Sabbath Controversy
Notes
Transcript
Open your bible with me to Luke 6:1-11
In six days, God created the earth, and on the seventh day, He rested. In resting, the Lord sanctified the Sabbath day to be a day of rest for his people. This was what was codified in the Law of Moses in Exodus 20. It’s the fourth commandment. However, the Sabbath ordinance was even modeled in creation. Further, it was at the center of what it meant to be Jewish. For Israel, the keeping of the Sabbath, circumcision, and specific food laws was at the heart of Judaism. But really, who was at the very heart of Judaism was, and should have been to the people of Israel, the Messiah, Jesus Christ.
What we are going to see in this passage of Scripture is that the Pharisees and the religious leaders took God’s law and made it into a whip of cords. They weren’t governed by Love for God; they were governed by legalism. The rigid keeping of the law, adding to the law, and being bound to rules while neglecting the freedom and love of God. There is a way that this text could really become a close examination of Sabbath keeping. There is a lot that I won’t say about the Sabbath, but I don’t want you to miss the freedom that Jesus brings.
Sermon Summary: The law binds; only Jesus sets us free.
1 On a Sabbath, while he was going through the grainfields, his disciples plucked and ate some heads of grain, rubbing them in their hands. 2 But some of the Pharisees said, “Why are you doing what is not lawful to do on the Sabbath?” 3 And Jesus answered them, “Have you not read what David did when he was hungry, he and those who were with him: 4 how he entered the house of God and took and ate the bread of the Presence, which is not lawful for any but the priests to eat, and also gave it to those with him?” 5 And he said to them, “The Son of Man is lord of the Sabbath.” 6 On another Sabbath, he entered the synagogue and was teaching, and a man was there whose right hand was withered. 7 And the scribes and the Pharisees watched him, to see whether he would heal on the Sabbath, so that they might find a reason to accuse him. 8 But he knew their thoughts, and he said to the man with the withered hand, “Come and stand here.” And he rose and stood there. 9 And Jesus said to them, “I ask you, is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do harm, to save life or to destroy it?” 10 And after looking around at them all he said to him, “Stretch out your hand.” And he did so, and his hand was restored. 11 But they were filled with fury and discussed with one another what they might do to Jesus.
This is God’s word. Let’s pray.
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I. Legalism Misses The Heart of God (v.1-4)
I. Legalism Misses The Heart of God (v.1-4)
Luke 6:1-2
On a Sabbath, while he was going through the grainfields, his disciples plucked and ate some heads of grain, rubbing them in their hands. 2 But some of the Pharisees said, “Why are you doing what is not lawful to do on the Sabbath?”
Well, there is a way in which we can read this passage and think about a lot of things. What’s the big deal? Were they breaking the Sabbath or not?
To briefly answer those questions. In one sense, it appears that doing anything on the Sabbath was unlawful, but there were provisions, and the heart of the Law of the Sabbath was to worship and rest. The OT forbids work on the Sabbath day (Ex. 20:8–11; Deut. 5:12–15), such as gathering manna (Ex. 16:22–30), plowing and harvesting (Ex. 34:21), lighting a fire (Ex. 35:3), gathering wood (Num. 15:32), and buying and selling merchandise (Neh 10:31; 13:16–22; Jer. 17:21–27). So, the purpose of the Sabbath wasn’t so much about restriction as it was about resting the Lord and worship.
25 If you go into your neighbor’s standing grain, you may pluck the ears with your hand, but you shall not put a sickle to your neighbor’s standing grain.
But now, enter the legalism of the Pharisees. To ensure they weren’t breaking the Sabbath but rather keeping it. They created additional writing to clarify what was right and what wasn’t right to do on the Sabbath. That’s what rule-keepers do. That’s what legalists do. They love to talk about rules and regulations. And these guys were consumed by the rules and keeping the rules. So much so that they created a teaching that outlined according to them what was lawful and what was not –
The main classes of work are forty save one: sowing, plowing, reaping, binding sheaves, threshing, winnowing, cleansing crops, grinding, sifting, kneading, baking, shearing wool, washing or beating or dyeing it, spinning, weaving, making two loops, weaving two threads, separating two threads, tying, loosening, sewing two stitches, tearing in order to sew two stitches, hunting a gazelle, slaughtering or flaying or salting it or curing its skin, scraping it or cutting it up, writing two letters, erasing in order to write two letters, building, pulling down, putting out a fire, lighting a fire, striking with a hammer and taking anything from one domain into another”
So Jesus and his disciples were breaking the rules….they weren’t breaking the law, but they were breaking the man-made rule of the Pharisees. So….You want to talk about the Law….want to talk about what the Scripture says, Jesus says, let take a look.
