Verse of the Day: 1 Samuel 21:6, So the priest gave him holy bread; for there was no bread there but the showbread which had been taken from before the Lord, in order to put hot bread in its place on the day when it was taken away.
Are we Pharisaical Christians? Are we more concerned with keeping religious rituals and traditions than we are with being compassionate and showing true love toward others? Have we allowed our religiosity to make us judgmental and arrogant about our so called “faith”? Ahimelech did something that was contrary to God’s ceremonial law, not moral law, and was blameless in his actions. If you just read what I just wrote in the previous sentence and your head exploded because I said he was blameless, then you just might be that Pharisaical Christian. Ahimelech knew that the showbread was to be eaten by Aaron and his sons, according to Leviticus 24:9, but the Law did not state that it could never, under any circumstance, be eaten by anyone else. The Word of God is clear when it reads, “Thou shalt or thou shalt not”. The interpretation will never change, but the application may vary. Ahimelech, before giving David the showbread for him and those he traveled with, who apparently were not present with David during his conversation with Ahimelech, made sure that David was ceremonially clean. Why did Ahimelech do this? He did it because it was not something to be given lightly, since God instructed that it should be for the priests, to be consumed in the house of God. So why was Ahimelech willing to breach part of God’s ceremonial law in this case? Well, I supposed I should let the Giver of the Law explain it Himself. In Matthew 12 the Pharisees were critical of Jesus’ disciples because they plucked heads of grain to eat during the Sabbath. Jesus, in correcting the Pharisees for their judgmental attitude, said this in verses 3-7, “Have you not read what David did when he was hungry, he and those who were with him: 4 how he entered the house of God and ate the showbread which was not lawful for him to eat, nor for those who were with him, but only for the priests? 5 Or have you not read in the law that on the Sabbath the priests in the temple profane the Sabbath, and are blameless? 6 Yet I say to you that in this place there is One greater than the temple. 7 But if you had known what this means, ‘I desire mercy and not sacrifice,’ you would not have condemned the guiltless.” In essence, Jesus was confirming, many years later, that what Ahimelech did for David was blameless before God. Ahimelech breached ceremonial law to fulfill God’s law of love. Neither David nor Ahimelech breached any moral law by their actions regarding the showbread. They did not sin against God, but instead did exactly what the LORD expects from us when we are dealing with others; that we have enough wisdom to know that rituals and traditions, which do not supersede God’s Word, are to take a backseat to mercy, compassion and goodness towards one another. Far too often, we put more weight and value on our personal convictions than we do on what God says in His Word. We expect others to live in accordance to our convictions, rather than living in accordance to their own convictions that are based on God’s Word. Even if a brother or sister in Christ stumble in their walk or use their liberty in Christ as an occasion to sin, we are to be careful about how we approach them, and be careful about our motivation in confronting them. Galatians 6:1-3 clearly reminds us, “Brethren, if a man is overtaken in any trespass, you who are spiritual restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness, considering yourself lest you also be tempted. 2 Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ. 3 For if anyone thinks himself to be something, when he is nothing, he deceives himself.” There will be those times when we will have the opportunity to show others, who are hurting and in need or have stumbled in their walk, the love of Jesus. Yet, all too often what we end up doing is beating them over the head with our own personal “dos and don’ts”. To add insult to injury, we do it in a mean-spirited manner. Lest we forget, James 1:19-20 commands, “So then, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath; 20 for the wrath of man does not produce the righteousness of God.” Let us be wise enough to know that when we are dealing with others, if they have done something that is morally wrong before God, we can correct them in love, but if it is a question of violating some religious ritual or personal conviction or preference, then mercy, compassion, and love, must be the priority, just as God made it a priority in forgiving our sinfulness and giving us what we clearly do not deserve, forgiveness and life eternal in Christ Jesus.
Today, God extends an invitation to you to accept His free gift of salvation (Rom 6:23). Will you accept it? Anyone who calls on Jesus, by faith, in repentance, confessing your sins, will receive eternal life. Do not put off calling on Him, and receive Him and His free gift of salvation today (Rom 10:13).
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