Lord of the Sabbath

Jesus’ short summary of the Sabbath provision is important, “He said to them, The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath” (Mark 2:27,28). Jesus declared what we discover from looking at the Old Testament: God provided the Sabbath to confer benefits on anyone who was oppressed – it was made for man. How could the Pharisees have witnessed the great works Jesus did - healing the sick and bringing relief to the poor and hungry - and not appreciate that the real essence of the Sabbath could be seen in his devotion to his Father’s will and in the concern for his fellow men? “Come to me, all who labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest” (Matt.11:29). Truly he was “Lord of the Sabbath”.

Just as God had brought the nation of Israel out of Egypt and released them from slavery, the Bible describes how Jesus, by destroying in himself the power of sinful desires, has opened up a way for men and women to have their own sins forgiven, and ultimately to be released from the grip of mortality.

Many aspects of the law given through Moses looked forward to this work of Christ: the tabernacle, the sacrifices and the priests, for example, but so did the Sabbath. It should have taught the Jewish nation of God’s concern for his people and of the blessings He wished to shower upon them. The apostle Paul described it like this, “The law was a schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ …but after that faith is come we are no longer under a schoolmaster” Gal.3:24-25.

The law taught a lesson about God’s purpose through Christ. If the lesson has been understood and adopted, the work of the law is complete. The Sabbath was a weekly reminder of the release from Egypt. Followers of Christ are now commanded to remember the release he has achieved on their behalf. Shortly before his crucifixion, Jesus ate a meal with his disciples and imparted a fuller meaning to the bread and wine they shared. The bread, he said, was representative of his body, wholly given to God to bring salvation to his friends. The wine was like his blood shed for them for the forgiveness of sins, “this do,” he told them, “in remembrance of me.” Commenting on this, the apostle Paul explained that, “as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes” (Luke 22:19, 1 Cor.11:26).

No wonder Paul was so upset that some of those to whom he had taught the good news about Christ were insisting that the Sabbath (and all the other parts of the Jewish religious calendar), had to be observed. “Now that you have come to know God… how can you turn back again? You observe days and months and seasons and years! I am afraid I have laboured over you in vain” Gal.4:9,10. Not that following these aspects of the law was wrong, but insisting that all Christian believers should do so, ignored what Jesus himself had taught. Paul explained that what had earlier been imposed nationally on the Jews, since Christ had come was now a matter for the individual. One man esteems one day as better than another, while another man esteems all days alike. Rom.14:5-9.

Bro. Maxwell Choongo (Kafue, Zambia)