their parent ... even when said parent may not be trustworthy.  Those beautiful qualities are worthy of the citizen in the kingdom of heaven.  

• Do you completely acknowledge your dependence on your heavenly Father?  Or do you still fight against any thought that you are dependent on anyone or anything?  Be like a little child ... recognize and celebrate your dependence on the Father.
• Do you worship your Father in wonder?  Or have the years grown a callousness in your heart and spirit against wonder?  Can you still marvel at a fabulous tree?  Can you still be mesmerized by the activity in an ant hill or a bee hive?  Can sunsets still stun you?  Can you still get lost in worship?  
• Do you trust your Father?  Or has the world convinced you that you can only trust yourself.  When life  becomes difficult and painful, do you thrust an angry fist at your Father, or melt into a puddle of self-pity ... or do you trust his hand on your life?  

Jesus also offers severe warnings in our passage for today.  Be very careful that you do not cause ... that you are not the source of a "little one's" sin.  Perhaps the reference is to little children ... perhaps the reference is to those young in their faith.  Which ever, don't be the one to lead another into sin.  That is so sobering for us as parents!  I know of nothing that will send me to my knees faster than those words from Jesus.  

Our culture tends to make light of the concept of "sin".  Jesus does not!  This, of course, is not a literal prescription ... the cutting off a hand or gouging out an eye ... but it is a wake up call to the seriousness of sin.  

• Do you deal with your sin ... or are you still justifying it and rationalizing it?  Do you take 'confession' seriously?  God is holy.  Don't be flippant about sin ... or use it as fodder for comedy.   
• Do you consistently pray that God will open your eyes to the places of sin in your life?  

Lastly, I love this simple little parable Jesus told in verses 10 - 14.  It is such a beautiful picture of the value of every soul.  None are throw-aways.   Think about a parent who has 4 children.  Picture him/her taking them on a trip to the mall.  One gets lost!  (Some of us have been there!)  How appalled would you be if that parent said, "Oh well.  I have three others.  Let's go home."  That's the image Jesus wants us to get.  That's the passion God has for EACH of us.  ALL of the "little ones" matter.  

So for us today ...

• God's love is patient - like training a child.  Is mine?
• God's love is seeking - going out of the way, leaving the place of comfort - for one lost?  Is mine?
• God's love rejoices - celebrates with every little one that is safe in the fold again?  Does mine?

Our Father God ... we bow before you in humility today.  You are God.  We acknowledge our dependence on and our trust in You.  May every word we say today ... may every action we take on today ... reflect You and your love.  We cannot do that on our own.  We trust you to do it through us as we submit, yet again, today.

Faith (Matthew 17 - P 43)

Jesus, with Peter, James and John, has just descended Mt. Hermon after experiencing a splendid spiritual 'high' ... and our reading today reveals what IMMEDIATELY happened following that experience.

Matthew 17: 14 - 21

No time for reflection, no time for meditation on the event that had just thrilled their souls.  Jesus is confronted immediately by human need ... by human pain.  And his response teaches us ...

First, I am tremendously moved by the way Jesus met the demands placed upon him.  He responded.  Do I?  I would want to sit awhile and bask in the glory experienced on the mountain!  I would want them to come back later ... when I was rested ... when I was ready.  How about you?  The application for me is best described by William Barclay in his The Gospel of  Matthew:

The most Christlike people in the world are those who never find other people a nuisance.  It is easy to feel Christian in the moment of prayer and meditation; it is easy to feel close to God when the world is shut out.  But that is not religion - that is escapism.  Real religion is to rise from our knees before God to meet other people and the problems of the human situation.  Real religion is to draw strength from God in order to give it to others.  Real religion involves meeting both God in the secret place and men and women in the market place.  Real religion means taking our own needs to God, not that we may have peace and quiet and undisturbed comfort, but that we may be enabled graciously, effectively and powerfully to meet the needs of others.  

That's the challenge!  That may be a beginning place for prayer for us.  How will you take this to prayer for yourself?

