Contemplative Bible Reading

Luke 12:1 (New Living Translation)

…Beware of the yeast of the Pharisees—their hypocrisy.

Jesus is speaking here. What is the yeast of the Pharisees? Many point out that throughout the Bible yeast is often mentioned with sin. Here, however, Jesus mentions a specific failure: hypocrisy.

“Those Christians are nothing but a bunch of hypocrites.”

I heard that one often when I was a kid. I don’t hear it as much anymore. Perhaps all the world is hypocritical or something. Perhaps labeling is seen as too judgmental in our post-post-post-(how many posts are in we now? I forget.) modern world.

Hypocrisy rules the world. The Internet, cable news, blah blah blah. It goes on and on forever. Everyone can see it when a person does this but not that.

Jesus was right (funny how that works)—hypocrisy is like yeast. It spreads and seems to live forever. Keep in a warm moist place and it grows.