June 4

Matthew 12:1 (NIV)
At that time Jesus went through the grainfields on the Sabbath. His disciples were hungry and began to pick some heads of grain and eat them.

This struck me. It wasn’t Jesus who was picking the grain, it was His disciples. Some of His disciples were “unlearned” guys, but all of them knew what was right and what was wrong to do on the Sabbath. Nobody was in the dark in all of Israel on what was permitted to do on the Sabbath, yet here they were picking grain, which was unlawful on the Sabbath. So where did they get the idea that this was o.k. to do?

Jesus of course! Although Jesus was a Rabbi and very skilled in the knowledge of the law and all the traditions of the “church fathers”, He set the example of what was o.k. and what was not o.k. to do – especially on the Sabbath. The disciples learned from Jesus what permissible. That is why the Pharisees came to Jesus and asked Him why the disciples were picking grain. He was responsible for their actions because of His manner of life and His teaching. (Not all of their actions, but certainly this one).

What do people learn from you? They are learning whether you are teaching them with lessons or just with example – they are learning. You have disciples, lead them to life.