There’s too much happening here to cover it all in detail. Jesus heals a paralytic, calls Levi to follow Him, teaches on fasting, and declares authority over the Sabbath.
“One Sabbath [Jesus] 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… how he entered the house of God… 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? The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. So the Son of Man is lord even of the Sabbath.’ ” (v23-28 abr)
For some reason, people (Pharisees in this context) seem to make up a lot of rules / commandments that God did not necessarily give us, or expect us to memorize. Ever since the garden, Satan has been twisting God’s words to mean whatever he wants them to, and we living broken lives in sin do the same thing.
On more than one occasion Jesus rebukes the religious leaders for their religiosity and their lack of humility. Yet Jesus invests heavily in those who know they’re sinners, those who are ill and in need of His spiritual healing (see v15-17). Jesus commends those who are humble in heart, who acknowledge their sin / brokenness, repent, and earnestly try to follow Him. He rebukes the self-righteous who believe their rule-keeping is enough to save them (for this belief is twisting God’s words).
It pains the perfectionist in me to say this, but God doesn’t want a bunch of sticklers for (manmade/misinterpreted) rules – He wants people who are humble and seeking to love / serve Him with all their hearts, for His glory and honor. Let’s acknowledge just how sick with sin we are, and how simple (but not easy) it is to follow God’s teachings. We don’t need to memorize/follow 613 commandments, just the two greatest ones: to love the Lord our God with all of our hearts, souls, strength and minds, and to love our neighbors as Jesus would.
Father God, our Wise and Discerning Creator God, we praise Your holy name. Thank you for sending Jesus and Your Holy Spirit to guide our hearts and properly interpret Your word / will. Thank you for speaking to us, showing us how to love You, and love our neighbors. May we honor, glorify, praise and obey You, with every word and work, with all of our strength, mind, soul and heart, forever and ever, amen.
~ Conqueror in Training