3 And Jesus answered them, “Have you not read what David did when he was hungry, he and those who were with him: 4 how he entered the house of God and took and ate the bread of the Presence, which is not lawful for any but the priests to eat, and also gave it to those with him?”
Now, here, Jesus alludes to a time when David was anointed as King, and he is fleeing King Saul, who is trying to kill David. Jonathan, Saul’s son, has just confirmed that His Father is trying to kill him. This is interesting because Jonathan would have been next in line to be King. But He recognizes God’s hand on David, and is loyal to him, and seeks to help him. And He tells David, you need to get out and flee. So David flees and arrives at NOB; this is where the Tabernacle is located. And he met Ahimelech, the priest, and David and His men were hungry and asked for food. But all that is available is the BREAD of PRESENCE.
The Bread of the Presence or the SHOW BREAD was a sacred offering in the Tabernacle and later the temple. Each Sabbath, twelve fresh loaves—representing the twelve tribes of Israel—were placed on a special table in the Holy Place before the Lord (Leviticus 24:5–9). The old loaves, after being replaced, were to be eaten only by the priests in a holy place as part of their consecrated service. The bread symbolized God’s continual presence and provision for His people, a reminder that Israel lived before the face of God and relied on His sustenance.
So David shows up, and there isn’t anything to eat but this special bread, the bread reserved only for the Priest to eat….And yet, the priest gave it to David and His men, and they ate. Surely, the law of God was never meant to override acts of mercy or human necessity. And that’s what we have here. David was hungry. What was the right thing to do? Ignore his need. Ignore his necessity? Surely, you help the anointed King out. You give him food!! I mean, are you really going to go against David here? They don’t want to do that!
So, when my disciples are traveling, and they are truly hungry, they have a genuine need. They aren’t breaking the SABBATH here…They are breaking your traditions, but they aren’t breaking the law here. Just breaking your interpretation of it.
And what Legalism does; it adds to the Law; it always wants more than what God has spoken. Not because God’s word isn’t clear, it just isn’t good enough for them, so they want more…And in adding more, they distort it and malign it. TO neglect the heart of God for His people. That mercy is missing, compassion is missing. Love for God and love for neighbor is missing!
23 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cumin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness. These you ought to have done, without neglecting the others. 24 You blind guides, straining out a gnat and swallowing a camel!
And what the Pharisees were doing constantly was using the Law to choke, using the Law to oppress, and to bind!
They constantly – Matthew 23:4
4 They tie up heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on people’s shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to move them with their finger.
Because that’s what LEGALISM DOES – IT BINDS US….But only Jesus can set us free. And the Pharisees have taken what God has given as a blessing, like the Sabbath, and they’ve turned it into a curse. What God intended for God, and yet, here they are, intending to bring harm. Spying out, waiting around the corner to entrap and ensnare!
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II. Legalism Misses the Lordship of Christ (v.5)
II. Legalism Misses the Lordship of Christ (v.5)
So, part of what Jesus is doing is showing that acts of Mercy are permitted on the Sabbath. The heart of God’s law wasn’t to neglect compassion and mercy to do what is good, but that’s clearly not all Jesus is doing by invoking David. I mean, why, David?
Well, it’s because David wasn’t just an ordinary man. He was appointed King. But Jesus doesn’t leave it there. He continues and infers more from that story and of himself.
5 And he said to them, “The Son of Man is lord of the Sabbath.”
In other words, if it was fitting to feed David, and he was King. How much more is it that my disciples eat in their need? David was the King of Israel. But here is the new and Better David. The new and better King!. Jesus is the King of KINGS! And as the Son of Man, all authority has been given unto Him. Now, Jesus has all authority in heaven and earth. And He is the LORD. LORD over heaven and earth, and LORD over the Sabbath.
And in saying this, he would have been communicating that He is the Lord who gave the Sabbath to Israel in Ex 20, and the Lord who established the Sabbath in creation. Namely, He is the one who instituted the Sabbath. He holds authority over it. And He is the arbitrator of the Sabbath.
