Yeast Hunt

Holy Week- as someone once said, it is like the playoffs for Christians- the season leading up to the Superbowl- EASTER SUNDAY. Alas, this Easter Sunday will be quite different, as we will not be able to celebrate in our usual ways, but I hope we will all still celebrate. We also will have a much different Holy Week this year, but I think we can actually use this different kind of Holy Week for our spiritual refinement.

So, let’s talk Holy Week for a moment. The events of Holy Week- Jesus’ last week on Earth from Palm Sunday to Easter Sunday- take place over the Feast of Unleavened Bread. The Feast of Unleavened Bread was a celebration and a reminder of the Passover and God’s faithfulness to Israel in delivering them from Egypt captivity in Exodus.

So, the command from God to the Israelites during the Passover is found in - and verses 18-20 contain the Lord’s command about unleavened bread during the Feast.

English Standard Version Chapter 12

18 In the first month, from the fourteenth day of the month at evening, you shall eat unleavened bread until the twenty-first day of the month at evening. 19 For seven days no leaven is to be found in your houses. If anyone eats what is leavened, that person will be cut off from the congregation of Israel, whether he is a sojourner or a native of the land. 20 You shall eat nothing leavened; in all your dwelling places you shall eat unleavened bread.”

So this is basically like a yeast scavenger hunt for the Hebrews- they go throughout their homes, getting rid of the yeast and making sure not to consume anything that might have yeast in it for the week. Now, some may wonder- “why no yeast?” Well, as we know the Bible is full of symbols and metaphors and yeast is no exception. Yeast has one meaning in this particular story, and in the NT it develops into something a little deeper. Today, I want to us to think about both of them and what they may say to us today.

First, for Israel in those moments the symbol of unleavened bread was a reminder of God’s deliverance- specifically the speed at which God was going to deliver his people.

Unleavened bread is bread with no yeast- yeast is, of course, what makes the bread rise. Without the yeast the baker is left with a flat looking bread that kind of resembles a tortilla. But why? Why would go require the Israelites to do such a ting?

The lack of yeast was a reminder of God’s timing in saving the Israelites. God wanted them to remember that his salvation came so quickly that they did not have time to wait for their bread to rise.

But 430 years is a long time- and that is how long Israel had been in Egyptian captivity- 430 years! I am sure there were probably many people who had given up on God a long time ago. Their faith was probably dwindling and their hope was long gone. But friends, perhaps this thought about yeast should remind us that the length of our trial is never a sign of the lack of God’s power.

God says- 430 years? You think that is too big for me? Watch this- watch how quick I deliver my people.

You say “My husband will never change, I stopped praying for him years ago” God says, remember the yeast. You say “I have missed 6 months of mortgage payments, there is no getting out of this hole” God says, remember the yeast. Our God is a miracle worker, and in a moment he can deliver us .

But wait, there’s more. In the NT yeast takes on a new kind of meaning. In Jesus tells us to be aware of the yeast of the Pharisees- meaning sin. Like yeast, sin makes its way into the whole of our lives and has a drastic effect on us and all of our lives. This is why Jesus asks us to rid ourselves of the leaven of sin.

Remember how this sermon started? We are entering Holy Week- falling over the season for the Feast of Unleavened Bread. Well, listen to what Paul says in

English Standard Version Chapter 5

6 Your boasting is not good. Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump? 7 Cleanse out the old leaven that you may be a new lump, as you really are unleavened. For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed. 8 Let us therefore celebrate the festival, not with the old leaven, the leaven of malice and evil, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.

This quarantine and stay at home order has really thrown a lot of people- myself included for a loop, But, you know what- I think there are some good aspects to it as well. One of the things is that it has caused many of us to SLOW DOWN. You know what takes time? Self reflection and examination. You cannot spiritually examine anyone- including yourself in a hurry. This is why so many Christians struggle with the sin of judging- they do not take the time to hear a person’s story, learn of their struggles, and hear their story of fight- they merely hear one piece or see one piece of their life and make a snap necked judgement about the whole of that person. Evaluation takes time...

Have you ever had to clean your house in under 30mins? You know, the killer bee cleaning buzz that goes on when a friends calls and unexpectedly wants to drop in? Or you overslept and someone important is coming over? I mastered this technique when I was a teen and mom and dad told me that I better have my room cleaned by the time they got home from work and I figured the best time to do it was 20mins before their arrival.

