Matt. 12:9-14; John 7:1-8, Sabbath and the Feasts

Today let’s think about Sabbaths and feasts, particularly in the time of Christ.  We of the New Covenant need to know something about these weekly and annual events in Israel.  What we will do today is not particularly deep.  We are about to spend a few days together talking about one particular feast.  So perhaps we can call this a little groundwork in preparation for what is coming.

First, briefly, we want to list the feasts in John’s Gospel.  This is valuable, so that you remember the context for the various stories, sermons and conversations as you study the book.

·       John 2:13-4:45: Passover (2:13).  So remember, the conversation with Nicodemus took place then.  And Jesus’ return home through Samaria was not with the crowds of pilgrims who would have taken the Jordan River route.

·       John 5:1-47: “a feast of the Jews” (2:13).  No one can be sure.  Many think it was a Passover but it apparently doesn’t matter that we know.

·       John 6: Passover was near (6:4).  That’s the backdrop for feeding the 5,000 and presenting Himself as the Bread of Life.

·       John 7:1-10:21: Feast of Tabernacles.  More on this in days to come.

·       John 10:22-42: Feast of Dedication.  John, by the Spirit, just continues Jesus’ teaching on Himself as the Good Shepherd.  The same topic raised during Tabernacles came up again a couple months later at Dedication or Hanukkah, which celebrated the rededication of the temple in the time of the Maccabees.

·       Which brings us to “six days before Passover” (Jn. 12:1, Jesus anointed by Mary) and then “before the feast of the Passover” (13:1) and the Last Supper, Gethsemane, Crucifixion and Resurrection.  It is not mentioned in John or any of the Gospels but the resurrection was on the Feast of Firstfruits, during Feast of Unleavened Bread.

Second, let’s talk about the nature of the Sabbath.  In Jesus’ ministry the “Sabbath controversies” were some of the most explosive events with the Jewish leadership.  Jesus had a different view of the Sabbath.  But Jesus’ view was that of the Torah while the Jews created a whole system that ruined what God intended. 

There was a difference between activity and work.  On the Sabbath people were required, if you will, to rest and enjoy the blessing of the 6 days of work.  Two OT illustrations will show this.  First, the people “harvested” the manna 6 days, meaning it was part of their daily business.  Failure to do that meant they came up short in the grocery department.  Second, the young man who was stoned for breaking the Sabbath was doing the same: he was gathering fuel for the fire, part of the daily work of Israelites in the wilderness (Num. 15:32-36).

But the words in the Torah also reveal this.  Lev. 23:3 says of the Sabbath, “you shall do no work on it.”  The word “work” is used in Gen. 39:11 of Joseph in Egypt.  There it says he went into the house to do his work.  Going into the house was not work but was certainly being active.  The word is first used of God, of course, in Gen. 2:2-3, where He finished His work.  It says, “He rested from all His work which God had created and made.”  He rested from the creative work.  Lev. 23:7 uses another term translated in the NKJV “customary work.”  This is the term for labor or service; it’s one’s job, if you will.

Therefore, when you read today’s Matthew passage, Jesus is not doing his “job.”  He is caring for someone.  Thus, He concludes, not that what He did was an exception to the law.  No, He said “it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath.”