“Watch out!” Jesus told them. “Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees...”1
The Pharisees came and tested Jesus by asking Him to show them a sign from heaven. But he replied they could interpret the appearances of the sky, but not the signs of the times? only a wicked and adulterous generation demands a sign, but none will be given except the sign of Jonah. Jesus would explain the leaven, so would Paul.
The sign given would be the death and resurrection of Christ. "For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of a huge fish, so the Son of Man will be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. The men of Nineveh will stand at the judgment with this generation and condemn it; for they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and now One greater than Jonah is here.”3
Jesus performs a sign, feeding four thousand people with seven loaves, it had to be good bread, it was from heaven, but they must have not been too hungry with all the leftovers but surely there was evidence of such a miracle. The Pharisees are now arguing with him, "seeking from him a sign from heaven to test him." They ask for a sign, he is performing these miracles, signs, but they still don't believe. Jesus sighs at them, people of little faith, gets in a boat to go to the other side of the sea and remarks, "Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees." The disciples thought he said this because they did not bring the bread.
“Why are you discussing the fact that you have no bread? Do you not yet perceive or understand? Are your hearts hardened? Having eyes do you not see, and having ears do you not hear?"4
They are in the boat with Jesus with only one loaf of bread, Mark writes.5 Some scholars remark that for the feeding of the five thousands perhaps the disciples took the bread with them to remind them of this miracle, such is close to understanding, surely Jesus wanted them to understand but this was about the issue of the leaven. The disciples argue about who forgot the bread and are missing the point. He asks if they had forgotten about the bread, the few loaves used, the many people fed, the baskets left over...
"How is it that you fail to understand that I did not speak about bread? Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees."6
I hope you see, how can I write anymore without giving away the key, you must understand. It is the nature of faith, I can tell you what to believe, you can even have knowledge of Jesus, say Lord, Lord to him but if you do not believe in your heart it profits you nothing. The seed that bears fruit in good soil speaks of those who hear and understand. "How can you not understand..." Later, we read that Jesus asked, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?” Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God."7
"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."8
Leaven bread has yeast, it only takes a little yeast to leaven the whole of bread, the teaching of the Pharisees, are like yeast, effecting the whole bread. Understanding is a key part in this lesson. Luke writes this leaven was hypocrisy, "Yourselves, take heed of the leaven which is hypocrisy of the Pharisee."9 Hypocrisy is a telling sign, but it points to the teachings of the Pharisee. "Get behind me, Satan! You are a hindrance to me. For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.”10
The name Pharisee means "teacher of the law," Jesus said they sat in the seat of Moses passing judgement and dispensing laws. The prophet Isaiah spoke of such leaders, command upon command, rule upon rule... God had told them to give the people rest and reprieve. Surely, the new covenant is about faith and grace, about resting in Christ, about reprieve, the lifting of burdens of another is the "law of Christ." The leaven places heavy burdens on the shoulders of men, it goes to great lengths to create disciples many times the sons of hell.
"Woe to you, teachers of the law, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices--mint, dill and cumin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law--justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former."11
The Pharisee added thousands of rules, and adhered to the letter of the law but neglected the weightier matters of the law. Though by the Law as Paul spoke of himself, blameless, their hearts were far from God. Thus we see the issue of sin taking opportunity through the law, the enmity of the flesh under the law abounds. They had exchanged the image of God to that like man, creating an idol, a religious system, that looked like God, following the letter of the law, but they had removed God from their minds, hostile toward God, thus he gave them over to a unapproved mind, to the lusts of the flesh. A little leaven leavens the whole.
"Woe to you experts in the law! For you have taken away the key to knowledge. You yourselves have not entered, and you have hindered those who were entering."12
The key to the Kingdom is the lesson here, the teachings of the Pharisee took away this knowledge. This word for knowledge is gnósis, "experientially know" – functional, "working" knowledge gleaned from first-hand (personal) experience, connecting theory to application. They did not enter nor allow others to enter, so the kingdom was taken from them. Jesus would establish the Church, where two have become one. This leaven, teachers of the law, was a problem in the early Church, as it is today.
