Lord of the Sabbath

Legalism is a cancer. What do I mean by that statement? Legalism in its various forms boils down to a system of man-made regulations that, in practice at least, are put on par with God’s Word. When legalistic attitudes and traditions are adopted they bring erosion to the church. The Gospel accounts are filled with stories of how Jesus contended with the scribes and Pharisees in regards to their legalistic practices that had inadvertently driven their followers away from God.

We learn from the book of Acts as well as from the writing of the Apostle Paul that legalism threatened to ravage the infant church. Sometime in the very near future we are going to take a break from our study of the Gospel of Matthew, and we are going to look at the Letter Paul wrote to the Galatians. That letter deals with legalism head on. We will be looking at it because it was the study of this book that was instrumental to the Reformation, and since this fall is the 500 year anniversary of the Reformation we are going to spend some time studying it.

But during the time of Jesus’ ministry on earth legalism was seen very prominently in the man-made regulations regarding the Sabbath. And in Matthew chapter 12 the tension between the legalistic Pharisees and Jesus comes to a head.

The Setting ()

We need to keep in mind that Jesus and His disciples were itinerant preachers. They did not return to their homes every night after a long day of work. Very often the most likely camped outside or stayed in the home of another. Speaking to a would-be disciple Jesus said:

We

Matthew 8:20 NASB95

Jesus said to him, “The foxes have holes and the birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head.”

More than likely, Jesus and His apostles had spent a long day of ministering in a local Synagogue somewhere in the region of Galilee, and they were hungry. The Law of Moses had provided for travelers to be able to pluck the grain of another as they traveled, as long as they did not use the tools of harvest, and gather enough to sell for a profit.

Deuteronomy 23:25 NASB95

“When you enter your neighbor’s standing grain, then you may pluck the heads with your hand, but you shall not wield a sickle in your neighbor’s standing grain.

Though the Law allowed for travelers to do such things, the Pharisees concocted an elaborate system of rules and regulations for the Sabbath which are nowhere found in the Bible. The result was that “instead of being a day of rest it had become a day of incredible burden. Because of the thousands of man-made restrictions regarding it, the Sabbath was more tiresome than the six days devoted to one’s occupation. It was harder to ‘rest’ than to earn a living.” (John MacArthur; ; Moody Publishing/Chicago;1987; pg.281).

The History of Sabbath

Before we can fully understand the rising tension between Jesus and the Pharisees in regards to Sabbath regulations we need to take some time to consider the history of the Sabbath. To do so let’s look for a moment at

Genesis 2:1–3 ESV

Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. And on the seventh day God finished his work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had done. So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it God rested from all his work that he had done in creation.

The term Sabbath literally means seventh. God created the heavens and the earth in six literal twenty-four hour days. And then He rested on the seventh day. In doing so He set a precedent for man to follow.

But what does it mean to rest? Did God sleep in that day? Did He spend the day in bed, resting and relaxing? Like Lionel Richie did He take easy on a Sunday morning? Quite frankly, I can’t even begin to tell you what God did as He rested. On the one hand I know that He rested for He told us as much in His Holy Word. On the other hand I know from His Word that He did not sleep.

Psalm 121:3–4 NKJV

He will not allow your foot to be moved; He who keeps you will not slumber. Behold, He who keeps Israel Shall neither slumber nor sleep.

God did not rest because He was physically tired or weary as you and I often are. Rather He rested to establish the pattern for man’s work cycle. The five day work week may be held in honor in our society, but God established a six day work week. In Mark’s account of this same incident Jesus said:

Mark 2:27 NASB95

Jesus said to them, “The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath.

The purpose of the Sabbath was to give man time to rejuvenate their spent energy as they reflected on the person and work of God.

