Jesus came to bring a message, and it still resounds today. The message begins with a simple statement in Matthew 15:18 “But the things that come out of the mouth come from the heart, and these defile the person”. We are separated from God and the only fix is a change of heart. Jesus came and demonstrated God’s love in Matthew 15:30 “And large crowds came to him, having with them the mute, blind, lame, crippled, and many others, and they put them down at his feet, and he healed them”. And, in Matthew 15:32 “Jesus summoned his disciples and said, “I have compassion on the crowd …” and he fed them. But his message wasn’t just healing them or feeding them it was to bring into the world this revelation in Matthew 16:16 “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God!”. Jesus said in Matthew 16:18 “I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overpower it!” and then he also said in Matthew 16:19 “I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you release on earth will be released in heaven”. Now, we are to, in Ephesians 4:23–24 “be renewed in the spirit of your mind, 24 and put on the new man (in accordance with God), who is created in righteousness and holiness from the truth”. Now, we are to stand in the authority we have.
Hear and Understand
Matthew 15:10–20
The Jews had many rules separating the clean from the unclean to distinguish the holy from the profane. These were all external markers, they were outward indicators. So Jesus called the whole crowd around him and made a special point saying in
Matthew 15:10b–11 “Hear and understand: 11 It is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person, but what comes out of the mouth—this defiles a person.”
What caused him to raise this point? We are told to “pay respect to whom respect is due; pay honor to whom honor is due” in Romans 13:7 and Jesus disciples came to him after he said “what comes out of the mouth—this defiles a person” and they told him in
Matthew 15:12 Then the disciples came and said to him, “Do you know that the Pharisees were offended when they heard this saying?”
They said this because the Pharisees were learned, religious, leaders and the disciples thought they must consider their feelings but Jesus reacted harshly saying “Let them!”, let them be offended in
Matthew 15:13–14 And he answered and said, “Every plant that my heavenly Father did not plant will be uprooted. 14 Let them! They are blind guides of the blind. And if the blind guide the blind, both will fall into a pit.”
and Jesus was surprised when Peter pressed this further saying to him in
Matthew 15:16 But he said, “Are you also still without understanding?
This is a strong message to us that we are not to look at the outside, at how a person dresses or their title or social standing, but we are to look at what comes out of their mouth because the mouth speaks what is in their heart in
Matthew 15:18 But the things that come out of the mouth come from the heart, and these defile the person.
This is how you will know what is in them.
Even the Dogs Eat the Crumbs
Matthew 15:21–28
The Crowd Was Astonished
I Have Compassion On the Crowd
Matthew 15:32–39
Jesus had tried to get away to a quiet place but the crowd followed him he ministered to them, healing them in Matthew 15:30 for three days then he says “I have compassion on the crowd” in
Matthew 15:32 And Jesus summoned his disciples and said, “I have compassion on the crowd, because they have remained with me three days already and do not have anything to eat, and I do not want to send them away hungry lest they give out on the way.”
The disciples, looking only at their circumstance, couldn’t imagine feeding all of these people in
Matthew 15:33 And the disciples said to him, “Where in this desolate place can we get so much bread that such a great crowd could be satisfied?”
Jesus simply took what they had, blessed it and broke it piece by piece until they all were fed in
Matthew 15:36 he took the seven loaves and the fish and after he had given thanks, he broke them and began giving them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds.
Show A Sign From Heaven
Matthew 16:1–4
Beware of the Leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees!
You Are the Christ, the Son of the Living God!
Matthew 16:13–20
Jesus has traveled throughout Israel preaching his message of the kingdom of God and now comes to this place, Caesarea Philippi, where “According to some its original name was Baal-Gad (Josh. 11:17), or Baal-Hermon (Judg. 3:3; 1 Chr. 5:23), when it was a Canaanite sanctuary of Baal. It was afterwards called Panium or Paneas, from a deep cavern full of water near the town … associated with the worship of their god Pan.”1 and it is here that Jesus asks what people believe about him in
Matthew 16:13 Now when Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he began asking his disciples, saying, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?”
Then Jesus asks the more important question of his disciples in
Matthew 16:15 He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?”
Peter, always quick to react and respond answers first in
Matthew 16:16 And Simon Peter answered and said, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God!”
Jesus gives an important response because this revelation doesn’t come naturally, but only by the word of God through the Spirit of God in
Matthew 16:17 And Jesus answered and said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but my Father who is in heaven.
Many have taken this next statement as a directive to Peter because Jesus says in
Matthew 16:18 And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overpower it!
Jesus does use Peter’s name which is πέτρος, meaning a stone or “of a boulder forming a landmark”.2 and says “I also say to you”, speaking this name to Peter but then he says, speaking again to them all, “on this rock”, on this revelation that Jesus is “the Christ, the Son of the living God!”, on this foundation “I will build my church”. Then, still speaking to them all, Jesus says in
Matthew 16:19 I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you release on earth will be released in heaven.”
and he finishes speaking to them all in
Matthew 16:20 Then he commanded the disciples that they should tell no one that he was the Christ.
Study Verses
- Matthew 15:10–20 Hear and Understand
- Matthew 15:32–39 I Have Compassion On the Crowd
- Matthew 16:13–20 You Are the Christ, the Son of the Living God!
Today’s Reading
- Matthew 15:10-39
- Matthew 16:1-20
References
- 1. Easton, M. G. (1893). In Easton’s Bible dictionary. New York: Harper & Brothers.
- 2. Liddell, H. G., Scott, R., Jones, H. S., & McKenzie, R. (1996). A Greek-English lexicon (p. 1398). Oxford: Clarendon Press.
