The Amazing Character of Jesus - part 1
010 The Amazing Character of Jesus – part 1
Mark 2:23-28
January 11, 2026
Several years ago someone cornered my dad at their furniture store.
(His horse barn where he bought and sold horses was connected).
This person began to grill him on whether he sold horses to the killer buyer, and proceeded to lecture him on how evil such a thing was.
My dad responded with one question.
Do you support abortion?
· The person backed up and got real non-committal and didn’t want to answer.
· Dad told them to get out of his store.
· If you could fight to save a horse, but not an unborn child he had no time for
you.
And that is the sort of thought process
I want to put in front of your mind this morning.
What really matters?
What is really worth saving?
Our world is filled with causes to support:
For $100 donation you can sponsor a female elephant named Mae Noy,
· Who was rescued from a trafficking incident involving a middle easter zoo.
https://www.elephantconservationcenter.com/elephant/mae-noy/
For $60 you can adopt a whale for an entire year.
· Each adoption includes a personalized adoption certificate and a photo of your whale.
https://www.oceanicsociety.org/adopt/adopt-a-whale/
For a donation to “save the trees”
· You can, help prevent the cutting of 10 million mature trees by enabling legal interventions, mass petitions, and direct on-ground action.
https://www.savethetrees.world/
You can donate to the: Give Back Yoga Foundation
· Whose mission is to make yoga accessible to underserved or marginalized communities through programs like Prison Yoga Project, Yoga of 12-Step Recovery, and yoga4cancer.
Or you can give to: The Critter Connection
· Which is a nonprofit that rescues and rehabilitates abandoned and neglected guinea pigs.
https://nonprofitpoint.com/funny-weird-charities/
Or maybe you prefer: Long Hopes Donkey Shelter
· Which is a nonprofit organization dedicated to the rescue, rehabilitation, and rehoming of at-risk donkeys.
One of my favorite non-profit opportunities: 501st Legion
· In an effort to promote an interest in Star Wars, this volunteer organization, based on the baddies of The Republic, brings together costume enthusiasts who want to contribute to their community. Through Star Wars related events, they participate in fundraising and volunteer efforts to show that bad guys can do good. Since 1977 they’ve been working towards becoming the leading force in fan-based charity events.
BUT THEN THERE’S OTHER OPPORTUNITIES.
· You can give money to save the sports program of your favorite college so that they can recruit better players in hopes of winning a championship.
· You can give money to a political party in hopes that they can save the world.
· You can invest in clubs, fraternities, religious organizations, and all sorts of causes so that they can save your way of life.
THE OPPORTUNTIES FOR YOU TO SUPPORT SOMETHING
OR SAVE SOMETHING ARE ENDLESS.
If you are going to give your time and your money and your attention to some sort of conservation effort, then what should it be?
THIS MORNING I’LL SHOW YOU WHERE JESUS’ FOCUS WAS
As He squares off for the 4th battle of Mark chapter 2.
As you know Mark 2 catalogs 4 battles Jesus faced as He continued His conquest.
First the enemy QUESTIONED HIS CLAIM
Jesus declared a paralytic to be forgiven of his sin.
Mark 2:7 “Why does this man speak that way? He is blaspheming; who can forgive sins but God alone?”
· They are right, it would be blasphemy if Jesus were not God.
· But He is God and He does have such authority.
· To prove it told the paralytic to get up, pick up his bed, and go home.
· And he did.
Next the enemy QUESTIONED HIS COMPANY
After Jesus saved Levi the tax collector, He ended up dining with Levi in his home and witnessing to many other tax collectors.
The enemy responded:
Mark 2:16 “When the scribes of the Pharisees saw that He was eating with the sinners and tax collectors, they said to His disciples, “Why is He eating and drinking with tax collectors and sinners?”
· Jesus’ answer was clear: Sick people need a doctor.
· He came as a Savior for sinners.
· It only stands to reason that you would find Him with sinners.
