“Now the disciples had forgotten to bring bread, and they had only one loaf with them in the boat. Jesus repeatedly ordered them, saying, ‘Watch out! Beware of the [a]leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod.’ They began discussing this with one another, saying, ‘It is because we have no bread [that He said this].’Jesus, aware of this [discussion], said to them, ‘Why are you discussing [the fact] that you have no bread? Do you still not see or understand? Are your hearts hardened? Though you have eyes, do you not see? And though you have ears, do you not hear and listen [to what I have said]? And do you not remember, when I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of broken pieces you picked up?’ They answered, ‘Twelve.’ ‘And [when I broke] the seven [loaves] for the four thousand, how many large baskets full of broken pieces did you pick up?’ And they answered, ‘Seven.’ And He was saying to them, ‘Do you still not understand?’’” (Mark 8:14-21 The Amplified Bible)
I want to share something inspired by the passage above, a tip that will help you make beneficial transitions in your transactions in the immediate days ahead and beyond. “Transactions” refers to your verbal exchanges, your conversations, dialogues, or discussions.
Shortly before the verses above, in The Gospel According to Mark, Jesus had just fed a multitude of 5,000, a number that did not include women and children. The account above deals with the feeding of another multitude, numbered as 4,000, but once again that number does not include women and children. Please note that in both instances we see that the Lord can do great things in the lives of people. He did it for those referred to in Mark’s accounts. And the good news is, making it personal, He will do great things for you again, on more than one occasion.
As you read the passage above, you quickly noted that Jesus saw an opportunity to make a transition in a transaction. His transition was a perfect as the best English Composition professor would expect you to make in writing an essay, moving from paragraph to paragraph. Take a closer look at the transition. Jesus’ disciples had forgotten the seven big baskets of bread, leftover from the feeding of the multitude. They had only one loaf with them. Jesus injects Himself in the discussion and asks a question that would make them think about the right answer.
As it relates to making a transition in a transaction, Jesus, fully aware of how leaven, known as yeast today, was used in making bread. Leaven has a good implication and a bad implication in the bible.
The disciples had started discussing what Jesus said, and the Lord, being aware of their discussion, transitions from bread to leaven, and ends with a seemingly rhetorical question. He is prompted to make His inquiry because after His disciples had experience with Jesus, including seeing multiple demonstrations of His divine prerogatives, they should have understood His statement about the leaven of the Pharisees and Herod.
The disciples had witnessed His power, privilege, and authority. I need to point out that Jesus’ transition in the transaction occurs just a brief time after they had witnessed His ability to take small means and produce great results, feeding an astronomical number of people with a few loaves and a few fish on two occasions. Jesus asks, “Do you still not understand?” Jesus was making a transition in the transaction from the physical to the spiritual, from everyday living to disciple living, from the need to not just be an observer of His doings, but to absorb His doings in a way that would aid them in performing their work.
I hope this makes just a little sense to you today. If it does, I’m sure you will take advantage of opportunities in your discussions, conversations, and dialogues to make the same kind of transitions in your verbal transactions. I’m sure you will be able to, as they say, “flip the script,” and bring up something that will cause those involved in the talking to start thinking about God’s word or the Living Word (Jesus).
My friends, my purpose for writing this Sunday morning is to move you to make transitions in your everyday transactions. When the timing is right, change the subject and speak in such a way that you make people think about God, Jesus, the Holy Spirit, and the difference the Trinity can make in one’s life. Take my tip and be a witness. Who knows what will happen as a result of you making transitions in your transactions? Perhaps someone will come to accept Christ, or maybe someone who is already a disciple, will be reminded to stay God-conscious and Christ-centered.
I have said enough. Time for church! Get going! Enter the sanctuary with expectations and come out with excitement, equipped to be better off when you depart. Be blessed!
Committed to the climb,
Mark L. King