ESOCS Devotional 18 January 2025 – Jesus is Lord of the Sabbath
MEMORY VERSE: “But when the Pharisees saw it, they said unto him, Behold, thy disciples do that which is not lawful to do upon the Sabbath day.” Matthew 12:2
TEXT: MATTHEW 12:1-23
At that time Jesus went through the grainfields on the Sabbath. And His disciples were hungry, and began to pluck heads of grain and to eat. 2 And when the Pharisees saw it, they said to Him, “Look, Your disciples are doing what is not lawful to do on the Sabbath!”
3 But He said to 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 ate the showbread which 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 that on the Sabbath the priests in the temple profane the Sabbath, and are blameless? 6 Yet I say to you that in this place there is One greater than the temple. 7 But 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 even of the Sabbath.”
9 Now when He had departed from there, He went into their synagogue. 10 And behold, there was a man who had a withered hand. And they asked Him, saying, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?”—that they might accuse Him.
11 Then He said to them, “What man is there among you who has one sheep, and if it falls into a pit on the Sabbath, will not lay hold of it and lift it out? 12 Of how much more value then is a man than a sheep? Therefore it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath.” 13 Then He said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” And he stretched it out, and it was restored as whole as the other. 14 Then the Pharisees went out and plotted against Him, how they might destroy Him.
15 But when Jesus knew it, He withdrew from there. And great multitudes followed Him, and He healed them all. 16 Yet He warned them not to make Him known, 17 that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying:
18 “Behold! My Servant whom I have chosen,
My Beloved in whom My soul is well pleased!
I will put My Spirit upon Him,
And He will declare justice to the Gentiles.
19 He will not quarrel nor cry out,
Nor will anyone hear His voice in the streets.
20 A bruised reed He will not break,
And smoking flax He will not quench,
Till He sends forth justice to victory;
21 And in His name Gentiles will trust.”
22 Then one was brought to Him who was demon-possessed, blind and mute; and He healed him, so that the blind and mute man both spoke and saw. 23 And all the multitudes were amazed and said, “Could this be the Son of David?”
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Jesus had just given a great promise of rest (Matt. 11:28-30) before correcting the Pharisees for their false teaching on the Sabbath. In particular, this passage focuses upon two of their errors. The Pharisees taught that it was wrong to pluck and eat the grain as the disciples had done (Matt. 12:1-2). They also understood that it was unlawful to heal on the Sabbath. So, Jesus heals a man right in front of them (Matt. 12:9-10). The Pharisees had the false notion that Sabbath rest was best defined as inactivity. They invented additional rules for Sabbath-keeping, such as: how much weight could be lifted and how far one could walk. The modern equivalent would be the outlaw of drinking altogether to ensure no one accidentally gets drunk.
Jesus rebukes this practice of the Pharisees because their man-made laws became more important than God’s actual law (Mark 7:8). The law of God forbids work on the Sabbath even during the planting and harvest season (Exod. 34:21). However, the law also allowed the poor to gather “gleanings” from the edge or corners of the field. So, as Jesus and His disciples were hungry, it was perfectly lawful for them to grab some of the heads of grain and eat them.
In Matthew 12:1-14, we see that Jesus advocated for three kinds of activity on the Sabbath:
Works of Piety: If pure rest were the goal, then the priests would be the worst Sabbath-breakers of all because the Sabbath was the busiest day of the week for them (5-9). The priests were required to circumcise if the 8th day fell on a Sabbath (John 7:22-23; Lev. 12:3). So, they would acknowledge their duty to perform that work, but they wanted to regard the healing ministry of Jesus as a violation of the Sabbath.
Works of Necessity: To neglect to satisfy their hunger would have had a negative impact upon their ability to worship. If David could violate a ceremonial law in order to graciously provide food to his hungry men, then surely Jesus could violate the man-made law of the Pharisees in order to preserve the lives of His disciples. This seems to clarify that certain occupations cannot take the day off. The military cannot rest, neither can law enforcement officers or firefighters.
Works of Mercy: Jesus often healed on the Sabbath (9-14; John 5:1-18; 9:1-14; Lk. 13:10-17; 14:1-6). The Pharisees reveal that they cared more for their animals than the people. It is lawful to do good (12). “Failure to do good is to do harm and the failure to save a life, when in one’s power, is to destroy.” The opposite of what is commanded is forbidden, and the opposite of what is forbidden is commanded (WLC 99). That means you should be willing to show mercy on the Lord’s Day, and you should refrain from doing anything that places undue hardship upon others.
CHALLENGES
- The Sabbath was made for the convenience of man and not the other way round.
PRAYER POINT
- Lord Jesus, thank you father for the Sabbath, in-depth understanding, I pray always. Amen.
FURTHER READING: Isaiah 25:1-end; 26:1-end; Matthew 12:24-end
ESOCS Devotional 19 January 2025
