Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up

 

 Now the Passover of the Jews was at hand, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.  And He found in the temple those who sold oxen and sheep and doves, and the money changers doing business.  When He had made a whip of cords, He drove them all out of the temple, with the sheep and the oxen, and poured out the changers' money and overturned the tables.  And He said to those who sold doves, "Take these things away!  Do not make My Father's house a house of merchandise!"  Then His disciples remembered that it was written, "Zeal for Your house has eaten Me up."  

 

So the Jews answered and said to Him, "What sign do You show to us, since You do these things?"  Jesus answered and said to them, "Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up."  Then the Jews said, "It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and will You raise it up in three days?"  But He was speaking of the temple of His body.  Therefore, when He had risen from the dead, His disciples remembered that He had said this to them; and they believed the Scripture and the word which Jesus had said.

 

- John 2:13–22 

 

Yesterday we read that, on the sixth day given of Christ's newly-beginning public ministry, there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there.  Now both Jesus and His disciples were invited to the wedding.  And when they ran out of wine, the mother of Jesus said to Him, "They have no wine."  Jesus said to her, "Woman, what does your concern have to do with Me?  My hour has not yet come."  His mother said to the servants, "Whatever He says to you, do it."  Now there were set there six waterpots of stone, according to the manner of purification of the Jews, containing twenty or thirty gallons apiece.  Jesus said to them, "Fill the waterpots with water."  And they filled them up to the brim.  And He said to them, "Draw some out now, and take it to the master of the feast."  And they took it.  When the master of the feast had tasted the water that was made wine, and did not know where it came from (but the servants who had drawn the water knew), the master of the feast called the bridegroom.  And he said to him, "Every man at the beginning sets out the good wine, and when the guests have well drunk, then the inferior.  You have kept the good wine until now!"  This beginning of signs Jesus did in Cana of Galilee, and manifested His glory; and His disciples believed in Him.  After this He went down to Capernaum, He, His mother, His brothers, and His disciples; and they did not stay there many days. 

 

  Now the Passover of the Jews was at hand, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.  And He found in the temple those who sold oxen and sheep and doves, and the money changers doing business.  When He had made a whip of cords, He drove them all out of the temple, with the sheep and the oxen, and poured out the changers' money and overturned the tables.  And He said to those who sold doves, "Take these things away!  Do not make My Father's house a house of merchandise!"  Then His disciples remembered that it was written, "Zeal for Your house has eaten Me up."   Here in today's reading is another distinctive element of St. John's Gospel.  In the synoptic Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke) this cleansing of the temple occurs at the end of Christ's ministry.  But John places it here right at the beginning.  There are certain patristic commentaries which teach that Christ performed this act twice.  This is the first of three Passover feasts included in St. John's Gospel; it's one way that we know His public ministry lasted three years.  In this incident, those who sold oxen and sheep and doves were trading live animals to be used for sacrifices.  Sacrifices were a true function of the temple, meant to be part of communal meals "setting right" the people with their God and community, a part of the amelioration of the effects of sin, and the understanding of righteousness.  The money changers traded Roman coins for Jewish coins, since Roman coins bore the image of Caesar (worshiped as a god) and were considered defiling in the temple.  Christ's cleansing of the temple is about the corruption which had become endemic and penalized the poor, the greed and hypocrisy of the religious leaders.  My study Bible comments that the cleansing of the temple also points to the necessity that the Church be kept from earthly pursuits.  As each person is considered a temple of God, it notes (1 Corinthians 3:16; 6:19), it is also a sign that our hearts and minds must be cleansed of earthly matters.  The disciples remember "Zeal for Your house has eaten Me up" as written in Psalm 69:9.

 

 So the Jews answered and said to Him, "What sign do You show to us, since You do these things?"  Jesus answered and said to them, "Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up."  Then the Jews said, "It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and will You raise it up in three days?"  But He was speaking of the temple of His body.  Therefore, when He had risen from the dead, His disciples remembered that He had said this to them; and they believed the Scripture and the word which Jesus had said.  My study Bible explains that, since Jesus is not a Levitical priest, His authority to cleanse the temple is challenged.  In St. John's Gospel, the term Jews is meant most often to refer specifically to the religious leaders.  In this case, it refers to the chief priests and the elders (see Matthew 21:23).  It's important to remember that all the people in this story are devout Jews, including Jesus, His disciples, and the author of this Gospel.  As Christ is careful not to reveal Himself to scoffers, my study Bible says, He answers in a hidden way.  The ultimate sign will be His death and Resurrection.

 

The Gospel presents us today with an interesting contrast between what is hidden and what is not.  Here Jesus performs a very open and public act, one which would clearly garner much attention, as it is openly done against the system of the temple and its leadership.  The first question that opens itself up in this circumstance is one of authority, and it is there where the religious authorities zero in and begin to ask Jesus questions.  He needs to prove He has the authority to do this, and show them a sign to do so, as some sort of extraordinary proof of God's presence.  Well, Jesus is not going to do that, and He openly tells them so.  He's not going to give signs and proofs because unfaithful people demand it of Him.  Christ's signs and miracles come to the faithful.  Importantly, as our reading today deals with sacrifices, Christ's signs come in fulfillment of righteousness and communion between God and the faithful, God's people, and through the power and will of God -- not on demand by scoffers or hypocrites whose minds are already made up against Him.  And yet, we've just read (in yesterday's reading, above) about the first sign of St. John's Gospel, the turning of water to wine at the wedding in Cana.  Here was, in a sense, a "quiet" miracle, a sign given through the prompting (or intercession) of Christ's mother.  They had run out of wine at the wedding, and so this first sign of God's extraordinary presence occurred in the 30 gallon stone waterpots filled with water for cleansing, and it was transformed into the best wine.  Note the contrast between that almost private community affair of the wedding (and those who knew and understood about the wine) and this busy Passover festival, with all the noise and hustle and bustle of pilgrims purchasing sacrifices, and the money changers exchanging coins.  It must have presented quite an extraordinary and even cacophonous scene.  There can be no doubt of the attention which Christ's action would have brought upon Himself from both religious leadership and the people.  Now the power of human religious authority will focus its attention in Him, the One who has now challenged that authority with this act of cleansing the temple, and we already know where it will all lead (as Jesus forewarned His mother in quoting the widow Zarephath's question to Elijah in response to Mary's prompting about the wine -- see yesterday's reading and commentary; also 1 Kings 17:17-18).  Here is another riddle, another mystery of our faith?  How is a "sign" hidden?  How is the Christ hidden in plain sight?  How are the religious leaders blind, while the disciples and John the Baptist see?  How is Christ a temple, and so are we?  These are all questions we must begin to ponder and to consider as the Gospel unfolds.  Like the three days He was hidden in the tomb, so we understand the power of God at work, even though we may be completely unaware.

 

 

 

 

A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good things, and an evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth evil things

 

 "Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or else make the tree bad and its fruit bad; for a tree is known by its fruit.  Brood of vipers!  How can you, being evil, speak good things?  For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.  A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good things, and an evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth evil things.  But I say to you that for every idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment.  For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.  

Then some of the scribes and Pharisees answered, saying, "Teacher, we want to see a sign from You."  But He answered and said to them, "An evil an adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah.  For 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 in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, because they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and indeed a greater than Jonah is here.  The queen of the South will rise up in judgment with this generation and condemn it, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and indeed a greater than Solomon is here."

 

- Matthew 12:33-42 

 

Yesterday we read that one was brought to Christ who was demon-possessed, blind and mute; and He healed him, so that the blind and mute man both spoke and saw.  And all the multitudes were amazed and said, "Could this be the Son of David?"  Now when the Pharisees heard it they said, "This fellow does not cast out demons except by Beelzebub, the ruler of the demons."  But Jesus knew their thoughts, and said to them:  "Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and every city or house divided against itself will not stand.  If Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself.  How then will his kingdom stand?  And if I cast out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your sons cast them out?  Therefore they shall be your judges.  But if I cast out demons by the Spirit of God, surely the kingdom of God has come upon you.  Or how can one enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man?  And then he will plunder his house.  He who is not with Me is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters abroad. Therefore I say to you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven men.   Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him, neither in this age or in the age to come."

