Word of Warning

Matthew 16:1-12

I have been pointing out that we are in a section of the Gospel of Matthew where Jesus is training His disciples in kingdom ministry. Each of these narratives is a lesson in faith, in learning to believe in Jesus and to trust Him in all things. When Jesus fed the five thousand, He was training them on the priority of kingdom ministry and God’s provision for it. When He walked on water, Jesus taught them the power of faith over fear. When the scribes and Pharisees confronted Jesus about hand washing, He gave them a lesson on the purpose of kingdom ministry—God’s cleansing the heart by faith. When Jesus answered the request of the woman of Canaan, He gave them a lesson on the perseverance of faith. And in feeding the four thousand, He taught them that compassion for all people is the passion in kingdom ministry. Today, along with the disciples, we will learn a lesson on the peril of kingdom ministry.

We who are disciples of Jesus Christ are called to kingdom ministry with Jesus. Kingdom ministry is all about making disciples, proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom so that men and women, boys and girls, would believe in Jesus as the Christ, the Son of God and Savior of the world. Today we learn that discipleship not only requires us to believe, but it requires us to beware. Kingdom ministry includes warning disciples about the dangers that will derail or sidetrack their Christian walk.  

The context for this lesson goes back to the end of Matthew 15 where Jesus had just fed the four thousand in a largely Gentile area. Immediately after feeding that crowd, Jesus and His disciples left to go to the opposite side of the Sea of Galilee (Matt. 15:39).

While Jesus was in Gentile territory, the people sought Him out, brought the sick and needy to Him, marveled that He healed them all, and glorified the God of Israel (Matt. 15:29-31). This is what faith looks like. But now, when Jesus is back in Jewish territory, we find Him again facing opposition. Instead of finding people who believe, Jesus faces unbelieving opposition. The religious leaders of Israel again confront Jesus. And Jesus teaches His disciples to …

1. Be wary of seeking signs (Matt. 16:1-4)

Matthew 16:1 says, “Then the Pharisees and Sadducees came, and testing Him asked that He would show them a sign from heaven.” Now, if you were a first-century Jew reading this sentence, you would be stunned that the Pharisees would join with the Sadducees.

We have already met the Pharisees, a religious and political group, who so esteemed the oral traditions that formed around the law of Moses that they developed a rigid and burdensome set of strict applications of the letter of the law to everyday life. The name Pharisee comes from the Hebrew word parash meaning “to separate”. They were very careful to keep themselves separate and distinct from the ‘contaminations’ of pagan culture.  

The Pharisees have confronted Jesus a number of times already. They grumbled when Jesus ate with tax collectors and sinners (Matt. 9:11). They accused Jesus of casting out demons by the ruler of the demons (Matt. 9:34; 12:24). They accused Jesus of teaching His disciples to break the Sabbath (Matt. 12:2). They plotted against Jesus to destroy Him (Matt. 12:24). They confronted Jesus about hand washings (Matt. 15:1-2) and were offended by Jesus’ teachings (Matt. 15:12).

The religious and political party of the Sadducees rejected the oral traditions, the prophets, and other sacred writings that the Pharisees held to. They believed that only the five books of Moses (Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy) were authoritative. While the Pharisees believed in angels, spirits, and the resurrection of the dead, the Sadducees did not. Most of the Sadducees were wealthy Jewish elites in the ruling class. Because the office of the High Priest was sold by Rome to the highest bidder in those days, all the chief priests were Sadducees. They controlled the temple and its worship.

Representatives of both parties constituted the Sanhedrin, the highest Jewish governing body in Israel (cf. Acts 23:6). These two disparate groups join together to confront a common opponent—Jesus. Their purpose is to test Jesus. It is clear that they were not coming to find evidence to believe in Jesus. They had already made up their minds about Jesus. They were looking for evidence to condemn Him. They pretended to seek evidence that Jesus was the Messiah but only desired to see Him fail, so that they might ruin Him.

So they demand “that He would show them a sign from heaven”—in other words, a sign from God. We know that they were not sincere in wanting to see a sign from heaven, because Jesus had already given many signs from God. Jesus had healed great multitudes of sick people, and cast out demons. He had cleansed lepers with a touch, given sight to the blind, and cast out demons with but a command. And these miracles all testified together to the fact that Jesus Christ is the long-awaited, promised Messiah—through whose ministry the Scriptures said that “the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped. Then the lame shall leap like a deer, and the tongue of the dumb sing” (Isaiah 35:5-6). Jesus did not do these things in secret, He did them publicly. Jesus not only did miracles of healing and casting out demons, He also did what God alone can do when He fed the multitudes in the wilderness.

