32: God’s Provides/Satan Lies (Mt 15:29-16:12)

If the teachings of the Bible could be condensed into one simple phrase, it might go something like this:

God Provides & Satan Lies. Today we see Jesus show up to compassionately provide for needy people while the religious leaders show up to put Jesus to the test, just like Satan. Now the question is, who are YOU going to trust - God who Provides or Satan who Lies?

Catch the Context: Last week we saw the difference between being HYPOCRITES and being HIS (following Jesus).

We noticed the comparison Matthew’s gospel made between the religious leaders who looked super clean on the OUTSIDE, and the Gentile lady whom most Jews considered to be like an unclean dog.

Jesus calls the religious leaders HYPOCRITES, those who were more concerned about honoring human tradition than obeying God’s Word; people who come near to God with their words, but whose hearts were far from Him.

Then we saw Jesus care for a Gentile woman who trusted Him as the Jewish Messiah, asking Jesus to have compassion for non-Jews like herself. Jesus answered her request and her demon-possessed daughter was immediately freed!

We finished by encouraging you to answer the question: Which one are YOU? If your life was turned INSIDE OUT and who you really are on the inside was seen on the outside, would we be proven to be HYPOCRITE or HIS?

I hope you’ve chewed on that question this week.

That’s where we pick up today.

Matthew 15:29–30 (NIV)

Jesus left there [Tyre & Sidon] and went along the Sea of Galilee. Then he went up on a mountainside and sat down. Great crowds came to him, bringing the lame, the blind, the crippled, the mute and many others, and laid them at his feet; and he healed them.

This story is already incredible, except for those of us who take it for granted and yawn rather than gasp. We’ll come back to the impact of what Jesus did in a moment, but first we need to take a look at another angle to this story that Matthew doesn’t focus on, that I want to focus on. Matthew doesn’t tell us WHERE this occurred along the Sea of Galilee.

Mark does. Here’s what Mark writes.

Mark 7:31 (NIV)

Then Jesus left the vicinity of Tyre and went through Sidon, down to the Sea of Galilee and into the region of the Decapolis.

Here’s a brief geography refresh about some places around the Sea of Galilee.

Capernaum was the home base of Jesus ministry in Galilee.

And you might remember that Gadarenes is where Jesus cast the demons out of 2 men into a herd of 2000 pigs (Mt 8:28-34).

The Decapolis (where Jesus and His disciples have now arrived) is comprised of 10 Gentile cities. So it seems that Jesus left the Canaanite lady of much faith in a largely Gentile region, and makes his way back across the Lake for another group of Gentiles.

Mark continues with a account that Matthew doesn’t tell, but it gives us a glimpse into the personal touch of the Lord Jesus to those in need.

Mark 7:32–35 (NIV)

There some people brought to him a man who was deaf and could hardly talk, and they begged Jesus to place his hand on him. After he took him aside, away from the crowd, Jesus put his fingers into the man’s ears. Then he spit and touched the man’s tongue. He looked up to heaven and with a deep sigh said to him, “Ephphatha!” [pr. F-Fath-A] (which means “Be opened!”). At this, the man’s ears were opened, his tongue was loosened and he began to speak plainly.

Mark 7:36–37 (NIV)

Jesus commanded them not to tell anyone. But the more he did so, the more they kept talking about it. People were overwhelmed with amazement. “He has done everything well,” they said. “He even makes the deaf hear and the mute speak.”

Mark then transitions to tell the same account that we pick back up in Matthew’s account.

Matthew 15:30–31 (NIV)

Great crowds came to him, bringing the lame, the blind, the crippled, the mute and many others, and laid them at his feet; and he healed them. The people were amazed when they saw the mute speaking, the crippled made well, the lame walking and the blind seeing. And they praised the God of Israel.

We have heard these kinds of stories so often that we can take them for granted, and we might even check out rather than lean in when we hear it once again. But let’s think about what this would look like if…if this is YOUR friend, YOUR family member…or YOU!!!

Someone YOU care about has been lame - unable to walk. They LAY in line waiting to see Jesus - like a child waiting to see Santa. But the gift Jesus gives them is one of the greatest gifts ever. They approach Jesus - likely carried by others. But they WALK away from Jesus, fully functional!

Someone YOU care about has been blind - unable to see. This person opens their eyes and this time…they can focus on their family and friends for the first time in a long time…and some - for the first time ever!

Someone YOU care about has been crippled - unable to work. Legs are crooked. One might be significantly shorter than the other. Hands are mangled and stiff. Backs are bent. But these people leave fully healed - able to go back to work and not be pitied by others.

Someone YOU care about has been mute - unable to speak. But now, you can’t get them to stop talking!

Ultimately, this largely Gentile audience, didn’t praise the pagan statues and monuments honoring the various gods of the Greek pantheon that have since been excavated[1]; instead they praised the God of Israel.

