The Atheist's Church

"And it came to pass on the second Sabbath after the first, that he went through the corn fields; and his disciples plucked the ears of corn, and did eat, rubbing them in their hands. And certain of the Pharisees said unto them, Why do you that which is not lawful to do on the Sabbath days? And Jesus answering them said, Have you not read so much as this, what David did, when himself was hungry and they which were with him; How he went into the house of God, and did take and eat the showbread, and gave also to them that were with him; which it is not lawful to eat but for the priests alone? And he said unto them, That the Son of man is Lord also of the Sabbath” (Luke 6:1-5)

"Legalism" is a cold prison for condemned criminals. It is the foundation for those who are religious and trust in their religious works to save them. That error comes from a lack of knowledge. The Pharisees were the epitome of religious legalists. They believed that eternal life came as a result of their works commending them to God, and they certainly worked at it. They had massive lists of do's and don'ts, and if you didn’t do the do's and don'ts, as far as they were concerned, you were damned.

One of their many rules was that you didn't do any work on the Sabbath. On what is believed to be the first Sabbath after the Day of Pentecost, the disciples plucked the ears of corn as they walked through the corn fields, and "rubbed" them in their hands. They, as far as the Pharisees were concerned, their rubbing of the hands left them guilty of doing work on the Sabbath.

The Pharisees had added their own list of things to do, to the Law of God, and those rules overshadowed its function. The purpose of the Law is to act as a mirror, and the function of any mirror is to reflect the truth. No man uses a mirror to wash himself, but that’s what the Pharisees tried to do. By failing to look into the mirror of the Law they failed to see themselves as guilty criminals and therefore fell into the trap of self-righteousness. They proclaimed themselves clean and became "holier-than-thou." Jesus brought back the spirit of the Law, by pointing out how David and his men violated its precepts, but were proclaimed guiltless in the eyes of God.

When you and I look into the mirror of the Law and see ourselves in truth, we can understand that there is no way that our righteousness can please God. We are guilty criminals who have violated its holy precepts a multitude of times. However, through repentance and faith in Jesus we can be made righteous (by the free grace of God), and be guiltless in the eyes of our morally perfect Creator.