Luke 6a Commentary
Jesus dismantles the rules. First, he declares that David and his hungry companions weren’t wrong when they ate the bread that only priests could eat. Does it mean David and the priest Ahimelek were above the law? Second, the healing on the Sabbath. Does it mean rules could be broken with impunity when a good is performed?
In the first instance, the LORD Jesus effectively tells the Pharisees and the scribes that He had the authority to sanction a ‘feast’ just like Ahimelek. Even on the wrong day? No. It is no longer a wrong day because the rules have changed. Why not? He is the LORD of the Sabbath – the essence of the Sabbath.
In the second instance, the LORD Jesus dismisses a religion that is empty of substance. An individual is so important to God that He leaves the 99 and goes after the one lost individual. How dare the Pharisees and the scribes think it wrong that this individual cannot be healed on the Sabbath?
The essence of the Sabbath is rest. The healing on the Sabbath brought real rest to the hitherto patient. The Pharisees and the scribes are guilty of neglecting the realities of the Sabbath. They are totally immersed in the means and have ignored the end.
The inclusion of Judas Iscariot on the list of Apostles is mind-boggling. Only God can do that! He breaks the rules so that a life is saved! Humans kill so that rules are preserved!
Not only is Jesus breaking the Law, but He is also breaking life norms. He is flipping the standards. Even today, poverty is taken as a curse or an abnormality – a case of failure. But not for Jesus. They are blessed. It follows that the person who is focused on God will have less focus on material things. Given a choice, he will select a human soul instead of a supercar. By God’s standards, he is richer and more blessed!
Verse 22 puts the entire sermon into perspective. The LORD Jesus is looking at his followers some of whom left behind thriving businesses to follow Him. They left behind respectability and status. Instead, they had hatred, insults, and rejection. The LORD Jesus called it a blessing.
Human applause is fickle. It doesn’t represent the will of the Creator God. Don’t be fooled by it.
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