"You were running well. Who hindered you from obeying the truth? This persuasion is not from him who calls you. A little leaven leavens the whole lump."13
Paul is speaking to the Galatians who started out in the Spirit but went back to the law. This leaven that leavens the whole lump is often referred to as sin, those of the letter of the law focus on sin and the judgement of sin, they sit in the seat of Moses. In context Paul is speaking of the leaven Jesus spoke of, he calls them of the "circumcision party," who adhere to the "letter of the law" but now enter the Church. Paul makes this mighty statement to the Galatians who have become "leavened" by their teachings, "You are severed from Christ, you who would be justified by the law; you have fallen away from grace."14
"For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision counts for anything, but only faith working through love."15
The leaven are these who adhere to "letter of the law," or legalism, these in the Church will leaven the whole lump, Paul writes. The sign is the hypocrisy of their failure to adhere to the law, their lack of faith and love. Paul writes they attempt to bring back old covenant circumcision of the flesh, which seems like a trivial thing, but they introduce a little leaven which will leaven the whole lump. These attack the core foundational teachings of the new covenant; faith and grace. They proclaim Christ as Lord but teach through their actions, justification in works of the law not by faith in Christ. The leaven at its core seeks to eliminate the keys to understanding and thus to entering the kingdom.
"For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another."16
We hear the phrase used often from this verse, it speaks of using grace as a license to sin, but in context the greater issue is of the leaven. Paul writes, it is under grace man will have dominion over sin, not the letter of the law, therefore the teachings of those under the letter of the law seek to keep men in bondage. "But the law is not of faith, rather “The one who does them shall live by them.”17 The law doesn't give faith. "For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery."18 The yoke of slavery in this verse is often referred to as sin, but returning to the letter of the law is returning to that which bounds.19 And as the law states if you rest or adhere to the letter of the law, you are under its curse, which Christ died on the cross to set men free from.20
"I testify again to every man who accepts circumcision that he is obligated to keep the whole law."19
Circumcision in context as Paul writes refers to the idea of the "letter of the law." To understand, the law was good and just, it is spiritual but we are carnal. The sinful nature, the flesh and the mind of man is at enmity or hostile toward God. The law attempted to subject man to the laws of God but as Paul writes the carnal mind will never be subject to the laws of God. You see? here is the problem of the law, carnal mind is enmity against God, the law caused such hostility to increase. We see the issue and the solution, being born of Spirit, by the Spirit we now are "spiritual" thus have power to fulfill the spiritual law of God. Our minds need to be subjected to God, thus transformation by the renewing of the mind. Such produces a mind no longer at enmity, it accepts God's will as pleasing and perfect.
"Tell me, you who desire to be under the law, do you not hear the law?"20
I love Paul, he tells the problem and provides the solution. He is pretty upset with this leaven infecting the Church, besides recommending castration he says to ask these, do you not hear the law? Today, these people are in the Church, maybe they judge you with evident hypocrisy, surely they have double standards, excusing away their own sin. They adhere to the letter of the law thus like the law they are exposing your sin, condemning it... surely the fear of punishment, shame, guilt, and condemnation they use against you. This is how you counter such; Say to them, do you not hear the law? and here is what that means. The curse of the law says if you break one part you break it all and the principle of judging is that it measures back to you the way you judge. So you have a right, under the law, to these under the law, to point out their hypocrisy, the big beam sticking out of their eye.
"... these women are two covenants. One is from Mount Sinai, bearing children for slavery; she is Hagar. Now Hagar is Mount Sinai in Arabia; she corresponds to the present Jerusalem, for she is in slavery with her children. But the Jerusalem above is free, and she is our mother."23
Jesus pointed out the hypocrisy of the Pharisee, it was a telling sign, along with their hatred, that their hearts were far from God. Jesus is the mediator of a new covenant. Here Paul is comparing the two covenants, writing at a time before the temple was destroyed in 60AD, so at this time, he uses this analogy to help us understand the two opposing ideas and how they are incompatible. One "who was born according to the flesh persecuted him who was born according to the Spirit." Those of the flesh persecute those of faith, Hagar persecutes Sarah. Paul writes of the promise passing through the Seed of Christ, those justified by faith are sons of Abraham.So we see the bondage, the Jew of the flesh under the law producing children in bondage to the flesh persecuting those of the Spirit. But the Jerusalem above is free...
"For the whole law is fulfilled in one word: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”24
Some would say the Law is good today as it exposes sin and will act as schoolmaster, producing condemnation of sin that will eventually bring people to Christ. This is not the truth I see in the scriptures, nor gnósis, "experiential knowing." But I do know this is what the gates of hell have opened up against, grace and faith. The leaven or adherence to the letter of the law is noticeable, that which attacks faith working through love. Watch out! Beware of the leaven of these teachers of the law. These who live to the letter of the law are slaves to fear, they do not walk by faith, nor by Spirit. They attempt to subject men to the law but the mind is at enmity thereby they increase hostility of the flesh thus increasing the hostility of man towards God. Surely, the leavened bread doesn't sanctify the hungry, thirsty soul of man, only the bread from heaven.
