Sheldonville Baptist Church
May 31, 2026
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2 Samuel 22:26–36NKJV
- You Are My All In All
- Thy Word
- Higher Ground
- Saved Saved
- Rock of Ages
- I Will Call Upon The Lord
- As The Deer
- I. Relgionists Could Not See, 1-4
Matthew 16:1–4 NKJV 1 Then the Pharisees and Sadducees came, and testing Him asked that He would show them a sign from heaven. 2 He answered and said to them, “When it is evening you say, ‘It will be fair weather, for the sky is red’; 3 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. 4 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.A. They Asked for a “Sign from Heaven”B. He Gave Them a Sign from HeavenIt was not what they were expectingIt was far more than they (or we) expected, or understoodHow does one discern the signs of the times?You look at what you see through what you knowIf we would learn to look at the world around us through the Word before us, we would better understand the world around usCorollary: The more we know the better we’ll seeIt was an answer to their request, not a dismissalII. Disciples Could Not Remember, 5-12Matthew 16:5–12 NKJV 5 Now when His disciples had come to the other side, they had forgotten to take bread. 6 Then Jesus said to them, “Take heed and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the Sadducees.” 7 And they reasoned among themselves, saying, “It is because we have taken no bread.” 8 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? 9 Do you not yet understand, or remember the five loaves of the five thousand and how many baskets you took up? 10 Nor the seven loaves of the four thousand and how many large baskets you took up? 11 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.” 12 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.A. Jesus Wanted to Teach His DisciplesHe Had an important lessonHe waited for the right momentQuestion: When do you suddenly remember that you forgot to pack a lunch?Answer: When you’re hungry and have nothing to eat.Follow-up: When you’re hungry and have nothing to eat, what is the only thing you can think about?Answer: FoodWe would think this the wrong moment because Jesus was going to have to repeat the lessonJesus thought it was the right moment because He was going to have to repeat the lessonB. Jesus Taught His DisciplesThe Lesson: Be aware of—and wary of—the leaven of religionThe Distraction: the disciples though He was as distracted by food as they wereC. Jesus Reminded His DisciplesGod is seldom ever doing only one thingJesus fed the multitudes because they were hungry and He couldJesus also fed the multitudes to teach His followers that a lack of physical resources—like food—posed no problem for HimIn their moment of hungry distraction, Jesus had to remind them of thatD. Jesus Taught His Disciples, AgainHe reiterated the instruction to beware of the leaven of the religionistsThey finally understood that He was talking about their doctrine, not their lunchIII. We Could Not Understand, 12Matthew 16:12 NKJV 12 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.Before we get too smug about their failure and our success, we should probably ask ourselves how well we understand the lesson.What “doctrine” did Jesus mean?“doctrine” means teachingthe best way to “hear” what someone believes is by watching how they liveJesus’ concern was with both what they said and how they livedWhat do we remember about leaven?It is pervasive, practically unstoppable (The leaven leavens the lump, the lump doesn’t lump the leaven.)It is a picture, or type, of sin in the Bible (in the Old Testament, people had to physically remove leaven from their homes durning Holy days)What leaven do we see at work in the Pharisees and Sadducees?The leaven of destructive influencePharisees and Sadducees were conservative and liberal, respectivelyThey were in a state of conflictThey were competing for the heats and minds of their followersThey pitted their followers against each otherThe leaven of destructive inconsistencyWe all struggle to consistently live out what we believeThe wider the gap between our beliefs and actions, the more destructiveit is destructive for us because we exist in a state of self-delusionIt is destructive for others because it permits their unbeliefThe leaven of destructive intoleranceArgument and disagreement is not intolerance, it is the byproduct of certainty and the basis for debateFighting is intolerance. How did the religionists of Jesus’s day fight Jesus?They tried to trick Him and trap Him with subterfugeThey paid off one of His associates to betray HimThey arrested Him at night, away from public viewThey sought and bought people to lie about Him at trialThey physically abused HimThey plotted against HimThey accused Him of crimes He had not committedThey incited a riot against HimThey accepted generational guilt over their actionsThey reveled in their own victory—until it proved to be defeatConclusionPeople often look at us like we are religious. Sometimes they are well-meaning, but I do not like the term. I have a relationship, not a religion and that is a very different thing.We need to choose our leaven: the leaven of religion or the leaven of relationship. They may look similar on the surface, they may both be pervasive below the surface, but they are vary different and produce very different results. Like the difference between cheap artificial bread and expensive artisanal bread. Matthew 16:1–4NKJV
Matthew 16:5–12NKJV
Matthew 16:12NKJV
Sheldonville Baptist Church
(508) 384-2397
8 members • 1 follower