Finding yeast takes time, and extreme attention to detail. After all, if i asked you to point out the yeast in your bread, could you do it? No! it’s all mixed in, right? You can show me the effects of the yeast- raised bread, but can you show me the yeast itself? Nope. Many times sin is the same way- we can see the effects everywhere, but fail to seek out the sin causing the issue.

So, what if I were to give you a challenge today, Christians, and to your quarantine wisely this year. What if I were to challenge every one of our households to use this stay at home order as a “clean up your spirit” order from God? To take the time that we would normally spend running errands, taking kids to practices and games, and other activities we cannot do and concentrate that time and effort to the spirituality of your home.

So, what if I were to give you a challenge today, Christians, and to your quarantine wisely this year.

So, today I want to give you some quick thoughts and tips to get you a head start on seeking the yeast out of your home. Many times we say read the Bible and pray, but I want to take this one step further into practical application today.

Ask yourself the question- is this God’s best for me? In case you did not know this- I LOVE Harbor Freight Tool Store- I love it. When Harbor Freight brought a store to Harrisonburg it was literally one of the happiest days of my life. You see, the only Habor Freight in this area for a long time was in Lynchburg, about 3 miles from Liberty University where I and my brother went to school. So anytime I had to go to would make a trip to HF and come back with bags of stuff because it was so cheap! I will buy a lot of things from HF, but some tools I flat out will not buy- because I use them too much and I need something higher quality....

In Jesus tells us that he came so that we could have abundant life- life to the full- our BEST lives. Many times we miss out of the best part of our lives because we fail to simply stop and ask if we are accepting something lower than God’s best for us.

Access your giving level- In Jesus tells us about worrying about this world’s goods and storing up treasures in Heaven and he ends his thought with “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” In other words, you can tell a lot about a person by seeing how they spend their money. People who are spiritually healthy give- period. Giving is not optional for a Christian. Now, some can give more than others based on circumstance, but everyone is called to be a giver.

I challenge you to examine your giving this week- not just to this church- yes we want you to tithe and give here, but we also encourage our members to give to other organizations and Christian agencies as well. Start by tithing here, but then allow God to use you outside the walls of this church with gifts to others.

Check 3 levels- Joy, Prayer, and Thankfulness- Have you ever wondered what God’s will for your life is? Well, if so, I am about to help you out. Listen to “Rejoice always, 17 pray without ceasing, 18 give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you”

If you are filled with joy, prayerful, and thankful then you know you are moving toward the mind of Christ.

The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), .”

Take a word assessment- Good old James lays it out pretty straight for us in his epistle “no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. 9 With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people who are made in the likeness of God. 10 From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers, these things ought not to be so. 11 Does a spring pour forth from the same opening both fresh and salt water? .”

Ask yourself what the words you are using communicate about your spiritual life. if you had 2 spigots= one fresh water and one salt water and each time you spoke you opened each spigot up into a bucket, which bucket would fill up first?

My brother once told me it was easy to tell how mad or upset I was getting because the madder I got the worse my drawl was...

Check your water- Have you ever traveled out of the county? One of the problems is the water. Sure, one drink might not hurt, but if you drink water that hasn't been purified- and purified to the standards you are used to- you can get really sick really fast! Your system just cannot process it. Listen to

Now in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and silver but also of wood and clay, some for honorable use, some for dishonorable. 21 Therefore, if anyone cleanses himself from what is dishonorable, he will be a vessel for honorable use, set apart as holy, useful to the master of the house, ready for every good work.

Can I just say that many times we allow dishonorable things to enter our houses, our lives, and our hearts. We let them in via TV, movies, and other forms of entertainment. Now, I will never be the guy to tell you to never listen to anything but Christian music or to get rid of all your cable, but I am going to be the guy that asks you to consider if it is helping you be honorably used. Whats the water doing to you? You drink it long enough it will make you sick- and if we allow dirt into our spiritual systems it can cause the same thing to happen to us.

The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), .

BONUS- just for dads. Have a Spiritual conversation with your kids. Men, and tell us that the husband is the head of the home, and with that headship comes responsibility. Men, do not be passive in your kids spirituality. You know how normally you would be spending an hour at your sons baseball practice? Maybe spend that hour talking to him about his faith in Jesus? I will tell you as a former Children’s minister that kids are often anxious to talk about their faith, and many of them want to talk about it with their parents, not just the pastor. Don’t know where to start? Grad a pen really quick I will give you some easy questions to ask:

The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), .”

Who in your life do you think is the most like Jesus?

What do you think God looks like?

What is the coolest story you can think of from the Bible?

What is your favorite part of church?

WHAT CAN I PRAY FOR YOU? AND THEN PRAY WITH THEM!