 

  "Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or else make the tree bad and its fruit bad; for a tree is known by its fruit.  Brood of vipers!  How can you, being evil, speak good things?  For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.  A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good things, and an evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth evil things.  But I say to you that for every idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment.  For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned."  Jesus here uses a title for the Pharisees whom He addresses, "Brood of vipers."  This is a title for them that was earlier used by John the Baptist (Matthew 3:7).  Brood means "offspring," and vipers are an allusion to demonic forces, in addition to the description of one who may be venomous in attacking others.  To be "viperous" is defined as one who is spitefully vituperative or venomous.  In Scripture, my study Bible explains, the heart refers to the center of consciousness, the seat of the intellect and the will, and also the place from which spiritual life proceeds.  It notes that when God's grace permeates the heart, it masters the body and guides all actions and thought.  But on the contrary, when malice and evil capture the heart, a person becomes full of darkness and spiritual confusion.  Here Jesus' pronouncements upon these Pharisees and their every idle word refers to their claim (in yesterday's reading, above) that Jesus cast out demons by the power of Beelzebub, understood as the ruler of the demons.

 

 Then some of the scribes and Pharisees answered, saying, "Teacher, we want to see a sign from You."  But He answered and said to them, "An evil an adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah.  For 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 in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, because they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and indeed a greater than Jonah is here.  The queen of the South will rise up in judgment with this generation and condemn it, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and indeed a greater than Solomon is here."  My study Bible comments that after so many signs, the Pharisees show their wickedness by demanding yet another.  Jesus does not cater to those who demand a sign out of malicious or wicked intent.  The only sign to them, as He indicates here, will be His Passion and Resurrection.  My study Bible also refers to a commentary by St. Ambrose, who writes that unrighteous people, if they do not recognize Jesus as the Christ, will never understand His words nor recognize His miracles.  Adulterous generation was the term the prophets used for Israel, when Israel was unfaithful to God (Jeremiah 3; Hosea 2:2-13).  

Jesus makes it more clear in today's reading that the failure to discern what is holy rests with the beholder, the one who fails to receive and understand.  Jesus' frequent iterations of "He who has ears to hear, let him hear!" testify to the same idea (Matthew 11:15,13:9, 13:43).  But in this case in today's reading, Jesus is not speaking to the average person.  These are scribes and Pharisees, experts in the Law, in the Scriptures, and in their interpretation, who spend all their time debating such questions.  How can they miss the indications that Jesus is the Christ?  They are too busy protecting their positions of authority and power.  So, they demand a sign, although there have already been so many signs performed by Jesus.  But in the minds of these men, they are the ones who are authoritative, and it is in their power to rule on what is what.  Jesus has defied them, and so they come up with ways to challenge what He does, including declaring that He works with demonic forces to perform His works, such as the exorcism of the blind and mute man in yesterday's reading (see above).  Jesus goes right to the "heart" of the matter, so to speak, and pronounces that the evil things people do come from an evil heart, an internal kind of disorder which reflects an unwillingness to repent; that is, to seek to know the good and to do the work of rejecting impulses or habits that keep us from a deeper participation in God's life for us.  Jesus notes a tie between what is in the heart, and the words that come out of our mouths, for better or worse, good or evil:  "For out of the abundance of the heart the mouths speaks."   The scribes and Pharisees dig in even more deeply by responding to Christ's chastisement with a demand for a proof from Him.  This results in a judgment of condemnation by Christ.  Jesus cites those figures of the Old Testament who recognized the God of Israel although they were not Hebrews:  the men of Nineveh who repented at Jonah's preaching (Jonah 3:4-6) and the Queen of the South who recognized the wisdom of Solomon and honored it (1 Kings 10:1-13).  These will in fact rise at the judgment to condemn these religious leaders of the Jews, who have abandoned their duties to the people and failed to recognize God's work among them, the "greater than Solomon" who is here in front of them.  All of these things teach us that each of us have a spiritual responsibility to God whether we want to acknowledge that or not.  But of those who already have a particular spiritual knowledge or understanding, a greater responsibility is demanded.  This is the reason for Christ's particular harsh words for these religious leaders.  So we must consider our own spiritual movement forward in faith, and take quite seriously what we learn on the way.  For we will be responsible for what we know, and we will receive challenges to move more deeply into our faith. At a time when many do not take matters of faith seriously, we should consider the warnings of Christ here, for that is what they are.  They are made so that all people know the truth, and so that all consider repentance, and left to us -- to posterity.  Let us be those who can take them seriously, and guide our lives to a good outcome in faith.  Christ reminds us that the treasure of our heart -- good or evil -- is up to us. 

 

 

 

A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good things, and an evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth evil things

 

"Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or else make the tree bad and its fruit bad; for a tree is known by its fruit.  Brood of vipers!  How can you, being evil, speak good things?  For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.  A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good things, and an evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth evil things.  But I say to you that for every idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment.  For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned."

Then some of the scribes and Pharisees answered, saying, "Teacher, we want to see a sign from You."  But He answered and said to them, "An evil and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah.  For 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 in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, because they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and indeed a greater than Jonah is here.  The queen of the South will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and indeed a greater than Solomon is here."

 

- Matthew 12:33-42 

 

Yesterday we read that one was brought to Jesus who was demon-possessed, blind and mute; and He healed him, so that the blind and mute man both spoke and saw.  And all the multitudes were amazed and said, "Could this be the Son of David?"  Now when the Pharisees heard it they said, "This fellow does not cast out demons except by Beelzebub, the ruler of the demons."  But Jesus knew their thoughts, and said to them:  "Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and every city or house divided against itself will not stand.  If Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself.  How then will his kingdom stand?  And if I cast out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your sons cast them out?  Therefore they shall be your judges.  But if I cast out demons by the Spirit of God, surely the kingdom of God has come upon you.  Or how can one enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man?  And then he will plunder his house.  He who is not with Me is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters abroad.  Therefore I say to you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven men.  Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the age to come." 

"Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or else make the tree bad and its fruit bad; for a tree is known by its fruit.  Brood of vipers!  How can you, being evil, speak good things?"  Jesus is addressing an agricultural society; to understand the fruit of a tree is meaningful in context, and also in the light of the words of John the Baptist, which He echoes here.  Brood of vipers was a phrase John used for the Pharisees and Sadducees who came to his baptism.  Brood means "offspring," indicating their deception and malice, and it's also an image of being under the influence of Satan.  John also said, "And even now the ax is laid to the root of the trees. Therefore every tree which does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire."  See Matthew 3:7-10.  Jesus will use the expression "Brood of vipers" for them again in Matthew 23:33.

"For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.  A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good things, and an evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth evil things.  But I say to you that for every idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment.  For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned."  My study Bible comments that the heart in Scripture refers to the center of consciousness, the seat of the intellect and the will, and the place from which spiritual life proceeds.  When God's grace permeates the heart, it says, grace masters the body and guides all actions and thoughts.  On the other hand, when malice and evil capture the heart, a person becomes full of darkness and spiritual confusion.  

Then some of the scribes and Pharisees answered, saying, "Teacher, we want to see a sign from You."  But He answered and said to them, "An evil and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah.  For 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 in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, because they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and indeed a greater than Jonah is here.  The queen of the South will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and indeed a greater than Solomon is here."  My study Bible remarks that after so many signs, the Pharisees show their wickedness by demanding yet another.  Jesus does not cater to those who demand a sign out of wicked intent.  The only sign to them will be His Passion and Resurrection.  In the story of the prophet Jonah, we read of his being swallowed up for three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, as well as the men of Nineveh who practiced repentance at Jonah's preaching.  (See Jonah 1-4.)   Jonah's experience in the belly of the fish is used here as an image of Christ's experience of death and Resurrection.  The queen of the South is the Queen of Sheba, who did indeed come from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon (see 1 Kings 10:1-13).  Adulterous generation is an echo of the illustration which the prophets used for Israel, when Israel was unfaithful to God (Jeremiah 2; Hosea 2:2-13).  

