Who Works on the Sabbath?

Meditations for Seeking the Life in Christ

The Gospel of John

July 12, 2024

Who Works on the Sabbath?

But this miracle happened on the Sabbath, so the Jewish leaders objected. They said to the man who was cured, “You can’t work on the Sabbath! The law doesn’t allow you to carry that sleeping mat!”

John 5:9b-10

Recently, I was enjoying watching a Wimbledon tennis match at five in the afternoon at my house. I noticed a clock on the scoreboard indicating the local time in London was 10PM. Through the wonder of modern electronics, I was experiencing two different time zones at the same time. My text for today illustrates that Jesus was operating in a different theological time zone from the religious leaders in Jerusalem. Jesus knew it was the Sabbath when he healed the man. Jesus knew that for the Jews, it was a day of rest, as commanded by God; but Jesus said he was working because his Father was working. Isn’t God resting on the Sabbath?

I think Jesus wants us to see that God is working again. This time, He is doing a new work to birth His New Creation through the life of the Messiah. Jesus was operating in a completely different sphere of time than the Jews.

The healing at the Pool of Bethesda is sign number three in John’s Gospel. There will be a total of seven signs, the perfect number in the Bible, and the same number of days in God’s original creation story. John’s seventh sign was the birth of God’s New Covenant. The symmetry of the scriptures, to all of God’s creation, is astonishing.

My Takeaway: Jesus worked on the Sabbath. Even in the tomb, on the Sabbath, he was working. But, as for me and my house, the most precision day of the week is when we take our Sabbath rest.

Sē’lah

 

(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

 

These meditations are written by Alex M. Knight as he seeks the life in Christ as his way of life.  The meditations are published on the BLOG, http://seekingthelifeinchrist.blogspot.com/ and they are also distributed on the Constant Contact email server. You may subscribe to this email service by sending an email to: amkrom812@gmail.com.

 

Copyright © 2024 by Alex M. Knight

 

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.