In Matthew 15 Jesus does some pretty amazing stuff. He heals thousands of sick folk, he feeds 6,000 to 15,000 people with just a few dinner rolls and sardines, he cast a terrible demon out of a Gentile’s kid by just saying it was done.

In Matthew 16 the Pharisees and Sadducees come to him demanding that he perform a miracle to prove he is who he says he is. At the risk of offending lots of folks, lets put it in contemporary terms. These were Baptists and Methodists — your church-going folks who were there every time the doors were open.

And they weren’t going to Jesus to get a miracle to help them believe in him. They were going so they could stab him in the back.

Yikes! Sounds like today.

What we call the christian church is terribly fragmented. The concept of “unity” is just that, a concept. No one believes it nor wants it. Its just nice to talk about it.

If you read further into Matthew 16, you’ll find that Jesus has some not so kind words to say about our Pharisees and Sadducees. He said that they have as much chance obtaining what he was offering as a one-legged man in a kicking contest.

And it is in this broader context that Jesus states this.

Seems like we might be experiencing a deja vu moment all over again…