Next the enemy QUESTIONED HIS COMMITMENT
Jesus was feasting with sinners, but the disciples of John and the disciples of the Pharisees were participating in a customary fast.
Mark 2:18 “John’s disciples and the Pharisees were fasting; and they came and said to Him, “Why do John’s disciples and the disciples of the Pharisees fast, but Your disciples do not fast?”
But Jesus again won the day
Reminding this crowd that it was not His feasting that was inappropriate,
But their fasting which was wrong.
Jesus had very recently:
· Preached the gospel
· Cast out many demons
· Healed many diseases
· Cleansed a leper
· Forgiven and healed a paralytic
· Saved and transformed a known sinner named Levi
· Saved many other sinners in Levi’s house
Which of those events was so terrible
That it called for men to fast and weep until God intervened?
Their determination to hold on to rituals totally missed the point.
Jesus did not come to save Judaism.
He came to save sinners.
Jesus wins again.
Well this morning, and again tonight, we’re going to look at the fourth attack of the enemy where they will QUESTION HIS CHARACTER
When we talk about character,
We are talking about the way in which a person conducts themselves.
We are talking about their behavior, their intentions, their desires, etc.
The writer of Hebrews wrote:
Hebrews 13:5 “Make sure that your character is free from the love of money, being content with what you have; for He Himself has said, “I will never desert you, nor will I ever forsake you,”
He warned that your character NOT be consumed by the wrong thing.
That you NOT be a man who was only concerned about money.
This morning, it is the character of Jesus which will come under attack.
It is all bound up in this issue of what is “lawful”.
(24) “The Pharisees were saying to Him, “Look, why are they doing what is not lawful on the Sabbath?”
Jesus will respond with a historical illustration,
But address the same issue.
(26) “how [David] entered the house of God in the time of Abiathar the high priest, and ate the consecrated bread, which is not lawful for anyone to eat except the priests…”
Even into chapter 3, which we will look at tonight.
· Jesus enters a synagogue where He sees a man with a withered hand.
Mark 3:4 “And He said to them, “Is it lawful to do good or to do harm on the Sabbath, to save a life or to kill?” But they kept silent.”
So you have an idea of what the issue at hand is.
Jesus is about to be accused of
Not caring enough about obedience to the Law of God.
They are going to question His character
And whether or not He has a love for God’s Law.
As we watch this ambush unfold
We’ll get to see the heart of Christ and the heart of God
And have our own hearts challenged as well.
I MIGHT START YOU THINKING by simply asking the question:
WHAT DO YOU LOVE?
Let’s look at this fourth attack.
#1 THE AMBUSH
Mark 2:23-24
Here we go again.
· They tried to accuse Him of blasphemy, that backfired.
· They tried to accuse Him of gluttony and drunkenness, they didn’t stick.
· They tried to accuse Him of apathy regarding spiritual things, that failed miserably.
Now they wish to accuse Him of flat out disobedience to God’s Law.
I don’t mind telling you that IF THEY ARE RIGHT on this accusation then Jesus cannot be the Savior He claims to be.
He cannot forgive that paralytic and pay for his sins, if Jesus Himself is a violator of God’s Law. Jesus would have His own sins to pay for, not the paralytics.
He cannot save Matthew either, since Jesus would need someone to save Him.
All those friends of Matthew who decided to follow Jesus would also be following to their destruction.
And so would you.
If Jesus is a transgressor of God’s Law
Turn off the lights and lock the door, there is no hope in Him.
Let’s look at the AMBUSH here.
“And it happened that He was passing through the grainfields on the Sabbath, and His disciples began to make their way along while picking the heads of grain.”
Ok, first of all, what is happening here is totally legal.
Deuteronomy 23:24-25 “When you enter your neighbor’s vineyard, then you may eat grapes until you are fully satisfied, but you shall not put any in your basket. “When you enter your neighbor’s standing grain, then you may pluck the heads with your hand, but you shall not wield a sickle in your neighbor’s standing grain.”
