And the disciples came to the other side of the sea, but they had forgotten to
bring any bread. And Jesus said to them, “Watch out and beware
of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees.” (vv5-6 NASB)
Do you remember who
the Pharisees and Sadducees are? I have to remind myself. Both groups were religious leaders. The Pharisees
mainly taught in the synagogues and were know to the common man as hypocrites.
Sadducees were aristocratic temple leaders and they were sad, you see, because
they did not believe in the resurrection, angels, spirits, or in the oral
tradition of the law. The Pharisee did believe in all these, so they were at
odds with each other.
Jesus was questioned by the disciples when they forgot to take along bread. Had they forgotten how Jesus fed five thousand and then four thousand men? Jesus wasn’t even talking about “bread” but about “leaven” of the Pharisees. The teachings of the Pharisees were as leaven---something that puffs up, but does not give any substance.
Likewise we need to beware of teachings of others that may appear to be teaching about God---but they are distorting the truth, puffing it up. Don’t “chew” on the words or even the thoughts of those who just appear to be telling you truths about God. Seek the truth---as a workman, who does not need to be ashamed, handling accurately (“rightly dividing”) the word of truth, 2 Timothy 2:15. Have you checked teachings against scripture lately?
Lord, help us to understand Your words and to apply them to our lives. We don’t want to be puffed up hypocrites or sad for not believing the truths in the Bible.
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