MATTHEW 15

JESUS REBUKES THE PHARISEES + FEEDS FOUR THOUSAND

The Pharisees accuse Jesus of breaking a commandment concerning ritual cleanliness before meals. Jesus rebukes the religious leaders, frustrated with their focus on tradition and man-made laws. Jesus recites Isaiah 29:13, which says that people will draw near to God and honor Him with their words, but their hearts are far from Him. Their worship of God is based on human rules they have been taught and not from genuine relationship or communion with God.

Continuing His response to the Pharisees, Jesus explains that it is not what goes into a person that defiles, but what comes out of them. The Pharisees diligently follow the laws for clean and unclean food, found in Leviticus 12, but Jesus is more concerned with the purity of the hearts. Jesus lists the multitude of sins that originate in the heart, including immorality and evil thoughts.

Jesus continues traveling, healing those He encountered along the way. Jesus heals the daughter of a Canaanite woman, a known enemy of the Israelites. The woman humbled herself before Jesus and compared herself to a dog receiving scraps of food. Jesus responds to her incredible faith and the oppressed daughter is immediately healed. While Jesus was in Galilee, He attracted large crowds of people who sought His healing abilities.

Similar to His previous miracle of feeding five thousand people, Jesus feeds another large crowd of over four thousand people. Using only seven loaves of bread and a few small fish, Jesus blesses the food and creates an abundant amount!