There is a story in John chapter 5 about a man who was sick for thirty eight years, and Jesus met him on the Sabbath.  The Bible doesn’t tell us exactly what the sickness was, or how he ended up with it, only that Jesus loosed him from that burden on the Sabbath.  Let’s read about it here:

Joh 5:1  After this there was a feast of the Jews; and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.
Joh 5:2  Now there is at Jerusalem by the sheep market a pool, which is called in the Hebrew tongue Bethesda, having five porches.
Joh 5:3  In these lay a great multitude of impotent folk, of blind, halt, withered, waiting for the moving of the water.
Joh 5:4  For an angel went down at a certain season into the pool, and troubled the water: whosoever then first after the troubling of the water stepped in was made whole of whatsoever disease he had.
Joh 5:5  And a certain man was there, which had an infirmity thirty and eight years.
Joh 5:6  When Jesus saw him lie, and knew that he had been now a long time in that case, he saith unto him, Wilt thou be made whole?
Joh 5:7  The impotent man answered him, Sir, I have no man, when the water is troubled, to put me into the pool: but while I am coming, another steppeth down before me.
Joh 5:8  Jesus saith unto him, Rise, take up thy bed, and walk.
Joh 5:9  And immediately the man was made whole, and took up his bed, and walked: and on the same day was the sabbath.
Joh 5:10  The Jews therefore said unto him that was cured, It is the sabbath day: it is not lawful for thee to carry thy bed.
Joh 5:11  He answered them, He that made me whole, the same said unto me, Take up thy bed, and walk.
Joh 5:12  Then asked they him, What man is that which said unto thee, Take up thy bed, and walk?
Joh 5:13  And he that was healed wist not who it was: for Jesus had conveyed himself away, a multitude being in that place.
Joh 5:14  Afterward Jesus findeth him in the temple, and said unto him, Behold, thou art made whole: sin no more, lest a worse thing come unto thee.

Joh 5:15  The man departed, and told the Jews that it was Jesus, which had made him whole.
Joh 5:16  And therefore did the Jews persecute Jesus, and sought to slay him, because he had done these things on the sabbath day.
Joh 5:17  But Jesus answered them, My Father worketh hitherto, and I work.
Joh 5:18  Therefore the Jews sought the more to kill him, because he not only had broken the sabbath, but said also that God was his Father, making himself equal with God.

Now we absolutely know the Lord Jesus committed no sin whatsoever.  So, in telling the man whom He had just healed to rise, take up his bed and walk on the Sabbath would have been breaking the Sabbath, right?  Or was it?  The LORD brought my attention to verse 16 last night very strongly.  Jesus said He came not to destroy the law, but to fulfill it.  Is there a difference between “destroy”, and “fulfill”?  Why, CERTAINLY!

Suppose you take a glass and fill it with water, until it runs over, ok?  That glass is filled up, or fulfilled if you will.  Is that the same as throwing the glass down and destroying it?  No?  How so?  And yet, people insist Jesus did away with the Law, while He himself said He did NOT come to destroy the law, but rather to fulfill it, or to perform that which it required.  But it gets interesting here, because the Jews accused Jesus of destroying the Sabbath, or breaking it, by telling the man who was healed to rise and take up his bed and walk.  Did Jesus know the correct way to “keep the Sabbath”?  Well, you’d think so, seeing He created the Sabbath.  But the Jews didn’t seem to agree with Jesus’ interpretation of the Sabbath.  And I find MANY “religious” people are the same way, putting their “religion” over the Word of God.

Here, let’s have a look of another situation where Jesus healed on the Sabbath, much to the Jews’ chagrin:
Luk 13:10  And he was teaching in one of the synagogues on the sabbath.
Luk 13:11  And, behold, there was a woman which had a spirit of infirmity eighteen years, and was bowed together, and could in no wise lift up herself.
Luk 13:12  And when Jesus saw her, he called her to him, and said unto her, Woman, thou art loosed from thine infirmity.
Luk 13:13  And he laid his hands on her: and immediately she was made straight, and glorified God.
Luk 13:14  And the ruler of the synagogue answered with indignation, because that Jesus had healed on the sabbath day, and said unto the people, There are six days in which men ought to work: in them therefore come and be healed, and not on the sabbath day.
Luk 13:15  The Lord then answered him, and said, Thou hypocrite, doth not each one of you on the sabbath loose his ox or his ass from the stall, and lead him away to watering?
Luk 13:16  And ought not this woman, being a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan hath bound, lo, these eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the sabbath day?

