Anchor My Faith

The Leaven Connection

Scripture: Matthew 16:7; Mark 8:13-15

In our previous study, we considered the request made by the Pharisees and Sadducees for a sign to convince them as to who Jesus really was. They were told that no sigh would be given to them except the sigh of Jonah. This raised the question of how to get three days and three nights for Jesus to be in the grave; a question that we did not answer but will look at when we study the resurrection of Jesus.

With this lesson we will start another short section of narrative, but it will require some more travel: ^{Mk 8:13} “[Then Jesus] left them, got into the boat again, and went to the other side.” Leaving the Pharisees and Sadducees behind, Jesus and the disciples get into their boat and travel back across the Sea of Galilee to the Northeast coast.

As they traveled across the water, the disciples realized that ^{Mk 8:14} “they had forgotten to bring bread, and they had only one loaf with them in the boat. ¹⁵ And [Jesus] cautioned them, saying, “Watch out; beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod.”’

The disciples realizing that they forgot to get more bread, than the one loaf they had, allowed Jesus to introduce a discussion with his disciples. The connection between what Jesus wanted to discuss and bread is the word “leaven”. Leaven causes bread to rise, but what does leaven have to do with the Pharisees and Herod?

Leaven is used in 1 Corinthians 5:6 – 7 (ESV): 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.” In the ancient world, leaven would be some leftover fermented dough that is kept from a lump or batch of dough used in backing loaves of bread. That leftover fermented dough is kept and used to start the fermentation process in the next batch of bread; a little leaven leavens the next batch, referred to as the whole lump. The spiritual application is to equate sin with old leaven. A little sin left in the life of a believer or in a church will spread and, in a sense, ferment the whole person or fellowship. New leaven would be the positive influence a Christian should have over the lives of others.

Applying this process of a small amount of leaven fermenting the whole batch to a small sin growing into something larger to the Pharisees and Herod, leads us see their negative influence over the lives they are responsible to. Jesus is cautioning his disciples to be aware of the sinful influence of the Pharisees and Herod over their lives.

After Jesus made his simple but thoughtful statement, ^{Mt 16:7} “[the disciples] began discussing it among themselves, saying, “We brought no bread.”’ Clearly, the disciples did not understand the leaven connection and stayed focused on the fact that they had only one loaf of bread with them.

How would Jesus help them understand? We will find out in the next lesson.

Conclusion

The Pharisees and Herod were examples of old leaven. What kind of leaven are you when you ae around other people? As leaven are you more like the Pharisees and Herod or are you more like Jesus? Father, as leaven, help us influence those around us as Jesus would.