Matthew 16-1-12

This is the reading of God’s Word

Matthew 16:1–12

1 And the Pharisees and Sadducees came, and to test (Jesus) they asked him to show them a sign from heaven. 2 He answered them, “When it is evening, you say, ‘It will be fair weather, for the sky is red.’ 3 And in the morning, ‘It will be stormy today, for the sky is red and threatening.’ You know how to interpret the appearance of the sky, but you cannot interpret the signs of the times. 4 An evil and adulterous generation seeks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of Jonah.” So he left them and departed. 5 When the disciples reached the other side, they had forgotten to bring any bread. 6 Jesus said to them, “Watch and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees.” 7 And they began discussing it among themselves, saying, “We brought no bread.” 8 But Jesus, aware of this, said, “O you of little faith, why are you discussing among yourselves the fact that you have no bread? 9 Do you not yet perceive? Do you not remember the five loaves for the five thousand, and how many baskets you gathered? 10 Or the seven loaves for the four thousand, and how many baskets you gathered? 11 How is it that you fail to understand that I did not speak about bread? Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees.” 12 Then they understood that he did not tell them to beware of the leaven of bread, but of the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees.

Prayer- Our Lord God, we thank you for the opportunity to come together at Christ Covenant to worship you in Spirit and in truth.   We ask for your guidance though the Holy Spirit to speak to us and increase desire to grow in our faith and live as your people. Give us ears to hear and eyes to see in our understanding of your Word.    In Jesus name, Amen

Introduction

As a review, Matthew is writing to a Jewish and Gentile Christian church, and he writes this gospel account to encourage believers to move from a weaker to a greater faith that is found only trusting in Jesus Christ for everything in our life.

Matthew has often paralleled his account of Jesus’ life with the OT, specifically through the life of the greatest OT prophet, Moses, as recorded in the books of Exodus and Deuteronomy. 

He provides evidence that God’s acts of redemption described in the OT is  a type (or sign) for the coming messiah fulfilled in the person of Jesus.

A few Key themes  in Matthew from the writings of Moses are:

1. Exodus out of Egypt from slavery.   God’s people need to be redeemed.

Matthew 2:15

15 and remained there until the death of Herod. This was to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet, “Out of Egypt I called my so.”

from Hosea 11:1 that is speaking in original context of the past deliverance of Israel, God’s son, from Egypt. 

Jesus is identified with the past experiences of Israel in order to deliver his people from their bondage.

2. The Crossing of the sea connection with baptism.

Israel emerged through the Red Sea as God’s new Covenant people.  Jesus was baptized, not because he was a sinner, but to identifies in baptism with the sinful people he had come to save through the New Covenant.

3. Israel in the Wilderness.  40 years, Jesus for 40 days.

Jesus experience temptation like the Nation of Israel.  Israel succumbed to the temptations, Jesus did not.

4. God’s law is given on Mount Sinai.  Jesus provides an exposition on the Sermon on the Mount

5. The promised land.   Jesus =Joshua in Hebrew and Greek and means God is salvation.  In a more complete way Jesus lead his people in a New Covenant out of sin and bondage into a the promised land for an eternal Sabbath rest reunited with their God

7. Great Commission echoes Yahweh words to Israel. Observe everything that I command you and l am with you always.

To understand today’s  text,  we will also look at an OT type that relates to the miraculous feeding of the multitudes back in Matthew 15 & 16. 

In our sermon will have two points.

An Evil generation rejects the living bread of life

Jesus’ disciples must reject the teaching of those who reject Him.

Point One- An Evil generation rejects the living bread of life.

Bread in Matthew is almost always tied to manna and life is found in bread.  

Not once, but twice Jesus has feed the multitudes in a wilderness with a miraculous feeding that reflects back to the manna from Heaven that God had provided his people to sustain them during the journey in the wilderness.

John 6:31–33 “31 Our fathers ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written, ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’ ” 32 Jesus then said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven, but my Father gives you the true bread from heaven. 33 For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.””

God provided the physical bread of life, manna from heaven,  to the Israelites in the wilderness.