You see, God is about freeing people from their afflictions, not leaving them in them, even for one more day.  Yes, Jesus could have healed the woman on Sunday, one day later, and the Jews would have been fine with that, but God wanted her free NOW!  And so many people are NOT getting free because of RELIGION, the very thing they are looking to in order to get free in the first place.  Here’s a clue:  religion keeps you in bondage.  Jesus sets you FREE!  But that doesn’t mean the law is done away with.  The Ten Commandments, or as the Hebrews call them, The Ten Words, are still in effect.  Jesus didn’t break any of them by healing on the Sabbath.  Rather, He showed mercy in not keeping them in bondage even ONE MORE DAY to satisfy the Jews.

The more you look at the earthly ministry of Jesus, the more you will find it ran crosswise to the religious traditions of the Jews.  Keep in mind also, there are twelve tribes of Hebrews, and only ONE tribe is the Tribe of Judah, or as they are known, JEWS.  The Jews persecuted Jesus continually, until they had Him killed.  Now, if He had sinned, even once, He could not have been our sinless Savior and Redeemer.  So, did He break the Sabbath?  Not according to God’s view of the Sabbath.  You need to look at the Sabbath again, through the eyes of God.  The Sabbath was created for man, not man for the Sabbath.

Jesus and His disciples were walking through a field picking corn to eat on the Sabbath.
The Jews railed on Him for that one, too.
Mat 12:1  At that time Jesus went on the sabbath day through the corn; and his disciples were an hungred, and began to pluck the ears of corn, and to eat.
Mat 12:2  But when the Pharisees saw it, they said unto him, Behold, thy disciples do that which is not lawful to do upon the sabbath day.
Mat 12:3  But he said unto them, Have ye not read what David did, when he was an hungred, and they that were with him;
Mat 12:4  How he entered into the house of God, and did eat the shewbread, which was not lawful for him to eat, neither for them which were with him, but only for the priests?
Mat 12:5  Or have ye not read in the law, how that on the sabbath days the priests in the temple profane the sabbath, and are blameless?
Mat 12:6  But I say unto you, That in this place is one greater than the temple.
Mat 12:7  But if ye had known what this meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice, ye would not have condemned the guiltless.
Mat 12:8  For the Son of man is Lord even of the sabbath day.

Time after time, Jesus corrected the “religious people” about the correct meaning of the Sabbath, and said so by His own authority, For the Son of man is Lord even of the sabbath day.   Jesus saw the need of man taking precedence over religious traditions of men.  He didn’t say the Sabbath was done away with at ANY time, either before He went to the cross, or after His resurrection, or in Revelation when He spoke with John.  The law is still there.  The religion is what He done away with, He wants a relationship with you, not religious tradition.  By His sacrifice, He opened the door to the Throne Room so YOU can go in and be with the Father, and let me tell you, all the religion in the world cannot do that for you.  Jesus did that for you!  That makes Him not only Lord of the Sabbath day, but the one who can totally set you free.

Will YOU be made whole?  Jesus asked the man that who had been sick for thirty eight years from sin.  He doesn’t want to hear any excuses like the lame man made, He just wants to hear you say, YES, LORD!!  He prefers mercy over tradition.  Is the law still to be obeyed?  Sure!  And if you truly love God, why would you want to be a lawbreaker?

In Revelation 21:5-8 it is written:
Rev 21:5  And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful.
Rev 21:6  And he said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely.
Rev 21:7  He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son.
Rev 21:8  But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.

You see, the lawbreakers won’t be in the Kingdom of heaven.  Look at this:
Rev 12:17  And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.

The devil will use the religious establishment to raise up persecution against any who choose to keep the commandments of God, who have the testimony of Christ Jesus.  Why do you think the devil works so hard to get people to stop keeping the Sabbath?  Because he knows it is one of the ways God recognizes who is His, and who is not.  So, take another look at the Sabbath.  It is the day of rest from your burdens, not something that was “done away with” at the cross.  The disciples kept the Commandments, including the Sabbath. Never forget that.  You’re not mixing law with grace by keeping the Commandments, you’re establishing grace by doing what is right and good according to God’s own Word.  You want to please God?  Then keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.  Simple as that!