If this group of Pharisees and Sadducees sincerely wanted a sign from heaven, they had plenty to chose from. God gave one very notable sign from heaven at Jesus’ baptism when, “the heavens were opened to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting upon him. And suddenly a voice came from heaven, saying, ‘This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased’” (Matt. 3:16-17).

But in spite of all this, they still demanded more. They demanded “a sign from heaven”. Perhaps they wanted Him to cause the winds to blow down from the clouds and part the sea—as it did in Moses’ day. Perhaps they wanted Him to cause the sun to stand still in the firmament—as it did in Joshua’s day. Perhaps they wanted Him to cause fire to come down from sky and consume an offering—as it did in Elijah’s day. My guess is that even if Jesus had done these things, they still would not believe. Their problem was not a lack of evidence. Their problem was the evil unbelief in their hearts.

That was their demand—“show us a sign from heaven”. When they made this request, they likely already knew what His response would be, because the Pharisees had already asked this sort of thing of Him once before. Back in Matthew 12, we read…

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.” (Matt. 12:38-40).

The sign of Jonah would be Jesus’ final and ultimate sign. Jesus, the Son of Man, would die, be buried, and rise from the dead on their third day. It would be the definitive proof that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, the King of heaven and earth. Through His death and resurrection Jesus would save from sin all who believe in Him. This is the gospel message. To those who genuinely and sincerely seek the truth, the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ is the only sign that is necessary.

This time, Jesus answered in almost the same exact words in Matthew 16:2-4:

He answered and said to them, “When it is evening you say, ‘It will be fair weather, for the sky is red’; and in the morning, ‘It will be foul weather today, for the sky is red and threatening.’ Hypocrites! You know how to discern the face of the sky, but you cannot discern the signs of the times. A wicked and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and no sign shall be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah.” And He left them and departed.

Look at Jesus’ words about the Pharisees’ and Sadducees’ ability to determine the weather. They knew how to look at the evidence and draw a logical conclusion. They could do it with the weather. They knew how to read the facts and correctly interpret them. Their problem was not lack of evidence or lack of reasoning. Their problem is that they did not want to believe what the evidence clearly showed. They were not ignorant, they were evil.

Jesus says, “A wicked and adulterous generation seeks after a sign” (Matt. 16:4). Only a “wicked” and “adulterous” generation would continue to ask for signs in such a context. They only proved that they were never really interested in signs at all. He calls them “Hypocrites!” They came pretending to know God. They came pretending to want a sign. They came pretending to seek the truth. But in reality, they only came to confirm their wicked unbelief. They came with murder and adultery in their hearts. Jesus is not interested in playing their games. He does not play pretend. He refuses to give them again what they already refused to receive and believe. Jesus does not rebuke them for their failure to see but for their failure to believe.

Be wary of seeking signs. It may indicate a wicked heart of unbelief. God has graciously given us the one sign that is necessary to believe and be saved. Jesus died for our sins on the cross and God raised Him from the dead on the third day. If you will not believe in Him knowing that, no sign in heaven will convince you. In Revelation 6, after Christ breaks the seals on the scroll and “the stars of heaven fell to the earth” and “the sky receded as a scroll when it is rolled up, and every mountain and island was moved out of its place,” instead of believing in Christ, people hid themselves from the wrath of God and of the Lamb (Rev. 6:15-17). In Revelation 9, after the plagues of the trumpet judgments, the people “did not repent of the works of their hands, that they should not worship demons, and idols of gold, silver, brass, stone, and wood, which can neither see nor hear nor walk. And they did not repent of their murders or their sorceries or their sexual immorality or their thefts.” (Rev. 9:20-21).

Be wary of seeking signs. Even if you get them, it’s no guarantee that you will repent and believe. Don’t seek after signs. Seek the Savior. Come to Jesus who died for your sins and lives to give you eternal life.

Next, Jesus teaches us…

2. Beware of false religion (Matt. 16:5-12)

Matthew 16:5-6 says, “Now when His disciples had come to the other side, they had forgotten to take bread. Then Jesus said to them, ‘Take heed and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the Sadducees.’”  