· It was one of God’s provisions that as you traveled, when you walked through a
field, you could eat as you walked.
· You couldn’t harvest his crop, but you could stave off your hunger by eating as
you went.
· That was totally legal.
That is NOT the problem of the Pharisees here.
Their problem is that Jesus’ disciples were doing it on the Sabbath.
(24) “The Pharisees were saying to Him, “Look, why are they doing what is not lawful on the Sabbath?”
And there is the ambush.
These guys were just lying in wait, looking for Jesus to mess up,
When the disciples start picking that grain, they pounce.
SO WHAT IS THE PROBLEM?
You should know that the Pharisees were the self-proclaimed Sabbath experts.
· They took it upon themselves to govern the Sabbath more than anything else.
· This was their biggest issue.
Scripture actually says very little about Sabbath restrictions.
Exodus 20:8-11 “Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. “Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a sabbath of the Lord your God; in it you shall not do any work, you or your son or your daughter, your male or your female servant or your cattle or your sojourner who stays with you. “For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day; therefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day and made it holy.”
You read the command there.
“you shall not do any work”
But that was far too open-ended for the Pharisees.
They had taken it upon themselves to define what “work” was.
John MacArthur gives quite the explanation of the details the Pharisees had devised.
“Almost no area of life was spared from the fastidious Sabbath regulations of the rabbis, which were designed to gain God’s favor. There were laws about wine, honey, milk, spitting, writing, and getting dirt off of clothes. Anything that might be contrived as work was forbidden. Thus, on a Sabbath, scribes could not carry their pens, tailors their needles, or students their books. To do so might tempt them to work on the Sabbath. For that matter, carrying anything heavier than a dried fig was forbidden…No insects could be killed. No candle or flame could be lit or extinguished. Nothing could be bought or sold. No bathing was allowed, since water might spill on the floor and accidentally wash it. No furniture could be moved inside the house, since it might create ruts in the floor and thereby constitute plowing. An egg could not be boiled even if all one did was place it in the hot desert sand. A radish could not be left in salt because it would become a pickle, and pickling constituted work…It was not even permitted for women to look in a mirror, since they might be tempted to pull out any gray hairs they spotted.”
(MacArthur, John [The MacArthur New Testament Commentary: Mark 1-8; Moody Press; Chicago, IL; 2015] pg. 139)
I think you get the idea.
This day had become a massive burden.
You couldn’t do anything on the Sabbath
Lest you be considered guilty of violating it.
WELL, ON THIS DAY, the disciples were “picking the heads of grain”, no doubt rolling it in their hands, throwing off the chaff, and eating the grain.
To the Pharisees that was
· Reaping
· Winnowing
· And Grinding
· The disciples were judged to be in violation of Sabbath Law.
The disciples were merely exercising their divine right
According to the Law of Moses to stave of their hunger,
And the Pharisees pounce to attack.
They question Jesus’ loyalty to God’s Law.
His character is challenged.
Well, as we have noticed, Jesus is ready for the war.
· He is ready to “destroy speculations”
· He is ready to expose the deceptions of the evil one.
· This fight is right up His alley.
#2 THE ATTACK
Mark 2:25-27
There are two main points here included in Mark’s gospel.
Mark omits some of what Matthew and Luke record,
Mark includes a statement that no one else mentioned.
For our purpose, we’re just going to stick with what Mark had to say
To make sure we grasp his point.
But two points Jesus makes.
1) THE PRIORITY OF CEREMONY (25-26)
“And He said to them, “Have you never read what David did when he was in need and he and his companions became hungry; how he entered the house of God in the time of Abiathar the high priest, and ate the consecrated bread, which is not lawful for anyone to eat except the priests, and he also gave it to those who were with him?”
Jesus cites an Old Testament narrative account.
A couple of things I want to say at the outset of this one.
First, this story does NOT have to do with a Sabbath violation.
· This story has to do with a ceremonial violation.
The first issue Jesus addresses is not breaking the Sabbath,
The first issue He addresses is the right to satisfy hunger.
