The Sabbath was made for man ...

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 he 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."

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This act of disobedience to the law had to be very troubling for the religious leaders. These men highly esteemed the Sabbath (one the outside anyway). Many today have similar feelings about Sunday being a Sabbath day. Consider what the writer of Hebrews says:

Since therefore it remains for some to enter it, and those who formerly received the good news failed to enter because of disobedience, again he appoints a certain day, “Today,” saying through David so long afterward, in the words already quoted,

“Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts.”

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.

In a very real sense the Christian Sabbath has nothing to do with a day. God did not simply replace Saturday with Sunday as a legalistic day of rest. Most Christians actually believe this because Sunday is full of activities and not a day of rest for them at all. Yet if we focus on the day we miss the point altogether. Sabbath rest comes from a relationship with God where we hear His voice deep within us and respond to it with a soft heart.

I need your Sabbath presence in my life Lord. Please speak to me. Help my heart to be soft.