How did they respond?

They grumbled.  We are tired of manna, we want to go back to Egypt.  They were never satisfied.

How do the Jewish leaders the P & S, respond to God’s working in their midst with Jesus’ ministry and recently feeding the multitudes and calling  himself the living bread that came down from heaven?

They grumbled and are dissatisfied with the living bread that God now sends.  

Matthew 16:1 ESV

1And the Pharisees and Sadducees came, and to test him they asked him to show them a sign from heaven.

The Pharisees and Sadducees. Who are they?

Pharisees and Sadducees were on opposite poles of the religious and political spectrum.   

We will call them the ultra-right and the ultra-left.

The Phariseesemerged after the exile to  

 Restore the holy religion of the people of Israel.

Their name comes from setting themselves apart to obey the law of God.

They adhered to a strict observance of the law and the oral traditions of the elders. 

They were considered pious by the people and led worship outside of Jerusalem in the local synagogues.

They believed in miracles, the coming of the messiah, the resurrection of the dead, angels and a final judgment.

The Sadducees were secular and liberal in their theology. 

They were skeptics who did not believe in miracles or a final resurrection.  

They became wealthy aristocrats and were the leaders and priests at the Temple in Jerusalem.  

The Temple had become a tourist attraction for visiting Jewish pilgrims and they generated an income selling sacrificial animals,  and overseeing the money changers.

The Pharisees and the Sadducees had nothing in common except for the fear of Jesus disrupting their power base and control.  

The enemy of my enemy is my friend. 

Why did they come?

They were representatives of the Jewish Court call the Sanhedrin and waited together in Galilee to confront Jesus.

They knew all about Jesus’ teaching and miracles to include the feeding of the multitudes.  

Vs. 1. To test him by asking for a sign from heaven.  

“To Test” is the same Greek word used in Matthew 4   when Satan Tested (or tempted) Jesus.

In the wilderness, Jesus had fasted for 40 days and 40 nights when Satan arrived.

Satan temped Jesus three times and Jesus finally said to him

Matthew 4:10

10T…“Be gone, Satan! For it is written, “ ‘You shall worship the Lord your God and him only shall you serve.’ ”

The Devil left him, but Satan’s work continued.

Jesus tells the P&Scribes in

John 8:44 “44 You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies.”

These religious leaders became Satan’s instrument set on destroying Jesus’s mission by discrediting him in front of his own disciples.  

Vs. 1.  They asked for a sign from heaven.

Signs are visible indicators that are intended to point to truth, authority or guidance.

There were many signs in the OT.  The 10 plagues in Egypt were signs to Pharaoh and God’s people.

So far, Matthew has written about the signs of Jesus with his healing the sick, casting out demons, calming storms, feeding the hungry, and even raising the dead.

But as a caveat, God warns us that signs do not validate the authenticity of the prophet as both true and false prophets can “wow the crowd with a sign.”  

The Pharisees would have known of the verse in Deuteronomy 13.  How would they know Christ is a true prophet with his signs and miracles?

Deuteronomy 13:1–4

“If a prophet or a dreamer of dreams arises among you and gives you a sign or a wonder, 2 and the sign or wonder that he tells you comes to pass, and if he says, ‘Let us go after other gods,’ which you have not known, ‘and let us serve them,’ 3 you shall not listen to the words of that prophet or that dreamer of dreams. For the Lord your God is testing you, to know whether you love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul. 4 You shall walk after the Lord your God and fear him and keep his commandments and obey his voice, and you shall serve him and hold fast to him.”

Thus, a prophet’s word is true not by their sign, but by their message.  “Do they encourage you to love and serve the true God or to persuade you seek after other gods?”

So to whom does Jesus point?    

Mark 12:28–31 “28 And one of the scribes… asked (Jesus), “Which commandment is the most important of all?” 29 Jesus answered, “The most important is, ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. 30 And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your souland with all your mind and with all your strength.’ 31 The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.””

The P&S could not see with their blindness that Jesus directs others to God and is thus a true prophet.

