Daily Devotion

 

There are only two verses here; but as we read them, we must pause, for this indeed, is a milestone. The scribes and the Pharisees had arrived on the scene. The opposition which would never be satisfied until it had killed Jesus had emerged into the open.

If we are to understand what happened to Jesus we must understand something about the Law and the relationship of the scribes and Pharisees to it. When the Jews returned from Babylon in about 440 B.C. they knew well that, humanly speaking, their hopes of national greatness were gone. Therefore, they deliberately decided that they would find their greatness in being a people of the law. They would bend all their energies to knowing and keeping God's law.

 

The basis of the Law was the Ten Commandments. These commandments are principles for life. They are not rules and regulations. They do not legislate for each event and for every circumstance. For a certain section of the Jews, that was not enough. They desired a rule to cover every conceivable situation. From the Ten Commandments, they proceeded to develop and elaborate these rules.

Let us take an example. To heal on the Sabbath was to work. It was laid down that only if life was in actual danger could healing be done; but then steps could be taken only to keep the sufferer from getting worse, not to improve his condition. A plain bandage but no ointment could be put on a wound. The scribes were the experts who knew all these rules in the law. The name "Pharisee" means "The Separated One"; the Pharisees were those who separated themselves from the ordinary people in order to keep these rules and regulations. Note two things: 1^st for the Scribes and Pharisees these rules were a matter of life and death; to break one of them was a deadly sin. 2^nd only people desperately in earnest would ever have tried to keep them, for they must have made life extremely uncomfortable. Jesus had no use for rules and regulations like that. For Him, the cry of human need superseded all such things. But to the scribes and Pharisees, He was a lawbreaker, a bad man who broke the law and taught others to do the same. That is why they hated Him and in the end, killed Him.

 

Life Application: Are you thankful for the liberty we have in Jesus? Some rules are necessary, but take care of the sick on Sunday, too. Jesus is the perfect example of rules and conduct. Follow Him!

 

Praise and Prayer: Dear Father, I am so thankful that You sent Jesus into the world so we can see what You are like. Your rules are only the rules of love. I am thankful for the Bible and its rules that guide us. Your love has given us all the rules we need for Your children to minister to the whole world. Your love motivates us to reach a lost and dying world. Thank You for the Holy Spirit who daily guides us. Amen!