When looking at the Bible passages each week, I find myself thinking that the authors likely functioned in the same way I do when preparing sermons. It is a prayerful process in which, I hope that the Spirit inspires the message both as I prepare it and as you hear it. Some weeks this feels more obvious than others. Like last week, when I used the image of the dance of the Trinity and then checked the hymn of the day in the schedule which was prepared weeks ahead, to discover that we were singing ‘Come, Join the Dance of the Trinity’. Serendipitous? Certainly. The work of the Spirit? I’d like to think so.
As much as I would like to think the words I write are always from God, I also know that there is always a part of me that makes it into every sermon. I assume the same to be true of what is included in the Bible. The authors can’t help but bring themselves into the conversation. Thus, while we can assume God has inspired the contents of the Bible, I think it is also true that every story, every metaphor, every message, is imbued with the thoughts, priorities, and perspectives of the authors and the communities in which they exist.
One sabbath (Jesus) was going through the cornfields; and as they made their way his disciples began to pluck heads of grain. The Pharisees said to him, ‘Look, why are they doing what is not lawful on the sabbath?’
The Jewish Sabbath begins Friday at sundown and continues until Saturday evening. This timing connects to the story of Creation and God resting on the 7th day. The commandment to remember the Sabbath and keep it holy inspired a significant list of things devout Jews could and could not do on the Sabbath to ensure people rested. These are part of the Bible connecting the interpretations of what God did in Creation and said in the Great Commandments to the practices of the Jewish tradition.
Some of these laws would have contrasted with the evolving practices of the early Christian community in which the focus shifted from honouring the Sabbath, that is Saturday, to celebrating the resurrection on the 8th day, that is Sunday. To support the shifting practices, it makes sense to share stories about how and why Jesus and the disciples weren’t overly regimented about the Sabbath laws. When called out by the Pharisees, Jesus’ justification for their behaviour focused first and foremost on loving the person by ensuring they had what they needed, such as food, even if that food needed to be gleaned on the Sabbath, and could live fully, even if that required an act of healing on the Sabbath.
By sharing stories of how Jesus reframed Jewish practices, Mark, and, subsequently, Matthew and Luke who are known to use Mark as a source, helped establish evolving Christian practices as having appropriate priorities and interpretations within the context of the Bible and faith. These stories, while rooted in the life of Jesus, also serve an important purpose for the communities in which these Gospel writers existed. Since these stories are part of the Canon of the Bible that has been shared throughout the life of the Christian Church, these stories also serve and important purpose for us today.
The Bible continues to be a vital resource through which human beings interpret and engage with diverse interactions with God. Through the lens of the authors, biblical scholars, theologians, and preachers from across two millennia, we hear these stories and make choices about how we embody our faith today. We may not glean from the heads of wheat anymore. We certainly would not criticize medical staff who work on Sunday. But, perhaps we can appreciate the importance of Sabbath rest for all people. We can recognise the need to step back and engage in self-care. We can understand the value of keeping the Sabbath holy by participating in life-giving worship.
Ultimately, through our journey of faith illustrated in the Bible stories, experienced in the Church and in transformative moments of our lives, we continue to meet God. How we interpret these interactions can be helped by the tools of faith and the inspired messages of others. Of course, what we do with these experiences is ultimately up to us.
May we remain open to God who continually reaches out to have a relationship with each and every one us and creation and may those who seek to be inspired by the Spirit help us better understand and engage with our grace-filled experiences of God. This we pray as we sing: Here I am, Lord.