A far better leaven...

Good Religion

(Mark 8:1-21, Preaching: Pastor Stephen Magee, April 28, 2019)

[1] In those days, when again a great crowd had gathered, and they had nothing to eat, he called his disciples to him and said to them, [2] “I have compassion on the crowd, because they have been with me now three days and have nothing to eat. [3] And if I send them away hungry to their homes, they will faint on the way. And some of them have come from far away.” [4] And his disciples answered him, “How can one feed these people with bread here in this desolate place?” [5] And he asked them, “How many loaves do you have?” They said, “Seven.” [6] And he directed the crowd to sit down on the ground. And he took the seven loaves, and having given thanks, he broke them and gave them to his disciples to set before the people; and they set them before the crowd. [7] And they had a few small fish. And having blessed them, he said that these also should be set before them. [8] And they ate and were satisfied. And they took up the broken pieces left over, seven baskets full. [9] And there were about four thousand people. And he sent them away. [10] And immediately he got into the boat with his disciples and went to the district of Dalmanutha.

[11] The Pharisees came and began to argue with him, seeking from him a sign from heaven to test him. [12] And he sighed deeply in his spirit and said, “Why does this generation seek a sign? Truly, I say to you, no sign will be given to this generation.” [13] And he left them, got into the boat again, and went to the other side.

[14] Now they had forgotten to bring bread, and they had only one loaf with them in the boat. [15] And he cautioned them, saying, “Watch out; beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod.” [16] And they began discussing with one another the fact that they had no bread. [17] And Jesus, aware of this, said to them, “Why are you discussing the fact that you have no bread? Do you not yet perceive or understand? Are your hearts hardened? [18] Having eyes do you not see, and having ears do you not hear? And do you not remember? [19] When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of broken pieces did you take up?” They said to him, “Twelve.” [20] “And the seven for the four thousand, how many baskets full of broken pieces did you take up?” And they said to him, “Seven.” [21] And he said to them, “Do you not yet understand?”

A Second Bread Miracle

When Peter preached about Jesus, and Mark reportedly translated his words and eventually wrote them down in what we have as Mark's gospel, the story of a bread miracle to feed crowds is told twice. While some of the details vary, the point seems to be the same, and Jesus indicates that his disciples should be able to understand it. In John 6 we have more of the explanation given to us—and it is very good religion.

Jesus is the bread of life who comes down from heaven to give life to the world.

It is not his intention that the church only feed people with physical bread, but that we should bring manna from heaven for the soul as we preach the word throughout the earth. All this comes from the creator, who brings new life to hungry souls. Jesus is the bread of life. He brings us a relationship with God that will never end.

Pharisees Still Seek a Sign

In contrast to the life that Jesus brings, there is much bad religion of many different varieties as mankind has always tried to glorify himself by building our own stairway to heaven.

One group among many that did this were the Pharisees. They had man-made traditions that they used to overthrow the commands of God and also to reject the grace of the Almighty through Jesus. They pursued righteousness as if it were by there own works rather than by the gift of Yahweh. Notice Paul's words on this from Romans 9:30-33:

[30] What shall we say, then? That Gentiles who did not pursue righteousness have attained it, that is, a righteousness that is by faith; [31] but that Israel who pursued a law that would lead to righteousness did not succeed in reaching that law. [32] Why? Because they did not pursue it by faith, but as if it were based on works. They have stumbled over the stumbling stone, [33] as it is written,

“Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offense;

and whoever believes in him will not be put to shame.”

The Pharisees came and “began to argue” with him, that is they came to dispute with him, and the topic that they chose was that they were seeking “a sign from heaven” as a “test.” After all the Lord had done, this was an amazing demand. Jesus “sighed deeply in his spirit” from the depth of his being regarding this provocation. His literal answer to them does not translate well for us: “If a sign will be given.” It sounds like something we might turn into a frustrated question, or perhaps words spoken under one's breath. In their culture it was a way of saying “no” as in “no sign will be given to this generation.”

The Miracle of Understanding Jesus

Jesus warned his disciples about the bad religion of the Pharisees, but he also spoke of another spreading “leaven,” the way of those following Herod. There was another group of Jews who were called the Herodians. We read about them in Mark 3:6 and Mark 12:13. We do not know for sure what this party was about, but we have to believe that their association with the Herod family indicated that they had their hope in their connection to the powers of this world. Pharisees: Man's laws, Herodians: Man's power.

Instead of understanding Jesus' warning to them, the disciples thought that Jesus was talking about bread, as if he had some problem with the lack of bread since they had forgotten to bring bread. Given the amazing miracles that our Lord had accomplished in supplying food for the hungry, it is surprising that they thought that he was concerned about the lack of bread.

Jesus reviews his recent miracles concerning the multiplication of bread. Before and after this recounting of the facts, he highlights this important question: “Do you not yet understand?”

What was the point of all the signs that Jesus did during his earthly ministry? What is the meaning of answered prayers in our midst today? Our Lord has life. This can be externally observed and also internally received and understood. As Christians it is our joy to experience the wonder of believing and following the Word of the Lord.

But what was it that they should have seen, heard, and remembered from the previous bread miracles in particular? We know the answer to that question because of John 6, where Jesus himself teaches the theology behind the bread. (See John 6:32-35, 48-51.)

A far better leaven than the Pharisees and Herodians could offer: True law, grace, and power:

1. Our Father Almighty has given his children the true bread from heaven.

2. Jesus is the bread of life and the source of the fullness of eternal life for his children.

Old Testament Reading—Psalm 106 – Grace that is greater than all our sin

New Testament Reading—James 2:1-13 – Mercy triumphs over judgment