Rotten Apples

Jesus enjoined them, “Watch out, guard against the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod.”  Mark 8:15

After giving this warning to His disciples, Jesus then gave an explanation to them of what He meant and what He didn’t mean.  But even the explanation seemed to be over their heads.  So He concluded by saying, “Do you still not understand?”  

Jesus was trying to get the disciples to think, to listen and to look deeper.  He was warning them, “Watch out!”  Watch out for this leaven.  It was a warning of love to help them see and understand a very real danger (Mark 8: 14-21).

Everyone who knows about baking bread knows the effect of just a little leaven (such as yeast) in the dough.  Add just a little bit and it affects the whole loaf. 

So what was the leaven of the Pharisees and Herod?  It was the evil words, evil intent and errors that they spread.  For the Pharisees, it may be that it was just a little misconception or misrepresentation of what Jesus said or did.  They may have twisted His words or may simply have given non-verbal opinions to others.  This behavior is contagious and has potential to affect everyone.   Little by little their small seeds of doubt and dissent take a toll on others.

We may tend to be thinking about all of “those” people we know who do this—who gossip and report ‘fake news’.    But we’d miss an important opportunity for growth if we failed to first look at ourselves.  Do I do this sometimes?  Do I say things that mislead in small or subtle ways?  Or do I mislead others by my non-verbal negative attitudes?  Am I a “negative person” sometimes?  Remember, "one rotten apple spoils the whole barrel!"

No need to feel guilty or get down on ourselves if we feel convicted.  Rather, we should look at this little lesson of Jesus to realize the great power of our words.  The smallest of words can do great harm over time. 

But that’s not all we should focus on.  It’s just as important to realize that the small loving words we say also have potential to make a huge difference over time.  Perhaps it’s just that small smile we give or a kind action that we think goes unnoticed.  These little actions and words are the leaven of the Gospel.  They do make a difference and they can become contagious, also.