The True Sabbath

The Jews therefore, because it was the preparation, that the bodies should not remain upon the cross on the sabbath day, (for that sabbath day was an high day,) besought Pilate that their legs might be broken, and that they might be taken away.

John 19: 31

This scripture is in the midst of the passage describing the crucifixion of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Jesus had just cried out, “It is finished.” It is a scripture that can be read though pretty quickly and not seem to have much meaning. However, in looking at this verse, it is very revealing and can even have much meaning to us today.

The Context

The Jews were preparing for the Passover. The next day was considered an especially important day because it was the sabbath in the midst of the Passover. Those Jews were using the law to justify their motives for hastening the death of Jesus. Deuteronomy 21: 22-23 states:

And if a man have committed a sin worthy of death, and he be put to death, and thou hang him on a tree:

His body shall not remain all night upon the tree, but thou shalt in any wise bury him that day; (for he that is hanged is accused of God;) that thy land be not defiled, which the Lord thy God giveth thee for an inheritance.

Ironically, crucifixion was not a permitted form of capital punishment in the Jewish law. The most prevalent form, in that day, was stoning. That is why the Jewish leaders sent Jesus to Pilate. They did not want to stone Him and, in their minds, have the blood on their hands. They wanted Him “convicted” under Roman Law and to be punished by the most excruciating form of death possible. That form of punishment was also meant to be a deterrent for others that might seek to “break the law” in the same or similar ways by making the death a spectacle.

Hastening The Death of Jesus

The Jewish leaders use of the Law to hasten the death and burial shows that they were less interested in making Jesus a spectacle as they were completely absorbed with getting rid of Him once and for all. The Law was their excuse to go to Pilate and request that those men on the cross have their legs broken to hasten their death (This is the same Pilate that was keeping them under the bondage of Roman rule). Again, they were less concerned about the other men as they were about Jesus. To them, the quicker they could get rid of Him the better so that they could get back to their “ritualistic” lives. They must keep the Law and they must prepare for the Sabbath during the feast of the Passover.

The irony is that Jesus was the Passover and the Sabbath. They had just slain the perfect sacrifice and the Lord of the Sabbath (Mark 2: 27, 28). Because of their self-righteousness and their spiritual blindness, the Jews, in that day, could not see that the very One who protected their ancestors from the death angel in Egypt is the very same One who they were rejecting. The very One who, in the beginning, set the seventh day as a day of rest is the very One with whom they worked hard to extinguish. Their traditions kept them blind and without understanding. They truly believed that the Sabbath was a day where no work was to be done. They didn’t realize that Jesus wanted them to cease from their own labors (thoughts, ideas, beliefs, traditions, etc.) and rest in Him (See Rest – Part 1 and Rest – Part 2).

Rest For Today

What about us today? Are we truly resting in Jesus or are we holding on to our own thoughts, ideas, beliefs and traditions? Are we wanting Jesus to reign in our lives or are we finding every type of way to completely get rid of Him and His influence over our lives? Are we holding on to technicalities in the “Law” in order to kill His influence? There are people who hold to church doctrine, dogma, traditions and standards so tightly that Jesus cannot have his free reign in their lives or amongst them as a people. On the other hand, there are those that hold onto the “law” of their own self-righteousness and morality to the point that Jesus cannot influence them either. These are people who have thrown off doctrine, dogma, traditions and standards to the point of creating their own religious “righteousness” as a counter to what they see as too hard or too harsh in religion.

In reality, both types of people quench the Holy Spirit. Both sides want to do away with Jesus. Both sides will use scripture to justify their position. At times, they may even turn to the “Pilates” of the world to ensure that Jesus has no influence within their midst. All you have to do is listen to the political banter that goes back-and-forth today; all under the guise of religion (Just as the devil influenced Pilate through political means in that day, he uses politics today as a vehicle for evil). The truth is that we need church doctrine; we need true dogma; some traditions are actually good and the right standards help to protect us and set us apart as God’s people (See Setting Boundaries). Morality is a must in the church. And we not only need to be righteous but also holy, sanctified and pure. These are all a must! However, they should all be because Jesus reigns in our hearts and lives and He dwells within the midst of His people. Without Jesus there is no true doctrine, dogma, tradition, standards, morality, righteousness, holiness, sanctification or purity.

Without Jesus there is no protection. Without Jesus there is no true rest. He settled it once and for all by being the perfect “Passover Lamb” on the cross. When He said, “It is finished” nothing more needed to be done to secure our salvation. He became the fulfillment of the perfect ‘Law of Liberty’ that we might be free from not only its past bondage but the bondage of sin. And it’s that freedom, when accepted, that gives us rest; not on one day but every day that we serve Him and remain in his perfect will.