And the Sabbath not only belongs to Jesus but is ultimately fulfilled in Jesus. But they refused to recognize that reality. That Jesus is Lord. So, they instead cling to rules, religion, and legalism. And it only keeps us enslaved and in bondage. Because that is what the Law does, but it’s Jesus who frees us from bondage and from the enslaving trap of legalism.
So this is why Jesus says, Matthew 11:28“Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”
This is the rest we need and long for. They rest for our souls! The rest from striving and from the yoke of bondage that we often know and experience. The freedom from sin. Sin that, apart from Christ, we deserve to be condemned in. Jesus frees us from guilt. Not just actually guilty. Because that’s what we deserve before God, right? We are guilty. But yet, in Christ, we are forgiven, freed from the penalty of sin. But not actual guilt. Jesus frees us from the feeling of guilt. In that, all our sins and punishment that we feel we deserve because of sin have been placed on Jesus. And Jesus invites us, now, to rest in the freedom granted to us, in Christ!
28 Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
Because what you are looking for and longing for – the freedom from bondage. The freedom from condemnation. The freedom from sin and slavery under the law. The freedom from guilt. And the rest you desire can only be found in Jesus! AND HE IS LORD of the SABBATH! It’s instituted by, governed by, and fulfilled in Jesus.
But they won’t buy it. And so they can’t rest in Jesus. Because they refuse to see him as Lord, so they just keep creating rules and regulations to try and satisfy them. Because they make us feel good, maybe even safe….But they won’t give us rest. Rather, we always feel like there is more to do or something we’ve missed, and we just can’t find satisfaction in ourselves. The rest we need is never given through the law and its demands. And we’ll do the same until we learn to rest in Jesus for the rest of our souls!
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III. Legalism Misses The Purpose of God’s Law (v.6-9)
III. Legalism Misses The Purpose of God’s Law (v.6-9)
Now, Luke gives us another story of Jesus’ interaction with the Pharisees. And for the most part, you, they’ve just been tolerant of Jesus, but by the time we get to verse 11. They’re done. The tone begins to shift. And they begin to scheme a way to get rid of him.
6 On another Sabbath, he entered the synagogue and was teaching, and a man was there whose right hand was withered. 7 And the scribes and the Pharisees watched him, to see whether he would heal on the Sabbath, so that they might find a reason to accuse him.
Alright, this should give you a feel for the temperature of the type of character of the Pharisee. Jesus is doing what He always does: He is preaching and teaching. By the way, He was preaching and teaching on the Sabbath, and they had no issue with that. And this was not the next Sabbath, per se, but just another Sabbath on which this took place. There was a man with a withered hand there. The Pharisees see a man with a withered hand. The term there means to be paralyzed. Luke, the doctor notes, it was medically his right hand. Likely the hand of fellowship. We can assume this man has likely lost work, perhaps an outcast. The point is not so much about this man but about what Jesus will do for him.
So they see this man. And the Pharisees know. IF Jesus sees him, he’s going to heal him. They’ve seen it time and time again. So they hid and waited. Like you want to say, do you guys have a life? They do; their life is caught up in measuring others according to their standards. That’s what legalists do! And they watch Jesus, so they accuse him.
Never mind compassion for the man whose hand is withered. They are just looking to trap Jesus somehow! Going to catch him doing something crazy! You know, like healing on the Sabbath!!
8 But he knew their thoughts, and he said to the man with the withered hand, “Come and stand here.” And he rose and stood there. 9 And Jesus said to them, “I ask you, is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do harm, to save life or to destroy it?”
So, sure enough, Jesus calls the man with the withered hand up. And ask them a question. Since you know, you guys are so good at knowing what is lawful, and you want to quibble over every jot and tittle. Then what do you guys think? But Jesus knows what the Pharisees are thinking. He knew that in their mind, certain categories of healing were permissible and others that weren’t. I mean, if someone’s life is on the line, then sure, healing is permissible. But what’s a withered hand? He’ll be alright. The Pharisees would say, Ah, he can’t wait one more day. So Jesus knows what they are thinking. But almost like, I want you guys just to come out and say it!
You mean healing on the Sabbath is off-limits? Saving life not a good thing?….I mean, are you suggesting that I not restore life? That I just leave him in suffering. Because that’s the good thing to do? Because that’s the compassionate and merciful thing to do?
