David Bahn – Reflections

^{Mark 8:14-15}

¹⁴ Now they had forgotten to bring bread, and they had only one loaf with them in the boat. ¹⁵ And he cautioned them, saying, “Watch out; beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod.” ¹⁶ And they began discussing with one another the fact that they had no bread. 

I had an “interesting” experience when I was in college with an intelligence test that was administered to me by my mother. She was in a masters program at the same school and needed to administer several different IQ tests to various people. I agreed to be one of those people. One particular question was worded in such a way that it could have been interpreted to yield two different answers. There was one right answer according to the test, however, and I offered the wrong answer. The “interesting” part of the experience was the rather intense conversation we had regarding that question. When I got it “wrong” she tried to correct me and the argument was on! Eventually I proved my point, but truth be told, my reasoning may have been initially driven by faulty reasoning to begin with. In the end she told her professor of the incident and she told me later that he was impressed.

The situation on the boat with Jesus and his disciples is similar in that there were two ways to understand Jesus’ words about leaven. This may not have been an IQ test moment, but it did have to do with Jesus’ expectation that his disciples utilized their God-given intellect to engage in conversation with him, and engage the world around them regarding the Kingdom of God. Jesus was speaking figuratively on this occasion, if not even a bit obliquely, to help the disciples go beyond simple truths about bread, Pharisees and Herod. He wanted them to understand at a deeper level that people’s ideals and ideas have potential impact beyond the surface.

The ideals and ideas of the Pharisees and Herod were not only different from those of Jesus, their influence in the lives of others were destructive to the Kingdom of God. “Beware,” Jesus says,  of their teachings’ impact. It gets into the lump of our souls and of society as a whole. Beware: that means be aware – eyes open, mind engaged.

We can put our lives on autopilot if we wish. We can stumble through the day with a naive innocence that fails to engage others’ ideas or ignores the dangers of certain life-approaches that war against truth and grace in Christ. Such a life does not honor Christ and the deep realities of faith in him and his kingdom’s call. He calls us to listen carefully, think critically, and realize that there are dangers in our world. Uncritical acceptance and ignorance may be easy, but not healthy. It is certainly not Jesus’ call. Jesus brought his “A-Game” 100% of the time. He is our righteousness. He is also our example. Bring it: not bread, but your reason and all your senses, for the sake of his kingdom and his righteousness.

^{Mark 8:14-20}

¹⁴ Now they had forgotten to bring bread, and they had only one loaf with them in the boat. ¹⁵ And he cautioned them, saying, “Watch out; beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod.” ¹⁶ And they began discussing with one another the fact that they had no bread. ¹⁷ And Jesus, aware of this, said to them, “Why are you discussing the fact that you have no bread? Do you not yet perceive or understand? Are your hearts hardened? ¹⁸ Having eyes do you not see, and having ears do you not hear? And do you not remember? ¹⁹ When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of broken pieces did you take up?” They said to him, “Twelve.” ²⁰ “And the seven for the four thousand, how many baskets full of broken pieces did you take up?” And they said to him, “Seven.” ²¹ And he said to them, “Do you not yet understand?”