I would love to be a bread maker. I love the taste of freshly made bread and find it far superior to store-bought loaves. There is one problem I encounter over and over, getting the yeast to take. I usually end up with very dense undercooked loaves of bread that taste decent but are unusable. Paul likens boasting to yeast, or leaven, working through the person and negatively impacting them. A little leaven ruins the whole lump.
1 Corinthians 5:6
“Your boasting is not good. Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump of dough?”
Wrong Boasting
The things that the Corinthians were boasting about in the church were a shame and embarrassment to the church and Jesus Christ. They were celebrating their liberty in Christ in things that even the pagans considered an abomination. It started with a few people but was spreading through the entire church. Their love feasts, which were supposed to be times of communion with the body, had become gluttonous affairs with some of the poorer going without food. The church in Corinth had lost perspective.
Do a “Pride Assessment”
From time to time, each believer needs to do an assessment of their spiritual life. They need to see what they are taking pride in and where they are falling short of God’s standard. A little leaven ruins the whole lump. One area you take pride in can be holding you back in others areas of spiritual growth. Identify the pride, confess it to the Lord, and ask Him to make the necessary changes so it won’t infect the rest of your heart.
A Little Leaven Ruins the Whole Lump
God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble. Pursue humility. Think of yourself less often and elevate Jesus and others above yourself on a regular basis. Be sincere. Everyone can sniff out false humility. Seek the spotlight of God’s Word to expose the areas in which you have become blind and ask the Spirit to root it out. You will find that the weight of all that pride will feel like the weight of the world has been removed.