I Am the Lord of the Sabbath (Matt. 12:1-8)

I Am the Lord of the Sabbath (Matt. 12:1-8)

     
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When you stay at a hotel in Israel on Friday evening or Saturday, you will notice that a hotel elevator door is automatically opened and closed on every floor.
The orthodox Jews observe the Sabbath day starting Friday evening until Saturday evening. On the Sabbath day they do not labor. They do not even push a button of an elevator thinking that this is a kind of labor.
If an elevator is not being operated automatically and yet a Jew wants to push a button of the floor that he should get off, he will ask a person who is not a Jew in the elevator.
Even today they try to keep the rules and regulations for the Sabbath which their ancestors had made long time ago.

After Jesus ascended into heaven, his disciples worshiped God either on the Sabbath day or on the Lord's day. But, later they tended to move their worship day to the Lord's day as they thought that the Lord's day was more meaningful for Christians and fixed it as the official worship day as today.
The Seventh-day Adventist Church members observe Saturday as their worship day believing that Saturday is still the true Sabbath. They condemn all Christian churches who observe Sunday as an official worship day.

When I came to the United States, I first studied at SUNY at Binghamton. Among my young friends, there was a student who made it a rule not to buy anything on Sundays. Yet, if he wanted to buy something desperately on Sunday, he asked his friend including me to buy it for him. He made it a rule not to study on Sundays. If he had a test on Monday, he slept until midnight. Then, right after 12:00 AM he woke up and began to study at the 24 hour open library on campus. I used to tell him jokingly, "You behave like a Pharisee."
                                                   
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On one Sabbath day Jesus and his disciples went through the grain fields.
His disciples were hungry and began to pick some heads of grain and eat them.
Seeing this, some Pharisees said to Jesus, "Look! Your disciples are doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath."
What is unlawful?
They claimed that Jesus' disciples harvested on the Sabbath.
To the Pharisees picking some heads of grain is a harvest.

Jesus replied to them: Haven't you read the story of David? When he and his companions escaped from Saul, they entered the house of God at the city of Nob.
David asked Ahimelech the priest there anything to eat as he and his soldiers were very hungry.
And Ahimelech gave them some consecrated bread which is lawful only for the priests, Aaron's descendents, to eat. So, David and his soldiers ate the consecrated bread, but God did not punish them. God showed his mercy to those who were in need badly.

On the Sabbath, according to the Pharisees' interpretation of the Law, nobody can labor. Everybody should take rest.
However, priests should labor on the Sabbath by performing sacrifices and conducting worship services.
Although the Sabbath was to rest and to worship God, an emergent situation may happen to a medical doctor. If there is any patient who may die without an operation, he may conduct an operation to save the patient's life on Sunday.
Why is it excusable?
There is another law, saying, "Love your neighbor as you love yourself."
This law of love is superior to the law of the Sabbath.
If there seems to be any conflict between two laws, you should follow first the law of love. But, to God, there should be no conflict.

Worshiping God includes not only ritual worship but also spiritual worship, ie. glorifying God by saving other person's life or helping other people who are desperately in need.
Jesus always emphasized the intent of the Law, the meaning behind the letter.
The Pharisees were so concerned about religious rituals that they missed the whole purpose of the Temple--bringing people to God and worship him willingly with whole heart and with whole strength.

Jesus claims that he is greater than the Temple.
His worship may please God much better than that of the Pharisees who always interpret the Law literally and apply it strictly to other people.

God tells us in Hosea 6:6: "I desire mercy, not sacrifice, and acknowledgment of God rather than burnt offerings."
To please God in our worship and in our observation of the Sabbath, we need the heart of mercy and the life of acknowledging God.
Without having the heart of mercy, if we only find fault with other people, our worship of God may not please him.
It does not mean that we do not have to worship God with our sincere heart.
It means that we need to know why we worship God and what are the important things to please God.

Jesus proclaims that "the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath."
Jesus sometimes intentionally healed the people who came to him on the Sabbath before his opponents.
His intention was to make people know the true meaning of the Sabbath.

God told his people through Moses in Exodus 20:8 and in Deuteronomy 5:12: "Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy."
During the Sabbath day or now on Sunday, you worship him with your whole soul, whole heart, and whole strength.
You take a rest without labor, giving thanks to God by remembering his creation, protection, and salvation of us.
Yet, if there is someone who needs your help, you may labor to help the person.
Jesus tells us in Mark 2:27 that "the Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath."

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After God had finished his creation including human beings for six days in the beginning, he rested from all his work on the seventh day. And he also wants us to rest.

What is the spirit of the Sabbath?
On Sunday which is the Christians' Sabbath, we worship and glorify God remembering his creation of us and salvation of us.
And at the same time, we may do good by following the example of Jesus.

Do you unwillingly observe Sunday worship with a mind of obligation?
Or do you willingly worship God with a mind of thanksgiving.
God set you free from all the bondage.
You have freedom to choose whatever you want to do even on Sundays.
Although you may do whatever you want, your conduct should be according to God's will to please him.
I pray that you may use your freedom wisely for God who created you and sent his son Jesus Christ to give you salvation and eternal life.