Sermon
#8 Series:
Mark
Title: THE LORD OF THE SABBATH
Text: Mark 2:23-28
Readings: Office:
Larry Criss Auditorium:
Merle Hart
Subject: The Disciples Picking Corn on the Sabbath
Date: Sunday Evening - January 19, 1997
Tape # T-32
Introduction:
Let me make three or four statements
before we read our text this evening. I want you to hear me carefully.
1.
We observe the sabbath of faith, a spiritual sabbath rest in
Christ.
2.
We live in the hope and anticipation of a glorious, eternal
sabbath rest with Christ.
3.
We gather in the house of God and worship on the Lord’s day,
and encourage all believers to do the same.
4.
But there is absolutely no sense in which we keep a legal
sabbath day in this age of grace.
Why are we so insistent and dogmatic
about this? Because Christ, who is the Lord of the sabbath, is Christ our
Sabbath. For us to go back to keeping a sabbath day, as the Jews did in the Old
Testament, or for us to put on the yoke of legal religion, is to say that
Christ fulfilled nothing! Legalism is, in its essence, a denial of Christ’s
finished work as the sinners’ Substitute. That was the reason for Paul’s strong
denunciation of Peter’s behavior at Antioch. With those things in mind, I want
us now to look at the last paragraph of Mark chapter two together.
Mark 2:23-28 "And it came
to pass, that he went through the corn fields on the sabbath day; and his
disciples began, as they went, to pluck the ears of corn. (24) And the Pharisees said unto him, Behold, why do they on the
sabbath day that which is not lawful?
(25) And he said unto them, Have ye never read what David did, when he had
need, and was an hungred, he, and they that were with him? (26) How he went into the house of God in the days of Abiathar the
high priest, and did eat the showered, which is not lawful to eat but for the
priests, and gave also to them which were with him? (27) And he said unto them, The sabbath was made for man, and not
man for the sabbath: (28) Therefore
the Son of man is Lord also of the sabbath."
We have before us a remarkable scene in the earthly life and
ministry of our Lord Jesus Christ. It was early in the morning on Saturday, the
sabbath day, the appointed day of worship for the Jews in the Old Testament.
Our Lord Jesus and his disciples were, in all likelihood, on their way to a
place of public worship. As they walked to the place of worship, they passed
through a field of corn. As they walked along, the disciples began to pick a
few ears. They rubbed it in their hands, I presume, to get the grain out and
soften it up a little.
To them, it was a totally insignificant thing. They made no
attempt to hide or cover their actions because they never gave the matter a
thought. But when the Pharisees saw the Lord’s disciples picking corn on the sabbath
day, they jumped on them like a duck on a june-bug. Immediately, they accused
them to the Lord, as if they had committed some terribly evil moral offense.
“Why do they
on the sabbath day that which is not lawful?”
The answer our Master gave to these self-righteous, work mongers is full of
wise instruction for our souls. Let us study the passage with care and lay its
teachings to heart.
As we go through these verses
together, I want to show you four
important lessons. May God the Holy Spirit now take the things of Christ
and apply them to our hearts. If you are taking notes, the title of my message
tonight is The Lord of the Sabbath.
Proposition: As
we shall see in the Word of God tonight, Christ who is our Sabbath is the Lord
of the sabbath, was the Instituter of the sabbath, the Fulfiller of the
sabbath, and the Terminator of the sabbath.
I.
The first
thing we must see in these verses is the fact that SELF-RIGHTEOUS, RELIGIOUS LEGALISTS ARE ALWAYS QUICK TO SPOT AND POINT
THE FAULTS OF OTHERS.
Mark 2:23-24 "And it came
to pass, that he went through the corn fields on the sabbath day; and his
disciples began, as they went, to pluck the ears of corn. (24) And the Pharisees said unto him, Behold, why do they on the
sabbath day that which is not lawful?"
These Pharisees represent the very
worst of religious men. They were mere ceremonialists and legalists. They
cherished the outward shell and show of religion. They loved it so much that
they added laws to the laws given by God to Moses and ceremonies to God’s
appointed symbolic and typical ceremonies.
Their godliness was all form and
formality, creed and custom. For them washings and fastings, tithings and forms
of prayers, pageantry and ceremonies were holiness. Their godliness was all
bodily exercise and will worship. They knew absolutely nothing of repentance,
faith, and mercy.
Our Lord told them plainly that if
they had known anything of true godliness, they would not have condemned the
guiltless.
Matthew 12:7 "But if ye had
known what this meaneth, I will have
mercy, and not sacrifice, ye would not have condemned the guiltless."
People who have obtained mercy are
merciful. Those who have experienced forgiveness are forgiving. Those who know
grace are gracious.
The fact is, the disciples had done
nothing wrong. The Savior said they were guiltless in doing what they did. The
Pharisees simply presumed that since it was commonly thought to be wrong, since
it broke their traditions, it was horribly wrong.
