Matthew 12, Part 1
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1 At that time Jesus went through the grainfields on the Sabbath. His disciples were hungry, and they began to pluck heads of grain and to eat.
2 But when the Pharisees saw it, they said to him, “Look, your disciples are doing what is not lawful to do on the Sabbath.”
3 He said to them, “Have you not read what David did when he was hungry, and those who were with him:
4 how he entered the house of God and ate the bread of the Presence, which it was not lawful for him to eat nor for those who were with him, but only for the priests?
5 Or have you not read in the Law how on the Sabbath the priests in the temple profane the Sabbath and are guiltless?
6 I tell you, something greater than the temple is here.
7 And if you had known what this means, ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice,’ you would not have condemned the guiltless.
8 For the Son of Man is lord of the Sabbath.”
Last week, we looked at the rebuke Jesus made towards the unrepentant cities of Chorazin, Capernaum, and Bethsaida. These cities were the epicenter of where Christ’s ministry was taking place. They heard, they saw, but they refused to believe. Because of this, they would be judged more harshly. Not just because of their unbelief, but because of their blatant rejection.
After that, Jesus spoke to those who were weary and heavy laden. What does it mean to be weary? Tired, worn out. It’s a physical tiredness used in some translations as the tiredness that comes after a battle. Literally ready to drop from fatigue. Heavy laden - burdened from a heavy load we have been carrying. You see, our travels become more weary the more we carry. It requires extra physical exertion, and makes us tire even more quickly. But Jesus quickly tells us that He will give us rest. Time to regenerate, rejuvenate, catch our breath, and renew our strength. Not only does He give us rest, but He takes our heavy load and carries it Himself. You see He gives us a rest like none other - a rest for our souls. All the weight and burden, all the walking and stumbling through a life of sin can be forgiven. If we place our trust in Him. His yoke is easy, and His burden light.
Now, He continues from His teaching in the cities, and the disciples follow Jesus into the grainfields. They were hungry, and they began to eat the grain. Once again, the Pharisees, those who should have been able to identify who Jesus was from a mile away, ignored Him, who He was, and what He was bringing to the Jews, and instead focused only on the law.
Religious Rituals
Religious Rituals
1 At that time Jesus went through the grainfields on the Sabbath. His disciples were hungry, and they began to pluck heads of grain and to eat.
2 But when the Pharisees saw it, they said to him, “Look, your disciples are doing what is not lawful to do on the Sabbath.”
We must remember, and pay close attention to, the way these Pharisees approached Jesus. All they had ever been taught since childhood was obedience to the law. That was all they could see that led them to being pleasing to God - obedience to the law. But they had lost the total meaning - it wasn’t following some set of strict religious rituals that brought them into the acceptance of God, but rather their obedience in following His commands. When they called out the disciples for eating the grain, it wasn’t taken into consideration how long it had been since they had eaten. They never offered them any food, but instead criticized them. According to Jewish custom, a traveler was allowed to enter a field and take grain to eat, and it was NOT considered stealing but rather fulfilling a basic need. But it wasn’t the fact that they ate the grain, it’s the fact that they plucked the heads of grain in the first place. It wasn’t WHAT they were doing, it was WHEN they were doing it. It was the Sabbath, and law prohibited any form of work (plucking the heads of grain) on the Sabbath.
Notice two things: The religionists immediately accused Jesus, condemning Him for letting His disciples break the religious rule. They took a portion of law and used it in a corrupt way. They were taking away from the context as a WHOLE in the OT. They interpreted God’s law in the manner that was beneficial to them. But notice Jesus would not let this go unchallenged. Jesus defended Himself and His disciples. Jesus used the questioning of the religionists to do two things. To teach that human need and necessary work have precedence over the Sabbath and religion. AND God does not put as much importance on religious ritual and tradition as people do. He simply set straight the man-made beliefs surrounding God’s Word and the unscriptural restrictions placed upon man.
“Technically” “Lawful”
“Technically” “Lawful”
3 He said to them, “Have you not read what David did when he was hungry, and those who were with him:
4 how he entered the house of God and ate the bread of the Presence, which it was not lawful for him to eat nor for those who were with him, but only for the priests?
