Yesterday we explored a story about Jesus and his followers eating grain in the fields on a Saturday, a day of rest, and getting in trouble from the religious authorities. In his response, Jesus referred to one of the great heroes of the Jewish faith, David, who ate holy bread in the temple when he was starving. He mentions the story, and lets the religious authorities do what they do best – argue about God while God is standing right there. He asks them why David got away with eating holy bread, since David was never condemned for eating it.
This story illustrates Jesus’ approach to two kinds of law. There is God’s law given at creation about the Sabbath: rest on the seventh day…period. That stands, and that’s actually what Jesus is about – giving us eternal rest, even today. But there is also the ritual/Sabbath/ceremonial law that is built on top of the basic commandment at creation. Think of it like scaffolding around a structure to help build it – it can be very helpful in following God’s law. But we don’t want to let it obscure God’s original purpose and law. This scaffolding is a reality of our sin or rebellion from God. Our hearts don’t naturally follow God’s law anymore, and so we need these additional structures. But, don’t forget they are provisional…until something comes along and makes them obsolete
Then Jesus comes along and says, “I am Lord of the Sabbath.”
He claims to be God, and gives an invitation to find rest in him, and to stop wrestling with sin and other sinful realities around us, to stop wrestling with ourselves, and just rest in him as he fights those battles.
Claims like this got him in trouble with the Pharisees and Scribes, and eventually their urging that he be killed. But in doing, they made him Lord of the Sabbath…exactly what he’d said.
On the cross, he is restless for us – huge work. He takes on the restlessness of our sin and because of that, we can rest, not on our work overcoming sin and brokenness in our lives, but on his work.
We see him showing that the day of rest, the Sabbath, isn’t the point, just as the temple bread wasn’t the point. God is the point. Resting in God is the point. We’ll see how tomorrow.
Question: Why do you think Jesus’ claims were so offensive to the religious legalists?
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CloseRyan Sim - July 18, 2013
Thursday - Act On It - Originality
![Sermon on the Mount](https://www.redeemthecommute.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/Sermon-on-the-mount-square-.jpg)
There is some teaching, especially when it's unoriginal and shallow, that you can take under advisement. You can simply say, "That’s interesting" and then move on with your life. We read stuff like this all the time. Magazine articles. Newspaper. Blogs. Facebook posts. Some people are very skilled at rehashing other people’s research in entertaining and interesting ways. I often read things that are of little value to me. They're just interesting, and not going to change my life. I hope the Sermon on the Mount we've been studying is not that way for you. We saw last week – hearing and living these words is like building upon a stone foundation for life. Hearing and ignoring these words is like building on a sand foundation that washes away. How you hear the Sermon on the Mount is like the difference between a wedding announcement and invitation. With a wedding announcement in the newspaper or on Facebook, you say, "Oh, look, they’re getting married, how nice". An invitation is quite different, since it has your name on it. It’s for you. We want you to come. The Kingdom of heaven is often described as a party, and it would be a party with the most original, profound teacher ever at its centre. The very source of truth, wisdom is the attraction. His way of life would now be the only reality. The kingdom he’s been describing, would be there in living colour. He’s issued that invitation to you. Come to my kingdom, my celebration, my party. And this is not just a future reality, somewhere else. It’s something we are called to start practicing now, really living it out, to be ready for the full production . Life on earth is meant to be a practice party, and you’re invited. We're establishing a new church, or Christian community, in Ajax – and it will be built on the model of a party with Jesus at the center. It will be like nothing you've ever experienced before. We're planning our first party for this fall. Challenge: We're running a poll right now, that you can find in our app or here on our web site: http://bit.ly/15B2yry Tell us what kind of party you could RSVP to!
Related Topics: Authority, Jesus, Originality, Teaching | More Messages from Ryan Sim | Download Audio
From Series: "Sermon on the Mount"
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