Secondly, some are disturbed by Jesus' words to his disciples as he learns of their failure to cast out the demon.  Remember, Jesus had previously given them that authority. (Matthew 10:8)  When confronted with their inability to do so, Jesus calls them "faithless and perverse" (verse 17).  It is important for us to understand that Jesus has not lost his temper.  He did not "lash out" at them.  Their ability to exercise the authority which had been given to them was blocked.  The Greek word translated "perverse" is a word that means "to twist, to dislocate, to confuse ... it indicates a deficiency in inner attitude leading to confusion and illusion regarding the starting point of action" (Strong's).  I wonder what it was that was twisting and confusing them?  What was the deficiency in their attitudes?  Did they imagine that THEY were doing this?  Did they think THEY had the power to do this work?  I don't know for sure ... but perhaps the lack of faith stemmed from some sort of inner, heart-of-heart thinking that this was about THEIR power and THEIR ability.  And the application leaps off the page!  If you and I want our actions to reflect the power of God ... we must be completely certain that it is about God and not about us!  Yes - Ephesians tells us we have resurrection power available to us (Ephesians 1: 19 - 20).  But it is God's power ... it is God's ability ... and an inner heart of faith knows that without a shadow of a doubt.

The third observation from this passage comes from Jesus' words about having faith the size of a mustard seed and then the ability to move mountains.  Literally?  No.  The Jews of Jesus' day had a phrase they would use about a great teacher - one who could interpret scripture well and handle difficulties.  Such a teacher was called an uprooter, sometimes a pulverizer, of mountains.  These were regular phrases for removing difficulties.  When we exercise faith, the difficulties that block our path are removed.  It is faith ... great faith ... but faith that begins no larger than a mustard seed.

Our challenges?

1. Today ... value the people God allows into your day, not as a nuisance, but as a gift.  Serve them as you can.  Value them.  
2. Acknowledge today that all good done by you and for you ... is from God.  It is not of yourself.  
3. Practice faith ... as you face any difficulties your day may erupt in front of you ... practice faith.  Take it to God.  And allow the mountain to be moved!  

Lord ... may we be Your people today.  May we be truly 'religious' today.  Christlike from the inside - out.

Transfiguration (Matthew 17 - P 42)

Matthew 17: 1 - 13  

Scholars are not 100% certain where this event took place.  Most lean toward Mt. Hermon.  Mt. Hermon is a beautiful mountain fourteen miles from Caesarea Philippi where Peter made his great declaration concerning the identity of Jesus.  This event was most likely not at the summit of the mountain because Mt. Hermon is 9400 ft above sea level and 11,000 ft above the Jordan valley floor.  Imagine Jesus taking his close inner circle of three disciples somewhere up on Mt. Hermon as he continues to ready himself for the coming journey toward Jerusalem and the cross.  If you have hiked in the mountains, imagine them along a lovely trail, surrounded by foliage and trees and cool mountain breezes.  Then it happens ...

Why Moses and Elijah?  Why not Abraham or David or a host of other Old Testament men of God that we can think of?  I think Jesus is needing confirmation before he heads to Jerusalem and the cross.  No one would choose that!  So, perhaps, Jesus needed confirmation that he was indeed on the path that God had chosen for him.

Moses ... the greatest of all the Jewish law-givers ... the friend of God ... the one who brought God's law to men and women.  He appeared.

Elijah ... the greatest of all the prophets ... the one through whom the voice of God spoke to men and women ... the one who stood against all the prophets of Baal ...and idolatry.   He appeared.

These two men were pillars in the Israel's history ... and directly connected that history to God.  I think perhaps it was Moses and Elijah whom Jesus needed to hear say  ... "this is the path, walk on it."

Then God himself confirms to Jesus that he was indeed on the right path.

The second question that comes to my mind is:  Why on a mountain?  Why not around the Sea of Galilee where so much of Jesus' teaching and ministry had happened?  Well, it was on a mountain that Moses received the laws of God.  It was on a mountain where Moses met with God and he, too, had the radiance of God on his face. (Mt. Sinai)  It was on a mountain where Elijah met God ... in a still quiet voice rather than in the wind and the fire.  (Mt. Horeb).  There is something about the mountains.

