Matthew 12:9-14
According to Matthew, this happens on the same Sabbath as his disciples picking grain. Jesus challenges the consciences of the synagogue rulers by asking questions and setting up scenarios. He points out the absurdities of their traditions: it is ok to rescue a sheep that fell into a pit but not ok to provide help and healing to a person. This healing seems to be the last straw for the Pharisees - as a result of Jesus breaking the Sabbath in this way, they go out and plot to kill him.
Talk about missing the point! Jesus is saying that humans are more important than laws and traditions. In another place he says that the sabbath was created to serve humans; humans weren't created to serve the sabbath. Jesus had just said that someone (meaning him) more important than the temple was present - if it's ok to break the Sabbath in service of the temple, it is ok to break the Sabbath in service of Christ. Now he is saying that someone (meaning humans in need) more important than sheep was present - if it is ok to break the Sabbath to rescue a sheep, it is ok to break the Sabbath to rescue a person.
I wonder how many times I have killed or supressed the work of God because it did not conform to my traditions and expectations. I wonder how many times I've missed helping people because I was caught up in my observance of holiness. We are a lot like the Pharisees in the way we teach our students to avoid evil - it's wrong to get drunk so you shouldn't drink and you shouldn't go anywhere drinking is happening and you shouldn't even hang out with people who maybe have ever had something to drink or might have gotten drunk at sometime in their past because that might tempt you to drink and you might get drunk. The layers of tradition that we've added to avoid breaking the rules have become rules themselves and we judge each other based on our ability to keep those rules. In the mean time there are blind, crippled, needy people at those parties living in darkness that are dying for the light but we're too afraid to take our light there because we might sin. We have become the Pharisees. Shouldn't we be teaching our students to take their light into the darkest places of this world, teaching them and showing them that they can trust the Spirit in them to keep them strong and from temptation and that they can trust the community of faith to which they belong to hold them accountable, to pray for them, to go with them to prevent them from falling as they go to shine their light? Isn't this what Jesus taught? Isn't this what Jesus did?
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1 comment:
Wow, these are really good insights, I appreciate them alot. It is so true that we set up rules so that we don't break a different rule. What are we afraid of, I agree that we live just like the Pharisees and we need to break that mold. May we take our light and shine it in dark corners and encourage others to do the same. Thanks for your insights Jer.
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