Matthew 12 - 3.27.25
S - At that time Jesus went through the grainfields on the Sabbath. His disciples were hungry and began to pick some heads of grain and eat them. 2 When the Pharisees saw this, they said to him, “Look! Your disciples are doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath.” Matthew 12:1-2
O – The Pharisees had established 39 categories of actions forbidden on the Sabbath, based on interpretations of God’s law and on Jewish custom. Harvesting was one of those forbidden actions. By picking wheat and rubbing it in their hands, the disciples were technically harvesting, according to the religious leaders. Jesus and the disciples were picking grain because they were hungry, not because they wanted to harvest the grain for a profit. They were NOT working on the Sabbath. The Pharisees, however, could not, and did not, want to see beyond their laws’ technicalities. They had no room for compassion, and they were determined to accuse Jesus of wrongdoing.
A - Although there is so much to share about in this chapter, these two verses always stop me in my reading as I do a big eye roll. What in the world?! This feels ludicrous and seems the epitome of looking for sin that isn’t there. Is this ALL they could fault them for? This was the best they could do? Could they not see how ridiculous this sounded?!
The seventh day is to be a holy day for God. That doesn’t mean that a person cannot lift any objects, but it does mean that a person must not labor at their job. What the disciples were doing did not break the Old Testament law. It is clearly stated in Deuteronomy….
Deuteronomy 23:24-25 - 24 If you enter your neighbor’s vineyard, you may eat all the grapes you want, but do not put any in your basket. 25 If you enter your neighbor’s grainfield, you may pick kernels with your hands, but you must not put a sickle to their standing grain.
We should never add or subtract from the Bible. We must be careful not to add our own traditions onto the teaching of God’s Word. These traditions can cause bondage and legalism instead of a heart to serve God. At the same time, be very careful not to judge others for things which the Bible doesn’t condemn. We could very easily turn people AWAY from God by doing these things, rather than draw them into the loving relationship with Him that He desires.
1 John 5:3 - 3 In fact, this is love for God: to keep his commands. And his commands are not burdensome.
The Sabbath was made for man. This day was not meant as a yoke of bondage where people would sneak around scared of breaking one of the thousands of rules on this day (the Rabbis had come up with many additional rules governing every area of life including how many steps you could take on the Sabbath and forbidding spitting on dirt because when the dirt turned to mud that is work.) The purpose of this day was to rest from their work and spend time learning about and worshiping God as a family and country. How could a person ever rest it he had to count every step he took during the day, weigh out everything he carried to make sure it wasn’t too heavy, and look before spitting, etc.? These kinds of rules crush people and turn them off from following God. But imagine the other way. Knowing they weren’t supposed to work in the fields, gather grain, or plow, the people could truly rest. They could put aside all of their worries for one day and just enjoy each other and the Lord. God’s commands are not burdensome, but ours very well could be. (studyandobey.com)
P – Lord, forgive me for the times that I let my busyness get in the way of taking time for a Sabbath with you. Help me, and anyone else struggling to rest in you, remember what the Sabbath is, and what its intended purpose is for. Help us to set aside a day to just soak in Your presence and Your love….to spend time worshiping you, breaking bread with our brothers and sisters and sharing ALL of the amazing ways in which you are actively caring for us, loving us, protecting us and providing for us. YOU are worthy of all of our praise and You are all that we need. Help us to remember that when we find ourselves being too busy to put aside a day to rest in You. May Your commands fill us with peace as we know your Heart for us is always GOOD and that when we take the time to really BE with you, you honor that time and we have no need to worry about what is to come the next day. You are already going ahead of us to work those things out. Lord, thank you for the reminder that it is my privilege to spend time with you and that the time spent with you is NEVER wasted! Amen!
- Crystal Flory