I had a niece who would probably respond to this questions with:  "Of course it was on a mountain!  That's where God's presence is strongest."  She is with the Lord now ... after an avalanche in 2008.   You can find her story at www.dod.org.  Look for:  The Time to Live is Now: the Legacy of Lygon Stevens.  You can learn about her story and how she believed God met her in the mountains.  There is something about the mountains.

What are some practical lessons we can learn through this event?  First, sometimes the appropriate response to an encounter with God is to be still - to absorb ... not to immediately "do" something.  Peter wanted to immediately "do".  And God said 'no'.  Never forget what God told us through the Psalmist:

Be still ... and know that I am God. (Psalm 46:10)

It is in stillness ... quietness ... heart and mind ... soul and spirit ... be still.  Are you practicing the discipline of stillness in your life?  Ever?  If not, this is a good time to begin ...

Also,  after this thrilling experience, it was back down the mountain ... back to the road to Jerusalem ... back to what had to be done.  So often when we experience a wonderful spiritual high, we want to stay there.  A wonderful retreat ... a particularly uplifting service or Christian concert ... a good Bible study.  We don't want to go back to ordinary life, daily living stuff. We just want to do another Bible study or go to another event.   But Jesus and Peter, James and John went back down the mountain.  They went back to work.  You and I need to remember that.  Our work, as we are being transformed into the image of Christ, is to show Christ to the world.  Our work is to make disciples.  Our work is to be the hands and feet of Jesus in our particular environment.  It's messy.  It's hard.  Sometimes it's painful.  It's sacrificial.  It's not "all about me".  The spiritual "highs" are to strengthen us for the work that needs doing.  The assemblies of Christians are to strengthen us for the work that needs doing.  The Bible studies are to strengthen and equip us for the work that needs doing.  So often we mistake those things FOR the work!  As you think about this wonderful event ... never forget that this foursome went back down the mountain.

Lord, help us desire quietness with You.  And transform that desire into the discipline to do it.  Father, give us eyes to see the work You have for us to do.  We don't want to miss it!  Open our eyes ...

Follow (Mathew 16 - P 41)

We finish our reading in Matthew 16 today.  Before you begin, look back at Matthew 16:17 - 18 to refresh your mind of the most recent event in Peter's life.  Then, read:

Matthew 16: 21 - 28

From Peter:

Could the words of Jesus to Peter in verses 17 - 18 and then in verses 23 - 24 be any more opposite?  Wow.  I can only imagine the confusion swimming in the mind of Peter.  What in the world?!  A couple of lessons for you and I from this:

1. We have never 'arrived' at all the spiritual insight and growth we need.  We must go further ... we must listen better ... we must delve deeper into God through Christ.  Don't get complacent!  Don't ever be satisfied with where you are spiritually.  Be content in your circumstances and hungry for more of God.  Know that there is deeper to grow ... deeper to understand ... deeper to experience the life of God through Christ in us.  Wherever you are ... go deeper.  
2. Watch our for spiritual arrogance.  Perhaps Peter's beautiful commendation from the Lord went straight to his head.  Perhaps he began to "think more highly of himself than he ought".  I don't doubt his response was born out of deep love and extreme devotion.  However, his response was arrogant. Telling Jesus what "must" not be!  Ever been guilty?  Ever been in the middle of a time of pain and suffering and told God that "this must not be"? 

From Jesus:

1. When we presume to tell God what must be and what must not be ... we have left the position of 'following' and assumed the position of 'leading'.  That's what Peter did ... and the Lord called him on it immediately.  Jesus told Peter to get behind him ... get back where you belong ... behind me ... following ... the place of discipleship.  Oh my friends we have a hard time staying "behind"!  Our strong wills, our independent natures, our issues with control, our desire for our own way ... all these lure us into stepping in front of the Lord and telling Him to follow us ... do what I want ... serve me.  Jesus would remind you and I of that as He reminded Peter ... you, disciple ... get behind.
2. When we have the things of the world in the forefront of our minds, we become pawns of Satan himself.   Even Peter became a pawn.  Remember Matthew 4 - the temptations of Jesus?  Those temptations were all about taking the way of power, the way of the world, to accomplish the things of God.  They were about compromising with the world - about reducing your standards to fit with the world's ways.  When Luke tells of those temptations he ends the encounter with "When the devil had finished every test, he departed from him until an opportune time." (Luke 4:13)  Here is the opportune time!  He's back with the same temptation ... avoid the painful way of the cross.  And the devastating form used this time was the temptation came through the voice of a dearly loved friend!  It helps us understand why Jesus' response was sharp and poignant.  After all, no one wants a cross.  Listen to the words of William Barclay:

