Read Luke 6:1-5
You Can’t Do That!
One Sabbath day, Jesus was going through the grainfields with his disciples. They began to pick some heads of grain and eat the kernels. Some Pharisees confronted Jesus asking, “Why are you doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath?” They asked that question because picking grain on the Sabbath was considered “Working on the Sabbath,” which is unlawful.
Jesus answered by asking them a question: “Have you never read what David did when he and his companions were hungry? They entered the house of God and ate the bread that was consecrated and only lawful for the priest to eat.” In other words, when a person is hungry, it’s more important to ensure they are fed than it is to see them starve while following a legalistic law.
Yes, the Levitical law in Leviticus 23:3 does say you’re not to do any work on the Sabbath. The Pharisees had so many legalistic interpretations for God’s law that they considered picking and eating grain as work. Their interpretation was a very legalistic one. To them it was more important to obey their legalistic interpretation of the law than it was to have compassion for a hungry person.
Jesus ended with this comment: “The son of man is Lord of the Sabbath.” In other words, Jesus has authority over the Sabbath. He shouldn’t be questioned. Jesus’s Authority is able to see into the hearts of people and see their needs and also see the absurdity of legalistic interpretations of the law that he wrote.
Are we able to see the hearts of people? Not 100% or usually not at all, but we can see the needs of people and we should be willing to go the extra mile to help them even if it offends others.