The things Jesus says in today's reading are highly related for us to His admonition in yesterday's reading about the Holy Spirit.  All of the works to which He refers, whether or not He speaks of His own "signs" or mighty works, or the wisdom of Solomon and the preaching of Jonah, are all signs of the Kingdom, and especially the work of the Holy Spirit in the world.  When Jesus cites the Queen of the South and the men of Nineveh, He speaks of those in the spiritual history contained in the Old Testament Scripture who were able to see, to repent, and to have faith at the signs that were given to them.  The Queen of the South and the men of Nineveh grasped the reality of God at work in their presence.  But the scribes and Pharisees, those whom Jesus calls the "brood of vipers" are incapable of this understanding and recognition.  Through their own hardness of heart, their own lack of desire to recognize any authority in Jesus which would in some way upset their own, they fail to do what those foreigners had done.  They deride Jesus and His works, they declare them to be works of the devil, and they demand signs as proofs before they will recognize any authority in Him as being from God or done by the Spirit of God (see yesterday's reading, above).  We hear Jesus speak of those in the past who were capable of recognizing God at work in the world through the prophecy of Jonah or the wisdom of Solomon.  We hear Him condemn those of His time who fail to recognize anything that He does, although they are the religious leaders and experts in Scripture.  But this passage invites us to ask ourselves if we can recognize the work of God in our midst, in our lives.  Can we perceive the Spirit at work?  Do we understand how grace can be at work in us?  Can we recognize the work of the Spirit of God in others?  Can we perceive it in Scripture or other works?  Do we know the saints?  These remain  living questions for us.  Let us hear in the words of Christ His burning and vibrant call.  We are to guard our hearts, and lay down firm foundations through prayer, study, participation in the life He offers.  In this way we will have "good treasure" from which we can draw forth good things, and recognize also "good treasure"  in what we may see and hear.  A good heart, as Jesus says, may also speak that which is given by grace.  

Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod

 Then the Pharisees came out and began to dispute with Him, seeking from Him a sign from heaven, testing Him.  But He sighed deeply in His spirit, and said, "Why does this generation seek a sign?  Assuredly, I say to you, no sign shall be given to this generation."

And He left them, and getting into the boat again, departed to the other side.  Now the disciples had forgotten to take bread, and they did not have more than one loaf with them in the boat.  Then He charged them, saying, "Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod."  And they reasoned among themselves, saying, "It is because we have no bread."  But Jesus, being aware of it, said to them, "Why do you reason because you have no bread?  Do you not yet perceive nor understand?  Is your heart still hardened?  Having eyes, do you not see?  And having ears, do you not hear?  And do you not remember?  When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of fragments did you take up?"  They said to Him, "Twelve."  Also, when I broke the seven for the four thousand, how many large baskets full of fragments did you take up?"  And they said, "Seven."  So He said to them, "How is it that you do not understand?"

Then He came to Bethsaida; and they brought a blind man to Him, and begged Him to touch him.  So He took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the town.  And when He had spit on his eyes and put His hands on him, He asked him if he saw anything.  And he looked up and said, "I see men like trees, walking."  Then He put His hands on his eyes again and made him look up.  And he was restored and saw everyone clearly.  Then He sent him away to his house, saying, "Neither go into the town, nor tell anyone in the town."

- Mark 8:11-26

Yesterday we read that in those days of Christ's ministry, the multitude being very great and having nothing to eat, Jesus called His disciples to Him and said to them, "I have compassion on the multitude, because they have now continued with Me three days and have nothing to eat.  And if I send them away hungry to their own houses, they will faint on the way, for some of them have come from afar."  Then His disciples answered Him, "How can one satisfy these people with bread here in the wilderness?"  He asked them, "How many loaves do you have?"  And they said, "Seven."  So He commanded the multitude to sit down on the ground.  And He took the seven loaves and gave thanks, broke them and gave them to His disciples to set before them; and they set them before the multitude.  They also had a few small fish; and having blessed them, He said to set them also before them.  So they ate and were filled, and they took up seven large baskets of leftover fragments.  Now those who had eaten were about four thousand.  And He sent them away, immediately got into the boat with His disciples, and came to the region of Dalmanutha.

 Then the Pharisees came out and began to dispute with Him, seeking from Him a sign from heaven, testing Him.  But He sighed deeply in His spirit, and said, "Why does this generation seek a sign?  Assuredly, I say to you, no sign shall be given to this generation."  My study bible tells us that a sign from heaven indicates a spectacular display of power, some overwhelming "proof" of Christ's divine identity.  It says that the time of the Messiah among the Jews was expected to be accompanied by signs, the but these men are hypocrites, who have not recognized the signs which have already been performed because their hearts were hardened.  They ignored the works which were already happening all around them.  Christ seeks faith, not hardened hearts which demand to be convinced against their own willful denial.

And He left them, and getting into the boat again, departed to the other side.  Now the disciples had forgotten to take bread, and they did not have more than one loaf with them in the boat.  Then He charged them, saying, "Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod."  And they reasoned among themselves, saying, "It is because we have no bread."  But Jesus, being aware of it, said to them, "Why do you reason because you have no bread?  Do you not yet perceive nor understand?  Is your heart still hardened?  Having eyes, do you not see?  And having ears, do you not hear?  And do you not remember?  When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of fragments did you take up?"  They said to Him, "Twelve."  Also, when I broke the seven for the four thousand, how many large baskets full of fragments did you take up?"  And they said, "Seven."  So He said to them, "How is it that you do not understand?"   My study bible tells us that the leaven of the Pharisees is their doctrine (Matthew 16:12), and their hypocrisy (Luke 12:1).  In Scripture, my study bible reminds us, "leaven" is used both positively (as in Matthew 13:33), and negatively, as Jesus uses it here.  In both cases, leaven is a symbol of a force which is powerful enough (and frequently subtle enough as well) to permeate and to affect everything around it (see 1 Corinthians 5:6-8).  Let us note also that even the the disciples are susceptible to a lack of understanding, and possibly to the "leaven of the Pharisees."

Then He came to Bethsaida; and they brought a blind man to Him, and begged Him to touch him.  So He took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the town.  And when He had spit on his eyes and put His hands on him, He asked him if he saw anything.  And he looked up and said, "I see men like trees, walking."  Then He put His hands on his eyes again and made him look up.  And he was restored and saw everyone clearly.  Then He sent him away to his house, saying, "Neither go into the town, nor tell anyone in the town."  My study bible says that the people of Bethsaida were unbelieving (Matthew 11:21), and so, therefore, Jesus leads the blind man out of the town in order to heal him -- so that the people would not scoff at the miracle, and in so doing, bring upon themselves greater condemnation.  It is very interesting that the text tells us the blind man was healed in stages.  My study bible says this indicates that the man  had only a small amount of faith, for healing occurs according to one's faith (6:5-6).  But even this little faith was enough, and it increased with the touch of Christ.  My study bible adds that Christ's command not to return to the town symbolizes that we must not return to our sins once we have been forgiven.

Faith:  how do we think about faith today?  Over the course of the past several days and weeks, the world has watched a pandemic unfold.  We have various ways in which we can approach it, measures we can take, means to combat the virus.  And, of course, there are terrible and sad calculations of harm, loss, suffering, and death which have already resulted.  But let us for today consider the impact of our faith throughout this period.  First of all, it is the time of Lent, and Lent is always and at once a time of internal emphasis, a time of withdrawal for prayer and contemplation, but cutting back on the things which take up our time and energy and interest in order to focus more fully on the things of God.  It is a time for consideration of our own behaviors:  what we can do better, how we can more potently develop our own discipline and discernment.  It is a time to consider what our responsibility is in terms of our own behavior, and how we can improve.  This is also called repentance, for repentance indicates simply change, and change for the better.  It is a time to consider how we might shape up, and put into action the things to which we're called by God, and within the space of dialogue in our prayer time, both in corporate worship (such as it is in these days, possibly virtually and online) and in the private place where our Father in the secret place sees in secret (Matthew 6:6).  It is a time for the cultivation of both prudence and discernment.  It is a time when we watch what we say, what we watch, and the things to which we're willing to pay attention.  Most of all, we must try to cultivate our faith, if we pay any attention at all to the things discussed and which Jesus' actions and words teach in today's reading.  For today is a reading that particularly emphasizes the connection between the existence of our faith (and its quality), and the positive outcomes that we so desire.  For those without faith, life looks increasingly dire.  Material outcomes are always dismaying.  Potentials which are contained in what remains possible are highly likely to be distorted to the point of non-existence.  Hope is not something which a lack of faith puts much stock in.  And where is God's love and guidance to be found except in faith?  It is faith that encourages us to always keep trying, through all things, to not give up hope, to seek God's positive will and possibilities even in the midst of what is bleak, and to carry on with our proper discipline even when others seem to discourage all possible hope.  For our Lenten practices, let us be even more diligent in putting into place our discipline at this time, especially that of regular prayer.  St. John Chrysostom, in his famous Homilies on the Statues, given in a period of Lent in the fifth century, reminds us that at this time we fast from all kinds of things, and not simply food.  We fast from all the things that are unhelpful to faith and therefore to our mental discipline and courage at this time.  He said, "For let not the mouth only fast, but also the eye, and the ear, and the feet, and the hands, and all the members of our bodies."  He meant that we fast from envy, from spreading gossip, from going places where we should not be going, from grasping and avarice, and all the things we need to put a watch on for ourselves.  At this time, let us consider that, in addition to gossip, we should fast from dire prediction of woe or the fainthearted feeling that this will not pass.  Already there is good news in many places of the rates of epidemic infection dying down, new hospitalizations reduced, and possible helpful drugs tested.  Above all, let us remember that in our reading today, not even Jesus could do any good work where there was not faith present.  Even Christ takes away the blind man from the town in order to shore up the faith necessary for his healing.  Let us remember, perhaps especially, His warning to the disciples about the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod.  This is the leaven that demands proof for faith, that demands to be convinced even as it offers endless rejections.   This is the leaven of the hard-heartedness that does not rejoice at healing, at possibilities for well-being, and quite possibly seeks failure in order to defeat hope and enact secret agendas that benefit from calamity.  Let us not, also, harden our hearts.  Let us pay attention and be vigilant!

