“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” (Matthew 12:9-10).  

The legalists will always find a way to wrap their idea of the law around you, strangling another or freeing themselves.  It is a spiraling pit.  The law is good, but it was made for us; we were not made for the law.  The freedom of Christ is a freedom to live life as it is meant to be lived.  Obey the law of love and do not ensnare others with your idea of how things ought to be done. 

 Is it ever unlawful to do good?  The sinner thinks in terms of the self.  I cannot break the Sabbath, so I will not do that.  Jesus teaches us to think of the other.  Even if it somehow causes me to break the letter of a law, I will do what is needful for the other.  Ultimately, it gets back to the reality of our faith.  Either we will continue to live for ourselves, or else we will live as the Lord leads us. 

Lord Jesus, the sinner in me is always thinking of myself first.  Slay the sinner that I may be resurrected to live the new life You give.  Guide me in Your goodness and mercy, and heal me.  Then send me out into to the world to bring Your healing word to others no matter the cost to myself.  Join me with You, Jesus, so that I may humbly walk wherever You lead.  Guide me in Your grace always.  Amen. 

“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” (Matthew 12:7-8). 

 Mercy understands what is going on.  It chooses to not punish.  In the case of those who do what is practical, why would you punish them?  Jesus is not talking about those who are always seeking a way around things, but about the faithful who often get into trouble because they do not conform rigidly.  The constant insistence that requires constant sacrifice is not the way the Lord works. 

 Lord, there are so many who want to run things the way they want to run them.  They think they know best.  They insist you give up any idea that is different from theirs and do not allow for any variation.  Lord, help me to be merciful with others.  Help me to no longer think in terms of what I must give, but to think in terms of what You have given that I may have the hope of everlasting life. 

 Lord Jesus, I am bound by sin, and I need Your help to think clearly about things.  Guide me away from a legalism that ensnares yet keep me seeking to live by Your law.  Help me to be merciful with others as You have been merciful with me.  You are the Lord of the Sabbath, for in You I find my rest.  Keep me on the narrow path of righteousness and help me to be gracious with others as You lead me.  Amen. 

Mark 7:24-37

Script
Pastor: Good morning boys and girls! Welcome! Let’s say good morning to our
friend Sammy and see if she is there. Ready? One, two, three: Good morning,
Sammy!

Sammy: Good morning, everyone! Boys and girls, I have a question for you: How
many of you have a dog?

[Allow children to raise hands and share about their dog]

Pastor: I have a dog at home, and my dog really like to eat food. Does anyone
here have a dog that really likes food?

[Allow time for responses]

Sammy: On the farm, Farmer Mark has lots of dogs. He has dogs for hunting,
fishing, and herding us sheep!

Pastor: Do Farmer Mark’s dogs like food as much as you do, Sammy?

Sammy: Oh they really love food! They each get breakfast, first dinner, and
second dinner, and they get lots of treats, too!

Pastor: That’s a lot of food!

Sammy: It is a lot of food! But that’s not even all. When the dogs come out to the pasture, they tell me about how during the family meals: breakfast, lunch, and dinner, they get to lay under the table.

Pastor: They’re allowed to lay under the table during meals?

Sammy: Of course! You can’t stop them. Farmer Mark and his family don’t mind.
They get all the little crumbs and scraps that the children drop when they are
eating.

Pastor: So are these dogs really big dogs?

Sammy: No. Why do you ask?

Pastor: They are eating a lot of scraps.

Sammy: Scraps are small. They are just getting the pieces that are left behind.

Pastor: That connects to our Gospel for today. A mama in our gospel also wanted
just the scraps. She asked Jesus to heal her daughter, and Jesus agrees to heal the
child.

Sammy: Why did he agree?

Pastor: This woman was not Jewish. She was from a different group of people.
She demonstrated great faith by talking with Jesus and sharing the truth that he
came for all people, even the ones that were not originally chosen by God.

Sammy: Am I chosen by God?

