A couple of you messaged me that you were having a hard time keeping up. *insert me clearing throat, lowering glasses and glaring at you librarian-style* Need I remind you that this is supposed to be FUN? It's okay if you can't comment in-depth on everything, or if you can't read or participate every day. In fact, there was at least one day where I didn't answer my own questions about a passage. Don't get me wrong, I love and value your participation, but no one is keeping score here, and even if they were, it would only be gold stars and lollipops for everyone who even glanced at the blog! Because God loves you, and gold stars and lollipops are how I roll. :-)
UNLIKE THE PHARISEES, who we'll be encountering again in this passage. I thought of posting these two passages seperately, to give those of you who want to dig into them more time, but they're on the same topic! And they're right next to each other! And it was too tempting!
Mark 2:23-3:6 (New International Version, ©2010)
Jesus Is Lord of the Sabbath
23 One Sabbath Jesus was going through the grainfields, and as his disciples walked along, they began to pick some heads of grain. 24 The Pharisees said to him, “Look, why are they doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath?” 25 He answered, “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 3
Jesus Heals on the Sabbath
1 Another time Jesus went into the synagogue, and a man with a shriveled hand was there. 2 Some of them were looking for a reason to accuse Jesus, so they watched him closely to see if he would heal him on the Sabbath. 3 Jesus said to the man with the shriveled hand, “Stand up in front of everyone.” 4 Then Jesus asked them, “Which is lawful on the Sabbath: to do good or to do evil, to save life or to kill?” But they remained silent.
5 He looked around at them in anger and, deeply distressed at their stubborn hearts, said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He stretched it out, and his hand was completely restored. 6 Then the Pharisees went out and began to plot with the Herodians how they might kill Jesus.
Mark 2:23-3:6 (New International Version, ©2010)
Jesus Is Lord of the Sabbath
23 One Sabbath Jesus was going through the grainfields, and as his disciples walked along, they began to pick some heads of grain. 24 The Pharisees said to him, “Look, why are they doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath?” 25 He answered, “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 3
Jesus Heals on the Sabbath
1 Another time Jesus went into the synagogue, and a man with a shriveled hand was there. 2 Some of them were looking for a reason to accuse Jesus, so they watched him closely to see if he would heal him on the Sabbath. 3 Jesus said to the man with the shriveled hand, “Stand up in front of everyone.” 4 Then Jesus asked them, “Which is lawful on the Sabbath: to do good or to do evil, to save life or to kill?” But they remained silent.5 He looked around at them in anger and, deeply distressed at their stubborn hearts, said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He stretched it out, and his hand was completely restored. 6 Then the Pharisees went out and began to plot with the Herodians how they might kill Jesus.
Power corrupts; absolute power corrupts absolutely
ReplyDeleteHey, Ladies!
ReplyDeleteI think that I have caught up...I read through the past few day's comments anyway.
I love how Jesus gets right to the "heart" of the matter here. His opponents were not just criticizing Jesus, they were looking to find fault so that they could justify their own behavior (and hearts).
When I create my own standard (or law) in my heart and try to hold myself to it (or any other person I wish to ummmm...demoralize), I fall from God's grace. Galations 5:4 states that quite well.
Agreed. It's ironic--we all need rules and structures to function in society, but we tend to put the "letter of the law" above the purpose of the law. How ridiculous that the Pharisees got all bent out of shape about Jesus telling a man to "stretch out his hand" on the sabbath, and then go and plot how to kill him! Evidently, following their interpretation of teh rules was more important than human life--or even God in human form!
ReplyDeleteAnd yet, we do this a lot. We can get awfully critical with our fellow believers, more worried about "setting them straight" than we are about their spiritual, emotional, or physical well being. Gross. :-( I've been guilty of that at times, and always wound up regretting it! Now, I hope that I think more before I speak.
Mark 2: 23, reminds me of the times when my friends and I would play hide and seek in a field of corn not far from where I grew up. Now, there are houses and apartment buildings and a strip mall where the field used to be. Since Mark points out that crowds usually surrounded Jesus Christ, it makes me wonder how trampled down that corn field got since it seems like it was more than just him and his disciples going through the corn field. After all, the Pharisees were right there to accuse the disciple of doing something unlawful by plucking the corn on the Sabbath day, so was the whole crowd going through the corn field?
ReplyDeleteComparing the other passages with this incident, Matthew 12, in particular, we see that these incidences show that there real issue of the Pharisees’ heart, religious as they were; their heart was not right with God. Matthew 15:1-11 shows how they were just concerned with the outward appearance of doing what was right according to the commandments of men (religious without God).
How often do I look at the actions of others and condemn them because they are not measuring up exactly how I think they should be because of their outward actions and yet, God is not holding them to that standard. Instead, I really ought to be examining myself. Am I exhibiting a heart of compassion or a heart that has been hardened?
Mark 3:5 KJV And when he had looked round about on them with anger, being grieved for the hardness of their hearts…
This verse is really making me think about how my thoughts and actions can affect the Lord Jesus Christ.
Beautiful insights! And I had never thought about a whole crowd being in the field--although of course that makes sense. I HAD thought the bit about the pharisees watching Jesus and his disciples go through the field was kind of weird--it conjured up images of them spying on him through stalks of grain, like little kids hiding in the grass, LOL!
ReplyDeleteIn Christ, we find true sabbath rest.
ReplyDeleteThere were 613 laws/commandements in the books of Gen-Deut (Pentateuch) that the Pharisees were attempting to follow. As Christians, we sometimes try to reduce our faith to a list of things we do, how "good" we are, etc. Then we judge others by these standards. But, we all sin and fall short of the glory of God (Rom 3:23). We need His grace and forgiveness daily. And for the good we do, it is to give glory to God, not to ourselves.
ReplyDelete