The writer of Hebrews seems to indicate that the Sabbath rest points to redemptive rest in

Hebrews 4:3–6 NIV84

Now we who have believed enter that rest, just as God has said, “So I declared on oath in my anger, ‘They shall never enter my rest.’ ” And yet his work has been finished since the creation of the world. For somewhere he has spoken about the seventh day in these words: “And on the seventh day God rested from all his work.” And again in the passage above he says, “They shall never enter my rest.” It still remains that some will enter that rest, and those who formerly had the gospel preached to them did not go in, because of their disobedience.

Hebrews 4:4 NASB95

For He has said somewhere concerning the seventh day: “And God rested on the seventh day from all His works”;

Spiritual Rest

Let’s reflect for a few moments on what spiritual rest is. Look with at .

We looked at this passage very briefly last week, but let’s look at it again. Who are the weary and heavy-laden people that Jesus is addressing here? It is those who recognize that they are spiritually bankrupt — those of whom Jesus addressed in the first Beatitude found in

Matthew 5:3 NASB95

“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Jesus gave a open invitation for all to come to Him to find relief from the burden they carry which is due to their sinful condition. But only those who recognize that they are in fact carrying a heavy burden of sin will come to Jesus for relief. When Jesus offered rest to those who come to Him for relief He was not speaking of physical rest, but spiritual rest. The psalmist wrote:

Psalm 37:3–7 NKJV

Trust in the Lord, and do good; Dwell in the land, and feed on His faithfulness. Delight yourself also in the Lord, And He shall give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the Lord, Trust also in Him, And He shall bring it to pass. He shall bring forth your righteousness as the light, And your justice as the noonday. Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him; Do not fret because of him who prospers in his way, Because of the man who brings wicked schemes to pass.

The phrase “rest in the Lord” is picturesque of faith. Just as a child will rest in the arms of its parents, knowing and trusting that they have his best interest at heart, so we as believers are to rest in the arms of Jesus.

You might be thinking, “but what does all this have to do with the Sabbath?” The Sabbath is all about rest — and it points, not to physical rest, but to redemptive rest. It is in this context that we come to our text for today, .

The question we must ask is this:

Did Jesus and the Disciples do Something that was Illegal?

The answer is absolutely not!

Things that are not restricted on the Sabbath:

The Sabbath does not restrict deeds of necessity

Look at . Jesus is asserting His superiority to King David. What David and his men did was technically unlawful for them to do. Only the priests and their families were allowed to eat the bread that had been offered to God on the table of showbread. If it was deemed as acceptable for David and his band of merry men to eat what they were not supposed to eat, then it was also acceptable for Jesus and His disciples to eat grain (which was permissible).

The Sabbath does not restrict services to God

Look at . The ministry of the tabernacle and later the temple never stopped. There was priestly attendance 24/7/365 days of the year. So if you were to carry out the Sabbath regulations to the nth degree you come to the conclusion that the priests are Sabbath breakers.

The Sabbath does not restrict acts of mercy

Look at . When Jesus said these things it was like He was asking them if they were ignorant of biblical things. “Don’t you read your Bible?”

The association that our church belongs to, or perhaps it better to say “fellowships with” is The Michigan Association of Regular Baptist Churches, or the MARBC. The national association is known as the GARBC, the General Association of Regular Baptist Churches. Back when I was a child this association was known for being legalistic. I can’t speak for this church, but there were churches in the association where the parents of teens wanted their children to act in certain ways, not because it was necessarily the right thing to do, but because they did not want to be embarrassed at church because of their children’s actions. The hypocrisy of this led many to either stop going to church altogether or to attend churches that cater to their age group with a contemporary, entertainment based format.

As you may or may not know, I am presently serving on the Council of 16 as the representative of the southern district of our State. One thing that I have noticed with this group of men is that there is a decided determination to combat legalism in the association. Since the local church is autonomous, the association cannot combat legalism at the local level. But the desire is to encourage church to return to the Reformation principle of the Bible being the rule of authority, and not man-made rules.

