September 7, 2026
23rd Week in Ordinary Time
‘A Little Yeast’
Do you not know that a little yeast leavens all the dough? Clear out the old yeast, so that you may become a fresh batch of dough, inasmuch as you are unleavened.

1 Corinthians 5:6-7

Every Sunday, I make a loaf of artisan bread. Flour, water, fresh yeast, salt and a few other common ingredients mixed together and left on the counter soon triples in size. Nothing extravagant has been added to the dough, and no tiresome kneading is necessary. The aroma of the baking bread is hard to resist and draws everyone to the kitchen when it comes out of the oven.

St. Paul reminds us that like fresh yeast in the bread dough, followers of Jesus can transform their families and communities. We don’t boast about our past victories or wallow in criticism over anyone’s imperfections. But we can admit our own failures, toss out old grievances and pray for forgiveness. Only then can the extraordinary happen. Renewed by God’s grace, we will begin again, transforming our environments through the compassion of Christ.

- Deborah A. Meister

1 Corinthians 5:1-8 ✚ Psalm 5:5-7, 12 ✚ Luke 6:6-11
Homemadedough for bread, and female hands on wooden table with flour, rolling-pin. Image by Iuliia Metkalova | stock.adobe.com
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Comments

freeter
September 7, 2026 at 12:21 PM

Amen. :)

Norm
September 7, 2026 at 11:25 AM

Remember Paul is teaching us by saying "a little yeast leavens all the dough" meaning that a sin spreads and can do a lot of harm. He wants us to clean out the the "yeast" of sin from the church so that it doesn’t grow.

Debbie H
September 7, 2026 at 09:59 AM

Amen.

Stormi
September 7, 2026 at 09:04 AM

Deborah thank you for wonderful words of reflection. Don't you just wish we could sprinkle good yeast all over the world today? :) Blessings to all the LFF especially with extra needs. Holy Spirit fill the hearts of all to guide us to a heavenly earth.

Mike
September 7, 2026 at 09:21 AM

Amen

Gary
September 7, 2026 at 08:44 AM

Amen!

CBR
September 7, 2026 at 08:16 AM

Amen Amen Amen God bless us all

Salina (not in control)
September 7, 2026 at 02:33 AM

*** Here is what Paul meant by ‘yeast’ in the full context of 1 Corinthians 5:6, “Your bragging is not good. It is like yeast. Don’t you know that just a little yeast makes the whole batch of dough rise?” *** Paul was not talking about the ‘new’ batch without yeast, he was talking about the ‘old yeast’ of bragging in V6! *** Paul told us to make the new batch WITHOUT yeast (sin) in 1 Corinthians 5:7, “Get rid of the old yeast. Then you can be like a new batch of dough without yeast. That is what you...
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Norm
September 7, 2026 at 11:13 AM

Yes, Paul is using yeast as a metaphor for sin in these verses. He wants the church community to clean out the the yeast of sin.

Homemadedough for bread, and female hands on wooden table with flour, rolling-pin. Image by Iuliia Metkalova | stock.adobe.com
Image of the day

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