“The Just Shall Live By Faith”

New King James Version                          Written by: David Hicks

 

Romans 1:17 “ For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, "The just shall live by faith."

Galatians 3:11 “But that no one is justified by the law in the sight of God is evident, for "the just shall live by faith."

Hebrews 10:38 “Now the just shall live by faith; But if anyone draws back, My soul has no pleasure in him."

“Articles of Faith”

 

An Orderly Account Of The Greatest Story Ever Told

(A Study in Luke)

Chapter 6:1-11:

Initially; the first portion of the sixth chapter deals with issues that revolve around the Sabbath. The Sabbath was a day of rest and worship for the Jews. Although there was no reason to mention the Sabbath prior to the children of Israel coming to the Wilderness of Sin ( Exodus 16:1 ); Moses would write however; his first book (the book of beginnings – Genesis ), which he would explain that the seventh day God rested ( Genesis 2:3 ).

While the children of Israel were camped in the Wilderness of Sin, note what Moses told them:

Exodus 16:22-30 “And so it was, on the sixth day, that they gathered twice as much bread, two omers for each one. And all the rulers of the congregation came and told Moses. 23 Then he said to them, "This is what the Lord has said: 'Tomorrow is a Sabbath rest, a holy Sabbath to the Lord . Bake what you will bake today, and boil what you will boil; and lay up for yourselves all that remains, to be kept until morning.' " 24 So they laid it up till morning, as Moses commanded; and it did not stink, nor were there any worms in it. 25 Then Moses said, "Eat that today, for today is a Sabbath to the Lord ; today you will not find it in the field. 26 Six days you shall gather it, but on the seventh day, which is the Sabbath, there will be none." 27 Now it happened that some of the people went out on the seventh day to gather, but they found none. 28 And the Lord said to Moses, "How long do you refuse to keep My commandments and My laws? 29 See! For the Lord has given you the Sabbath; therefore He gives you on the sixth day bread for two days. Let every man remain in his place; let no man go out of his place on the seventh day." 30 So the people rested on the seventh day.”

Shortly afterward the Ten Commandments were given and the fourth commandment enjoined Israel to observe the seventh day as a holy day on which no work should be done by man or beast:

Exodus 20:8-11

"Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. 9 Six days you shall labor and do all your work, 10 but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God. In it you shall do no work: you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your male servant, nor your female servant, nor your cattle, nor your stranger who is within your gates. 11 For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day . Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it.”

It is clear that God intended this day to be a blessing to man physically, but especially spiritually. This special day was to remind the Israelites that God had sanctified or dedicated them:

Exodus 31:13-14 "Speak also to the children of Israel , saying: 'Surely My Sabbaths you shall keep, for it is a sign between Me and you throughout your generations, that you may know that I am the Lord who sanctifies you. 14 You shall keep the Sabbath, therefore, for it is holy to you. Everyone who profanes it shall surely be put to death; for whoever does any work on it, that person shall be cut off from among his people.”

Based on this teaching, the Rabbis at the time of Jesus taught that the laws concerning the Sabbath were an end unto themselves (during the period between Ezra and the coming of Jesus, the scribes formulated innumerable legal restrictions for the conduct of life under the Law, two whole treatises in the Talmud are devoted to the details of the Sabbath observance – it was these human doctrines that Jesus is in conflict with in our text). This however, was never the case in the presentation of this law for the benefit of man. The story used by the Lord in our study, concerning David and the show bread, simply taught that the mandatory needs of man must be met, even in the face of consecrated things ( I Samuel 21 - this would include holy bread, holy days, etc…). What good is a blessing of God should you perish in observance?

The idea of profaning or defiling comes from the notion that it has been devised in advance to ignore the sanctity of the statutes of God.

It was not in conflict of the true understanding of defilement that Jesus came to be at odds with the Pharisees. Jesus simply taught that the Sabbath was made for man's benefit, and that man's needs must take precedence in the application of observance. Jesus Himself regularly attended worship in the synagogue on the Sabbath ( Luke 4:16 ). This illustrates His understanding of the importance of this day.

Now, with a better understanding of this day and its observance, let's look at our text.

Text #1:

Luke 6:1-5 “Now it happened on the second Sabbath after the first that He went through the grainfields. And His disciples plucked the heads of grain and ate them, rubbing them in their hands. 2 And some of the Pharisees said to them, "Why are you doing what is not lawful to do on the Sabbath?" 3 But Jesus answering them said, "Have you not even read this, what David did when he was hungry, he and those who were with him: 4 how he went into the house of God, took and ate the showbread, and also gave some to those with him, which is not lawful for any but the priests to eat?" 5 And He said to them, "The Son of Man is also Lord of the Sabbath."

Second Sabbath After the First: This is simply the relationship between the religious and the civil year and has no bearing on the seventh day that the Sabbath falls on. The Jewish calendar contained two concurrent years, the sacred year, beginning in the spring with the month of Nisan, and the civil, beginning in the fall with Tishri.

It is believed that the first Sabbath mentioned here is the first in the sacred year, which begins in the spring. Since the time of this event in Luke is the spring of the year, it would indicate that this is the case.

What David Did: As we mentioned in the opening, the incident is recorded in I Samuel 21 , when David was fleeing from Saul. He did not eat of the bread that was then on the table, but that which had been put back for the use of the priests after the table had been supplied with the new loaves. While it was intended only for the priests, yet an emergency existed which allowed David and his men to eat. Likewise, the disciples were out from home with Jesus and were in need of food, and that justified them eating in this way because the necessities of life do not constitute a violation of the Sabbath law.

Lord of the Sabbath: Since God and His Son were One, in purpose, speech, implementation, and were together in the delivery of the Sabbath laws; no one was more qualified to discern the true intent of the Sabbath of God than Jesus!

Text#2:

Luke 6:6-11 “Now it happened on another Sabbath, also, that He entered the synagogue and taught. And a man was there whose right hand was withered. 7 So the scribes and Pharisees watched Him closely, whether He would heal on the Sabbath, that they might find an accusation against Him. 8 But He knew their thoughts, and said to the man who had the withered hand, "Arise and stand here." And he arose and stood. 9 Then Jesus said to them, "I will ask you one thing: Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do evil, to save life or to destroy?" 10 And when He had looked around at them all, He said to the man, "Stretch out your hand." And he did so, and his hand was restored as whole as the other. 11 But they were filled with rage, and discussed with one another what they might do to Jesus.”

Again, we find Jesus at odds with the scribes and Pharisees. Not over the true intent and observance of the Laws of God, but against their traditions and their desire to trap Him and accuse Him. He displayed the true intent of this dedicated day in the question He asks: "I will ask you one thing: Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do evil, to save life or to destroy?" Their lack of response indicated that they knew His understanding of this day was correct, however, they were intent on trying to discredit Him among the people in order to elevate and maintain themselves as shepherds of the people.

This second portion of the text, with the information that has already been provided, is pretty straight forward and lacks the need for further commentary. However, for everyone reading this lesson across this country and in all the places around the world that prescribe to this web-site that call themselves Christians; there is a recognition that we must make in this universal lesson. The recognition is that once we have been educated in the intent of God's righteousness for man found in the Gospel of Christ (both for conversion and doctrine), we must not add to it our own traditions; nor fall short of adhering to all of it! Or we, like the Pharisees and scribes, risk being at odds with God Himself!!!

Next: “ The Twelve ”