"But when the time had fully come, God sent His Son, born of a woman, born under the Law, to redeem those under the law, that we might receive adoption to sonship."25
We see the promise, made heirs of the kingdom of God, "if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s offspring, heirs according to promise." 26 We receive the Spirit and walk in the Spirit not by works of the law but by faith.27 "The law is not of faith..."28 Justification is by faith, approved righteous by the blood of Christ. By faith we become sons of God.8 "Know then that it is those of faith who are the sons of Abraham."29 Born of Spirit, adopted as sons, heirs to the promise.30 It is interesting Paul uses the example of Hagar and Sarah to compare the Jew of the flesh, Hagar, to the Jew of the Spirit, Sarah. And then he makes this profound statement, “Cast out the slave woman and her son, for the son of the slave woman shall not inherit with the son of the free woman.”31
"Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I have not come to bring peace, but a sword. I have come to turn ‘A man against his father, a daughter against her mother, a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law."32
Another type of leaven, do you see? The devil uses leaven, those who adhere to letter of the law, their objective is to take away the keys to the knowledge of the kingdom. The Church uses leaven, the teachings of faith and grace, to counter such weeds. Freedom is not to be used as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another.34 Love removes the hostility, the biting and devouring of one another that you see the flesh take opportunity under the law. The weeds can fake it by adhering to the law but understanding the keys of the kingdom, living out grace, faith, and agape love, truly requires dependence on the Spirit and Truth. The law counts for nothing but only faith working through love."35 Now, abides faith, hope, and love, the greatest of these is love.
Love On The Line
The Pharisees came and tested Jesus by asking Him to show them a sign from heaven. But he replied they could interpret the appearances of the sky, but not the signs of the times? only a wicked and adulterous generation demands a sign, but none will be given except the sign of Jonah. Jesus would explain the leaven, so would Paul.
The sign given would be the death and resurrection of Christ. "For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of a huge fish, so the Son of Man will be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. The men of Nineveh will stand at the judgment with this generation and condemn it; for they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and now One greater than Jonah is here.”3
Jesus performs a sign, feeding four thousand people with seven loaves, it had to be good bread, it was from heaven, but they must have not been too hungry with all the leftovers but surely there was evidence of such a miracle. The Pharisees are now arguing with him, "seeking from him a sign from heaven to test him." They ask for a sign, he is performing these miracles, signs, but they still don't believe. Jesus sighs at them, people of little faith, gets in a boat to go to the other side of the sea and remarks, "Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees." The disciples thought he said this because they did not bring the bread.
“Why are you discussing the fact that you have no bread? Do you not yet perceive or understand? Are your hearts hardened? Having eyes do you not see, and having ears do you not hear?"4
They are in the boat with Jesus with only one loaf of bread, Mark writes.5 Some scholars remark that for the feeding of the five thousands perhaps the disciples took the bread with them to remind them of this miracle, such is close to understanding, surely Jesus wanted them to understand but this was about the issue of the leaven. The disciples argue about who forgot the bread and are missing the point. He asks if they had forgotten about the bread, the few loaves used, the many people fed, the baskets left over...
"How is it that you fail to understand that I did not speak about bread? Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees."6
I hope you see, how can I write anymore without giving away the key, you must understand. It is the nature of faith, I can tell you what to believe, you can even have knowledge of Jesus, say Lord, Lord to him but if you do not believe in your heart it profits you nothing. The seed that bears fruit in good soil speaks of those who hear and understand. "How can you not understand..." Later, we read that Jesus asked, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?” Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God."7
"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."8
Leaven bread has yeast, it only takes a little yeast to leaven the whole of bread, the teaching of the Pharisees, are like yeast, effecting the whole bread. Understanding is a key part in this lesson. Luke writes this leaven was hypocrisy, "Yourselves, take heed of the leaven which is hypocrisy of the Pharisee."9 Hypocrisy is a telling sign, but it points to the teachings of the Pharisee. "Get behind me, Satan! You are a hindrance to me. For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.”10
The name Pharisee means "teacher of the law," Jesus said they sat in the seat of Moses passing judgement and dispensing laws. The prophet Isaiah spoke of such leaders, command upon command, rule upon rule... God had told them to give the people rest and reprieve. Surely, the new covenant is about faith and grace, about resting in Christ, about reprieve, the lifting of burdens of another is the "law of Christ." The leaven places heavy burdens on the shoulders of men, it goes to great lengths to create disciples many times the sons of hell.
