“The disciples had forgotten to bring bread, except for one loaf
they had with them in the boat. ‘Be
careful,’ Jesus warned them. ‘Watch
out for the yeast of the Pharisees and that of Herod.’ They discussed this
with one another and said, ‘It is because
we have no bread.’ Aware of their discussion, Jesus asked them: ‘Why are you talking about having no bread? Do
you still not see or understand? Are your hearts hardened? Do you have eyes but
fail to see, and ears but fail to hear? …He said to them, ‘Do you still not understand?’”
(Mark 8:14-18, 21,
NIV).
Have pity on Jesus’
disciples. They are like us sometimes. They misunderstood Jesus’ teaching altogether.
When Jesus said, “Be careful. Watch
out for the yeast of the Pharisees and that of Herod,” their minds
are still taken up with everyday physical matters like food, but Jesus was
talking about spiritual matters. They could’ve ask Jesus further about what He
meant, but instead they discussed the fact that they hadn’t brought enough bread
to eat on their trip! But Jesus was warning them against something much more
serious than forgetting their picnic basket. Luke, another Gospel writer, gave
a more complete account of Jesus’ statement when He said, “Be on your guard against the yeast of the Pharisees, which is
hypocrisy” (Luke 12:1). Matthew on the other hand, write that Jesus was
talking about “the teaching of the
Pharisees and Sadducees” (Matthew 16:12). So, Jesus was talking
about their hypocrisy in conducts and teachings! [Note: Many “that of Herod” or
Herodians were also Sadducees]
From my reading of the
Scriptures, Jesus hate extremely these two things: unbelieve and hypocrisy.
What is hypocrisy? Simply stated, it is pretending to be something or someone
you’re not – putting up a front in order to conceal your true identity. The Greek
word actually means, “playacting,”
originally referred to the Greek dramatists who were famous for their masks
(they act using masks). By the time of Jesus, the Pharisees were such
accomplished hypocrites that they could have won Malaysia’s Anugerah Drama Festival! Remember what
Jesus’ statement about them? “These people honor
me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me” (Mark 7:6).
They concentrated on appearing righteous and religious in front of people, but
it was only playacting. They were really far from God in their hearts.
Jesus compared hypocrisy
to “yeast” or
leaven. Why? Because when yeast is added to bread dough, it causes the bread to
rise beyond its normal size. Thus, if you study a slice of bread, you’ll find that
it is full of holes and empty inside. In the same way, like hypocrisy, even
though they appear full and perfect looking on the outside, but in the inside it
is full of holes and lots of empty spaces. Jesus had stronger words for the
Pharisees and their hypocrisy than any other human condition. Because of their
hypocrisy, they become unbelieve to what is obviously true, namely, Jesus’
divinity shows through His miracle (Mark 8:1-13).
If God does not want His
people hiding behind masks of religious piety, then, what does He want? Let me
suggest, how about being transparent. A transparent
Christian is one who is completely honest about him or herself to others and
especially to God. People can see right through them – they are not wearing any
hypocritical masks. They not trying to act out a role which is different from
what they really are. When they are fine, they are fine. But when they
sinned against God or against others, they are ready to say, “Forgive me, I’ve done you wrongly” (See
how a hypocrite and a transparent-person respond to their sin in Luke 18:9-14).
Being transparent is important for Christians. We all blow it on occasion –
angry words, hateful deeds, failure and sin. The key to recovery in such
situations is not hypocrisy such as think positive thoughts, positive confessions,
etc. Don’t pretending! Admitting to God and to your Christian brothers and
sisters that you are less than perfect and that you are in need of forgiveness
and restoration.
Being a transparent person
isn’t easy. That’s for sure. Jesus was the most transparent person who ever
walked the earth and He was treated rather badly for it. But it’s the kind of
life-style God is looking for in His people. For some of you that might mean
humiliation as you apologize to a group of friends for show-off hypocritically
and judgmental attitude. Or it might mean embarrassment as you confess to your
pastor or friends in the church that you’re still struggle with some particular
sins and in need of prayers. Don’t be too concern with what people think of
you, what God think about you is all that matter eternally. Be transparent. Don’t
“play the role” but “live it like it is.” If you’re transparent and be honest
to God, He can do something great in you. Do you understand now?
THINK BIG.
START SMALL. GO DEEP.