Matthew 15:32–33 (NIV)

Jesus called his disciples to him and said, “I have compassion for these people; they have already been with me three days and have nothing to eat. I do not want to send them away hungry, or they may collapse on the way.” His disciples answered, “Where could we get enough bread in this remote place to feed such a crowd?”

First, these people had been hanging out with Jesus for three days. What miracles had they seen! What teachings had they heard!

Second, if you feel like you’ve heard this before…you have…sort of. This is not the story from Mt 14:13-21 of the feeding of the 5000+. These are 2 different stories that Jesus later mentions (Mt 16:9-10), as we will see in a moment.

And since that IS the case…don’t you think they would say something like this: “Um…Jesus…will you do that thing you did just a few days ago when you fed so many with so little?” But they don’t.

So Jesus asks...

Matthew 15:34–36 (NIV)

“How many loaves do you have?” Jesus asked. “Seven,” they replied, “and a few small fish.” He told the crowd to sit down on the ground. Then he took the seven loaves and the fish, and when he had given thanks, he broke them and gave them to the disciples, and they in turn to the people.

We might call this Déjà vu except that French was not yet a developed language AND that this is a similar event, but not the same event. Different amounts of food were broken & a different kind and number of people served - BUT…the same outcome!

Matthew 15:37–38 (NIV)

They all ate and were satisfied. Afterward the disciples picked up seven basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over. The number of those who ate was four thousand men, besides women and children.

The earlier miracle of feeding 5000+ resulted in 12 baskets being left over - likely representing the 12 tribes of Israel and the Lord providing for His 12 apostles.

Why 7 basketfuls left over here? We don’t know for sure.

Some think it could represent the 7 Gentle nations that Israel conquered and ran off when they entered the Promised Land (Deut 7:1; Acts 13:19). [2]

Then again, as seven is often the number symbolizing perfection/completion, it could symbolize the fullness of God meeting the needs of all people - Jews & Gentiles.

Either way, Jesus has now demonstrated He is the Jewish Messiah who has come to feed the hungry souls of both Jews & Gentiles!

GOD PROVIDES

Or as John Beck writes: “The geography of forgiveness extended to every shoreline.” [3]

But we are also about to see that while

GOD PROVIDES, SATAN LIES...

...as we watch the religious leaders, the ones who should have been the first ones to recognize their Messiah, once again stiff-arm Him and treat Him as their enemy.

Matthew 15:39 (NIV)

After Jesus had sent the crowd away, he got into the boat and went to the vicinity of Magadan.

Many scholars believe that Magadan is a variant spelling for Magdala, the home of Mary Magdalene.[4]

Matthew 16:1 (NIV)

The Pharisees and Sadducees came to Jesus and tested him by asking him to show them a sign from heaven.

Here we see something interesting, but something that could go unnoticed - the Pharisees AND Sadducees working together. We have not seen the Sadducees mentioned by Matthew since way back in chapter 3:7, where the Pharisees and Sadducees had come to question John the Baptist about his unorthodox practices (Mt 3:7-11). John called them “a brood of vipers”.

While Pharisees and Sadducees served together on the Sanhedrin (the Jewish Supreme Court), they were generally more enemies than friends - maybe like Republican and Democrats in Congress - they worked together when they had to, but they really didn’t like it.

But, as you have likely heard, “The enemy of my enemy is my friend.”

And now these unlikely partners forged an alliance and came to Jesus and tested him - the same term used when Satan temped/tested Jesus in the wilderness saying, “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.” (Mt 4:1-3)

They tested Jesus and asked Him for yet another sign from heaven.

Had Jesus not given enough signs? - Healing all kinds of diseases, casting out demons, feeding thousands from a tiny meal? NOPE. Not enough for the Pharisees.

We have already seen back in Matthew 12:14 where "the Pharisees went out and plotted how they might kill Jesus.” Truth is, Nothing would change their minds at this point. They were out for blood.

Think about the significance of this - while GOD so wonderfully PROVIDES, SATAN so wickedly LIES so that most of the religious leaders - who should have recognized their Messiah - seemed blinded to truth about who Jesus is.

2 Corinthians 4:4 (NIV)

The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel that displays the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.

Despite all the signs Jesus has given, they refuse to see the light of the gospel that displays the glory of Jesus, the Messiah.

So - like Satan did - they tested Jesus and demanded another sign from Him.

Matthew 16:2–4 (NIV)

He replied, “When evening comes, you say, ‘It will be fair weather, for the sky is red,’ and in the morning, ‘Today it will be stormy, for the sky is red and overcast.’ You know how to interpret the appearance of the sky, but you cannot interpret the signs of the times. A wicked and adulterous generation looks for a sign, but none will be given it except the sign of Jonah.” Jesus then left them and went away.

These folks knew how to interpret the weather but turned a blind eye to all that Jesus had done and said. When they demand another sign from Him, Jesus refuses to act like a magician there to put on a show for these highly educated religious leaders.

Instead, Jesus refers to them as a wicked and adulterous generation - WOW!!!

