Matthew 15:21-28
Mark 7:31-37
Matthew 15:29-31
Mark 8:1-10
Matthew 15:32-16:4
Mark 8:11-21
Matthew 16:5-12
Jesus traveled to several locations that were primarily populated with
Gentiles (non-Jews) — Tyre, Sidon, and the region of the Decapolis (ten
cities). He did among them what He had done among His own people. “A vast crowd
brought the lame, blind, crippled, mute, and many others with physical
difficulties and laid them before Jesus. He healed them all” (Matthew 15:29-31).
After doing this for three days, Jesus felt compassion for the people,
for they had nothing to eat. Thus, He performed, for the second time, a miracle
in which He fed thousands of people with just a little food. Since this event
occurred in a different region, filled with primarily Gentiles, the message
that Jesus was sending is clear — He is the God of both Jews and Gentiles, and His gift of
salvation would bless all nations!
Still, after all that He had done to prove His divinity, a group of
Pharisees and Sadducees came to test His claims, by asking Him to show them a
miraculous sign from heaven. Jesus knew their motives, that they
were not there to accept His ministry but to attack it. They were trying
to catch Him in a trap and, therefore, discredit His work.
Jesus refused to give them a sign, saying, “You are good at reading
the weather signs in the sky, but you can’t read the obvious signs of the
times” (16:3). In essence,
Jesus was condemning their search for evidence of His identity, when there was
already plenty of evidence that He was who He said He was. He could have called
down fire from heaven, like Elijah did, and dried up the Sea of Galilee, and it
would have not been enough to convince them that Jesus was the Messiah. Their hearts were
hard and their minds were already made up; no amount of proof would convince
them otherwise.
Daily Reflection
If the Pharisees and Sadducees were around today, we might call them skeptics. A skeptic is
someone who doubts, questions, or speculates about a belief system. In some
sense, we are all skeptics; there is nothing wrong with questioning someone’s
claims or doubting their validity.
However, the Pharisees and Sadducees were beyond common skepticism.
They were not simply unsure about Jesus, but they had al- ready made up
their minds about Him and would not allow themselves to be persuaded by the
evidence before them. They would be similar to a naturalist, who holds to evolution as the
origin of all things, even though there is no evidence for his view and there
is overwhelming evidence for creationism. While he may claim to have “science
on his side,” he only deceives himself and simply refuses to follow where the
evidence leads; he does not want to admit the alternative, that he is wrong or
that there is a God to whom he must answer.
Likewise, the religious leaders of Jesus’ day would never admit their
misconceptions. That would have been humiliating. Therefore, they held their
ground and remained entrenched in their unbelief, no matter what they heard or
saw. Jesus warned of this type of attitude and condemned their false teaching.
He compared it to yeast, an evil that would infiltrate and compromise the
positive effects of the gospel.
Beware of the nay-sayers. Satan, the great deceiver, loves to
discredit truth and distract truth-seekers with his tricks. Jesus more than
proved Himself, and there is overwhelming evidence that He was the Messiah.
While it is okay to doubt or question aspects of your faith, do not allow your
doubt to linger; rather find answers to your questions or you too will be corrupted
by the yeast!
BiAY.org | Day 284 — 81 Days to Go
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