The Lord of the Sabbath
For the Son of man is Lord even of the sabbath day. Matthew 12:8
Read Mark 2:23-28
The words of our text do not mean that the Lord Jesus was putting the Sabbath aside. Instead, He sought to reveal what the true keeping of the Sabbath means. Christ is Lord of the Sabbath. As the Son of Man, He has power over the Sabbath, which means that He determines what may and may not be done on the Sabbath. When Christ Jesus approved of something, the Pharisees were in no position to condemn it.
Christ honoured the Sabbath: He went to the synagogue on the Sabbath; He showed mercy and kindness on that day; He healed the sick on the Sabbath. Just think of the paralyzed man who laid on a mat for thirty-eight years by the Pool of Bethesda—Christ healed him on the Sabbath! In Mark 2:27, we read that the Sabbath was made for man and not man for the Sabbath. The Sabbath has been given that man might experience rest. The Lord’s main work on the Sabbath consisted of preaching. In Matthew 12, He revealed that works of necessity and mercy are not forbidden on the Sabbath either.
This is also true of our Sunday. It is wrong to condemn others who perform works of necessity: farmers need to feed and milk their cattle; doctors and nurses take care of the sick; the elderly and the weak also need special attention on Sundays. We would be very uncaring and unmerciful if we would deny care to those who require it on the Lord’s Day.
Thought: The Lord’s Day is God’s work day.
Psalter 71:3,5 (based on Psalm 27) My one request has been, And still this prayer I raise, That I may dwell within God’s house through all my days, Jehovah’s beauty to admire, And in His temple to inquire. Uplifted on a rock Above my foes around, Amid the battle shock My song shall still resound; Then joyful offerings I will bring, Jehovah’s praise my heart shall sing.