Jesus reminded them of a time when David also broke the man-made portions of law. He was hungry. What significance did the showbread have? It symbolized the presence of God who is the Bread of Life. The showbread was twelve loaves of bread that were brought to the house of God as a symbolic offering to God. It was a thanksgiving offering giving thanks to God for sustaining food. The loaves were to be taken to the Holy Place by the Priest and placed on the table before the Lord. The loaves symbolized an everlasting covenant between God and His people: that He would always see to it that His people had whatever food was necessary to sustain them. The loaves were to be changed every week. The old loaves became food for the priests and were to be eaten by them alone. But notice the purpose - it was a symbol of an everlasting covenant between God and His people to see that they always had food to sustain them. It was a provision from God. Technically, while it was not “lawful” we will find that “technically” the PRIESTS working on the Sabbath was not “lawful” either.
Keep the Sabbath Day Holy, Right?
Keep the Sabbath Day Holy, Right?
5 Or have you not read in the Law how on the Sabbath the priests in the temple profane the Sabbath and are guiltless?
This goes for everyone, right? Without any variance, right? EVERYONE must keep the law on the Sabbath, right? But, what about those of us who “work” on the Sabbath? Ever thought about the pastors who have no time for rest on Sundays?
Jesus argues that necessary work has precedence over the Sabbath, that is, over “religion”. There was always work to be done in the temple: the handling of animals, the offering of sacrifices, the handling of people, the leading of worship. The worship of God and necessary work always took precedence over rules and regulations of religion, and the religious workers were NOT SEEN AS BREAKING THE LAW.
Big question - why was the Sabbath instituted? Was it for God or for man?
27 And he said to them, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.
The Sabbath or Sunday has two purposes: rest and worship so that MAN can rest IN his worship of Creator God. We must remember, we can do nothing for God, but it is God who does everything for and through us.
AND WE TEND TO FORGET, some work is necessary to carry on the functions of rest and worship. Necessary work is any work that is needed to sustain life and worship and meditate upon God. Sabbath or Sunday rest is not to hinder the worship of God but to give time for it and to encourage it.
Messiahship. I Made the Law, I Can Interpret the Law.
Messiahship. I Made the Law, I Can Interpret the Law.
6 I tell you, something greater than the temple is here.
The third argument Jesus makes is that the Messiah is greater than the temple. Does the interpretation from the Son of God, who created the Law and gave direction for the building of the temple in Exodus, not trump the interpretations of man? The priests were allowed to work on the Sabbath because it was done for the temple. Christ was saying that His disciples were allowed to work (pluck the ears of corn) because it was done for Him (to meet His hunger). This was a unique opportunity for Christ to proclaim that He is the Messiah, the Son of God, the great source and object of the temple, its founder and the subject of its worship.
Jesus simply stated if the priests could work in the temple for the Lord, then the disciples were simply working…for the Lord…in the grain field. Something greater than the temple was standing in the grain field! They failed to recognize Him as Messiah, so He plainly told them He WAS the Messiah.
Mercy Overrides
Mercy Overrides
7 And if you had known what this means, ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice,’ you would not have condemned the guiltless.
The fourth step in Christ’s argument is that the Messiah will have a religion of mercy and not sacrifice. He came to be the ultimate sacrifice so that the rituals would be complete and we could FOCUS on the supreme law of love - telling others about what Jesus has done for them.
The Pharisees, those who were “religious”, had missed this whole point. They were condemning instead of showing love and mercy. They did not understand the true meaning of God’s heart and Word. (They knew God’s Word but did not know its meaning). They judged others because they did not know the meaning of God’s heart and Word.
Shouldn’t that speak to us today? I mean, we should have the same heart of love and mercy as God has. Now, I do not believe that means we should help every person who comes in with a sad story of need. There still has to be discernment. But, we should compassionately seek to fill the needs of those around us.
I AM Lord
I AM Lord
8 For the Son of Man is lord of the Sabbath.”
Jesus makes another I AM statement here. He proclaims that He, the Messiah, IS Lord of the Sabbath and of religion. Not only IS He Lord of religion, He determines WHAT true religion is!
True religion is simply:
Loving God by believing on the name of His Son Jesus Christ
Loving our neighbors as ourselves—ministering to them and caring for them.
We will find Jesus’ answer to the Pharisees later on in Matthew 22:36-40 of what the greatest commandment is:
36 “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?”
37 And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.
38 This is the great and first commandment.
39 And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.
40 On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.”
You see, too often we are guilty of trying to add or take away to God’s commands. To His Word. By adding our own interpretation to God’s Word, we simply act as these Pharisees, misrepresenting God and devaluing His Word.