Pastor: Yes—each person who is baptized and believes in Jesus is chosen by God.

Sammy: Jesus performs some amazing miracles.

Pastor: Isaiah predicted what Jesus would do many years before Jesus was born.
He says in chapter 35, “God will come and save you. Then the eyes of the blind
shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf unstopped; then shall the lame man
leap like a deer and the tongue of the mute sing for joy.”

Sammy: Wow! And that really happened! Jesus is God!

Pastor: Yes indeed! Let’s pray. Can everyone please fold your hands and bow your
heads? Dear Jesus, Thank you for calling us your children. Thank you for miracles.
Thank you for choosing us. We love you. Amen.

Sammy: Bye, everyone!

Pastor: Bye, Sammy!

“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” (Matthew 12:5-6).  

 The priests work on the Sabbath.  Are they breaking the law?  The Lord knows what needs to be done and He has made provision.  Mind you, in our twenty-four/seven world, we live the opposite extreme.  Rather than jumping from one to the other, the Lord intends that we live in that middle ground of freedom.  Be guided by His grace and mercy and walk as the Lord intends for you to walk through this life. 

LORD, You know where I jump around and do not do things as You would have me do them.  Bring balance into my life so that I live freely and yet do not cause another to stumble.  Through all things, help me to understand that You are Lord and that You have put boundaries around our lives for our sakes.  Guide me now and always in the truth You have revealed in Christ, my Savior. 

 Lord Jesus, You point out the obvious that I sometimes forget.  Things do need to be done.  The law was made for our good and it is not a snare.  Help me to live freely and to treat others as I want to be treated.  Guide me now and always so that I may seek to please You within the boundaries You have placed around me.  May I now and always seek Your will in all things that I do.  Amen. 

“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” (Matthew 12:3-4).  

 Jesus said nothing that was not already evident in Scripture.  Practical is sometimes more important than the detailed, nuanced, interpretation that traps people.  We are not here to figure out the letter of the law.  We are to live within the boundaries of the law and live the life that we have been given.  The Lord knows our need and provides for us.  This is not freedom to do as we please, but liberty to do what is right in the sight of the Lord. 

 Lord, I suspect I will take this principle and push it to its limits, excusing any kind of behavior to do as I wish.  Place firm boundaries around me so that I neither grant freedom to myself where there is none nor restrict myself or others from the freedom You grant.  Grant wisdom to discern when to be free and when to remain bound by Your constraints.  Teach me to trust and obey Your leading. 

 Come, Holy Spiri and in Your wisdom, guide me each day to live within the bounds You grant me. Help me to look to You. and not others, lest I take my freedom for granted and live sinfully or use what I know to limit others to my limitations.  Help me to see others as You do and to loosen or bind as You lead.  In all things, may I always remember that it is to You that all things should point.  Amen. 

“At that time Jesus went through the grainfields 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” (Matthew 12:1-2). 

 We can become so focused upon the law that we forget why it is there.  The letter of the law sometimes overrides its purpose.  If traffic is flowing five miles above the speed limit, it may be dangerous to go ten miles per hour under.  The idea of the Sabbath is to rest.  The Pharisees had to think hard on this one, so they weren’t resting.  Who was breaking the heart of the Sabbath; someone eating, or the other out for blood? 

 The law was made for our sake.  It is reality.  We are to live in the boundaries that God has established, but always remember, they are for our well=being and not to beat up others.  Between the law and grace is the place in which we live.  It is the place of freedom.  Live in the freedom our Lord grants and watch out for those who want to imprison you with a different kind of slavery. 

 Lord Jesus, teach me to live in the place where You grant freedom.  Guide me in Your goodness and mercy to know that in You, I have this freedom.  Lead me to be gracious and merciful to others when they do not do things the way I would do them.  Teach me to stay within Your bounds and live the life You give freely with joy.  Through all things, be the One who guides me into living as You would have me live.  Amen.