Doing Good on the Sabbath

At that time Jesus went through the cornfields on the sabbath; his disciples were hungry, and they began to pluck heads of grain and to eat. When the Pharisees saw it, they said to him, ‘Look, your disciples are doing what is not lawful to do on the sabbath.’ He said to them, ‘Have you not read what David did when he and his companions were hungry? He entered the house of God and ate the bread of the Presence, which it was not lawful for him or his companions to eat, but only for the priests. Or have you not read in the law that on the sabbath the priests in the temple break the sabbath and yet are guiltless? I tell you, something greater than the temple is here. But if you had known what this means, “I desire mercy and not sacrifice”, you would not have condemned the guiltless. For the Son of Man is lord of the sabbath.’ He left that place and entered their synagogue; a man was there with a withered hand, and they asked him, ‘Is it lawful to cure on the sabbath?’ so that they might accuse him. He said to them, ‘Suppose one of you has only one sheep and it falls into a pit on the sabbath; will you not lay hold of it and lift it out? How much more valuable is a human being than a sheep! So it is lawful to do good on the sabbath.’ Then he said to the man, ‘Stretch out your hand.’ He stretched it out, and it was restored, as sound as the other. But the Pharisees went out and conspired against him, how to destroy him. Matthew 12:1-14

We all have rules we live by. Some of us tend to judge others by the rules we choose to live by and set for ourselves. Most often when we do this, we find others at fault, and we fail to understand their circumstances or their pressing need. Jesus reminds us all that following God means understanding "I desire mercy not sacrifice." We often jump to conclusions and condemn others even though we do not know the circumstance. May we move from instant judgement to making our lives be streams of mercy, on the Sabbath and every day, so God's love can flow through us always.

Loving Creator, you shower us all with mercy

planting us in fertile fields of deep love

making us always compassionate and merciful

holding us close in the good times and bad.

We often fail to see the many blessings given

we rush to judgement and criticism so quickly

when we have been showered with mercy and love

and are called to share those gifts with everyone.

Help us to live humbly and mercifully today

humble us so we can see the needs around us

give us new hearts to always be doing good

so your love might be seen in our broken world. Amen.