What made the temptation more acute was the fact that it came from one who loved him.  Peter spoke as he did only because he loved Jesus so much that he could not bear to think of him treading that dreadful path and dying that awful death.  The hardest temptation of all is the one which comes from protecting love. There are times when fond love seeks to deflect us from the perils of the path of God; but the real love is not the love which holds people at home, but the love which sends them out to obey the commandments of moral courage and conviction which are given not to make life easy, but to make life great.

      3.  Want to be a follower of Jesus?  He tells you how through his words to these disciples.  Three things:

• deny yourself ... what does that mean?  It means you really are not the main character in the play of your life.  You really are not on center stage.  He is.  
• take up your cross ... what does that mean?  It means a life of sacrifice.  Reward and prestige from this world are not to matter to us.  Sacrifice and service.
• follow Him ... stay behind and walk where he walked.  

Years ago my husband and I were in Colorado in the dead of winter.  Snow was several feet deep.  He and I went out to take a snow shoe up a road that was not traveled in winter so the snow was deep and unplowed.  If you have never done that particular activity - it's hard!  The snow shoes kept me from sinking too deep into the snow ... but they did not protect me from sinking some.  And a great deal of effort was required for me to pick my legs up high enough to place my foot on the top of the snow again for the next step.  Exhausting!  I quickly learned that if I just tracked behind my husband, he had already 'packed' the snow a bit where he had stepped.  My hike became much easier when I stepped into his tracks.  And I thought ... this is it, isn't it, Lord?  I step in your steps ... I follow you ... and the way is much easier than if I try to launch my own path up the mountain.  

And Peter ... our same Peter who received this scathing rebuke from his Jesus ... learned the lesson.  He later wrote:

For God called you to do good, even if it means suffering, just as Christ suffered for you.  He is your example, and you must follow in his steps.  1 Peter 2: 20 - 21 (NLT)

So ... today ... let's follow!  

Peter (Matthew 16 - P 40)

After Jesus' confrontation with the Pharisees and Sadducees and the warning to his disciples about them, we see this little band move into the district of Caesarea Philippi.  This area would be about 25 miles northeast of the Sea of Galilee and would be in Gentile territory.  Jesus again moves his disciples into a region where he will not be confronted by the religious establishment.  His days are growing short ... and his training of his own disciples is intensifying.  Before you read the passage for today, I want to tell you a bit about the region where they are walking and where Jesus will pose his question.  The region around the city of Caesarea Philippi was ripe with religious imagery.  

In "The Land and the Book", W. M. Thomson writes that there were no fewer than 14 temples scattered in the area ... temples of the ancient Syrian Baal worship.  Not only was it ripe with ancient Syrian religious influence, it also was believed to be the birthplace of the god, Pan, the god of nature.  So Greek gods had a presence in the area as well.  In addition, there is a great cave in the mountainside that contains a cavity of water that is deep and still.  We learn in "Antiquities of the Jews" that this was considered to be the birthplace of the Jordan River - that River at the heart of the Jewish story.  And to add to the incredible mix, there was a great temple of white marble built to Caesar - built by Herod the Great.

It is in the shadows of these mighty edifices, where Jesus, the poor Galilean carpenter stands with his band of ordinary men ... and asks the question ...