How long do You keep us in doubt? If You are the Christ, tell us plainly

 Therefore there was a division again among the Jews because of these sayings.  And many of them said, "He has a demon and is mad.  Why do you listen to Him?"  Others said, "These are not the words of one who has a demon.  Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?"

Now it was the Feast of Dedication in Jerusalem, and it was winter.  And Jesus walked in the temple, in Solomon's porch.  Then the Jews surrounded Him and said to Him, "How long do You keep us in doubt?  If You are the Christ, tell us plainly."  Jesus answered the, "I told you, and you do not believe.  The works that I do in My Father's name, they bear witness of Me.  But you do not believe, because you are not of My sheep, as I said to you.  My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.  And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand.  My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father's hand.  I and My Father are one."  Then the Jews took up stones again to stone Him.  Jesus answered them, "Many good works I have shown you from My Father.  For which of those works do you stone Me?"  The Jews answered Him, saying, "For a good work we do not stone You, but for blasphemy, and because You, being a Man, make Yourself God."  Jesus answered them, "Is it not written in your law, 'I said, "You are gods"'?  If He called them gods, to whom the word of God came (and the Scripture cannot be broken), do you say of Him whom the Father sanctified and sent into the world, 'You are blaspheming,' Because I said, 'I am the Son of God'?  If I do not do the works of My Father, do not believe Me; but if I do, though you do not believe Me, believe the works, that you may know and believe that the Father is in Me, and I in Him."  Therefore they sought again to seize Him, but He escaped out of their hand.

And He went away again beyond the Jordan to the place where John was baptizing at first, and there He stayed.  Then many came to Him and said, "John performed no sign, but all the things that John spoke about this Man were true."  And many believed in Him there.

- John 10:19-42

In our recent readings, Jesus has been at the Feast of Tabernacles in Jerusalem (beginning in chapter 7).   In chapter 9, He healed a man blind from birth, the sixth sign of seven in John's Gospel.  He has been disputing with the leadership afterward (who have also cast the formerly blind man out of the temple).  In yesterday's reading, Jesus taught, "Most assuredly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door, but climbs up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber.  But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep.  To him the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear his voice; and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.  And when he brings out his own sheep, he goes before them; and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice.  Yet they will by no means follow a stranger, but will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers."  Jesus used this illustration, but they did not understand the things which He spoke to them.  Then Jesus said to them again, "Most assuredly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep.  All who ever came before Me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not hear them.  I am the door.  If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture.  The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy.  I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.  I am the good shepherd.  The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep.  But a hireling, he who is not the shepherd, one who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees; and the wolf catches the sheep and scatters them.  The hireling flees because he is a hireling and does not care about the sheep.  I am the good shepherd; and I know My sheep, and am known by My own.  As the Father knows Me, even so I know the Father; and I lay down My life for the sheep.  And other sheep I have which are not of this fold; them also I must bring, and they will hear My voice; and there will be one flock and one shepherd.  Therefore My Father loves me, because I lay down My life that I may take it again.  No one takes it from Me, but I lay it down of Myself.  I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again.  This command I have received from My Father."

 Therefore there was a division again among the Jews because of these sayings.  And many of them said, "He has a demon and is mad.  Why do you listen to Him?"  Others said, "These are not the words of one who has a demon.  Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?"   These verses are still set at the Feast of Tabernacles, and once again John goes out of his way to let the reader know that there are clear divisions among the people -- and here explicitly among the leadership (which is what the term the Jews indicates) -- concerning Jesus.  My study bible comments that those who respond in faith are not merely impressed by the signs, but perceive the holiness of His words.

Now it was the Feast of Dedication in Jerusalem, and it was winter.   The Feast of Dedication took place about three months after the Feast of Tabernacles (7:1-10:21).  It is known as the "Festival of Lights" (as well as Hanukkah).  It is a commemoration of the rededication of the temple in Jerusalem after the Seleucid King Epiphanes desecrated the temple in 167 BC (see 1 Maccabees 1-4).  At this festival, my study bible notes, the historical leaders of Israel were commemorated, many of whom were themselves shepherds.

Then the Jews surrounded Him and said to Him, "How long do You keep us in doubt?  If You are the Christ, tell us plainly."  Jesus answered the, "I told you, and you do not believe.  The works that I do in My Father's name, they bear witness of Me."   But you do not believe, because you are not of My sheep, as I said to you.  My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.  And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand.  My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father's hand."    My study bible comments here that both what Christ told them and the works He has done have already answered their questions.  Only the Messiah could open the eyes of one blind from birth (see 9:32, also Isaiah 35:5, 42:7; Psalm 146:7), or perform the various signs that bear witness to Christ's identity and the presence of the Kingdom.  Essentially also, my study bible adds, only the Messiah could speak to the hearts of people as Christ did (7:46, 9:21).   Jesus' use of the phrase as I said to you indicates that these are the same Pharisees whom He addressed three months earlier at the Feast of Tabernacles (10:1-5).

"I and My Father are one."  Then the Jews took up stones again to stone Him.  Jesus answered them, "Many good works I have shown you from My Father.  For which of those works do you stone Me?"  The Jews answered Him, saying, "For a good work we do not stone You, but for blasphemy, and because You, being a Man, make Yourself God."   My study bible remarks that Jesus responds to their question (above) by revealing Himself to be fully God:  One implies one in nature or essence.  Christ is God before all ages, and remains God after the Incarnation and for eternity.  The plural verb are refers to two distinct Persons, while confirming a continuous unity.  These leaders (Pharisees) to whom He speaks clearly recognize this claim of divinity and therefore accuse Him of blasphemy.

Jesus answered them, "Is it not written in your law, 'I said, "You are gods"'?  If He called them gods, to whom the word of God came (and the Scripture cannot be broken), do you say of Him whom the Father sanctified and sent into the world, 'You are blaspheming,' Because I said, 'I am the Son of God'?  If I do not do the works of My Father, do not believe Me; but if I do, though you do not believe Me, believe the works, that you may know and believe that the Father is in Me, and I in Him."    Regarding the teaching You are gods, Jesus quotes from Psalm 82:6.  My study bible notes that people who receive God's grace in faith will partake of God's divine nature (see 2 Peter 1:4), and can rightly therefore be called gods.  This is the nature of grace; it shares its qualities and gifts in which we may participate.  St. Paul writes explicitly of the fruit of the Spirit in Galatians 5:22-23.  My study bible quotes St. John Chrysostom, who paraphrases, "If those who hate received this honor by grace are not guilty for calling themselves gods, how can He who has this by nature deserve to be rebuked?"

Therefore they sought again to seize Him, but He escaped out of their hand.  As Christ goes to the Passion voluntarily and in accordance with His own will (10:17-18), His accusers can't arrest Him until it is His hour (7:30; 8:20; see Luke 4:28-30). 


And He went away again beyond the Jordan to the place where John was baptizing at first, and there He stayed.  Then many came to Him and said, "John performed no sign, but all the things that John spoke about this Man were true."  And many believed in Him there.   Again, as in several other places, the Gospel explicitly teaches us about those who were believers in Christ among the people and even among the religious leadership.

