June 4
Mark 2:23-3:6
Jesus was perfect, right? Did He really break one of God’s own commandments? Well, no. When God gave Moses the commandments (Exodus 20) he did not give many specifics about what is prohibited on the Sabbath. However, throughout time the Jewish leaders had come up with so many rules and regulations about the Sabbath that it had become more of a burden than a blessing. Jesus may have broken some of the man made interpretations of God’s law, but He was really demonstrating the way God intended the Sabbath to be. “’Does the law permit good deeds on the Sabbath, or is it a day for doing evil? Is this a day to save life or to destroy it?’” (Mark 3:4 NLT) The Jewish leaders had turned God’s law into something so far from what it was meant to be. How many times have you heard someone manipulate scripture to make it mean what they want it to mean? How many times have you heard someone say something that sounds like scripture but is not in the bible? “Cleanliness is Godliness” and “God helps those who help themselves” come to mind. Jesus was the perfect Son of God, but that doesn’t mean He was concerned with following the laws set by people. “’For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways may ways’ declares the Lord.” (Isaiah 55:8 NIV) This doesn’t mean it’s ok to speed on the highway, or jaywalk across the street, but it does mean that our highest authority is God. We are not called to the ways of the world, but to the ways of our perfect and holy Lord.
Principle: Since Jesus is Lord of all, His followers need not be imprisoned by man-made interpretations of His laws.
Application:
1. How much of my thinking is dominated by man’s interpretation of God’s law? Do I see the law through the person of the Lord Jesus Christ?
2. Do I look for others’ faults rather than for the good in them?
3. How am I grieving Jesus by my hardness of heart?
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Anybody who loves rules more than they love people is a legalist. I'm a rule-follower. God has had to stretch me (a lot) to help me to understand that the greatest commandments (love God, love people) should not be trumped by religious rules. It's critical, of highest importance to distinguish God's moral law which never changes and traditions which do change. Stealing is not the same as wearing a hat in church. Jesus knew the difference.
ReplyDeleteIt's human nature, I guess, to want to "fine tune" God's word, to want to "tweak" things so they more neatly fit what we think they should be. I am reminded by today's study that the Bible is the source, not the Baptist Doctrine, not the countless commentaries we have on our shelves, and not everyone else who starts the discussion with "Well I think ...".
ReplyDeleteBTW, on a related note, here is a personal confession. It is a pet peeve of mine when we have groups of kids "pledge allegiance to the Christian flag". What is that all about and where did that come from?
I've been trying to post each day, but it won't let me. I'm a perfectionist, so a Pharisee by nature! I constantly have to remind myself of the love of Jesus that was extended to people before they made changes, in a way that wouldn't make the people he touched even THINK of doing any differently. Not by frowning at them sternly. I'm trying, Jesus.
ReplyDeleteI love this about Jesus. People were always more important than rules. I don't think He would have been very popular in religious circles today either.
ReplyDeleteOh, the pressure! I'm a rule-follower too, but I think I do a better job of letting others "break" the rules than I do letting myself break the rules. I get so upset with myself when I think I've not followed a rule exactly, and sometimes, this occurs because I didn't know about the rule in the first place. Other times, I stay awake at night thinking, "Oh, I should have done this...". So silly! It is for FREEDOM that I have been set free, and I'm learning how to live that freedom and not to put so much pressure on myself.
ReplyDeleteIt is also slightly amusing to me to think that so many people associate my faith with rules. Jesus broke the rules, and He didn't come to bring more rules but to make a way for those of us who couldn't follow all the rules. I'm so desperate for those around me to see this Jesus, the One and Onl, rule-breaker.
Um...that last line read ..."Jesus, the One and Only, a rule-breaker"...before I posted...wanted to get some of the rules of writing right...ha ha (No, I'm not really that amused with myself.)
ReplyDeleteI’m glad to see that someone else has had trouble posting! I am not computer savvy, and figured I was not going to be able to do this. Now I have hope! However, since I am writing this for a second time because the first one has gone somewhere ...! I know I am being tested! What hit me in today’s reading was in Mark 3:5. The Lord was "deeply distressed at their stubborn hearts" and it angered Him. I sure don't want to anger The Lord. When I know that He is telling me to do something (like this Bible study) and I come up with a million reasons why I don't have time right now, then the day is over and I have not done the most important thing, spending some time with God. I never thought of it as being stubborn before and certainly never thought of it as angering The Lord. Stubborn, probably so. Stupid, yes. Try harder, absolutely.
ReplyDeleteWell, I must confess that I am always looking at some of the silly rules that I must follow with work and trying to find a way to get around or bend them. Kind of like Jesus knowing the rule was off from the original purpose.
ReplyDeleteI too was stuck by the fact that Jesus was angered when the people did not see their hard hearts. It reminds me that I need to look to the word to find the real answers and rules that I need to follow.