Lord Of The Sabbath

Mark 2:23-28

Our Scripture reading this morning from Mark’s Gospel tells of another occasion when Jesus butted heads with the Pharisees.  This time it was over what could and couldn’t be done on the Sabbath. Many times during Jesus’s earthly ministry He healed people on the Sabbath, which greatly angered the Pharisees.  On this occasion they were outraged that Jesus and His disciples were picking some grain and eating it on the Sabbath. Let’s take a look at this passage and see what God’s Word can teach us.

As our passage opens up we read that Jesus and His followers were walking down a path, and being hungry, they picked some grain from the fields along the path, and ate it (vs 23-24).  What they were doing was not stealing grain, as the Law instructed farmers not to harvest their crops at the edges of their fields so both the poor and travelers could glean these remnants.  That was what the disciples were doing, gleaning a couple of handfuls of grain to eat while walking the paths. The Law did prohibit harvesting of crops on the Sabbath. This prevented farmers from becoming too greedy and ignoring God.  This also protected laborers from being overworked and taken advantage of. Jesus and His disciples were not harvesting the fields, they were only looking for something to eat. The Pharisees, however, were only concerned with the words and letter of the Law, not God’s intent.

As was their usual practice, the Pharisees followed their own man-made rules and traditions.  The Sabbath is a day to do good (Mark 3:4). God provided the Sabbath for rest and worship. He instituted the Sabbath to bless mankind, and to give them rest, relaxation, and renewal of physical and spiritual strength. The Sabbath was not to be a burden.

In verses 25 and 26 Jesus describes an event from the life of David in the Old Testament, which is detailed in i Samuel 21:1-6.  David and some of his men were fleeing for their lives from their enemies. They came seeking safety at the Tabernacle with the High Priest.  The men were famished and asked for food, but the only food available was sacred bread, which only the priests could eat. What could they do, as there weren’t McDonald’s or pizza parlors available? Fortunately both the High Priest then, and David knew that God’s laws are meant to save lives and bless people, not take lives or be a burden.

Jesus rejected the Pharisees regulations, and restored God’s original intention for the Sabbath.  Jesus knew, and sought to explain to the people, that the intent of the Sabbath law is to promote love for God and others.  God doesn’t derive any benefit from our observance of the Sabbath. It is us who benefit. We are restored physically and spiritually.

The Pharisees had spent many years of adding man-made rules and traditions to God’s intended laws.  They added numerous unbearable and arbitrary restrictions to God’s original requirements. For example - they added a restriction that one could not travel more than 3,000 feet from home on the Sabbath.  God never said that. The Pharisees were actually the ones who were breaking the Law. They were holding their man-made rules and traditions on par with God’s Word.

How about us?  Do we put our own thoughts and ideas on equal footing with the Word of God?  Do we judge others for not following our man-made regulations?  How easy it is to step into the shoes of the Pharisees, and start casting stones at those who aren’t following the way we think they should, even if it is not from God’s Word.