Good Friday by Ermes Dovico

GOSPEL PEARLS

Who is with God and against God

So the Son of Man is lord even of the Sabbath. (Mark 2: 28)

Gospel Pearls 19_01_2021

One Sabbath Jesus was going through the grainfields, and as they made their way, his disciples began to pluck heads of grain. And the Pharisees were saying to him, “Look, why are they doing what is not lawful on the Sabbath?” And he said to them, “Have you never read what David did, when he was in need and was hungry, he and those who were with him: how he entered the house of God, in the time of Abiathar the high priest, and ate the bread of the Presence, which it is not lawful for any but the priests to eat, and also gave it to those who were with him?” And he said to them, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. So the Son of Man is lord even of the Sabbath.” (Mark 2: 23-28)

 

Jesus is rebuked for the behaviour of his disciples. He replies that He is also Lord of the Sabbath, which is to say, He is God. Jesus does not want to create division among people by revealing His divinity, but rather He wants to save everyone. Yet it is we, when we decide to place trust in God or not, who make the difference in terms of our salvation. It is we who divide ourselves into those who are with God and those who are against Him. Note that it is not God who wants to condemn us, but we condemn ourselves in our perseverance until death in mortal sin without repenting.