I want you to just think about the Sabbath for a moment. What its intention was. Was it not for the purpose of rest? Physical rest. Was it not for the purpose to refresh, reenergize….and was it not to restore!? It was a day to rest, and enjoy what God had done, and to look forward to the enjoyment to come.
I mean, the very purpose of the Sabbath was restoration. And here are the Pharisees in their mind, and in their justification is that the Sabbath can’t even be used anymore for its intended purpose. Because that’s what Legalism does, it takes something good and distorts it. It takes God’s provision and turns privation. It turns what was intended to be a delight into a dread. That’s God’s very purpose of the Sabbath, is no longer the purpose of the Sabbath. It had become a means of justifying themselves rather than resting in the Lord. They were so consumed with spotting everyone else’s flaws that they missed the sin in their own heart.
And that’s what we’ll do when we live by the law. We will take God’s commands that are intended to be a delight, and we will turn them into a burden. 1 John 5:2-3
2 By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and obey his commandments. 3 For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome.
Legalism removes aspects of sonship and love and replaces them with slavery and moralism! And in doing so, quells delighting in the Lord and His commands and inserts dread and attempts to earn favor by our own merit.
And they distort God’s law to use it in a way it was never intended. That you can’t even restore on the Sabbath! And all the while thinking they could keep the law. But the law was given to show our inability to keep the law. Right use of the law leads to salvation and restoration of our souls. The law was given to increase trespass, to drive us to a savior, who is Jesus Christ. Who they refuse to REST in! They instead insist on their own way. Which leads us to our last point.
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IV. Legalism Misses Delight In the Lord (v.11)
IV. Legalism Misses Delight In the Lord (v.11)
WhatJesus does next is really kind of a mic-drop moment. He’s already had a couple of those. Invoking David and declaring He is the Lord of the Sabbath. That’s a drop mic moment. Implying the Pharisees, in their zeal to catch Sabbath violators, violate the very heart of the Sabbath. That’s a mic drop moment. But notice what Jesus does here….He eyeballs every one of them.
10 And after looking around at them all he said to him, “Stretch out your hand.” And he did so, and his hand was restored.
And I don’t know what that look was like. You know, I sometimes wonder what the look was that the Lord gave Peter in Luke 22, when He betrayed him. But here again, Luke clues us into a look that Jesus gives to each one of the Pharisees there, that is ALL of them. Maybe it was a look to discern if there was any compassion and mercy in these men. Or if this man with a withered hand was just an issue of debate for them. Maybe it was a look of pity or bewilderment, but we do know the word Luke uses here is a word that means an intent and purposeful gaze! He looks intently at them and calls the man with the withered hand to do what he hadn’t done in some time, but what he longed to do. Stretch out his hand. And he stretches it out, and he is, note the word - RESTORED.
Here again is another miracle. I mean, who can’t rejoice in that? And I’ll tell you who can’t. Those who are self-consumed and self-righteous!
11 But they were filled with fury and discussed with one another what they might do to Jesus.
They know they’ve been checked-matted! I mean, Jesus is the better David, the Lord of the Sabbath. Call them out for their hypocrisy, and heals a man with the right intention of the Sabbath. Points out their error and ignorance. Is bold enough to stand up to them and their lack of compassion and mercy. Heal a man by only speaking and asking the man to do nothing but stretch his hand out. What is that unlawful, too? They have nothing they can say.
So, in their silence, they are filled with fury. They are pipping hot mad. And begin to discuss with one another what they might do to Jesus. And Jesus likely knows this in verse. 9 when he says is it lawful to save life or destroy it. He knows they are about to be filled with fury and begin to plot and scheme to destroy Jesus on the Sabbath. I mean, everywhere you turn, it’s the ultimate checkmate.
Man, and they can’t let it rest, can they? They can just stop their striving, can they? They’ve got to be right. Gotta be earning and doing and seen as good. And here in this text, that is not only possible but quite common to love religion and piety yet hate Jesus. And these Pharisees were filled with fury and rage at Jesus…and refused to rest in him!
And they hear Jesus declare himself as Lord of the Sabbath, and they despise him rather than delight in him! They reject him rather than rejoice in him. And they run to make haste to destroy Jesus rather than running to rest in him.
