Jesus Unmasked: The Truth Will Shock You (13 page)

WWF Smackdown

The scene you are about to witness is a veritable cage match.

The Jewish leaders had turned God’s system of grace into such a burden that the Jews must have dreaded their day off. Immediately after Jesus announced that His “burden was easy and His yoke light,” Matthew shares this encounter, and it is a serous smackdown.

In one corner, the self-righteous religious experts. In the other corner, Jesus.

At that time Jesus went through the grainfields on the
Sabbath
, and His disciples became hungry and began to
pick the heads
of grain
and eat.
But when the Pharisees saw
this
, they said to Him, “Look, Your disciples do what is
not lawful
to do on a Sabbath.”

But He said to them, “
Have you not read
what David did when he became hungry, he and his companions,
how he entered the house of God, and they ate the consecrated bread, which was
not lawful
for him to eat nor for those with him, but for the priests alone?
Or
have you not read
in the Law, that on the
Sabbath
the priests in the temple break the
Sabbath
and are innocent?

“But I say to you that
something greater
than the temple is here.
But
if you had known
what this means, ‘I desire compassion, and not a sacrifice,’ you would not have condemned the innocent.

“For the Son of Man is
Lord of the Sabbath
” (Matt. 12:1–8).

Kaboom! That was a pile driver. Jesus didn’t just cross a line, He sprinted over it and then pointed back at the Pharisees, the teachers of the Law, and said, “You don’t know your Bibles!”

1. Jesus had not broken a biblical Law, but a man-made religious rule.

2. The Bible actually approved of gleaning wheat when you were hungry (Deut. 23:25).

3. Jesus used King David as an example of eating the temple bread when he was starving to teach that the Sabbath was not supposed to be a yoke, but a blessing.

4. This is the biggie; Jesus proclaimed that He is the “Lord of the Sabbath.” Kerpow!

Do You Remember That Verse?

Perhaps the foundational verse in the Bible that teaches Old Testament people, places, and things can be types and shadows of Jesus is Colossians 2:16–17.

Therefore do not let anyone judge you by what you eat or drink, or with regard to a religious festival, a New Moon celebration or a
Sabbath day
.
These are a shadow of the things that were to come;
the reality, however, is found in Christ
(NIV).

When Jesus told the Pharisees that He is the “Lord of the Sabbath,” He was basically saying, “The Old Testament Sabbath is a picture of ME! Don’t you read the Scriptures?”

How much of a smack to the kisser was that? They responded by plotting to kill Him. They were not just mad, they were insulted, humiliated, and infuriated. The so-called “Teachers of the Law” revealed they didn’t understand the Law at all.

What Is the Sabbath?

Pastor R.W. Glenn, affectionately known as Pastor SmartyPants, gives a vivid illustration of what the Old Testament Sabbath is.
2

If you throw a plate at your wife during an argument, you are in big trouble. But if you take off your wedding ring and whip it at her, you are in the doghouse. Why? Because your wedding ring is a symbol of your covenant to “love and cherish her ’til death do you part.”

To throw your wedding ring at your spouse is to spurn your covenant.

The Old Testament Sabbath is like your wedding ring; it is a symbol of the Mosaic covenant between God and His people. To break the Sabbath was to defile the thing it represents, Israel’s covenant relationship with God.

To break the Sabbath was like burning the flag. To break the Sabbath was to spurn God and all He had done for Israel. To break the Sabbath was akin to asking God for a divorce. That is why the death sentence was prescribed for violating the Sabbath (Exod. 31:12–17).

When Was the Sabbath Initiated?

The Sabbath did not start at Sinai when Moses received the Ten Commandments. The Sabbath was initiated at creation.

>
Days 1–5:
God made all the stuff: the earth, planets, water, trees, vegetation.

>
Day 6:
God made all the animals without a spirit: fish, fowl, animals, reptiles.

>
Day 6:
The last thing God made was human beings in His image with an eternal soul.

As the week progressed, the value of the things created increased from inanimate to animate; from without a soul to soul-bearing human beings. A plant has more value than a rock. A dog has more value than a plant, and a human has more value than every created thing. Share that with a PETA member and watch their head explode.

>
Day 7:
God rests.

Wait a second, if the creation week advanced in importance, the formula seems to collapse on day 7. How could “God rests” on day 7 be better than His creation of little ol’ us on day 6? For the very same reason: the creation week was advancing in order of importance.

As special as humans are (and we are), the culmination of the creation week was not the creation of man, but God resting and enjoying Himself and His work. On the seventh day, God rested and exulted in the glory of His labors. The entire creation week was moving toward a goal of rest, contemplation, and enjoyment of God.

Exodus 20

Two millennia after creation, the Jews were wandering around the dessert like the husband of a Black Friday shopper at the mega-mall when God gave Moses the Ten Commandments. Here is commandment number four:

Remember the
sabbath day
, to keep it holy.
Six days you shall
labor
and do all your
work
,
but the seventh day is a sabbath of the
Lord
your God; in it you shall
not do any work
, you or your son or your daughter, your male or your female servant or your cattle or your sojourner who stays with you.
For in six days
the
Lord
made
the heavens and the earth, the sea and all that is in them, and
rested
on the seventh day;
therefore
the
Lord
blessed the sabbath day and made it holy (Exod. 20:8–11).

