Multiplied Impact

Read: Matthew 15.29-16.12

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT: In this passage of Scripture we see Jesus again feeding a multitude. As in Matthew 14, Jesus has compassion on the crowds that have been following Him, so He instructs His disciples to feed them. We would expect the disciples to remember the earlier miracle of multiplying loaves and fish, but, apparently, their memory capacity is limited (Matthew is certainly giving us an honest portrayal of his colleagues!). When the disciples protest that very little bread is unavailable in their remote location, Jesus asks them about the immediate resources at hand. The disciples report only seven loaves of bread and a few small fish on hand. As in Matthew 14, Jesus multiplies the resources and feeds four thousand men, along with the women and children with them. Seven baskets of broken pieces were left over after everyone had eaten and been satisfied.

We also witness another demand by the Pharisees for a "sign from heaven" to prove God's blessing on His ministry. This time, the Pharisees team up with the Sadducees in making this demand, which is significant: as two of the leading religious/political parties of the time, these two groups hardly ever agreed on anything and wanted very little to do with each other. The fact that these two groups could come together as a result of their common apprehension over Jesus makes it clear that Jesus was "making waves" throughout Israel. Jesus tells them that they should easily be able to interpret His ministry and the "signs of the times," but He repeats that only the sign of Jonah will be given to them (see comments on Matthew 12 from Day 17 of our study).

This passage concludes with Jesus connecting the two separate miracles of feeding the multitudes. Jesus warns His disciples to be on guard against "the yeast of the Pharisees and the Sadducees." While it took a little while for the disciples to catch on, they finally realized what Jesus was saying: yeast, when utilized, had an impact on an entire batch of dough, and the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees had the potential to infect the crowds around them just as effectively (as we will ultimately see later in Matthew's Gospel). However, Jesus' ability to multiply resources and feed multitudes should give the disciples (and us) the perspective of faith and hope in what God was and is doing through Jesus.