Read Matthew 16: 13 - 20

It is a question of identity.  It is a question of faith.  It is the question that comes to each of us at a point in our lives.  We must confront our belief about the identity of Jesus.  Was he just another remarkable prophet in a long line of prophets?  Was he another Jewish rabbi that lived and walked and taught about the things of God?  Was he a great philosopher and teacher - a spiritual man indeed - among the few in human history?  The question comes to you as well, you know.  Whom do YOU say that Jesus is?  I stand with Peter.  I say, too, you are the Messiah, the Son of the living God. And I bow my head in worship ...

What follows in our passage are some difficult sayings.  They have been debated and discussed, examined and dissected by biblical scholars since their writing.  And disagreement abounds.  There is hardly time and space to fully explore the debate in this space.  I encourage you to study the commentaries to get the variety of interpretations that have been brought forward.  

For our purposes ... this blog study is focused on application of scripture to our daily lives ... so allow me to make a couple of observations that help me in application.

First, Peter as 'the rock'?  His name means 'rock' - Peter is petros.  God is described so often throughout Old Testament scripture as our 'rock', our foundation.  Peter certainly is not taking the place of God as our rock.  I think the picture is clarified somewhat in Ephesians 2; 20 - 21:

[members of the household of God] built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the cornerstone.  In him the whole structure is joined together and grows into a holy temple in the Lord; in whom you also are built together spiritually into a dwelling place for God.

Jesus is the cornerstone ... and I think Peter was the first stone laid!  The church, the fellowship of believers in Jesus as Messiah, began with Peter.  

Application for me?  I, too, am a stone in the building.  I am joined together with the people of God all over the world ... time past and time forward.  My desire is to be a strong stone - one that can hold weight.  One that will not crumble.  One that is steady and sure.  And by the grace of God ... 

Secondly, the keys of the kingdom?  A key opens a door.  The one who holds the key can open and give access.  And Peter does just that.  Remember Pentecost? (Acts 2)  Who preached that first sermon to that Jewish audience?  It was Peter.  Remember Cornelius? (Acts 10)  Who opened the door for Gentiles to have access to Jesus as Messiah?  It was Peter.  Jesus' words to Peter are in stark contrast to his words to the Pharisees.  Listen to what Jesus said to the Pharisees with this same imagery in mind.  

Woe to you, scribes and pharisees, hypocrites!  For you lock people out of the kingdom of heaven.  For you do not go in yourselves, and when others are going in, you stop them. (Matthew 23: 13 - 14)

Application for me?  I long to be a good steward in the household of God.  I want to provide access to people to enter the kingdom of God.  I don't want to lock the door!  God, may I speak of you with wisdom ... may my life reflect your glory ... may my words open the door for others to meet you face to face.

I want to close our thoughts today with a summary statement written by William Barclay.  It is his own paraphrase of these difficult verses.  And they speak to my heart ...

When we paraphrase this passage which has caused so much argument and controversy, we see that it deals not with religious form but with the things of salvation.  Jesus said to Peter:  'Peter, your name means a rock, and your destiny is to be a rock.  You are the first person to recognize me for what I am, and therefore you are the first stone in the edifice of the fellowship of those who are mine.  Against that fellowship, the embattled powers of evil will no more prevail than they will be able to hold me captive in death.  And in the days to come, you must be the steward who will unlock the doors of the kingdom that Jew and Gentile may come in; and you must be the wise administrator and guide who will solve the problems and direct the work of the infant and growing fellowship.'

Privilege and Responsibility.  Jesus gave them first to Peter.  And he gives to you and I also ... privilege and responsibility.  May we carry them well!  

Warnings (Matthew 16 - P 39)

Matthew 16 is cram packed with spiritual truth.  There are lessons to glean, examples to follow and warnings to heed.  I plan to divide the chapter for our purposes into 3 posts.  We begin today with the first of the chapter.

Read Matthew 16: 1 - 12

What is the "sign of Jonah"?  What is the "yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees"?  The sign of Jonah I want to see.  The yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees I want to avoid at all costs.  So what are these things?

Some possibilities ...

1.  from verses 1 - 4:  More questions ... questions from the influential people ... the important people.  Questions designed to test and intimidate ... questions designed to trap.  Jesus is unwilling to play their game.  They wanted a "sign" ... Jesus said, "You've had one already - the sign of Jonah".  No more ... no more signs ... no more discussion.  And Jesus walked away.