Sometimes, no matter how much one goes out of one's way to tell the truth, to express something to someone who demands an explanation, there is nothing one can do to convince another of what seems to be self-evident.  If someone doesn't want to believe something, or has an agenda to the contrary, it is seemingly impossible to convince them otherwise.  Christ's experiences don't just tell us about His own situation and circumstances 2,000 years ago.  The New Testament is not only a story about Christ.  As Christ very deliberately became one of us, so His experiences are stand-ins for all of us; they are universal.  Particularly if one has had experience of truth-telling innocence, among those who do not want to hear and do not want to listen for their own reasons, Christ's repeated emphasis on the truth of His identity rings true.   What is most important and essential to our understanding here is that Christ defers in all of His ministry to the will of God the Father.  These men demand a kind of proof that Jesus hasn't provided, like some spectacular sign designed to convince only them.  Clearly, they don't much want to be convinced!  And there are those among them who are believers as well.  But it's important that we understand Jesus' humility here.  He has respect for the Mosaic Law, and is Himself the fulfillment of Jewish spiritual history.  He doesn't diminish their offices nor the sacredness of the temple.  But His ultimate loyalty is to God the Father.  What unfolds as Jesus' ministry, and the particular signs that He performs -- and even the words that He says -- comes from God the Father.  If Christ is not given by the Father a direction of force or proof or manipulation by some kind of sign on demand that these men desire, then this is not the way that His ministry will go.  And so it has to be, as well, with you and me.  There may be those in our lives who accuse us of something we haven't done, some character flaw they desire to see for their own reasons and motivations.  But to seek to offer proof to the contrary may be a seemingly impossible task -- and must always be done in accordance with our faith.  Christ has ways for us to walk through this world.  Humility will demand of us a particular way to be one of His flock.  In yesterday's reading, Jesus called Himself the Door (10:1, 7).  In Matthew's Gospel, He teaches, "Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it" (Matthew 7:13-14).  This indicates to us that there is a particular way we are to walk through our lives.  Every juncture may have a myriad of possibilities to it in which we may respond to a crisis or difficulty, or even to the demands of others, as in Jesus' case.  Certainly, the Passion will be a shocking conclusion to His ministry for many people.  While God holds possibilities for us we may not have considered in our limited imaginations, there will also be specific ways in which we are called to respond to a situation.  In both the case of a response which demands more than we know from our own worldly experience and expectation, and also the response that is asked of us as our "narrow way," we turn in prayer to find our way through difficult circumstances.  Christ responds as the Father gives Him response, and we must also seek to meet the demands of those who place burdens of proof upon us with the testimony given to us by faith.  Can one prove character easily to those who don't really want to know?  Like many faithful who've gone before us, we might find ourselves in difficult circumstances, in which the most innocent of motivations is painted with awful assumptions.  But Christ and so many others have already gone there before us.  Like the example we have, we don't seek to respond to others with any and all proofs they demand, we don't simply honor manipulation and bad intent.  Rather, we need to remember our humility first before God, and find the narrow way for us that Christ asks of us, in faith and in endurance, with the patience asked of us that will stretch who we are.  He sets the example, and we follow.  Let us be the intelligent sheep who know His voice and find His way.

Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod

Then the Pharisees came out and began to dispute with Him, seeking from Him a sign from heaven, testing Him.  But He sighed deeply in His spirit, and said, "Why does this generation seek a sign?  Assuredly, I say to you, no sign shall be given to this generation."

And He left them, and getting into the boat again, departed to the other side.  Now the disciples had forgotten to take bread, and they did not have more than one loaf with them in the boat.  Then He charged them, saying, "Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod."  And they reasoned among themselves, saying, "It is because we have no bread."  But Jesus, being aware of it, said to them, "Why do you reason because you have no bread?  Do you not yet perceive nor understand?  Is your heart still hardened?  Having eyes, do you not see?  And having ears, do you not hear?  And do you not remember?  When I broke the five loves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of fragments did you take up?"  They said to Him, "Twelve."  "Also, when I broke the seven for the four thousand, how many large baskets full of fragments did you take up?"  And they said, "Seven."  So He said to them, "How is it you do not understand?"

Then He came to Bethsaida; and they brought a blind man to Him and begged Him to touch him.  So he took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the town.  And when He had spit on his eyes and put His hands on him, He asked him if he saw anything.  And he looked up and said, "I see men like trees, walking."  Then He put His hands on his eyes again and made him look up.  And he was restored and saw everyone clearly.  Then He sent him away to his house, saying, "Neither go into the town, nor tell anyone in the town."

- Mark 8:11-26

Yesterday we read that at this time in Jesus' ministry, the multitude being very great and having nothing to eat, Jesus called His disciples to Him and said to them, "I have compassion on the multitude, because they have now continued with Me three days and have nothing to eat.  And if I send them away hungry to their own houses, they will faint on the way; for some of them have come from afar."  Then His disciples answered Him, "How can one satisfy these people with bread here in the wilderness?"  He asked them, "How many loaves do you have?"  And they said, "Seven."  So He commanded the multitude to sit down on the ground.  And He took the seven loaves and gave thanks, broke them and gave them to His disciples to set before them; and they set them before the multitude.  They also had a few small fish; and having blessed them, He said to set them also before them.  So they ate and were filled, and they took up seven large baskets of leftover fragments.  Now those who had eaten were about four thousand.  And He sent them away, immediately got into the boat with His disciples, and came to the region of Dalmanutha.

Then the Pharisees came out and began to dispute with Him, seeking from Him a sign from heaven, testing Him.  But He sighed deeply in His spirit, and said, "Why does this generation seek a sign?  Assuredly, I say to you, no sign shall be given to this generation."   My study bible explains that a sign from heaven means a spectacular display of power.  The Pharisees want Him to "prove" that He is the Christ (the Messiah) by such a sign.  The time of the Messiah was expected to be accompanied by miraculous signs, but these men fail to recognize the signs which are in fact happening through Christ's ministry and its expression of God's love.   Jesus will not give proofs upon demand; His ministry must unfold according to the will of the Father. 

And He left them, and getting into the boat again, departed to the other side.  Now the disciples had forgotten to take bread, and they did not have more than one loaf with them in the boat.  Then He charged them, saying, "Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod."  And they reasoned among themselves, saying, "It is because we have no bread."  But Jesus, being aware of it, said to them, "Why do you reason because you have no bread?  Do you not yet perceive nor understand?  Is your heart still hardened?  Having eyes, do you not see?  And having ears, do you not hear?  And do you not remember?  When I broke the five loves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of fragments did you take up?"  They said to Him, "Twelve."  "Also, when I broke the seven for the four thousand, how many large baskets full of fragments did you take up?"  And they said, "Seven."  So He said to them, "How is it you do not understand?"  My study bible says that the leaven of the Pharisees is their doctrine and their hypocrisy (Matthew 16:12, Luke 12:1).  My study bible adds that in various places in Scripture, leaven is used both positively (as in Jesus' parable given at Matthew 13:33), and also negatively, as Jesus uses it here.  In both cases, leaven represents a force which is both powerful and subtle -- so that it permeates and affects everything around it (see 1 Corinthians 5:6-8 in which St. Paul uses the term both ways).   Jesus also expresses clearly that the two feedings in the wilderness are separate events.  It is essential for us to be aware that the disciples also misunderstand Christ and seemingly fail to "take in" the facts of His ministry.

Then He came to Bethsaida; and they brought a blind man to Him and begged Him to touch him.  So he took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the town.  And when He had spit on his eyes and put His hands on him, He asked him if he saw anything.  And he looked up and said, "I see men like trees, walking."  Then He put His hands on his eyes again and made him look up.  And he was restored and saw everyone clearly.  Then He sent him away to his house, saying, "Neither go into the town, nor tell anyone in the town."  My study bible comments that the people of Bethsaida were unbelieving (Matthew 11:21), and therefore Jesus leads the blind man out of the town in order to heal him.  It is yet another occasion in which He avoids the scoffing of the crowd (see also the healing of Jairus' daughter, in this reading).  But my study bible adds another important reason for this, and that is because those who would scoff would bring upon themselves greater condemnation.  Note clearly that the Gospel presents this blind man's healing as progressing in stages.  My study bible says that this shows he had only a small amount of faith, as happens according to one's faith (6:5-6).  Nevertheless, this little faith was enough, and it increased with Christ's touch and presence.  His command not to return to the town can be seen symbolically as the idea that we mustn't return to our sins -- this environment in which there is scorn for the things of faith -- after we've been forgiven.