But here is what I know. That the law binds, but only Jesus can set us free. And the purpose of the Sabbath was intended to point us to the fulfillment of the Sabbath rest found in Jesus. Where we rest from trying to earn God’s favor in our own merit and righteousness and trust in God’s provision through Christ laying down his life in perfect obedience for us. But the Pharisees refuse to rest and delight in Christ!
But oh, that we might rest in the finished work of Jesus. Who, by his perfect life, has satisfied the righteous requirement of the law for sinners. Who, through his death, has made full atonement for our sin! And through his resurrection has A the way to everlasting life — that we might walk in newness of life, not by our strength, but in the power of His Spirit, to the glory of God forever.
And for the non-Christian here…the gospel call of Christ is for you to respond—to repent of your sin, to turn from trusting in yourself, and to believe in Him alone for salvation. Come to Him in faith. Lay down your pride, your guilt, your striving—and receive mercy, forgiveness, and eternal life
Today, if you hear His voice, do not harden your heart. Turn to Christ and live.
And for the Christian, that we might do as the author of Hebrews commands us – Hebrews 4:11 to strive to enter that rest! That’s a strange picture, isn’t it – striving to rest. Why would he say that?
Well, I’d say it’s because the human heart always fights against resting, trusting, believing, and having faith. And wants to operate under the law rather than in the freedom and finished work of Jesus. I know this personally. I know this practically. We are constantly wanting to pick up another thing for us to do, to somehow feel more worthy before God. But we can’t. We can’t be more worthy than being elected by God as His children. Saved by him, redeemed by him! We can’t be more forgiven than the forgiveness we are given in the atonement of Jesus. We can’t be more righteous than the righteousness we’ve received through Christ by faith!
But it's hard. Easy to work, work, work…But it’s hard to rest, isn’t it? So we must cultivate this rest. We do that by reminding our hearts of the gospel. Remembering the gospel. Through the ordinances, through meditating on the word of God, through prayer, and with the people of God. Through the means of grace that God has given us through His word, the ordinances, prayer, and fellowship with God’s people. We strive to that end.
Here is a statement: one of the best ways to cultivate Sabbath rest in Christ is by keeping the Sabbath. Not by law or legalism. But through Christ. Who is the Lord of the Sabbath. And so, for Believers. We still believe all Ten Commandments still reflect God’s moral law—including the fourth. Not just nine. The Sabbath command wasn’t abolished but fulfilled in Christ and transformed into the Lord’s Day under the New Covenant. The Sabbath isn’t Saturday. It is now the Lord’s day. He is the LORD of the SABBATH. So, the church gathers in Scripture on the Lord’s Day. They collect offerings on the Lord’s Day. Everything is centering around what Jesus has done for us!
So, we don’t keep the Sabbath out of legalism. But we keep the Sabbath, because we recognize the gracious provision God has given to us through Christ, and the delight God has given in word, and in the example of creation and Sabbath rest.
Our world is so fast-paced – is it not? And everything within our society says go, go, go, go! But in His grace and goodness. God invites us to rest! Ultimately, we rest in Christ but also find physical rest in His created order of creation and resting. We will lose sleep and forego it to get things done!
But I think to bring it all home. Historically, nothing in this passage or in the New Testament suggests that the Sabbath is abolished. Fulfilled in Jesus but not abrogated. And even in this passage, there is an appeal to acts of mercy and necessity, as well as working unto the Lord, being logically permissible. So it’s fair and simple to say that works of necessity, works of piety, are appropriate on the Sabbath. But there are others who really want to start getting out the measuring stick again. Is this permissible? Is this ok? Well, what about this? Can I pump gas or not?….. And man, that can start getting us back into legalism real quick and sound an awful lot like the Pharisees.
So I’ll leave you with this. On the Sabbath, we are called not to idle away the day but to honor God, drawing near to Him in worship, caring for needs, and showing compassion. Gathering for Worship with the SAINTS. I hear people say things like – I need a break from church, you know, just needed to rest….WORSHIP is REST…. THESE ARE important. VITAL for us as believers!
And these things will give you, should give you physical rest… but they won’t fully satisfy you.
Because the rest we need is deeper!
Yet, above all, the Sabbath points us to the rest we have in Christ, who finished the work of redemption. In Him, we find true rest for our souls, a peace that goes beyond the day itself. So let us embrace the Sabbath as a gift—a holy invitation to cease from our labors and rest fully in the grace and love of Jesus.
Sermon Summary: The law binds; only Jesus sets us free.