The Greek word translated "test" in verse 1 is peirazo.  It is the exact same word that Matthew uses in chapter 4 when he described Jesus' temptations by Satan.  These men are looking for a "sign" alright ... but a sign that can be used against Jesus.

What is the "sign of Jonah"?  It was Jonah himself.  Jonah himself went to Nineveh ... Jonah himself preached in that wicked place and people repented and turned to God.  It was not the storm.  It was not the fish.  It was Jonah.  And now God has sent His son, himself, to this wicked place, calling people back to the living God.  If Jesus cannot convince someone - then nothing can.  Jesus IS the sign from God.  And there is nothing else.  That's all there is ...

Applications?  Can you tell when someone asks questions about your faith with honest interest or even curiosity and when they are asking to trap you, or to intimidate you?  It's often hard for us to know the difference.  But what I do know is:  honest questions?  answer and discuss and spend time in conversation.  trap questions?  don't bother to engage ... don't debate ... don't waste the time and/or energy.  Of course the challenge is to know which is in front of you.  So we stay 'prayed up' about such things - asking God, through His Spirit, to keep our hearts and minds sensitive and sharp to know the difference.  We'll make mistakes in judgement from time to time.  But ...

Lord, give us wisdom to know when to engage a conversation ... and when to walk away.  And give us eyes to really "see" Jesus.  

2.  from verses 5 - 12:  I think the brief exchange with the Pharisees and Sadducees is playing in Jesus' mind as he walks with his disciples.  The "other side" of the Sea of Galilee would have been the Gentile side.  That means there would be no walking into a bakery or a lunch spot for these Jewish men.  When Jesus heard the disciples talking about the forgotten bread ... his mind immediately goes to a common metaphor ... that of yeast.  To the Jew of the day, yeast had two meanings - one literal and one figurative.  Literally, it was the bit of fermented dough that is put into new dough so that it would rise.  We know that one.  (You who are bread bakers know it better than some of us who buy our bread!)  On a figurative level, leaven, or yeast, was symbolic of evil influence.  Yeast was fermentation - hence rotten.  Yeast permeated any mass of dough into which it was inserted.  Hence evil influence permeates anything it is allowed to enter.

With that application, the disciples "get it".  So what do we know about the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees about which Jesus gave this most serious warning?

We have looked at much of the Pharisee teaching ... they saw religion in terms of laws and commandments and rules and regulations.  It was all outward.  It was ritual.  Internal transformation was not a part of the mix.

Application?  Watch your definition of religion.  Are you more concerned about heart transformation or about your rituals and outward appearance?  Do you judge others by such things?  Beware the yeast of the Pharisees.

Who are these Sadducees?  The Sadducees rejected the oral and the scribal law completely.  (You can see why they were usually at odds with Pharisees)  They were very political.  They were the collaborationist party ... and were very willing to work with the Roman government to retain their own positions and wealth and privileges.  They were a small party of the wealthy aristocracy of the day.  Jesus may very well have been warning his disciples to not equate the kingdom of God with earthly wealth earthly position.  He may very well have been warning them to not think that political stuff in earthly kingdoms and governments can solve the spiritual sickness of mankind.  He may have been telling them to not pin their hopes on political reform or political action.

Application?  Quit equating wealth in this world with spirituality - or special status with God.  Don't trust it - trust God.  Don't pin your hopes on any political party ... or candidate ... or bill ... or policy.  Pin your hopes on God - alone.  Always remember, the kingdom of God is not the same as any kingdom of this world, any government of this world, any political system of this world.  Beware the yeast of the Sadducees.

Lord, our desire is to place our trust, our hope, our futures securely in your capable and able hands.  Guard our hearts and our minds from being impressed unduly by earthly success and influence.  We pray for our governing officials ... but our hope is in You.  We pray for our churches ... but our hope is in You.  

