“I once was lost, but now am found . . . was blind, but now I see”
John Newton – Amazing Grace
In Luke 14, Yeshua goes to the home of a chief Pharisee to eat on the Sabbath day and he heals a man which had the “dropsy” [edema – an abnormal infiltration and excess accumulation of serous fluid in connective tissue or in a serous cavity].
Yeshua first asks if it is “lawful to heal on the sabbath day”? None answer him, so he heals the man.
Understanding that the people present were uncomfortable about his actions, he further emphasizes his point by asking a simple question, “Which of you shall have an ass or an ox fallen into a pit, and will not straightway pull him out on the sabbath day?”
Once again, all refuse to answer him. They had all been taught what not to do on the Sabbath, but they seldom considered what they could do
“The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath” (Mark 2:27)
The same can be said for the entire Torah [Instructions – first five books of the Bible]. It was written for man so he could live in the fallen world he occupied. The instructions explain how best to worship Yahweh and how best to interact with others.
But what happens when we decide to not follow His Instructions? What happens when the church teaches that the instructions are no longer to be followed?
1 I charge thee therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom; 2 Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine. 3 For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; 4 And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables. (2Timothy 4:1-4)
What happens when the truth of Yahweh’s Words are ‘lost’?
Luke 14 continues with Yeshua beginning to teach through the asking of questions [the Socratic Method]:
- Who builds a tower without first making sure he has enough material to complete it?
- Who goes to war without first making sure they have the men and materials to win?
Planning is important. Knowing what you want to achieve and knowing how to achieve it is important.
Yeshua is not interested in building towers or in fighting wars (yet), but as we see in Luke 15, he is interested in saving souls. But only those that desire to be saved.
In Luke 15:4-7, Yeshua tells of a shepherd who loses one sheep and leaves the 99 he has to find the one that is lost. Not only does he seek the one lost sheep, he celebrates when the sheep is found.
How many of us are satisfied with a 99% success rate? Yeshua seeks 100% of his sheep.
25 Jesus answered them, I told you, and ye believed not: the works that I do in my Father’s name, they bear witness of me. 26 But ye believe not, because ye are not of my sheep, as I said unto you. 27 My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: (John 10:25-27)
Yeshua was the Word made flesh (John 1:14) and he always spoke and did his Father’s Will (John 14:31; 6:38)
14 I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine. 15 As the Father knoweth me, even so know I the Father: and I lay down my life for the sheep. 16 And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd. (John 10:14-16)
Luke 15:11-32 is the parable of the prodigal son (or the parable of the forgiving father – the son has nothing if the father isn’t a forgiver).
There are lots of teachings about the son who claims and then squanders his inheritance. Only when he is destitute and fears dying does he return to his father.
He hopes his father will forgive him and take him on as a lowly servant, but his father embraces him and returns him to his rightful position as a member of the family. His father holds a celebration for the ‘lost’ son has returned to him.
I’d like to emphasize Luke 15:8-10:
8 Either what woman having ten pieces of silver, if she lose one piece, doth not light a candle, and sweep the house, and seek diligently till she find it? 9 And when she hath found it, she calleth her friends and her neighbours together, saying, Rejoice with me; for I have found the piece which I had lost. 10 Likewise, I say unto you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth.
In the Eastern culture the ten pieces of silver was a gift from her husband. It was not expensive, but, it carried a very deep sentimental value. It was not the only gift given to her by her husband, but it was certainly the most precious.
Some say that each piece was about the size of a quarter. In most cases, each coin would have the coat of arms of the husband’s family on one side. Usually the year the coin was made was on the other side.
On very special occasions the woman would hang these in her hair. Because it had such sentimental value, the woman was very careful when wearing the ten pieces of silver. The consequences of losing one were very harsh.
None of the ten pieces could be replaced. If the wife were to lose one, her husband would banish her from the house until she found it. They believed that if you lost even one piece of the ten, then you would have lost God’s blessings as well.
(https://confidenceandjoy.com/ten-pieces-of-silver/)
So what was Yeshua telling the people about losing one silver coin? One of Ten?
The words of the LORD are pure words: as silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times. (Psalm 12:6)
12 And the LORD spake unto you out of the midst of the fire: ye heard the voice of the words, but saw no similitude; only ye heard a voice. 13 And he declared unto you his covenant, which he commanded you to perform, even ten commandments; and he wrote them upon two tables of stone. (Deuteronomy 4:12-13)
She ‘lost’ one coin and diligently searched for it – celebrating when it was found. Yeshua equates this with a sinner that stops doing one (or more) of the Commandments (Deuteronomy 5:6-21; Exodus 20:2-17) but then returns to Yahweh’s Instruction and repents. “. . . there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth.”
Have we lost a coin . . . or two, or three?
Most of us have broken several of the Commandments in our life and repented, determining to never break them again (and often failing . . . again).
Have you ever stolen (Exodus 20:15)? Did you feel bad about it? Do you wish you had never done it? Did you repent of your sin? If you did, it is because you heard the voice of the Word made flesh. You listen to the shepherd.
If you are okay with stealing, then you are not of the flock.
What about the fourth Commandment?
8 Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. 9 Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: 10 But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates: 11 For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it. (Exodus 20:8-11)
Have you ever worked on the Sabbath (we often have no choice – we are in bondage to the world)? Shopped on the Sabbath (we have a choice about making others work on the Sabbath)? Did you feel bad about it? Do you wish you had never done it? Did you repent of your sin?
Why do we believe Sunday is the ‘new’ Sabbath (‘the Lord’s day’)? Did Yahweh make a change to His Law or is it a product of what the church teaches?
Has the time come that we refuse to endure sound doctrine? Have we sought after teachers with “itching ears” who preach the truth we want to hear, turning the Word of Yahweh into fables? (2Timothy 4:1-4)
7 The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul: the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple. 8 The statutes of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart: the commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes. (Psalm 19:7-8)
Thy righteousness is an everlasting righteousness, and thy law is the truth. (Psalm 119:142)
When did we decide to ‘improve’ on what is “perfect”, “sure”, “right”, and “pure”? How did we develop a ‘better’ “truth”?
Yahweh, Himself, wrote the Commandments onto stone tablets and gave them to Moses to place in the Ark of the Covenant.
Are we listening to the shepherd when we unrepentantly break the Sabbath on a weekly basis. Even if the Sabbath was changed to Sunday (which it hasn’t), do Christians “keep it holy”?
Is the Sabbath a silver coin you have ‘lost’? Are you looking to ‘find it’? Will you rejoice when you decide to do the whole Word of Yahweh? The angels in heaven will.
My book (Grafted: Embracing Torah) is a good guide for someone wanting to know what keeping Yahweh’s Instructions entails. There is an entire chapter devoted to the Fourth Commandment – keeping the Sabbath holy. It is not a substitute for you going to the Word and making it your own, but it is not a bad start, either.