Quarantine Epistles Vol 2:77

A Challenge to the Disciples. Mark 8:14-21.

Now they had forgotten to bring bread, and they had only one loaf with them in the boat. And he cautioned them saying, “Watch out; beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod.”And they began discussing with one another the fact that they had no bread. And Jesus, aware of this, said to them, “Why are you discussing the fact that you have no bread? Do you not perceive or understand? Are your hearts 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 broken pieces did you take up?” Then said to him, “Twelve.”And the seven for the four thousand, how many baskets full of broken pieces did you take up?” And they said to him, “Seven.”And he said to them, “Do you not yet understand?”

Dear Joint Heirs with Christ,

There are few things as frustrating as one being misunderstood by the very people one has placed one’s hopes on. The whole mission of the Kingdom of God depends on the disciples, yet they do not seem to understand the simplest of things. 

Caution (vv. 14-16). Jesus has just come from an altercation with the Pharisees. He wants to warn the disciples to beware of the corrupting influence of the Pharisees. Yeast (leaven)  was symbolic of sin, contamination bad influence. Jesus wants the disciples to be alert to the danger of being corrupted by the hypocrisy of the Pharisees. He also wants them to be careful not to be influenced by the moral permissiveness of Herod and his followers, who lived in disregard of the commandments of God. But the disciples associate the yeast with the fact that they forgot to bring bread for the journey! 

Clarification (vv. 17-20). Jesus patiently reminds the disciples of the recent miracles of feeding the crowds. In the feeding of the five thousand they had started with five loves and after feeding the crowd, twelve baskets of leftovers, symbolic, of course, of enough abundance to feed the twelve tribes of Israel, remained. In the feeding of the four thousand, they started with seven loaves and collected seven baskets full of leftovers, symbolic of perfection – after feeding the crowd, Jesus is still left with a complete quantity of food, as though none had been spent. 

Challenge (v. 21). Jesus does not explain the meaning of his comment about the Pharisees and Herod. Instead, he challenges the disciples. Do they not understand that he does not need bread, as he is able to provide for the whole nation? Spiritual blindness often takes the form of what occupies the mind. The disciples were so preoccupied with their failure to make provision for the journey that they could not think beyond food. What is your preoccupation? Beware. It will color your perception of reality. 

Your Loving Pastor Chris.