Matthew 15

What Pollutes Your Life

1 After that, Pharisees and religion scholars came to Jesus all the way from Jerusalem, criticizing,2 "Why do your disciples play fast and loose with the rules?"

3 But Jesus put it right back on them. "Why do you use your rules to play fast and loose with God's commands?4 God clearly says, 'Respect your father and mother,' and, 'Anyone denouncing father or mother should be killed.'5 But you weasel around that by saying, 'Whoever wants to, can say to father and mother, What I owed to you I've given to God.'6 That can hardly be called respecting a parent. You cancel God's command by your rules.7 Frauds! Isaiah's prophecy of you hit the bull's-eye:8 These people make a big show of saying the right thing, but their heart isn't in it.9 They act like they're worshiping me, but they don't mean it. They just use me as a cover for teaching whatever suits their fancy."

10 He then called the crowd together and said, "Listen, and take this to heart.11 It's not what you swallow that pollutes your life, but what you vomit up."

12 Later his disciples came and told him, "Did you know how upset the Pharisees were when they heard what you said?"

13 Jesus shrugged it off. "Every tree that wasn't planted by my Father in heaven will be pulled up by its roots.14 Forget them. They are blind men leading blind men. When a blind man leads a blind man, they both end up in the ditch."

15 Peter said, "I don't get it. Put it in plain language."

16 Jesus replied, "You too? Are you being willfully stupid?17 Don't you know that anything that is swallowed works its way through the intestines and is finally defecated?18 But what comes out of the mouth gets its start in the heart.19 It's from the heart that we vomit up evil arguments, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, lies, and cussing.20 That's what pollutes. Eating or not eating certain foods, washing or not washing your hands-that's neither here nor there." Healing the People

Healing the People

21 From there Jesus took a trip to Tyre and Sidon.22 They had hardly arrived when a Canaanite woman came down from the hills and pleaded, "Mercy, Master, Son of David! My daughter is cruelly afflicted by an evil spirit."

23 Jesus ignored her. The disciples came and complained, "Now she's bothering us. Would you please take care of her? She's driving us crazy."

24 Jesus refused, telling them, "I've got my hands full dealing with the lost sheep of Israel."

25 Then the woman came back to Jesus, went to her knees, and begged. "Master, help me."

26 He said, "It's not right to take bread out of children's mouths and throw it to dogs."

27 She was quick: "You're right, Master, but beggar dogs do get scraps from the master's table."

28 Jesus gave in. "Oh, woman, your faith is something else. What you want is what you get!" Right then her daughter became well.

29 After Jesus returned, he walked along Lake Galilee and then climbed a mountain and took his place, ready to receive visitors.30 They came, tons of them, bringing along the paraplegic, the blind, the maimed, the mute-all sorts of people in need-and more or less threw them down at Jesus' feet to see what he would do with them. He healed them.31 When the people saw the mutes speaking, the maimed healthy, the paraplegics walking around, the blind looking around, they were astonished and let everyone know that God was blazingly alive among them.

32 But Jesus wasn't finished with them. He called his disciples and said, "I hurt for these people. For three days now they've been with me, and now they have nothing to eat. I can't send them away without a meal-they'd probably collapse on the road."

33 His disciples said, "But where in this deserted place are you going to dig up enough food for a meal?"

34 Jesus asked, "How much bread do you have?"35 At that, Jesus directed the people to sit down.36 He took the seven loaves and the fish. After giving thanks, he divided it up and gave it to the people.37 Everyone ate. They had all they wanted. It took seven large baskets to collect the leftovers.38 Over four thousand people ate their fill at that meal.39 After Jesus sent them away, he climbed in the boat and crossed over to the Magadan hills.

Matthew 16

Some Bad Yeast

1 Some Pharisees and Sadducees were on him again, pressing him to prove himself to them.2 He told them, "You have a saying that goes, 'Red sky at night, sailor's delight;3 red sky at morning, sailors take warning.' You find it easy enough to forecast the weather-why can't you read the signs of the times?4 An evil and wanton generation is always wanting signs and wonders. The only sign you'll get is the Jonah sign." Then he turned on his heel and walked away.

5 On their way to the other side of the lake, the disciples discovered they had forgotten to bring along bread.6 In the meantime, Jesus said to them, "Keep a sharp eye out for Pharisee-Sadducee yeast."

7 Thinking he was scolding them for forgetting bread, they discussed in whispers what to do.8 Jesus knew what they were doing and said, "Why all these worried whispers about forgetting the bread? Runt believers!9 Haven't you caught on yet? Don't you remember the five loaves of bread and the five thousand people, and how many baskets of fragments you picked up?10 Or the seven loaves that fed four thousand, and how many baskets of leftovers you collected?11 Haven't you realized yet that bread isn't the problem? The problem is yeast, Pharisee-Sadducee yeast."12 Then they got it: that he wasn't concerned about eating, but teaching-the Pharisee-Sadducee kind of teaching.

Son of Man, Son of God

13 When Jesus arrived in the villages of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, "What are people saying about who the Son of Man is?"