There are elements which tie all of today's Scripture together in each event recorded.  There is the element of hard-heartedness, which Jesus mentions in the context of the disciples' lack of comprehension that by speaking about leaven, He wasn't referring to bread.  He asks them how they could make that particular mistake in the light of the two separate occasions upon which the miracle of the multiplication of loaves of bread occurred.  In this case, He asks them if their hearts are hardened as symbolizing the inability of the inner self to grasp the things of God, to "take them in."  Hard-heartedness also applies to the Pharisees who demand a sign, at the beginning of our reading today.  But such hard-heartedness as they present is a deeper problem than that of the disciples, as it is not only more ingrained but present in these men who are experts in Scripture and the work of the Holy Spirit throughout the spiritual history of the Jewish people.  The disciples do not have the kind of education and knowledge that the Pharisees do.  The Pharisees' hard-heartedness is complicated by envy (15:10), a jealousy for their places of authority over religious life in Israel.  Jesus also mentions Herod, another who is fearful of losing his place of power and authority to the holy.   Hard-heartedness is linked to spiritual blindness or deafness (4:10-12), and also the hypocrisy against which Jesus teaches here (7:6).  Then we come to the healing of the blind man.  He must be taken out of the town, away from those whose faith is non-existent.  These townspeople, in effect, function in the same way that the demand for proof by the Pharisees functions, to cast doubt on the action and presence of the Spirit at work in Christ's ministry, to deny the presence of the holy.  Moreover, this blind man's healing is gradual, teaching us that no matter where we are, there is capacity and potential for growth in our faith and our spiritual understanding:  the perfect example for the disciples' own lack of understanding of Christ's words about the Pharisees and Herod.  In the Pharisees and Herod, Christ gives us a picture of the potential to cast scorn and doubt upon anything, to deny the presence of God at work where holiness is manifest.  In effect, this kind of "leaven" creates an impermeable hard-heartedness, a barrier to spiritual perception.  But the disciples are in a different place; their lack of comprehension will change with growth in faith, a receptiveness to the things of God which Christ brings into the world, and a response through repentance (metanoia in the Greek, meaning "change of mind") that will enable them to grow and cast off the thinking that makes them blind.  In the blind man, we see the stages of growth in faith, the work of ongoing repentance and enlightenment, the change that is possible in us through time.  Let us understand that each one of us possesses this potential, but the further along we go down a road of denial, the more there is to overcome, to reverse and change in our minds and hearts.  It is in this context that my study bible comments, above, that by taking the blind man out of town for healing, Jesus prevents the townspeople from incurring a deeper condemnation.  We begin with Christ Himself at the center of all of this, and His clear frustration even with His closest disciples.  It cannot have been easy for Him, and yet His patience and love for us is infinite.  He walks with us, inviting us always to the journey on which He will take us, if we but let ourselves hear and see what He's showing us, and where He would have us go.   He illuminates the sight of the blind man, and His light illuminates the way, if we accept in trust to take it.  It's easy and simple to cast doubt and aspersion on anything.  What is more difficult is accepting, cherishing, and growing the precious treasure that is offered to us.  That takes faith, and our struggle for our faith is real and true.

Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod

 Then the Pharisees came out and began to dispute with Him, seeking from Him a sign from heaven, testing Him.  But He sighed deeply in His spirit, and said, "Why does this generation seek a sign?  Assuredly, I say to you, no sign shall be given to this generation."

And He left them, and getting into the boat again, departed to the other side.  Now the disciples had forgotten to take bread, and they did not have more than one loaf with them in the boat.  Then He charged them, saying, "Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod."  And they reasoned among themselves, saying, "It is because we have no bread."  But Jesus, being aware of it, said to them, "Why do you reason because you have no bread?  Do you not yet perceive nor understand?  Is your heart still hardened?  Having eyes, do you not see?  And having ears, do you not hear?  And do you not remember?  When I broke  the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of fragments did you take up?"  They said to Him, "Twelve."  "Also, when I broke the seven for the four thousand, how many large baskets full of fragments did you take up?"  And they said, "Seven."  So He said to them, "How is it you do not understand?"

Then He came to Bethsaida; and they brought a blind man to Him, and begged Him to touch him.  So He took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the town.  And when He had spit on his eyes and put His hands on him, He asked him if he saw anything.  And he looked up and said, "I see men like trees, walking."  Then he put His hands on his eyes again and made him look up.  And he was restored and saw everyone clearly.  Then He sent him away to his house, saying, "Neither go into the town, nor tell anyone in the town."

- Mark 8:11-26

 Yesterday, we read that at this point in Jesus' ministry, in the region of the Decapolis near the Sea of Galilee, the multitude being very great and having nothing to eat, Jesus called His disciples to Him and said to them, "I have compassion on the multitude, because they have now continued with Me three days and have nothing to eat.  And if I send them away hungry to their houses, they will faint on the way; for some of them have come from afar."  Then His disciples answered Him, "How can one satisfy these people with bread here in the wilderness?"  He asked them, "How many loaves do you have?"  And they said, "Seven."  So he commanded the multitude to sit down on the ground.  And He took the seven loaves and gave thanks, broke them and gave them to His disciples to set before them; and they set them before the multitude.  They also had a few small fish; and having blessed them, He said to set them also before them.  So they ate and were filled, and they took up seven large baskets of leftover fragments.  Now those who had eaten were about four thousand.  And He sent them away, immediately got into the boat with His disciples, and came to the region of Dalmanutha.

 Then the Pharisees came out and began to dispute with Him, seeking from Him a sign from heaven, testing Him.  But He sighed deeply in His spirit, and said, "Why does this generation seek a sign?  Assuredly, I say to you, no sign shall be given to this generation."  A sign from heaven would be some sort of spectacular display of power, designed as "proof" of Christ's messianic identity.  My study bible tells us that the time of the Messiah among the Jews was expected to be accompanied by signs.  But Christ, of course, has already displayed many signs in the course of His ministry.  What this is, of course, is a proof test, designed by the Pharisees in order to test Jesus -- rather than their acceptance of His ministry as it unfolds in accordance with the will of the Father.  It's a question of whose authority Jesus will follow.

And He left them, and getting into the boat again, departed to the other side.  Now the disciples had forgotten to take bread, and they did not have more than one loaf with them in the boat.  Then He charged them, saying, "Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod."  And they reasoned among themselves, saying, "It is because we have no bread."  But Jesus, being aware of it, said to them, "Why do you reason because you have no bread?  Do you not yet perceive nor understand?  Is your heart still hardened?  Having eyes, do you not see?  And having ears, do you not hear?  And do you not remember?  When I broke  the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of fragments did you take up?"  They said to Him, "Twelve."  "Also, when I broke the seven for the four thousand, how many large baskets full of fragments did you take up?"  And they said, "Seven."  So He said to them, "How is it you do not understand?"  The leaven of the Pharisees, says my study bible, is their doctrine (Matthew 16:12) and their hypocrisy (Luke 12:1).  The image of leaven is used both positively and negatively in Scripture.  Here, it's a negative.   We should think of a type of enzymatic action, that changes whatever substance it becomes a part of.  My study bible says that leaven symbolizes a force powerful enough (and often subtle enough) to permeate everything around it (see 1 Corinthians 5:6-8).  A hardened heart, we remember, is one that cannot understand, does not grasp what it should.

Then He came to Bethsaida; and they brought a blind man to Him, and begged Him to touch him.  So He took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the town.  And when He had spit on his eyes and put His hands on him, He asked him if he saw anything.  And he looked up and said, "I see men like trees, walking."  Then he put His hands on his eyes again and made him look up.  And he was restored and saw everyone clearly.  Then He sent him away to his house, saying, "Neither go into the town, nor tell anyone in the town."  Jesus has made a kind of ring around the Sea of Galilee, not returning  to Capernaum (where Peter has a family home which functions as a kind of headquarters to Jesus' ministry), but landed further east, on the northern shore of the Sea.   Bethsaida is mentioned by Christ as a place where people did not believe in Him (Matthew 11:21).  Jesus therefore leads this man out of the town to heal him, so that people won't scoff at the miracle -- and, my study bible says, bring upon themselves greater condemnation.  The healing of this blind man in stages, it says, shows that he had only a small amount of faith -- healing occurs according to one's faith (Mark 6:5-6).  But this little faith was enough, and increased with Christ's touch.   My study bible also tells us that Christ's command not to return to the town symbolizes that we mustn't return to our sins once we've been forgiven. 

