go break bread

Chapter 15 has three parts to it. Lets looks at the last and move back to the first. The last part, Jesus feeds 4000 people, then he heals a gentile woman's daughter, then he explains that tradition is not as important as God's commandments...and that is the first part.

So matthew 15 32-39 Jesus just about finishes his work healing more masses and has compassion on the crowd. As usual, he doesnt want to send them away hungry. Of coars the deciples where like, "uh...Jesus, we're in the middle of no where, where will we find enough food to feed everyone?" Jesus takes seven loaves and a few small fish and feeds everyone. I can imagine Jesus chuckling to himself as they as this question of him. There are less people here than the other 2 times he fed the crowd. I think the number isn't as important as the act, though. This reoccuring theme of feeding people is something that Jesus wants to get across. There is a connection between ministry and diner. I'm not just saying that because I like to eat, and boy do i like to eat. But think about it. Whenever a large crowd gathers, he usually feeds them.

Another connection could be giving to people, in fourthousand and five thousand crowds Im sure that there were people of all walks of life there. The rich, the poor, the recently healed, the begining of the church. Jesus didn't just skip over the people who were well off. No looked around for the fat man so they didnt have to feed him. No, they fed everyone. This is another way that Jesus levels the human race. By eating with people its a way of fellowship, getting to know one another. Prior to this I'm sure the rich and the poor, the sick and the healthy, the sinners and the saints, the jews and the gentiles, didn't much have any interaction. Now he gets people of all walks of life, sits them all down and has them eat together.

Turning gears ever so gracefully...

The second point of chapter 15 is that Jesus heals a gentile woman's daughter. In mark 7, it says that Jesus is in the land of tyre and sidon at this time. When this woman first approaches him, Jesus doesnt respond to her. When his disciples come to him and ask him to heal this woman's daughter, he says "It is not right to take the children's bread and throw it to the dogs." Owch. But look at the context a bit more, I dont think hes refering to stray dogs, or beasts behind the alley, but household pets, that are loved. What Jesus is trying to do is make sure that this woman is serious. He doesn't want her to just recieve the blessing and go on about her life. He wants her to recieve the blessing and have her life changed. Seeing her faith when she says ""Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters' table." She humbles herself, expresses faith, and won't leave until she knows something is gonna change. Jesus sees her faith and allows it to be done.

It says then that Jesus walked up to a mountain and the crowds followed him and brought all kinds of people there to him for him to heal. The interesting thing is, sidon and tyre are both areas of primarily gentile people. I checked out the history of these 2 places on wikipedia, and tyre is a colonized city that was sent from sidon. Sidon was a place that had been well known for its art and was under the influence of Herod. The place where he was, was primarily a gentile area. Its my assumption that after seeing the faith of the canaanite woman, he heals more of her people. There were a lot of people not jews who where there getting healed and listening to Jesus' teaching

once again the grace ful turn of gears...

Matthew 15 starts by the pharisees questioning Jesus about tradition. They get upset because Jesus and he crew aren't following certain traditions. Jesus responds by saying that they have turned tradition above commandment. Making tradition more important the God's commandment is not the best thing to do. He uses an example here that might need some explaining. Jesus says:

4For God commanded, 'Honor your father and your mother,' and, 'Whoever reviles father or mother must surely die.' 5But you say, 'If anyone tells his father or his mother, What you would have gained from me is given to God, 6he need not honor his father.' So for the sake of your tradition you have made void the word of God

In the Jewish culture, when your parents retired, you took care of them. They didn't go to a convelecent home, or a nursing hospital. It was your job to feed, clothe and shelter them just as they had done for you for the first half of your life. But what Jesus is saying is that anything the jews had left over, money they should have ear marked for their parents, they claim went to god. So these generations have been not supporting thier father and mother and saying " sorry dad, I spent your money for new pants on God..." or "sorry mom, looks like your gonna have to eat bread and soup while we eat steak, I didn't have enough for you after I tithed." This is breaking Gods commandment of "honor your father and mother". Honor, support, take care of them.

Jesus goes on to say its not what goes into the mouth, but what comes out. Eating with unclean hands isn't going to make someone unclean, but what someone speaks reflects their heart. If the heart is full of eveil thoughts, then thats all that will come out of the mouth.

Now lets step back and take a look at this on a whole. We started at the end and worked to the beginning. Jesus feeds 4000, heals a whole bunch of people, heals a canaanite woman who is a gentile, and calls the pharisees hypocrites for putting the traditions of man over the law of God. Now lets put this back in order....Jesus gets fed up with the pharisees and religious leaders of the time. The tradition of man has become more important to them then the laws of God. Jesus has pity on the canaan woman who was not a Jew, had no jewish tradition, and heals her daughter, then after walking up onto a mountain Jesus heals a bunch of people and then feeds them. He heals and feeds Jews and non-Jews (gentiles) alike. Its more likely that in this area of the world there could've been more Gentiles than Jews.

Jesus calls us to fellowship with everyone. Yes its good to have a community of believers to encourage and discuss faith, but its not limited to it. How often do you hear jokes that start " so a priest, a pastor, and a rabbi..."But how often do you see a pastor, a priest, and a rabbi all sitting around a table having diner with all their families? Or better yet...how often do you see a christian and a muslim sitting and eating together? A christian and a homosexual? A christian and homeless person? Christ didnt turn healing or food away from anyone. Out of the so far 14,000 people that Jesus feeds, he invites them all to stay for diner. Don't let things scare you because they're "not usually done that way" or because you've done it one way for so long. So, go find a homeless person on the side of the street and take them out to diner, not just mcdonalds, tgi fridays...