How does Jesus respond to the Pharisees?

Matthew 16:2–3 ESV

2…“When it is evening, you say, ‘It will be fair weather, for the sky is red.’ 3 And in the morning, ‘It will be stormy today, for the sky is red and threatening.’ You know how to interpret the appearance of the sky, but you cannot interpret the signs of the times.

Jesus first points out their ability to interpret signs from the sky:

We have the same proverbial saying: “Red sky at night: (Shepherds) sailors’ delight. Red sky in the morning: sailors take warning.”

They are great weathermen, but inept theologians. 

In their blindness they are missing the most momentous signs of times that is right before their very eyes: Jesus Himself.

He then rebukes them

Matthew 16:4 ESV

An evil and adulterous generation seeks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of Jonah.”

Seems harsh, but Jesus knows the evil in their hearts.

There will be a sign giving by Jesus, but it will be the sign of Jonah

Jesus spoke of this evil generation and the sign of Jonah in nearly the same words earlier back in Chapter 12 and explains the sign of Jonah.

Matthew 12:40–41 “For just as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.  The men of Nineveh will rise up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and behold, something greater than Jonah is here.”   

The only sign the religious leaders will receive is a foreshadowing of Jesus’ death and resurrection.

 vs. 4b .  So (Jesus) left them and departed.

Those last words are ominous with meaning.

They are the Evil Prophets who have rejected the true bread of life, manna from heaven, Jesus. 

Point 2.  Jesus’ disciples must reject the teaching of those who reject Him.

Matthew 16:5–8

“5 When the disciples reached the other side, they had forgotten to bring any bread. 6 Jesus said to them, “Watch and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees.” 7 And they began discussing it among themselves, saying, “We brought no bread.” 8 But Jesus, aware of this, said, “O you of little faith, why are you discussing among yourselves the fact that you have no bread?” 

In reflecting on his recent interaction with the religious leaders,  Jesus provided a teachable moment for the disciples,  “Watch and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees.

But, the Disciples take a detour in their thinking. 

They just heard the word “leaven” and they began discussing it among themselves, saying, “We brought no bread.”

Jesus rebukes them saying “It is not about the bread you forgot to bring.”  I am providing you with a warning.

Warnings are important.  We see warning signs everywhere intended to protect us.

Signs for a Stroke- Acronym BE FAST Balance, Eyes, face, arms, speech, time.

Timing is of the essence to minimize the effect of the stroke.

Time is of the essence for the disciples.  Jesus will soon no longer be with them.  

Their faith needs to strengthened so that they will persevere through the coming of the passion week, and then carry out the Great Commission after Jesus’ resurrection.   

Watch and Beware of the Leaven.  Jesus uses leaven as a metaphor,  It is a small piece of dough that contains yeast that is added to additional flour (ground grain) with spices. 

The leaven permeates the entire loaf causing fermentation and the bread to rise.

The leaven may seem small and insignificant, but can become toxic destroying the truth of God’s Word. 

In verse 8, Jesus says to them “O you of little faith.”   

Jesus has mentioned “little faith” on several occasions in Matthew.

Back in the Sermon on the mount in Mathew 6.  Jesus replies “O you of little faith” and teaches them about not being anxious about life, clothing, or eating.

and finishes by telling them to that greater faith comes by,

Seeking first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.” Matthew 6:33

Not first in the order of our Christian life, but first above all things. 

Later with the disciples, he pointed out their “little faith”  when they feared perishing in the storm in Matthew 8.  And in Matthew 14 he uses the phrase when Peter asks to join Jesus to walking on the water, but began to sink when he took his eyes off of the Lord and became fearful of  the storm around him.

We too need to keep our eyes on Jesus when we are in the storms of life.   Life is filled with anxiety, illness, death, and other worldly concerns that can weaken our faith and distract us from the mission God has for us. 

“O you of little faith”

Matthew 16:9–11 “9 Do you not yet perceive? Do you not rememberthe five loaves for the five thousand, and how many baskets you gathered? 10 Or the seven loaves for the four thousand, and how many baskets you gathered? 11 How is it that you fail to understand that I did not speak about bread? Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees.””