Today's reading teaches us all about faith and comprehension.  The two are definitely intertwined as the Gospels present it to us.  The Pharisees don't understand who Christ is, but more importantly, they seek to impose a test as if their authority is what is absolute, over all things, even the works of God.  Moreover, their failure to find faith -- despite the many signs already worked in Christ's ministry -- and their demand for proof reflect on their inability to comprehend with the heart.  This is "hard-heartedness" in Scriptural language.  It is the failure to grasp the things of God, the work of the Spirit in the world.  Faith, like love, is voluntary, and cannot be compelled.  The works of "proof" have nothing to do with Christ nor the ministry in which the Father leads Him.  It's not just the Pharisees who are hard-hearted in today's reading, and hard of comprehension, it's also the disciples.  Jesus teaches them to beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod.  That's an interesting phrase, because we know that when Jesus appears before Herod (during His Passion), Herod will also demand a sign.  (See also this reading and commentary on the death of John the Baptist for Herod's attitude toward John's holiness).  Herod's desire to see a sign is more akin to a kind of fascination with some object or marvel a king might collect, and so we can see parallels in the views of the Pharisees and Herod: they're not reverent in the heart.  In both views, the approach to God and the things that are holy is a kind of materialistic approach, one that turns God into an object rather than a Person, that does not grasp the energies of God at work in the world.  Perception for faith demands something different, a way to grasp that which lives and is life itself.  This pernicious leaven, as described by Jesus, is a way of looking at things that objectifies what should not be reduced to mere object, and fails to perceive in either a humane, judicious, or sympathetic way that which gives life the quality of blessedness, holiness, or mercy.  Above all, it seems to fail to grasp love.  "Prove it," in modern parlance, is often a way simply to reduce another person to nothing.  In Bethsaida, we're once again given an object lesson in the importance of faith and our own steps to shore up our faith.  On the "little" faith of the blind man, Jesus can begin a healing -- but like Jairus and his wife at the time of the healing of his daughter -- he must be set apart from those who don't believe, who may damage his faith, in order to find effective healing and to retain that strength and faith to stay on the path of the righteousness to which Christ has called him.  Altogether, the stories in today's reading re-enforce the crucial importance that the care of our faith has to do with nurturing the most central essence of our identity as persons, and how that becomes part of the fabric of our lives.  In today's reading, we're given a portrait of that which harms faith and also the significant deficits that the influence of harmful attitudes can create for us as obstacles to our own fullness and wholeness as persons.  What is the fullness of your life and experience of life worth to you?   How are you called to find the deeper things within yourself as human being, that which draws you into an expanded understanding of what it is to be a full "person"?  These are the questions our reading opens up for us, as it calls us to guard and protect the heart, and enter into this Kingdom as whole beings through Christ's work of salvation.  Most of all, it asks us to begin to understand God as the Being that works among us, whose energies permeate our own lives within the purview of our choice.  And He asks us ever more strongly to make certain we understand the role of our choice in strengthening and protecting that faith and growth and participation in His Kingdom.  If we are truly children of God, it is God's work as love that makes us so, and grows us in that likeness as persons.  Without an experiential faith, how does this grow?

If then your whole body is full of light, having no part dark, the whole body will be full of light, as when the bright shining of a lamp gives you light

 And it happened, as He spoke these things, that a certain woman from the crowd raised her voice and said to Him, "Blessed is the womb that bore You, and the breasts which nursed You!"  But He said, "More than that, blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it!"

And while the crowds were thickly gathered together, He began to say, "This is an evil generation.  It seeks a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of Jonah the prophet.  For as Jonah became a sign to the Ninevites, so also the Son of Man will be to this generation.  The queen of the South will rise up in the judgment with the men of this generation and condemn them, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and indeed a greater than Solomon is here.  The men of Nineveh will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and indeed a greater than Jonah is here.

"No one, when he has lit a lamp, puts it in a secret place or under a basket, but on a lampstand, that those who come in may see the light.  The lamp of the body is the eye.  Therefore, when your eye is good, your whole body also is full of light.  But when your eye is bad, your body also is full of darkness.  Therefore take heed that the light which is in you is not darkness.  If then your whole body is full of light, having no part dark, the whole body will be full of light, as when the bright shining of a lamp gives you light."

- Luke 11:27-36

Yesterday, we read that Jesus was casting out a demon, and it was mute.  So it was, when the demon had gone out, that the mute spoke; sand the multitudes marveled.  But some of them said, "He casts out demons by Beelzebub, the ruler of the demons."   Others, testing Him, sought a sign from heaven.  But He knowing their thoughts, said to them:  "Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and a house divided against a house falls.  If Satan also is divided against himself, how will his kingdom stand?  Because you say I cast out demons by Beelzebub.  And if I cast out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your sons cast them out?  Therefore they will be your judges.  But if I cast out demons with the finger of God, surely the kingdom of God has come upon you.  When a strong man, fully armed, guards his own palace, his goods are in peace.  But when a stronger than he comes upon him and overcomes him, he takes from him all his armor in which he trusted, and divides his spoils.  He who is not with Me is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters.   When an unclean spirit goes out of a man, he goes through dry places, seeking rest; and finding none, he says, 'I will return to my house from which I came.'  And when he comes, he finds it swept and put in order.  Then he goes and takes with him seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter and dwell there; and the last state of that man is worse than the first." 

And it happened, as He spoke these things, that a certain woman from the crowd raised her voice and said to Him, "Blessed is the womb that bore You, and the breasts which nursed You!"  But He said, "More than that, blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it!"  My study bible notes that these words are read on most feasts of the Virgin Mary.  Jesus is correcting the women from the crowd, not by denouncing his mother, but rather by emphasizing her faith.  People are blessed in Gods' eyes, says my study bible, if, like Mary, they hear the word of God and keep it.  The Greek word which is translated, more than that, is translated "Yes indeed" in Romans 10:18.  This word is a correction by amplification, not by negation.   This passage reinforces what we read in chapter 8, when Jesus was told that His mother and brothers were waiting outside to see Him.  His response: "My mother and My brothers are these who hear the word of God and do it" (8:21).

And while the crowds were thickly gathered together, He began to say, "This is an evil generation.  It seeks a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of Jonah the prophet.  For as Jonah became a sign to the Ninevites, so also the Son of Man will be to this generation.  The queen of the South will rise up in the judgment with the men of this generation and condemn them, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and indeed a greater than Solomon is here.  The men of Nineveh will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and indeed a greater than Jonah is here."  The sign of Jonah to the Ninevites was preaching to them for repentance.  The Ninevites are great examples of repentance as response to Jonah's preaching.  Further, Jonah was in the belly of the great fish for three days, prefiguring Christ rising from the tomb (Matthew 12:40).  In contrast to the Ninevites and their king, the leadership of the Jews fail to repent in response to something far greater than Jonah:  Christ's preaching and Resurrection.  The result is judgment.  The Queen of the South, a foreigner like the Ninevites, came to hear and praised God for the wisdom of Solomon, recognizing the presence of the God of Israel for such blessings.  She too will be a judgment against those already prepared for the Messiah by tradition and knowledge, who reject Christ's wisdom and the presence of the Kingdom (see 3 Kings 10:1-10).

"No one, when he has lit a lamp, puts it in a secret place or under a basket, but on a lampstand, that those who come in may see the light.  The lamp of the body is the eye.  Therefore, when your eye is good, your whole body also is full of light.  But when your eye is bad, your body also is full of darkness.  Therefore take heed that the light which is in you is not darkness.  If then your whole body is full of light, having no part dark, the whole body will be full of light, as when the bright shining of a lamp gives you light."  Here, as elsewhere in the Gospels, Jesus uses the metaphor of light as an essential need for those who would not walk in darkness.  In John 8:12, Jesus teaches, "I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life."  Here He teaches all of us that we can be "sons of light" by bearing that light within us.  Not only does it give light (like a lamp) to those who are around, but also illumines the mind, which is the spiritual eye of the body, and guides 'how we see.'   But if this eye of the mind is bad and full of darkness, then so will be the fullness of the life we lead.  This is where we must take heed about what we put our faith into, which guides how we see.  If we choose to live by the light that shines through Him, we expect illumination over all that we are and think and how we see.