In their corporate lives, the Jews were to work for six days then rest and enjoy God for one day, just like God did at creation. For six days, the Jews did back-breaking labor and rested for one day and focused on God. Then back to work.

Rinse and repeat.

Rinse and repeat.

Rinse and repeat.

This cycle was relentless. Work, rest. Work, rest. Work, rest. In a very tangible way, the Jews were reminded every week that a permanent rest is coming.

Jesus Is the Lord of the Sabbath

Enter Jesus, who announced that the Sabbath was merely a shadowy picture of Himself; He is the Lord of the Sabbath. He invited the Jews to rest from their work righteous efforts to earn God’s favor and REST IN HIM. When a person rests in Jesus and His accomplishments, every second of every day is a Sabbath rest.

So there remains
a Sabbath rest for the people of God
.
For the one who has
entered His rest
has himself also
rested from his works
, as God did from His (
Heb. 4:9–10).

Every religious system in the world besides Christianity demands, “Work.” Jesus invites you to rest. The God whom you have offended kept every law you have broken and now He bids you to stop trying to work your way to heaven and rest in Him. Have you ever had a better offer?

Other world religions demand, “Do!” Jesus proclaims, “Done.”

What About the Ten Commandments?

Perhaps you are wondering about the Ten Commandments. If we don’t have to “keep the Sabbath,” isn’t that a violation of one of the Big Ten? Great question.

The Book of Hebrews makes it clear, the old covenant is gone. Kaput. Blotto. Finished.

For
if
that
first
covenant had been faultless, there would have been no occasion sought for a
second
.
For finding fault with them, He says,

“
Behold, days are coming, says the Lord
,

When I will effect
a
new covenant

With the house of Israel and with the house of Judah
;

Not like the covenant which I made with their fathers

On the day when I took them by the hand

To lead them out of the land of Egypt
;

For
they did not
continue in My covenant
,

And I did not care for them,” says the Lord
. . . .

“
For I will be merciful to their iniquities
,

And I will remember their sins
no more
.”

When He said, “A new covenant,” He has
made the first obsolete
. But whatever is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to disappear (Heb. 8:7–13).

The old covenant is no longer in affect. We have a new and better covenant purchased and mediated by Jesus Christ. That does not mean we forget the lessons, principles, and theology of the old covenant, but it is no longer in effect. It has no power over us.

So what do we do with the Ten Commandments? We keep nine out of ten of them. Why? Because nine of the Ten Commandments are reiterated in the New Testament. The only commandment that does not reappear in the new covenant is . . . you guessed it, the fourth commandment to keep the Sabbath holy.

What About Church?

Perhaps you are wondering about church. If we don’t have to “keep the Sabbath,” then why do we go to church on Sunday? Another great question.

We go to church because we are commanded to not forsake “our own assembling together” (Heb. 10:25). We choose to gather on Sunday, the day Jesus rose from the dead, because that is the day the early Church gathered and we have maintained that pattern to this day (Acts 20:7; 1 Cor. 16:2).

We don’t go to church on Saturday because that was merely a picture of the greater rest that Jesus secured when He rose from the dead on Easter Sunday.

Ultimately, as long as you assemble to hear the Word, celebrate the Lord’s Supper and baptisms, pray, worship, and practice church discipline if necessary, it does not matter what day you gather because every day is a day of rest for the Christian.

How Light Is Jesus’ Yoke?

Jesus’ yoke is so light that most people hate Him for it.

Our natural, self-righteous propensity is to think we can earn God’s favor by doing good deeds, just like the Pharisees. Jesus smashes that notion when He says, “I will give YOU rest” (Matt. 11:28; emphasis added). You can’t do it. Your best efforts are so rotten they only contribute to your condemnation. Your best days are not even close to being good enough.

Jesus Christ is a “stumbling block” (1 Cor.1:23) and “a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense” (1 Pet.2:8), because He crushes our self-righteous pride by declaring us entirely unable to contribute anything to our redemption. Most hate that and hate Him because of it. We like to work for our salvation.

All roads that claim to lead to God are an uphill climb. Jesus has paved the way for you to be totally and completely forgiven. It is hard to imagine that He would go through unimaginable effort to purchase your forgiveness yet permit you to pick a work-righteous system to climb your way into His presence.

“God Resists the Proud”

Are you still trying to somehow please God through your “good deeds”? Is Jesus still a stumbling block to you because you hate the idea of having to receive total mercy?

Is your opinion of yourself so high? Do you not see how misplaced your trust in yourself is? Will you cling to your pride and your works when Jesus offers you complete and total rest?

Here Him appeal to you now:

“God is opposed to the
proud, but gives grace to the humble.”
Submit
therefore to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.
Draw near to God and He will draw near to you.
Cleanse
your hands,
you sinners
; and purify your hearts, you double-minded.
Be miserable and
mourn
and weep [for yourself and for your sins]; let your laughter be turned into mourning and your joy to gloom.
Humble yourselves
in the presence of the Lord, and He will exalt you (James 4:6–10).

Are you tired of striving? Are you are exhausted from working? Are you weary and heavy laden with guilt?

Lose your pride. Lay down your good works. Run to Jesus, the Lord of the Sabbath. He will give you rest.