5.26.25 ~ Are you sure it's Him?

Good morning!


Yeshua made a statement in Matthew 12:6, where He said, “I tell you, something greater than the Temple is here.” (Matt. 12:6)

If I was going to ask you, "off the top of your head who is the one that's greater than the Temple? Immediately, our response would be obvious...

If we look a couple of verses later, we see that the 'Son of man' is Lord of the Sabbath. If I was to ask you, "off the top of your head, who is the 'son of man' that is Lord of the Sabbath"? Immediately, our response would be obvious...

Before we take the 'obvious mindset' are you open to consider something more textual? Something more obvious, that's not heretical :-)?

If we look closely at Matthew 12:6, the one who is greater, which is a singular neuter word, removes the focus of a singular masculine Yeshua, and points it directly towards the mercy in verse 7.

"And, if you would have known what this means, I desire mercy/loving kindness (singular neuter) and not sacrifice, you would not have condemned the guiltless.” (Matt. 12:7)

When Yeshua used the term 'Son of man' our mind immediately thought He was speaking of Himself. Correct? What if we dove a little deeper and uncovered some latitude with the term 'son of man' to fit the statement a little more accurately :-)?

For one, the 'son of man' has the common use of a human being (Psa. 8:4). In the Gospels, Yeshua uses the term in 3 ways:
1. A normal human being (like you and me)
2. As part of the passion predictions
3. To speak of the future end-of-days judge

Which one refers to Matthew 12:8? Enquiring minds want to know, especially as we move closer to Shavuot/Pentecost.

The answer is found in Mark's statement (Mk. 2:7)
"The Sabbath was made for man and not man for the Sabbath." (Mk. 2:7)

Ironically, Rabbinic commentaries agree that the 'son of man' is a general description of mankind.

Are we open-hearted and open-minded enough to put aside our current interpretation even if it causes distress to our view of the Messiah? Are we ready to listen to what the text actually says rather than hold on to a denominational and cultural doctrine we have derived from a misreading of the text?

Let's flip the script for a moment: If we read the text as a reference to the Messiah, then we endorse a theology that sets aside the necessity of Shabbat. You might want to read that again :-) If we have the Messiah, and the Messiah is greater than the Sabbath, then we no longer need to follow the Scriptural revelation of Genesis 2:1-3, Exodus 20:8-11 (#4 of the big 10), Exodus 31:13-17; Exodus 35:2,3, Leviticus 23, Deuteronomy 5:12-14, as well as the +100 references in our Bibles. Reading the text in this way justifies our Christian doctrine that Jesus set aside the Jewish legalism of the Sabbath and that Jesus as Savior is greater than the legal requirements of Moses; which flies in the face of Isaiah 56:2,4.

On this 44th day, the 7th week and 2nd day of counting the omer, I'm hoping with you that our hearts and minds are being opened to a clearer lifestyle in Messiah.

The 7th Shabbat of this counting is coming: Pentecost (Lev. 23:15,16). I'll be in Ft. Walton Beach, Florida celebrating. Where will you be?

Shalom,
Alan

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