What is light, and what is the eye?  This is an important part of Christ's preaching.  It is found in the heart of the Sermon on the Mount, and clearly was preached elsewhere throughout Christ's ministry.  They are themes He returns to again and again.  The light that illumines the eye is the light that we need so that we won't walk in darkness, and we won't stumble.  We'll know where we are going.  There is a deep emphasis on the spiritual nature of our faith and its working within us.  This is a light that illumines the mind; if the whole body is lit by this light of the eye, then Christ is teaching us that it is a light that is meant to be thrown upon all of our lives, everything that we are, allowing us truly see.  In Luke chapter 6, as He does in the Sermon on the Mount, He teaches us to be aware of the "plank in our own eye" so that we may see clearly enough to remove the speck in another's eye (6:42).  It is this same light that illumines our imperfections and blindness so that we may truly see what we are about, in order to help others.  This is a journey that is meant to be lifelong.  To illuminate the entire body is the work of our lives, in His faith and in His light that allows us to see light (Psalm 36:9).  This is what it is to truly be His family, children by adoption, to seek to know and keep the word of God.  To reject the light, He says, is to risk judgment.   In John's Gospel, He tells Thomas, "Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed" (John 20:29).  None of what He teaches is ever about proofs.  No one is forced to believe.  He is looking for a connection of love, the capacity for spiritual perception, the desire for the life of light.  This is an ongoing journey, in which the light teaches, illumines, and changes us as we come to terms with the things which block that light.  Let us go forward in its grace with thanks.

He who is not with Me is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters

 And He was casting out a demon, and it was mute.  So it was, when the demon had gone out, that the mute spoke; sand the multitudes marveled.  But some of them said, "He casts out demons by Beelzebub, the ruler of the demons."   Others, testing Him, sought a sign from heaven.  But He knowing their thoughts, said to them:  "Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and a house divided against a house falls.  If Satan also is divided against himself, how will his kingdom stand?  Because you say I cast out demons by Beelzebub.  And if I cast out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your sons cast them out?  Therefore they will be your judges.  But if I cast out demons with the finger of God, surely the kingdom of God has come upon you.  When a strong man, fully armed, guards his own palace, his goods are in peace.  But when a stronger than he comes upon him and overcomes him, he takes from him all his armor in which he trusted, and divides his spoils.  He who is not with Me is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters.

"When an unclean spirit goes out of a man, he goes through dry places, seeking rest; and finding none, he says, 'I will return to my house from which I came.'  And when he comes, he finds it swept and put in order.  Then he goes and takes with him seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter and dwell there; and the last state of that man is worse than the first." 

- Luke 11:14-26

On Saturday, we read that as Jesus was praying in a certain place, when He finished, one of His disciples said to Him, "Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples."  So He said to them, "When you pray, say:  Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name.  Your kingdom come.  Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.  Give us day by day our daily bread.  And forgive us our sins, for we also forgive everyone who is indebted to us.  And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one."  And He said to them, "Which of you shall have a friend, and go to him at midnight and say to him, 'Friend, lend me three loaves; for a friend of mine has come to me on his journey, and I have nothing to set before him'; and he will answer from within and say, 'Do not trouble me; the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot rise and give to you'?  I say to you, though he will not rise and give to him because he is his friend, yet because of his persistence he will rise and give him as many as he needs.  So I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.  For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.  If a son asks for bread from any father among you, will he give him a stone?  Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a  serpent instead of a fish?  Or if he asks for an egg, will he offer him a scorpion?  If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!"

And He was casting out a demon, and it was mute.  So it was, when the demon had gone out, that the mute spoke; sand the multitudes marveled.  But some of them said, "He casts out demons by Beelzebub, the ruler of the demons."  Beelzebub refers to a pagan god, which the Jews derided by calling "the Lord of the Flies."  In this case, it's a direct reference to Satan (as Jesus infers).

 Others, testing Him, sought a sign from heaven.  This will be the constant theme in Jesus' ministry; He refuses to give proofs to those who demand it.  A sign isn't given to those whose motive is just to test God. (See 4:9-12; this is one of the temptations of the devil in the wilderness). 

 But He knowing their thoughts, said to them:  "Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and a house divided against a house falls.  If Satan also is divided against himself, how will his kingdom stand?  Because you say I cast out demons by Beelzebub.  And if I cast out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your sons cast them out?  Therefore they will be your judges.  But if I cast out demons with the finger of God, surely the kingdom of God has come upon you."  The finger of God is the Holy Spirit (Matthew 12:28).

"When a strong man, fully armed, guards his own palace, his goods are in peace.  But when a stronger than he comes upon him and overcomes him, he takes from him all his armor in which he trusted, and divides his spoils."  Here, the strong man is Satan (also called by Christ the prince or ruler of this world - John 14:30), who holds sway over the fallen human race, while the stronger man is Christ (see 1 John 4:4).  One could say this is a parable of the mission and ministry of Christ which is ongoing.

"He who is not with Me is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters."   My study bible suggests here that it is the work of Christ to gather the children of God, while those who scatter are in direct opposition to Him.  Those who work in opposition to Christ are different from those who work in good faith toward His purpose but aren't yet united to the Church (see 9:46-50).   My study bible quotes from St. Seraphim of Sarov who says that only "good deeds done for Christ's sake bring fruit," and therefore deeds done for other purposes, "even if they are good, are deeds that scatter abroad."  Clearly this is a statement of Christ's power and centrality to the mission of salvation.

"When an unclean spirit goes out of a man, he goes through dry places, seeking rest; and finding none, he says, 'I will return to my house from which I came.'  And when he comes, he finds it swept and put in order.  Then he goes and takes with him seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter and dwell there; and the last state of that man is worse than the first."  The unclean spirit, according to St. John Chrysostom, refers to the rebelliousness cast out of the Jews by the Old Testament prophets to prepare them to receive Christ.  Those who refuse to receive Him are left open to the wickedness of seven other spirits or demons.  We recall that seven is also a number of completeness or fullness. 

St. Paul writes about the sons of disobedience in Ephesians 2:2.  Although he is speaking to a formerly pagan audience, and not a Jewish one, we can see the same idea at work:  disobedience or rejection of Christ, His words and His teachings, is a problem of a complex spiritual nature.   Similarly to Christ's words above, St. Paul refers to the "prince of the power of the air;" that is,  to a spirit that is lower than Christ but has power in this world.  In the  Gospels there is often reference to a 'worldly' state of mind in those who cannot receive Christ.  John tells us that even among the rulers in the temple, there were those who believed, but who feared the Pharisees, and loved the praise of men more than the praise of God.  This is a type of worldly point of view, in which the 'desires of the flesh' (in this case, one's image in the eyes of others) rule.  It's not easy to stand up to the world, to a social milieu, to one's environment.  This is precisely why one needs the power of the "Stronger Man" to draw us out of the world, so to speak, and refashion our lives (see John 15:19).  At the heart of Christ's teachings there is a choice on offer, and that choice is found in our own hearts.  Christ's reference to the unclean spirit that is cast out, and does not find rest elsewhere, but draws seven spirits more wicked than himself and returns, seems to me to be a reference to a pattern of life, in which we are always asked to make this choice, and with His help.  Without Him, the commitment cannot be strong enough for the consistence and power to refuse to fall back into the same pattern.  It's a common wisdom to observe and understand that life is a kind of road; we don't remain in one state, but are on the way somewhere.   So much depends on choice, in order to avoid "the last state" that is "worse than the first."  As discussed in a reading last week, when we think of evil or demonic influence, we should not fall into the trap of assuming that popular culture can teach us something about what this looks or feels like.  The influence, if present, is subtle.  Things take place in the heart that a person may barely be aware of.  A lie can be subtle, a deception is something we may all be tempted by and subject to.  St. Paul includes himself in Ephesians 2:3, when he writes that "among whom also we all once conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, just as the others."  One presumes he is speaking of his own role in the persecution of the Church.  Ultimately Christ is speaking about the openness of the heart to the saving mission of God, the revelation that takes us "out of the world" so that we may come to senses that have been charged only with material ways of thinking, of fitting in, of the "praise of men," of everything we are minus a communion with God that changes the ways we see and experience life and the world.  Jesus teaches us that there is a power struggle going on, a battle that takes place in the hearts and minds of human beings, and that we are always left with a basic choice through all things.  This choice is neither simple nor easy; it's often not at all black and white.  What sounds good may not be good at all -- and what is truly good may sound like a really bad idea (see Matthew 16:21-23).  We should be aware of the ways in which deception works through our own senses and perceptions.  The one place we can rely on is also in the heart, and that is in the affirmation of love for God, love for Christ, and a dependency on this love to show us the way.  We should remember that He is the "stronger man," the one who has come to bind up the ruler of this world, and to set free the captives and give liberty to the oppressed.  We put our trust there.  It's not our own power we rely on.  Prayer and all the practices of the Church are designed simply to shore up that basic choice, to help us with what we truly need at the heart of everything.   It all starts and ends with this love, this deep and gentle place that is stronger than all the rest.