Matthew

Chapter 15

Matthew turns our attention in chapter 15 to the matter of the law. The Pharisees and scribes discovered Jesus and the disciples breaking the “traditions” surrounded the laws of cleanliness. They did not wash their hands before they ate. Jesus turned his attention the commandments, specifically the fourth commandment about the treatment of parents. In so doing, Matthew points up a distinction between the commandments and the traditions. In the discussion of the fourth commandment, “Honor your father and mother,” the Pharisees who profess to be righteous according to the law of God take a portion of their income and dedicate it to God – corban. The tradition states that what is set aside for God cannot be used for anything else. The breaking of the commandment to honor the tradition comes about in that the income that could have been used to support parents in their old age, once set aside as corban, doesn’t have to be used to care for them any more. This action is what Jesus defines in vs. 8-9 as “honoring me with their lips, but their hearts are from me, in vain to they worship me, teaching human precepts as doctrines.” These words of Jesus claim human, not divine origin to the traditions contained in the Holiness Code of Leviticus.

At the significant part, however, is the discussion of true kosher (ritual cleanliness). Such kosher is not derived from the foods that are eaten or avoided; or from the ritual acting of cleansing the hands or the dishes. It is not what goes into the mouth that makes some one unclean, but what comes out of the mouth. The list of what comes out of the mouth defines Jesus’ teaching, because it comes out of the heart. “For out of the heart come evil intentions, murder, adultery, fornication, theft, false witness, slander.” These things truly defile an individual.

Tyre and Sidon

Jesus is approached by a Canaanite woman – a gentile. Why mention the location and the ethnicity of the woman? Matthew builds up to the distinction between the Pharisees (those who should have recognized Jesus) and this gentile woman (who would have not reason to know him). Compare her faith and theirs. Compare her emphasis and theirs. The retort between the Canaanite woman and Jesus can at first sight be disturbing. It appears that Jesus calls her a dog. In actuality, the “righteous” Jewish community considered her a dog. As a gentile, she had no part in the promises of God according to their “traditions.” They had come far from the covenant formed with Abraham. It was a covenant that promised Abraham and Sarah would become the parents of a great nation that would have their own land. This was a covenant formed to create a holy nation, a royal priesthood designed to bring a blessing upon all the families of the earth. This nation transformed. No longer did they reach out in blessing, but they excluded those who were not of their clans. The gentiles were seen in their traditions as the dogs to be avoided and separated out at all cost.

Great is your faith woman. The power of this exchange is released in the exchange between Jesus and the woman. She did not recoil from the accusations and the name calling, but instead asked for no more than the crumbs from the table. She did not run away. She did not recoil in shock, but continued to pursue Jesus to the conclusion that Jesus reached out with the blessing of God to every family of the earth.

The exchange in this chapter re-locates us into the middle of the polemic between the faithful and the faithless. The dividing line is faith in Jesus as the Messiah.

Feeding the 4000

Once again, Jesus is confronted with the needs of the crowd that had come to them. They brought the lame, the maimed, the blind, the mute, and many other. Jesus cured them as proof that the Messianic Kingdom of God had taken root in the midst of the earth. Once again, Jesus and the disciples are surrounded by the hungry crowd and once again Jesus asks his disciples to give them something to eat, and once again the disciples respond from their place of scarcity. Even those who follow Jesus and have witnessed the great things that he did for the many have bouts of doubt. Disciples often fail to see the effects of the Kingdom of God that is present in the world around Jesus. Then once again, Jesus took the bread and fish, gave thanks, broke it, and gave it back to the disciples for distribution to the needy. Yes! Once again, Jesus demonstrated that in the kingdom of God a little goes a long ways when it is placed in God’s hands. Everyone was filled and there was leftover.

Tuesday, October 17, 2006