"Woe to you, teachers of the law, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices--mint, dill and cumin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law--justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former."11
The Pharisee added thousands of rules, and adhered to the letter of the law but neglected the weightier matters of the law. Though by the Law as Paul spoke of himself, blameless, their hearts were far from God. Thus we see the issue of sin taking opportunity through the law, the enmity of the flesh under the law abounds. They had exchanged the image of God to that like man, creating an idol, a religious system, that looked like God, following the letter of the law, but they had removed God from their minds, hostile toward God, thus he gave them over to a unapproved mind, to the lusts of the flesh. A little leaven leavens the whole.
"Woe to you experts in the law! For you have taken away the key to knowledge. You yourselves have not entered, and you have hindered those who were entering."12
The key to the Kingdom is the lesson here, the teachings of the Pharisee took away this knowledge. This word for knowledge is gnósis, "experientially know" – functional, "working" knowledge gleaned from first-hand (personal) experience, connecting theory to application. They did not enter nor allow others to enter, so the kingdom was taken from them. Jesus would establish the Church, where two have become one. This leaven, teachers of the law, was a problem in the early Church, as it is today.
"You were running well. Who hindered you from obeying the truth? This persuasion is not from him who calls you. A little leaven leavens the whole lump."13
Paul is speaking to the Galatians who started out in the Spirit but went back to the law. This leaven that leavens the whole lump is often referred to as sin, those of the letter of the law focus on sin and the judgement of sin, they sit in the seat of Moses. In context Paul is speaking of the leaven Jesus spoke of, he calls them of the "circumcision party," who adhere to the "letter of the law" but now enter the Church. Paul makes this mighty statement to the Galatians who have become "leavened" by their teachings, "You are severed from Christ, you who would be justified by the law; you have fallen away from grace."14
"For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision counts for anything, but only faith working through love."15
The leaven are these who adhere to "letter of the law," or legalism, these in the Church will leaven the whole lump, Paul writes. The sign is the hypocrisy of their failure to adhere to the law, their lack of faith and love. Paul writes they attempt to bring back old covenant circumcision of the flesh, which seems like a trivial thing, but they introduce a little leaven which will leaven the whole lump. These attack the core foundational teachings of the new covenant; faith and grace. They proclaim Christ as Lord but teach through their actions, justification in works of the law not by faith in Christ. The leaven at its core seeks to eliminate the keys to understanding and thus to entering the kingdom.
"For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another."16
We hear the phrase used often from this verse, it speaks of using grace as a license to sin, but in context the greater issue is of the leaven. Paul writes, it is under grace man will have dominion over sin, not the letter of the law, therefore the teachings of those under the letter of the law seek to keep men in bondage. "But the law is not of faith, rather “The one who does them shall live by them.”17 The law doesn't give faith. "For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery."18 The yoke of slavery in this verse is often referred to as sin, but returning to the letter of the law is returning to that which bounds.19 And as the law states if you rest or adhere to the letter of the law, you are under its curse, which Christ died on the cross to set men free from.20
"I testify again to every man who accepts circumcision that he is obligated to keep the whole law."19
Circumcision in context as Paul writes refers to the idea of the "letter of the law." To understand, the law was good and just, it is spiritual but we are carnal. The sinful nature, the flesh and the mind of man is at enmity or hostile toward God. The law attempted to subject man to the laws of God but as Paul writes the carnal mind will never be subject to the laws of God. You see? here is the problem of the law, carnal mind is enmity against God, the law caused such hostility to increase. We see the issue and the solution, being born of Spirit, by the Spirit we now are "spiritual" thus have power to fulfill the spiritual law of God. Our minds need to be subjected to God, thus transformation by the renewing of the mind. Such produces a mind no longer at enmity, it accepts God's will as pleasing and perfect.