Several weeks ago, as we studied Matthew 12, we saw Jesus respond the same way, saying...

There is only ONE SIGN that Jesus will show - a future sign which could only be denied by those who refused to believe the evidence - the sign of Jonah. Everyone knew the story of Jonah, going to his enemies to warn them of God’s wrath.

But, of course, there was another part of the story that proved Jonah was genuinely a prophet called by Yahweh. Jonah was swallowed by a huge fish, stuck in there for 3 days, yet was ultimately rescued from this smelly, watery grave. So too, Jesus points to His future resurrection from the dead as the ultimate “sign” that He has come from heaven.

Jesus and His disciples then get back into the boat and likely head home for Capernaum (Mk 8:13).

Matthew 16:5–7 (NIV)

When they went across the lake, the disciples forgot to take bread. “Be careful,” Jesus said to them. “Be on your guard against the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees.” They discussed this among themselves and said, “It is because we didn’t bring any bread.”

Matthew 16:8–10 (NIV)

Aware of their discussion, Jesus asked, “You of little faith, why are you talking among yourselves about having no bread? Do you still not understand? Don’t you remember the five loaves for the five thousand, and how many basketfuls you gathered? Or the seven loaves for the four thousand, and how many basketfuls you gathered?

Jesus is NOT concerned about them not having any food with them. They have just seen Him feed thousands of people - TWICE!!!

How quickly we forget God’s provision in our lives.

Have you ever taken an inventory of what God has provided for you?

How many meals have you eaten?

How many illnesses has God healed you of?

How many clothes has God clothed you with?

How many friends has God put in your life?

How many sins has God forgiven you for?

How many tough times has God walked with you through?

How many times has God spoken to you from the Scriptures & through His people?

FEET2FAITH:

Take some time THIS WEEK to write down the ways God has provided for you. When the moment comes when you lack faith, pause to remember the ONE who is faithful!

Jesus wants His disciples to remember that GOD PROVIDES, but He also wants them to remember that...

SATAN LIES.

Satan tactically places his pawns to make sure that the blind lead the blind (Mt 15:14). And that is what Jesus is making sure His disciples understand when He warns them for the second time.

Matthew 16:11–12 (NIV)

How is it you don’t understand that I was not talking to you about bread? But be on your guard against the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees.” Then they understood that he was not telling them to guard against the yeast used in bread, but against the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees.

As we will see next week, Jesus will soon begin to talk about something His disciples had never considered to be an option - His DEATH.

The pump is now primed & the clock is ticking.

Jesus has come to earth to do more than heal & teach, He has come to make a payment - a payment that no one else could make, and - in the most powerful way - shows how GOD PROVIDES eternal life for us!

As we close today, haven’t you found this to be TRUE? - that...

GOD PROVIDES & SATAN LIES

If you could go back and do it over, how many times would you have paused and remember how GOD PROVIDES instead of giving into SATAN’S LIES?

Feeling guilty? Feeling ashamed?

Turn to the GOD who PROVIDES.

Terry Durden’s story

That’s what my new friend, Terry did. A former infantryman in the US Army, the guy who came to fix my ADT stuff - twice, recently called and told me he got baptized and is regulary plugged into a local church in Crawfordville.

____________

John F. MacArthur Jr., Matthew, vol. 2, MacArthur New Testament Commentary (Chicago: Moody Press, 1985), 477.

John A. Beck, “The Geography of Forgiveness,” in Lexham Geographic Commentary on the Gospels, ed. Barry J. Beitzel and Kristopher A. Lyle, Lexham Geographic Commentary (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2016), 261–262.

John A. Beck, 264.

Michael J. Wilkins, Matthew, The NIV Application Commentary (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 2004), 542.

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Discussion Questions

Read Mark 7:31-37. How does Mark’s Gospel help give us more insight into WHO Jesus is likely ministering to? Take a moment to discuss the personal touch of Jesus along with what the people thought of Him.

Read Matthew 15:30-31. If this crowd is mostly Gentile, what is the significance of them “praising the God of Israel”?

Read Matthew 15:32-38. What is similar/different in this account compared to the previous feeding near Tyre & Sidon (see Mt 14:13-21)? Have you ever considered how Jesus feeding both the Jews & Gentiles is a fulfillment of the ancient prophecy from Gen 18:18 & 26:4? Explain your answer.

Read Matthew 16:1-12 & 2 Cor 4:4. Why does Jesus warn His disciples of the Pharisees and Sadducees and their teachings? Since these religious leaders are so opposed to Jesus - testing Him like Satan did (cf. Mt 4:1-3, Mt 16:1) and wanting Him dead (Mt 12:14) - how is it obvious that Satan is involved?

Take a few moments to discuss a) How God has PROVIDED for you b) how Satan has LIED to you.

What challenged or encouraged you most from today’s teaching? What does God want YOU to do with what we studied today?

Share prayer needs and pray for one another.