You are my lamp, O Lord; the Lord turns my darkness into light. 2 Samuel 22:29.

We walk by faith, not by sight. 2 Corinthians 5:7 NKJV.

The path of the righteous is like the first gleam of dawn, shining ever brighter till the full light of day. Proverbs 4:18.

Have you ever sat in nature and noticed the quiet sounds and rhythms? Nothing artificial. And when you still your own thoughts, you can actually hear. And in our chapter, Matthew 16, the Pharisees and Sadducees hear only their own never-ending stream of thoughts. The Pharisees and Sadducees came to Jesus and tested Him by asking Him to show them a sign from heaven. He replied, “When evening comes, you say, ‘It will be fair weather, for the sky is red,’ and in the morning, ‘Today it will be stormy for the sky is red and overcast.’ You know how to interpret the appearance of the sky, but you cannot interpret the signs of the times. A wicked and adulterous generation looks for a sign, but none will be given it except the sign of Jonah.” Jesus then left them and went away. v. 1-4. The disciples were the same. Caught up in their own thinking, they missed so much until Jesus, the Son, explained clearly enough to break through the noise. When they went across the lake, the disciples forgot to take bread. “Be careful,” Jesus said to them. “Be on your guard against the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees.” They discussed this among themselves and said, “It is because we didn’t bring any bread.” Aware of their discussion, Jesus asked, “You of little faith, why are you talking among yourselves about having no bread? Do you still not understand? Don’t you remember the five loaves for the five thousand, and how many basketsful you gathered? Or the seven loaves for the four thousand, and how many basketsful you gathered? How is it you don’t understand that I was not talking to you about bread? But be on your guard against the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees.” Then they understood that He was not telling them to guard against the yeast used in bread, but against the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees. v. 5-12. Do we ever consider the intrusive noise of the age we are living in? Noise bombards us everywhere. How can anyone think or be still to listen to life itself? Think of the teaching Jesus is giving to His disciples. Could we hear with this noise we live in crowding out everything but the noise? When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?” They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” “But what about you?” He asked. “Who do you say I am?” v. 13-15. What about you? What say you? Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by My Father in heaven. And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.” Then He ordered His disciples not to tell anyone that He was the Messiah. v. 16-20. It was necessary for the disciples to begin to understand what that meant. Their understanding, be on your guard against the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees, taught by their religious leaders was that the Messiah would come in power to overthrow the pagan empire ruling them so that their nation would rise to become great again. You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God…blessed are you for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by My Father in heaven. And so Jesus began teaching them what was so needed for them to begin to hear. From that time on Jesus began to explain to His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things at the hands of the elders, the chief priests and the teachers of the law, and that He must be killed and on the third day be raised to life. Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, “Never, Lord!” he said. “This shall never happen to You!” Jesus turned and said to Peter, “Get behind Me, Satan!” You are a stumbling block to Me; you do not have in mind the concerns of God, but merely human concerns.” Then Jesus said to His disciples, “Whoever wants to be My disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow Me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for Me will find it. What good will it be for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? Or what can anyone give in exchange for their soul? For the Son of Man is going to come in His Father’s glory with His angels, and then He will reward each person according to what they have done. Truly I tell you, some who are standing here will not taste death before they see the Son of Man coming in His kingdom.” v. 21-28.

Do we have in mind the concerns of God? Or are we a stumbling block to God and for others? Nothing can hinder Creator God – Father, Son, Spirit, and where He is – is His kingdom. The disciples were still consumed with merely human concerns…and in all fairness, so are we. Listen in quiet stillness. Turn off the incessant noise designed to distract and deceive us into believing that this artificial noise is life. All of the noise within and without is like a tilt-a-whirl keeping us off balance. Drawing near to Creator God restores our equilibrium. We are on solid ground with Him as we listen to His voice leading us. How do we do that? Be still. Know that Creator God IS. Look at the creation He created and listen. Notice the unhurried rhythms and the blessed certainty of His laws at work – the sun will rise and set, seasons will come in their time, this beautiful home planet will continue to revolve around the sun that revolves within our galaxy. All life will be born and live and die in its created way. Lessons we can learn given for our understanding. And as we take note of the creation, we find the Creator providing and sustaining and it is Good. And as we draw near to Him, we find comfort when unexpected events happen. Even sorrow shows us our need for our Creator. And He is here. Always.