Jesus, Breaking Rules to Show His Rule
[23] One Sabbath he was going through the grainfields, and as they made their way, his disciples began to pluck heads of grain. [24] And the Pharisees were saying to him, “Look, why are they doing what is not lawful on the Sabbath?” [25] And he said to them, “Have you never read what David did, when he was in need and was hungry, he and those who were with him: [26] how he entered the house of God, in the time of Abiathar the high priest, and ate the bread of the Presence, which it is not lawful for any but the priests to eat, and also gave it to those who were with him?” [27] And he said to them, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. [28] So the Son of Man is lord even of the Sabbath.” Mark 2:23–28 ESV
Jesus and the disciples are out doing their thing, traveling from town to town, sleeping out wherever they can, and eating whatever they are able to find. The Pharisees may be following them here, or maybe they cut them off while they were passing by. They couldn’t be far from home, because there was a Sabbath day limit to how far away from your home you could walk. (Many of them got around that by hanging a jar of their dirt from their neck so they were never far from their property!)
The disciples are hungry, so they grab some wheat and pop down a few handfuls while they walk. Not only did they not wash their hands (which was a law) and steal (but travelers were allowed to snack on field crops) but they also harvested and prepared this food on the Sabbath when they were supposed to be resting. At this point, when accused, Peter could have started shouting excuses and John could have rolled his eyes and given them a hug, but Jesus does the talking.
“Have you never read what David did, when he was in need and was hungry, he and those who were with him”
For one thing, it’s awesome that JESUS is the one doing the justifying. We do not need to justify our own actions, and it usually never turns out well when we do. “I was just…” is not a good way to start a sentence, because it’s a big red flag that you are trying to talk yourself out of trouble.
Look at what Jesus is referring to. Every time Jesus quotes something from the Old Testament, He is putting His actions and activities in the context of the thing that was going on with what He quoted. “We’re picking grain in a field on the Sabbath just like David ate the show-bread with Abiathar the high priest.”
You can’t play it all out, but a lot of it fits.
We are about to usher in a new king with a new form of kingdom
The law is respected, but exceptions are made for the sake of the Lord
No one would criticize Abiathar the High Priest for giving David that bread, because they respected his authority, and the Pharisees will grow and learn a lot more if they would just respect and listen to Jesus.
David and his men were on a mission and Jesus equates the importance of David’s mission to the importance of His own mission.
When do we find ourselves judging others for breaking some rules? Are the rules more important than the people breaking them?
When caught breaking rules ourselves, or caught up in sin and feeling condemned, who do we turn to be made right? Who is the justifier?