Let us watch and pray, lest we fall
into the wickedness of the Pharisees. The leaven of the Pharisees, which our
Lord warned us to beware of, is that subtle self-righteousness that makes
sinners think they are righteous because of what they do and do not do!
·
Only self-righteous
Pharisees and legalists spy on one another!
·
Only self-righteous
Pharisees and legalists are quick to point out the faults and offenses of
others.
·
Only self-righteous
Pharisees and legalists seek to regulate the lives of others.
II.
The second
thing I want us to see from this passage is the fact that, as believers, WE SHOULD ALWAYS BE ABLE TO DEFEND OUR
DOCTRINE AND OUR BEHAVIOR FROM THE WORD OF GOD.
Our Lord’s reply to these carping
Pharisees was taken directly from the Word of God. He was so thoroughly
familiar with the Holy Scriptures that he had the Word of God at his finger
tips. I realize that he is the Author as well as the Subject of this Book. Yet,
his example here, as always, is a pattern for us to follow. He defended his
disciples and defended them in their behavior from the Word of God.
Mark 2:25-26 "And he said
unto them, Have ye never read what David did, when he had need, and was an
hungred, he, and they that were with him?
(26) How he went into the house of God in the days of Abiathar the high
priest, and did eat the showbread, which is not lawful to eat but for the
priests, and gave also to them which were with him?"
In spiritual and doctrinal matters
nothing is so powerful a defense, nothing is so powerful a weapon to stop the
mouths of gainsayers as the plain texts of Scripture, where the meaning so
obvious that it cannot be mistaken.
A. In all points
of doctrine and behavior, our only authority, our only basis of conduct is the
inspired Word of God.
In spiritual matters, we have no right to believe or do
anything for which we are not able to point to the Word of God and say, “This
is why!” We ought to be able to
comfortably show from the Word of God…
·
The Reason of Our
Hope.
·
The Reason for Our
Doctrine.
·
The Reason for Our
Ordinances.
B. The only way
we will be able to use the Word of God this way is by making ourselves
personally acquainted with its contents.
Do not be content with secondhand
knowledge and secondhand religion. Study the Word of God for yourself. Read it
diligently, perseveringly, and prayerfully, carefully comparing scripture with
scripture.
John 5:39 "Search the
scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which
testify of me."
2 Timothy 2:15 "Study to show
thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly
dividing the word of truth."
“There is no royal road to the
knowledge of the Bible. It does not come to man by intuition. The book must be
studied, pondered, prayed over, searched into, and not left always lying on a
shelf, or carelessly looked at now and then.” J.C. Ryle
III. A third thing that may be observed from this passage is the
fact that APPARENT DISCREPANCIES IN THE
WORD OF GOD ARE EASILY CLEARED WHEN THOUGHTFULLY CONSIDERED.
You may or may not have noticed that Mark identifies the
High Priest in David’s day as a man named Abiathar, while in the book of 1
Samuel, he is called Ahimelech (1 Sam. 21:6). You my have missed, simply
because you do not look for discrepancies in this blessed Book. I assure you,
others have made much over this. The Jewish theologians and the liberals, which
seem to abound in all ages, as well as the skeptics of the world who look for
an excuse for their skepticism, point to this text and say, …
“There, you see, Mark goofed up How can you say the Bible is
the inspired, inerrant Word of God, when it contains such errors?”
A. Let me assure
you first that these apparent
discrepancies in the Word of God are not accidental.
This Book is deliberately written to
confuse rebels who will not bow to Christ. For those who are determined to go
to hell, who are too smart to live by faith, too sophisticated to trust a
crucified Substitute, God has put plenty of stumbling stones in the road to
keep them tripped up. When God sends blindness, he sends total blindness.
B. Yet, that
which seems a discrepancy to the infidel is easily cleared for the believer.
There are two very likely reasons why Mark and Samuel may
have used different names in their accounts of David going into the house of
the High Priest and eating the show bread.
1.
Perhaps there were, as was sometimes the case, two men
serving as the High Priest at that time.
2 Samuel 8:17 "And Zadok the
son of Ahitub, and Ahimelech the son of Abiathar, were the priests; and Seraiah was
the scribe."
If that were the case, both may well
have acted together in providing the show bread to David and his men. It would
be altogether proper, when describing the matter to use either name.
2.
What is, in my opinion, most likely is that Ahimelech had a
second name, by which he was commonly called, Abiathar.
IV. The fourth thing revealed in our text is the fact that CHRIST OUR SAVIOR IS THE LORD OF THE
SABBATH.
Mark 2:27-28 "And he said
unto them, The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath: (28) Therefore the Son of man is Lord
also of the sabbath."