Jesus to the Gentiles (Matthew 15 - P 38)

Today's passage is going to sound very familiar!  Just a few details will be changed from the experience we read about in Matthew 14 when Jesus miraculously fed 5000+ people.  But there is a wealth of wonder in those few differences.  Read carefully ...

Matthew 15: 29 - 39

The writers of the gospels do not seem to be the least bit concerned about timing - how much time passes between chapters, sometimes even between verses.  They are telling the story of the God/man and relating to their particular audiences.  So scholars must piece together timing from clues given in the passages themselves.  As I studied, I learned that it was most likely spring when Jesus fed the 5000+ in Matthew 14 and it is most likely summer or fall as we enter our passage today.  Also, we learn from placing this experience with Mark's account of the same event that Jesus has gone from the region of Tyre (by the Mediterranean Sea) to the region of the Decapolis (south and then east of the Sea of Galilee) and he went by way of Sidon (which is north of Tyre).  That would be like a traveler going from Philadelphia to Atlanta by way of New York - or from El Paso to Houston by way of Lubbock.  And remember this traveling was on foot ... not in an airplane.  Why in the world would Jesus go north to go south?  Most believe it was to prolong the journey.  He would have more time with his disciples ... on their own ... without the press of crowds ... without the demands of others.  Those of you who enjoy car trips when there are no time deadlines will understand!

So Jesus and his band arrive in the Decapolis area.  This name refers to a loose federation of 10 free Greek cities.  Notice the details ... and the differences from the previous event:

1. Since they are on the east side of the Sea of Galilee ... since they were in the region of the Decapolis ... their crowd would be primarily Gentile.  The previous group in Matthew 14 was primarily Jewish.  Huge difference!  Why?  It means that Jesus is as concerned about the Gentiles as He was about the Jews.  That's good news for most of us ... probably all of us reading this.  We always speak about Peter opening the door to the Gentile world ... and Paul being the apostle to walk through it and minister to them ... and they were.  But here we see that Jesus was the one to first open the door!  He opens the door to Gentiles so that they, too, can understand that He is the bread of life.  He provides sustenance ... spiritual food for the soul.  It is Jesus.  Still is.
2. The baskets are different.  The word translated 'basket' in Matthew 14 is kophinoi which was a narrow-necked, flask-shaped basket which Jews carried with them to carry a bit of food just in case they were not where they could get "clean" food - untouched by Gentile hands.  The word translated 'basket' in Matthew 15 is sphurides - more like a hamper - the kind of basket a Gentile would use.  More evidence that this is Gentile crowd.  
3. The third difference we notice is the number of 'baskets' of leftovers.  In the first feeding there were 12 baskets filled with the leftovers.  Twelve ... Jewish crowd ... the number of the tribes of Israel ... twelve.  Such an important number for the Jews.  Twelve ... all inclusive ... all Jews ... come, be fed by Jesus.  Now we read of 7 baskets filled with leftovers.  Seven ... Gentile crowd ... the number of the tribes of Canaan.  Such an important number for the Gentiles.  Seven ... all inclusive ... all Gentiles ... come, be fed by Jesus.  

In this passage we get such a beautiful snapshot of our Lord.  He cured physical disabilities and illnesses; He was so concerned for the tired and weary; He fed the hungry.  Close your time today by reading a lovely thought from biblical scholar Alfred Edersheim:

In three successive stages of his ministry, Jesus ended each stage by setting a meal before his people.  First, there was the feeding of the 5,000; that came at the end of his ministry in Galilee, for Jesus was never to teach and preach and heal in Galilee again.  Second, there was this feeding of the 4,000.  This came at the end of his brief ministry to the Gentiles, beyond the bounds of Palestine - first in the districts of Tyre and Sidon and then in the Decapolis.  Third and last, there was the Last Supper in Jerusalem, when Jesus came to the final stage of the days of his earthly life.

So notice ... Jesus ALWAYS left people with strength for the way.  He fed them ... gave them sustenance.  He still comes and offers us to feed upon him ... gain strength for the way ahead ... sustenance for the journey.  Are you feasting?  If not, I would encourage you to heed the advice in these few verses:

Sit down ... thankfully take the bread offered by the Lord ... and be refreshed.