THE SABBATH
Matthew12:1-2
“At that time Jesus went through the grainfields on the Sabbath. And His disciples were hungry, and began to pluck heads of the grain to eat. And when the Pharisees saw it they said to Him, ‘Look, Your disciples do on the Sabbath.’ ”
God had instituted the Sabbath as a day of rest from work, in the same way that “He rested on the seventh day from all His work” of creation (Genesis 2:2). It was for the benefit of man, not for God’s good. But the Jewish legalists had taken the law of the Sabbath to restrict anyone from doing anything – even good and necessary things. Jesus also faced reproof of the Pharisees when He healed on the Sabbath (Luke 13:10-17; 14:1-6). Jesus answered these criticisms by using the illustration of David eating the showbread from the tabernacle, even though it was not proper because it was reserved for the priests, and the priests doing their work on the Sabbath (Matthew 12:3-5), and people taking care of their livestock on the Sabbath (Luke 13:15; 14:5). Jesus put it all in perspective when He said, “The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath” (Mark 2:27). I believe that God want us to take one day a week for rest from our labor for our own benefit – not for His. It is a day when we put aside the normal labors such as working or shopping that can be done on the other six days of the week. It may be Saturday, Sunday, or some other day that we dedicate to restoring our bodies and our spirits. That does not mean that we cannot do what is good or necessary on that day. However we come down on the subject, we need to live by our faith as the Apostle Paul instructed. Whatever we do, we need to be fully convinced in our own mind and then live as unto the Lord (Romans 14:5-6).
TODAY’S PRINCIPLE: God decreed a day of rest – the Sabbath -- for our benefit.
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Have a good day of rest. Love you.
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