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LORD OF THE SABBATH (MARK 2:23-28)

REFLECTION
The theme for our reflection is “Lord of the Sabbath” The Sabbath is a day of religious observance and abstinence from work, kept by Jewish people from Friday evening to Saturday evening, and by most Christians on Sunday. We shall reflect on the fact that Jesus, the Lord of the Sabbath demystifies the purpose of the Sabbath and liberates the observers of the Sabbath law from burdensome interpretation imposed on it by the Pharisees.

Beloved in the Lord, the Sabbath law is part of the ten commandments in Exodus 20: 3-17, ““Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. ⁹ Six days you shall labour and do all your work, ¹⁰ but the seventh day is a sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your male or female servant, nor your animals, nor any foreigner residing in your towns. ¹¹ For in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy. (Exodus 20:8-11). The Sabbath law was fundamentally made to ensure that human beings rest from their long hours and days of work and spend uninterrupted time with the Lord. Again, the Sabbath was to ensure that humanity shifted their attention from the world, rest and focus on their relationship with their creator. The Sabbath was not meant to be interpreted to burden its observers to the extent that when a person is famishing or suffering from severe hunger such a person cannot eat on the Sabbath day.

Jesus and His disciples were itenary preachers who travelled from villages and towns proclaiming the Good News. In discharging their God-given call they will certainly be hungry on their way. One Sabbath Jesus was going through the grainfields, and as his disciples walked along, they began to pick some heads of grain. (for food) ²⁴ The Pharisees said to him, “Look, why are they doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath?” (Mark 2:23-24) For the Pharisees, the Sabbath law must be observed to the letter. In their understanding, eating to gain energy to do God’s work is in contravention of the Sabbath law. In other words, picking heads of grain to eat amounts to working on the Sabbath and is therefore unlawful. The Pharisees were not interested in the physical well-being of the person picking the heads of grain for food, their focus was to find fault and expose those who broke the law. The question Jesus sought to answer is, “Will God punish a person who is famishing or suffering from severe hunger for eating on the Sabbath day? Again, does resting and not working on the Sabbath exclude us from feeding a person who is famishing or dying from hunger? Jesus demystified the Sabbath law, when He said to the Pharisees, “Have you never read what David did when he and his companions were hungry and in need? ²⁶ In the days of Abiathar the high priest, he entered the house of God and ate the consecrated bread, which is lawful only for priests to eat. And he also gave some to his companions.” ²⁷ Then he said to them, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. ²⁸ So the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath.” (Mark 2:25-28). In other words, Jesus explained that Sabbath must be observed but we must understand that feeding the hungry or meeting the needs of the needy on Sabbath does not amount to work but is also part of the fulfilment of God’s will. Again, we must be healthy to observe the Sabbath, the Sabbath law must not be interpreted to burden its observers. It was for this reason, Jesus said to the Pharisees ““You hypocrites! Doesn’t each of you on the Sabbath untie your ox or donkey from the stall and lead it out to give it water? ¹⁶ Then should not this woman, a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan has kept bound for eighteen long years, be set free on the Sabbath day from what bound her?” (Luke 13:15-16) The Sabbath law was made for our good. It was to ensure that we rest and focus on God. It was not meant to cause us to ignore our essential or fundamental needs and that of our neighbours. We must help or attend to ourselves and others concerning our health and well-being even on the Sabbath day. Jesus further demystifies the strict observance of the Sabbath law when He said ““The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. ²⁸ So the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath.” (Mark 2:27-28). Jesus did not come to only liberate us from sin and its ramifications but also to liberate us from the burden of the law which caused many to fumble and fall. If we are in doubt about how to walk according to the commandments of God, Jesus’ teachings and examples are our guide to obeying God’s commandments and pleasing Him. Jesus assures us, “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfil them. (Matthew 5:17) When we follow His teaching and examples, we shall also fulfil the law including the law of the Sabbath. It is important to note that the Sabbath law does not prevent us from attending to our life-threatening needs such as food and water, shelter, health and security. We must care for ourselves and others on the Sabbath if the need be. Doctors and nurses must care for the sick, we must feed the hungry, give shelter to the stranded and clothe the naked even on the Sabbath.

In summary, we have reflected on the theme ” Lord of the Sabbath” We have discovered that Jesus is the Lord of the Sabbath and has demystified the purpose of the Sabbath and made it less unburdensome on its observers. In other words, Jesus has liberated us from the unrealistic and oppressive interpretations of the Sabbath law. The Sabbath law is to ensure that we rest from our hours and days of work and to honour God, it is not meant to take for granted our life-threatening needs such as food, health and security if the need be. Shalom.

PRAYER
Holy Spirit, purge us of legalism, hypocrisy and self-righteousness. May we be guided by the teachings and examples of our Lord Jesus Christ in the fulfilment of the commandments of God. Amen.