"Tell me, you who desire to be under the law, do you not hear the law?"20
I love Paul, he tells the problem and provides the solution. He is pretty upset with this leaven infecting the Church, besides recommending castration he says to ask these, do you not hear the law? Today, these people are in the Church, maybe they judge you with evident hypocrisy, surely they have double standards, excusing away their own sin. They adhere to the letter of the law thus like the law they are exposing your sin, condemning it... surely the fear of punishment, shame, guilt, and condemnation they use against you. This is how you counter such; Say to them, do you not hear the law? and here is what that means. The curse of the law says if you break one part you break it all and the principle of judging is that it measures back to you the way you judge. So you have a right, under the law, to these under the law, to point out their hypocrisy, the big beam sticking out of their eye.
"... these women are two covenants. One is from Mount Sinai, bearing children for slavery; she is Hagar. Now Hagar is Mount Sinai in Arabia; she corresponds to the present Jerusalem, for she is in slavery with her children. But the Jerusalem above is free, and she is our mother."23
Jesus pointed out the hypocrisy of the Pharisee, it was a telling sign, along with their hatred, that their hearts were far from God. Jesus is the mediator of a new covenant. Here Paul is comparing the two covenants, writing at a time before the temple was destroyed in 60AD, so at this time, he uses this analogy to help us understand the two opposing ideas and how they are incompatible. One "who was born according to the flesh persecuted him who was born according to the Spirit." Those of the flesh persecute those of faith, Hagar persecutes Sarah. Paul writes of the promise passing through the Seed of Christ, those justified by faith are sons of Abraham.So we see the bondage, the Jew of the flesh under the law producing children in bondage to the flesh persecuting those of the Spirit. But the Jerusalem above is free...
"For the whole law is fulfilled in one word: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”24
Some would say the Law is good today as it exposes sin and will act as schoolmaster, producing condemnation of sin that will eventually bring people to Christ. This is not the truth I see in the scriptures, nor gnósis, "experiential knowing." But I do know this is what the gates of hell have opened up against, grace and faith. The leaven or adherence to the letter of the law is noticeable, that which attacks faith working through love. Watch out! Beware of the leaven of these teachers of the law. These who live to the letter of the law are slaves to fear, they do not walk by faith, nor by Spirit. They attempt to subject men to the law but the mind is at enmity thereby they increase hostility of the flesh thus increasing the hostility of man towards God. Surely, the leavened bread doesn't sanctify the hungry, thirsty soul of man, only the bread from heaven.
"But when the time had fully come, God sent His Son, born of a woman, born under the Law, to redeem those under the law, that we might receive adoption to sonship."25
We see the promise, made heirs of the kingdom of God, "if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s offspring, heirs according to promise." 26 We receive the Spirit and walk in the Spirit not by works of the law but by faith.27 "The law is not of faith..."28 Justification is by faith, approved righteous by the blood of Christ. By faith we become sons of God.8 "Know then that it is those of faith who are the sons of Abraham."29 Born of Spirit, adopted as sons, heirs to the promise.30 It is interesting Paul uses the example of Hagar and Sarah to compare the Jew of the flesh, Hagar, to the Jew of the Spirit, Sarah. And then he makes this profound statement, “Cast out the slave woman and her son, for the son of the slave woman shall not inherit with the son of the free woman.”31
"Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I have not come to bring peace, but a sword. I have come to turn ‘A man against his father, a daughter against her mother, a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law."32
Christ came to reconcile, for those Not under the law, the Gentile without hope and without God, this was surely peace. But to those under the law, the Jew, such would create division. The statements of Jesus, "let the dead bury the dead..." and "you must hate your father and mother to follow me," speaks to the Jews having to forsake the law to enter the kingdom of Christ. Such speaks of the sword, and the battle today for the heart of the Church, God's people. Jesus the kingdom of heaven compares it to the farmer sowing good seed and the devil coming and planting weeds among the good. Their roots are intertwined so you can't rip them out. One would think there is nothing to be done about these weeds, but read on...
"He told them another parable. “The kingdom of heaven is like leaven that a woman took and hid in three measures of flour, till it was all leavened.”33
Another type of leaven, do you see? The devil uses leaven, those who adhere to letter of the law, their objective is to take away the keys to the knowledge of the kingdom. The Church uses leaven, the teachings of faith and grace, to counter such weeds. Freedom is not to be used as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another.34 Love removes the hostility, the biting and devouring of one another that you see the flesh take opportunity under the law. The weeds can fake it by adhering to the law but understanding the keys of the kingdom, living out grace, faith, and agape love, truly requires dependence on the Spirit and Truth. The law counts for nothing but only faith working through love."35 Now, abides faith, hope, and love, the greatest of these is love.
Love On The Line