Mark 2:23-28 Part 2- Restored by Grace, Ruled by Christ

Mark 2:23-28 says, “One Sabbath he was going through the grainfields, and as they made their way, his disciples began to pluck heads of grain. And the Pharisees were saying to him, ‘Look, why are they doing what is not lawful on the Sabbath?’ And Jesus 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: 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?’ And he said to them, ‘The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. So the Son of Man is lord even of the Sabbath.’”

Last week we considered Mark 2:23-24 and saw that Jesus’ disciples were being transformed through their relationship with Jesus and their response of faith to the Gospel. The grace of God was not only freeing these men from the bondage of religion, but the Gospel was transforming zealots like Simon, tax-collectors like Matthew, devout men like Nathaniel, and timid men like Thomas.

The grace of God was making all of these men new. This should encourage you and I in two ways.

• First, our church is made up of very different people. We all have lot’s of different views, we are at various stages of discipleship, we prefer different things; and yet, the Gospel is making us more like Christ.

• Second, we want to see 300 families restored by the Gospel in the next 5 years. By doing this we will see God estorre all sorts of people from various backgrounds and who have different personalities. As we pursue this we should be encouraged by what is happening in verses 23-24.

In Mark 2:23-24 we see that Jesus’ disciples have gone from being satisfied with the ‘old wine’, to desiring to have the ‘new wine’. A miracle is taking place in the hearts of Jesus’ disciples! (Luke 5:39) They no longer desire their past life of faithlessness and sin, but now they desire to be with Christ and enjoy all of the blessings that He so graciously gives to them.

We see this happening when Jesus’ disciples begin to pick grain and eat it on the Sabbath Day. When they do this, Jesus’ disciples have broken one of the many laws that these religious leaders had taught everyone in Israel to obey. John MacArthur says that these religious leaders had made the Sabbath day the worst day of the week because of the burdens that they had put upon the people of God.

We might ask, ‘How will Jesus respond to this situation? Will He defend His disciples, or will he scold them for doing wrong?’ Let’s read how Jesus responds in Mark 2:25-28, “‘Have you never read what David did, when he was in need and was hungry, he and those who were with him: 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?’ And he said to them, ‘The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. So the Son of Man is lord even of the Sabbath.’”

The first 4 words of Jesus’ response, “Have you never read what David did…”, are significant. Broadly speaking Jesus is saying, “Have you never read the Word of God?” Narrowly speaking Jesus is saying, “Have you never read and contemplated what happened to David in 1 Samuel 21?”

With these four words Jesus is addressing a significant problem among the religious leaders in His day. Jesus is not accusing these men of never having read the Torah. No, most of these men would have had a lot of the scriptures memorized. Jesus is accusing them of putting more emphasis upon the Rabbinic teachers and their commentary of the scriptures then they do the Word of God. Jesus, the living Word and the author of the scriptures, has been teaching often to these men but they do not recognize His voice and the message that He is speaking. This is because Jesus’ message is so different than what they were taught by others. Jesus’ teachings are not allowed through their religious and faithless filter.

My friends, I wonder if Jesus might not say to us this morning, “Have you never read…”. If we are honest, we would have to admit that this can still be a problem today. Many people spend so much time reading commentaries, listening to YouTube and FB posts, reading devotionals written by other people, etc. They do these things more then they read the Word of God to discern God’s will. (Psalm 1:1-3; Matthew 22:29; Romans 12:1-2) Instead we ought to be like the noble Berean’s who searched the scriptures daily to see if what Paul said was true.

Israel’s religious leaders had learned from the Mishnah, the Talmud, and other Rabbinic resources, but they had neglected coming to the Word of God in humility and prayer to be instructed by them. Over time these Rabbinic teachings superseded the importance of God’s Word and they taught these things as if they were the word of God. (Isaiah 8:20; Matthew 15:3-9; Mark 7:6-13)

After saying these first four words Jesus goes on to remind them about a story from 1 Samuel 21:1-6, saying, “Have you never read what David did, when he was in need and was hungry, he and those who were with him: 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?’”

Observation #1: Jesus knows that they have read this story and are familiar with it because He does not spend any time speaking about the context of this story. Note that when Jesus paraphrases this story He only uses only 60 words to do so. The original story contained 260 words. Astonishingly, even though Jesus shortens this story down to the bare essentials He still wins this encounter with these religious men.

