At our Ash Wednesday service, we looked at some of the Bible’s teaching about fasting. This Sunday, our Gospel reading focuses on the Sabbath. Both of them share in common the theme of giving something up; in fasting, we give up food and drink, on the Sabbath, people give up work and the profits that come from it. Scripture’s teaching on both is quite similar. When pursued as an end in themselves, they arguably do more harm than good. The purpose of both is to draw us back to God, our creator and redeemer, in prayer and worship.
But Jesus’ teaching in Matthew 12 goes deeper than that. His remarkable freedom towards the Sabbath shows us a glimpse of who he thinks he is. The healing he performs on the Sabbath reminds us of the life he has come to bring, the life creation was always meant to enjoy. As we look at Jesus on the Sabbath, we see something of what it means to find rest in him.
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Sabbath rest in Jesus