Mark 2:25-27
Have
you ever wanted to make a citizen’s arrest? You know, when someone is doing
something illegal and you want the police to show up right then and make an
arrest. I, more than likely, want grenade launchers on my car so I can clear a
path through the traffic. Or those rollout strips to flatten all the tires on
that speeding, swerving car. Or maybe a button on my dashboard that would cause
all the electrical functions of the car in violation to stop working instantly.
I
have wanted the police to serve my purposes. I want them to clear away the
traffic, or get the idiot drivers out of my way, or make it safe for the other
people on the road. I have to admit, when I am not on the road driving, I
really don’t think about the traffic jams, or dangerous drivers. I want the law
to make my life easier, smoother, more timely. I don’t want it to e in force
when I violate!
Many
of the religious people of Jesus’ day served the Law. They did not see the benefits
the Law was to bring to their lives. They only saw the obligations that the Law
imposed on them. It was a very one-sided view of the Law. They became servants
of the Law, doing with it said out of blind obedience. They never took time to
see the purpose for the rules and regulations that the Law contained. They didn’t
see the benefits, the protections, the blessings that the Law brought to their
lives.
So
as Jesus is confronted as He is walking through the grain field on that Sabbath
day, the Pharisees only see their obligation to serve the Law with their
actions, and miss the point of having a Sabbath. They only see their actions
directed toward keeping the letter of the Law. They don’t see any actions the
Law is doing for them. The Law had become a tyrannical dictator. It ruled their
lives.
Sabbath
is supposed to serve us, not we serve it. It is to provide rest and an
opportunity to demonstrate our faith in the provision of the LORD.
Jesus
refers to a passage in the Old Testament when David was fleeing King Saul who
was trying to kill him. He was innocent of any offense, but was running away
because Saul was bent on killing him. He was traveling on the Sabbath, had
travelled further than he was allowed, and he was hungry, and the only food was
forbidden Priestly food. He also told the priest a lie! And yet the priest of
his day gave him the food. Hunger was more important than the ritual law. Human
need was of higher value than keeping the letter of the Law.