14 They replied, "Some think he is John the Baptizer, some say Elijah, some Jeremiah or one of the other prophets."

15 He pressed them, "And how about you? Who do you say I am?"

16 Simon Peter said, "You're the Christ, the Messiah, the Son of the living God."

17 Jesus came back, "God bless you, Simon, son of Jonah! You didn't get that answer out of books or from teachers. My Father in heaven, God himself, let you in on this secret of who I really am.18 And now I'm going to tell you who you are, really are. You are Peter, a rock. This is the rock on which I will put together my church, a church so expansive with energy that not even the gates of hell will be able to keep it out.

19 "And that's not all. You will have complete and free access to God's kingdom, keys to open any and every door: no more barriers between heaven and earth, earth and heaven. A yes on earth is yes in heaven. A no on earth is no in heaven."

20 He swore the disciples to secrecy. He made them promise they would tell no one that he was the Messiah.

You're Not in the Driver's Seat

21 Then Jesus made it clear to his disciples that it was now necessary for him to go to Jerusalem, submit to an ordeal of suffering at the hands of the religious leaders, be killed, and then on the third day be raised up alive.22 Peter took him in hand, protesting, "Impossible, Master! That can never be!"

23 But Jesus didn't swerve. "Peter, get out of my way. Satan, get lost. You have no idea how God works."

24 Then Jesus went to work on his disciples. "Anyone who intends to come with me has to let me lead. You're not in the driver's seat; I am. Don't run from suffering; embrace it. Follow me and I'll show you how.25 Self-help is no help at all. Self-sacrifice is the way, my way, to finding yourself, your true self.26 What kind of deal is it to get everything you want but lose yourself? What could you ever trade your soul for?

27 "Don't be in such a hurry to go into business for yourself. Before you know it the Son of Man will arrive with all the splendor of his Father, accompanied by an army of angels. You'll get everything you have coming to you, a personal gift.28 This isn't pie in the sky by and by. Some of you standing here are going to see it take place, see the Son of Man in kingdom glory."

Matthew 17

Sunlight Poured from His Face

1 Six days later, three of them saw that glory. Jesus took Peter and the brothers, James and John, and led them up a high mountain.2 His appearance changed from the inside out, right before their eyes. Sunlight poured from his face. His clothes were filled with light.3 Then they realized that Moses and Elijah were also there in deep conversation with him.

4 Peter broke in, "Master, this is a great moment! What would you think if I built three memorials here on the mountain-one for you, one for Moses, one for Elijah?"

5 While he was going on like this, babbling, a light-radiant cloud enveloped them, and sounding from deep in the cloud a voice: "This is my Son, marked by my love, focus of my delight. Listen to him."

6 When the disciples heard it, they fell flat on their faces, scared to death.7 But Jesus came over and touched them. "Don't be afraid."8 When they opened their eyes and looked around all they saw was Jesus, only Jesus.

9 Coming down the mountain, Jesus swore them to secrecy. "Don't breathe a word of what you've seen. After the Son of Man is raised from the dead, you are free to talk."

10 The disciples, meanwhile, were asking questions. "Why do the religion scholars say that Elijah has to come first?"

11 Jesus answered, "Elijah does come and get everything ready.12 I'm telling you, Elijah has already come but they didn't know him when they saw him. They treated him like dirt, the same way they are about to treat the Son of Man."13 That's when the disciples realized that all along he had been talking about John the Baptizer.

With a Mere Kernel of Faith

14 At the bottom of the mountain, they were met by a crowd of waiting people. As they approached, a man came out of the crowd and fell to his knees begging,15 "Master, have mercy on my son. He goes out of his mind and suffers terribly, falling into seizures. Frequently he is pitched into the fire, other times into the river.16 I brought him to your disciples, but they could do nothing for him."

17 Jesus said, "What a generation! No sense of God! No focus to your lives! How many times do I have to go over these things? How much longer do I have to put up with this? Bring the boy here."18 He ordered the afflicting demon out-and it was out, gone. From that moment on the boy was well.

19 When the disciples had Jesus off to themselves, they asked, "Why couldn't we throw it out?"20-21 "Because you're not yet taking God seriously," said Jesus. "The simple truth is that if you had a mere kernel of faith, a poppy seed, say, you would tell this mountain, 'Move!' and it would move. There is nothing you wouldn't be able to tackle."

22 As they were regrouping in Galilee, Jesus told them, "The Son of Man is about to be betrayed to some people who want nothing to do with God.23 They will murder him-and three days later he will be raised alive." The disciples felt terrible.

24 When they arrived at Capernaum, the tax men came to Peter and asked, "Does your teacher pay taxes?"

25 Peter said, "Of course." But as soon as they were in the house, Jesus confronted him. "Simon, what do you think? When a king levies taxes, who pays-his children or his subjects?"

26 He answered, "His subjects."27 But so we don't upset them needlessly, go down to the lake, cast a hook, and pull in the first fish that bites. Open its mouth and you'll find a coin. Take it and give it to the tax men. It will be enough for both of us."