18: The Sabbath Showdown (Luke 6:1-11)

Plus, I HAD to take a nap (I think that was for my parents to enjoy each other and rest without worrying about all the mischief little Jackie would get into.)

And I loved being at my grandparents in Perry…except on Sunday. Evidently, you can’t do anything fun on the Sabbath. I couldn’t fish or hunt…WHY? Because it was the Sabbath - a day of rest.

Where did they get that from?

Exodus 20:8–11 (NIV)

8 “Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. 9 Six days you shall labor and do all your work, 10 but the seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your male or female servant, nor your animals, nor any foreigner residing in your towns. 11 For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.

After being slaves in Egypt for 400 years, with no days off - God gave them the day off! What a blessing for EVERYONE who lived among the Jews - even the animals.

Turn to a neighbor and tell ‘em: “You need a day off!”Beyond rest, the people would gather to worship God together.

So the umbrella statement was - ‘no work - lots of rest.’ And God was serious about it.

Exodus 35:2–3 (NIV)

2 For six days, work is to be done, but the seventh day shall be your holy day, a day of sabbath rest to the Lord. Whoever does any work on it is to be put to death. 3 Do not light a fire in any of your dwellings on the Sabbath day.”

There were no fires in the camp on Sabbath as they were to prepare Sabbath meals the previous day. So when a man disobeyed and picked up sticks for a fire on Sabbath - the people were told to stone him to death (Numbers 15:32–36).

Wow!

So…THAT’S why I can’t fish or hunt or have fun on a Sunday?

THAT’S why people shouldn’t mow their yard on a Sunday? ‘It’s the Sabbath.’

Well, I didn’t like it, but after all, the Bible says it. Yet as I read the Bible I didn’t see where Sunday meant ‘NO-Fun-day’. As a matter of fact, the more I studied I came to realize that the Jewish Sabbath was actually sunset Friday to sunset Saturday, NOT Sunday.

Because of this, there are some people that would say WE are breaking the Sabbath by meeting on Sunday instead of Saturday. that we break the Sabbath by mowing our yards or playing sports on Saturdays.

Others would counter by saying, “God changed the Sabbath to Sunday” so we shouldn’t serve on April 6 because it IS the Sabbath; then I must tell you: there is NO BIBLICAL EVIDENCE for that. So, if YOUR family - like MY family - has taught the Sabbath is Sunday…please quit. Because it’s not.

So then…why are WE here on a Sunday instead of a Saturday?

You’re full of good questions!

Here are the cliff notes:

In Luke’s sequel called Acts, the Jewish leaders of the early Christian church continued to go to synagogues on Sabbath - to persuade other Jews that Jesus was the Jewish Messiah. (Acts 13:14, Acts 17:1-2; 18:4)

But there is NO teaching about what to do on the Sabbath from Acts-Revelation, however there are 2 references to the church meeting on Sunday (Acts 20:7; 1 Cor. 16:2) - the day that Jesus rose from the dead.

So while having a day of rest and gathering with believers is still necessary, Hebrews 4 teaches that our Sabbath rest is found in what Jesus did on the cross.

So Our spiritual rest, our peace with God, is found through the death & resurrection of Jesus. This is the ultimate fulfillment of the OT Sabbath.

My primary task today is not to explain how contemporary American Christians should ‘keep the Sabbath holy,’ but I needed to address this briefly.

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Now, the stage is set for The Sunday Showdown in Luke 6:1-12. (whistle)

The Jews took Sabbath observance very seriously. So seriously, that enemies took advantage of them by attacking on the Sabbath. Over one hundred years before the time of Jesus, in the days of the Maccabees, the Jews to be slaughtered rather than break the Sabbath by defending themselves (1 Macc. 2:31–38). Men, women, and children died rather than ‘break the Sabbath’. I don’t think that’s what God intended, as should become obvious later in today’s study.

By A.D. 200, the Mishnah - a written collection of Rabbinical Rules - named 39 different kinds of work that profaned the Sabbath. This included: plowing, hunting, and butchering, tying or loosening knots, sewing more than one stitch, or writing more than one letter (m. Shab. 7:2).

The Sabbath wasn’t meant to be a long checklist of what you couldn’t do. God intended this to be a BLESSING for people, NOT a BURDEN! But this is what happened as man’s Rabbical Rules began to trump God’s Written Rules.

And that leads us to another clash between the Pharisees and Jesus.

Luke 6:1–2 (NIV)

1 One Sabbath Jesus was going through the grainfields, and his disciples began to pick some heads of grain, rub them in their hands and eat the kernels. 2 Some of the Pharisees asked, “Why are you doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath?”

