Matthew 13:33 The Parable of the Leaven
“Another parable He spoke to them: “The kingdom of heaven is like leaven, which a woman took and hid in three measures of meal till it was all leavened.”
I began this study thinking that leaven could be a positive thing… Many commentators have used this verse to encourage Christians to spread throughout their society, pointing people to the Kingdom of God. But then I read David Guzik’s Enduring Word Commentary on this verse. Here is what Guzik says: “a. The kingdom of heaven is like leaven: Jesus used a surprising picture here. Many, if not most, regard this as a beautiful picture of the kingdom of God working its way through the whole world. Yet leaven is consistently used as a picture of sin and corruption (especially in the Passover narrative of Exodus 12:8, 12:15-20). Again, both the content and the context point towards this being a description of corruption in the kingdom community.
i. “There would be a certain shock in hearing the Kingdom of God compared to leaven.” (Barclay)
b. Leaven, which a woman took and hid in three measures of meal till it was all leavened: This was an unusually large amount of meal. It was much more than any normal woman would prepare, and again suggests the idea of massive or unnatural size.
i. “Three measures of meal would be about 40 liters, which would make enough bread for a meal for 100 people, a remarkable baking for an ordinary woman.” (France)
c. Hid in it: The idea of hiding leaven in three measures of meal would have offended any observant Jew. This certainly isn’t a picture of the church gradually influencing the whole world for good. Rather, in the context of increasing opposition to His work, Jesus announced that His kingdom community would also be threatened by corruption and impurity.
i. G. Campbell Morgan wrote that the leaven represents “paganizing influences” brought into the church.”
What’s so bad about leaven? In Egypt, leaven was used to brew beer. When the Israelites escaped from Egypt, they didn’t have time for bread to rise, so they had to carry unleavened dough in their mixing bowls on their shoulders. In those days, housewives saved a small amount of dough, allowing it to absorb wild yeasts, and then using that as starter to make the next batch of bread, in effect baking sour dough bread.
1 Corinthians 5:1-8 describes a terrible situation in which a Christian has married his father’s wife, an act so abhorrent that it’s something not even the Gentiles would do. Paul goes on to say,” And you are puffed up (arrogant), and have not rather mourned, that he who has done this deed might be taken away from among you.” (Verse 2) Paul continues, “Your glorying is not good. Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump? 7 Therefore purge out the old leaven, that you may be a new lump, since you truly are unleavened. For indeed Christ, our Passover, was sacrificed for us. Therefore, let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.” (Verses 6-8)
A key question for would-be disciples is this: Are you changing the world around you, or is the world changing you? We have a close Ghanaian friend who is a Muslim, and we discuss all kinds of things with him. One area in which Christian young people, particularly young Christian women, are falling short is the manner in which they dress. These days, it’s quite common to see pretty girls wearing short tight skirts and low-cut dresses to church in Ghana. If you question these young ladies, they will undoubtedly assert their right to dress anyway they wish; yet, for us, many of these outfits resemble those worn by prostitutes in the big cities. 1 Corinthians 6:18-19 tells us, “Flee sexual immorality. Every sin that a man does is outside the body, but he who commits sexual immorality sins against his own body. Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? For you were bought at a price; therefore, glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.”
Nobody is demanding that these young women don burkas; however, it is quite possible to look attractive without appearing to be soliciting sexual partners. These girls are distracting men who have come to church to worship, inciting a spirit of lust instead of the Holy Spirit. In addition, when these girls insist on dressing in a blatantly provocative fashion, it is an instant turn-off to any Muslims who might be considering the claims of Christ.
One former Nigerian witch who eventually became a Christian has described church services she attended while she was still in witchcraft. Due to this woman’s spiritual sensitivity, she could walk into a church and see the demons that had accompanied many of the church members. When the congregation was singing about victory over Satan, the demons were laughing hysterically, for they knew that songs without commitment were mere entertainment. It’s likely that if one of these scantily clad young women were to attempt to lead spiritual warfare prayers, the demons would be laughing at her as well.
The question for all Christians is simple: are you influencing the world around you, or is the world influencing you? When I was growing up, I would sometimes attempt to wheedle favors from my mother using the argument that “everyone is doing it.” The instant response would be, “I don’t care about everyone else; you’re my child and you are not doing it.”
If we truly love God the Father, the Holy Spirit, and Jesus-if we truly love the Holy Trinity, we will refuse to do anything that might bring shame to their names or offend them. If we must argue that “everyone is doing it” and that we are merely going along with our society, then we are in trouble spiritually, mentally, physically, and emotionally.
Years ago, the chief of our town invited a fetish priestess to come in and prophesy over people. For the three days that the woman was in town, the spiritual atmosphere was heavy with the presence of evil. Despite warnings from local pastors, many Christian young people flocked to the chief’s compound to watch this woman perform, and one pastor’s son attempted to rape a girl while he was under demonic influence. Blessedly, the young woman was able to resist and the rape did not happen; however, had the young woman remained at home, she would never have been in danger in the first place.
These days, there are all kinds of movies and videos full of violence, sex, and witchcraft. Frequently, Christian parents allow their children to watch such filth, little realizing the damage they are inflicting on those children’s spirits. Such movies are another form of leaven.
The question for would-be disciples is simple: Are we out to change the world for Jesus, or will we allow the world to change us?
PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and for caring for us. Lord, stop us when we begin compromising and trying to resemble the world around us. Help us to run away from corruption, not embrace it. Let Your light shine through us so that people will be drawn to You. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.
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