Back to the Bible: Matthew 16:1-12
Later, the Pharisees and Sadducees came. It appears that in the text the Pharisees demand for a “sign from heaven” is a call for evidence that He and His power were from God. Jesus said that they were able to read the sky for weather, but couldn’t interpret His signs. The only sign they’d get was that of Jonah.
When they left, the disciples forgot to make provisions for bread— they only had one loaf between them. Jesus warned them to watch out for the leaven of the Pharisees and of Herod. The Scriptures often use leaven to refer to corrupt influence (I Cor. 5:6-8; Gal. 5:9). After their encounter with the Pharisees and Sadducess, Jesus warns His disciples about the influence of their teaching and unbelief. But the disciples’ minds are on their bread. He makes the point that He can handle the bread issue! They were of little faith if they couldn’t see and understand that He can overcome the challenge of a lack of bread. He reminds them of His recent provision and asks if they are still without understanding. Jesus wanted them to move from a shallow observation of His miracles and His teaching to a perception of His miracles with reflection on Jesus’ identity and application of His teaching to their own hearts. They finally understood that He was talking about false teaching, not about literal bread.
Lessons to Learn:
It is often the case that our preoccupation with physical concerns keep us from recognizing our spiritual needs and hearing the vital words of Christ. We must make sure to prioritize the spiritual over temporal issues. We are hard-hearted when we see Jesus miracles and hear His words but fail to see who Jesus is and fail to apply His words to our lives. We would do well to examine ourselves to see if we are too preoccupied with earthly concerns or untouched by the works and words of Jesus.
We need to be aware of the influence of others on us. Jesus’ warning applies to other false teachers along the way. Paul warns to be careful with who we’re listening to, because they can ruin our morals (I Cor. 15:33). False teachers can satisfy our desires and take us away from the truth and lead us to myths (II Tim. 4:3-4).
We’re thankful to share these considerations of God’s word. It’s best if you have a Bible close to evaluate what we say. We want to go “back to the Bible” for all we teach.
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