Now, how did these guys know Jesus & His disciples were walking through the grain fields picking grain? (Sarcastic) I guess ‘stalking’ another person on the Sabbath wasn’t unlawful…

2 words give us insight into why the Pharisees were questioning Jesus: Sabbath & unlawful.

What were they doing that was unlawful? Were they stealing? NOPE. According to Deut. 23:25, travelers were allowed to pluck grain from neighbors’ fields as they passed through, but they couldn’t use a sickle to harvest another person’s land.

So what was unlawful?d

As we have seen, it was truly unlawful to work on the Sabbath, as a person couldn’t reap harvest in the fields nor prepare his meal. Evidently the Pharisees believed the disciples were doing what was unlawful on the Sabbath - reaping harvest by plucking it & preparing food by rubbing it in their hands to separate the grain from the husks.

REALLY? That’s all you’ve got! Jesus quickly counters.

Luke 6:3–4 (NIV)

3 Jesus answered them, “Have you never read what David did when he and his companions were hungry? 4 He entered the house of God, and taking the consecrated bread, he ate what is lawful only for priests to eat. And he also gave some to his companions.” [1 Sam. 21]

This illustration might help us better understand what Jesus is saying. I remember having communion with my church when I was about 7. I remember that because it was understood that ONLY THOSE who had trusted Jesus could participate in the Lord’s Supper. I had not yet given my life to the Lord and neither had one of my older friends. But after the service as people were leaving, that kid approached the plates that held the juice and bread and started eating & drinking everything extra. But my mom wouldn’t let me join in. It was obvious that HE was misusing what the juice and bread were intended for. In light of this text we might say he was doing what was unlawful and should have been disciplined.

But what if a man approached our worship gathering, very hungry, asking for food and drink. We had none…except…the extra bread and juice used for communion. While it was understood that this bread & juice was ONLY LAWFUL to be used for communion, would we turn this man away hungry? Or…would we give him the extra bread & juice? I hope you know the answer.

This is what Jesus is pointing out. David approached the priests asking for food. They had none - except the Bread of Presence - that only priests could eat. The priests gave it to them and David and his men ate what was lawful only for priests to eat. Jesus poses a question without ever asking it: “So did King David break God’s Law? And if so, why were David and his men not condemned for their actions?”

They weren’t attempting to misuse the bread. But they needed food and this was all that was available. So the hunger of King David & his holy men overrode the Written Rule. And - based on the evidence - God was good with that.

Notice the comparison, 1) David & his disciples to 2) Jesus & His. 1) David broke the Written God-made Rule, but 2) Jesus did not - He broke the Rabbinical (man-made) Rule.

So if the hunger of David & his men overrode the Written Rule, then the hunger of one greater than David & his men certainly overrode the Rabbinical Rule.

And THEN we read some of the most powerful words in all of Luke’s Gospel.

Luke 6:5 (NIV)

5 Then Jesus said to them, “The Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath.”

Wait just a second! GOD instituted the Sabbath. If Jesus claims to be Lord of the Sabbath this means HE determines how the Sabbath was to be observed. But ONLY GOD could do that! That’s right. And Jesus once again rightly interprets that the Sabbath was meant to be a blessing to man, not a burden. If the Lord of the Sabbath says, “They haven’t done anything wrong” then His interpretation of HIS WRITTEN RULES trumps your Rabbinical Rules.

Here’s a concise way to remember what Jesus is claiming.

BIG TRUTH The Author is the AuthorityBIG TRUTH The Author is the AuthorityBIG TRUTH The Author is the AuthorityBIG TRUTH The Author is the Authority

BIG TRUTH

The Author is the Authority

BIG TRUTH

The Author is the Authority

The Author of Sabbath is the authority of the Sabbath.

The Author of the Scriptures is the authority of the Scriptures.

The Author of Life, is the Authority of Life.

BIG TRUTH The Author is the AuthorityBIG TRUTH The Author is the AuthorityBIG TRUTH The Author is the AuthorityBIG TRUTH The Author is the AuthorityHE is the Author of the Sabbath, the Scriptures, and LIFE.

BIG TRUTH

The Author is the Authority

BIG TRUTH

The Author is the Authority

Do YOU recognize Jesus as the Author & Authority of YOUR life? Do you trust what HE says or have you decided to be your own authority?

If you were standing there that day listening to this exchange, you be challenged by the claim of Jesus: The Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath.

The synoptics (Matt, Mark, Luke) don’t tell us what the Pharisees were thinking at this point. But we will see in the next few verses that follow.

