Chapter # 2 Paragraph # 4 Study # 2
August 27, 2019
Moss Bluff, Louisiana
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Thesis:   There is plenty of biblical support for the exaltation of "Love unto Good" in the records of Scripture to make criticism of Jesus totally illegitimate.

Introduction:   Many years ago, a concept called situation ethics was highly promoted as the alternative way to approach decisions about what is moral and what is not, based upon whether the decisions were motivated by "love". It was a position of rebellion against absolute standards as guides to what is moral and what is not and it introduced a slippery slope that has given us all manner of immoral behavior based upon the claim that "if it is rooted in love, it is moral and, thus, should be acceptable". The "slippery slope" consisted of two major issues that can be highlighted by two questions: what is the essential nature of genuine "love", and are unredeemed people even capable of anything that even approximates "love"?

In regard to our study this evening, we are going to look into what appears to be an example of Jesus declaring the superiority of "situation ethics" to "living by the rules".

• I. The Setting.
  • A. The Pharisees' challenge to Jesus' identity as a legitimate "disciple maker".
    • 1. By way of review.
      • a. Their challenge was of a most grave nature in that observance of the Sabbath was required under a penalty of death: it was a capital crime to violate the Sabbath.
      • b. The challengers were confident of their "position" that the disciples were violating the Sabbath even though their actions were not mentioned in any biblical text as violations.
      • c. Their confidence, however, was seriously compromised by two major problems.
        • 1) They were most fundamentally motivated by their jealousy of Jesus' popularity as we have noted multiple times by reason of 15:10, a fact further reinforced by Jesus in Matthew 23:5 (which motivation fatally corrupted all of their ability to reason).
        • 2) They were also fundamentally convinced that God looks on the outward appearance and does not consider the inner values so that "keeping the rules" was the way to obtain His favor.
    • 2. In the light of Mark's use of lego in both statements about the Pharisees' speech to Jesus and His response.
  • B. Jesus' use of a biblical record regarding the behavior of David in a somewhat "similar" situation.
    • 1. His question to them is not so much about "reading" as about "recognition".
      • a. The verb involved does involve "reading", but its main sense in Mark's uses (12:10; 12:26; and 13:14) is "grasping the real significance of the words read".
      • b. His question was a counter-accusation to theirs ("questions" used to strongly imply "accusations") in that He is actually accusing them of being blind to the truth.
    • 2. His choice of an "example" text to "justify" His disciples' fairly flagrant violation of their rules seems, at first glance, to be an odd choice.
      • a. The record is given in 1 Samuel 21:1-7.
      • b. The record contains some "slippery-slope" factors.
        • 1) David lied to Ahimelech.
        • 2) He also discounted the presence of Doeg.
        • 3) He accepted the "blame" for the deaths of Ahimelech, 85 priests, and the destruction of Nob (1 Samuel 22:18-22).
      • c. Why would Jesus use such a "tenuous" support?
        • 1) Because of David's status in the eyes of the people of Judea in the days of Jesus.
        • 2) Because the Pharisees knew of 1 Kings 15:5 ("...David did that which was right in the eyes of the Lord, and turned not aside from any thing that He commanded him all the days of his life, save only in the matter of Uriah the Hittite...") and they realized that they had better not criticize someone whom God refused to criticize.
        • 3) Because they sang Psalm 52 occasionally and knew that it was God's assignment of responsibility for the death of the priests and their families.
        • 4) Because they were aware of the principle involved in 1 Samuel 22:6 and 31:13 and its implications regarding God's perspective on Saul's responsibility-failure.
  • C. Jesus' conclusion.
    • 1. God's "rules" are not arbitrary, but always have man's truest benefit in view.
    • 2. Their actually are some "situations" in which the "rules" have to be suspended for the higher good that "Love" requires.
    • 3. The Pharisees need to understand that they are dealing with the "Lord of the Sabbath".

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This is article #100.
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