Jesus gave other illustrations in Matthew and Luke,
But this is the one Mark highlights because it focuses on man’s need.
In both of these stories there are men who are hungry.
The other thing I want you to keep in the back of your mind is that this first story involves David.
That is important because you are hard-pressed
To ever make the argument that David did not love God’s Law.
All one has to do is read the 119th Psalm to know the truth about David’s character regarding the Law of God.
Psalms 119:97 “O how I love Your law! It is my meditation all the day.”
Psalms 119:113 “I hate those who are double-minded, But I love Your law.”
Psalms 119:163 “I hate and despise falsehood, But I love Your law.”
Disobedience to God’s Law
Was something David never got comfortable with.
Psalms 119:136 “My eyes shed streams of water, Because they do not keep Your law.”
So Jesus is here using an illustration
About a man who loved God’s Law desperately,
But who did something that was unlawful out of basic human need.
The story is short enough:
TURN TO: 1 Samuel 21:1-6
So David is fleeing from Saul.
· He comes to Nob which is about a mile north of Jerusalem
· It is where the tabernacle was
· And when David arrived, he and his men were hungry.
· He asked for bread and the priest told him there was no ordinary bread available.
All that was there was “the bread of the presence”
You can read about it in Leviticus 24:5-10.
· It was 12 loaves set out in a cross before God.
· It represented the 12 tribes in the presence of God.
· Every Sabbath new hot bread was placed and the old removed
· Only the priests could eat that bread in a holy place
But when David spoke of his hunger,
· This priest offered that consecrated bread to them
· Provided they were holy and had not been with a woman.
What David did was clearly “not lawful”.
We can read Leviticus and see that.
SO WHAT DO WE DO WITH SUCH AN INCIDENT?
We praise a wise priest who knew that
Ceremony and ritual is not as important as people.
What kind of priest would let men starve to uphold a symbolic ritual?
Now you can love that ritual.
· You can see that ritual as important.
· You are also free to love elephants, whales, donkeys, or guinea pigs.
· It’s ok to like college football or even Star Wars.
· It’s ok to love the church building and the history we have here.
But don’t get confused about where things like that rank
In the grand scheme of importance.
PEOPLE MATTER MORE.
It would be foolish to make a man starve just to uphold a ritual.
In David’s case that was actually A GOD-ORDAINED RITUAL
And even it was pushed aside to care for the hungry.
How much less important is a man-made ritual like that of the Pharisees?
Would they really let men starve
In order to maintain their customs and rituals?
THEY ABSOLUTELY WOULD.
Jesus made that point clear.
The priority of their ceremony was way off target.
Then there’s a second point Jesus makes.
2) THE PURPOSE OF SABBATH (27)
This statement is unique to Mark and seems to be HIS BIG POINT.
“Jesus said to them, “The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath.”
Do you remember when the Sabbath was initiated?
Day 7 of creation.
Genesis 2:1-3 “Thus the heavens and the earth were completed, and all their hosts. By the seventh day God completed His work which He had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had done. Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because in it He rested from all His work which God had created and made.”
We have talked about God’s rest before.
· He rested because the work was finished.
· It was done.
· And God rested.
Isaiah 40:28 “Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth Does not become weary or tired. His understanding is inscrutable.”
The God who does not grow weary or tired rested.
And then He established the seventh day as a day of rest for humanity.
WHY?
IT WAS A MERCY!
God told men, you must work for 6 days.
· That’s part of the curse.
· By the sweat of your brow you will bring forth food.
But God in His mercy did not require perpetual labor.
God, in His mercy ordained a day of rest for humanity.
Take a day off.
Don’t work, focus on worship, rest.
And that is the point Jesus is making.
“The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath.”
· Which was created first, the Sabbath or man? (man)
· Which came first, the law or man? (man)
That should tell you something of the priority right there.
BUT WHAT DID THE PHARISEES THINK OF GOD?
They insinuated that God created a system of ceremonies and ordinances and commands,
But was somehow unfulfilled without little minions to do all the things He commanded?
