The Yeast of Religious Leadership

And what to avoid.

You have to laugh at the disciples. Not that any of us couldn’t do the same thing. In fact, we could and that’s why it’s laughable. We’re reading the story of the salvation of the cosmos…and the disciples forgot bread.

But the more important point here is the teaching of the religious leaders. Who are today’s Pharisees and Sadducees? Sometimes, it may seem obvious to any one of us who they are. But we should be careful to avoid hasty judgment. Perhaps it was not so obvious to the disciples at the time.

What are the characteristics of the religious leaders that Jesus regularly decries? (There are none in this passage - just that they should be avoided.)

They break the command of God to follow rules handed down. The religious leaders of the time consistently uphold religious doctrine and polity all the while forgetting the heart of God that leads to doctrine (or should).

Of God, they honor me with their lips, but their heart is far from me. In short, they are hypocrites, saying they are one thing, while doing another.

They neglect the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness.

In short, we can say the nature of the Pharisees and Sadducees that Jesus tells his disciples to avoid is that they were often characterized by hypocrisy, legalism, and a focus on outward appearances and traditions, neglecting deeper matters of justice, mercy, faith, and genuine righteousness.

Matthew 16:5–12

When the disciples arrived on the other side of the lake, they had forgotten to bring bread. Jesus said to them, “Watch out and be on your guard for the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees.”

They discussed this among themselves and said, “We didn’t bring any bread.”

Jesus knew what they were discussing and said, “You people of weak faith! Why are you discussing among yourselves the fact that you don’t have any bread? Don’t you understand yet? Don’t you remember the five loaves that fed the five thousand and how many baskets of leftovers you gathered? And the seven loaves that fed the four thousand and how many large baskets of leftovers you gathered? Don’t you know that I wasn’t talking about bread? But be on your guard for the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees.” Then they understood that he wasn’t telling them to be on their guard for yeast used in making bread. No, he was telling them to watch out for the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees.

Prayer

God,

It’s Sunday. A day to gather with my brothers and sisters for fellowship. To keep each other accountable. And to worship together, which is to acknowledge who you are, to give you glory, and to receive you in your word and at the table.

So God, I pray for the church throughout the world today: Make us one. Burn from us our hypocrisy. Toss out from among us our neglect of mercy. Forge us as a people of justice. Pull our heads out of the sands of nothingness and empty frivolity.

Give us courage. Make us to know what is truly best for ourselves and for the world. Fill us with joy. Grow in us hope. Give us hearts for true love.

By your spirit & in Christ,
Amen.