Jesus uses “leaven” or “yeast” here as a symbol of that which is small, and that operates and spreads in a hidden way. Once allowed into a thing, it spreads its influence and ends up permeating the whole thing. Just as a little leaven leavens the whole lump, a little of the “leaven” of the Pharisees and Sadducees can work its way in, spread its influence, and end up permeating the whole of a person’s soul.

Now, the disciples misunderstood this. They are confused. They have no idea what Jesus is talking about, so they assume it must have something to do with the fact that they forgot to bring bread (Matt. 16:7). Jesus is concerned about their spiritual food, but they are concerned about their physical food. So Jesus has to correct them. Matthew 16:8 says, “But Jesus, being aware of it, said to them, ‘O you of little faith, why do you reason among yourselves because you have brought no bread?’”  

Why did they miss the point? Jesus says to them, “Do you not yet understand, or remember the five loaves of the five thousand and how many baskets you took up? Nor the seven loaves of the four thousand and how many large baskets you took up? How is it you do not understand that I did not speak to you concerning bread?–but to beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees.” (Mat 16:9-11).

Jesus says they missed the point because they failed to remember. Jesus had just fed the multitudes through them. On both occasions, He took the meager food they had and multiplied the bread so it not only met the needs of everyone, but they had an abundance of leftovers. Jesus says they failed to understand the lesson of the loaves. They hadn’t “understood” what these experiences had to teach them about Jesus’ priorities, His power, and His provision. These were lessons in faith, training them to trust in Jesus. Yet, because they failed to remember and understand, Jesus rebukes them saying, “O you of little faith” (Matt. 16:8). If they truly believed what Jesus taught them, they would never have worried about bread. They would see that Jesus was not concerned at all about what’s for lunch. He was concerned about the poisoned religious food of the Pharisees and Sadducees.

Matthew explains in verse 12 that, “Then they understood that He did not tell them to beware of the leaven of bread, but of the doctrine of the Pharisees and Sadducees.” (Matt. 16:12). What is so dangerous about their doctrine? What is the major problem with it? Jesus has told us. Look back up to Matthew 16:3, what did Jesus call them? “Hypocrites!” He said the same thing about them in Matthew 15:7. In Luke 12:1, we’re told that Jesus—on another occasion—said, “Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees which is hypocrisy.” In the Sermon on the Mount, repeated tells His disciples “you shall not be like the hypocrites” (Matt. 6:5; cf. Matt. 6:2; 16; 7:5). Seven times in Matthew 23 Jesus condemns them for their hypocrisy (Matt. 23:13, 14, 15, 23, 27, 29).

They were pretending to seek the truth, but they were not seeking the truth at all. They were, in fact, doing all they could to avoid and oppose the truth. All the signs were pointing to Jesus as the long-awaited Messiah—the Son of God and King of the Jews. But they didn’t want Him. They would not bow down to Him and worship Him. They would not accept God’s plan for them through His cross. Their pursuit of the truth was a sham.

And Jesus was warning His disciples—and you and me today—to beware of that attitude! We must be on our guard against the hypocritical pretense of “seeking the truth” that is often characterized by seeking “signs”. “I’ll believe what God says if He does this or that! I’ll put my faith in Jesus if He shows me the evidence I demand of Him.” The reality is that He has already given us all the evidence we need for a saving faith in the cross of Jesus Christ. To ask for more than that is to ask out of a wicked and adulterous heart.

Listen, the greatest danger facing the church today is not a lack of resources but a lack of genuine faith in Christ. Jesus warns us about spiritual phonies. Hypocrisy is contagious. It spreads like leaven. A little bit can permeate and ruin the whole church. Jesus says beware of them. Just because a person knows how to dress, knows how to talk Christian, and can quote Scripture, does not make them real. They may just be wearing a great costume and playing a great part.

Our concern in the church should not be if we have enough bread. Our concern should be the spread of hypocrisy. Is our faith just pretend? Are we losing our holiness? Am I wearing a mask of religion on Sunday to cover my iniquity on Monday?

Jesus says beware! Stay away from the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees. Stay away from anything that substitutes legalism for faith in Jesus. Stay away from trusting in ritualism and ceremony. Stay away from self-righteousness and pride.

What’s the solution? Turn to Jesus. Come humbly, repentantly, believing in His death on the cross for the forgiveness of your sins. Trust in His resurrection from the dead to give you a new life and life eternal. Instead of hypocritically keeping external rules and rituals, walk in a loving relationship with Christ. Obey His word out of gratitude for Him saving you from sin and hell. Turn your eyes upon Jesus. He is the only Lord and Savior.