Jesus was teaching them an important spiritual truth and they were once again distraction by their current physical needs.  

but even if he was speaking of bread do they not remember his recent feeding of the 5K and then the 4K that was like manna from heaven?

Just as the disciples needed to be aware of the leaven that could permeate their understanding of faith, we must actively seek to align our beliefs with the truth of God’s Word.  We need to be people of the Book.  

Matthew 16:12 ESV

12Then they understood that he did not tell them to beware of the leaven of bread, but of the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees.

Jesus warns the disciples that the influence of these religious leaders could permeate their understanding and doctrinal beliefs.

The word for teaching, διδαχή, has a nuanced meaning that is often translated as doctrine.  True Doctrine is important. Bad Doctrine can poison your heart and soul.

Beware of the leaven in our world that is filled with competing voices on the internet, social media, pod casts, and other people that will create a deviation in truth leads us aware from the Gospel of Christ.

We must be vigilant in our pursuit of truth, grounding ourselves in Scripture and the doctrines of Christ, and being wary of anything that deviates from Christ and His gospel.

What are some of the warning signs that Christ provides regarding the Doctrines of the P&S?

The Pharisees

Jesus often calls them hypocrites as their error is that their religion was only external

In Greek the term hypocrite means an actor under an assumed character. 

They are wearing a mask and different on the inside compared to the outside.

Matthew 23:23

“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cumin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness. These you ought to have done, without neglecting the others.”  

Matthew 23:26

26 You blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and the plate, that the outside also may be clean.

Thomas Brooks from the 17th Century wrote a book on Hypocrites. 

“There is never a hypocrite in the world that makes  God, or Christ, or holiness …, his ultimate end of living in the world.  Pleasures, profits, and honors are  the hypocrite’s (purposes) in this world… A hypocrite is all for his own glory: he acts only for himself.  They talk of the glory of God, but the profit, the credit, the glory, the applause is all for themselves.”

The error of the Sadducees is just as insidious.

They erred by rejecting anything that was too spiritual or heavenly.  Life is to be lived in the here and now.

Liberal Theology has  become dominant in the church at large. 

God’s Word provides inspiration, but cannot fully be trusted.

 “It may appear that what the liberal theologian has retained after abandoning to the enemy one Christian doctrine after another is not  Christianity at all, but a religion which is so entirely different from  Christianity as to belong in a distinct category.”      J. Gresham Machen,             Christianity & Liberalism   

Many people in our churches live as if this world and what it has to offer are all that ever really matter. These are the leaven of the P&S.

In conclusion,  at the end of the Wilderness Journeyfor the Nation of Israel before they entered the promised land, Joshua warns them how to stay true to their God. 

Joshua 1:8–9

“This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.  Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”

Therefore, to avoid the doctrine of the P&S we must know God’s Word and courageously obey him even when the skies are red in the morning and a storm is coming.

To sustain the faithful while we are in the wilderness of this life, Christ who is the fulfillment of Israel,  has given us himself, the living bread, manna from heaven.  

John 6:47–51 “Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes has eternal life. 48 I am the bread of life. 49 Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. 50 This is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that one may eat of it and not die. 51 I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.”

We need to believe in living bread, Jesus Christ, given by grace, in faith, and developing our doctrine on His Word alone. This will transition us from a weaker faith to a greater faith. 

He also gives us the means of grace to strengthened our faith with worship,  the sacraments, prayer, and the Communion of the Church,.

And finally, there will be another sign from heaven that will be Jesus’ last.

Matthew 24:30 ESV

30 Then will appear in heaven the sign of the Son of Man, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.

Let us pray.

Prayer-Our gracious heavenly father.  We thank you for the gift of the living bread from heaven, Jesus Christ who is to be our savior and our Lord.   May your steadfast love guide us in your ways.  By your grace increase our faith as we engage in the Means of Grace.  Enable us to live unto righteous,  only by the righteousness given to us by Christ.

Amen