So God created men and put them in His little system so that He could glory in how well His system worked.
Is that what they think God did?
· That God loved the system most?
· That man only existed to honor the system?
THAT’S EXACTLY WHAT THEY THOUGHT AND TAUGHT.
BUT THEY GOT IT BACKWARD.
The Sabbath and even the Law was for the benefit of man.
GOD LOVES MEN!
GOD LOVES PEOPLE!
God cares more about people than even ritual and ceremony.
David made that clear.
And now Jesus has taken this battle to a whole new level.
The problem we see here is not whether or not I love the Law.
The problem is whether or not you love people.
You would starve a man to death in order to keep your system,
And that is totally contrary to the heart of God.
God offers rest, you have made it a burden.
Could you imagine living under such a system?
Could you imagine the burden of that day?
· You would hate the Sabbath.
· You would hate the day of “rest”.
· You would dread it starting and long for it to end.
Do you remember those people in chapter 1 who couldn’t wait for the Sabbath to be over so they could bring their sick to Jesus?
· Imagine being in pain, suffering anguish with a disease,
· But having to wait to go see Jesus until the Sabbath was over.
What a terrible system these men devised.
AND JESUS CAME TO CRUSH THAT SYSTEM
Matthew 11:28-30 “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. “Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. “For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”
Jesus just exposed a deception
That the enemy had used to hold men in bondage.
The enemy, through the Pharisees convinced men
That God loved His ceremony, but didn’t love them.
The enemy had even convinced the Pharisees
That God loved ritual more than people.
Can you imagine falling into such a terrible deception?
And yet, it is common in Scripture.
Isaiah 1:13-17 “Bring your worthless offerings no longer, Incense is an abomination to Me. New moon and sabbath, the calling of assemblies— I cannot endure iniquity and the solemn assembly. “I hate your new moon festivals and your appointed feasts, They have become a burden to Me; I am weary of bearing them. “So when you spread out your hands in prayer, I will hide My eyes from you; Yes, even though you multiply prayers, I will not listen. Your hands are covered with blood. “Wash yourselves, make yourselves clean; Remove the evil of your deeds from My sight. Cease to do evil, Learn to do good; Seek justice, Reprove the ruthless, Defend the orphan, Plead for the widow.”
Isaiah 58:6-7 “Is this not the fast which I choose, To loosen the bonds of wickedness, To undo the bands of the yoke, And to let the oppressed go free And break every yoke? “Is it not to divide your bread with the hungry And bring the homeless poor into the house; When you see the naked, to cover him; And not to hide yourself from your own flesh?”
Jeremiah 7:4-7 “Do not trust in deceptive words, saying, ‘This is the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord.’ “For if you truly amend your ways and your deeds, if you truly practice justice between a man and his neighbor, if you do not oppress the alien, the orphan, or the widow, and do not shed innocent blood in this place, nor walk after other gods to your own ruin, then I will let you dwell in this place, in the land that I gave to your fathers forever and ever.”
Jonah 4:10-11 “Then the Lord said, “You had compassion on the plant for which you did not work and which you did not cause to grow, which came up overnight and perished overnight. “Should I not have compassion on Nineveh, the great city in which there are more than 120,000 persons who do not know the difference between their right and left hand, as well as many animals?”
Micah 6:8 “He has told you, O man, what is good; And what does the Lord require of you But to do justice, to love kindness, And to walk humbly with your God?”
Zechariah 7:9-10 “Thus has the Lord of hosts said, ‘Dispense true justice and practice kindness and compassion each to his brother; and do not oppress the widow or the orphan, the stranger or the poor; and do not devise evil in your hearts against one another.’”
YOU SEE IT DON’T YOU?
WHAT DOES GOD LOVE?
PEOPLE!
And certainly those of us with a NEW TESTAMENT should know this.
John 3:16 “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.”
Romans 5:8 “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”
1 John 4:7-11 “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. The one who does not love does not know God, for God is love. By this the love of God was manifested in us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world so that we might live through Him. In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.”