Doesn’t this show us that Jesus wants us to have a high view of the scriptures and to use them in every area of life? Consideration: Would you agree with me that Jesus is wiser than Solomon? Solomon was so wise that his fame spread everywhere. 1 Kings 10:23-24 says, “King Solomon excelled all the kings of the earth in riches and in wisdom. And the whole earth sought the presence of Solomon to hear His wisdom which God had put into his mind.” Similarly, in just a couple weeks we will see in Mark 3:71-12 that Jesus’ influence is superseding that of Solomon’s. In Matthew 12:42 Jesus testifies that He is greater than Solomon, saying, “The queen of the South will rise up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for she came from from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon, and behold, something greater than Solomon is here.”

On His own merits Jesus could have easily confounded these men and spoke circles around them. However, instead of using his own words, which He will do in just a moment, Jesus begins by quoting an Old Testament passage to win this argument.

When Jesus refers to 1 Samuel 21:1-6 He shows us that these men had no excuse to be in the situation that they were in regarding their understanding of the Sabbath. They did not need some new teaching by a rabbi. No, they needed to understand what the bible had already taught them. Because they did not know the OT scriptures rightly, Jesus’ message appeared to contradict their understanding of the OT. However, in actuality Jesus’ affirmed and fulfilled the OT. In Matthew 5:17-18 Jesus says, “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. For, truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished.”

My friends, what a treasure the Word of God is. We can say confidently with the author of Hebrews, “The Word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of the soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. And no creature is hidden from His sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of Him to Whom we must give account.” (4:12-13)

It is convicting to me that the Word of God is so powerful that one appropriately used passage of scripture can accomplish so much. It can close the mouths of the scoffers and encourage believers all at the same time. It can convict the faithless and free the faithful. These religious leaders did not have a high view of God’s word. No, they had a view of the teachings men and taught these things as if they were the words of God.

Despite this, Jesus only needed to use one passage from 1 Samuel 21 to silence these critics. We saw in Mark 2:12-13 the power of a well chosen scriptures when Jesus was tempted by Satan. One verse rightly applied silenced Satan and made him depart. Similarly, in our text Jesus picks the perfect scripture to confront these men and they have no response for it. The Word of God will always have more authority than many educated men, powerful people, church counsels, persuasive people with worldly philosophies and carnal wisdom. The scriptures are even more powerful than Satan and all of the principalities, powers, and rulers of darkness.

The story that Jesus uses from 1 Samuel 21:1-6 is fascinating. David is fleeing from Saul and he becomes hungry because he has no food to eat. When David arrives at a place called Nob he speaks to Ahimelech the priest. David asks the priest for bread but Ahimelech admits that there is no common bread there. I would have ended the sentence there but Ahimelech tells David that there was the Bread of the Presence (Showbread) that had recently been removed from the Holy Place. According to the Law this bread was consecrated by the LORD and was only to be eaten by the priests. (Lev.24:5-9)

Because of Leviticus 24:5-9, ‘How could Ahimelech even think about giving it to him?’ And ‘How could David expect to receive this bread?’ Their understanding of the Law is so different than the religious leaders in Jesus’ day. (This reminds me of the long religious decline that took place in Israel throughout the Book of Judges. Things have gotten really bad and Jesus is the only one who can ,straighten these things out. How far might we have declined in areas of our religious life?)

Ahimelech is not being unwise as this unfolds. No, Ahimelech asks David a wise question that reveals he is honoring the spirit of the Law as the LORD would have intended. David’s answer will either allow Ahimelech to give the bread or to withhold it from him. If David answers appropriately, Ahimelech will offer the bread to David without any hesitation.

• Shockingly, Ahimelech does not make David’s hunger or his desperate need the primary issue.

• He asked David if he and his men had kept themselves holy unto the LORD on their journey. Is this the decisive question you would have asked? (Lev.15:18,19:15)

• David affirms that they had remained holy so Ahimelech gives David the holy bread without any reservation.

• This is shocking because the Law forbade this and even Jesus affirms this in Mark 2:26 saying, “...it is not lawful for any but the priests to eat…”.

• Clearly, Ahimelech, David, and Jesus had a different way of interpreting the Law then the religious leaders in Jesus’ day. Prayer: Oh Lord, raise up men with the wisdom of Ahimelech and David in our day. Men with the wisdom and discernment to know God’s will and respond appropriately to these things that arise. Left to ourselves we would all probably tend to fall into the ditch of legalism or licentiousness, but Ahimelech and David knew how to discern the right thing to do under these circumstances. Help us LORD by giving us the wisdom to do the same.