Let’s reflect for a while on the statement Jesus made in that something greater than the temple is here. We need to define what that something is. The KJV and NKJV interpret it as One greater than the temple. While that is probably the correct interpretation, a literal reading of the text is this:

Matthew 12:6 YLT

and I say to you, that a greater than the temple is here;

Matthew 12:6 NASB95

“But I say to you that something greater than the temple is here.

How is Jesus Superior to the Temple?

According to Charles Spurgeon:

Christ is greater than the temple because He is God

Christ is greater than the temple for He is a more glorious enshrinement of Deity

Acts 7:48–50 NASB95

“However, the Most High does not dwell in houses made by human hands; as the prophet says: ‘Heaven is My throne, And earth is the footstool of My feet; What kind of house will you build for Me?’ says the Lord, ‘Or what place is there for My repose? ‘Was it not My hand which made all these things?’

Colossians 2:9 NASB95

For in Him all the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form,

Christ is greater than the temple because He is a fuller revelation of truth than the temple ever was

Christ is greater than the temple because He is a more sure place of consolation

Christ is greater than the temple because He is a more glorious centre (focal point) of worship

What was it that made the temple great in the first place? The temple was made great because of the presence of the Lord. First the Tabernacle and later the Temple that was built by Solomon were filled with the shekinah glory of God. That was what made it so glorious. Neither the rebuilt temple during the time of Ezra nor Herod’s temple were filled with this same manifestation of glory. Yet Herod’s temple did have the glory of God visit it in the person of Jesus Christ; but His glory was veiled and most did not recognize it for what it was.

Think about this for a moment: what is it that make the believer in Jesus Christ glorious? It is the glory of God through the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit. We are the temple of the Holy Spirit. Is His glory filling our temple?

Paul, writing to the Corinthian church — a church that had all sorts of problems which seems to have included believers who were having sexual relations outside of the scope of marriage said this:

1 Corinthians 6:19–20 NASB95

Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? For you have been bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body.

The Justification for His Argument

The justification for the argument that Jesus made to the charge of the Pharisees is found in .

What does it mean that “the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath”? Jesus is the Creator who rested on the Sabbath.

Jesus is the Creator who rested on the Sabbath.

In other words Jesus in the One who instituted the Sabbath Day and made it holy. As such He has the right to define what is, and what is not lawful for the Sabbath Day.

Is the Sabbath for the New Testament Church or was is merely for the nation of Israel? This question has garnered a lot of division within the church. There are those who claim that the Christian Sabbath is Sunday rather than Saturday. But of course the difficulty with that is that the term Sabbath literally means “seventh.” Sunday is the first day of the week and not the seventh/Sabbath.

There are others who point out that of the 10 Commandments, the only one not to be repeated as a command in the New Testament is the command regarding the Sabbath. Therefore it is not a requirement for the church. I probably confer with this view more than the other. We worship on Sunday, not because it is the Sabbath, but because Jesus was raised from the dead on the first day of the week.

Though the observance of a Sabbath is not required of the church I do believe that it is a good idea; not in a legalistic sense but in a practical sense. Personally I am more concerned with the New Testament command found in

Hebrews 10:24–25 ESV

And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.

than I am in the Old Testament command to keep the Sabbath Day holy.

The thing that I am most concerned about is that we each find our rest in Christ Jesus.

For those who are not believers it means that we get off the fence in regards to who Jesus is. That we embrace Him as our Lord and Savior. That we fully rely on His person, which includes His deity and His perfect human life, that we rely on His substitutionary death as the satisfaction for God’s demand of perfect righteousness, that we embrace the truth of His resurrection from the dead, and we both believe this in our inner-most being and we confess it with our mouth before others.

For those who are believers, there is a slightly different kind of rest for us since we have already found our redemptive rest. This rest entails coming to Christ with our needs and anxieties. This rest strengthens the weary, and brings increased joy in Christ.

Let’s pray.

Closing Song: No. 741 — JESUS, I AM RESTING, RESTING