Scripture Reading:
Matthew 16:1–12
Key Verse:
And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. (Matthew 16:18).
What does this passage teach us?
Verses 1–12. In these verses we find our Lord assailed by the untiring enmity of the Pharisees and Sadducees. As a general rule these two sects were at enmity between themselves. In persecuting Christ, however, they made common cause. Truly it was an unholy alliance! Yet how often we see the same thing in the present day. Men of the most opposite opinions and habits will agree in disliking the Gospel, and will work together to oppose its progress. The first point in this passage which deserves special notice, is the repetition which our Lord makes of words used by Him on a former occasion. He says, “A wicked and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given unto it, but the sign of the prophet Jonas.”
The second point which deserves special notice in these verses is, the solemn warning which our Lord takes occasion to give to His disciples. His mind was evidently pained with the false doctrines which He saw among the Jews, and the pernicious influence which they exercised. He seizes the opportunity to utter a caution. “Take heed and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees.” Let us mark well what those words contain.
To whom was this warning addressed? To the twelve apostles—to the first ministers of the Church of Christ—to men who had forsaken all for the Gospel’s sake! Even they are warned! The best of men are only men, and at any time may fall into temptation. “Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall.” If we love life, and would see good days, let us never think that we do not need that hint, “take heed, and beware.”
Against what does our Lord warn His apostles? Against the “doctrine” of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees. The Pharisees, we are frequently told in the Gospels, were self-righteous formalists. The Sadducees were skeptics, freethinkers, and half infidels. Yet even Peter, James, and John must beware of their doctrines! Truly the best and holiest of believers may well be on his guard!
By what figure does our Lord describe the false doctrines against which He cautions His disciples? He calls them yeast. Like yeast, they might seem a small thing compared to the whole body of truth. Like yeast, once admitted they would work secretly and noiselessly. Like yeast, they would gradually change the whole character of the religion with which they were mixed.
How much is often contained in a single word! It was not merely the open danger of heresy, but “yeast,” of which the apostles were to beware.
There is much in all this that calls loudly for the close attention of all professing Christians. The caution of our Lord in this passage has been shamefully neglected. It would have been well for the church of Christ, if the warnings of the Gospel had been as much studied as its promises.
Let us then remember that this saying of our Lord’s about the “yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees” was intended for all time. It was not meant only for the generation to which it was spoken. It was meant for the perpetual benefit of the Church of Christ. He who spoke it saw with prophetical eye the future history of Christianity. The Great Physician knew well that Pharisee-doctrines and Sadducee-doctrines would prove the two great wasting diseases of His Church, until the end of the world. He would have us know that there will always be Pharisees and Sadducees in the ranks of Christians. Their succession shall never fail. Their generation shall never become extinct. Their name may change, but their spirit will always remain. Therefore He cries to us, “take heed and beware.”
Finally, let us make a personal use of this caution, by keeping up a holy jealousy over our own souls. Let us remember, that we live in a world where Pharisaism and Sadduceeism are continually striving for the mastery in the Church of Christ. Some want to add to the Gospel, and some want to take away from it. Some would bury it, and some would pare it down to nothing. Some would stifle it by heaping on additions, and some would bleed it to death by subtraction from its truths. Both parties agree only in one respect. Both would kill and destroy the life of Christianity, if they succeeded in having their own way. Against both errors let us watch and pray, and stand upon our guard. Let us not add to the Gospel, to please the Roman Catholic Pharisee. Let us not subtract from the Gospel, to please the Sadducee. Let our principle be “the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth,” nothing added to it, and nothing taken away.
Questions:
What are the themes of chapters 1 through 16?
What was the sign that Jesus gave to the Pharisees and Sadducees?
What does Jesus warn His disciples about, when He speaks of the Pharisees and Sadducees?
How does yeast operate within the bread, and what does this tell us about false doctrine?
What were the errors that J. C. Ryle was concerned about in his day?
Family Discussion Questions:
What are some of the “parties” that are seeking to destroy the life of Christianity today? What are the errors that we need to be aware of in our day?
