Daily Devotional for Monday, January 12

Behavior on the Sabbath

“And he said unto them, That the Son of man is Lord also of the sabbath,” Luke 6:5.

In my rural, deep south Arkansas upbringing, there was little recreation and lots of hard work. When work was finished, we headed for the local woods and lakes for hunting, fishing and swimming. However, all activity, work or otherwise, was suspended on Sunday. The first day of the week was the Lord’s Day and was set aside for worship and rest, in that order. You did not ask if you could go swimming on Sunday, you already knew the answer to that question.

            In their continuous effort to find fault with our Savior, the Pharisees condemned the disciples of Jesus for doing on the Sabbath what was forbidden. They plucked and ate corn (wheat) while walking through the fields. Jesus reminded them that the men of David’s band had eaten the Tabernacle shewbread, which was forbidden to all but the priests. Also in today’s reading, a second Sabbath infraction was alleged when Jesus healed a man of his withered hand on the day of rest. The Pharisees were relentless in their pursuit of Jesus, but time and time again, they failed to find Him guilty.

            The Lord used these accusations as teaching opportunities. Jesus declared in verse five of the reading that He is the “Lord of the sabbath.” He instructed them that human need can be more urgent than religious observance. In the first case, hunger was being addressed when there were no other options. In the second case, the restoration of a man’s crippled hand could be interpreted as nothing but good. (See also Mark 2:27.)

            Just as the Sabbath was first given as a day of rest for man from his labor, so the death and resurrection of Jesus has provided us a rest from the demands of the Law and allows us to cease from our own works and rest in the grace and mercy of God through Jesus.

FINAL THOUGHT

Are you still working for God’s approval, or resting in Jesus’ finished work?

John Nations