There is a great depth of spiritual
truth in these two verses, truths that simply must be understood and remembered
by us. They are set before us in three, crystal clear, simple statements. I do
not doubt that neither the Pharisees nor the Lord’s disciples understood them
at the time. But there is no reason for confusion in these matters today. The
Holy Spirit has now taken the things of Christ and shown their meaning in the
Apostolic Epistles. Let’s look at these three statements, one by one.
A. “The sabbath
was made for man.”
Theologians, commentators, and preachers labor, and dig, and
study, and work real hard to make that statement seem confusing. It is not
confusing at all.
When God established the sabbath day,
he established it for the benefit of man. It was made to help, not to hurt,
man. God instituted the sabbath observance of the Old Testament for exactly the
same reason he instituted the temple, the priesthood, and the sacrifices of
that typical age. He did it to portray to man the way of salvation and life by
faith in Christ.
Just as a man, in keeping the sabbath,
ceased from his own works, trusting God to provide everything he needed, so we
come to Christ, ceasing from our own works, trusting him alone for everything.
Resting in him, we keep the sabbath of faith!
Matthew 11:28-30 "Come unto me,
all ye that labour and are heavy
laden, and I will give you rest. (29) Take
my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye
shall find rest unto your souls. (30) For
my yoke is easy, and my burden is
light."
Hebrews 4:7-10 "Again, he
limiteth a certain day, saying in David, To day, after so long a time; as it is
said, To day if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts. (8) For if Jesus had given them rest,
then would he not afterward have spoken of another day. (9) There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God. (10) For he that is entered into his
rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did from his."
Note: When our Lord says the sabbath was made for man, we must
never imagine that it was made for all men. The Scriptures are explicitly clear
in telling us that the sabbath was made for the Jews of the Mosaic
dispensation. It was never given to or required of Gentiles.
Exodus 31:16-17 "Wherefore the
children of Israel shall keep the sabbath, to observe the sabbath throughout
their generations, for a perpetual
covenant. (17) It is a sign between me and the children of
Israel for ever: for in six days the
LORD made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day he rested, and was
refreshed."
Not only did the ancient Jews never
require Gentiles to keep the sabbath, they positively forbade sabbath day
observance by Gentiles[1].
B. Man was not
made for the sabbath.
Though the Lord God himself kept a sabbath of rest after
creating the heavens and the earth, he never required it of anyone until the
law was given to Moses and the children of Israel at Sinai.
Understand the meaning of this. Men
and women worshipped and served God for hundreds, even thousands of years,
without being under laws of sabbath keeping, or any other form of law for that
matter.
·
Enoch walked with
God; but he never kept a sabbath day.
·
Noah was a righteous
man; but he never observed a sabbath.
·
Abraham was the
friend of God; but he never kept a sabbath day.
C. Christ is the
Lord of the sabbath.
Mark 2:28 "Therefore the
Son of man is Lord also of the sabbath."
The simple, clear, and obvious meaning
of this last sentence is that he who is
the Christ of God, instituted the sabbath, fulfilled the sabbath, dispensed
with the sabbath, and abrogated the sabbath, in exactly the same way and to
exactly the same degree as he did all the other carnal ordinances, rituals, and
ceremonies of the legal dispensation.
Perhaps you are saying to yourself,
“If that is the case, then we ought never keep a legal, ceremonial sabbath
day.” If so, you are exactly right. Sabbath
day observance is expressly and positively forbidden in the New Testament, just
as much so as Passover observance.
Galatians 4:10-11 "Ye observe
days, and months, and times, and years.
(11) I am afraid of you, lest I have bestowed upon you labour in
vain."
Colossians 2:16-17 "Let no man
therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of
the new moon, or of the sabbath days:
(17) Which are a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ."
As we have seen already, sabbath observance was never
binding upon Gentiles. “And believers in Christ,” wrote John Gill, “be they who
they will are by no means obliged to it, nor ought they to observe it. Should
it be imposed upon them, they ought to reject it. Should they be judged,
censored, and condemned for so doing, they ought not to mind it.”
Application:
Christ, who is the Lord of the sabbath
is himself our Sabbath. We keep no sabbath but the sabbath of faith. We do so
because this is what our God requires of us.
Not only are we free from the law in
Christ, it is our responsibility to live as free men and women in him. To do
otherwise is to deny his finished work as our Substitute, Redeemer, and Savior.
Romans 10:4 "For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness
to every one that believeth."
Galatians 5:1-4 "Stand fast
therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not
entangled again with the yoke of bondage.
(2) Behold, I Paul say unto you, that if ye be circumcised, Christ shall
profit you nothing. (3) For I testify
again to every man that is circumcised, that he is a debtor to do the whole law. (4) Christ is become of no effect unto
you, whosoever of you are justified by the law; ye are fallen from grace."
Amen.
[1] The Jerusalem Council’s recommendations said nothing about sabbath day observance (Acts 15). If ever the practice of sabbath keeping was to be imposed upon Gentiles that is the place where it would have been done.