One of the strange things among those who follow Jesus Christ is that they do not know much about God. That is a strange thing because God is the central character of the Bible. Yet, the typical believer in Jesus Christ does not turn to the Bible to determine God's nature, character, or values. Most people are more likely to entrust their convictions about God to an authority figure, or to form convictions about God based on what "my family always has believed," or to form concepts and understandings on deductions they individually make.
A common view of God is to have no view of God. It is not unusual for a person's view of God to be helter-skelter, disorganized, and inconsistent. The result: we often find ourselves contradicting ourselves and never noticing the contradictions. We impose our disorganized views on God as we assume He is as disorganized in action as we are in our views. We expect little of God--just the right to fuss at Him when we are confused or unhappy or to dismiss Him when we regard Him to be "in our way." To many, God is easily rationalized and more easily dismissed. Basically we want God to be on call when we perceive we need Him but out of our way when we perceive we do not need Him.
Is God an easy topic to study? NO! Is He an important being to understand? YES!
Let Matthew 12:1-8 illustrate the above statements. Begin by understanding the context between Jesus' encounter with the Pharisee's and Sabbath day regulations. Jesus often was criticized by religious leaders for violating Sabbath day regulations (see Matthew 12:9-14; Mark 3:1-6; Luke 13:10-17; 14:1-6; John 5:1-13; 7:14-24; 9:13-16).
The Pharisees' criticism was based on their understanding of Exodus 20:8-11. The injunction is on keeping the Sabbath day (Saturday) holy by not working. The devout Jew was not permitted to allow his children, his servants, or his animals to perform acts of work on the Sabbath. The reason: God created for six days and rested. Later, the Jewish people were considered lazy because they would not work on Saturday. (The Jews measured a day from evening to evening. A Sabbath began at 6 p.m. on Friday and continued to 6 p.m. on Saturday.)
A definition of work was not included in the original injunction. What constituted an act of work? The Mishna is commonly regarded to reflect or be based on accepted Jewish practices in the first century. In the second division called Moed, in the section called Shabbath, in chapter 7, verse 2, thirty-nine main classes of work are listed. Shabbath interpreted Exodus 20:8-11 so devout Jews could know what should and should not be done on a Sabbath. The intent was to make the Sabbath law obeyable.
The problem: the definition reflects accepted human judgment, not divine judgment. People's faith in God was determined by human judgment. While the original intent was good, the traditions that occurred years later did not reflect God's intent. Technical compliance with human values replaced a devotion to God's purposes.
According to The Mishna classification of main classes of work, Jesus likely was accused of violating the Sabbath by permitting the 12 disciples to "reap." What the disciples did was strip raw, ripe grain from wheat or barley stalks growing by the path. They ate the raw grain.
Jesus responded to the Pharisees' criticism with two illustrations. The first involved King David's life (prior to his being king) found in 1 Samuel 21. As David fled from King Saul, he asked Ahimelech the priest for bread. The only bread available was the consecrated bread which Ahimelech gave David. The instructions for making and the use of this bread are found in Leviticus 24:5-9. Only the priests were to eat it. Yet, David ate it and was not condemned.
The second illustration involved offering sacrifices. Sacrifices involved a lot of work! Yet, the priests offered sacrifices every Sabbath day and were regarded as innocent of Sabbath violations. The priests preparing and offering sacrifices worked on the Sabbath, but the Pharisees did not condemn them.
Jesus said (1) they were inconsistent in applying God's injunction against work, and (2) they did not take into consideration everything revealed in scripture.
Jesus then appealed directly to scripture to focus on God's values. He quoted Hosea 6:6. Jesus did not say sacrifice was unimportant to God. It clearly was (consider Leviticus chapters 1-7 as an example). Jesus said, in God's value system, showing mercy (which we all depend on) is more important than offering sacrifices. Because the Pharisees did not understand this, they condemned the innocent.
Would we use a quotation from a minor prophet to verify the value system of God? Perhaps a statement from Exodus. Perhaps a Deuteronomy statement. But from Hosea? Jesus taught we should take into account all revealed about God, not just scriptures that defend our human point of view.
Lastly, Jesus asked and answered a question that most humans never mention. Are God's commands for human benefit, or do humans exist to benefit God's commands? Jesus said he was greater than the Sabbath. He was and is the ultimate fulfillment of God's intent and purposes.
God has values. He expresses those values in the way He treats us. We must focus on His values rather than human desires.
For Thought and Discussion
Link to Teacher's Guide
Lesson 2