Luke 6:6–7 (NIV)

6 On another Sabbath he went into the synagogue and was teaching, and a man was there whose right hand was shriveled. 7 The Pharisees and the teachers of the law were looking for a reason to accuse Jesus, so they watched him closely to see if he would heal on the Sabbath.

Remember, breaking the Sabbath could result in DEATH. These men were ready to get rid of Jesus. This was the perfect setup.

The Rabbinical Rules taught that it was not lawful to heal on the Sabbath - except in a life-saving emergency. Jews were forbidden to set a dislocated foot or hand on the Sabbath (m. Shab. 22:6). Again, this is mentioned NO WHERE in the Written Scripture. It was a Rabbinical Rule. So once again, the audience anticipates The Sabbath Showdown between Jesus & the Pharisees. And to quote Rocky and Apollo as the step into the ring - ‘ding, ding’. The fight has begun.

Luke 6:8-9 (NIV)

8 But Jesus knew what they were thinking and said to the man with the shriveled hand, “Get up and stand in front of everyone.” So he got up and stood there. 9 Then Jesus said to them, “I ask you, which is lawful on the Sabbath: to do good or to do evil, to save life or to destroy it?”

The answer is obvious, but the underlying meaning is not so obvious. As Jesus compared His actions to King David, now He compares His actions to the Pharisees.

Which is lawful on the Sabbath: to do good or to do evil, to save life or to destroy it?

Jesus was anticipating HEALING this man - to do good; to save life.

What were Pharisees planning?…Catch Jesus breaking the Sabbath - to do evil & destroy life - namely - the life of Jesus.

Luke 6:10 (NIV)

10 He looked around at them all, [imagine His penetrating eyes roaming the room - Mark’s account (3:5) says Jesus looked at them with anger & grief] and then said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He did so, and his hand was completely restored.

As Jesus’ raising the paralytic proved He could forgive sin in Luke 5:24, Jesus’ healing on the Sabbath is evidence that he is indeed Lord of the Sabbath (Luke 6:5). That…

BIG TRUTH The Author is the AuthorityBIG TRUTH The Author is the AuthorityBIG TRUTH The Author is the AuthorityBIG TRUTH The Author is the Authority

BIG TRUTH

The Author is the Authority

BIG TRUTH

The Author is the Authority

Think about what that means. If Jesus was only a man, GOD had given Jesus the ability to heal…on the Sabbath! But regardless of the evidence, the Pharisees wouldn’t submit to the authority of Jesus.

Luke 6:11 (NIV)

11 But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law were furious and began to discuss with one another what they might do to Jesus.

But before you judge the Pharisees to harshly, I have a question. If you were THEM…if YOU had been taught that Rabbinical Rules of Men were better the the Written Rules of Scripture; if YOU had a Young Rabbi bucking the system…who made the blasphemous claim to be ‘The Lord of the Sabbath’…what would YOU do?

You would have to make a decision. And TODAY…you STILL have to make a decision.

Tim Keller says:

“Either you’ll have to kill him, or you’ll have to crown him. The one thing you can’t do is just say, ‘What an interesting guy.’ Those teachers of the law who began plotting to kill Jesus at the end of this episode in the temple – they may have been dead wrong about him, but their reaction makes perfect sense.”

C.S. Lewis wrote these words:

A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher…You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God; or else a madman or something worse. You can shut Him up for a fool, you can spit at Him and kill Him as a demon, or you can fall at His feet and call Him Lord and God. But let us not come with any patronizing nonsense about His being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us. He did not intend to. (Mere Christianity p.56)

BIG TRUTH The Author is the AuthorityBIG TRUTH The Author is the AuthorityBIG TRUTH The Author is the AuthorityBIG TRUTH The Author is the Authority

BIG TRUTH

The Author is the Authority

BIG TRUTH

The Author is the Authority

So What will YOU do with Jesus?

Will you KILL Him or CROWN Him?

Will you TURN Him away or will you TRUST Him?

Will you allow ‘The Lord of the Sabbath’ to be Lord of your Soul?

Will you allow the Author of LIFE to be the Authority of your life?

If you want to talk more about that - here are our numbers. [Slide of Phone Numbers]

If you’ve already trusted Jesus…in there any area that He is NOT the Authority of your life? Will you seek Him in prayer & Scripture this week? Will you live like your aware of His Presence?

Will you fill out THIS FORM or follow the link on YouVersion to sign up to serve on Sunday, April 6 - as we choose to DO GOOD & SAVE LIFE.