Ahimelech saw David’s hunger and recognized that he could help him. In contrast, the Pharisees saw the disciples hunger but did not display any mercy or grace. Ahimelech understood that the sacred bread existed to serve God’s redemptive purposes to sustain David, but the Pharisees thought that God’s redemptive purposes served their commands. Ahimelech discerned the intention of God’s law, while the religious leaders failed to see Jesus Christ, the Lord of the Sabbath, who was with them.

After paraphrasing this story so succinctly, Jesus gives these men a one sentence summary, saying, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.” The Pharisees viewed the law and mercy as competitors. This is not how Jesus viewed the Law. Nor is it how Ahimelech, or David, or His disciples viewed the Law. This is seen more clearly in Matthew’s account of this story where we read in Matthew 12:5b-8, “Or have you not read in the Law (said 2x in this text) how on the Sabbath the priests in the temple profane the Sabbath and are guiltless? (In other words, the priests work on the Sabbath at the temple and are considered guiltless.) I tell you, something greater than the temple is here. And if you had known what this means, ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice,’ (Hosea 6:6) you would not have condemned the guiltless. (Jesus’ verdict regarding the disciples) For the Son of Man is lord of the Sabbath.’””

The Sabbath was to benefit God’s people for worship, for rest, for blessing, for communion with God, and for using our gifts to do acts of mercy for others. David and Ahimelech understood God’s law according to God’s character, and when Ahimelech needed to display God’s character to David he did so graciously.

These principles make me think of what Paul says in Galatians 5:22-23 where Paul speaks of the fruit of the Spirit, saying, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.” Ahimelech did not provide an opportunity for condemnation against himself or David by confirming David’s purity. After this was confirmed Ahimelech displayed these virtues of the Spirit to David when he was in need by giving him the bread. When he did this the Law would not condemn him for it. Neither would the giver of the Law, the Son of Man, and the Lord of the Sabbath,- Jesus.

In Matthew’s account of this Jesus says that if these religious leaders had understood these things they would not have condemned the guiltless. Jesus says this and then confirms His authority in these matters, saying, “So (Therefore) the Son of Man is lord even of the Sabbath.’ If the Son sets you free you will be free indeed. (John 8:36) “What shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?...Who shall bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died- more than that, who was raised- who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?” (Romans 8:33-35)

Weeks ago we talked about Jesus having a ‘mic-drop moment’. This comment is a ‘mic-drop moment’. Jesus is claiming to be the ‘Son of Man’ and the ‘Lord (master, ruler) over the Sabbath’. Twice, Jesus is identifying Himself as the LORD- Yahweh.

• Jesus does this by using the title ‘son of man’ from Daniel 7:13-14, “And behold, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a son of man, and he came to the Ancient of Days and was presented before him. And to him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom one that shall not be destroyed.”

• Jesus also does this by stating that He is ‘Lord of the Sabbath’. The Sabbath, like the institution of marriage, was created by God before the Fall. As such, the LORD alone gets regulate it.

With these words Jesus silences these religious men and their criticism of His disciples; nevertheless,

they do not appear to have respond in saving faith. I say this because we will see in Mark 3:1-6 that on the next Sabbath Jesus will be confronted by the religious leaders again. The text seems to emphasize that it is these same men that do this when in verses 1-5 the pronoun ‘they’ is used to describe them. This links them back to 2:24 and to 3:6. Verses 1-2 says, “Again Jesus entered the synagogue, and a man was there with a withered hand. And they watched Jesus, to see whether he would heal him on the Sabbath, so that they might accuse him.” In verse 4 we are told that ‘they’ remained silent. In Verse 5 Jesus is angered and grieved because of ‘their’ hardness of heart. It is only in 2:24 and in 3:6 that we see who they are- these same Pharisees.

Application: These Pharisees in 2:23-28 had come face to face with Jesus and had heard these things. I wonder, as so often happens, if they had been persuaded temporarily to receive Jesus and His teaching with joy; however, they went back into their religious environment and quickly fell away again. (Mark 4:1-20) This should encourage you and I to draw near to Christ and to His people (10:25) and heed the admonition of Hebrews 4.

• Therefore, while the promise of entering His rest still stands, let us fear lest any of you should seem to have failed to reach it. (4:1)

• For we who have believed enter that rest, as He has said, “As I swore in my wrath, ‘They shall not enter my rest.’” (4:3&5)

• For if Joshua had given them rest, God would not have spoken of another day later on. So then, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God, for whoever has entered God’s rest has also rested from His works as God did from His. Let us therefore strive to enter that rest, so that no one may fall by the same sort of disobedience. (4:9-11)