The audacity of the Pharisees is just staggering here.
You have men starving and their chief concern is a man-made ritual?
· They don’t know the heart of God at all.
· They are so out of touch.
JESUS DID NOT COME TO SAVE JUDAISM
JESUS DID NOT COME TO SAVE THE SABBATH
JESUS CAME TO SAVE SINNERS.
He came to a world where sinners were being run over by legalistic zealots who cared only about their rituals.
AND JESUS CAME TO SET MEN FREE.
THAT MAKES FOR A GOOD OPPORTUNITY FOR SELF-REFLECTION
WHAT DO I LOVE?
· (I can probably tell by following my money)
· (Where your treasure is, there will your heart be also)
There’s nothing necessarily wrong with saving the elephants
Or the whales or wanting to support a sport’s team.
But friend none of those are the mission of Christ.
CHRIST CAME TO SAVE SINNERS, THAT IS THE MISSION.
This world is passing away.
· Christ will one day destroy this universe.
· If you devote your life to lesser things one day it will go up in smoke.
But if you want something eternal;
If you want something near the heart of God.
Then set your gaze to saving sinners.
The Pharisees ambushed Him with a tradition,
He attacked back with the heart of God.
But He’s not done.
#3 THE ADVANCE
Mark 2:28
What a statement!
“So the Son of Man is Lord…”
“Lord” is the same word used to identify God over and over in the New Testament.
It has been one of Mark’s main points.
JESUS CHRIST IS GOD.
Mark 1:1 “The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.”
Mark 1:3 “The voice of one crying in the wilderness, ‘Make ready the way of the Lord, Make His paths straight.’”
Mark 1:7-8 “And he was preaching, and saying, “After me One is coming who is mightier than I, and I am not fit to stoop down and untie the thong of His sandals. “I baptized you with water; but He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”
Mark 1:11 “and a voice came out of the heavens: “You are My beloved Son, in You I am well-pleased.”
And on and on.
· Casting out demons
· Healing disease
· Offering the kingdom
· Cleansing lepers
· Forgiving sinners
Jesus Christ is Lord!
And here He announced it to the Pharisees.
This is NOT just a generic announcement.
This is a specific one, meant to shoot right at the heart of the Pharisees.
If there was one area that the Pharisees held total control and domination it was over Sabbath Law.
· Even the Sadducees (who were their enemies) didn’t challenge the Pharisees with regard to the Sabbath.
WHAT DID JESUS DO HERE?
He relieved them of their duty.
“So the Son of Man is Lord even over the Sabbath.”
Joshua went into the land of Canaan and announced to the people there,
· That from now on this was Israel’s land and Israel’s God would be in control.
Jesus entered the land
· And just stripped all ecclesiastical authority away from the Pharisees.
You no longer get to call the shots regarding what is an offense and what is not.
· You are so far off of the heart of God…
· You are so corrupted in your understanding…
· Your priorities are so far gone…
· I wouldn’t put you in charge of a single candlestick.
I am Lord and I’ll be calling the shots
Regarding what is and what is not lawful.
What a declaration by the Lord!
He is not fooling around on His conquest.
He has come to set captives free
On this day He overthrew the corrupt throne of the Pharisees.
You don’t ever have to listen to them again.
They love the wrong thing.
Jesus came to save sinners.
Jesus came because He loves sinners.
And this morning, if you are a sinner,
Then it’s time you see Jesus as the One who can save you.
· Don’t expect the Law to be your friend…
· Don’t expect tradition to deliver you.
· Don’t expect symbolism or ordinances to give you any help…
But if you want salvation.
If you want freedom.
If you want rest.
Then look to Jesus, His priority is sinners.
· Sinners matter more to Him than anything else.
· Because that is who matters to God.
You matter more to Jesus than anything else.
He didn’t lay down His life for the Sabbath,
But He did lay down His life for you.
That is the amazing character of Jesus.